My Film Projects

Remove all ads!

Hey guys, here is the documentary I made last semester! It is about an annual music festival in Davis Square, Somerville, MA and how music affects the lives of both children and adults. Hope you enjoy!


EDIT: Embedding didn't work (it is on vimeo), so here is the link:

http://www.vimeo.com/8227451

(I am Adam Geiger, by the way, not the rest of them).


(500) Days of Summer Ending

Here is the (500) Days of Summer project we did... it is okay... we didn't realize when the final project was due, so it was rushed at the end and we didn't get a chance to add in the voiceover, do the ADR, or find sufficient background noise. Which actually works to increase the awkward tension.



An impromptu Taco Bell run late at night needed to be filmed... so we got my friend's minicam and filmed it. It is goofy and contains bad language and gestures, so be warned.




Here is my final film project of the semester! It is called Lush, about a young screenwriter who risks her chances at "making it big," when her alcoholism takes control of her life.

WARNING: This video contains offensive language and an uncomfortable sexual scene.

Part 1:


Part 2:


We made this movie in a month, including writing, casting, filming, and editing. We didn't have much time and were overly ambitious with what we thought we could accomplish, but it turned out really well, in my opinion. There are two scenes I wish we could cut (if it weren't for key pieces of dialogue to set up the climax), but after the many all-nighters we pulled to finish it, we decided we had to keep them. Nonetheless, we are both happy with the film, and I hope you enjoy!



EDIT: Retitled the thread so I can use it for all my works.

 

Wooo! About time! I was gonna take a long bus ride to Boston to see what was up..

I'll leave you my comments as soon as I watch it..

 

Very nicely done. I believe we were at the 2007 or 2008 honk parade.

 

Thanks man Did you enjoy yourself? I've only been while making the documentary, so it was great for me because I was actually able to run around with the band, instead of just watching. It is quite an exciting event!

 

Yes, the street action is a lot of fun. I admit, I didn't quite get the "activist" feel of the event, but then again I probably just expected that from Somerville.

 

New video is up! Hope you enjoy... I posted it in the Random Work Babbling, but I want it here too so I have a full thread with all my works.

Subscribe if you have a youtube account!

 

Not a fan of the guy actor, and too bad the girl isn't Minka Kelly

Voice overs would have been nice, but it's a solid job from what you could control... wow, that looks condescending when I know my own would be far from this good.

 

Haha, no, I agree. We had a very short timetable to put this all together (the class is designed poorly... we do too many projects to make any of them really well), so we had to fudge a couple of things. The voiceover (the narrator) would have been nice, and redoing the dialogue so that we didn't have to use the footage's audio would have made it significantly better. Not to mention the lighting problems haha.

Hopefully the next project (which we are filming tomorrow) will turn out better. But again, it is due in a week, so it will probably be similarly rushed. The final project we have seven weeks for, though, so we will be able to do a lot more.

This is an intro class anyways, more of a stepping stone into being able to do our own projects (over two to three semesters for one film), so those will be a lot better. This is just so you guys can say you knew my stuff before I began making multi-billion dollar films

 

That's the spirit Saber!

 

Haha, the next one is up. Enjoy!

 

I just watched your latest "Lush". It was really kind of hard to watch and made me feel very uncomfortable at parts. The blonde did a good job. The brunette was a little wooden. I enjoyed it, but I think I have to take a shower now.

 

Thanks a lot for watching the film man, and thanks for the feedback. The discomfort was intentional - we didn't want anyone to feel good about this movie at the end. If there are specifics you want to discuss about it, please let me know - feedback is very helpful for my film-growing process!

For everyone else, I am linking the video here now! Please watch and enjoy!

 

Nothing specific. I enjoyed it and you did a great job with the "uncomfortable" scenes. There was actually one point where I paused the video to gird myself to get to the end.

 

That's really not bad actually Saber considering that you did it all in a month. The drinking reminded me of Leaving Las Vegas.

I agree with the Great Snook about the acting. The blonde did a good job overall (she is the only one who doesn't look as if she is mentally going through her lines) but the brunette seemed a bit unsure about how she was supposed to act. In part two, around 6 minutes, the brunette is supposed to be angry or at least annoyed, why didn't she slam the door? I really didn't get that.

