Spare Parts...

[P!body]

"Spare Parts". What to say, what to say... I had a lot of fun shooting it.

Alright, everbody. Let's hear what you have to say about my little comedy.

Thanks to all
P!body

[Karl151k]

It was funny. When the robot and the guy are in the car driving through the woods, is it supposed to be like taking a dog to the woods to set him free? Thats the tone I got from it. The fast-motion thing with the robot wasn't really effective. It reminded me of an effect in the remake of House on Haunted Hill. Overall fun though.

[P!body]

"House of Haunted Hill" Remake?!?!?!?! Ick!

Not what I was going for, but I see what you mean- I had just wanted to show him "wigging out" and what easier way than an obvious edit that has me repeating and speeding up footage.

Thank you for your thoughts.

[MojoTrancer]

Funny short, Dude. I was laughing out loud. . I liked the glitch shots where the robot was spazzing out. Good stuff

[KOVAROVA]

good concept for a porno. :)

it was funny and a fun idea. could easily see a skit like this on SNL.

[macgregor]

It was funny man, one of my favorites for sure.

[P!body]

Appreciate the compliments. I’m glad you guys seemed to enjoy it.

Keep it coming [the comments, I mean]

[Jimmy John Worley]

I liked the part when the robot was in the shower. Funny sight gag.

[EditPhish]

P!body,

Okay, it DOES look like you had a lot of fun making it! The story was funny, had me laughing at parts. The ending was a little wacky, and did seem a bit abrupt though... like you ran out of time.

The acting was good... was funny... and I gather it was your intention to have it be a bit cheesie. She was a convincing b!tch, and the robot was good... good choice in who you picked to play him.

The lighting and cinematography didn't stand out as bad to me, or as great to me... kinda in the middle... a little boring at times. I felt like you were hand-holding the camera too much and shots could have been improved with a tripod.

The sound could use a little work... it wasn't real bad, but it was very echoey at times... get your mic as close to the actors as you can to avoid that, and check your levels. Believe me, sound is an area we are always working on too, so I know it's not easy.

Music was cute, but there wasn't a lot of it... it could have added to the story to have more music.

It did make me laugh, and I enjoyed most of the story. I loved the shower scene, loved that he tried hitting on the wife and then the washing machine. I loved seeing him pace back and forth in the kitchen in the background while the wife and husband talked. Was a cute idea!

Thanks for sharing your movie with us, was an entertaining watch, and not everyone accomplished that!

[P!body]

I was wondering how many people thought the ending was abrupt. I have a
longer original cut of the movie - but when I was cutting down to 6 min.,
everything else was so tight as it seemed I had to start by cutting entire scenes.


I thought it left things open ended and worked for keeping it under 6 min, but
after I uploaded it I felt it really lacked something- mainly the ending.

I have another cut, which is essentially the 6 min. edit plus an intro and a
minute long phone conversation ending. It’s better cut in my opinion than
the sci-fi fest version. I’ll try and post it after the judging is over.


The lighting and cinematography was very minimal and relied heavily on a
shooting style that I think attempts to blend “Curb Your Enthusiasm” or
“Arrested Development” and “Battlestar Galactica”. I don’t think it really
worked in the end, but it is what we ran with. I like to think that all the
“camera shake” gives the film more energy- ha. But I don’t know if that is
the case either.


Its funny you mention the sound. For the duration of the shoot, the actor playing
the robot, Reece Roark, was booming. He got about a 30 second crash course,
before we started shooting. But I hear you. I just gave up trying to fix it about
half way through.

Thanks for your comments about the short. I’m certainly glad you found it
entertaining.

-P!body

[BrianV]

made me laugh *sam elliot voice* parts, anyway */sam elliot voice* :)

[Norm Sanders]

Wow, I laughed out loud with this one. Some of the editing/timing in here was perfect, but yeah, the ending just ... ended. Didn't make sense to me. Also think the Robot should have felt more like a robot, but was too "hey man, let's hang & talk" in the car near the end.

I about died laughing when she said "Well then say good bye to these-" and we SMASH cut to him driving the robot down the road to get rid of him. Genius! And she did an outstanding job in SOME of the delivery, specifically that, but she did VERY well in the beginning as well (turning the page with a snap, saying "Yeah, you're done" for him, etc.).

