Children
and animals, the age-old curses of the cinema, and those you should never work
with. Having said that, cinematic history proves that no one has ever heeded
this advice, or steered clear of concepts involving such beings. Still, it has
to be a tough field to navigate! Anyone who has children or pets in their
employ is a brave soul indeed.
With this
in mind, allow me to introduce you to Howl. The brain-baby of 14 Film Production students
at UCA Farnham, this short film employs not one or two, but a bevy of child
actors to wrangle with. Forming the central class of students within the
village school, the story unfolds around devoted Teacher Miss Crawshaw, the
apparently troubled new pupil Eleanor Stagg, and the mysterious man stalking
the young girl. This is bound up with hints of a hellish animal within the
village, framing the narrative in an otherworldly terror.
Ok, so
perhaps animal is not so apt a word, seeing as the supernatural element of this
tale is bound up in this beast, and the horror that lies within. The ambiguous ‘Howl’
that titles the film beautifully frames the bestial figure, and its darkness
within. Miss Crawshaw’s seemingly futile endeavors to protect her students in
the face of school politics hurl her down a rabbit hole of sorts, which will
test her fraying nerves.
And all of
this, the horror, the darkness, the beautiful imagery, would not be possible
without your help. Yeah, that’s right, I’ve got your interest now, and you want
to get into the meat of the tale? They need your money! Do a bit of good for
our burgeoning student film market, and log on to; http://www.kickstarter.com/projects/howlshortfilm/howl-short-film-2013?ref=live Help push this project into fruition, and onto our screens.
The funding will go towards production of the set, costumes etc, but most
importantly, the realisation of the beast into flesh and fur form! Delicious.
Maestro’s
of the mayhem; Allan MacLeod (writer),
Nina Kรคstner (Producer), Jamie Sims (Director), Adam Baldock (Production Manager) Ben Cowan
(1st AD and Marketing), Samuel Hooper (Director of Photography),
Jason Bourke Velji (Camera Operator), Zavinta Karsokaite (Lighting), Sophie
Newton (Production Designer), Louis Grant (Art Director), Emily Britton
(Costume), James Wright (Sound Design), Jasper Marriott-Tuft (Location Sound
Recording/Mixing) and Ross Cameron (Editor/Marketing Team) are working hard,
bringing you behind the scenes videos, outtakes and beautifully rendered
concept art for your delectation on their website www.howlshortfilm.com, so the payback
for your donation is instant (Allan MacLeod’s pledge video outtakes are
compulsive viewing).
This ain’t
just another supernatural flick, this film has the backbone of narrative
mesmerism and consciousness, with a substance of flesh, fur and fear, but needs
your money to feed the beast. Howl needs you!
