Irma's Proposal Draft
DESCRIPTION AND STORYLINE OF THE FOUR MAIN CHARACTERS
WHAT
I want to make a short film, around 20-30 minutes, with interlocking storylines of four main characters. The film would use various visual languages, it would be a mix of a documentary style, with a "classic" cinema look and social media film-look. (see visual examples at description of characters) One of the themes of the movies would be the rhetorics of storytelling.
HOW
Working step by step, navigating between theory and practice. I will to develop the scripts and characters more, organize and research my theme. The starting-point is filming the most practical storyline, like the characters Margarita and Ed (see script) while I get in contact and research the character which I want to base the documentary scenes on.
WHY
I want to use the medium of film to express my personal point of view on the world, to use the storyline of different characters that represent theories I've been reading. For example, one character would be based on the theory of Noam Chomsky another on Edward Bernays. My goal is that these stories can be read in different layers as I think it is important that the film is still interesting for an audience that is not familiar with the theory.
WHEN
November
- Make (test) shots/casting shots of actors
- test shots film location and cinemagrophy
- Work on Ed/Margarita script
- If this is in a developed narrative, then I'll start filming already
Before Dec 2017
- develop the script
- Organise first location and actress
- Start filming the scenes of the woman
- research the real-life character, sovereign citizen, have a pre-interview.
Before 7th of May 2018
- Have all Film all footage
Before end of MAY 2018
- First draft Film
JUNE 2018
- test screening on peers
- color and sound effects
Who can help you and how?
- Next to peers, tutors I'm also trying to get some knowledge on creative writing during an extra course at crea/Uva
- The actors:
- Margarita, found actress, will start with first recordings in December
- Ed, need to get in contact when the script and timetable are clear.
- Emma, haven't found the person yet, but she is the last one on the list to film.
- Sakshin, need to get in contact when the script and timetable are clear.
- Extra's for the company at Ed's office
- Some locations
- Maybe extra technical help on some shooting days, I have enough filmers in my network.
Relation to a larger context
Relation to previous practice
I'm trying to stay in my previous themes of interest. Wich I consider is manipulation of truth, the longing for advice from a bigger individual or spirit and creating a language that is suitable for the target audience.
I see a lot of overlap in my previous research in specifically the second character, whois the sovereign citizen. In the theories of Ideology, the big other, trepanation (making a hole in the skull of a living person to create a higher consciousness) which seems in the line of the Tachyon Energy Theory, longing for a bigger power. This was also a theme within the projects of last year called Fortunewood. Hereby a company has the role of the bigger other and offers advice to individuals. I can also imagine there is a connection with the philosophy of Noam Chomsky and a person choosing to be a sovereign citizen. Both theories lean against conspiracy theories, I find it fascinating where a story crosses the line of conspiracy.
References
Research on Emma (documentary maker)
- MANUFACTURING CONSENT The Political Economy of the Mass Media by Edward S. Herman and Noam Chomsky (1988)
- Manufacturing Consent - Noam Chomsky And The Media-The Companion Book To The Award-Winning Film by Peter Wintonick and Mark Achbar (1994)
- The Propaganda Model: a retrospective by Edward S. Herman
- Documentary 'Requiem for the American Dream' (2015) - Noam Chomsky
- Het einde van de Americaanse droom- Noam Chomsky (book based on Documentary 'Requiem for the American Dream (2015)'
- Post-truth by Matthew Dáncona
Research on Ed (App developer)
- The Century of the Self -Adam Curtis
- Propaganda - Edward Bernays
- The Father of Spin - Larry Tye
Research on Saksin (Sovereign citizen)
- "The Big Other doesn't exist" - Slavoj Zizek
- Mockumentaries such as Incident at Loch Ness by Werner Herzog
Research on Margarita (Social media influential)
- Rachel Dolezal - a white woman pretending to be black.
- Zjesus Zila - art project of a student from the HKU who pretended online to be on Holiday while she was staying in holland.