The shaky hand held camera thing at first kind of bugged me, as I wasn't convinced this would call for it, but I quickly forgot about it, which must mean it worked.

Overall, there was nothing impressive or horrible about the sound, camera, lighting, etc ... but the premise was great, and there were some PERFECT comedy moments in there.

I'm laughing to myself now, as I think about the horn-dog bot saying "Do you mind?" as he reaches for her breast ... then later basically wanting to hump anything as he's also hitting on a wash machine.

[P!body]

More robotic you think? I thought about running his voice through a filter on the robot lines in order to hollow them out a bit (presumably more robot sounding), but ran out of time for that. I wonder if that would have helped. But in the car specifically I was hoping the robot seemed mostly human- I was going for the car conversation being Danny’s dream or in his head. The robot at this point is supposed to be like his real life Pinocchio-esque friend. So I guess that worked, but maybe not to the desired effect.

Thanks Envision for sharing your thoughts. I’m glad you had fun with it too.

But on that note of the car scene, I was wondering how it was viewed. I tried to make it seem like a slight “dream sequence” by using the saturated colors in addition to a very light hint on the audio track of me saying, “sleepy, sleep,” [Which in retrospect probably wasn’t the greatest idea]. I guess it was some vague sub liminal attempt to push that this scene is a dream.
Did any of that come across?

Any thoughts are welcome. Thanks.

-P!body

[P!body]

Comments on anything?

Anything? Anything at all?

[Blaine]

I thought you had an interesting concept. Not sure about the title "Spare Parts" though.

The best thing in this was your lead actor. He had really good timing and delivery.

"Bananas" hilarious

I wasn't wild about the look color-wise. That could have used some work.

The Robot was funny, too. I think I'd like to see the longer version.

[P!body]

I need to look into the color correction, at least double-checking everything against each other. I tried something different I color corrected first after I captured. At this point, I was always color correcting last and not saving enough time for it. So for one night I captured, ran it through compressor, and color corrected. I guess it worked in that I had more than enough time to color correct, but I think maybe I got to anal trying to establish a different look for each scene in the house and different looks of the exterior shots as well.

I’m also glad you liked the lead, Joel Sharpton. Envision had mentioned that the female, Andrea Newby did a great job too, and of course the robot played to bald perfection [maybe that’s too kind] by Reece Roark. I was really glad to get these actors for my short. They all have a large theatre background here at the university, but I think we were able to get them acclimated to film[video] easy enough. A few of the lines may have been delivered more theatrical than I would have liked, but it works because it is a comedy. I can’t wait to work with another talented cast again. I think that really helped in every body having a good time making this film.

Any other comments? Please don't be shy.

[Captain KickAss]

I really liked this one, up until the last minute or so. The ending was definitely too abrupt for my tastes. There was no resolution or even hint at a resoultion. Now I do have a fairly well developed imagination, and in my mind, I have managed to fabricate a few different endings for the film. I won't share them all with you, but I will say that my personal favorite imaginary ending involves the husband and the robot (in a wig and floral sun dress) lounging on a beach in Mexico sipping margaritas.

Otherwise though, I really liked the combination of subtlety and absurdity that you brought to this film. I thought the acting was solid, and the script was pretty darn good too. Occasionally things looked a bit soft, and the pacing was a bit slow in spots, but in terms of story and performance, very enjoyable.

[P!body]

That non-ending was probably the biggest flaw of the 6 min. edit. The imagery of Danny and the robot on the beach, sipping margaritas, is one that had crossed my mind.
[except it was without a wig or floral dress for the robot, and it took place at a swimming pool at a cheap motel] But I like how your mind works. Twisted.

I've probably got a dozen or so different endings I thought up for it, but I ended up [for time ad ease] shooting a version envolving Danny talking to an answering machine. It works well in the longer edit.

Thanks for letting me know what you think. I'd love to hear your thoughts on different endings. There are just so many options for different off-beat conclusions. Thanks again.

[Captain KickAss]

How about a shot from behind of the robot walking down the road into the sunset. Slowly you could zoom out to reveal him holding hands with the washing machine.

Or better yet, you could end with a wedding between the robot and a washing machine.

