Absolution
AKA I make weird choices.
You can watch “Absolution” here.
If you want to watch the making of you can do so here.
So I’m not really sure where to start with this one. In my opinion, while I’m incredibly proud of “Absolution”, think it’s by far my best work as a director, and I’m overjoyed with the performance the cast and crew I put together I’m torn on if I should have made “Absolution”. “Absolution” is by far the most me thing I’ve written and directed (as of 08/30/2021). It clearly has an overwhelming sense of style, is gorgeous, and ends with a trade marked Jeremy monologue. It was methodically shot listed, story boarded, and planned.
At a base level though it just feels like a waste of effort. A micro short probably doesn’t do anything for me long term.
Before we dive into that statement lets back track a bit.
I originally decided to make “Absolution” because I mostly had the script* and after “Bradman: The Movie”** I had the itch to direct something of my own. Realistically a spec commercial (or commercials) would have been a better choice. I could use a spec commercial to get an agent, build a commercial reel, and use it to pitch myself for real commercials. Chances are I could have taken the set I built, crew, and budget for “Absolution” and made a hell of a spec commercial. But alas I didn’t and made a micro short film instead.
Now I’m no stranger to micro short films. In fact my last (and first) micro short film, “Battery Box”, actually wound up winning best drama at the 2020 Austin Micro Short Film festival! However other than bragging rights, a line item on my CV (which is not nothing!), and proving to myself that I could direct as well as shoot (once again not nothing!) “Battery Box” really didn’t do much for me career wise. Maybe it’s existence helped me win “Reaper, Inc.” but chances are I’ll never know the answer to that.
If I already had my festival win with a micro short that I’m proud of really why make another micro short?
Well for one — I’ve never actually made a short of my own that wasn’t for a contest that didn’t have some crazy fast deadline/turn around. Even “The Alexis Project” (my most expensive and my most daring visually film to date as of 08/30/2021) was made for the Film Riot Make Film Challenge. I think I put “The Alexis Project” together, other than the core concept, in about three weeks. I spent longer on preproduction on “Absolution” than I did on the entirely of “The Alexis Project”.
Secondly (and piggybacking from above) — I wanted to make a short just to make one. I wanted to spend more time in preproduction, casting, planning, set dec, and the like. I really wanted the piece to have an over whelming sense of style and I wanted the time to figure out what that would be for the short.
Finally — I, in preparation for “Reaper, Inc.” — wanted to do something of my own on a sound stage. I wanted to have control over aspect of how it looked. I wanted to be able to build the scene from the ground up. I wanted to do that from a director level (and not a Cinematographer level) and to really indulge myself in my vision.
And with all that being said there was one more “secret” reason I made it. After “Bradman: The Movie”** and “Forever”*** aside, I knew I there was no way I could executive produce, produce, direct, and shoot “Reaper, Inc.” at the level I want to make it at. I also needed to try a less “Jeremy does everything approach” and a more “Jeremy delegates tasks and trusts other people more with parts of the shoot approach”. So for “Absolution” I decided I wasn’t even going to try to share Cinematography credits. While I would make the call on lenses/filters (a director has the right to do that) I was going to be very hands off with the lighting and the actual management of the G/E and camera department. I figured worst comes to worst I could take over as Cinematographer.
With my reasons for making it and reasons for not wanting to make it out of the way lets take a brief look at the tech specs we shot at and the gear we used:
Camera: Black Magic Pocket Cinema Camera 4k, 3:1 BRAW****
Lenses: Sigma Cines, 50mm and 85mm.****
Filters: Schneider Classic Soft 2 and a 1/4 Tiffen Bronze Glimmer Glass.****
Lighting: 3x Aputure B7Cs. 4x Aputure MCs. 2x Clar Illumi Max 300. 1x Godox SZ150R. 1x Astera Titan. 1x Godox TL30. 1x Godox s30 with the Godox Projection Attachment with a 60mm lens and line gobo. Various flags and rags. ****
Most of the gear used is “budget” gear. The lights, other than the one Astera Titan (and the flags and rags), are really not on the high end and the camera is fairly common. The two interesting choices in that list I feel are the lenses and filters used. I wanted “Absolution” to have a somewhat classic, old timey feel to it. With that being the case, why did I use Sigma Cines, which have a very new, very modern, very clinical look to them?