- Merel Brugman https://www.ad.nl/binnenland/boze-merel-populaire-scriptie-over-schijnreis-is-jatwerk~a919e799/
- Jacques Lacan - mirror stage
- Documentary: PBS Frontline 2014 Generation Like
Essay on representing a persona - Het weerzinwekkende lot van de oude filosoof Socrates by Connie Palmen
- De Zonde van de vrouw - Connie Palmen She analyzes 4 women on self-destruction
Research on Storytelling
- Wired for Storytelling - Lisa Cron
- Plotting and Writing suspense fiction - Patrica Highsmith
What do you want to make?
I want to make a short film, let's say 20 minutes, with interlocking storylines and multiple characters. A good example in this genre of storytelling would be the Film Magnolia. The film would use multiple visual languages but start as a documentary and then slowly turns into a fiction film.
The movie could start with the youtbube channel (something like this ) of a young female documentary maker character one , about 30 years old, she tells her online followers about this man she is researching character two who lives his life as a sovereign citizen and sees himself as The Tachyon Energy Facilitator.
Sovereign citizen: I'm still researching but at this moment I understand that a self-described sovereign citizens take the position that they are answerable only to their particular interpretation of the common law and are not subject to any government statutes or proceedings.
The Tachyon Energy: alternative healthcare where there is a belief that all matter is made of energy and is part of an Energetic Continuum, a term used to describe the flow of energies as they move down from the source. This stepping down process creates the third-dimensional world in which we live. A Facilitator would help you restore these energies.
This man is a real person, I know him, and a want to start to make a non-fictional documentary about his political and spiritual points of view. I think it could be interesting to play with the realistic approach of a documentary. I'm fascinated with his lifestyle, political view. I wonder if he is successful as a Facilitator of energy, does this also come with a philosophy on life. (I didn't ask him to participate in my film because I'm still researching if it would be interesting enough to focus on for my graduation project.)
So... The documentary maker get's in contact with this character and wants to follow and interview him for her documentary. The film switches back and forward from her youtube channel -where she talks directly to her followers- to the classic documentary that the girl is making. At some point I want the documentary to slowly switch from a documentary to a fictional film. Slowly the colors and movements would change in a more unrealistic film language, I imagine multiple camera angles instead of the journalistic shots of the girl. Now the filmmaker is becoming a character in the movie. I'm developing the script and don't where this would lead me, but I can imagine there should/could be a conflict between the two characters, a suspense.
The third character is not yet directly connected to the first two. She is a famous social media personality and earns her money with sharing her life online. What started out as a fun thing, ended as a full time and a quite stressful job. If she doesn't post anything followers and sponsors become annoyed and she will lose her income. She needs to follow the news, respond to this, have an interesting social life and show people she lives according to her own spiritual life rules. To make her life easier she started to manipulate her posts a bit, with the help of visual manipulation techniques she saves a lot of time, she is experienced enough to know what kind of pictures give her enough likes to keep the sponsors happy. This perfectionist woman is living in a "perfect" terraced house which is far too big for herself. She is nesting but doesn't have anyone to share her nest with. A happy single! She pretends to travel, although she doesn't have the time, therefore she hires a photographer to take pictures of herself in a greenscreen studio. In her save apartment she edit's her holiday pictures to post online and pretend her life.