Or even still, the robot lying in bed, smoking a cigarette, turning over and asking the washing machine..."was it good for you,"

OOH! Or even more twisted, the same scene, but starting with the washing machine in bed, cigarette hanging from its lid, the panning or zooming out to reveal the wife, hair messed up, cigarette in hand. She would turn to the washer and say "Wow. That was some spin cycle."

Or something to that effect.

Man...what is my obsession with inaminate objects having sex?

[P!body]

It's the wedding between the robot and the washing machine. Matilda and Danny are there and after a shot of the happy couple, Matilda makes the comment, "I can't believe she wore white to the wedding."

I still really like Danny and the robot on the beach drinking Margaritas. You know, on the run from Johnny Law, somewhere deep in Mexico/ on the beach in a place where two individuals like themselves can be and coexist peacefully with the inhabitants. No one raises an eyebrow of suspicion to the man and his robot. They are so understanding down there.

Anyway, I don't know why you have such a strange fascination, but it seems that inanimate objects have the same sex drive as humans, maybe even more so. Funny stuff.

Thanks again for your comments.

[Captain KickAss]

P!body. I am glad you enjoy my inanimate perversions. I will be sure to send you a link to my latest film when it is finished. I don't really want to reveal too many details....but it involves a toaster...and has tentatively been titled "Hot Lovin'"

[conrad_johnson]

Cute short. The ending was kind of abrupt, though. I really liked the robot - I'm glad that you made him seen human (and incorporated that into the story) and also didn't use any cheesy, half-assed CGI effects. At times, I felt like I was watching a stage play, though, due to the really long static shots. It would've been great if you threw in a few more shots (at times, this was less of a problem and you had a cool reality tv show look to things). Good job.

[Z B Brox]

This may be the short so far I've found funniest. It was very clever and your actors did a really good job with the material. I think my biggest complaint is some things I felt were set up but weren't quite finished. The driving to the woods, for instance, I immediatley associated with the "setting the dog free in the woods" phenomenon, but I don't think the connection ever punch-lined. Similarly, when the robot just gets out and runs... I kind of expected to find out where he was going. And, obviously, the abruptness of the end. Even the title hinted at the possibility of the robot malfuncitoning due to left-over parts during assembly. But, for the most part, these were simply slightly jarrign missed opportunities, not real harm. Really fun stuff.

[P!body]

Thanks guys. I’m glad you guys thought it was funny.

Conrad: I’m wondering what specifically you meant when you said there were
long static shots? Or I supposed when were those shots? I watched it again and I really couldn’t find what you were looking for. Thanks for watching. And I agree with you if your not going to do good CG, use no CG. To me Sci Fi doesn’t mean CGI effects- it means fun or interesting story that may or may not reflect some off the current social ills in a way that is transposed to an environment that allows the viewer to few said events as a statement on life in the present. Or at least it’s a lot of fun. Thanks again.

Z B: I’m really glad you enjoyed it. But to address your comment- I have an issue writing things in a scale way beyond the scope of the film. Meaning that my 6 minute film started as a 6 minute idea and them bloomed into a 15 min film idea which I then cut down before shooting into a 10 min idea- then shot it and attempted to cram it into 6 mins. SO there are several missing bits, a missing ending, several un-accomplished set up an so forth. I really wish had another couple of minutes to deliver on those things. Thanks again.

[conrad_johnson]

Conrad: I’m wondering what specifically you meant when you said there were
long static shots? Or I supposed when were those shots? I watched it again and I really couldn’t find what you were looking for.



I watched again, and this is what I saw. Times listed are approximate:

:10 2 shot over the shoulder @ bkfst: shot felt a little too long before a cut was made back to the woman's face.

:?? shot of him with credit card bill: I felt like you could have cut (or moved camera) to close-ups or one-shots of their faces several times throughout that scene, but it was all one shot of the two of them.

1:38 at computer - again, a little long on the shot of the man. Could have cut to some reaction shots of the wife.

2:30 at computer - again, too long, could have incorporated some close-ups or one-shots.

It's totally possible that you were going for some sort of feeling by keeping with one extended shot rather than making multiple cuts in these scenes (so I'm not saying I'm right, of course) - it just felt to me that it would have been a little more visually engaging to break things up a bit more.

