A NEW AND EXCITING EXPERIENCE 3D (15 mins, 16:9 HD)
An uncommonly dark and comic take on the commonplace.
TREATMENT
The film portrays a day in the life of a woman who does everything by the booklet. For her own safety and that of those around her, she acts only on explicit instructions as found in user manuals. Starting with the most mundane of activities, the plot takes a turn for the strange and then heads towards calamity, all the while cultivating a sense of the absurd. Images are realised in collaboration with a technical illustrator as a mixture of product drawings and live action. The story is told through a voiceover drawn from authentic user manuals. Action is driven by a brisk electronic score with choral elements. The voiceover, music, foley sound and the visual cut are crafted to extract both comic and threatening moods from ostensibly neutral material.
Security and safety are key contemporary concerns, inflamed by perceived risks and an environment that is increasingly regulated and litigious. Individuals pursue risk-averse behaviour and surround themselves with products that limit exposure to new experiences and cater to a culture of fear. The film points to absurdities inherent in this situation.
The film will feature animated 'exploded views' of devices and processes. The 'exploded view', pioneered by da Vinci, humorously explored in the TV version of the Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy and introduced to every household by IKEA, illuminates and instructs by analysing a device into its components.
In development. We are currently finalising the script and exploring open source stereoscopic 3D, and are planning to shoot in 2013.
support:
an Ambient Information Systems - Amour Fou Filmproduktion coproduction
