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WEEK 6 : THE SHORT FILM Questions around my film

1) How does your work use the short film format to its advantage?

My film uses the basic 3 act structure but starts late and gets out early. In other words, the build up to Kims discomfort is not really eplored in the film as there is not enough time. We hear bits of it through her conversation with Annie. At the end of the film, we do not see Kim reunited with Jack. But the clasping of the locket implies her heartfelt longing and new understanding of her relationship.

2.) How does the film use brevity in its storytelling?

The dailogue is fairly short and minimal. I have tried to bring in objects/ creatures as non-verbal symbols. For instance, the insects represent the concept of control. Needing to squash or kill something instead of living with it or collaborating and going with the flow. 

3.) How does it use visuals, rather than dialogue, to tell the story? 

Spaces and locations are used to suggest feelngs. The underwater scenes represent immersing oneself or letting go. As soon as one panics underwater, things can go terrible wrong, whilst if one remains calm it can be a very blissful experience. The exercise of diving amplifies the concept of control in comparison to letting go/ bliss. The day dreams that kim has in the temple are visual tales of the past. Offering the viewer a window into past moments in her and jakes relationship. 

4. What is the genre? - Drama 

5. Who is the protagonist ? - Kim

6. How does the protagonist change during the story? 

Kim goes from being controlling, anxious , jealous and unhappy to awakened and in touch with her heart. This only happens through a very painful, tragic experience which brings her to her knees and forces a sort of exorcism to occur. 

Who and/or what is the antagonist? 

-The antagonist in Kim’s mind is the New York art world that has turned him into something he never used to be . If he hadn’t been noticed, things could go back to normal and she could have him all to herself . 

- the real antagonist is, however, herself. Her control and anxiety. I used the insects as a symbol of control , to compare her and Jack’s relationships to the insects as a way of illustrating their relationship to control. 

Q7.  Internal Story:

Kim starts off feeling out of place, powerless and unloved. she is anxious and jealous and trying to get attention in all the wrong ways. 

She makes a move to regain power and assert herself. A painful and tragic experience shows her that she cannot control the world and people around her and the more she tries, the worse things become. 

This creates a distinction between love and control that she cannot ignore. She is brought to her knees, her heart opened in somewhat of a spiritual exorcism.

This awakening eventually leads to her loss of control and eventual freedom and joy. 

External Story : 

Externally, Kim cannot face being in New York whilst Jack becomes famous. It is too triggering. She does not partake in the parties he is holding and cannot embrace his success.

She flies herself to Thailand to complete an open water dive certificate and create some space between her and Jack. 

In an attempt to save her dive buddy, Seth, Kim pushes him into the line of fire of a jet ski and he does not survive. The accident is therefore partially her fault and she struggles with the repercussions of it. 

Q7. How is dialogue used in the film in terms of subtext and plot?

The film focuses heavily on relationships and therefore dialogue is unavoidable and important. The dynamics and subtext of these relationships come through largely in the dialogue. 

Q8. Structure. The film has a clear 3 ACT structure. The first inciting incident is the huge fight that Kim and Jack have at Jack’s apartment. This incident prompts Kim to book her flight to Thailand which takes us into Act 2. 

In act 2, The death of Seth is the second inciting incident which leads us to Kim’s breakdown and eventual healing. 

Q9. Narrative resolution. 

Both resolutions of the internal story happen in a more visual way .

Kim clasping her pendant from Jack as she lies on the beach gives us the sense that she has connected to her heart and is committed to rediscovering the relationship from a place of love and authenticity. 

Kim lets a crab crawl up her leg. Using the symbolism of the insect as control, this represents her “letting things be “ , succuming to fate and letting go of her tight grip on reality. 

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WEEK 5 REFLECTIONS

I thought it was interesting to analyze the 3 act structure and how it can enhance one’s story but could also limit creativity or create formulaic, predictable stories. 

It made me reflect on my story and wander a) if it does actually follow the 3 act structure and b) if it is obvious or predictable. 

The lecture on character-driven writing and the heroes journey was very useful for me as it got me asking really important questions about my character and even reshuffling part of the story to reveal more about her using objects and visuals ( the incorporation of the locket that she finds in her back pack).

