Project III: Final (Version 2)

Project III: Final Cut (Version II) from Caitlin on Vimeo.

DESIGN STATEMENT

My intention for this project was to express a complex relationship between two different people in a different cultural setting (hence the usage of the Mandarin language). In particular, I focused on the family relationship between a father and a daughter. I started off at first with a haiku poem written by Takahama Kyoshi, which brought me to several interpretations, one of which also sprouted from the song 4am by Our Lady Peace. (The song revolved around a tragic relationship between a father and his son.) Anyway, the poem itself evoked a downcast atmosphere, so I wanted to capture that in the video that I created. I used cold, natural lighting to do so, and set it up so that hints of the main character's introversion and personality were evident. I also wanted to define what kind of environment she lived in by fluidly connecting several panning shots of her home.

The entire video depends on the girl's reaction to her father's spoken words (silence) to express their family relationship. We were able to observe her expressions with the usage of multiple close-up shots on her face.

Finally, since the ending line of the haiku poem chosen was rather doleful, I led it up to the father's unrevealed illness and left the ends open for the viewer to decide.