#i have the short film and then 4 full length ideas

[puppysdog]

by the way i wanted to share that in the upcoming months im starting to work on my first short horror film with prohet while starting on the scripts and logistics of my full length horror films, entering the short film in some film festivals, and from there possibly reaching out to some studios about production on the bigger ones 🧍

[lurkingshan]

Since you've watched a lot of kdrama, what are common things you've seen in kdrama that have been consistently ported into K-BL, and what is your assessment of that approach?

Ooh, interesting question. So first, let's acknowledge a few things:

Korean bl is short format, with even the longest shows (Light on Me, The Eighth Sense) not even half the length of a standard kdrama (16-20 hours), and most clocking in around 2-4 hours

Kbl operates under much smaller budgets and significant constraints around casting as compared to mainstream kdrama

Kbl often draws from webtoons and manwha and mostly does not have the kind of auteur writers and directors behind it that you get in kdrama (Hwang Da-Seul is the most consistent creator in genre with Where Your Eyes Linger, Blueming, To My Star)

All that said, there are a few features of mainstream kdrama that have definitely ported over into kbl despite these constraints:

Slick production values and strong use of setting and color: even the cheapest kbls still look decent, and there is always intentionally behind the setting and use of color palettes to set the tone and feel. Korea has a very well-developed film industry and it shows. Color Rush, Semantic Error and Blueming were fantastic examples of this: even within more familiar school romances, the settings felt specific and the use of color to communicate character and themes was striking. I also think often of Our Dating Sim and Choco Milk Shake and the very effective characterization work achieved through design of the apartments.

Sound production and music on point: the home of kpop is not going to be caught sleeping on the OSTs. Nearly every production has original songs and given the leads of these shows are usually idols, they're often the ones on the tracks. And when they use music that is not original, like in The Eighth Sense, it's a very intentional choice to set mood and tone. Korea is not going to let a boy who can't actually sing take the mic (*side eyes Thailand*). To My Star is a great example of memorable OSTs even in a fairly low budget production, and Wish You and Sing My Crush showed us what kbl can do when it decides to bring the full kpop treatment to bear.

A keen understanding of the international audience: kdrama production is a big part of South Korea's explicit goals to take the global media landscape by storm, and kbl is included in that. It's not a coincidence that Korea decided to step up its game in this arena shortly after Thai bl exploded (shoutout to 2gether and pandemic lockdowns). Kbl follows trends and explicitly caters to international audiences in a way jbl does not. The Eighth Sense was basically a case study in marrying kdrama sensibilities and western aesthetics for maximum international attention.

Second leads and valorization of unrequited love: you and I have discussed this one a lot because this is a feature of kdramas that will never die and that kbls also clearly love. Korea loves a one-sided love story and culturally, there is a certain dignity afforded to owning your feelings and being honest with the object of your affection, even when there is no hope of reciprocation. Often second leads don't get the guy/girl because they hesitate or hide their feelings until it's too late: the trope is used to underline the important of honesty and effort as well as providing a catalyst for the main lead to make their move. In Korean culture, the trying is what matters much more than the succeeding. We are meant to like most second leads and see them as honorable and dignified for their sincere feelings toward the protagonist. Second lead syndrome is a thing for a reason. It's also just a cheap and easy way to create drama so you'll often see it in the lower budget kbls. Second leads showed up recently in kbls like The Tasty Florida, Jun & Jun, Oh! Boarding House, Bon Appetit, etc. We also sometimes see kbls playing with the idea of unrequited love in the main pairing that is actually requited, like in Our Dating Sim.

Love triangles: relatedly, Korea loves them a love triangle, and they are uniquely good at doing it well when they want to. Light on Me is a fantastic example of a narrative where you can legitimately see the protagonist liking and ending up with both the main and second lead. And that is rooted in the way the narrative treats Daon with dignity even as it punishes him for his hesitation in reciprocating Taekyung's feelings (see above). When you have a strong second lead who engenders real sympathy with the audience, love triangle excellence is achieved.

Workplace romances: kdrama loves workplace romances, and we have seen kbl start to move into that space recently with shows like Roommates of Poongdock 304, Love Mate, Our Dating Sim, Jun & Jun, and The New Employee. Kdrama workplace romances run the gamut, but they often feature chaebol characters paired with a "normal" aka not wealthy person, and we are starting to see that more in the bl genre as well, as we discussed a bit yesterday. I believe @nieves-de-sugui commented on your post about how the rich/poor romance fantasy trend in recent bl may be coming in from kdrama. I think there's some truth to that, but really it's a foundational romance trope that predates kdrama by literal centuries, and is absolutely rooted in heteronormative patriarchal dynamics that assume men are breadwinners and caretakers for women (translated to seme/uke dynamics in bl). Often in kdrama the chaebol character is unable to live an authentic life due to the demands of filial piety and the expectations tied to their wealth, and I do think that dynamic is ripe for enrichment when you layer on gay identity in a homophobic society. But that requires shows leaving the no homophobia bubble, which few kbls have done.

Physical intimacy squarely in the middle space: comparing to heat levels we see across the spectrum of dramas, I think kdrama and kbl are pretty consistent in that they tend to land right in the middle of the spectrum. It's rare to see straight up dead fish kisses from romantic leads anymore (though it still happens, wincing at Unintentional Love Story), but they are also not going to be serving authentic sex scenes. What you get instead is very pretty open-mouthed kissing that feels more realistic than, for instance, the pure jbl lane, but still polished and aesthetically pleasing. Think Semantic Error, Blueming, Roomates of Poongdock 304, Love Mate, To My Star 2, Jun & Jun. This seems to be where the genre is landing and I don't expect heat levels to get any higher for kbl, as this is right in line with mainstream kdrama. The Eighth Sense offered a less polished version of intimacy that felt right in line with its grittier sensibilities.

So, after that long list, on to your second question: my assessment of this approach is that kbls are doing fairly well for themselves when you consider the constraints they are operating under. Look at a show like Love Tractor stacked up against something like Hometown Cha Cha Cha. These are both based in the classic romance trope of a city slicker coming to the country and falling in love with a humble working person. But where HCCC has 16 hours to build a quasi-enemies to lovers narrative with a rich community of side characters, LT has 3.5 hours to achieve the same thing. So it makes sense that it would fall back on well-worn tropes and story beats it knows the audience will recognize to help save time. These shortcuts help the audience ground themselves and get invested in the stories quickly.

One thing I'll say is that kbl mostly stays in the romcom lane with very occasional ventures into melo, and despite what casual observers think, kdrama actually has a lot more to offer than that. It's a giant world with stories based in every possible genre, tone, and style, and Korean media is particularly adept at embedding romance plots that actually work in all kinds of stories including action thrillers, horror, crime narratives, mysteries, supernatural and fantasy epics. I'd love to see kbl try this, though of course it would require the resources and runtime to do it successfully. Here's hoping they get the chance.

[sebscore]

Now I have a few new ideas

Ollie helps little leclerc with her English, like when she isn't able to pronounce things properly or can't find a word. Not in a "making fun of" way but in a cute, encouraging way.

Little leclerc teaching Ollie some French or at least trying to.

I can imagine them like reading to each other and taking turns.

You know how Ollie has this series on YouTube? If they make their relationship public, I think they would film an episode where she teaches him how to cook because I imagine her to be an amazing cook.

Ollie and little leclerc make playlists for each other because of the long distance. Then Ollie gets asked what he is listening to in like a LAP video, and he gets all flustered.

I know that this is a lot but I had a long boring day and just thought of these :D

Have a good day/ night!

-🍄

1 + 2: they would absolutely help each other with their own respective languages, cause thats super fucking cute and they find it so endearing about one another.

