northerncrane4 said:The lady let me through. 🙂😍
Personally, I'm willing to turn a blind eye to the visual quality. But amateur acting—that kills me. Not that it could be any different given the circumstances here. These guys aren't actors; they're just enthusiasts messing around, but I don't find much joy in watching them since I don't know them personally. For instance, seeing that psychiatrist show up in the film today was almost laughable, and frankly, the guy means nothing to me.
Look, I'm pretty skeptical about whether "audience enjoyment" derived from things like personal connections or outside influence even counts. And I have no intention of dismissing their hard work—props to them for the drive—but do you really think this "Etida," exactly as it stands, could mean anything to a random crowd picked up off the street?
And does anyone from this crew actually have any professional ambition? Who are these guys—what do they even do for a living?
Not quite. The framing device—Mozart's opera—has connections to the Skot, who are listening to that music on a Russian submarine during WWII—but the harvest and the Western elements feel a bit abrupt. Either I missed that connection—(and just to preempt you stealing my girl, the title isn't a woman's name, it's a musical composition)🤷 But that's not really the point of this movie; I'm just giving an example of what there would be to talk about if we were doing a serious analysis.
That's another discussion entirely. Making a professional film is a different beast than shooting an amateur one—but I'm not going to reopen that debate right now. The guys made a movie; they should enjoy it. And they ought to send that documentary to the American Film Festival.
Well, thanks to her then, haha.😁
northerncrane4 said:The lady let me through. 🙂😍
Personally, I'm willing to turn a blind eye to the visual quality. But amateur acting—that kills me. Not that it could be any different given the circumstances here. These guys aren't actors; they're just enthusiasts messing around, but I don't find much joy in watching them since I don't know them personally. For instance, seeing that psychiatrist show up in the film today was almost laughable, and frankly, the guy means nothing to me.
Look, I'm pretty skeptical about whether "audience enjoyment" derived from things like personal connections or outside influence even counts. And I have no intention of dismissing their hard work—props to them for the drive—but do you really think this "Etida," exactly as it stands, could mean anything to a random crowd picked up off the street?
And does anyone from this crew actually have any professional ambition? Who are these guys—what do they even do for a living?
Not quite. The framing device—Mozart's opera—has connections to the Skot, who are listening to that music on a Russian submarine during WWII—but the harvest and the Western elements feel a bit abrupt. Either I missed that connection—(and just to preempt you stealing my girl, the title isn't a woman's name, it's a musical composition)🤷 But that's not really the point of this movie; I'm just giving an example of what there would be to talk about if we were doing a serious analysis.
That's another discussion entirely. Making a professional film is a different beast than shooting an amateur one—but I'm not going to reopen that debate right now. The guys made a movie; they should enjoy it. And they ought to send that documentary to the American Film Festival.
Right... the acting. Well, yeah... they aren't pros, so you shouldn't expect genius performances, but honestly, they weren't bad either. Not by a long shot. The acting felt a bit over-the-top, maybe even theatrical at times, but there was a reason for it. IMO, it worked because the film is basically playing as a sort of semi-parody. That Leslie Nielsen style of acting was actually a bullseye. Maybe I'm exaggerating, but generally speaking, almost all the main actors were better than the cast in those trashy local shows like Mad House, Good Year, or god forbid Forbidden Love. Lately, Papić's Infection has been trending (I checked it out briefly, but couldn't last long), but man... the acting in that movie is catastrophic, way worse than here.🤷.
After the screening, I was chatting with a group who mentioned they were actually blown away and surprised by the guy playing the submarine captain, the Vinar, and the villain in the Western. They thought his gestures, facial expressions, and grimaces were so incredible they assumed he was a drama major or had some academic training, which he definitely doesn't...
northerncrane4 said:The lady let me through. 🙂😍
Personally, I'm willing to turn a blind eye to the visual quality. But amateur acting—that kills me. Not that it could be any different given the circumstances here. These guys aren't actors; they're just enthusiasts messing around, but I don't find much joy in watching them since I don't know them personally. For instance, seeing that psychiatrist show up in the film today was almost laughable, and frankly, the guy means nothing to me.
