American Sweethearts - ID# 494
Oak Park River Forest
Seven Day Challenge
Entry Description
Set in the late 60s, two students are thrown together to collaborate on an American history project. With both girls' grades on the line, they must face their uncanny resentment for each other, or flunk.
Copyright Info
Recent Teacher Comments
Judge 1
Positives: Your attention to detail is excellent as well as your use of color and texture to establish a tone and mood in the piece. It's a heavy lift to do something that is a period piece, but you execute it well down to your props and set dressing. Using a timeless location like a library was smart (just watch the modern books in the background!) and the car was a great touch. The acting is also incredible and nuanced. I like how your characters do not flat-out argue but genuinely have a strong scene with era-appropriate dialogue. The creative voice is strong here and I can only see it deepening with time. Well done!
Improvements: We have some jump cuts that could be edited around and our outdoor sound wasn't clean. Either start the scene already inside or boom the actors if we are shooting outdoors to cut down on traffic. Don't forget your room tone as well-- that will help greatly with sound editing. From a story standpoint, we don't need to see them enter the library. The scene is already rich with conflict so "start late and leave early." It's more important to build their relationship and escalate the conflict so by the time they leave the library, we can see how the characters are transformed. This is also an intimate scene that would benefit from close ups during the height of their dialogue to build tension with the audience.
Judge 2
Positives: Really really really great work. Lotsa great stuff to call out here. Bummer I only get two. 1 - Beautifully shot. I'm feeling somewhere between a period piece and a Wes Anderson film. The opening sequence was gorgeous, and really helped to introduce us to the world the characters live in. 2 - Kudos to performances!! Lots of emotional shifts, feelings under the surface, tension, and fitting pauses. Really great work directing/acting/capturing the performance.
Improvements: 1 - From the opening to about 2:30 - the variety of shots and scenes were very engaging, which made the following library scene, clocked in at 3 minutes, feel sloooooow. I think it still partially works because the focus is on unpacking the relationship between these characters, but make sure that it's still visually engaging for the audience - because I know you know how!! Quick suggestion is to use the library space more...it could go a long way to see them kind of wandering the aisles while talking. 2 - I was a left a little confused as to what the central conflict was. With so many ripe areas to play with, (hidden attraction, growing apart, torn between identities, etc..I would push you to more clearly uncover one to drive the story. Oh what does JD mean? Juvenile Delinquent??
Judge 3
Positives: The aesthetic of the piece, utilizing clothing, music, and props, worked well and helped convey a compelling story. There was a variety of camera angles that demonstrated creativity and helped keep the conversation between the two characters moving.
Improvements: Once the piece got into the heavy dialog in the library, the pace of the piece really slowed down. The story and character development could have been stronger.
Judge 4
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Judge 5
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