This weekend I was on set for my next short film: The Triptych Heart.  That title will most likely change.  But I'm calling it that for the moment and it's a reflection on the unconventional narrative structure of the film.  It's a very simple story told in three sequential parts, but the footage is framed against three photographs also in three phases.  In part 3 something happens to affect and change parts 1 & 2. 

This film has already been through so many transformations.  I'm experiementing and at the same time, telling a very personal story.  I often write or film to work through a personal issue and this short is no exception.  I had originally wanted to do a take on the Snow Maiden, but we never got snow.  Then I wanted to incorporate a cinemagraph into the story, but have taken the idea one step further.  All while illustrating a tale of regaining my voice.  And my heart.  Which I had lost for a couple of years.  But what has snapped me back is being able to go out with my camera and experiement.  I discovered the "miniature" feature on my camera a few days before filming and it turned out to be perfect for the story and the way (visually) in which I'd like to tell it.

What is the crux of my narrative structure in this film are the visuals.  I'm marrying film and photograph.  The photograph will say one thing, while the film will say another.  It's an experiement of something I'd like to take with me into a feature I'm developing called "TITANIA" - you can see the Prequel on my Film Annex page.  I can't say that our feelings and thoughts and notions of our hearts can ever be boxed into a linear narrative structure - maybe if you left something out.  But I work through these things, try this or that, sometimes it works, sometimes it fails, but in the end I've often given myself the gift of a lesson by telling myself the tale that was inside me.

See frame grab from The Triptych Heart here

:)  Lisa