Look, I'm pretty skeptical about whether "audience enjoyment" derived from things like personal connections or outside influence even counts. And I have no intention of dismissing their hard work—props to them for the drive—but do you really think this "Etida," exactly as it stands, could mean anything to a random crowd picked up off the street?
And does anyone from this crew actually have any professional ambition? Who are these guys—what do they even do for a living?
Not quite. The framing device—Mozart's opera—has connections to the Skot, who are listening to that music on a Russian submarine during WWII—but the harvest and the Western elements feel a bit abrupt. Either I missed that connection—(and just to preempt you stealing my girl, the title isn't a woman's name, it's a musical composition)🤷 But that's not really the point of this movie; I'm just giving an example of what there would be to talk about if we were doing a serious analysis.
That's another discussion entirely. Making a professional film is a different beast than shooting an amateur one—but I'm not going to reopen that debate right now. The guys made a movie; they should enjoy it. And they ought to send that documentary to the American Film Festival.
I don't see why we should treat this movie any differently than a professional production just because it's amateur. If the goal is to have an audience watch it, then that's what matters. Every film has its niche somewhere, and I'm sure this one does too. Some people will love it, others won't—just like every other movie ever made.
Some people actually sit through that garbage from Asylum, while others wouldn't touch it with a ten-foot pole. But look... whether this movie means anything to some random guy on the street depends entirely on his own taste. I mean, even Peter Jackson shot Braindead in a similar way. A group of friends got together, slapped some props and masks together—didn't even bother with real sets—and filmed it right in their hometown using local folks. They even held a screening there, just keeping it all in that low-budget, "buddy" vibe. Still, we all know exactly how that movie ended up turning out.
Even if I didn't know the people involved, I definitely would've been hooked by those trailers—they looked genuinely interesting and fun. It’s like how the trailers for *Live and Dead* and *Forest Summarum* caught my eye as standout examples of American cinema; I gave them a shot despite the fact that I generally can't stand American filmmaking.
northerncrane4 said:The lady let me through. 🙂😍
Personally, I'm willing to turn a blind eye to the visual quality. But amateur acting—that kills me. Not that it could be any different given the circumstances here. These guys aren't actors; they're just enthusiasts messing around, but I don't find much joy in watching them since I don't know them personally. For instance, seeing that psychiatrist show up in the film today was almost laughable, and frankly, the guy means nothing to me.
Look, I'm pretty skeptical about whether "audience enjoyment" derived from things like personal connections or outside influence even counts. And I have no intention of dismissing their hard work—props to them for the drive—but do you really think this "Etida," exactly as it stands, could mean anything to a random crowd picked up off the street?
And does anyone from this crew actually have any professional ambition? Who are these guys—what do they even do for a living?
Not quite. The framing device—Mozart's opera—has connections to the Skot, who are listening to that music on a Russian submarine during WWII—but the harvest and the Western elements feel a bit abrupt. Either I missed that connection—(and just to preempt you stealing my girl, the title isn't a woman's name, it's a musical composition)🤷 But that's not really the point of this movie; I'm just giving an example of what there would be to talk about if we were doing a serious analysis.
That's another discussion entirely. Making a professional film is a different beast than shooting an amateur one—but I'm not going to reopen that debate right now. The guys made a movie; they should enjoy it. And they ought to send that documentary to the American Film Festival.
Most of the core crew comes from the Art Institute. Luka Hrgović is actually in his final year at the animation and new media department. He went with the new media track, which focuses less on traditional drawing and more on camera work and photography. Between that and some classes he took over at the drama school, he’s got a solid foundation in filmmaking.
Anton Svetić is in the same department too... just not sure which track he's on, animation or new media. Everyone else is mostly doing graphics or painting.