3: STAWP THATS TOO CUTE

4: THE BEAR NECESSITIES !!!!! i seriously need another video, cause i love all of them already :)))) but it would be so cute for her to appear in his videos (like small cameos)

5: HAVE YOU SEEN OLLIES PLAYLIST???? its full of like sad breakup songs and stuff :(((( my poor boy

pls dont apologize for the length of asks- i really dont care whether its long or short! :)))) have a nice one yourself, darling! xxx

[whalleyrulz]

halloween 2024

8) V/H/S BEYOND

sorry for the delay to both people who read these, i'm having a time

i love the vhs series. even when they're bad, they're fun. there's just something appealing about a series made of horror vignettes where people are genuinely trying. shade thrown at abcs of death right there

beyond's framing narrative was about aliens, and it was easily the least grungy the series has looked. and for the most part, the shorts all kept on theme, which was like, hell yeah, love it. was this one the best? absolutely not. but it was good, and it had one of the most horrifying ideas the series has gone for, so hell yeah!

ABDUCTION/ADDUCTION: this was fun. it was presented as a history channel style show about proof of aliens, and it was fun that they got some real world ufo debunkers to play their part in this. i think it was a little dry, and the payoff, while it matched the energy of some of the series, didn't quite live up to what i was hoping for. still, one of the better framing narratives they've had!

STORK: for the most part, this was what it was. using cop bodycams for the found footage was good, but it felt very videogamey in a boring (to me) way. that said, the payoff was GREAT, and i fucking cackled like a witch at that last shot as the short ended. i'd like to see this as a bigger thing, but then, if only one of the shorts in this collection should be expanded, this one ain't it

DREAM GIRL: love me some bollywood horror. paparazzi are always good horror protags, and the inclusion of a fully filmed bollywood number was cheeky, but it worked. that said, after the reveal, i found myself checking my phone like "is this still happening?" and it never really gripped me again. it was alright!

LIVE AND LET DIVE: second best of the show for sure. skydiving during an alien invasion is fucking phenomenal, and the continuous shot from the plane all the way to the ground was great. i loved this honestly; it wasn't anything more than what it was, but what it was was inventive, unique, and had some absolutely great visuals. incredible work

FUR BABIES: y'all this shit would have been on the bottom of fucking v/h/s viral. it missed the promise it set up at the start, it missed the theme, it had no point, and for what? SPOILERS: i've seen tusk? why would i want to see that but worse?

STOWAWAY: hoooooly shit. hooooooooly shit. i want to see this as a full length movie. i want to see this as a standalone. stowaway is about a woman who desperately wants to film proof of ufos. then she finds one. then i cannot stress enough, we are subjected to one of the most horrifying ideas i can think of. and because it was written by mike flanagan, you KNOW it's got that unsettling eerie sadness that he rolls around in. i don't want to spoil what this is about. i just want everyone to see this

v/h/s beyond is absolutely worth the watch for that last one alone. i mean also for live and let dive, which was great, but goddamn. stowaway. goddamn. fuck

1. late night with the devil | 2. history of the occult | 3. destroy all neighbors | 4. lisa frankenstein | 5. monolith | 6. escape the undertaker | 7. hellraiser

[bonesandthebees]

Also, I can’t believe I wrote two whole text walls and didn’t even talk about the corn metaphors. Wilbur being tied down by the roots, the same roots his father is buried between, being forever connected to that unmarked grave. And it literally rooting him into place. Also them disappearing when he sees Phil because he always feels safe with him and then coming back day during his fight with Tommy because the guilt is resurfacing. Oh and the deer in the headlights metaphors very clearly tells us how Wilbur sees their relationship (even if it’s a scewed view).

Also, I very much loved how secretive they were being about it with Phil around, almost like they were using his presence as a shield to not talk about it, to not have that conversation, yet they are still unable to properly talk about it without him there.

Then there’s Tommy coming out with the gun and Wilbur needing to take it from him. I’d have to reread it, but I can’t image the image of his, now grown up, younger brother with a gun in his hands was good for him. So he needed to take that gun, like he feels he should have taken it years ago. And he tries to rewrite his wrongs and actually protect him this time (like he didn’t last time, like he didn’t actually get their dad to let go). But he still can’t shoot because he’s a pacifist.

Lastly, the imagery works very well. This could be a really good short film with the way you described the flashback and when the gunshot would be placed. I also feel like this would work really well as a little novella, but I’m not sure it’s long enough for that. Maybe a book bundle with some of your other stories because from what I’ve heard you write really good ones (and now I’m feeling like I might actually want to read under the brine and I can’t remember the title of the other one, but I know there’s at least 2 more really really good ones).

Anyway, third times the charm so I’m stopping here before this turns into yet another wall of text (no 4 paragraphs does not count as a wall). And now I’m going to go a be productive because school really is coming for my throat (I can’t wait to graduate, I’m so done)

-🌲

YEAHHH CORN METAPHORS YOU GET IT!! he's quite literally rooted to that place. to his father's grave buried within the cornfields. the roots that tie him there are his guilt over what he did and while they briefly go away when phil hugs him they come right back when he's reminded of his guilt again.

having phil there makes it easier because they quite literally can't talk about it so it frees them from the expectation, but at the same time they can't avoid it. it's just this heavy Thing between them neither one can completely ignore and it just makes everything so much more complicated

yuppp wilbur had to take the gun the second time around because he didn't want to fuck up again. he didn't want to fail tommy a second time. he couldn't let tommy be the one to fire the gun this time. but then wilbur himself still can't shoot because that's just not who he is. he's not the one who can pull the trigger and he never will be.

honestly if i had the patience to sit down and write a screenplay I think this would be best formatted as a film. there were a few more scenes i had ideas for but i wanted to keep the story on the shorter side but i could definitely lengthen it to a full blown movie. maybe one day... but yes I have a soft spot for my novella length fics they're very special to me

(ok not trying to hype myself up but if you wanna read any of my novella length things I highly recommend under the brine like it's an oldie but a goodie i'm still very proud of it. that one and starman waiting in the sky have my heart i love both of those so much)

best of luck with school spruce you'll get through this!!

[piecemealplayers]

welcome!

hi there! 

this is very much in development. feedback is always appreciated :) 

why piecemeal?? 

- as it is with most everything-- theatre is a process. 

- piecemeal means to create gradually, one piece at a time, piece by piece, or bit by bit

- the piecemeal players design, create, discover, perform, and connect together 

- i want to establish a professional troupe in morgantown. i am particularly interested in collaborative writing. improvisation, personal anecdotes, etc. these elements are all encouraged in the creation of a piece. performances put on by the piecemeal players will be written by the players themselves. teamwork yay!

- please note: everyone is encouraged to participate. this includes  those who don’t like to be on stage. there are still lots of opportunities for collaboration and involvement!! (i really need a visual artist on board.) 

- this will be a touring troupe. traveling is fun. also operating stage lights scares me. tours can consist of multiple locations or also just one! 

goals 

the first project will begin rehearsing virtually spring of 2023. in person rehearsals will begin august. this will be contemporary drama in two acts. characters details, plot, and elements of dialogue are in development. for this first project, players will be given a full script to work and play with. players are welcome (and encouraged!) to provide feedback on the script, character, blocking, technical elements, etc. performances will take place sometime in the fall, location TBD. actors will be compensated and lodging will be provided. please check out this post for more information about this project. 

a few potential projects: 

- collaborative puppet construction, creation, and performance 

- short films, feature length films, film workshops, etc. 

- interest clubs (play book clubs, film discussion/watch party events, etc) 

- piece created by and performed by players with IDD

- original monologue show 

- one act competition 

- film festival

do you want to join? 

yay! you’re in. welcome to the club!!! here’s all the ways you can participate: 

1. audition for the first piece!!! (if you are not cast as an actor in this particular piece, you are always totally welcome to participate in other way such as costumes, set, crew, stage management, hanging out and being silly, etc.) 

