Posted: Monday, September 1st, 2008 at 7:25 am in Showcase

Well, this one’s also got to be quick, but I definitely want to share it. I discovered Via Optima via (haha!) their Instructables article on making a short film for 80 bucks. Now, that headline alone would grab most anyone’s attention, but being into this field as I am, it certainly grabbed mine. I haven’t finished the article yet – been very busy lately – but it sounds like a decently written article from two clearly talented young filmmakers. The film referenced in the article, and the most on their site, is their latest achievment in their brief filmmaking careers: a short called The Shepherd. Of course the acting isn’t award-winning, but given the fact that these were two guys and only a few friends and family members making the film, their production value is outstanding, and the story something I could see coming from Cronenberg, Aronofsky or maybe even Lynch. Backing away from Hollywood names and grand-scale comparisons, these are simply kids making a movie in their senior year of high school. It’s a short thriller by two 18-year-olds, and right from the title sequence they had me hooked. Definitely worth the 20 minutes it takes to watch. Oh, watch the trailer too. And take a peek at their Vimeo profile and website.

Tags: 1984, amateur, daren aronofsky, david cronenberg, david lynch, filmmakers, filmmaking, high school, psychological thriller, short film, the shepherd, via optima