During the summer of last year I had worked on a personal project of my own. Technically my first short film. But I have worked on and made a few before that led me to this one. Every independent short film has its issues. This is what makes it independent right? Lack of experience, time, money, stress. The list goes on, but for my own project I expected better. So in early August of 2008 I created my short, The Piece. I had used resources like friends, Craigslist, and my ever growing network to get it completed. From the very beginning I had a goal in mind. To create a short film, improve my experience as a filmmaker, and setup a reel. The final result was a disappointment. For one I was not sure what I had created and the final outcome was much different than the original idea. Although it is possible that somewhere down the line while I was switching hats as the: producer, writer, D.P., Gaffer, Actor, Director, Editor, VFX designer, and Sound designer that I may have lost my way. A vision is so hard to foresee when you have to worry about a crews lunch and the shooting schedule over the aesthetics of a single scene. This is not to say I did not have a reliable crew or experienced talent. I just did not use them effectively and my lack of experience was proof as I fumbled from scene to scene. So what I ended up with last year is the final film below. It caused many disappointments from the people who worked with me and took me a while to figure out why.
Now it is 2009 and I have not done another project of my own since. Fear is possible, but I guess I just needed to figure out why it sucked (Piece by piece). The first thing I could think of was that it is way too long. The problem with being in so much creative control is no limit. I had no limit as to what I would cut or not. Second, the content and the acting was weak. This made sense since I am not a professional actor and the talent who worked with me had a day or less to prepare. Also the script was a simple adaption from a prior project rushed with no dialogue tweaking or influences of professionalism to make it an Oscar winner. I also tried to make it as original as possible to avoid comparing my project with someone else. Finally the short is very confusing and the whole structure loose. There was nothing holding it together. No cool lighting or scene. I needed something.
From, The Piece
So after much consideration and a weekend or two sober nights alone in my editing room on Final Cut Pro I re-edited my short film. It is shorter, the quality improved, and the whole plot tighter. I added more effects, polished a few things here and there, and my personal favorite; color corrected a few things. I know one thing for sure and that is crap with a paint job is still crap. But I understand my film better and this new edit is what I was really trying to say as best as I could with the material I had. Keep in mind I did not have the raw footage anymore since my computer crashed, but I made due. Below is my newly edited short film with a brief synopsis accurately depicting the plot. Enjoy.
Synopsis After a girl acknowledges interest in a young man he attempts to summon the courage to pay interest back but not before he goes on a trip within his head to discover and interpret his feelings.
The Piece (2009 Edit), Short Film Written and Directed by Shan Howerton Starring: Shan Howerton, Stephanie Walker, Catherine Kim Poon Running Time: 4 min. Camera: HVX200 Format: 24p, 16:9, HDTV Widescreen
So I can finally put my short film to rest. As far as my fear goes I can say only one thing and it is that what I went through is necessary as I climb to the top.
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