The Duelist - ID# 448
Vernon Hills
Dramatic Narrative
Entry Description
This is an excerpt of the short film "The Duelist". This silent film follows the story of Cosima (Brianna Grzesiak), a world famous traveling duelist. However, when Valentine (Zachary Paulsen), a mysterious trickster from out of town arrives to challenge her, it seems that he may prove to be a worthy opponent. Has Cosima finally met her match? Find out as the legendary swords-woman fights to keep the legend alive! The full version of this film can be found here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=I4F961iVQoU&t=7s
Copyright Info
Original score for film composed by Jelani Eddington.
Recent Teacher Comments
- 3/16 7:43 pm - Excellent camera work, I always felt intrigued and never visually bored, you told the story well. Great Locations. I saw it at the Film Festival and I remember the first time not fully following what was happening which is the challenge of silent film, you need those close ups and reaction shots to make sure your audience is following and knowing the story. That also helps establish the relevance of the characters and what piece of the overall puzzle they play to complete the picture. For example, I was never sure How much time had passed between the two duels, because the character and onlookers always looked the same even though the locations had changed. The other challenge is to keep the story moving, at times it dragged because you were spending so much time setting some things up, that I felt like I was waiting for the next piece of action. Overall though great visuals, nice job
- 3/10 10:53 am - Positives: Some interesting camera angles, especially during the first duel. Good use of the location with horses to reinforce the period piece feel; some of the costuming was great. Effective use of special effects to support the time-shifting. Areas for improvement: A silent film relies heavily on facial expressions to make the story clear and convincing, as well as pacing in the editing that can increase the drama--both of these areas could be stronger. Unclear in the story why the villain would take off the time shifting device since it's the key to the success of his con... perhaps that's revealed in the full version.
- 3/9 7:35 pm - vareity of shots...love; smooth transitions; sountrack is great
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