Anyway, it's an interesting short piece. I don't mean to criticize too much but you should work on the ending a little more. I don't know much about filmmaking but I do know about literature and short films are a bit like short stories: the ending is the most important part. What your short lacks is a final twist, a punch line if you like. If I got it right I think that you wanted to convey the idea that Sadie becomes aware of the gravity of her situation when she comes to realize what she did to herself in the end but it didn't come off as particularly striking IMO. A really good short ends with spectators on the edge of their seats.

I hope you won't take my criticism the wrong way, I just wanted to be helpful and tell you about my first impressions after watching Lush.

 

Thanks for the feedback, guys. Leaving Las Vegas was one of the movies I watched to get an idea of how to direct a drunk person, actually, so I am glad you noticed!

Acting was the least of our worries while we were shooting - we had so much script to cover that we did not spend as much time on acting as we probably should have. You are right, Cad, about her anger - we needed to see it as well as hear her say it.

From a screenwriting standpoint, what would you have written in the end of Lush to give it the twist you mentioned? I agree with you that it needs to be shocking, and we were hoping that all the bad things that happened to her at the end would build up and the relative calm of the end (shot-wise, as emotionally it was still intense) would be jarring enough. What would be more striking? (And this is not me being defensive, I appreciate all criticism and because I am a fledgling screenwriter and director, would love to know what other people would have done).

 

I would have had her stagger home from the party and right before she got home have her lose her balance, fall into the street and get hit by a bus. It would solidify the plot of how the drinking destroyed her career/life.

 

I'm glad you don't take my remarks the wrong way, I was a bit concerned I might have been a bit too critical in my post.

Great Snook's idea has its merits. The way you shot the hospital scene is disquieting but it also means that she is taken care of and that despite liver failure there may be some hope for her. We don't know for sure if she is going to be able to recover but we suspect that if she confronts her delusions she will be able to clean up her act (still doubtful since her friend seems to have walked out on her after the confrontation).

Truth be told I haven't given much thought about how I would have written the ending. It all depends on your intent. Did you wish for a possible redemption or not? Bearing in mind that your actress looks rather nice and clean at the start (she has a sort of girl next door look) I would probaby have turned her into the complete opposite, some sort of bag lady, the sort who begs for a coin on a streetcorner so that she can buy some cheap booze. Possibly having her former friends run into her without recognizing her... Thus showing the alienating process at an end (she wouldn't recognize her former friends either). Perhaps ending with her former friend looking back but dismissing any sense of connection or failing to acknowledge any link with her. That might have been even worse than killing her off.

In my opinion the ending should be the first thing in your script (meaning you should have that striking effect in mind when you write the rest of your script) so that the entire piece should move forward the ending. It's even better if the ending is unexpected (more of a twist) but if on a second viewing the audience can pick up some clues as to what is going to happen (things that may have looked innocuous or minor at a first glance). It's not a short, but I ike the way Memento demonstrates the effectiveness of such clues and hints. If you're looking for inspiration it's always best to look for the best -and in that case Leaving Las Vegas was a perfect choice.

 

This was really quite good. ('Lush,' I'm talking about.) While I agree with Caradhras that the ending was rather low-key, I actually kind of liked it that way. When handled properly, understatement can drive home the 'reality' impression quite well, imo. Stories - with their beginnings, middles, and endings - are one thing, but I don't think films have to always abide by that. I like the notion that things aren't all wrapped up nice and neatly all the time. That's life.

Also, I think killing Sadie off would have been heavy-handed. She's already screwed up enough as is, and I don't see her really recovering very well anyway (health problems, no friends, tanked career). So I don't think she needs to die too.

I never felt horribly uncomfortable watching this, for what it's worth, just generally unhopeful. But I suspect that's still in your targeted range of acceptable responses.

Great editing and production values btw. And you guys really worked that vomit angle, eh?

Hm, no star smilies available, so I will give it . (Both of my thumbs, presumably.) Good work.