1: Because of how clean and modern they are also very easily to degrade and handle stronger filters very well.
2: I got them for free. Shooting on cinema lenses is a treat and I would rather work with cinema glass over stills glass.
So with my reasons for choosing those lenses aside, I had to figure out how to make them look the way I wanted. I chose the classic soft 2 to take the edge off of them and the 1/4 Bronze Glimmer Glass to warm them up and add a warm glow to the image. Personally I think my filter choice worked great. The one change I kind of wish I made was to go a bit heavier with the classic softs, and used a classic soft 3 or 4 but overall it’s minor and not a huge deal.
As for the focal lengths chosen, we did have the Sigma 18–35mm Cine Zoom on hand but we never used it. I left the focal length choice largely up to my Cinematographer, Herb Staten Jr.
While the last film I worked on in a major role***** was the first time someone else directed and someone else shot the words I wrote***** this was my first time as a director having someone else officially shoot my script and someone else edit it. Maybe it was my experience on “Marker’s Mark”***** or maybe it was me knowing I need to delegate more but it wasn’t as strange of an experience as I thought it would be. On set it was really nice not have to really worry about if the lighting ratios were just right or if it was in focus or other things a Cinemtographer does. It was really nice to just focus on the story and the performances and making sure we had the coverage I needed and wanted to tell the story. I really do think “Absolution” is better for it too.
Not even sharing Cinematography credits wasn’t as strange as I would have thought though not editing it myself has been. I don’t really like editing but I do like getting to the edit right away. On all my other work I would start editing that night/the next day depending on time. This was different. When I got home I looked over the footage and did a quick vfx and color test, and shared some quick screen grabs with the cast and crew but I didn’t really do much else. I figured if I was working with an editor I needed to give them space to edit.
It was kind of rough though. I really like to get to things as quickly as I can. I suppose thats why “Battery Box” and “The Alexis Project” largely went from start to finish in a matter of weeks and why they kind of feel rough around the edges, at least to me anyway. It’s also why I didn’t bug the editor to rush me a rough cut. If I’m going to work with an expert on their field I need to give them time and space to work the way they work best and to give me the best possible product they can.
At the end of the day though I personally I feel there are two major take away from this project —
1: Take your time in preproduction, post production, and delegate on set. Even if you're the best Cinematographer, Editor, Actor, whatever in the room you’re not if you doing everything.
It’s hard to do one job at a high level, let alone 2+.
2: “Absolution” has solidified a fact that I didn’t really want to accept —
I make strange choices for the work I chose to direct and self produce.
When it comes to what I choose to direct and self produce I make strange choices. “The Alexis Project”, “Forever”, and now “Absolution” were all off the beaten path choices to make. They have an overwhelming scene of visual style and tone but none of them are exactly commercial. None of them are going to help me get a commercial (actual commercial or narrative) gig. Thats something I need to grapple with on my next project. I need to do something more commercial, more marketable, more… I don’t know… generic… if I’m going to have a chance at making film my full time career. Then again maybe I won’t. Maybe showing I have a clear visual style, clear visual approach per project is exactly what I need to do.
Time will tell on that one though.
* “Absolution” was originally written for an indidb production playgound. You can read a bit more about those and the monthly script contest I would up winning here.
** I do promise that sooner or later I’ll write about my experience as the director of photography on “Bradman: The Movie”. I’ll update this post/foot note when I do.
*** I don’t think “Forever” is bad or lacking in any department because I wore all the hats but that was a specific project produced in such a way that allowed me to do exactly that. Music video’s also have way more leeway for what you can get away with as opposed to a narrative that really requires a lot more focus and delegation.
**** I am not sponsored by any of the listed companies. I’m largely just listening gear used as precisely as I can in case anyone was interested.
***** I wrote “Marker’s Mark”. Someone else directed it, someone else shot it, and someone else edited a script I wrote.
