I came across this short film the other day, and – apart from being very impressed overall by its quality – I particularly noticed its great work with color and sound. (Warning… it’s nearly eight minutes long).
First, the color. Even from the preview still, you can immediately see that the filmmaker committed to a vibrant orange and blue color palette.
The set dressing is impressive, to say the least – the decorations on the wall, the books on the bookshelf, the text on the screen, the snorkel gear, the shark nature video… seemingly everything is either blue or orange (or both). This type of attention to detail makes the overall film feel so much more polished and professional, and it having the screen pop with so much color is very pleasing to the eye.
Now, the music. As someone who is very much going to benefit from the Audio 1 and 2 workshops next semester, I have a lot to learn getting great use out of music. The music tracks in this video are great – they are unobtrusive when they need to be, but also reflect and enhance the emotional state of the character. From being hopeful and determined (:38-1:55), to frustrated and despondent (2:00-2:55), back to being hopeful and determined (2:55-3:10), to suspense (3:10-4:07), to loud and upset (4:41-4:51) and so on… the music always seems to fit just right.
It’s also important to point out some great sound design too, from the pen writing on paper to the button falling on the ground. If I had to critique one thing it would be the record scratch at 5:48, but it’s one of those things that is such a cliche that it almost works as an ironic joke… sort of like a Wilhelm scream. Overall, though, I think the music, sound design, and even the VO work really well together and enhance the storytelling.
Love this one! The first three minutes I was like “come on Amy, what is your phone number… ” and when he finally got the number right, he freaks out and hang up on her immediately. It’s amazing that the editor cuts the scene straight to the TV show of male fish looking for female… Anyways, back to the color, I agree that the bold colors they use in this film give it a more professional and polish looking, we usually see those colors in the big-screen movies, like The Grand Budapest Hotel, Amélie, and, of course, Life of Pi. Having great colors in the film will automatically make it more attractive to the audience, at least, to me, a good looking film with a bad story will still keep me in my seat a bit longer.
What a fun film! Great pick.
I guess what I enjoyed the most was the anticipation of what will happen next. Like Jing said earlier, I kept thinking “Which one is the one (number wise)?” I felt so excited for him when he found an Amy and I thought there he goes to his happy ending and there comes the unexpected husband twist.
Really great! I loved how simple the shots were, but they were interesting enough for me to look at. He wasn’t standing in boring area, with only white walls and nothing interesting. The shots were all crisp and the audio was clean and enjoyable to follow.
It was a definitely a good watch!
I got a different take on this short film. This was sort of stalker-ish. Funny, but stalker-ish. Who has that much time and determination? After being creeped out, I did notice the color and the excellent use of typography. I am a visual person, and there were moments where I could have gotten lost if it weren’t for them. The color made the screen pop, and it was nice to see the numbers of the individuals being called. Last, but not least, this is a great example of the “unanswered question.”