I have watched many varying different short films for inspiration from drama to comedy I have tried to cover many different areas to figure out where my film will land and what the feeling will be.
One of the earliest short films I watched was 'Borrowed Time' (2015).
Borrowed Time from Borrowed Time on Vimeo.
This film was very powerful in its storytelling. It portrays an ageing man returning to the scene of the worst moment in his life. It is a very sad film with high drama and tension at points, but also moments of contemplation. There were definitely moments I could pick from this that I could relate to the story I want to tell when I come to production.
Another short film I watched more recently is 'SATURDAY' (2016), which depicts the day of the Hillsborough disaster in 1989 when 96 Liverpool football fans lost their lives during a football match. The story focuses on a young boy back in Liverpool playing football with his friends only to come home to discover the horror of loss as his older brother is one of those 96. This again evokes emotions, however this time on a much more relatable real level, as the event in question really did happen.
SATURDAY from jessica levick on Vimeo.
As a loyal Liverpool supporter I myself found this incredibly moving. So this is where the relation of the film can effect the viewer more. So having watched this I knew that my film had to be in some way relatable to audiences. This is why I decided ultimately to remove the key moment of my original script where someone dies having been run over by the large force of the lorry. The story of a man facing a terminal illness as well as two stowaways in the back of his lorry seems more real and relatable.
SETTING THE TONE
As well as watching short films I felt it was appropriate to watch feature films as well to get a sense of tone and feeling that I could potentially portray in my film Backbone (working title).
A major influence for me on the story is 'Locke' (2013). The 90 minute film is set almost entirely in a car as the titular character drives along the motorway talking to various people as his life collapses around him. There are many things to relate to my character in that he is a traveller on the road, he does most of his talking with people on the phone rather than face to face. This means that my actor will have to be very strong in his performance as we will be with him throughout most of the film.
 |
| Screen-cap from 'Locke' (2013) |
The above picture is largely the only thing we see throughout the film. The tone of my film will aim to be similar in many ways to this. However the goal is not to copy this film, my character Rick is very different and will be faced with a different challenge in the back of his lorry.
Often the story of a film can be strong, but the tone and feeling created doesn't necessarily work or vice versa. I watched 'Jackie' (2017) recently which is a film that creates a feeling and tone through its music and visuals that is dreamlike, contemplative and grief stricken. The story focusses on Jackie Kennedy shortly after the assassination of her husband the president JFK.
This clip from the film takes place upon the Kennedy's arrival into Texas. The score by Mica Levi combined with the sound design creates a sense of melancholia as well as impending tragedy as we focus primarily on Jackie ignoring the President. As the first lady you get the feeling that this is her world when in crowds like this, JFK greets the masses whilst she stands in the wings watching the action. This feeling is replicated throughout the film even after the assassination, she remains in a state of shock and in a way in a dream away from the reality surrounding her. Often the sound will cut away completely leaving just the score and her performance to convey the emotion.
This is the power of what the tone a feel can used in the right way. So my goal is to take inspiration from this and the other examples above and replicate them to an extent to further my films story and character ark.
No comments:
Post a Comment