When you change the sky

Concept image created by DALLE

Title:

When You Change The Sky

Genre:	Duration:	Format:
Drama	20 minutes	Short fiction

Tagline:

How do you protect yourself, while all you do is protect them?

Logline:

Two drag performers are an inseparable couple, both personally and on stage. But when one's instability and addiction starts to become increasingly difficult, the other is faced with a difficult choice.

Synopsis:

Lou and Ruby are two drag queens who perform together and also have a relationship behind the scenes. They share a whole world together. Lou is a seasoned queen with stage fright and originally Ruby's drag mother. Ruby is a drag queen with enormous potential, but also a dark side. They suffer from mood swings and a strong preference for mind-altering substances that sometimes seems to be heading towards addiction.

The film takes place over one night, where we delve into the intricacies of their complex relationship. Lou and Ruby are set to perform alongside other performers, but Ruby is nowhere to be found before the show. Lou is looking everywhere for them.  It turns out they are hiding in a corner, having major anxiety. After a long pep talk from Lou and a line of cocaine from another queen, they eventually take the stage and give a fantastic performance.

For a moment, their relationship seems to evolve with the euphoria of their performances. Lou feels why he originally fell for Ruby. But when they get into a taxi after the show, the mood shifts again. Ruby is now heavily drunk and feels intimidated by the (apparently) homophobic taxi driver. When they arrive at the after party on a houseboat, they realize Ruby has left their phone in the taxi.

Amidst the other partygoers, Ruby has a mental breakdown. Lou pulls out all the stops to calm them down, but he is increasingly overwhelmed by the intensity of their mood swings. This is the turning point for him. As he puts Ruby to bed, half-dazed and surrounded by concerned queens and partygoers, he slowly moves away from the never-ending party. With a rising sun in his face and a lump in his throat, he leaves the houseboat.

Motivation:

I once witnessed an addiction up close with a close friend who struggled with his mental health. As our lives were so intertwined, I became part of his emotional rollercoaster. I watched with sadness as his lifestyle and the impact it had on his environment, including his partner, took hold. I searched for a way to help. But I also began to realize that I was becoming part of the structure he had built to maintain his addiction.

Later, I came across the term "codependency" during a conversation with a boy whose mother was severely addicted. A codependent relationship is a type of dysfunctional relationship where one person is a caretaker and the other person relies on them. An unhealthy relationship arises that is not equal, but still maintained by both parties. The caretaker feels the need to be there for the other person. The one in need appears to live with the conviction that safety is not possible without the other. Codependent relationships often occur when one of the two partners is addicted.

This story visualizes the phenomenon of codependent relationships. The unhealthy bubble that can be created when one excessively relies on the other. I want to show how addiction and mental struggles can influence and shape a relationship.

Various studies show that addiction plays a role within the LGBTQ+ scene. Factors such as minority stress, a difficult past, and a hedonistic mindset can play a role in this. Besides that close friend, I have seen this more often in the community that I am also a part of.

Substance abuse and the drag scene are sometimes not far apart. We often see drag queens as cheerful, fierce performers, but we sometimes forget the humanity and struggles that lie behind this tough alter ego. This is why I’d like to focus on drag queen to tell these storiess. Because nightclubs are their workplaces, where they are always surrounded by unlimited drinks and sometimes even drugs. They must relate to the temptation that these substances offer and adopt an attitude towards them.

With this film, I want to give a snapshot of the shared lives of two people and offer a glimpse into a larger phenomenon that goes beyond just their relationship.

Director’s Vision:

"When You Change the Sky" captures a short, intense moment of a love/work relationship that no longer rests on equality. Through Lou, we experience the mental ups and downs of Ruby and the impact this has on their relationship. The film is told from his perspective and how he experiences his partner's whims. This emphasizes the difficulty of choosing to choose for oneself. The film takes place over one night that lasts until the early morning.

In terms of camera and sound, we move along with the rollercoaster of their relationship that takes place during the night. The image is honest and raw, not polished. A lot is shot handheld and we stay close to the characters and their feelings. We also remain mainly in Lou's subjective perspective and his experience of the evening. Light and color are important indicators that visualize his development. A major source of inspiration is the film Happy Together (1997) by Wong Kar-wai. An explosive, honest film that places the viewer in the middle of the destructive relationship. The work of Felix van Groeningen also directly influences the realistic visual language of this film.

Looking back at my previous two films, "Phoenix" (2019) and "Release" (2023), my mise-en-scène is often controlled and quite stylized. I like to work with powerful colors and atmospheric images that transcend reality. For this film, I still want to apply some of those elements, but at the same time I also want to get closer to the hardness of human existence. When Ruby dominates the stage like a siren, we are briefly back in that oasis of cinematic images. But when she has a mental breakdown later and is calmed down with a line of ketamine, the image is much less polished and much harder in nature.

Throughout the film, the clothing and makeup of the characters also play a major role. We start the film just before a show when they transform with beautiful wigs, grotesque outfits and intense makeup. But as the night progresses and the show is over, layer by layer is removed until we reach the person behind the persona. This is also a kind of symbolic metaphor for the journey we make as viewers. We always get a little closer to the true nature of the characters.

Of course, this film is carried by one specific component in particular: the acting. It's a fairly complex psychology that the actors of Lou and Ruby must carry. A degree of affinity with drag is also required. With "Release", I worked with a cast where the actors  themselves were all queer, which was quite beneficial for credibility. In addition, it feels valuable to make a film about the community with its members. I will take this into account for this project. I want to look for a direction in which actors are given the freedom to play in the moment and are not too tightly bound to certain dialogues or a very strict  mise-en-scène. I find this especially important in the heavier moments. That's why I want to give actors a lot of room within the script and execution to listen to their own intuition within certain scenes. In order to arrive at feelings and emotions that feel realistic.

The title refers to Lou’s ability to change Ruby’s feelings. When the world feels overwhelming and anxiety is strong it can influence our direct perception and mood. The sky is in this way a poetic metaphor for Ruby’s state of mind and their experience of the world in the moment.

Moodboard for When You Change The Sky