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Watch: Caspar Newbolt’s Dreamlike Short, Leaving Hope
LEAVING HOPE from version on Vimeo.
Version Industries designer Caspar Newbolt — who, in addition to being Filmmaker‘s print magazine designer (along with Charlotte Gosch), has designed some of the more striking independent film posters of recent years — has just premiered his first short film over at NoBudge. (You can watch it above as well.) It’s an eerie and dreamlike NYC drama that has, in addition to a compelling performance by Laine Rettmer, bravura final sequence that illustrates Godard’s (or is it Griffiths’s?) dictum of the minimum requirements for a film.
From the description at NoBudge:
Suffering a loss, a woman finds a mysterious book on a subway platform and with it fights to get control of her life. “Leaving Hope,” by director Caspar Newbolt is an enigmatic drama, shot in gorgeous black & white, concerning the messy emotional state of Laine, and the lengths she goes to reestablish well-being, personal and financial. One night, still reeling from being kicked out of her apartment, she stumbles upon a passed-out man lying in the subway next to a self-help book. She takes possession of the book, and takes its advice to heart: “I’m supposed to get in touch with my friends and family, and you know, tell them how much I love them, and stuff.” But it’s not long before a phone call from her mother informs of bad news at home, forcing Laine into a dicey predicament involving a handgun. Newbolt’s film is beautifully shot and performed, and leaves an indelible, even haunting, impression with its almost dreamlike logic and ambiguity, particularly in the remarkable final sequence. [Watch on YouTube]. (25 minutes). Directed by Caspar Newbolt. Starring Laine Rettmer. Featuring Rebecca Street, Sean Weil, Andy Bean, George Katt and Justine Cotsonas. Original score + Sound design: MAKEUP+ VANITY SET. Production design: Philippa Culpepper. Cinematography: Shabier Kirchner. Produced by Alexandra Byer.
Check it out above.
