Can you do it in 90 seconds?
Watershed's super-short filmmaking competition
as part of Encounters Short Film & Animation Festival
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Necklace
Jonathan Ley
About film
A young woman searches for something precious in the sand.
47 Comments for “Necklace”
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Depict is a Watershed Project as part of the Encounters Short Film & Animation Festival
what is the point of this?
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Wow. From the hundreds of entries, there was nothing better than this?!
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…? I want my 101 seconds back
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What is this? MAH! also I want my 101 seconds back!
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Billy, Ad, Mike and Salvatore… clearly nothing better to do with your time than bad mouth someone’s hard work. Shame on you, perhaps you should stick to posting useless comments youtube or facebook.
Necklace has some great camera work and perfect balance of pace and tempo. Fantastic work from this director as always. Congratulations and best of luck!
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This is a really strong entry. Enigmatic, atmospheric and genuinely satisfying. Great Stuff!
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I love this film. I can see why some of the entrants whose work wasn’t chosen are bitter that they didn’t get shortlisted but it’s sad that they want to be so openly nasty. This film is great. I really hope it wins. It deserves to.
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Nice work, nice shots, nice pace
boo to hecklers, beautifully done; simple, nicely composed and complete
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Love this. It functions on so many levels – impressive in the space of 90 seconds.
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Thew colours on this film are beuatiful and it manages to build a great atmosphere in just 90 seconds. Strong performance from the actress and an accomplished use of hand held camera. Great film.
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Loved the pace and the editing. The actress perfectly embodied that feeling of losing something and realising you will never find it… but like most times in life things appear when you stop looking for them…
A real mind-jerker get’s you thinking and questioning the mysteries of the universe.
My only criticism: it’s too short!!!
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I really liked this one. It used the 90 seconds wisely and built up a strong atmosphere rather than trying to squeeze in a full story. It titillates you with the possibilities of the back story and her character. It left me intrigued, empathetic for her and wanting more. Really nice editing, lovely, subtle acting.
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Liked it. Good Luck!
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Well done Jon! Keep up the film-making!!!!
Simon
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Love how it captures so many moods and changes of pace in such a short time. Beautifully shot and sound is very nicely done too.
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Excellent film – lean, elusive and subtlety constructed narrative that really engages the imagination. Well done.
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A great piece of concise and confident storytelling.
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Great piece of short cinema, definitely plays with your imagination.
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beautiful film. good luck!
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Well done!
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i LOVE this! well done to John and Tess! I like the clarity, the subtlety and the overall feel of the film. Amazing use of 90seconds. A simple idea well executed is a thing of beauty.
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I thought it was so wistful. The realism of the situation of a girl on a beach draws the viewer in but it also captures an element of fantasy or fairytale when the necklace is discovered. Left me wondering and wanting more.
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Smart use of the 90 seconds. She loses one thing, finds another when she’s given up hope. Evocative and poignant – nicely done.
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great use of the 90 seconds, the semi magical-realist narrative was engaging, the delicate attention to colour uplifting. a simple idea well done.
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Impressive story-telling in just 90 seconds. Totally engaging.
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when did she lose the first thing? far as i can tell she just randomly starts rolling around in sand , semi magical realist narrative or not
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Subtle and suggestive. I loved it very much. It was a tough challenge and Jon and Tess have made the most out of it. It’s the best 90 seconds I could have spent on the internet!
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I’m sorry. I can see how some of you may like this film, it has some good camera angles etc. But there is something it’s missing. A story. It’s all about the story. I learned this last year in L.A. where a movie director told me so. IT’S ALL ABOUT THE STORY. This film is in lack of such. Otherwise congrats with the nomination. But to you people who are “dissing” the ones who don’t like it – would you just let them be? Not everyone has the same taste in movies. Maybe this is just not their taste, as it isn’t mine, but apparently is yours.
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What qualifies you as a Movie Expert? The fact that you went to LA and met a director? Have there ever been bad movies made in LA? Just wondering. If a story constitutes a beginning, a middle and an end then I would argue that my film has one. It may not be a story to your liking but it is a story nonetheless. I’m not ‘dissing’ you by the way I just don’t understand why you would take the time to write negative things on a public forum. The only criticism that has any value is constructive criticism.
