In-sight

Aim

A psychological mind-game. Where mysterious characters, hidden motives, and twisted perspectives collide into one final judgement - your own

A MESSAGE FROM THE DIRECTOR

Hello, my name is Arjun Pala. I am the director of In-sight, a short film being produced by the National Youth Film Academy. I graduated from Oxford Brookes University in 2019 and have a degree in BSc Digital Media Production (a fancy way of saying, filmmaker). In-sight will be the 4th short film that I have directed and I am excited to have the opportunity to bring you along on this journey and I can’t wait to share the film with you!

This genre-bending mind-game thriller film is a culmination of the work from a group of 18 young filmmakers and actors of different backgrounds from across the country.

Unfortunately, due to Covid19, we haven’t been able to physically meet each other to work on the film. All our meetings, like a lot of the world, have been conducted through online video conferencing. 

The work that the team have put into the project so far and how they have risen to new challenges is testament to the work ethic of the entire crew to become successful in the film industry. 

It’s not going to be an easy task, but from what I have seen so far, we all have the potential to become great. With your backing, we will have an even stronger platform to continue along the path that we have started.

And finally, thank you.

Thank you for taking the time to read this post. Thank you for visiting our crowdfunding page and thank you in advance for your support. A little bit goes a long way. The smallest donation or little acknowledgment on your social media will help a group of ambitious filmmakers get a step closer to achieving their dreams.

The National Youth Film Academy is an organisation dedicated to supporting the next generation of young filmmakers. Having never met before and coming from all over the UK, we were tasked with creating our own short film ready for a screening showcase at the Odeon cinema Greenwich in August. We will then hopefully take this on to a wider distribution platform and enter the festival circuit.

Naturally, due to the Covid-19 crisis, this has been challenging, with the need to create the film entirely over online meetings. From concept creation, through to the final script, we are proud to show that no matter what the circumstances, people from all walks of life can come together and unite over the arts.

As we have completed the first phase of our project, we now embark on the next phase, to raise money for and awareness of our film in order to make it become a reality.

So what’s our film about and why should you be interested to help?

In-sight is a female-led, contemporary psychological interpretation of the detective story, expressed through the mind-game genre.

When Sierra goes missing 6 individuals are called in for questioning. While police investigate her past, Sierra’s future lies in the suspects’ hands. As the investigation unravels we discover the true motives of each individual, glimpses of the past reveal secrets some would rather have forgotten and the ultimate question takes form…while she knew them, did they really know her?

In-sight promises to be a pulsating and tense short, full of twists and intrigue.

While having a predominantly female-led story subverting gender-stereotyped roles through the script and casting, In-sight also has a deeper message for its audience, one of equality and respect.

In-sight explores the audience's perception of people. The ending is left to the audience's own interpretation and judgment. We are asking the audience to stop and think about their preconceptions and how they might treat others.

THE TARGET

We’ve got the idea, we’ve got the passion and now we need your help. To make our film become a reality we are launching a crowdfunding page. Our target is to raise £5000. The majority of what is raised will go directly into our project, for better equipment, more detailed set design, and ensuring the safety of our cast and crew.

Creating art during the coronavirus outbreak is going to be extremely challenging. We will not compromise on our safety and we are focused on taking every necessary measure to work in as safe a filming environment as possible for everybody. However, unfortunately, this will take a chunk out of our budget. Therefore, the more you can help us, the better our film can be and the safer we can be while making it.

WHERE WILL YOUR MONEY BE GOING?

Not only will your contribution help to fund greater equipment resources and highly detailed set design, but it will assist in providing catering for our cast and crew. Most importantly, helping to provide the much-needed health and safety equipment such as disinfectant spray and handwashing stations. We know that the safety of our cast and crew comes first.

The more you can kindly donate to us the more we can invest in a wider distribution platform. From film festival submissions to advertisements for wider distribution, we have big aims for this film. With your support, we get one step closer to creating the best possible production value our film needs. Collaborating with you means you’ll become part of the team, so welcome on board!

Below you will find a production breakdown outlining all the key expenditures for the film. With your help, we can make this film become a reality.

The layering of scenes will be fundamental to the creation of suspension in the film and help create a dynamic picture on screen. The layering within the scene will develop a complexity to the relationships between the characters. This layering will shift focus between the characters establishing new lead characters, constantly shifting perspective and playing with audiences’ perception as they get an evolving focus on each character.

