Balls
Theo Buckwald
Balls is a pretty interesting video in my opinion. I usually like to sit down and think about what makes a short film "good." I think all short films need to be quick, exciting, and simple. As well as short. ( I cannot stress this last part enough.)
Anyway, I got the idea by challenging myself to center a short film on one subject, the subject being the basketball itself. Then came the idea of centering it around player's anxiety, which was a way to connect myself to the short.
"Balls" is actually not even the finished product. This is a beta test of an idea I hope to accomplish in the future. I wrote a 5 minute script for a version that would be essentially the same short, but take the thesis in a completely different direction. The whole idea of doing a beta test came to be from my interest in how musicians release material. I love the concept of recording a demo of a song, releasing it on an EP, and then releasing the single and album. I want to experiment with that formula with short films, and Balls is my way of doing so.
It was quite organic how this idea came to be as well. One day I was walking through the campus of my university after a 24 hour study bender. It was midterms week so I was "dazed and confused" as the kids say. I wondered through the campus and came across this basketball court. It was like a sign from heaven that I grab my camera, go the local sports authority, and convince one of my roommates to act for 40 minutes.
The whole experience really inspired me to take the risk and make a project without really thinking. I think ego and spending too much time on a project can really affect the overall quality of a piece. And while "Balls" may not be perfect in any sense, Im proud of what I did in the 24 hours that it took to shoot and edit.