2. send suggestions for potential projects!! or complaints. or compliments. or we can just chat hi!! (but seriously if you have any ideas for projects or elements of the troupe or anything like that please tell me im so interested !!) 

3. help me with some logistics! here’s just a few things i need help with:

- logo design 

- social media/brand development 

- acquiring rehearsal spaces

- getting a business license? 

- funding and fundraising 

- props 

4. tell your friends who may be interested !!!

5. attend the first troupe meeting!! dates TBA. food and drink and merriment will be had. plans will be discussed. 

[daniellethestoryteller]

Just 2025 Tings

Saturday January 18, 2025

Hello! My name is Danielle and I am a creative storyteller.

At least that's what I tell myself.

I made a few goals for 2025, which basically come down to:

I really want to be an author. I've written three books already. The third I am completely rewriting to hopefully get it to a very polished state by the end of this year and then maybe I'll try to get it published? That is the dream, but right now my focus is on enjoying writing it. This year I also want to create four novel treatments (idk if that's really the term people would use, more than synopsis, but maybe not as detailed as a full chapter by chapter outline- more like what someone would give to a publisher if they were writing on proposal).

I also want to make a short animated film. Why? I saw this really great full length feature animated film a few years back created by one person, and I thought "wow, if he could do that with no formal training so can I!" Except I'm not really good at drawing and I don't know how to animate. So i'm currently working on improving my art skills! In 2024 I took a course every day for 100 days that taught me how to draw and now i'm working on improving the skills that I learned. My goal is really to draw every day of 2025 so in 2026 I can start making my short film! ….Also sometime in 2025 learn how to animate cause…you know..that might be important.

And lastly (I think) I want to make a personal shot for my animation reel. You see i'm a Lighter and Compositor in the animation industry and while I do have work i've done professionally, I just want to complete something on my own.

All that being said, I just came to the conclusion that it would be a good idea for me to make a creation log.

That way I can at least feel as though I am getting some things done. To catch up with the last 18 days:

General Update

I've written 10 out of 18 days so far. I reached my longest streak on the 14th at 9 days in a row but then on the 15th I was so tired I decided that I needed to go to bed as early as possible and after working overtime that meant I wouldn't be able to write. I'm glad I made that decision though because I was so tired and I woke up feeling like I actually had enough sleep for the first time in a long time

Short Stories

I decided that in addition to the work I already had planned for myself (aka: completely finishing a novel from rough to polish draft this year and creating 4 novel treatments) that I would also like to make one short story a month.

Why have I decided this?

Well I feel like I have a tough time coming up with new ideas, and a lot of my ideas are built upon expanding short stories long ago back from when I was in school. But I haven't created short stories since then, so i'm hoping that having these short stories will give future Danielle places to draw from.

I found this website Deadlines for Writers - Writing Challenge I'm not to sure how good it is, so i'm not going to recommend it yet, but the idea behind it is that they give you prompts every month with a different word count goal. So i'll use this to really drive my short story creation.

In January the prompt is Found and it has a word could of 1200 words, due on January 29. I think i'm going to try to write it Friday January 24th in one go. But of course i'll keep you updated.

New Ideas

For some reason I got the idea that it would be cool to make a visual novel.

I don't know why I do this to myself.

I don't know what's wrong with me.

But If one of the novel treatments that I want to make can be the visual novel then technically that's a win!

I just have to….learn how to code a visual novel and improve my art.

Short Film

Zero updates on this, idea still floating around in my mind. I think I know what I want it to basically be but I'm hesitant. People often say throw out your first idea because that is the most generic. So I did that. I threw out the first idea. And then I thought the second idea was brilliant. But then I threw that out too when I realized that it was just 1. doing too much, and 2. trying too hard. So this idea is the third. And while I like it i've seen things that are like it before. So that's what brings on the hesitation. We shall see.

Art

Have yet to miss a day of drawing, yay me! I've included today's sketch down below. And i'll make a separate post with all the drawings from Jan 1-17th.

[calamitydaze]

Hello! Happy June! It's Pride and I have another question (4/30)

Today we are talking about queer representation in media. In 1894 "The Dickson Experimental Sound Film" is released, becoming the first "gay film". It was also known as "The Gay Brothers", it feature two men dancing together and it reportedly "shocked audiences with its subversion of conventional male behaviour". Unfortunately, in 1934 the USA introduced the Hays Code, which, while it didn't explicitly ban queerness, banned queerness in effect. This resulted in three decades of queer-coded villains, such as Joel Cairo in "The Maltese Falcon" (1941) and Jack Favell in "Rebecca" (1940).

The Hays Code was lifted in 1968, and the queer cult classic "The Rocky Horror Picture Show" was released in 1975, and gave a much-needed positive and FUN representation of queer people and queerness. Unfortunately, this was short-lived, as the rising AIDs crisis worsened the stigma around the gay community. This didn't stop everyone though, and in 1985 "Desert Hearts" was released; regarded as the first mainstream lesbian film with a happy ending.

Further on, the first gay kiss on TV in the UK was on "EastEnders" in 1989, "Ellen" became the first American tv show with an openly gay lead in 1997, and other show such as "Buffy the Vampire Slayer" started to add recurring LGBTQ+ characters. An important show in the UK was "Queer as Folk" (1999) which was one of the first shows to depict the queer community as vibrant and alive.

Even further forward, and "Moonlight" (2017) became the first LGBTQ+ film (and the first all-black cast) to win Best Picture at the Oscars. GLAAD publishes an annual report showing how representation is changing. 2005-2006 1.4% of regular characters vs 2020-2021 the figure is at 9.1%. So, there is still a long way to go obviously, especially because media is often the main or only place that young people have an insight into the community at all.

Because of this, I want to ask you for a recommendation: What is a piece of queer media that you think more people should see? (it can be literally anything, big/small, funny/sad, smart/stupid <- just anything you think deserves to be watched!:))

(I'll go first: "Eu Não Quero Voltar Sozinho" (or "I Don't Want to Go Back Alone) is a really really cute Brazillian short film available on Youtube! (if you enjoy it, there is also a full-length film version called "Hoje Eu Quero Voltar Sozinho" (or "The Way He Looks"))

Happy Pride 🌈 🎉

i will be honest anonie i’ve been putting off answering this one cause i have NO idea my mind is a huge blank :( which is a shame because this is such a good question!!! i really just don’t consume that much media in general which means i don’t have a lot of queer stuff to recommend …. but your suggestion sounds awesome i’ll go watch it :]

[nervouswaltz]

Hello! Happy June! It's Pride and I have another question (4/30)

Today we are talking about queer representation in media. In 1894 "The Dickson Experimental Sound Film" is released, becoming the first "gay film". It was also known as "The Gay Brothers", it feature two men dancing together and it reportedly "shocked audiences with its subversion of conventional male behaviour". Unfortunately, in 1934 the USA introduced the Hays Code, which, while it didn't explicitly ban queerness, banned queerness in effect. This resulted in three decades of queer-coded villains, such as Joel Cairo in "The Maltese Falcon" (1941) and Jack Favell in "Rebecca" (1940).

The Hays Code was lifted in 1968, and the queer cult classic "The Rocky Horror Picture Show" was released in 1975, and gave a much-needed positive and FUN representation of queer people and queerness. Unfortunately, this was short-lived, as the rising AIDs crisis worsened the stigma around the gay community. This didn't stop everyone though, and in 1985 "Desert Hearts" was released; regarded as the first mainstream lesbian film with a happy ending.

