Hello, everyone! It’s been a while since I last uploaded to the blog, and a series of interesting events have occurred since then. Some are too personal to talk about here, but I’ll be okay. The most intriguing thing, though, is the short film I was given the opportunity to write and direct based on my friend Juno’s anthology.
In February, Juno texted me to talk about adapting the book, which is a collection of poems about her struggles with spirituality and faith. I found it intriguing and began work on creating visuals inspired by her work. I wanted to do something that could stand independent of the poems, an image of what a signature Tolu screenplay could be, and she fell in love with my initial ideas, but problems arose with practicality and budget, which, of course, I anticipated, but you don’t lose anything by trying. I got to work on a new version of the screenplay with less costly ideas, but stuff I would consider to be in line with the kind of style I’m trying to define. I think it would be ludicrous to suggest that I have a style already. I’m most definitely an amalgamation of my favorite influences at this current point in time, and I haven’t written enough to claim that I have a signature creative style, but there’s a certain way of writing I love to be associated with, and I tried to put that into this project.
A few weeks passed, and the crew got larger, so it was time to settle on a version of the story that would fit our budget, location constraints, and other things that could hinder a film project. We finally settled on a silent, one-location film, and I got to work on the screenplay, which I think is some of my best work. I’ve been very interested in spiritual cinema for a while, with my major influences being Terrence Malick, David Lynch, and Apitchatpong Weerasethakul, and although it felt conflicting that I would have to create a “Christian” short film as my first major production despite me being agnostic, I thought back to something I talked about on my Twitter account about not pushing away the parts of me that I grew up with. My family is a very Christian one, and I grew up in the church, which came with some benefits and a lot of things that I look back on and don’t like, but it’s a part of my life that influenced a lot of my decisions up until recently. It would be a disservice to me to completely abandon how I grew up, and I think it also makes for a compelling point of view. So, I tapped into my former Christian bag and got to work on a visually driven film. We had sound equipment constraints, but I wouldn’t have written dialogue into the film anyway. I think the film’s essence yearned for it to be without dialogue or background noise. Although the screenplay wasn’t written with a complete lack of sound in mind, I think it makes a lot more sense for what I and Juno tried to achieve with it. A spiritual experience doesn’t necessarily need sound. Sometimes, the solemnity of the moment sweeps you off your feet. It makes those chemicals in your brain tend towards tears and overwhelming emotions, the same way you would feel at a concert, a football game, or while watching a film. Achieving this would always be tough, but I think ambition shouldn’t be boxed in by money.
Drafts. Drafts. Editing. More editing. Feedback. More drafts. Storyboarding. Feedback. More storyboarding. Shot selections. Location confirmation. Call time. And finally came shooting day.
I did not know how unprepared I was to shoot (insert multiple crying emojis). I had not printed out the script, although I didn’t deem that necessary due to the small size of the crew and the short length of the project, and I had not prepared a printed version of the shot list either. We were off to a horrible start. To compensate for this, I had to open the script on my actress' iPad and write a physical shot list, including the framing, type of movement, etc. It was quite eccentric, and most of what I wrote was for the editor to understand what we were doing and the good clips to make it to the final cut. But as the day went on, I improved at what I was doing. I got better at helping the cinematographer visualize the type of shots that I wanted and see if they were feasible. I got better at getting my actress to tap into what I wanted her to do. I got better at framing the shots in a way that fits the story. And I also got better at compromise, which is a BIG part of filmmaking. It was a fun experience. I don’t think many sets are as peaceful as the set for ZION, and I enjoyed that. I think it gave me adequate preparation for producing and directing another project I have in the pipeline for this summer with my friend, Uchechi. The only negative thing I would say is that I didn’t have as much creative freedom as I wanted, which is fine, because it’s not *my* film, it’s Juno’s. I felt honored that she considered me an agnostic individual and that I was perfect for bringing her vision to life. Because of this, the film is as much mine as it is hers.
Postproduction is a completely different facet of film production that I am still coming to terms with. Because we found it hard to get an editor for the film, editing fell into my hands, and I liked that challenge. Every aspect of filmmaking is important, but a film is only as good as its editing. So, the confidence that I channeled into the writing and directing has been used for the editing.
Overall, I’m proud of the work that we managed to do with this short film. I hope people can see what Juno was trying to convey, and I hope you enjoy it most of all!
I can’t wait to show you all more of what I do.
long time tolu!!! also can't wait for your masterpiece
Awwwwwww well done, LuLu!