The characters will also be framed in a triangle. The triangle demonstrates which character holds power within the scene while also allowing the potential to foreshadow information. As our focus is drawn to specific characters or details within the scene, we are given clues as to potential information that allow us to piece together parts of the puzzle to Sierra’s disappearance and the other characters being questioned. Again, the framing of the scene is constantly enhancing the mind game element of the film, giving clues and insights through the suspenseful and tense framing.

The colour palate will be natural but gritty. The urban setting of the film will help create the tension and thrill factor of the film but ground it in a real setting. The brown and green tones in the shadows give an earthy/dirty vibe yet the beige in the skin tones show a moral ambiguity.

As such colour is incredibly important to show the morals and characteristics of our characters. The costumes are designed to reflect the characters inner feelings. Each will be different and again give clues as to behavior traits of the characters, encouraging the audience to read into every detail to figure out who knows what information, who is telling the truth and who is not what they seem.

SIERRA

Sierra’s scene 9+11 costumes have gone through the biggest transformation. Upon reading the emotional scenes for the first time, we initially had a very scruffy, plain costume planned, with Sierra’s hair and makeup being minimal. However, after looking at the scenes in more depth, and talking to Charley (who plays Sierra) we decided that Sierra would make more of an effort to go see Christian, and Kath’s remarks were because she didn’t think Sierra’s clothes were ‘fashionable’. We now have her in a green summer dress with white kitten heels and some makeup, which will contrast with Christians dressed down look. 

ROBIN

When we first started talking about Robin’s character, we had a very strong image in our mind which hasn’t changed much. Initially we had her in dungarees, with lots of homemade accessories and vintage Dr. Martens, her hair in a high pony and lots of vibrant and clashing patterns. When we started discussing other characters however, we decided that Robin would wear trousers and a t-shirt as another one of our characters would suit dungarees more. We now have her in vintage, organic trousers and a hand printed t-shirt, with homemade earrings and multiple badges pinned onto her denim jacket from causes she believes in. We like this costume development as it gives Robin a softer side and we get to see her strong personality reflected in her clothing.

LOGAN

At first glance, Logan’s costume doesn’t look like it has developed much, but initially we were going to have Logan in a leather jacket with a purple beanie hat (purple being one of his characters colours) dark denim jeans and old, worn out trainers. After chatting to Arjun, our director, and Elliot who plays Logan, we decided that a leather jacket and beanie combination would be a bit too cliche, as Logan is our mysterious character. We now have him a bit smarter, wearing suede black boots and dark denim jeans with a black denim jacket. We’ve lost the hat and added a neck chain and a ring. This will be Logan’s holding room scene look. 

We hope to work alongside charities to raise awareness of missing people cases especially amongst young people and the effect this can have on friends and family. Any support you can give in bringing our vision to life will be so appreciated. You’ll be supporting the next generation of filmmakers in the UK as well as supporting a really important charitable cause.

We are hoping to establish a partnership with charities such as 'The Missing Person Charity'. Whilst aiming to raise awareness of such important topics, we will strive to give people a deeper understanding of the impact and reasoning behind missing people cases as well as open up discussions across the community. The more we can raise above our financial goal, the more we can give back to these charities to support their work and thank them for all they do.

Our work doesn't stop there. We are teaming up with businesses to deliver our project in the most sustainable and ethical environment as possible. As one of the first of its kind, we will continue our mission to have a positive impact on the local community by reducing our carbon footprint throughout our operations.

We would love to work with you and have your backing. However, we understand the constraints throughout these challenging times and so any help, no matter how small, would be greatly appreciated.

Your support does not need to be financial, please still become part of our family and follow the journey of our film. You can help us by sharing this page with your family and friends and by following our social media channels linked below to stay updated on our progress.

We appreciate your consideration to contribute to our exciting project and can't wait to show you what we make! For more information, please contact us and we would be happy to answer any questions you may have.

Contact

Email: [email protected]

Website: www.in-sightfilm.co.uk

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Social Media

- Instagram: @in_sightfilm

- Facebook: @insightfilm.nyfa

- Twitter: @in_sightfilm

This project successfully funded on 20th July 2020