Zombff - ID# 456

Deerfield
Dramatic Narrative
Entry Description

After the apocalypse, the last human alive attempts to overcome feelings of loneliness.

Copyright Info

Recent Teacher Comments

  • 4/22 8:06 pm - Fun, dynamic, and genre-bending. Outstanding performances, and impressive attention to detail in all aspects of production – from sound to set design to props to comedic performances to montages to titling. I was bummed when it abruptly ended! I assume there is more and this was just the 5 minute version. There is a lot of room here as a concept for a feature or a sitcom or web series. As someone who enjoys both Zombie films and buddy comedies, this was a delight. Outstanding work – you should be very proud!
  • 3/24 2:04 pm - This was very well done! You immediately grabbed my attention with your opening scene. The camera shots, lighting, and audio were executed very well. Your shots were unique and kept me engaged the entire length of your film. The concept of you drawing out this friendship as a comic and incorporating it as your video was very well done!! This was very enjoyable to watch, excellent job. The ending was perfect and makes me wanting more which is exactly what you want!
  • 2/22 12:38 pm - Your film is fun to watch. This is a great idea, but I am not sure where you'd like me (the audience) to go with the ending? Is the zombie a figment of his imagination? Is he the zombie? The knock at the door, is that a new zombie? Your camera work is very impressive, the shots are thoughtful (the camera looking through the cans on the shelf) and well-composed. The lighting is spectacular - big fan of the effects lighting. Your attention to editing: inter-cutting of POV shots and CUs of face and eyeline match is impressive. I can focus on the story rather than editing errors.
Judge 1

Positives: Really enjoyed the tone, genre nods and music choices to drive the film forward! Things like the bunny slippers and secret handshake were great, specific choices that felt cohesive and honestly just added a lot of fun to the piece.

Improvements: The ending worked - but I felt could be stronger. Yes he's lonely, but taking the mask off implies he's submitting to being a zombie despite having endured being the only human for this long. Why this moment? What is the context? Adding just a little bit more here could help the ending land a bit more. The "zombie" itself also defied a few tropes, but without explanation - a zombie running away? Why? Are they actually zombies / are there zombies at all? For context, I LIKE that the zombies are different, but because this deviates from genre expectations I wanted some hint from the lead, even ironically, to help orient the audience and maximize the comedy you've got going.

Judge 2

Positives: I really liked the creative shots within the film, they really brought the story together. Most of the shots had great spacing and the coloring throughout the film played along with the story. I also think the music chosen worked really well.

Improvements: I think the transition at the beginning when the timer is up could have been more realistic and thought out. The voiceover could be more slowly spoken to give even more drama to the story. I feel like there is something missing from the end, there needs to be a more clear resolution. I understand he is lonely, but he was having a good time throughout the film and seemed like he was getting better until he started being lonely again.

Judge 3

Positives: This film has so much heart!! The reveal of the story being in his head is so good. The tone is super fun and the team really knows how to put so much personality into the film. The locations, wardrobe/mfx, and the zombff’s acting are all super strong. I really like the homemade feel of the gas mask. Some specific great shots are the between the cans of food shot and the dolly shots. Very fun montage sequence that really works for me, as well as the dissolves sequence.

Improvements: Transitions could be smoother. Moving from scene to scene and some of the music transitions was a bit rough, but overall, the pacing was solid and the worldbuilding helped keep me engaged. I wish we established what the rules of the normal zombies look like before we meet the zombff because then it would solidify that this one is different from the others, so that way it makes sense when the main character drops his guard and trusts him. We take the time to show the scientists before the apocalypse, we can take a sec to show the other zombies (or just make that opening be the zombies instead). Overall, once revealed that it’s all a comic story idea, there’s really not much that has happened. Something’s about to happen when the two become friends, but then it’s revealed it’s just in his head, so nothing really happens-- and then something’s about to happen with the knocks, but it ends. It’s really fun, but what did we learn? What’s the short film trying to say?

Judge 4

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Judge 5

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