Directors
Notes:
I
made this short film in 2004, as part of the course I was studying at the time.
I don't remember where the idea originated, but I think it may have had something
to do with my love of alliteration (the original title was 'The Legend of Laura,
The Last Lion-Tamer'). I was heavily influenced by the works of film director
Terry Gilliam, as well as the post-apocolyptic visions of directors like Jeunet
et Caro, and the music of Tom Waits and The Tiger Lillies. It was shot over
two days in the back alleys of Carlton, Melbourne, in the RMIT TV studio, and,
surreptitiously, in the corridors of RMIT's Building 94. The production (as
I believe most productions are) was beset by problems: one of the members of
the production team disappeared without a word before we even got going, and
we never saw her again; another key member of the production team (I think she
was going to be the DoP, if my memory serve me correctly), fell ill and was
taken to hospital the day before we started shooting; and a member of the film
crew didn't show up for either of the days of filming. Add to that the fact
that I didn't really know what I was doing, and I'm surprised it actually got
made. There are moments in the film that make me cringe, things that I know
what I should have done differently, but overall, considering, I'm reasonably
happy with the end result, thanks especially to certain members of the cast
and crew: Stacey Maloney, for being a fantastic producer; Amy Ludge and Sandra
Robertson for the fantastic lighting in the underground scenes; Rachel Bowen,
for help with the script and for being a fantastic Ringmaster; my wondrous
partner for the sumptuous score, for helping work through early drafts of the
script, and for being so simply spiffing; to name just a few. I'd like to end
by saying thanks to everyone involved for helping me to fulfil a lifelong dream.
I couldn't have done it without you.
Production
Pictures - coming soon
Directors
Notes:
I
made this short animation in 2003, as part of the course I was studying at the
time. The story was inspired by a throw-away sentence in a book I was reading
at the time - Tom Standage's excellent The Mechanical Turk. On page
4 of said tome, Standage is describing the history of automata, and I quote,
"Even less plausible is the brass fly constructed by Bishop Virgilius of
Naples. It supposedly chased all the real flies from the city, which remained
free of flies for eight years." This was my first effort with Flash, and
I've hardly used it since - I would like to be good at it, but it requires more
time an effort than I can be bothered with at the moment. It's a very frustrating
program for a novice like me.
Production Pictures - coming soon