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  Just some minor trivia for my future IMDB page-

* I wrote all the music you hear in the video. It was all added in post. The radio you see in the video was silent the whole time!

* The shot of the knife at the beginning and the pizza cutter at the end are intentionally similar to draw your attention to what happens to them after they've been watched. These scenes were the ones inspired by the Twilight Zone. You might want to pay close attention to them.

* Look at the letter on the refridgerator in the first shot of the girl washing dishes and the final shot. This is not a continuity goof, but done on purpose.

* The "book" that first shows the title of the video at the beginning was made by scanning an old book (complete with the resale sticker), printing it out on photo paper, then using rubber cement to put it on the original book. I love when movies use similar techniques to reveal the title and cast members (See Allen's Manhattan for an excellent example of how to show the movie's title without being totally obvious about it).

* The "quote" on the top of the book is by Samuel L. Bronkowicz. Some of you will get the reference.

* The video was originally shot in 16x9 and in color. During post, after watching the initial cut in color, I decided to switch it to black and white to see how it affected the mood. I was pleased with the result and decided keep it that way. I finalized the entire film in color, then rendered it out in black and white. Consequently, I have two versions (actually, three. one that is native 16x9 in color, one that is native 16x9 in B&W, and one B&W letterboxed in 4:3 which I had to give to the PFP, and is the one I posted here).

* All the sound effects (water, doors, etc.) were added in post..
 
  
 
ALONE

Running Time: 2 Minutes, 43 Seconds

I hope you enjoy this. It was fun to put together. Let me tell you a little bit about it.

I initially had no plans to make a video for this particular round of short film challenge. I'm not as well-versed in the mystery/thriller/suspense genre, and I felt the need for a pizza cutter and a certain line was somewhat restrictive, if downright impossible to do without seeming too silly. I've only done short documentary pieces, but I've had a craving to some sort of live-action short. I just needed the right topic.

Then, days before the deadline, inspiration struck. For some reason, I was thinking of the Twilight Zone, and in particular, one of my favorite episodes, The Invaders. It's the story of an old woman who lives alone who hears noises in her home, and comes to find out that she is being attacked by men from outer space. There's one particular example of foreshadowing that I've always liked, and as I thought about it, I realized that I could build a short around a similar situation. I created a 4 page storyboard, asked my son what he thought (I'd need his help). He thought it was a good idea, and we planned it out. He got a friend of his to play the girl, he plays the guy, and my dog Sparky plays the dog.

I shot most of it in one evening, really sticking to my storyboard. I had some ideas that I wanted to shoot but couldn't because my son was late coming home from work (he couldn't get out early enough). The shoot went fine, and post-production was just as smooth. All in all, I wish I would have had more time, but as it is, I barely came in 15 seconds under. I wish I would have had a 5 minute limit rather than 3. That way, I could have slowed it down a bit and added one or two more scenes I had mentally sketched out. All in all, I'm pleased and honored it was selected to be shown at the 2006 Phoenix Film Festival.  It was fun, a definite learning experience, and I can't wait to try it again.
   
 
     
2010. DWC DIGITAL VIDEO SERVICES. PHOENIX, ARIZONA