Read: SWATHE - A NonDē Short Film
In the future film landscape I'm dreaming of, there is full transparency. So, I'm sharing the entire process of my directorial debut, starting with the script!
I know it’s kind of silly to call a short film “NonDē”, since shorts are pretty much always nondependent. That’s because shorts are straight up just not a good investment, at least from a money-making perspective.
From an artistic, career-shaping and experience-gaining perspective, shorts couldn’t be more valuable. When you’re looking to dive into directing or even producing, shorts are an excellent place to build essential skills before taking on a feature.
I’m still calling this short NonDē though because I’m going to use this process to not only build my skills as a director, but also put into practice the principles that I’d like to see in the future of filmmaking.
In his post below…
, the gentle parent of NonDē, proposes some first principles for the movement and encourages us Filmstackers to do the same.
So, in that spirit: For me, the goals of producing and directing a short film on Substack in real-time are:
Creating out in the open to promote transparency. No more gatekeeping!
Through this transparency, what I learn during this process will become collective knowledge which can be freely used by anyone seeking to create a short
Promoting fair compensation for all artists in the film industry (no one in the future should feel forced to work for free for “exposure” or experience)
As Ted outlines: The artist and the art come first. Film is an artistic endeavour yet the artists themselves are undersold and undervalued at every turn. Enough!
Creating an on-set environment of respect and collaboration. As Ted puts it: Collaboration, not competition! Everyone is on an even playing field
Exploring ways to screen the film that centre the audience experience. How can we make cinema more immersive?
Modelling the kind of film environment I wish to create. If we’re going to reshape the film industry, we have to start living that shape!
And, as
in her Luz Films post “no more crumbs…” points out:“it’s clear to us the future of cinema is being built on filmstack with every post, every question, every new idea brought forth.”
This process will be my offering to the future of cinema.
The story of SWATHE…
I originally came up with the idea for SWATHE for the now defunct Jameson (yes, the whiskey brand) First Shot screenwriting competition back in 2017.
While it didn’t win, something about this story always had me coming back to it over the last eight years and it’s gone through many changes since.
First it was called SLEEP NOT. Then it was called SOMNIPHOBIA. For a while it was TWENTY WINKS and then it was NOD. Finally, I landed on SWATHE after I brought in the element of fabric as an insulator against grief.
Why did I choose this one to be my directorial debut of the dozens of shorts I’ve written for competitions and for fun?
Two reasons: One practical, one creative. From a purely logistical standpoint, it will be relatively easy to execute with one location, two actors and only 7 and 1/8ths pages. Having less moving parts will allow me to focus on the performances and give myself the space to learn as I’m going.
From a creative standpoint, this is the short film that speaks the most to who I am as an artist.
Now, please do me a great honour and read my script below!
Once we have that out of the way and you’re up to speed on the story, it’ll be easier to talk about the process of creating the film because it’ll allow me to get a lot more specific about budgets, materials, my plan to direct, etc.
In the next post, I’ll dive into grant-writing, talking about the $50,000 grant we successfully bagged for my previous short & OTHER CONCERNS (which I wrote and produced) and the one for SWATHE that I didn’t receive.
Now, onto the script…
Like the idea of NonDē filmmaking but don’t know where to start?…
Join the summit that
is running starting today! Ted will be speaking… More below… is getting the boots on the ground for the movement and shares more about it as it continuously evolves here on Filmstack… is king of somehow delivering harsh truths and soaring optimism about the industry simultaneously. Must read!’s three part take on what’s happening to the theatre-going experience is essential reading (here she begins with “the autopsy” but read all three). ’s post in which he breaks down popular myths about what audiences want to see and how they should no longer be accepted as fact:
Those are just a handful… dig around for yourself and you’ll find so many more artists in our industry who are yearning for a new environment in which to create!
GREAT script! Can't wait to see it realized!
I was just able to read the script pages for SWATHE, and it’s really great. Incredibly original and surprising that it features a professional cuddler (I helped out with a short doc set in this world!), and I love the idiosyncratic emotional connection between the Tracey and Violet and their “friends”. So awesome that you are walking the walk and putting this out there. It is going to be really exciting for everyone following along with you to see your words come to life!