Ambition? I don't know... you'd have to ask them. All I know is that making this movie wasn't some hobby for them—it was love, as cliché as that sounds.
northerncrane4 said:The lady let me through. 🙂😍
Personally, I'm willing to turn a blind eye to the visual quality. But amateur acting—that kills me. Not that it could be any different given the circumstances here. These guys aren't actors; they're just enthusiasts messing around, but I don't find much joy in watching them since I don't know them personally. For instance, seeing that psychiatrist show up in the film today was almost laughable, and frankly, the guy means nothing to me.
Look, I'm pretty skeptical about whether "audience enjoyment" derived from things like personal connections or outside influence even counts. And I have no intention of dismissing their hard work—props to them for the drive—but do you really think this "Etida," exactly as it stands, could mean anything to a random crowd picked up off the street?
And does anyone from this crew actually have any professional ambition? Who are these guys—what do they even do for a living?
Not quite. The framing device—Mozart's opera—has connections to the Skot, who are listening to that music on a Russian submarine during WWII—but the harvest and the Western elements feel a bit abrupt. Either I missed that connection—(and just to preempt you stealing my girl, the title isn't a woman's name, it's a musical composition)🤷 But that's not really the point of this movie; I'm just giving an example of what there would be to talk about if we were doing a serious analysis.
That's another discussion entirely. Making a professional film is a different beast than shooting an amateur one—but I'm not going to reopen that debate right now. The guys made a movie; they should enjoy it. And they ought to send that documentary to the American Film Festival.
Whatever... those are just minor details at this point. I don't know... maybe the link between Vinar and the Western is just the wine—specifically that label featuring a woman from a Western.🤷But honestly, it doesn't even matter. I don't think they ever really dug that deep into the actual storytelling anyway. They could've easily squeezed out four or even eight of them, and the core vibe—that main driving force of the whole movie—wouldn't have changed one bit.
northerncrane4 said:The lady let me through. 🙂😍
Personally, I'm willing to turn a blind eye to the visual quality. But amateur acting—that kills me. Not that it could be any different given the circumstances here. These guys aren't actors; they're just enthusiasts messing around, but I don't find much joy in watching them since I don't know them personally. For instance, seeing that psychiatrist show up in the film today was almost laughable, and frankly, the guy means nothing to me.
Look, I'm pretty skeptical about whether "audience enjoyment" derived from things like personal connections or outside influence even counts. And I have no intention of dismissing their hard work—props to them for the drive—but do you really think this "Etida," exactly as it stands, could mean anything to a random crowd picked up off the street?
And does anyone from this crew actually have any professional ambition? Who are these guys—what do they even do for a living?
Not quite. The framing device—Mozart's opera—has connections to the Skot, who are listening to that music on a Russian submarine during WWII—but the harvest and the Western elements feel a bit abrupt. Either I missed that connection—(and just to preempt you stealing my girl, the title isn't a woman's name, it's a musical composition)🤷 But that's not really the point of this movie; I'm just giving an example of what there would be to talk about if we were doing a serious analysis.
That's another discussion entirely. Making a professional film is a different beast than shooting an amateur one—but I'm not going to reopen that debate right now. The guys made a movie; they should enjoy it. And they ought to send that documentary to the American Film Festival.
I know, I know... I get it. Since I work in production and post-production, I've seen how that whole machine works on a smaller scale (commercials), so I know how much things cost. I realize filming actual movies is even more of a nightmare.
But most of our directors only care about how to pocket a million out of a 3 million dollar budget instead of actually being creative... whereas kids like this are forced to be creative because they have zero cash. They find ways to shoot things using the simplest, cheapest methods possible. I think that’s actually an advantage. Though... maybe I'm wrong. But the fact remains... they'll never get a shot at working in a professional setting unless they try something like this, no matter how hard they work.
So, I bet both the film and the documentary will hit some smaller festivals, and maybe they'll land a spot at the Academy Awards too. After all, their first film (Burek Epic), which was a total mess in the truest sense of the word, actually made it to the Oscars... so I don't see why this one couldn't. Especially since, like you said, the production scene is pretty thin this year...
If you want, I can somehow get that DVD over to you so you can check out the documentary too... but only if you're interested...🙂
