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Read MoreAn ex-bounty hunter makes breakfast with his young daughter, who becomes increasingly curious about his past profession.
Interview with Writer/Director/Producer/Editor, Animator Shirley Zhou
Congratulations! Why did you make your film?
I made this film as my thesis project to complete my MFA animation degree at the University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA). I really wanted to try my hand at world-building, and creating a complete story in short form that also had the potential to be part of a longer story if I chose to expand on it.
Imagine I’m a member of the audience. Why should I watch this film?
Narratively, the film is fairly easy to watch and digest, but it gives you some food for thought as you process the storyline. It's the kind of story that gives you answers while simultaneously creating more questions, and implores you as the viewer to imagine what the story of these characters looks like outside of the six minutes you see on screen.
From a technical point of view, this is a hand-drawn frame-by-frame animated film done almost entirely by one person. Projects like this don't really exist in the commercial film industry for many technical reasons. But they're really special, because everything you see on screen - from every word a character says to every line on a character and background - is the vision of one person. It's a very personal look into the mind and hand of a creator.
Bounty
How do personal and universal themes work in your film?
At the heart of the film is an exploration of family and morality. It's hard for me to expand on the central themes without ruining the narrative for those who haven't seen the short yet, but ultimately it touches on some topics I have always strongly believed in.
How have the script and film evolved over the course of their development?
The first draft of this story featured 4 characters. I ended up cutting out one the characters entirely because he was becoming more of a plot device and distracting from the main relationship in this film, which was the father and daughter. Getting rid of him really helped focus the story back to the most important things in the film, and keep it concise and succinct.
It went through eight drafts of writing and re-writing, and there ended up being some minor shots that were cut from production in order to finish this film on time. In the moment you feel very terrible about cutting things. It always feels like all of it is essential to the story. But when you let it go and the movie gets finished you realize it was always better without them.
Bounty
What type of feedback have you received so far?
Bounty has gotten pretty good feedback so far. I've been fortunate to be able to screen amongst very kind peers and audiences. I know the real test will be when I eventually release it online though, as people feel freer to be critical about a film in a Youtube comment section than personally to my face haha. Regardless of whether the feedback is good or bad, it's still always exciting to see people engage with your work.
Has the feedback surprised or challenged your point of view?
It's definitely surprised me because when you work on a singular project for so long you can't help but wonder to yourself "Is this even any good? I'm not sure anymore." I was rejected from many film festivals in the past (even very small ones), and struggling to get my first gig out of college. Getting accepted into the Austin Film Festival was an incredibly validating experience, and gave me some confidence that maybe I'm not crazy for trying to pursue a career in this field.
Bounty
What are you looking to achieve by having your film more visible on www.wearemovingstories.com?
I'd love for the visibility on Bounty through WeAreMovingStories to support success on the rest of its festival journey, and eventual online release. The more eyes and ears that know of the project the better, as it's my last short film (for now), but I'm far from done with these characters and this world.
Who do you need to come on board (producers, sales agents, buyers, distributors, film festival directors, journalists) to amplify this film’s message?
I'd loved to have more film festival directors and journalists come on board to get this project as visible as possible. Ultimately in the future, I'd love to adapt Bounty into a larger format (series, comic, video game, etc.) so anyone that could help me bring that vision to life is someone I'd love to be in contact with as well.
Behind the scenes of Bounty - Bounty was drawn frame-by-frame in TV Paint 11
What type of impact and/or reception would you like this film to have?
I hope the film does well and piques curiosity in viewers on what happens next. Having an audience and demand for a successor project is always great motivation to get it off the ground.
What’s a key question that will help spark a debate or begin a conversation about this film?
What makes a character the "good" guy or "bad" guy?
How do you know which one you are?
What other projects are the key creatives developing or working on now?
As creator and director, I'm currently working full-time as a motion graphic artist and designer, and freelancing as a storyboard/video artist on various projects. I'm also in the development of a pitch bible for Bounty - The Series.
Sound designer Crystal Chan is currently working as a social science research professional at Stanford University's Virtual Human Interaction Lab.
Bounty poster
Interview: November 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
Bounty
An ex-bounty hunter makes breakfast with his young daughter, who becomes increasingly curious about his past profession.
Length: 6:47
Director: Shirley Zhou
Producer: Shirley Zhou
Writer: Shirley Zhou
About the writer, director and producer:
SHIRLEY ZHOU is a Chinese American animator/filmmaker from Los Angeles, CA. She attended film school as an undergrad at UCLA and continued on to complete UCLA's MFA animation program.
Key cast: Jack Murphy (Joseph Tómas), Lileina Joy (Evie Tómas)
Looking for: journalists, film festival directors, producers
Facebook: Bounty
Twitter: @surelyzhou
Instagram: @surelyzhou
Hashtags used: #Bounty #Bountyanimation #Bountyfilm #Bounty2019
Website: www.zhoushirley.com/films
Other: IMDb
Funders: Matt Groening Animation Fellowship
Where can I watch it next and in the coming month? Bounty is currently waiting to hear back from festivals in 2020. All new festival announcements and upcoming screenings are shared on the facebook page.
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