The Common Man

[Blaine]

It's incredibly difficult to actually TELL a story without any dialogue. Even the old silent movies used cards for dialogue. You were able to tell your story COMPLETELY without dialogue. I applaud you. It was a fun watch.

[kurtmo]

This was a fun movie. I liked the echoes back from no-talkies. I thought the old film effects and the skippy frame rates were nice. Fun running scenes. I like to see people run in films. I thought you did well telling a story without talking. I thought the first person finger wiggle by the clothing story guy was fun.
Overall, very nice job!

[Robert Eldon]

The Common Man
I like the concept of the black and white silent film. The costumes and some of the settings just didn’t have the B/W silent film vibe? Good story telling though, with no dialog.

My favorite shot is when he is running after the garbage truck. Well done. I also like the long alley shot.

I thought the music helped with the idea with the emphasis on the action and mood.

[Gohanto]

The Common Man
I like the concept of the black and white silent film. The costumes and some of the settings just didn’t have the B/W silent film vibe? Good story telling though, with no dialog.

My favorite shot is when he is running after the garbage truck. Well done. I also like the long alley shot.

I thought the music helped with the idea with the emphasis on the action and mood.

Thanks for checking it out. Can I ask what was it about the costumes or settings that didn't have a silent film vibe for you? The goal of this wasn't period, but is that what your referring to since most silent films came from the 20s?

[Robert Eldon]

Thanks for checking it out. Can I ask what was it about the costumes or settings that didn't have a silent film vibe for you? The goal of this wasn't period, but is that what your referring to since most silent films came from the 20s?

Yes, because it was black and white and silent, I was predisposed to it being more period and because of the title 'The Common Man', I was even thinking Chaplin or Keaton. Some of the shots even presented that way, the street with the lamps, the alley ways, etc. But then, I remember one shot, when the homeless guy? had on these nice white sneakers, and of course a number of contemporary day scenes.

So it was my expectation and not necessarily what your intentions were.

[Ted Arabian]

Wow, Gohanto! WELL DONE!!!!

You told a complete story with no dialogue! I am so impressed. And actually, I don't think that you even needed that card that stated "a short time later."

I loved your direction and camera work. My favorite was that curved dolly when he discovered his pants were missing. Really nice.

You film has a wonderful message and all with not a single bit of dialogue. I am truly amazed.

My biggest criticism would be the make-up. As a homeless man, I would expect more than dirt smeared on his face. He just didn't have the "life on the streets" look to him. But I really don't care. The story was more rewarding and definitely worth the watch!

Music was perfect for this. Loved the B&W as well.

Oh! I loved the sound of the garbage truck throughout the realization period. That was great! Very effective.

Congrats to you and your crew!!!

Best,

Ted

[bosindy]

I had a pair of pants in my life that were like the ones in the film, except this pair sucked money in and they were worn by a girl named Julie.

good job going for a silent film. Telling a story using just pictures is not easy, but it's the essence of filmmaking. My one criticism is that the lead seemed a little miscast for the role, I don't know if anyone would think he was a homeless guy. i know with no budget films it is hard to cast. He did a pretty good job though showing the emotion in his face in a Chaplin esq way. Congrats on getting a film in the fest and I look forward to seeing more from you.

[mentatDUKE]

This was a funny one. Pretty brave of you not to use any dialog. A fun comedy. Liked the ending.

[Gohanto]

Wow, Gohanto! WELL DONE!!!!

You told a complete story with no dialogue! I am so impressed. And actually, I don't think that you even needed that card that stated "a short time later."

I loved your direction and camera work. My favorite was that curved dolly when he discovered his pants were missing. Really nice.

You film has a wonderful message and all with not a single bit of dialogue. I am truly amazed.

My biggest criticism would be the make-up. As a homeless man, I would expect more than dirt smeared on his face. He just didn't have the "life on the streets" look to him. But I really don't care. The story was more rewarding and definitely worth the watch!

Music was perfect for this. Loved the B&W as well.

Oh! I loved the sound of the garbage truck throughout the realization period. That was great! Very effective.

Congrats to you and your crew!!!

Best,

Ted

Thanks for the watching it. Originally i didn't have the "a short time later" title card, however what I realized when showing it to people is because the following shot is a crane down on him waking up, most people assume that it was all a dream. That section was the only part without any storyboarding (just wandered around the city looking for shots) so it suffers a bit from mis-communicating what happened.

I'm a bit surprised you thought we should've had more make-up. Most of the comments I got from others were that we had used too much (which was my goal since I wanted this over-the-top). Interesting to hear that.


The idea of the garbage truck throughout the scene was one of my favorites in making this so thanks for mentioning it. I originally thought about doing a color-pass for certain colors but thought it's a little cliche at this point, so I tried doing the acoustic equivalent of only hearing important sounds and I liked it.

Thanks for watching.

[Ted Arabian]

It was my pleasure to watch it. I applaud your effort at making a silent film... something that I've yet to even think about!

As for the make-up comment, I just felt that it wasn't realistic. That there should have been more variety of tones to his make-up instead of the basic smear that you have going on.

The title card bit certainly didn't bother me. I was just so impressed that so much was told without ANY cards. It would have been neat to continue that.

And I am glad that you didn't colorize any part of the film. I think that you would have diminished your film. It looked great as is.

Looking forward to more of your work!

-Ted