Welcome to the Dead Load blog. Here we'll be posting updates, stills and stories from the making of our Dublin based short film, Dead Load, as it ventures out on the international film festival circuit.
I return with a new music video I made for the very cool Dublin based band Talulah Does The Hula. Today they release their latest singles ‘Tomorrow’s Yours‘ and ‘They Say‘. The tracks are available as digital downloads from the iTunes Store as well as other fine online establishments.
And here is the music video I directed for the excellent track ‘Tomorrow’s Yours‘…
For more info on the band please visit http://talulahdoesthehula.com
I had shot a couple of music videos previously but had been on the lookout for something new and exciting to shoot, and that’s when I heard Kill Krinkle Club‘s debut album ‘Abandon‘. I instantly thought… this could be interesting. So I got in touch with the band and this promo video for their excellent track, ‘Handwritten Novel’ is the outcome.
Thus far my career has taken two distinct yet separate paths. One as a Producer / Director of film, mainly short dramas (Dead Load, Finscéal Pháidí etc). The other as a lighting and visuals guy for bands on television (U2, Elbow, The National, Snow Patrol etc). This video for ‘Handwritten Novel’ gave me the opportunity to combine both strands, and all in under four minutes.
Soon after hearing the track I put together a treatment for the video, and then met with Justin and Elina from Kill Krinkle Club to discuss my ideas. We all wanted to do something unusual, something different, something cinematic. Then Venice was mentioned and we all started to imagine the possibilities. So we set about making it happen and flights were booked. Resources were tight but we were high on imagination and enthusiasm.
The track itself, ‘Handwritten Novel’, is quite cinematic in its own right. It has a real mysterious feel to it, some lovely musicianship and is beautifully produced. It lends itself brilliantly to a flowing, mysterious and cinematic video. So that’s what we set out to achieve. A video that hopefully people will provoke thought and one that people will want to watch again having just seen it. Hopefully it’s intriguing and challenging.
The video was shot over 3 days and nights in a very cold Venice at the turn of the year. Venice provided the most beautiful backdrop imaginable. We wanted it to look stark and practically deserted and hopefully we achieved that. It was a real joy to shoot there, a mad adventure from start to finish.
There was a crew of two, myself Greg Corcoran as Producer/Director (and also camera assistant / B camera op) and Kieran O’Connell as the DoP. We shot on a Canon 5d (with a Canon 550d as B cam). The editor was John Paul Shortt who cut on Final Cut Pro. Grade was done by myself in Final Cut Pro also.
Anyway that’s how the video for ‘Handwritten Novel’ came to be. I hope you enjoy it. And moreso I hope it helps bring to life a fine, subtley flowing, electro track from a great band.
As mentioned in the previous post, Dead Load will screen in competition at the Cleveland International Film Festival at midnight on April Fools Day! And thanks to the good folk over at Culture Ireland I will be able to head over to present the film in person. It’s a great opportunity and I can’t wait.
Huge thanks to Culture Ireland for their support, it’s greatly appreciated! Go like them on facebook, they’re a good bunch!
A letter arrived in the post today all the way from Cleveland, Ohio. And within was the most excellent news that Dead Load has been selected, from over 1100 entries, to compete at the 35th Cleveland International Film Festival 2011. The festival will take place from the 24th of March until the 3rd of April.
The CIFF presents a full survey of contemporary international and American Independent filmmaking, with more than 150 features and 130 short subjects from approximately 60 countries.
The CIFF offers many short film awards including the Best Animated Short Film, Best Documentary Short Film, Jesse Epstein Humanitarian Award, Best International Short Film, Best Live Action Short Film, Kodak Best Ohio Short Film, Best Student Short Film, Best Women’s Short Film, Cleveland State University Audience Choice Award for Best Short Film, The Spalding Award – In Celebration of Joy, The Clover and Maggie Award – In Celebration of Life, and Best LGBT Short Film Award. These awards total over $10,000 in cash and prizes.