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I’m sorry. It wasn’t meant like that at all. I wasn’t “dissing” your movie, and it’s not really about movies, it’s about the fact that people can’t criticize, without getting criticsm in return…
And MovieExperts is supposed to be sarcasm.. I am not an expert, just because I make movies myself.
And Negative criticism is constructive criticism, that’s how you learn from your mistakes, and build on that.
And maybe it’s not because you don’t have a story, maybe it’s just because I don’t understand it.
And finally, don’t you want criticism from the public? Isn’t that supposed to be your audience…? Instead of getting mad because they might not like the movie, maybe you should ask them why – and then thinking about changing whatever you did wrong in the next one. That’s how I figured commenting on a movie works…
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I apologise if I was too passionate in my response and if your criticism was as well-meant as you say then I honestly thank you for it. I have just been surprised and a little dismayed at the bitterness and negativity directed at some of the films in this shortlist. Saying a film is ‘pointless’ is not constructive because it is such a vague term and doesn’t suggest an improvement that the filmmaker could implement. I agree with you that film is a matter of taste and entirely subjective. That’s why I find the weird belief motivating some of the comments that a film is either good or bad, right or wrong so strange. I am all for a bit of debate and audience feedback is invaluable but tossing out insults isn’t the same as expressing an opinion. I’m certainly not including you in that group though MovieExperts and again, I thank you for taking the time to respond to my film.
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I like the visuals of this, they are sharp but I had to watch this twice. It wasn’t obvious to me that the heroine had lost something in the first instance, I have to agree with Billy- it looked like she’d just randomly started rolling about in the sand. Maybe she should have patted herself down, rooted around in the basket on her bike or something?
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An intriguing experience of which I enjoyed very much. Left me wanting more, which any short like this should do. I want to know more about this girl. Great character. The dream like hue’s, editing and sound design pull you in. I want to watch it again!
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I have a question. At the beginning when the girl is on the bike she is not wearing a necklace. How does she lose the necklace that she wasn’t wearing in the first place?
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What’s to say she lost it that day? Perhaps she lost it at another time.
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The frantic, desperation in her initial searching, implicit in both the acting and the editing leads me, as an otherwise uninformed viewer, to assume this.
You made it. What was the story you wanted to tell?
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Well if this is the best there is, then there is surely no hope. Its poor camera work and badly paced amateur filmaking. Good luck!
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Hi Jonathon,
I cannot find your facebook. I am Kayleigh, co creator of Scunner.
My email is kayleigh.gibgib@gmail.com
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I don’t understand how anyone can watch this and write great character/acting. The director is teetering on the edge of genius and dog terd… for me I didn’t enjoy this but – it is well directed.
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Shaking cameras put people off and makes us feel sick.
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I can’t believe how everyone is gushing over this? They must be friends and family of the director. Big Dave is talking out of his backside needs to stop letting his sycophancy getting in the way of real criticism. Also needs to get of his high horse after trying to shoot people down for their opinions. It’s well shot and edited but it’s boring and pretentious. Sorry.
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….Okay?
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Shaky cam, and not a poor idea – no idea at all. Waste of my time. This is on the shortlist? Here’s my criticism/advice: next time you think of an ‘idea’, ask yourself this “What’s the point?”, and if there is none – better to write it down on some toilet paper and wipe your ass =)
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Please read Watershed’s Code of Conduct for comments: http://www.watershed.co.uk/statement-of-commitments/#codeofconduct
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Is that supposed to be ’sexy’? Gross man!!! I dont like video. Lighting not good. Camera to move and I cannot see important detail. Please next movie not use this ’sexy’. Use another cameraman next time and girl to diet please.
Good luck and all the best wish you make best movie in future! =))
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dont like casting. big girl cannot act and tattoo distract from her good quality. i think this video (include edit) can make in 1 day, prob 4 hours. not serious work and by 2010 standard its horrible
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I like it!
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