Salute Your Shorts 2018 - Muse
A teenaged no-hoper knows that becoming someone’s muse means becoming immortal. Like the many muses before her, she wants to live forever, perfectly preserved as she is now - but to do that she has to die first.
Interview with Writer/Director Ella Robertson
Congratulations! Why did you make your film?
Thank you so much! I made Muse as my graduation project from film school. It was a concept I had been thinking about for a while, so I thought it would be the perfect opportunity to tell Liv’s story.
Imagine I’m a member of the audience. Why should I watch this film?
Every film has a meaning and purpose. Muse was made specifically for young adults who may be experiencing a similar outlook on life as our character, Liv, who is caught in the difficult transition between childhood and adulthood. The pressures we all face at that time in our lives and the fear of change can sometimes feel too overwhelming to face. Our film should be watched because it tries to break a sort of romanticism towards pain and sadness that is often portrayed in the media. It’s made from the perspective of our young heroine, so you really get to enter the mind-set of someone who is going through those struggles and has lost hope, and hopefully those watching can relate to her and feel less isolated by these feelings.
How do personal and universal themes work in your film?
The film deals with themes such as loneliness and hopelessness that so many feel as we grow up and are forced to face the sometimes harsh realities of life. When making the film I wanted to draw on feelings I have experienced myself in younger years, when life felt quite turbulent and difficult to make sense of and I wanted to make a film that I would have liked to see when I was younger, in the hopes that someone experiencing similar feelings can watch the film and not only find a friend in Liv, but see how when we let in people who care about us, life can feel much easier to face, as we’re no longer alone.
How have the script and film evolved over the course of their development?
The film has evolved from the single quote I read five years ago – ‘fall in love with an artist and you’ll never die’. From that, I imagined reading this quote from the perspective of Liv’s character and how the quote could affect her quite literally. Then slowly, over many re-drafts of the script and the collaboration of amazing talented crew and cast members, the film started to come together, piece by piece.
What type of feedback have you received so far?
The feedback we’ve received has been really positive. We were so thrilled to find out Muse had been selected from many films to screen at Salute Your Shorts film festival and the audience seemed to really understand the film, which was something I was slightly nervous about. Due to the universal themes, many could empathise with Liv because they had experienced similar emotions at some point in their life.
Has the feedback surprised or challenged your point of view?
I was pleasantly surprised at the feedback, as I know recent shows such as ’13 Reasons Why’ have received very strong backlash in terms of what should be shown on screen when dealing with these themes, especially among parents and older generations. However, I would love for Muse to be seen by a wider audience, to spark a larger conversation about the topic, as well as how Muse itself deals with it.
What are you looking to achieve by having your film more visible on www.wearemovingstories.com?
To share Muse with a larger audience, who can hopefully relate to the story in the way we’d hoped viewers would be able to.
Who do you need to come on board (producers, sales agents, buyers, distributors, film festival directors, journalists) to amplify this film’s message?
Producers and Sales Agents. We have so many characters in our film, such as Sam and Tristan, whose story lines we would love to explore more. When the film was first envisioned, other characters in Liv’s life were involved, such as a close friend and family members. There are so many elements to our story that are yet to be explored and we would love to consider it to be a feature length and would love the opportunity to partner with production houses and sales agents to see how to build upon it.
What type of impact and/or reception would you like this film to have?
I would love for this film to have an impact on its audience and encourage them to understand why people going through similar feelings to Liv feel the way they do. For any teenagers going through it themselves, I hope the film could make them feel less alone and remind them that there is always light at the end of the tunnel, even if you can’t really see it at the moment.
What’s a key question that will help spark a debate or begin a conversation about this film?
A key question would be, should films focus on depression and suicide among teens? And do topics like these shed light on a real issue or do add to the problem, encouraging young people to take similar actions as the troubled characters they can relate to.
Would you like to add anything else?
I want to thank We Are Moving Stories again for taking the time to explore Muse a bit further and providing sharing it with your audience.
What other projects are the key creatives developing or working on now?
I am currently finishing my Master’s degree in Directing for screen at Drama Centre London. I am in the pre-production stage of my graduation film, which I am Writing and Directing. It will also be aimed at young adults and focus on strong themes with an all-female cast.
Sarah Saifi, my Producer, is currently Directing a play in Pakistan with an all-female cast and crew, which is a first for Pakistani audiences. It is being produced under the umbrella or her Production house: Drama Queen Productions.
Interview: August 2018
We Are Moving Stories embraces new voices in drama, documentary, animation, TV, web series, music video, women's films, LGBTQIA+, POC, First Nations, scifi, supernatural, horror, world cinema. If you have just made a film - we'd love to hear from you. Or if you know a filmmaker - can you recommend us? More info: Carmela
Muse
A teenaged no-hoper knows that becoming someone’s muse means becoming immortal. Like the many muses before her, she wants to live forever, perfectly preserved as she is now - but to do that she has to die first.
Length: 22 minutes, 54 seconds.
Who is being interviewed for this article? Ella Robertson, the Museof Muse.
Writer/Director: Ella Robertson
Producer: Sarah Saifi
About the writer, director and producer:
ELLA ROBERTSON is a Writer and Director based in London, currently completing her master’s degree in Directing for Screen at Drama Centre London this year, before hoping to continue to work on projects with diverse and creative female collaborators.
SARAH SAIFI is an Actor, Director and Producer. She is the Founder of Drama Queen Productions which aims to increase female involvement in the creative arts in Pakistan. She has Produced various independent films with strong female protagonists.
Key cast: Rebecca Turner as Liv, and James G Nunn as Milo.
Looking for (producers, sales agents, buyers, distributors, film festival directors, journalists):
Instagram: Ella Robertson - @ellalouise__; Sarah Saifi - @thesarahsaifi; Muse Instagram page - @muse_shortfilm
Funders: Mostly self-funded, with help from our Indiegogo crowd funding campaign.
Made in association with: Met Film School
Where can I watch it next and in the coming month? We are still waiting to hear back from various festivals we have submitted it to and we will be uploading it online once it completes its 18-month festival run.