There Is No Such Thing as a Jellyfish
Hannah walks through the city, observing people and objects, searching for something, looking at delicious pastries. She has an appointment with a tarot reader; inside his house space unfolds like the walls of a dream, only to reveal a pair of rummaging thieves. Alone, Hannah is entering a mystery and the clues are sparse and uncertain. Stillness lies in the deep sea, where lurk those bony blind creatures, and where there is no such thing as a jellyfish.
"[the screen] is the superior way of expressing the world of dreams, emotions and instinct. The cinema seems to have been invented for the expression of the subconscious, so profoundly is it rooted in poetry." Luis Bunuel
There Is No Such Thing as a Jellyfish is a short film to be directed by Alena Lodkina and produced by Kate Laurie. Co-written with writer and director James Vaughan (You Like It I Love It [2013], Official Selection 64th Berlin International Film Festival, 35th Clermont-Ferrand International Short Film Festival), we attempted to write a film that is surreal, humorous, light and exciting, driven by a desire to express Hannah's experience of a city where dreams, associations and delicate personal interpretations get mixed with objective reality. Equally influenced by the fragmented narratives of Samuel Beckett, Clarice Lispector and Chris Kraus, and the humanism of film makers Pedro Costa, Rainer Werner Fassbinder and Luis Bunuel we have a dream of expressing something truthful about our everyday existence and how subjectively we experience it.
Some wonderful, talented and committed professionals have already come on board to make this project with us: cinematographer GIOVANNI C. LORUSSO, production designer LEAH POPPLE and editor LUCA CAPPELLI, who have just completed work on acclaimed Australian filmmakers Amiel Courtin-Wilson and Michael Cody’s latest feature, Om Tuk.
The film will be shot June 18 - 21 in Melbourne in professional tarot reader and hypnotist's apartment and under a freeway bridge down in the docks.
The budget for camera equipment, lighting, catering, production design, sound, location permits, and flights and accommodation in Melbourne for the leads, is $10,000. Alena has raised the funds independently, working double shifts in two jobs to save almost three quarters of the budget. However your support will go a long way in helping us to ensure the film is made the way it needs to be made.
We would be nothing but grateful for any contribution, small or large to bring Alena's beautiful film to life.
Much love,
Kate, Alena, James and the team
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ALENA LODKINA is a Russian-born experimental filmmaker who completed her BA at University of Technology Sydney in 2012. Her graduate film Clanky screened at the 14th Belo Horizonte Film Festival, Brazil; was part of the Art and Film Exhibition at the Palace of the Arts in Brazil screening alongside David Lynch, Peter Greeneway and Apichatpong Weersethakul; and screened at the recent film exhibition at the Erarta Contemporary Art Museum in St. Petersburg. She has directed several music videos in collaboration with Sydney based band Devotional. She has recently moved to Melbourne to work with film director Amiel Courtin-Wilson. Her work can be viewed at https://vimeo.com/user5205120
KATE LAURIE is a producer in Melbourne who over the past year has worked on numerous shorts and advertisements for clients such as Honda. In January 2013 she travelled to Cambodia with the Australian feature Om Tuk, where she took on the dual role of Casting Director and Production Coordinator. Currently, Kate is producing two short films by directors Alena Lodkina and Luca Cappelli, whilst continuing her work with Flood Projects under the mentorship of Amiel Courtin-Wilson and Michael Cody.
JAMES VAUGHAN is a Melbourne-based writer and director. In 2011 he wrote and directed an experimental theatre production, Kingies, about the downfall of an obscene king, featuring mime, live music and video-recording helmets. In 2013, his debut short, You Like It, I Love It, was selected for the 63rd Berlin International Film Festival and the 35th Clermont-Ferrand International Short Film Festival. Since the film's completion, James relocated to Melbourne to work for Flood Projects. www.jamestvaughan.com
Graphics by Alena Lodkina
A private link to watch the film upon completion.
An invitation to a private screening of the film upon completion.
A DVD of the film upon completion as well as both of the above.
All of the above + a print of the drawings displayed on this page.
All of the above + an associate producer credit in the film.