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Questions around character

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FINAL SHORT STORY CONCEPT: PREMISE AND TREATMENT

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WEEK 4: REFLECTIONS

This week I have been busy restructuring my premise , outline and treatment so that I can start week 5 with an up-to-date concept. Noticing how technology has played a role in my process: I had two concepts I was playing around with before I found my current idea. The change was largely due to me watching some award-winning short films on Youtube. It is incredible to have free, quick access to so many films online and , without modern technology this would not be possible. I also designed my current idea by referring to the course notes on character and three act structure. Without my laptop and the ease of viewing information, my process would have been very different. I relied heavily on technology to get to where I am with my idea.

If I am to take this story further ( which I probably )  I will move on to a scriptwriting software where i will start drafting the script. Eventually, if the film were to be pitched, I would put together a deck, or pitch document, all made using film software. After that, if the film went into production, a story board, shooting schedule and other docs would all be created using software. The entire process heavily dependent on technology. It really makes life a lot easier to have such great, user friendly software at our disposal.

I wander to myself if, as technology evolves and social media and youtube channels explode, if people will become their own writers, directors and cinematographers as they did in the early 1900 s with the cameraman method. Perhaps technology will be so efficient that some of the  roles in film production will be replaced with apps/ software. Maybe we will do a full circle

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WEEK 3: REFLECTIONS

Having transitioned from my job on a research boat to arriving in Bali for my leave, i have noticed my ideas shift dramatically. Having so much time on my hands, in a new place , I have been able to go over all the course material and look over things I had missed out. I have also been watching a lot of oscar nominated short films and using the course content to analyze the films from an academic perspective. This has been really helpful for me in structuring my story and looking at character development. I have definitely been influenced by the theme of solo-travelling as I find it to be an interesting theme and something I am currently engaged with. Travelling alone can be lonely, liberating, confusing, scary ... it can be many things. I decided to bring the idea of solo travel into my story.

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MA- Storytelling for Script and Screen The Short Film

I found the process of coming up with a short film idea particularly difficult. At first, I thought it may be fun to look at a young girl on a gap year in Peru :

A depressed divorcee receives an alarming call from the manager of an eco village in the Peruvian amazon. His daughter, a six-foot tall 19 year old on her gap year, is missing. Within a week he is on a flight to a remote jungle village where he embarks on a savage search operation. In the depths of the thickest rainforest, he is taken on a mystifying journey of self-discovery.

Because I am currently working on a feature film concept, I settled with the idea of creating a short film that is somewhat linked to my bigger concept. A short story within a bigger story. I thought that this would be a good way to motivate me to develop new characters and do more research. As my story is about a trafficked seamen from Burma who survives a hellish journey at sea, I decided to look into the guys at the top of criminal triangle. The East Asian mafia and the golden triangle between Thailand, Burma and Laos. 

As I am a young female writer/traveller, I liked the idea of the protagonist being relatively young and female. I imagined a very educated, well-dressed and sassy character. My first idea had the following premise : 

An investigative journalist takes his 20 year old daughter on a field trip to the “golden triangle” where she helps him to identify one of Asia’s most deadly mafia families. In amidst a lawless distopia, she comes face to face with her own morality.

I felt that , for the medium of a short film, this story may be far too complex and much more suited to a full length feature film. 

I then settled for an idea that could actually start in Bangkok and not need to much background story :

NAME : BANGKOK YOGA

PREMISE;

In the pursuit of inner peace, a journalist from LA goes on a budget holiday to Bangkok. Behind the doors of a hot yoga studio, she discovers a lawless distopia.

OUTLINE:

Olive Savage, 26, is tech savvy , well dressed and newly single. Heartbroken and bored of her job as junior journalist, she flies to Bangkok to spend 8 days doing yoga and sight seeing. When explaining the trip to her family, she describes it as a “mental reset”

It’s her first class at the swanky Bangkok Yoga school. Her student pass costs more than her accomodation. She is seated next to a tall , strikingly beautiful Burmese man. She can’t keep her eyes off him, scanning every inch of his tattoed body amidst the sweat and mirrors of the sleek studio. After class, while leaving the ladies change room, she notices the studio door slightly ajar and peeks in. There she sees the man , noble yet boyish. Utterly gorgeous. He is mopping the floor with two small, scruffy kids clinging to each of his legs. Something about the image is strangely unsettling.