The fourth Character The "stalker" is the neighbor of the perfectionist, he is a family man, his name is Ed. He works at a commercial production company where they developed and analyze trends. I want to base his character on the theory of Edward Bernays. He is very famous within the world of marketing because he is one of the developers of this (fictional) social media app, this is sold to Google in an early stage. People around him whisper Wow, wasn't selling it so early the biggest mistake of his life? He hardly got money for it! What has he done since then? Will he ever create something new? Ed tries to play cool but feels the pressure inside, was he just a one-day-fly? Is this what he came here on earth for? Doesn't god/the universe has bigger plans for him? Ed is fascinated by his neighbor, the girl who seems to have an interesting life, based on her social media pages, is always inside, always on the computer, always alone in her clean house. His fascination turns into an obsession, he wants to see her, meet her, why is this beautiful woman always focused on her social media, with the application he developed? Maybe he should feel proud, but he feels sad for her. After a few scenes, the Ed slowly discovers how the woman is manipulation the world while she is sitting save from her home. Earning money pretending to be someone she is not. Her situation inspires Ed to develop a new application, an app that does social media for you, knows what newspapers you read, knows how you would respond, shares and photoshop the best moments of your day' An App that helps you shine! This new idea will be a great career move for Ed, finally, he feels appreciated by his you millennial colleagues. I can imagine him having multiple roles, trying to get in contact with her, being for example also the photographer and maybe a mechanic that comes around the house. I want to maybe create an uncanny agreement between the two, an unspoken roleplay of a stalker and the victim who likes the attention.
The script is developing while I'm researching theories of plot writing techniques, analyzing films, books, and artists such as Omar Fast.
Interesting examples of Mocumentaries :
How do you plan to make it?
I want to develop the scripts and characters more, organize and research my characters. The man who is a sovereign citizen is this in real life, I know him, but have to ask if he would be interested to work with me. If so, I would try to meet/interview him.
The most practical storyline, the perfectionist woman, I would like to develope and start filming soon.
What is your timetable?
November
- Make test shots/casting shots of actors
- test shots film location and cinemagrophy
- Work on stalker/girl next door script
- If this is in a developed narrative, then I'll start filming already
Before Dec 2017
- develop the script
- Organise first location and actress
- Start filming the scenes of the woman
- research the real-life character, sovereign citizen, have a pre-interview.
Before March 2018
- Film all footage
Before April 2018
- First draft Film
May 2018
- experiment in editing the story for a 4 screen installation
- experiment in editing the story for a linear movie
Why do you want to make it?
I want to use the language of film to express my personal point of view on the world. I like that the visual film language is very approachable for a big audience. I want to use the storyline of different characters to represent theories I've been reading. My goal is that these stories can be read in different layers, the movie should still be interesting for an audience that is not familiar with the theory. I think this makes it a rich medium to work with.
Who can help you and how?
My first focus points would help with, locations, actors and developing my script.
- Next to peers, tutors I'm also trying to get some knowledge on creative writing during an extra course at crea/Uva
- First one to ask is my friend, I've used her before as an actress and want to ask her for the role of the third character. (meeting her next week)
- The home for this character is based on my other friend's house, hopefully, this could be arranged at a short-term.
- Get in contact and research the man who is a lives his life as a sovereign citizen. He has a lot of things online but at some point, I would be good to interview him about his political and spiritual point of view.
- At some point, I need to find the girl who plays the documentary maker, the "real" documentary part I would film myself, but the turning point of the movie, where the filmmaker becomes a fictional character that needs to be played by an actress.
Relation to previous practice
I'm trying to stay in my previous themes of interest. Wich I consider is manipulation of truth, the longing for advice from a bigger individual or spirit and creating a language that is suitable for the target audience.
I see a lot of overlap in my previous research in specifically the second character, whois the sovereign citizen. In the theories of Ideology, the big other, trepanation (making a hole in the skull of a living person to create a higher consciousness) which seems in the line of the Tachyon Energy Theory, longing for a bigger power. This is also a theme within the projects of last year called Fortunewood. Hereby a company has the role of the bigger other and offers advice to individuals. I can also imagine there is a connection with the philosophy of Noam Chomsky and a person choosing to be a sovereign citizen. Both theories lean against conspiracy theories, I find it fascinating where a story crosses the line of conspiracy.
Relation to a larger context
In combination with my thesis, I would like to research the cause and effect of storytelling, the rhetoric's behind the manipulation of believability of the truth.
I'm researching different storytellers, the ones I see as role models are:
- Charlie Kaufman
- Patricia Highsmith
- George Orwell