Further on, the first gay kiss on TV in the UK was on "EastEnders" in 1989, "Ellen" became the first American tv show with an openly gay lead in 1997, and other show such as "Buffy the Vampire Slayer" started to add recurring LGBTQ+ characters. An important show in the UK was "Queer as Folk" (1999) which was one of the first shows to depict the queer community as vibrant and alive.

Even further forward, and "Moonlight" (2017) became the first LGBTQ+ film (and the first all-black cast) to win Best Picture at the Oscars. GLAAD publishes an annual report showing how representation is changing. 2005-2006 1.4% of regular characters vs 2020-2021 the figure is at 9.1%. So, there is still a long way to go obviously, especially because media is often the main or only place that young people have an insight into the community at all.

Because of this, I want to ask you for a recommendation: What is a piece of queer media that you think more people should see? (it can be literally anything, big/small, funny/sad, smart/stupid <- just anything you think deserves to be watched!:))

(I'll go first: "Eu Não Quero Voltar Sozinho" (or "I Don't Want to Go Back Alone) is a really really cute Brazillian short film available on Youtube! (if you enjoy it, there is also a full-length film version called "Hoje Eu Quero Voltar Sozinho" (or "The Way He Looks"))

Happy Pride 🌈 🎉

ooo i’ll check out ur recs!!! this isn’t a watch but it Is a read (i don’t like movies a lot) but i think to understand like. a fantastically written slow burn everyone and their mother should read the raven cycle. it’s so much more than a series About queerness (well. okay. it’s about queer as in Odd a lot of the time and queer as in lgbt some of the time) and i think it tackles this idea of like. queer characters don’t Just have to be their identities. also u need to know ronan lynch to understand me. so.

also i just saw the new spiderverse and i want to say GWEN STACY TGIRL SWAG

[colortheorybyjules]

Wes Anderson Write-Up

Wesley Wales Anderson, known as Wes Anderson, is an American filmmaker known for his unique visual style and distinct narratives. You may know him from any of the movies he wrote and directed such as The French Dispatch, The Grand Budapest Hotel, or Fantastic Mr. Fox to name a few. 

He was born May 1st, 1969 in Houston Texas. Anderson’s parents divorced when he was young, around 10, which was a huge inspiration and motivation for his future work. He went to college at the University of Texas, majoring in Philosophy. He soon teamed up with the famed Owen Wilson, fellow actor and writer, and began making short films with him and Wilson's younger brother. 

Their first short film Bottle Rocket was screened at Sundance Film Festival, gaining Anderson connections. Which soon developed into turning Bottle Rocket into a full length film. It was unfortunately a flop, but it gained him the traction and attention to create his next full length movie Rushmore, starring Bill Murry. Which solidified and launched his career and reputation as a director. 

Wally Koval, author of the book, Accidentally Wes Anderson, which houses a collection of pictures taken around the world in wes anderson's aesthetic writes, “you know it when you see it: whether it’s the symmetrical lines, pastel hues, immaculate composition, or something idiosyncratic and beautiful that you can and cannot describe at once, the director Wes Anderson has an immediately identifiable style to his films”.

Furthering that idea, Anderson’s forte is his use of symmetry. This specific shot is used extremely deliberately, he does not follow the traditional rule of thirds, instead placing the subject front and center. It gives it a very lighthearted and quirky feeling. Paired with his use of zoom and pans in a very dramatic and comical way to reveal information and further the story throughout, it creates a very innocent feeling to the viewer. His use of color furthers this idea, using a lot of warm tones of red and yellows, as shown in the picture of his color palettes of his films. Throughout all of his films he uses retro bright colors of the sets, costumes, and props to add to that quirky comedic feel. 

His use of color and cinematography is explicitly explored in an interview with Jill Bodanowicz, his colorist for Grand Budapest Hotel. She explains each time period of the film was filmed using a different aspect ratio (how the material fits on the screen). The ’30s had a 4:3 aspect ratio, which is what they used at the time. With pinks, deep reds and purples being the colors showing the elegance and extravagance of the hotel. The ’60s had a 2:40, zoomed out or fisheye look. With pronounced yellows, golds and greens to show how it changed over the years and is older and more muted. The ’80s had a traditional modern movie theater ratio, 1:85, with neutral colors of gray and beiges. 

Similarly Anderson uses color and setting to play with time. He uses inconsistent chronological markers, sets and references that make it theatrical and hard to place in time. Kim Wilkins, author of journal Texas Studies of Literature and Language writes Anderson’s films are similar to Cornell boxes “they are assembled and contain collages of specifically chosen reference and existing artifacts… with no inherit or existing chronological connection or logical relationship to each other.” You, as the viewer knows, his films are not a reflection of reality as it is. His use of setting, cinematography, and especially color create a very surreal and specific almost nostalgic feeling. I see them as children's books with bright colors and simple stories on the outside, but often have a deeper meaning than they appear. 

Anderson does this using irony. The playful aesthetic vs the depth of the darker themes of the characters and plot. Many lines are said innocently, but the subtext creates a whole new meaning for the dialogue, often revealing the depressing and dramatic mental states or problems. “Every Wes Anderson film has essentially the same ending: all the flawed, troubled, confused characters who have struggled to get along throughout the movie come together at the end for a common purpose, and if not actually forgiving each other, at least coming to a kind of acceptance of each other,” said an anonymous writer on imdb. His ideas of dysfunctional family are shown through his own struggles from a young age. He wants to portray to others what he could not do for himself and his own family. 

Overall Wes Anderson has an extremely influential style that is unlike any other filmmaker. His knowledge of production design is a huge inspiration for my own filmmaking and art. He has been nominated for 7 academy awards, and is widely considered one of the best filmmakers of the modern day. His unique sense of composition, camera techniques, production design, and especially color, in order to depict the deeper themes, shows just how important it is having one's own distinct style in order to gain traction as a filmmaker. 

Works Cited 

“Attaining the Wes Anderson Aesthetic.” Digital Video, vol. 22, no. 5, May 2014, pp. 53–56. EBSCOhost, search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?direct=true&db=f3h&AN=95841960&site=ehost-live&scope=site.

Koval, Wally, et al. Accidentally Wes Anderson. Voracious/Little, Brown and Company, New York, NY, 2020. 

IMDb. “Wes Anderson.” IMDb, IMDb.com, https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0027572/. 

SCULLION, BRANDON, director. The Wes Anderson Style Explained — The Complete Director's Guide to Wes Anderson's Aesthetic. YouTube, 26 Apr. 2021, https://youtu.be/q45m7RYy7-4. Accessed 18 Feb. 2023. 

WILKINS, KIM. “Assembled Worlds: Intertextuality and Sincerity in the Films of Wes Anderson.” Texas Studies in Literature and Language, vol. 60, no. 2, 2018, pp. 151–73. JSTOR, http://www.jstor.org/stable/44866264. Accessed 19 Feb. 2023.

[lizardgimpking]

Book Review: Aliens vs Predator: Ultimate Prey (Various Authors)

It’s no secret to anyone who knows me that I’m a huge fan of the ‘Alien‘ franchise, and also a big fan of the ‘Predator’ series. Their famously crossed over butting of heads has led to some...decidedly mixed cinematic offerings, and a whole bunch of games, books and comics that vary from fantastic (Fire and Stone) to indisputable guilty pleasures (A v P v Judge Dredd). I must admit I’ve never read a AvP novel before this anthology offering, although I’ve dipped my toes into the written world of the ‘Alien’ franchise several times in recent years (The two Alex White novels are excellent). This collection of short stories seemed like a fun way to see how these two franchises merged in writing...and, well, indeed it was!

