Thank you so much for taking the time to check out our page and we hope you enjoy it.
Story outline:
‘Being Nothing’ is a character driven drama where the audience is thrust into a surreal yet recognisable version of our world. One in which the environments we surround ourselves with are as much a story element as the people that inhabit them. The film follows the character of Daughter, a young female with a strained relationship to those around her stemming from their lack of ability to properly communicate with her.
The theme of miscommunication is heavy in ‘Being Nothing’. It arises as you watch the supporting characters, all suffering from an inability to say what they really want. Miscommunication is an important focal point of our film as it’s a common thread connecting all of the characters to each other. This story element has been influenced by our varying interpretations of language as well as our dependence on instant communication methods which has distanced ourselves from each other and caused an almost paralysis of conversation.
Surrealness and reality clash throughout the film exploring the idea of disconnection between characters despite their intimate roles in each others lives. It creates a world where people are simultaneously close yet separate from one another. Daughter is introduced to us at a stage in her life when she is at her most uncertain about the things around her and the people next to her are only fuelling this feeling.
Meet the crew
Ania Ziebinska - Writer/Director
Ania’s first drama short ‘Outside In’ has earned her a BFI Northern Filmmaker Award nomination and has only spearheaded her drive for conveying raw emotional themes and stories that resonate with the viewer and leave them thinking long after watching. This is Ania's first time directing a piece she has written herself and she is very excited for the challenge as she has an intimate connection with the piece and it has been something she has wanted for a long time.
Jack Cartwright - Producer
Jacks first foray into producing involved working with Ania on their critically acclaimed short film ‘Outside In’ which is currently making it's way through the festival circuit to great success . Jack has also delved into the experimental by producing a short called ‘Annica’ which had a much lower budget that his previous works.
Max Fawcett - Director of Photography
Max is a knowledgeable Cinematographer with experience in every role in the cinematography department. He has worked on a variety of projects with credits in promotional videos, music videos and documentaries but his passion lies in drama. Within film, every creative decision he aims to be intellectual and meaningful with a goal to create Cinematography that both uniquely compliments and enhances every film he creates.
Megan McClean - Production Designer
Leeds based artist specialising in production design, with skills including sculpting, painting and illustration. Along with these, Megan is highly talented at prop making and strives for perfection in everything she touches, she has also garnered a lot of experience by being involved on many films and has even put together exhibitions in Leeds to showcase the amazing work of Northern artists.
Michael Gilbanks - Sound Recordist
Michael specialises in sound recording and sound design. His previous work includes sound recording and design on sci-fi short, ‘The Natural Room’ (2018), as well as sound recording on short films for The National Centre for Diversity in the Summer of 2018. Michael is looking forward to working with Ania and Jack for a third time.
Michael’s work is influenced by the work of sound designer Chris Scarabosio, as well as musical influences of Steve Reich and Jonny Greenwood. His approach to ‘Being Nothing’ will experiment with diegetic rhythmic soundscapes that create dissonant motifs throughout the film.
Remy Hyper - Editor/Colour Grader
Remy specialises in Editing and colour grading, his previous work involves working with music videos which has given him a great set of skills that can be easily transferred such as mastering, how to set a pace for a film and making it flow. He has been in close contact with the Director and DOP as well as researching referential films to get a perfect foundation for how he wants the colour styling to be in post.
Finances
Films are surprisingly expensive to make even short films like this one, however with a few shortcuts and a sparkle in your eye you can save a lot of money. We are still in need of £1500's to make Being Nothing- a film that not only has the chance to enter festivals around the globe but also to be a visual treat alongside a narrative one. If we hit our baseline goal of £1500 we will be able to afford to get the actors of our choice from around the country and pay for their travel. Locations will be more available to us with an increased spending budget, and the crew will have fuller tummies on the days of shooting. If we manage to hit our dream goal of £4000 not only will this be an amazing motivator to make all of you, our donators proud of the product you helped create, but we will also be able to push to make a product on a whole other level, the money would go towards much grander set designs ones that would not be feasible on our baseline budget, we would be able to afford to travel much further for our dream locations and actors, the crew would have a lot fewer grey hairs and we would be able to increase the amount of festival prescense we could garner by being able to afford many more submission costs.
Challenges
With all feats of ambition, obstacles are sure to be present and although we are excited to face them head our crew can overcome them with extra ease from anything you could donate. As fun as filming is, it comes with a plethora of barriers, these can range from having to reschedule due to the cast being unable to make it to set due to weather conditions, not being able to have your dream location due to a lack of finances to simply a hungry crew on a day of shooting. Problems like these are why we have created this campaign so that we can minimise the risks and focus on improving the quality of the film because at the end of the day that's our primary concern, bringing a worth watching film to the audience
Other ways you can help
We understand that during this time of the year, money is leaving your wallet at the speed of light so it's understandable that not everyone will be able to contribute, and that's not a problem you can still help the campaign by spreading the word, share this on Facebook, Twitter or any other social media platform, tell your friends and tell your family the more the better and we are grateful for any help that you give us.
Thank you very much for taking the time to read this campaign and we hope you are as excited as we are for ‘Being Nothing’.
If you want more updates from us go like us on Facebook!