Overall, I still love your short. My short's director and I were laughing as we watched it again. I liked what you did with the overall style of editing and with the whip pans between actors - the first time I watched it, it felt like reality TV but now I'm seeing that it looks a lot like the style of Arrested Development. It lends well to the light-hearted yet tragic tenor of the movie.

[P!body]

Thanks man. I see what you mean now. For whatever reason, I thought you were referring to a lockdown tripod shot in the film- and I thought back and I don't remember using a tripod of any of the shots used in the film.

But I see what you were saying longer shots without cutting to coverage. I think those particular shots were chosen for the purpose of showing longer and sometimes purposely awkward moments that played [to me] better in one shot.

But again thanks for taking the time to comment on the film. It's really good to hear from everyone and get some constructive feedback. Thanks again.

[iSTy]

Although the talking echoed I felt as though the robot was just ruse to get across to people to seek counselling. Although I did think it was good. It just came across as too human for a scifest film.

[CallaghanFilms]

Spare Parts...

I thought you set the right tone for a
nice little comedy. There were several
chucklers throughout. Congrats on that.

My favorite aspects were the premise itself
and the music. The music worked quite well
with the feel of the short.

My least favorite aspect was the lack of
payoffs. You set yourself up for a couple of
real zingers that never quite played out.
The first one that comes to mind was the
"piracy" shtick about the personality that
the lead character ripped...I thought that
had the makings of a Mel Brooks-inspired
gag (especially when it is shown that the
robot was becoming overly horny.) I was
waiting to learn just whose personality was
uploaded.

Again, I think you had a fresh approach to
the Artificial Intelligence story.

I look forward to seeing more of your unique
comedic style.

Cheers:beer:

[P!body]

It [the robot character] just came across as too human for a scifest film.


TOO HUMAN !?!?!? What if I told you that the actor was actually.... a robot.
[extended beat]
Just kidding. Yeah I was trying to show that the technology for creating lifelike humanoid robots does exists in the world of this film. I wasn't trying to make him seem to overtly robotic. Just the fact that “he is a robot” was supposed to play off the several nuanced bits the actor had during the film. Thanks for your comment.

And

CallaghanFilms: Thanks for commenting. You are absolutely right about the lack of payoffs. I had to really put this one on the chopping block before and after shooting in order to get it down to the 6 minute edit. There were a lot of missed opportunities for some great gags and bits that I simply didn’t have time for in the cut.

Out of curiosity, whose pirated personality did you think the robot had? A celebrity or public personality perhaps?
I was only really planning for it to be a socially inept “Rico Suave” type character. But I would love to hear your interpretation.

Thanks again, guys keep it coming.

[CallaghanFilms]

...Out of curiosity, whose pirated personality did you think the robot had? A celebrity or public personality perhaps?I don't know...I guess I would have gone for:

"Warren Beatty."

"Warren Beatty?! You Uploaded Warren Beatty into our robot?!"

"Honey...you know Heaven Can Wait is my favorite film."

...or some such nonesense.

:beer:

[iSTy]

TOO HUMAN !?!?!? What if I told you that the actor was actually.... a robot.
[extended beat]
Just kidding. Yeah I was trying to show that the technology for creating lifelike humanoid robots does exists in the world of this film. I wasn't trying to make him seem to overtly robotic. Just the fact that “he is a robot” was supposed to play off the several nuanced bits the actor had during the film. Thanks for your comment.

Thanks again, guys keep it coming.

I suppose I did mean the robot but whilst writing I did mean film as a whole.

[wcs]

Too human, indeed. I'll go a step further and say that you, p!body, should have been disqualified. Disqualified and berated. Now that the fest is over I can say what I really want to say. Isty, you're onto something.

j/k, robots are so sci-fi, it's not funny.

[iSTy]

My thoughts are not-well-thought-out, maybe gobblygook, but not-well-thought-out.:Drogar-BigGrin(DBG)

[P!body]

I thought, and correct me if I'm wrong, "humanity" was a major component, if not the essence- of science fiction.

Robots trying to be more human, what truly separates man and machine? Is there a thin line of humanity that oddly enough escapes some humans, but is or can be instinctively instilled or programmed into a robot? A paradox that centers around the idea of humanity.