Featuring 15 stories from 16 authors, this is a pretty robust little anthology book. One thing I really appreciated was the consistency in length. There’s a little give either side, but pretty much every installment in this book runs for around 30 pages. That’s just the right amount to make for a solid day’s reading, which means you can comfortably work your way through the book at a nice clip of one story a day, with no need to pause in the middle of each one. You can obviously read more, or indeed less, but I found the pacing of each story to be just right for a fun daily excursion into the AvP universe.

As with any anthology collection, there’s ups and downs in terms of quality. It’s hard to feature so many authors, all dabbling in the same playground, without encountering some lackluster offerings along the way. There’s no utterly unreadable stories in the book, especially since none particularly outstay their welcome, but there are some rather uninspired concepts and iffy characterisation going on here. I won’t call out any of my least favourites, but needless to say there’s about 3 or 4 that just felt completely bland and/or more than a little goofy in premise and execution. There’s also a frequent lean towards including ‘female’ Predators in the mix, which whilst not the worst thing ever, did rub me the wrong way a little. I personally consider the Predator species as something of a gender ambiguous design, but several of the stories use the female body template designed for the game ‘Predator: Hunting Grounds’, which means they have breast armour and a generally smaller, curvier figure. That’s not to say they don’t still kick ass, and it’s also not to say that several of the stories don’t use the concept of female warriors/hunters in thematically interesting ways, I just prefer the idea that the basic Predators we’ve met in the films aren’t necessarily male or female, or...we at least can’t tell. Not every two-legged fictional species needs to conform to human body standards.

My favourite story is definitely ‘The Hotel Mariposa‘ by David Barnett, which pairs Aliens and Predators with a ‘haunted’, reality distorting hotel, where a group of amateur ghost hunters get caught up in the chaos of both the hotel’s influence, but also the two warring factions within. It’s a really creative and fun idea, pairing shades of ‘The Shining’ with AvP in a way that seems insane, but ultimately really works. I would love to see that concept, or something similar explored more in a full novel. This anthology really works best when it’s pairing these franchises with interesting concepts and time periods. Or at the very least, interesting portrayals of its creatures...particularly the Predators themselves, which are obviously intelligent beings with a known honour code. When they’re made into characters themselves, with internal thought processes and relationships with the human protagonists, rather than just being big beefy monsters, that’s when things feel especially engaging. I could’ve done with less of the ‘hoomans’ kinda internal dialogue, but I did tend to enjoy the stories with Predators as characters more than the ones with them as generic killers. Included of note in this anthology book are follow-ups to both the movie ‘Predators’ and the novel ‘Aliens Phalanx’, the latter of which even written by the original novels author; Scott Sigler. Whilst the ‘Predators’ continuation is a little lacking, I really enjoyed the ‘Phalanx’ sequel, and it’s interesting to see what was once just an Aliens story weave in Predator mythology in ways that work surprisingly well and open the door for another continuation, short or long-form, in the future.

All in all, this is a mixed bag, as all anthologies are. But none of the stories are complete duds, and those that are a little lacking are never unending, thanks to the rather nice ‘tight 30 pages’ format of the novel. It’s worth getting through some of the duds to enjoy the highlights, because there’s some really fun reads here. If you’re a fan of these franchises, particularly combined? This one’s a fun read, and definitely worth a look.

Read it or Leave it : Read It.

Reading Next (Dead Ground by M.W. Craven)

[astrovian]

Richard Armitage tweets (13/09/21):

To the new owner, I’m delighted that Gizzy’s jacket found a new home. Thank you for sharing the beautiful story about your parents and for your generosity…here are some answers to your questions:

Question #1 from NJO (New Jacket Owner):

While he was filming Hannibal as Francis/Red Dragon, did he recall that in one of the first few Spooks episodes he was unpacking a box of personal items to decorate his new flat and one of the items was a photo of the Red Dragon and that Lucas was a fan of Blake’s? Question: Do you believe it to be simply a bizarre coincidence you were asked to play Francis or perhaps, could it have been kismet? Have there been any other similar kismet-like occurrences in any of your other works?

Re; Hannibal and M15 (you’re in the US!!!) I use William Blake a lot for research and inspiration but it was a coincidence.

Question #2 from NJO:

I’ve often thought that performing any Shakespearean play on stage would be quite a challenge in part due to the length of the monologues and soliloquys. In fact, it wouldn’t surprise me if Shakespeare had a hatred of actors, despite having done some acting of his own, and that writing these lengthy passages was an intentionally devious act to make life difficult for actors. RA has commented that he would like to play Richard III. Question: If you were put on the spot, say in an interview or a dinner party (presuming you weren’t too far into your cups) could you recite the opening soliloquy of Richard III by heart?

I absolutely could recite the opening soliloquy to R3. Probably would get a bit ‘paraphrasy’ according to how much I’ve imbibed!!!

Question #3 from NJO:

In almost every movie/TV show I’ve seen RA in, at some point, he picks up and carries a woman somewhere. Most of the time he’s carrying them to a bedroom. (How truly gallant of him to carry these women that are apparently so drowsy they cannot walk on their own to the bedroom to go to sleep?) Must keep this G-Rated. Question: So, Mr. Half-Century man, how is your back holding up?

My back is just fine. Looking for someone to carry me in my next role.!!!

Question #4 from NJO:

As we know, RA likes to write bios for his characters to help him realize the characters’ persona. The director of The Stranger, Danny Brocklehurst, took some of those ideas and added them to the series. While promoting it, RA stated that one of the story lines in the show was something that Richard had experienced himself. Question: Would you be willing to share what experience you and Adam had in common?

Adam Price has a conversation with Johanna Griffin (the amazing @SFinneranTV ) he tells a story about how he met Corrine; the story was peppered with real details about a time I was working in Africa. (Strike Back)

Question #5 from NJO:

RA has been filmed extensively on horseback. Actors often comment on how hard it is to get a nag to hit its mark while filming. According to the “Equine Actors Guild, **” (EAG) these beautiful stallions are well trained in their craft and their hooves do NOT miss their mark. The EAG suggests it is perhaps the fault of the actor on the back of the steed and not the mount itself. Question: Have you ever had trouble getting your hirsute, four-legged thespians to hit their mark? What about the two beautiful Borzoi in Oceans 8?

With regards to horses hitting their marks. I’ve had great experiences and made some firm equine friends on film sets. I did, however, ride a thoroughbred for a short time on Robin Hood, he knew showbiz was a step down from racing, and decided one afternoon to bail…

He tore the bit, and sped off with Gisborne on his back riding with only one rein. So the jacket might have some ‘sweat’ stains, but also I agree with the horse. Racing V Showbiz? No contest!!!

Question #6 from NJO:

WikiFeet, which I didn’t know was a thing until a minute ago, ranks RA’s feet 4.77 out of 5.0 compared to other famous people from Leicestershire. I am not a foot person and do my absolute best to not draw attention to my own feet and quite frankly I don’t notice other people’s feet, including RA’s. Question: How do inane “news” stories and rankings on such stupid things sit with you? As a shy(ish) woman, it would make me uncomfortable, and quite frankly, would chap-my-ass be I in your shoes – pun intended. At this point in your career, are you numb to the idiocy of this and can ignore it and move on with your day, or does it chap-your-ass as well, or do you adhere to the adage that all publicity is good publicity?

I rarely read anything written about myself, apart from items that are brought to my attention (by very kind friends). I try to keep my brain full of the useful stuff; there isn’t that much room for anything else.

[ziamhaze]

My Future in Fic

Yeah, so, the 100k fic that I’ve been working on for the past six months?  The one that was going to be uploaded to AO3 last week?  Yeah, it’s accidentally getting published...

Where do I start?

