May 28th, 2010
Girlworld Trailer
I just read an interview with the Documentary Doctor, Fernanda Rossi about trailers and it made me feel really good about ours. The Girlworld trailer as it is now is 10 minutes of Shanta, our oldest (and I would say, most intense) subject.
In these 10 minutes we see her walking home from school, doing her homework, doing laundry and being pushed out of line while getting water, because of her “Untouchable” caste status. We get a big dose of how frustrating it is to live in a small space while trying to get ahead in school. There is also a hint at the enormous tension she has with her sister in law.
It ends with Shanta looking into the camera, and her voice over saying, “I am…hoping to become somebody.”
Chills. It gets me every time. I wonder if it does others. (And every time I ask myself: Do I get chills because I know her and know how true this is for her? Are conveying this meaning–and the chills–to other viewers?)
Something important to think about. This is the reason we believe we need an editing consultant—someone who wasn’t in the room with us filming, who can say, ‘that might have been a big moment in Nepal, but it doesn’t translate in your footage’.
Not that we want to hear that. Unless it’s true. Then it is Super valuable.
But all in all, we think the trailer works. It sets up the problem, introduces a main character and shows off our filmmaking style.
The thing is, this wasn’t always the trailer. I made a 3 minute trailer that I love. I actually think this gets folks* more excited about film, so I am not going to shelve it. What do you think?
*{by “folks” I mean regular people, civilians, as opposed to people who live and breathe documentaries, like funders and other documentarians}
Here’s the 3-minute version. What do you think?
