I think this wound up being very effective even if it didn't quite meet your expectations. I can definitely see parts that could've been executed a little better, and I'm sure if I rewatched it I could find plenty to nitpick. But you have a very strong concept and compelling mystery, and the visuals are there too! There's a lot of really cool, eerie moments in this, a lot of weird, awesome shots that stick out in my mind, like the silhouettes of people on the dripping ceiling. The music is awesome too, the pacing, it really feels like the whole package, AND it's a pretty unique idea for a horror...entity? Part of me wants a little more explanation but maybe having that would ruin what's already here. I do want to believe it has something to do with the fountain itself, that maybe it has a malevolent will.
KENOPSIA
Oh man, I have a lot to say about this one.
So, this is Kenopsia, my thesis film from my final year at SVA. It was a contained disaster, to say the least.
However, before I go on a long tangent about this film, I must first credit those who helped me!
***
Voices by
Thalass - Derek Bolz
Achluo - Mike Picone
Score by
Sound Design by
Credits Song by
Credits Visuals by
Animation by
Compositing by
Myself, with the assistance of Courtney Vonada
Effects + Additional Animation by
Lillian
Backgrounds by
Cleanup by
**
The people who helped me out with this film were fantastic, and I'm forever grateful for those who contributed.
I'm also grateful for the artist Bliss3three, who's first album heavily inspired the seedling idea this film sprouted from.
I was also extremely excited when they gave me permission to use a song of theirs in the film after asking if I could.
A lot of cool things happened because of this film. But when I say contained disaster, I mainly mean how this film made me feel for a long time.
I hit my deadlines, I handled production to the best of my ability, and turned in a film that allowed me to graduate.
However, for a long time I only felt disdain for this film. I felt it was very weak, especially compared to what I wanted to do with it.
Horror is not an easy genre, especially with something like this. It requires strong pacing, taking your time, and building tension so that dread you feel swells. I wanted that, but I feel with my limited time with this idea, I could not accomplish what I set out to do.
I described to my friends that looking back at this film now is like taking a bite out a loaf of bread, only to find the middle soggy and under baked. I still like the idea, I still like the characters, I still dream of dead malls, but I just simply didn't have the chops to make this what I wanted it to be just yet.
It was at least, at the end of the day, a learning experience. A film that took me well over a year to make almost pales in comparison to my recent film that I finished just within a month. Of course there's a lot to factor in about these things, like how I was taking several other taxing classes on top of working on my thesis film. But still, as much as I feel strange about this film now, I at least know that I have grown since its creation. I felt so destroyed and broken after finishing something to this scale, and am now lucky enough to know I've healed over since.
So, with that, I hope you all have a wonderful fall, and an especially frightening October.
And thank you for supporting me <3
tysm!! i appreciate the feedback :] i remember throughout the time i was showing the progress for this film to my class, different people would come up with theories as to what was actually happening in the film. i have my own thoughts as to whats happening, but i think ill keep that to myself to continue the mystery. a really funny theory i remember hearing is that none of what was happening is real and theyre just both getting incredibly high off black mold (i mean, no respirators in an abandoned building? thats CRAZY). i also quite like the idea that the fountain itself is malevolent.
Man I love these backgrounds and the the perspective on each shot is done. Every single new angle is somehow more interesting than the last, in a borderline tour de force kinda way. The mic quality in a few places is a little wonky, but it kinda adds to the atmosphere a little bit. All around just a great fucking show start to finish.
tysm!! wonky perspective just itches my brain right u_u!
This is why you don't go swimming without a life guard present. The water demons get lonely.
Truly a scary short with a lot of implied horrors that occurred in such a cursed place. It plays on the fears of abandonment, reckless and careful. The "ghosts" you hear alone in the dark and such a spacious place. The water looks inviting, but stare at it too long and you'll thirst for its presence.
The aesthetic and the animation gives me the VIBES. I LOVE IT!
Holy shit that was fuckin' awesome, I loved the music, I've only looked at a few submissions for this event, but so far this deserves 1st place!
thank you omg!!! thats very very kind of you to say :')