I suppose with a massive thank you to anyone who’s clicked on any of my fics over these past two years.  I’ve said it before, but I’ll say it again.  I never ever thought about writing as a career.  I’ve never written anything prior to my Harry Potter AU Compartment 451.  I didn’t even take an English class in undergrad or grad school.  I genuinely just had an idea for a fic I wanted to read and since no one had written it, I had to do so myself.  Since then, I’ve written every single day for 2 years.  I left my job in the entertainment industry, got accepted to one of the best creative writing programs in the world on a scholarship, and now one of my stories is being considered at Harper Collins.  Yes, the Harper Collins.  It’s the longest shot in the world, but for legal reasons I was not allowed to upload the fic version on any website prior to submission.  Even if they don’t pick it up, I’ve been advised to continue to shop it around to agents.

What I can do, however, is share the premise.

If you’ve been following my tumblr and watching my tags - I SEE YOU ALL OUT THERE - then you’ll know that this fic was meant to have Zayn with his signature undercut hairstyle and one more little thing...

Someone sent me an ask a while back about what this fic was supposed to be about.  I believe I said something about it being an adaptation fic, but not from a film/tv show/other piece of literature, from a song.  This next fic was meant to be an adaptation of the song Younger by Ruel.  Later on, it also took shape with the help of Remember by Liam and a few others that you can find here.

The miniature summary is as follows:

When his father suddenly passes, twenty-nine-year-old Liam Payne is brought back to the Sydney suburbs where he grew up.  He doesn’t plan on seeing his childhood best friend, Zayn Malik, at the burial service.  They haven’t spoken since going from brothers to strangers one fateful day fifteen years prior.  But Zayn puts an end to this when he approaches Liam after the burial, offering his condolences and asking if Liam can help his archaeological research team with photographing their newest project.  The unexpected closeness forces each man to wade through uneasy emotions.  For Liam, a mixture of grief, lost identity, and confusion over why he’s willing to interact with the one person he swore he’d never forgive.  And for Zayn, a tidal wave of anxiety that comes from finally facing a part of himself he’s always chosen to deny.  When We Were Younger is a story heavily rooted in blurred identities and exploring what loss can look like in two different scenarios: death and friendship.

For obvious reasons, their names will be changed.  Liam, to Hutton.  Zayn, to Cairo (his ethnicity will also be changed to Egyptian).  As you can see, it was meant to be my big ‘enemies to lovers’ fic.  Technically, it’s ‘best friends to enemies to lovers’, but you know.

Right, so what does this mean for me going forward?

I still have so much inspiration when it comes to writing Zayn and Liam as characters.  I don’t plan on putting a complete stop to writing them, but with my career taking this large of a turn, I do have to prioritise my time.  That said, as of now, I can’t afford to write long-form fic any longer.

Soon, I’ll be starting a PhD program where I’ll be writing another full-length novel for mass publication.  For fun, here’s a little insight on the two ideas that I’ll be pitching:

1.  Underground boxer (loosely based off Liam) falls in love with arms gang leader (loosely based off Zayn).  Throughout their love story, the latter has to outrun the psychological trauma his father (the leader of Zayn’s rival gang) still throws his way. 

2.  Cold War AU.  Paris, circa 1950/51.  Ambassador’s son (loosely based off Liam) befriends new student (loosely based off Zayn) at the international school.  Paris is a ticking time bomb; war is about to break out at literally any second.  The two clearly have feelings for each other, but can’t act on them because homosexuality in the 1950s...yikes.  When war does break out, the two are separated, and as Liam’s character goes out to find Zayn’s, he learns a secret of his that changes everything.

Whichever I don’t write for the PhD will be the novel I write following it.

In the meantime, I’m going to continue to write (and edit) like crazy.  Ever since I randomly wrote C451, there hasn't been a day that’s gone by where I haven't written something.  It may have only been a paragraph or two, but never zero.  This is how you get better.  This is the equivalent of going out and shooting free throws for 30 minutes a day.  You have to put in the work in order to get better.  I'm very lucky that I'm incredibly self-disciplined and I've been able to crank out as many stories as I have over the past 2 years.

That said, I’ll be writing shorter little oneshots.  I have several ideas that I’ve been sitting on, but haven’t ever thought to write because I HATE writing short stories.  Little ideas that don't have huge plotline/climax potential, but that I want to just see on paper, I'll probably end up writing.  If I had to guess, I'd say they'll come out to around 10-15k.  Also, sequels?  Prequels?  Haha, you never know...

I’ve also got a series called “Sleep Drabbles” that are, yes, you guessed it, a series of drabbles based around one theme: sleep.  I also have a few scenes that I want to write which are based on ziam’s kids, not actually ziam themselves.  If there’s enough demand for that, I can upload those too, but they’re quite niche, so I don’t think the general fandom would be very interested.

As far as frequency for all of this, I have no idea.  I’ve always done things at my own pace and written stories that I want to write, for myself.  That won’t ever change, so I don’t want to commit to one drabble a week or one short-length fic per month.  It takes me weeks (months for this last fic) to research and interview the necessary people to get character arcs correct/believable.  I love that part of writing, and so if I have a little story that I want to write that may only be 10k but takes me ages to put together how I want, then so be it.  I will always be around to answer asks/messages and please, continue to tag me in your writing tag posts!  But please, no prompts.

So, that’s my future with fic.

Again, I cannot say thank you enough to every single one of you.  Every single thing that people tag me in (@malik-payne , @zqua1d , @zentiment , @liamisthesun , @redyellowberry I’m looking at you), I appreciate and love!  The recommendation lists that people have put me on, THANK YOU!  It’s wild to think that I used to look to rec lists for years and now I’m on them.  @ziamfanfiction THANK YOU for always having my back with exposure!  @paynefulperiods , my beloved beta reader, THANK YOU for always encouraging me and putting up with shit first drafts.  @march-z5 , THANK YOU for always being on call for ideas and listening to me bang my head against the wall at 4 am.

Now, might fuck around and make a fake picspam for the fic that never was...

Also, all of the behind scenes pages for each of my fics are now public, so feel free to check those out here.

I want to thank you all from the bottom of my heart for making this journey possible. I know people say that a lot when they gain a following of any sort, but I truly truly mean it.  You have to have talent in order to be an author, but you also have to have people who want to read your stuff.  Proof of concept is a real thing.

So thank you a million times over.

Speak soon my friends.

[meandmyechoes]

Star Wars Visions review Part 1

binged them all in subs! will revisit the dub. first pass viewing order is 548621793.

[Part 2]  [Part 3]

The Ninth Jedi: Yay, Kara my girl! Look, I know it wasn’t the smartest decision to stan her out of all the girls even before we’ve seen the full series, but I’d like to be somebody different! I have, what you could call the highest expectation of this story. I heard it is actually two standalone concepts merged into one, that it has the grandest of a worldbuilding mechanism. Incidentally, that feels like it turns on itself - that the deviation from “canon” makes it almost its own fantasy story. And I say that going in knowing the rule book.

The aftertaste is: I watched a trailer. which is true, because that’s where the concepts started out. It feels like they set up a world, a quest, the main character and threw in the coolest fight scene to hook you on, and it frustrates me because Ninth has the longest runtime of them all. The lightsaber-smith is such a Japanese/traditional concept that I can understand the inspiration, just that I prefer building your own saber and a Jedi being more than a weapon. However that theme wasn’t lost in seeing Kara has to strengthen herself to earn her namesake. Kara turns out to be a bit ‘main-chara’ (in a perfectly fine but underexplored way) but I do like the confirmation of what I first saw in her: the optimism and fearlessness. Kind of reminds me of Ahsoka bouncing around with that green saber of hers! The character I’m more interested in learning though, ended up being the old pilot droid(s). My verdict for The Ninth Jedi is, I like its details and clues, but I’d like it better if it was its own story. 

