true to form, reflection #3
Final Project Concept
For my final project, I want to focus on art direction. In previous studios, I’ve always felt constrained by narrative structure and so through art directing, I will be free enough to compose shots that are visually stimulating and enticing to watch without having to worry about certain restrictions.
To execute this, I will be exploring the possibilities of an Australian landscape – settings such as a Telstra telephone booth, Milk Bar, suburban park and bus station, which I listed in class during the writing exercise – with the addition of something odd or out of place. This could be a character or a prop that does not belong amidst the scenery. This moves to reiterate the notion that only the aesthetics in my piece are important. Coherence is not my prime concern but nonetheless, the placement of the shots will provide various degrees of meaning.
My first scene will be filmed at a telephone booth in an empty suburban street. Through a quick-succession of close-ups, a girl will open the Yellow Pages, sift through them, find a page, wipe her finger down the paper in search for a number, point to the number, rip the page out and stab the buttons on the dial. On the other end, we hear an audience applaud and game-show music ensue. A booming voice on the other end speaks –
Host: And welcome back! For the grand prize, what is your answer?
Girl: *answers*
Host: You win! Thanks for playing! Until next time!
She answers with something out of context that I haven’t thought of yet but the point is that the sound design here has lifted an otherwise simple setting into something more. As well as this, she will be dressed up in an unexplained costume (a Virgin Mary?) that may be because she just attended a costume party or perhaps it’s part of her part-time job.
Brendan and I have worked in a team before and he’s fantastic at implementing my ideas. We’re both intrigued by the work of David Lynch and so Brendan would like to play around with dramatic lighting to further elevate this scene into something extraordinary. We’ve discussed theatrical coloured lighting and spotlights that could be made using LEDs and cellophane.
Twin Peaks: Fire Walk With Me dir. David Lynch (1992)
I’ve also found this fantastic article that embodies the beauty that emanates from Australian culture. I love the 1980s (despite not having been alive then, thanks mum) and it upsets me to think that I feel nostalgic for a time that I never got to personally experience even though it feels like I did… This is probably due to having grown up in a quintessential wog household in Yarraville where much of the buildings haven’t changed since the early 70s – namely, my grandmother’s house which is in the hub of the district.
The images in this article will also be used for inspiration material.