Film written, directed and produced by Kaley Shortus
They are content with their life alone, but when their reality crosses with his, how far will they go for Pierrot?
Thus reads the description for Le Devenir de Pierrot (2022). Written and directed by University of Melbourne student Kaley Shortus, the film was pitched at the University of Melbourne Filmmakers Collaborative’s annual pitch night in March of last year, and was one of three projects selected by the club to be produced over the course of it. Having premiered at UMFC’s end of year screening in November, if you haven’t seen it yet, or even if you have, you can watch all 5 minutes now above.
Dialogue-free in one sense but full of it physically, the musical short is poetic in its imagery, sound and evocations as it shifts surreally between melancholy and uplift, capturing a feeling of wanting to be somewhere else, with someone else, and someone else oneself. Characters, along with the graffiti and tree-lined Carlton setting and camera, twirl and dance balletically around each other. While the predominantly black, white and grey presentation, crisply shot, reflects the typical iconography of the titular Pierrot, a stock pantomime and commedia dell’arte persona. At 18 seconds in, the character credited simply as Them can be seen reading a translated copy of Raymond Queneau’s 1942 novel Pierrot mon ami, aka Pierrot my friend, which seems to set off their wandering wondering. Le Devenir de Pierrot meanwhile translates roughly to ‘The Becoming of Pierrot’. Make of that what you will in light of what happens in the film. Not to mention the ‘The Lovers’ clown sweater.
In addition to Shortus, some eighteen other crew and cast members were involved in the making of the short.
Interested in filmmaking? UMFC is a University of Melbourne Student Union affiliated club and friendly film collective for student and associate members. They comprise of budding filmmakers from all experience levels and interests, including writers, directors, actors, cinematographers, production sound mixers, production designers, editors, extras- you name it, pretty much anyone interested in being on a set. Events they hold include pitch nights, workshops, trivia nights, and screenings, all throughout the year. More info on the club and how to join it can be found at its UMSU page here, and on its Facebook page here.
MELBOURNE UNIVERSITY FILM INQUIRER 