The last short I produced, Finscéal Pháidí screened in competition there in 2009. And in 2008 another short I produced called Mac An Athar won the Jesse Epstein Humanitarian Award at this very festival so you never know! Although I’ve a funny feeling you can rule us out of the running for the ‘celebration of life’ award and maybe ‘best LGBT short film award’. Just a hunch is all!
This just in….
The Victoria Film Festival would like to screen your film “DEAD LOAD” at the next VFF on Feb 6th, 2010 as part of our CONVERGE programming. CONVERGE is our shorts programming initiative where short films will be shown around Victoria’s downtown in unusual venues with mixed programming, creating an exciting collision between new films and new technologies.
Excellent news. So Dead Load will be winging it’s way to Victoria in Canada real soon. February in fact.
And word reaches us of a successful screening at the Foyle Film Festival last week, so thanks to all involved there.
More festival news to follow soon.
Cheers,
Greg
Word has reached us that Dead Load has been accepted to screen at the prestigious Foyle Film Festival which will take place from the 19th to the 27th November, 2010. Dead Load will compete in the Best Irish Short category.
Since 1999, the Foyle Film Festival has been an Oscar® affiliated festival – one of only a handful of festivals to enjoy this honour. As a result, recipients of the Foyle Festival’s LIM Award qualify for consideration in the Short Films category of the Annual Academy Awards®. Previous winners and competitors who have proceeded to win the Oscar®, include: Martin McDonagh (Six Shooter), Adam Elliot (Harvie Krumpet), and Eric Armstrong (Chubbchubbs). Other festival award winners received Oscar® nominations in 2010 – including Juanita Wilson, Director of The Door who received a LIM Award for Best International Short at the Foyle Film Festival in 2008. While the winner, also in 2008, of Best Animation French Roast – directed by Fabrice O. Joubert – also received an Oscar® nod at this year’s Academy Awards®.
So all in all we’re delighted to have been chosen for such a highly regarded and internationally renowned festival as The Foyle Film Festival. It really is an excellent place to get the ball rolling on our international festival circuit run.
The programme launch will be on the 22nd October, screening dates/times will be confirmed after that date.
A video interview I did recently for the Grams / Behind The Scenes section of the Screenscene website went online last Friday. Check it out here. And thanks a million to Barbara Deignan for putting it all together. Legend.
Also, Dublin city centre was absolutely buzzing for Culture Night on the 24th of September. Lots going on and eager culture fans milling around town. The screening of Dead Load in Filmbase as part of said night went excellently. It played to a packed house along with 3 other Irish short films and all went down well, which was great to see! Much thanks to Clare Creely and Stephen Kane for making it all tick on what turned out to be a very busy night.
And in other Dead Load related news, a piece I wrote for the latest edition of Film Ireland magazine was published in the latest edition of the magazine, which should have arrived in people’s letterboxes of late. It’s entitled “How I Short” and is on page 11 of the magazine. Do check it out.
And on the screening front… we’re currently waiting on word back from a batch of festivals so watch this space for further updates.
Cheers,
Greg
Tonight, the 24th of September 2010, Dead Load will screen as part of Culture Night in Dublin. The screening will take place at 10pm in Filmbase, Temple Bar as part of a series of comedy shorts. In fact Dead Load will be in stellar company as the other shorts on the night are Noreen, The Crush and Cold Turkey; 3 fine Irish comedy shorts which were the standout highlights of the recent Galway Film Fleadh.
This is the biggest Culture Night to date and it is expected that over half a million people nationwide will explore and engage with culture tonight. It will take place in 20 cities, towns, counties and islands across Ireland and will offer access to an amazing array of free late night culture. And why not?! We’re looking forward to it so hope to see you there.
Also, we’re all over a bundle of festival submissions at the moment so watch this space as Dead Load embarks on the festival circuit.
The Cast & Crew screening (and Dublin première!) of Dead Load takes place on Thursday the 5th of August, 2010. The venue is Filmbase, Curved Street, Temple Bar, D2. The time is 8pm sharp. If you’d like to attend, drop me a line at gregcorco (at) gmail (dot) com.