Over the next few days, Olive enjoys a good routine of daily yoga classes and sight seeing, enjoying Bangkok’s cultural and culinary delights. During her wanderings she gets excited at the thought of seeing the Burmese man in another yoga class and catches herself  fantasizing about him in various yoga poses.

One evening, after an invigorating class, Olive plucks up the courage to talk to the mysterious man she has been relentlessly admiring. The interaction goes surprisingly well and he offers to take her to his favourite temple. She agrees and hops on the back of his orange scooter.

Showered in the iridescence of  one of Thailand’s most beautiful temples, Olive questions the man on his family and homeland. He seems distracted and his answers are fragmented. Finally , she asks him how long he has worked at Bangkok Yoga. He looks surprised and denies working at the studio. This is the first time that Olive senses that something is amiss.  As they leave the temple, Olive takes his hand.

Approaching the scooter, the man spins Olive around and kisses her passionately.  A japanese maple is dripping with flowers just behind them.

The man drops her at her hotel and waits politely for her to enter safely before revving his scooter.

Its Olive’s last day in Bangkok. She arrives at the yoga studio 20 mins before class. With her handbag slung across her arm , she enters the ladies change room. She looks around suspiciouly .  Close to a woven laundry basket, she notices the outline of a keyhole on the wall. A small doorway. She pulls the laundy basket aside, squeezes her finger into the key hole and pulls.To her surprise the door opens. She looks around to see if anyone is looking, returns the laundry basket to its original spot and steps through the doorsill, closing the door behind her. She follows the sound of cats meowing as she descends a dark wooden staircase. The stench is unbearable. It’s a putrid combination of urine and decaying flesh. At the bottom of the staircase she opens a small gate and shines her cel phone into the darkness. Six tiny faces stare back at her. She pulls up the voice recorder on her phone and begins questioning the children in Thai (using google translate). The oldest looking child replies to her questions ambivalently.  Google translate is, unfortunately unable to translate the childs answers. Olive hears a sound upstairs and rushes up the staircase and out the tiny door. An overweight yoga student steps out of the adjacent toilet as Olive rearranges the laundry basket.

At Bangkok airport, Olive listens repeatedly to the voice recording of the trapped child. She writes down what she hears and tries to translate it . It turns out the child is from Burma, just like the mystery man.

Olive leans back in her seat and takes a deep breath. She pulls up her phone and searches her contacts for one of her colleagues and types the following text:

“ I think I have our next story. But its dangerous. We will need help. “

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Space has been on my mind a lot. Not just on my mind but in my heart and running through my veins. I keep looking at this planet from out there. This tiny peanut of a planet with all of us walking amidst these gorgeous jurassic rhinos and tigers and deep sea fish and its  graceful . A young girl with green specs in her eyes. All the wonderful fruits in such great colours , our vegetables, music and paintings. All these glorious homely things. And yes , it is probably only here that it all happens and this is an idea which i burned a lot of neurons over. Our imagination here on planet earth is directly limited by our DNA. We can only really imagine combinations of things we have seen and heard on earth. In the wild abyss of nothing there are bound to be colours and shapes which we literally cannot imagine. Literally. Judging by the elements and creatures that have roamed this little home of ours , I would assume the FREAKY.  

Here is a little book i made for  Marks birthday

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MINI OTTER TRAIL

An ancient forest 

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CATHERINE

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ANJA

When I looked at her , something howled back at me. it felt like she was brought up by wild animals, and the stars carried her back to us.  I pictured her being carried across the night sky , her jet black hair catching stars on its way. Her mouth in a permanent smile.

We met at a party. A distant train seemed to screech to a halt as our eyes locked. Time slowed down and the temperature seemed to change in the room as our cheeks met to whisper something neither of us truly believed. The jungle seemed to loom behind her as she lent backwards in dismay. We share the same father.  Her soft teenage hands patted and carressed me, searching for the many years we'd lost. She will always remain the biggest treasure and mystery in my life.