8:2 / 7 (Japanese : Star Wars ratio + score out of 10)

The Village Bride: This one, expectation and reality matches up! This with T0-B1 are my favourites, but I think this is a close second because I’d have liked it to be a feature-length film! There are enough materials covering the village’s past and invasion, building up the characters like how Haru and Saku came to differ, Asu’s role, and how Van and F met! It doesn’t feel like a trailer like Ninth because instead of asking you to look forward to the next chapter, Bride feels like an extract with its dialogue delivering just the crucial story, and giving us a concluding climax. I super-love the costumes and visuals. The unconventional lineart and colour choices leave a refreshing impression. Music is killer. Chills every time the vocal hits. I think this hits that perfect mark of melding Japanese (mountain) culture (animism) and Jedi heroism.

5:5 / 10

Lop and Ocho: Lop puts a Japanese story inside the Star Wars framework more than the other way round. The industrialization and family feud works in Star Wars, while rooted in Japanese stories. Lop has the most palatable art style so it is very easy for a layman like me to go 'wow this has money' staring at the rich backgrounds and frame rate. The zinc rooftops, rundown alleys, shitamachi neighbourhood shops are very close to heart. I’m seeing old Kowloon while seeing old Shinjuku haha. The retrofuturism is an essential element of Star Wars that often gets overlooked (at least to me) and I’m glad it is the foundation for the aesthetic and conflict of this short.

And then I feel so dumb not realizing the time-skip haha! I was the one who sieved the trailer and I couldn’t make the connection! I was initially imagining more of a cheerful quest not unlike Ninth. Well wouldn’t you like to be wrong! I do like this more than I expected.

Felt just the slightest bit rushed. Ocho’s transformation and fight sequence are amazing. The final frame with the sakuras at the background just took my breath away. The inscribed lightsaber is a novel idea, but right where my mind swam towards the ‘Japanese’ side than the ‘Star Wars’ side. There were so many details in a frame I would go back to see the Easter eggs. This story is so pretty and when you peel all that away, at its core is a drama that is… an age-old tale. And I’m not complaining, because that's what Star Wars is, a ‘cliche’ that works. It brings novelty to Star Wars, but those are elements I’ve seen in classic stories I grew up with. In the end, Lop works, it is definitely a very high-quality work, but I don’t think it can quite secure a most special place in my heart.

6:4 / 9

[hayleysayshay]

Love, Death and Robots Series 2 review:

I think it’s a shame there’s only eight episodes-- I think that because some of them are so short, it feels little and slightly unsatisfying. Still the shorts were less gratuitous than series 1, but lose some of the high concept fun of the previous shorts, and there aren’t really any twists or turns in these shorts. They are what they are, but I don’t think people are going to latch onto any characters of ideas like they did in the previous one (like Sonnie’s Edge, Good Hunting, Zima Blue). I tend to like the ones that are more simple and work with a fun or interesting concept.

Episode 1: Automated Customer Service: Killer Robots! not especially original and the character designs are a choice, but a fun watch.

Episode 2: Ice: Love the animation style, as we follow some rebellious teens trying to see some whales in a dangerous manner. Not especially standout and nothing really grabs you as the stakes are pretty low, but a nice short that keeps your attention. I like the teens just doing something stupid for the fun of it. Very teenage.

Episode 3: Pop Squad: I loved this, even if I can admit that it’s not particularly original. I think it gets across a lot of the bleak noir despair of it all, in the short amount of time it has to do so-- and it’s arguably flawed and full of ‘why’ questions with regards to the setting, but the style and concept won me over compared to the other CGI ‘film story concept’ shorts (detailed below).

Episode 4: Snow in the Desert: This felt slightly generic to me, and I couldn’t really get into it a whole lot. Immortal characters, synth characters, angst and bounty hunters tracking them, bla bla bla. THis could be a good movie or novel, but as a short it felt bland as there’s too much to explore, so nothing is. The video game CGI styling is very boring to me.

Episode 5: The Tall Grass: A good supernatural horror short, and I loved the art direction! Simple and effective, and great art direction.

Episode 6: All Through The House: Kids see ‘Santa’ at christmas. I loved this one. Comedic and freaky, just a simple concept told straight to the point, and I loved the art style. This had so much personality to it! Very short, and would have fit better in an anthology with more longer shorts as a breather, as instead I wish we had a bit more to it, or at least seen more like this one.

Episode 7: Life Hutch: Zzzz. Military sci-fic horror where a soldier is hunted. What kind of war is he fighting? Doesn’t matter. Good use of body horror and squeamish realism and it feels like it hurts, but the CGI styleis bland. I feel like I should like this more than Snow in the Desert as it’s a more stripped back horror, but military sci-fi in spaceeee does very little for me.

Episode 8: The Drowned Giant: A scientist ponders the decaying body of a Giant that washed up in a small seaside town. Of all of these, this feels most like an actual short film, in that it actually feels appropriate for the length of time it is, rather than Life Hutch and Snow in the Desert which are just typical sci-fi tropes but too short to actually subert anything. This is pretty charming, and laid back-- it arguably doesn’t have much of a ‘point’ other than a look at humans using the body of a giant. My favourite short.

RANKING WORST TO BEST:

8: LIFE HUTCH

7: SNOW IN THE DESERT

6: AUTOMATED CUSTOMER SERVICE

5: ICE

4: THE TALL GRASS

3: POP SQUAD

2: ALL THROUGH THE HOUSE

1: THE DROWNED GIANT.

[fibula-rasa]

12 Christmas Films of a Century Past

For some reason, I thought it would be a good idea to watch somewhere around 50 Christmas and Christmas-adjacent silent films from before 1920 to put together a playlist for you all. So, I hope you enjoy!

I chose these twelve as a representative selection. My general criteria were:

Christmas should be central to the story

The plot should be novel to a modern viewer or something a modern viewer would be surprised to see so early on film

The list on the whole should have a variety of settings and narrative structures

Here’s a direct link to the YouTube playlist if you want to watch them all in one go. (They are all shorter than feature length!)

Two quick presentation notes: 1. Some of the videos have music and some don’t, so you may want to check your volume level. 2. The intertitles for some of these films are not in English, so be sure you have captions turned on for English translations.

See the whole list BELOW THE JUMP!

1. Santa Claus (1898) (UK)

Directed by George Albert Smith

Short and sweet, this film sees children put to bed by their nanny on Christmas Eve and Santa Claus coming down the chimbley to fill their dutifully hung stockings. Director G.A. Smith used his own patented technique of double exposure to show Santa’s arrival without cutting away from the children’s room. Santa Claus might not pack the punch of a Méliès trick film, but it’s a fun novelty and is purportedly the first appearance of Santa Claus on film.

2. The Little Match Seller (1902) (UK)

Directed by James Williamson

This one’s quick but effective adaptation of the Hans Christian Anderson tragedy featuring impressively well-coordinated superimpositions.

3. The Christmas Angel (1904) (FR)

Directed by George Méliès for Star Film Company

The Christmas Angel follows an impoverished girl driven into the city to beg on a snowy winter night. First she’s chased away from a church by more seasoned beggars; then she’s thrown out of a poultry seller and harassed by police. On the verge of falling asleep in the snow, a rag-and-bone man rouses her and offers her help. Later, the girl passes out beside a road but is luckily spotted by a wealthy couple on a car ride. When they learn of her plight, they bring her home along with food and gifts.

Though not as fantastical as some of Méliès’ more famous works, The Christmas Angel is still highly stylized (and stylish) and features special effects that photograph beautifully. It’s also worth noting that the version of the film included here is the American cut. The original French cut, titled Détresse et Charité (Distress and Charity), did not include the sequence with the wealthy couple and instead ends with the girl dying in the snow.

