Fixed

Fixed

• 1.
  Fixed An experimental shortfilm By Shannon O’Connor
• 2.
  Central Conflict • Fixedis about the protagonists three destructive behaviours; isolation, obsession and habit. • It also could be about unrequited love – but I want the film to be open to interpretation. • It plays with the idea of becoming so obsessed with a person, place or thing it begins to rule your life. • This film is NOT about Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder (OCD) – it is about fixation and infatuation. • It’s about being stuck in a cycle that is not particularly bad or good, it is just overpowering.
• 3.
  Characters • The filmhas two characters 1. The protagonist; frail and skittish, their character resembles a whippet dog. They spend their days inside the room following a pattern of actions which build up to the entrance of The Man. Their main hobby is painting portraits of this man. Character will remain gender neutral until it is cast, as gender will not impact the characters story. 2. The Man; ambiguous as to who he is. He walks through the protagonists room everyday. He gives the protagonist a small smile as he walks through, he has no other contact with them.
• 4.
  Plot • The protagonistswhole world exists in the room. • Their day is a set routine which leads up to the entrance of The Man, who uses the two doors on either side of the room as a passageway. The protagonist is always happy to see the Man, but is disappointed in the briefness of their interaction. • Once he makes his daily walk-through the protagonist paints a portrait of the man in a book with black ink.
• 5.
  Plot • The climaxof the film occurs when one day the Man ignores the protagonist as he is passing through the room. • The protagonist is sent into a frenzy when they sit down to paint the Man’s portrait – here they will completely destroy the room and cover it in the black ink. • I envision a true ‘calm after the storm’ moment for the protagonist as they sit in the destruction they’ve created. • The resolution of the film occurs the next day, where the protagonist passes through the door and leaves the room. By the time the Man walks into the room they are gone. The film will end on a shot of the Man sitting in the destroyed room.
• 6.
  Visual Style • Ihave a clear vision of the visual style I want • The entire film will take place in 1 location – the room. • This room will be entirely pink – pink furniture included. • There will be minimal set in the room – a table, chair and small shelf would suffice. • I would love to use colourful lighting to illuminate and create different moods in the room. • I have taken inspiration from three music videos 1. Hotline Bling – Drake 2. Chandelier – Sia 3. Milk Bath - Petite Meller
• 8.
  Visual Style • TheProtagonist will be dressed in blue • The Man will be dressed in white • I believe having this simple colour palette will make the climax of the film, the scene where the protagonist splatters ink everywhere, very dynamic. • I want the camera to be quite mobile, as this film will need a variety of different shots. Tracking shots, high angles and all sorts of creative shots could be incorporated into this film. • I don’t want it to be shot as a flat landscape, it needs to be more immersive for the viewer.
• 9.
  Tracking shot examples:
• 10.
  Colour Palette
• 11.
  Aural Style • Asthe film will have no dialogue, I would like the aural style of the film to be a dissonant mixture of diegetic sound and background music. • The sound design in this film will need to be as compelling as the visual style – so I imagine it to be other-worldly, rather than literal sounds that link up with the actions on screen. • I still do not have a clear vision for the sound design in the film so I am very open to all sorts of suggestions.
• 12.
  Time • The paceof the film follows the cycle of the protagonists day. • I do not want the pace of the film to be consistent. I would love to play around with stop-motion and fast motion in the scenes where the protagonist is carrying out their daily routine. • This will then contrast against the scenes that are high-drama, e.g. the walk- through of the Man, which will be in real-time. • The ink splattering scene is open to the use of many different paces. I think speeding it up and slowing it down in the midst of the action could be quite dynamic. • Overall I would the story of the film to be quite fluid, but the pace will be altered frequently.
• 13.
  Stop. Collaborate. • Thestoryline is quite simple and linear and I would be happy to play around with it. • In terms of sound, I have an idea, but would love for someone to take the reigns on that and have fun with it. This film is not traditional and I would love if the sound reflected that. • Lighting! As with the sound design, the lighting needs to be theatrical and non-traditional. • As this is an experimental film, my DOP has the chance to be as creative as they like, perhaps by incorporating shots that would usually never be used. • I believe there is a lot of room for each crew member to be creative in their own way with this project.
• 14.
  Why I care?Why you should? • This intense idea of obsession and habit has been bred from the way I’ve personally been feeling for the past couple of months. So I’m very in tune with the emotion and feeling that makes this film. This film is very important to me and every aspect of the film that I’ve thought of so far has a meaning behind it. • This film will be very reliant on the performance of the actors, and as I come from a theatre background where I have previously directed I don’t think I will struggle with getting the performance I want. I would also love the chance to use my directorial skills in a new medium. • I believe this film will be able to challenge those of you who would like to stray from the traditional styles and genres of film that we see a lot of in student film- making. • If you are a creative person who has a vision and is willing to take risks I would love to have you on my team because I think this film has the potential to be very powerful.