Aliens invading our planet, taking over, and humans looking inwardly to themselves as a collective race in order to find the courage to fight back against all odds. Sounds like some triumph of the human spirit to me.

The past, the present, and the future are only settings in science fiction. It is really a way to displace current society into a timeframe that is out of the audience’s field of reference. It’s much easier for an audience to perceive the current social issues when given a setting that distances them [the audience] from the story. And these so-called social issues are what? Oh yes, based on human nature. I think I’m beginning to make my point.

I don’t really know what your perceptions of Sci-Fi are “Itsy” or what you were trying to say about my film. But I’d be glad to hear you clarify it.

What I think you are saying is “Spare Parts, the whole film, is too human for a SciFest Film.

The statement itself perplexes me, but I take that as a compliment, I guess.

Please take this opportunity to clarify your statement.

[wcs]

isty, 90 posts, 10 more to go.

I don't like being mean when someone is being jokey. I'm not mad at you.... you're just not the kinda person I enjoy reading.

[iSTy]

P!body says: "What I think you are saying is “Spare Parts, the whole film, is too human for a SciFest Film."

You're right.

wcs says: " I don't like being mean when someone is being jokey. I'm not mad at you.... you're just not the kinda person I enjoy reading."

I don't mind if you are 'mad at me'... simple solution. Don't read :)

[wcs]

I give up. You, isty, have defeated me.

[iSTy]

Oh dear, no more help with upping my posts then http://www.dvxuser.com/V6/images/icons/icon12.gif

[P!body]

P!body says: "What I think you are saying is “Spare Parts, the whole film, is too human for a SciFest Film."
You're right.

Define too human. Thanks.


P.S. Hey guys thanks for the passive-aggressive flame war on my film's thread. Appreciate it.

[iSTy]

My definition of what I meant by 'too human' is that I didnt feel the story had any scifi to it.
To me it was about two people having a 'tiff' and the robot is there to help them. instead of a counsellor.
The robot replaced the counsellor.

[wcs]

To me it was about two people having a 'tiff' and the robot is there to help them

While trying to sex up the washing machine.

[iSTy]

Depends on where the dispenser is on the washing machine I suppose.

btw, i'm not following you, it's just the way my posting has gone.

[P!body]

So what I'm thinking from your post below is that it lacked the traditional science fiction elements: the robot wasn't serving the genre. There was no real space travel, trips to the future, mental changes in humans, terraforming, biological changes in humans or animals, time travel, humans with extraordinary powers, contact with aliens from other worlds, evolution of the human race, cyborgs, aliens hybrids, parallel universes, ray guns, apocalyptic future, hyperspace, etc. -to make it qualify as science fiction.

I figured my film exists on the fringe of the science fiction category. It's not stereotypical science fiction, but a light comedy utilizing an element of science fiction, the robot.

Your previous statement, “Too human”, really didn’t make any sense to me. But I think I have reached that understanding.

Be sure to clarify when posting for these movies. The posts are for the benefit of the filmmakers, if you leave an indiscernible comment or a purely negative post, it doesn’t help serve the filmmakers. It just becomes a superfluous statement that takes up space on this board. So do us a favor, try and clarify your thoughts.

Thanks again.

[iSTy]

I'm pleased I've helped you 'reach the understanding.'

I have a problem with finding the right words sometimes, I can only apologise.

Unfortunately, I have to be asked the right questions, with elaboration, to get what I really mean out of me, which you appear to have done.

[badassmofro]

44th place! Are you guys stupid or something! Sure, maybe this film wasn't the best in terms of the technical stuff, but it was fun, funny, original, creative, unique, and soooo enjoyable to watch. This film may be a bit on the rough side, but come on! 44th place. Snobs.

[P!body]

Thanks for that vote of confidence. We're not hurting. The ones in the top pretty much deserve to be there, and that’s important. The rest is sort of negligible and doesn’t really have too much meaning.

It was a fun film to do and a fun contest to enter into. And I think we gave the board a good product to watch. I am of course assuming the process of watching "Spare Parts" wasn't a painful one- or at least not too painful.

Thanks again for everyone who commented. The cast, crew, and myself certainly appreciate it.