Shelter - A Film by Steven Dempsey

A very nice little film, Steven. First off, I thought it looked excellent. The opening shot was terrific, and I loved the way water was running in a constant stream down the glass of the window, distorting the father's view of the daughter. The colors really stood out and gave me a sense of foreboding and even a hint of dread. The story, though very brief, was still concise enough to walk away from it with something.

I suppose that could also be one of its pitfalls, but to each their own. I did, however, think that the dialogue in the voice over was just a little too precise, calm, and words like "trivial" really stood out when spoken by a younger person. It comes off less colloquial than I feel is appropriate.

But other than that, I really enjoyed the film and I think that you pulled off something really special in such a short amount of time. :beer:
 
I dig films with heavy rain - very nice.

I think the lighting in that umbrella scenes was a bit too much and too warm to hit the nail.
Otherwise good job.

Frank
 
I loved the look of the film, it fit the mood perfectly. The audio mix was perfect. The pacing felt a little slow, but it was intentional/methodical and I liked it, but you could feel the pacing.

I liked the dialogue as well, and I would have to disagree with Lawsuit Boy about the dialogue being too "precise and calm". I felt that the event had passed and the person had time to process their loss. So the tone of sorrowful, and melancholic was just fine. Though I can see Lawsuit Boy's point, I just... disagree. =)
 
This had a nice mood to it. The voice-over was a little spot on, but considering the visuals you used, I think it's the way it had to be, so that we could understand what had happened.
 
This was beautiful. Your cinematography is stunning. This makes me want to go out and shoot in the rain (which I have no idea how to do). :)

This was simple, but in a good way. Like a little haiku. Great music.

Very well done.
 
make it rain, make it rain!!!

visually beautiful. occasionally it felt "lit" but not too bad. some really nice compositions that i will be stealing in the future. thanks in advance!!! :)
 
It was moving and brief, I really enjoyed the opening close up - most excellent. Other shots too are done well, it looks wonderful for being shot in the rain. The only thing I noticed was that the V.O. doesn't feel natural, sort of distanced.
 
If I remember correctly I have seen one of your video clip on Vimeo or some place... that rain and car, only it was after the rain... and it was beautifully shot... This one was actually under a heavy rain... it looks awesome! you mastered in creating the emotion through rains... It's a simple little film and I really liked it.
One crit would be on the rain itself... not sure how you used the hose for the rain or even use the hose at all, but at one part, there was a stream of water much bigger and thicker than the other hitting the hood of the car... but it wasn't really a big of a deal I guess.
 
Wow, incredibly beautiful!

Not really a story here. She's sad her dad died, and now we're looking at really awesome shots of him in the rain. Rain signifies change, but nothing changed. Just a few notes of regret. Or am I really dense and missing something?

But it looked really cool! Extremely cinematic.
 
shawneous said:
Wow, incredibly beautiful!

Not really a story here. She's sad her dad died, and now we're looking at really awesome shots of him in the rain. Rain signifies change, but nothing changed. Just a few notes of regret. Or am I really dense and missing something?

But it looked really cool! Extremely cinematic.
Click to expand...

Thanks. The rain is actually the catalyst for her thoughts. It reminds her of the night her father died, also in the rain.

As far as a story is concerned, I never intended this film to have one in any recognizable way. Frankly, ever since I can remember, I wanted to create and shoot rain so this was a good excuse. Chris Messineo nailed it completely in his comments. It really was more of a poem than a short story. I wanted the images to be lyrical. I originally had way more dialog but I cut it down based on some feedback I got. This could be part of a much larger idea but I simply didn't have the resources to pull anything more elaborate off.

I agree with others that the lighting in the umbrella shots was a little much and I would definitely reposition the lights when shooting anything similar in the future.

Either way, it was both fun and a pain in the butt to shoot. All my equipment got wet and my son had sore arms from holding up the hose. I made some new friends at Home Depot beause of my endless trips back to find the perfect hose head :) I'm sure my neighbors were wondering what was going on. I had 5k worth of worklights going and my son on a ladder pouring water all over a guy with an umbrella and raincoat.

Chris, the key to shooting rain is to back light it.

Thanks again for all the comments, I appreciate it.
 
I like this. The rain,,,ok the water hose, gave it a really nice feel. Your camera work has always been really good.
 
Nice job. Very atmospheric. The camera work is exceptional and it seemed like it did most of the work to push this moment along. I have a problem with stoic characters that blink occasionally and the cold reading as the VO. All subjective my friend. Its a visual masterpiece.
 
Sprocketboy said:
I have a problem with stoic characters that blink occasionally and the cold reading as the VO. All subjective my friend. Its a visual masterpiece.
Click to expand...

I get what you are saying. I guess I was trying to create a place out of time. Because it's really the world of the girl's mind at that moment, the image of her is kind of a version of her in thought so there are no distracting movements.

Not sure if that's clear or confusing.
 
Last edited:
Really great shots, but I'd expect nothing else from you. After I post this, I'll read some of the thread and see if it answers questions I may have.

Overall, while beautiful, it felt more like a stolen moment in time than a story. Even at that it is haunting.
 
i watched this movie several time and although it's been beautifully made i did not understand at all what was supposed to be going on, was the father dead? did he leave? what was in the box he left?
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top