Sources of Inspiration

Since reading Tom's posts on Inspiration for Our Short Film and True Leaders of Film, I have been thinking about how films inspire us in different ways. As Tom shows in the former post, some inspiration is direct; we see a shot or technique used, we see the value and effect of it, and we subsequently try to recreate something similar in our own work. After reading the latter post though, I realised that, in role models: the people we admire and aspire to be like, we find a different kind of inspiration. The indirect inspiration that we gain from role models doesn't push us into recreating the work of a particular person, but it does encourage us to acheive similar things; to produce works that in some way match up to those of the role model, whether it be in content of the piece, its effect on an audience, or in the amount of success it has enjoyed. Whilst these two types of inspiration are equally valid, I believe that they are most powerful when combined.

In a previous post, I stated that, 'currently, we are aiming to produce a cerebral drama with a tint of mystery and noir.' Below, I have compiled a list of films that can be said to combine these elements of genre, where I find direct inspiration in the type of narratives and visual styles they contain, and indirect inspiration in the effect they have on an audience. 

Donnie Darko
Described as a 'beautifully twisted masterpeice' by Empire, Richard Kelly's Donnie Darko is a film that suspended me in wonder from start to finish, and has maintained its position as my favourite film since first viewing. I personally revere the film because of its synthesis of creativity and complex thought, so that the audience are drawn in both by the appealingly dark aesthetic, and by their intrigue for the mysteries presented by the film.

The film seems even more astounding when we consider that it was Richard Kelly's directorial debut with a feature film, that it had a relatively small budget of $4.5 million, and that it was shot over a period of only 28 days! Kelly's masterpeice inspires me because it takes viewers on a thrilling and thought-provoking journey, with an unconventional narrative that people will puzzle over again and again. If Tom and I can develop a narrative that provokes thought in this way, then we will be very much satisfied that our project has been worthwhile.


The Films of Christopher Nolan

Memento, The Prestige, Inception, Batman Begins and The Dark Knight were all directed by Christopher Nolan, and can all be said to combine the style of film noir with the genres of mystery and psychologcial thriller. Similarly to Richard Kelly in Donnie Darko, Nolan weaves complex thought and creativity together to present an audience with something that is both aesthetically and intellectually pleasing. However, I feel his genius surpasses that of Kelly, because whilst Kelly's post-Darko work has become increasingly reliant on far fetched sceince-fiction tropes, Nolan maintains an air of sublime mystery, darkness and suspense in every film he works on. Morevoer, he prevents audiences from becoming tired and acclimatised by giving each film its own distinct twist: 

• Memento could easily resemble any other contemporary thriller, were it not for the unconventional spin Nolan puts on the genre, revealing the narrative backwards in segments through the eyes of a character with an unusual form of memory loss.
• The Batman films provoke thought about society using the dystopia of Gotham City, but pays homage to the roots of the franchise with comic-book action.
• The Prestige is a film about illusion containing a plot that is an illusion in itself, but all of this is presented in the style of a period drama with a visceral Victorian London setting.
• Inception explores the intracacies of the human mind, the pervasive nature of love, and the existential crises we face, all within a conventional heist-movie narrative with a deeply emotional dramatic edge.

The intellectually challenging nature of Nolan's films has directly inspired me to work with Tom in weaving a narrative that will encourage people to think both openly and introspectively. His recurring method of giving each film a distinct twist has inspired me to try and do similar; to produce an intellectually thrilling short film containing enough drama to pack an emotional punch.

The Films of David Fincher
Although I have only watched two of Fincher's films: Fight Club and Se7en, it is clear that he chooses a distinct visual style for each of his films. In Se7en, it is the dank, dark brown, rainy mise-en-scene that provides the character for the film, and in Fight Club, it is a similar dark, dingy mise-en-scene, juxtaposed with visceral action and saturated lighting that makes it recognisable.

Recognisable is the key term here, and the reason Fincher's styles inspire me, because a distinct visual style gives a film easily recognisable properties that can be transferred to trailers, posters, reviews or any kind of advertisement material. Such a distinct visual style for our own film would obviously be desirable, as it would give our film the recognisable properties that we can use in our ancillary products of a poster and a film review.

Fortunately, Tom and I take much of our inspiration from similar sources, and since beginning the course, we have been discussing and sharing our favourite films to ensure that our respective visions for our own film and the ancillary products are as similar as they possibly can be. I am confident that we can use our overlapping sources of inspiration, along with our individual ideas, to create a short film that is both original and professional.