Florida Film Festival 2019 – Clean Slate
A peaceful sky is under threat from new arrivals who will stop at nothing and want everything. When all seems lost, a band of survivors changes the rules and attempts a daring escape. Are they willing to do what is necessary to win their freedom?
Interview with Writer/Director/Producer/Editor/Animator David Opdyke
Congratulations! Why did you make your film?
I wanted to combine my love of Terry Gilliam’s cut-paper animations and Looney Tunes soundtracks into a sharp but comical look at American nostalgia and our unwillingness to deal with global warming.
Imagine I’m a member of the audience. Why should I watch this film?
It’s an animation that starts as a nostalgic nod to Terry Gilliam and a postcard-perfect American landscape, but quickly turns dramatic, then impossible, then absurd, then comical. And throw in a bit of ecological catastrophe-farce. All in just over 3 minutes.
How do personal and universal themes work in your film?
I have recently decided to channel my work to a more activist purpose. Climate change and the fact that most of us don’t believe it’s a problem are now my primary themes. As a visual artist, I’ve always used humor and obsessive attention to detail in order to capture interest and convey ideas without berating the audience.
How have the script and film evolved over the course of their development?
As a digital not-quite-narrative animation, it evolved intuitively. The setting is a vintage postcard, and each “scene” ends by transforming the picture plane shown in that postcard, which then suggested something else that should happen. This could have gone on forever, but I have a point to make with this film. So when the visual drama, absurdity, humor, and pacing were all in alignment with the message, I knew the film was finished.
What are you looking to achieve by having your film more visible on www.wearemovingstories.com?
As a brand-new filmmaker, I am happy to have any exposure I can get. But We Are Moving Stories definitely seems like the best kind of exposure for me, since my film has an environmentally activist angle.
Who do you need to come on board (producers, sales agents, buyers, distributors, film festival directors, journalists) to amplify this film’s message?
Anybody and everybody. I’m new to the film world, and this is a solo venture so far.
What type of impact and/or reception would you like this film to have?
I would like for it to be seen in places where the reality of global warming is an open question. Maybe this film will cause people to think more seriously about what we are doing to the environment.
What’s a key question that will help spark a debate or begin a conversation about this film?
What is the utility of activist/political art and film? Should it aspire to actual 'utility' -- usefulness, effectiveness in changing minds, as an inspiration for policy changes? Or should those of us who care about policy just stop wasting time making stuff and run for office or otherwise do something "real"?
What other projects are the key creatives developing or working on now?
I’m planning an extensive series of similar short animations, each tailored to a particular place and evoking the dangers confronting that place as the climate inexorably shifts. A nostalgic tour of the 50 states, perhaps, conducted as an ecological comedy-horror show.
Interview: April 2019
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
Clean Slate
A peaceful sky is under threat from new arrivals who will stop at nothing and want everything. When all seems lost, a band of survivors changes the rules and attempts a daring escape. Are they willing to do what is necessary to win their freedom?
Director: David Opdyke
Producer: David Opdyke
Writer: David Opdyke
About the writer, director and producer:
DAVID OPDYKE is a visual artist in New York City. He started making animations in 2016, inspired in part by Terry Gilliam’s work on Monty Python’s Flying Circus, and by the classical music sound effects in the Road Runner cartoons.
Looking for: journalists, film festival directors
Instagram: @david.opdyke
Website: www.davidopdyke.com