Week 4 features 6 films from all over the world, showing snapshots of the quarantine from Colombia, US, Iran, and UK. A mix of fiction, documentary, and essay, these films offer a unique look into the filmmakers' lives in quarantine and their thoughts.
"Vessels" by Maria Cury
From Maria: "I was truly making that stuffed teddy bear (that’s one of my favorite hobbies and it helped to cope with the lockdown); the original music was also composed at home, in quarantine, because I’m very lucky that my husband is a musician! So we both got very excited with the project. Most of the time, I was very little sure of what I was doing in terms of narrative. But things started coming to life, little by little, as I was maybe more aware of what I had around me (and inside me!). I was fascinated because I had never experienced something that organic. In the end, I felt so connected with the symbols of the story that I believe they are clear metaphors of the creative process and the human struggle. This short was part of a final project for a class that I was taking - we had plans to shoot in film, with the Bolex only. Unfortunately, everything was cancelled. Luckily, I had shot an additional film, never used before. Making Vessels was as if all the pieces were being put together..." Maria is on Instagram @mariacurymaria
"Pictures of Confinement" by Juan José González N
Juan is a student of Cinema and Digital Communication at Universidad Autónoma de Occidente de Cali, Colombia. He has directed 5 short films Ha dirigido cinco cortometrajes y montado and edited more than ten, with the documentary "InstaReality?" standing out. He worked on the feature film "El Titán: La Vida de Elkin Ramírez" and is currently in the writing stage of his first film in that role, "Diario del Olvido." Follow the filmmaker on Instagram @_greeneyesjuan, Twitter @_GreenEyesJuan, or YouTube
From Juan: "Expressing how we feel is a good way to feel less useless in this quarantine. In this case, taking a camera and immortalizing the social context of this historical situation we're experiencing."
So Close So Far by Komeil Soheili
From the filmmaker: "Self-portrait on life under quarantined during the COVID-19: From the boy in his 20's in Amazon forests to me and my family in east part of Iran and those who live on a tiny island in Malaysia, we all suddenly experienced big changes in our lifestyles. People faced the epidemic in various ways and each are unique in its own and worth to be shared. As for me, during these days I had the chance to realize the beauty of the simplest things around myself. Things that I hardly realised before, but during this crisis, I learned how far I was from things that were always closest to me."
"Dear Future Me" by Megan O'Brien
From Megan: "I'm 22 studying BA(Hons) Film at the University of South Wales. I love all things film and have done since I was young, with some of my earliest memories being of going to the cinema. Over the years I've attended various courses to help enhance my skills and knowledge of making films in hopes that one day I can become a producer. I mostly enjoy working on experimental films as it is the opportunity to explore the unknown and to try new techniques out but I am happy to take on any challenge that is thrown my way. The Covid-19 pandemic halted all my final major projects for the year, apart from my Truth and Telling module. Instead of following the original brief, we were tasked to create a solo documentary production about the pandemic using our own personal equipment and to create a personal narrative for audiences to engage with. I chose to write a letter to my future self to express my personal feelings during this time to help others who may feel the same way. We are in this together, no one should feel so alone." Follow Megan on Instagram @megan_filmmaker
"Wishful Keep" by Paul Kelly
Paul Kelly is a playwright and filmmaker. He is a member of the Dramatists Guild of America. In 2019, as an acknowledgment of his achievements and dedication to the Guild, Kelly was awarded a Lifetime Membership. Kelly's work has made the leap from stage to screen where he wrote and directed the SAG-AFTRA short films, "Fermented" (2010), "My Day" (2013), "Last Words" (2015), "Now" (2016) and "Final Polish" (2017). His films have won several festival and competition awards.
"Gibberish" by Vincent Augusto
VINCENT AUGUSTO is a new French Director and Cinematographer based in L.A. He worked in theatre/opera, documentary and news report, and has training in every field of movie creation, from screenwriting to CGI.
From Vincent: "I took on the challenge to make a movie all by myself, using a TV set connected by HDMI to the camera in order to set the frame and light. I eventually needed a voice-over artist though because my French accent is pretty terrible!"
Vincent is on LinkedIn here https://linkedin.com/in/vincent-augusto-09411a150
Comments