4. The Night Before Christmas (1905) (US)

Directed by Edwin S. Porter for Edison Manufacturing Company

This is the first time the poem “Twas the Night Before Christmas” was put on film. Loosely following the poem, we see Santa Claus prepare for his yearly trek while a middle-class family prepares for his visit. When Santa heads out, we are treated to an extended panning sequence with a fully painted backdrop for a mini Santa and his reindeer to glide across. When Santa arrives at the family home, he chaotically dumps presents and decorations around their living room and makes a large, decorated tree appear out of thin air. (Across many of the movies I watched to put this post together, this seems to be a favored scenario for the jolly fat man around this time–and it’s delightful.) The family then wakes to find their gifts and the film closes with Santa directly wishing us a Merry Christmas.

5. A Little Girl Who Did Not Believe in Santa Claus (1907) (US)

Directed by J. Searle Dawley and Edwin S. Porter for Edison Manufacturing Company

Even at the risk of this list being too Edison heavy, I couldn’t leave this great short out. While walking with his mother, a rich little boy encounters a poor little girl alone in the cold. They take her home to play and warm up. When the boy learns that the girl doesn’t believe in Santa because apparently Santa doesn’t visit poor children, he hatches a scheme. On Christmas Eve, the boy has a stake out near the fireplace and takes Santa hostage, tying him up and holding him at gunpoint. The boy then forces Santa to visit the girl–going so far as shimmying down the chimney himself to let Santa in the front door. When the girl wakes up to a beautifully decorated tree, new toys, and a full stocking, she can finally believe in Santa Claus. While I’m generally not so into stories about supposedly benevolent rich people, I do love the implications this story has on how Santa Claus works and I also find the means with which the boy gets his way hilarious.

6. Il Natale di Cretinetti / Foolshead’s Christmas (1909) (IT)

and Come fu che l’ingordigia rovino il Natale di Cretinetti / How Greediness Spoilt Foolshead’s Christmas (1910)

and Il Natale di Cretinetti (1911)

Directed by Andre Deed for Itala Film

This entry is a three-for, which I hope you’ll excuse, but I couldn’t decide which Cretinetti Christmas to share! Cretinetti, the comedic persona of filmmaker Andre Deed, is an absolute agent of chaos.

In the 1909 film, Cretinetti attempts to bring a tree home for a Christmas party. The destruction escalates wildly, culminating in an entire building falling to pieces.

If you can believe it, the stakes are even higher in the 1910 film, when Cretinetti can’t resist sneaking out of bed on Christmas Eve to snack on the candy decorating the tree. When Santa sees what Cretinetti has done, he chides him and takes him back to his workshop, which is apparently in heaven. Destruction ensues. Cretinetti then proceeds to cause havoc for Saint Peter, annoying god so much that he calls the devil to come get Cretinetti. Cretinetti is then chased to hell where demons try to cook him alive. Thankfully, spoiler alert, it was all a bad dream and he wakes up on Christmas morning with a terrible stomach ache.

The 1911 film returns to localized chaos. Cretinetti has a run-in with a mail carrier and his Christmas packages get mixed up with one of the carrier’s parcels. The parcel contains three bottles of ether which then begin to emit gasses in the middle of the family Christmas party.

I wasn’t familiar with Cretinetti before reviewing films for this list, but I’m definitely going to seek out more of Deed’s movies. Each of these films had well-executed chaotic slapstick; over-the-top in all the right ways.

7. Making Christmas Crackers (1910) (UK)

Produced by Cricks & Martin Films for Clarke, Nickolls, & Coombs Confectionery

To start, if you’re not sure what a Christmas cracker is, it’s a colorfully decorated paper tube that makes a cracking noise as you pull it open. Inside the tube is a paper hat, a joke, and/or a small toy. It’s a traditional part of UK Christmas celebrations.

This short starts as a documentary of the workers at Clarke, Nickolls, & Coombs constructing the crackers. It’s a fun thought that as early as 1910, people were interested in watching how mass-produced consumer goods were made. It’s also fun to see these skilled workers ply their trade so deftly (even though I’m sure wages and working conditions were less than ideal). The film ends with a family celebrating around a Christmas tree topped with a functional giant cracker.

8. A Christmas Carol (1910) (US)

Directed by J. Searle Dawley for Edison Films Manufacturing Company

There are so so so many film adaptations of Charles Dickens’ A Christmas Carol made before 1920 that it was hard to choose which one to include on this list. In the end I chose this 1910 version for its economy of storytelling, fluid use of special effects, and for Marc McDermott’s great performance as Scrooge.

9. Broncho Billy’s Christmas Dinner (1911) (US)

Directed by Gilbert M. Anderson (Broncho Billy) for The Essanay Film Manufacturing Company

Gilbert M. Anderson was an incredibly prolific and popular filmmaker and star of early American film, particularly in his role as Broncho Billy. As was typical for Anderson, he’s pulling triple duty on Broncho Billy’s Christmas Dinner as the star, director, and producer. The film features a simple and heartwarming story.

On Christmas, Billy comes across a young woman in peril as her horses got startled and are now pulling her cart along wildly. Billy manages to wrangle the horses and in gratitude she invites him to Christmas dinner at her parents’ home. Unfortunately, her father happens to be the sheriff. But, all is well, as it turns out that Broncho Billy’s been given a pardon and the sheriff welcomes him to the table gladly.

The enduring appeal of outlaws or criminals getting into the Christmas spirit is fascinating to me and it’s cool to see such an early instance of the story!

10. Le Noel de la princesse / The Little Princess’s XMas Gift (1911) (FR)

Produced by Société Générale des Cinématographes Éclipse

In all honesty, this is the least Christmassy of all the films I included here, but its style and novelty stood out. The sets, costuming, and production design are lush. It might also be one of the weirdest Christmas stories I’ve even encountered.

After Lord Othberg passes away, the conniving Otto plans to assassinate the baby prince in order to inherit the lordship himself. He poisons the baby, but the princess prays for her baby brother to come back to life as her Christmas gift. An angel appears to her and they summon Jesus, who resurrects her baby brother. Of course, they then place the revivified baby in the castle’s nativity scene, to the joy of all but Otto.

11. Ida’s Christmas (1912) (US)

Directed by Van Dyke Brooke for Vitagraph Company of America

With a more classic Christmassy story, Ida’s Christmas tells us of a family who are facing hard times. Ida (played by a very small Dolores Costello) has her eyes on a pricey doll. Meanwhile, her mother seeks out employment with a wealthy family. The matriarch of the wealthy family overhears Ida’s wish and decides to buy the doll for her as a surprise. Later, Ida is distraught to find that the doll has been purchased but comes across a wallet that someone has dropped. She considers taking the money, but chases down the owner instead. The old man gives her some reward money for returning the wallet. Ida rushes to see if she can buy the doll, but has second thoughts when she thinks about how much her family could use the money. She arrives home with the money just in time for a Santa-esque old man to show up bearing packages and an assurance that the wealthy family has work for her father. The film ends with the family celebrating an unexpectedly Merry Christmas.

It’s a sweet story that hits so many beats of what we now consider traditional Christmas tales.

12. Rozhdestvo obitateley lesa / The Insect’s Christmas (1913) (RU)

Directed by Władysław Starewicz for Khanzhonkov

Fair warning, if you thought The Princess’s XMas Gift was odd, you might need to ready yourself for this one. Stop-motion virtuoso Władysław Starewicz (Ladislas Starevich) spins a tale about a tiny ornament of Santa/Ded Moroz coming to life on Christmas and going out into the wild to bring Christmas joy to creatures small and smaller, including a frog and a ladybug. Starewicz’s animation is as impeccable as ever and the short is imaginative and quirky.