Unwind short film - Case Study

Unwind – short film
Synopsis: A world gone mad with an obsession with new body parts. From the age of 12-18, parents can sign their children off to be “unwound” Unwinding is a process where by 100% of the body is used and recycled as a donor.

Summary: The short film focuses on the unwinding of Kelsey. It starts with the process of unwinding and delves into the emotions of Kelsey. Not much happens, as the storyline is mainly told through dialogue rather than setting. Almost inevitably, Kelsey dies at the end of the short film with her body being successfully unwound.

Themes: Morality of unwinding is a huge theme as it begs the question to what has happened to society that has made it down rail to such an extent that parents can sell their children as donors.

Characters: there are only three characters of note; and only one of them are named, Kelsey. Kelsey is the main character and the one being unwound. The other two characters are a nurse and a doctor. The nurse’s character is the one creates an alarming sense of calm, which seems completely odd once the audience figure out what is actually happening. In contrast the doctor takes a more physical role, rather than the dialogue heavy nurse. In turn this makes him more of a secondary character to that of Kelsey and the nurse.

Camera techniques: Close up – Majority of the scenes consist of close ups of just Kelsey’s eyes. This is as close as the audience get to seeing who Kelsey is. Only showing Kelsey’s eyes is a way to invoke sympathy from the audience, as the close up make the emotions that Kelsey is going through extremely raw and real. 1st person perspective: the other camera technique used is the 1st person perspective of Kelsey, meaning that the audience experience and see everything that Kelsey is. This is extremely effective as it pulls the audience right into the scene, making it seem as though they are the ones being operated on, rather than Kelsey. Using these shots also helped move the storyline without needing to use dialogue, specifically the scene the scene in which Kelsey loses her eyesight, the screen goes black in order to represent that. Again this creates a sense of going through what Kelsey is seeing.

Blurring/focus: going in and out of focus is done several times during the short film. This is mainly done from the 1st person perspective and creates a sense of confusion that Kelsey has as she wakes up. Editing: Basic editing techniques are used in the short film, such as cutting into a black screen, which illustrates Kelsey’s blindness. The cutting rates are quite steady until the end, where the cutting rates then speed up to convey Kelsey’s distress as she nears the end of the unwinding process.

Mise-en-scene:
Costume: the doctor and the nurse are both wearing scrubs and a medical gown. They have also covered their hair and are wearing masks, this is done to quickly establish who they are.

Location: as most of what we see is in Kelsey’s perspective, it is hard to note where she is, although the nature of what is happening leaves it easy to assume that they are in an operating.

Props: a number of props are used, most notably the breathing mask, as it indicates to the audience that Kelsey is the patient. A series of medical knives are seen, creating a sense of a authentic procedure, rather than a pale imitation of one.

Sound: just like the 1st perspective shots, sound is a key element in moving the storyline and creating the raw emotions of Kelsey. When the short film starts you can hear the diegetic sounds of a steady beep, instantly setting the scene in a hospital. Sound effects are used in crucial scenes such as the moments in which it seems that Kelsey’s legs are removed is not shown and is purely done using the sound of bones crunching and the doctor seemingly pulling at something.

Much like Dexter, I took great inspiration from certain things. The 1st person perspective, I felt help move the narrative without needing to do much. I feels this simple way of showing what the character is seeing is a perfect way for me to create suspense in my short film. The use of sound is something I take inspiration from as I think using sound in certain scenes will help me create the setting a lot more efficiently without being bogged down by adding dialogue to explain what is happening.