Evaluation Question #1

ESSENCE

In what ways does your media product use, develop or challenge forms and conventions of real media products?

Before beginning the writing process of Essence, I looked into the various inspirations I had and noticed their shared theme of oppression, and what could be equated to the lower classes rising up. This includes the likes of ‘Blade Runner’ and ‘Blade Runner 2049’, ‘Nineteen-Eighty-Four’, and HBO’s ‘Westworld’. As a result of these influences, I also incorporated genre elements from them too; like with the slow-burn, and dark noir feeling of the Blade Runner films.

    In terms of genre, Essence is pretty separate from the above media as it is simply a sci-fi drama; it lacks the straight-up film noir feeling of Blade Runner, and doesn’t lean totally into the dystopian aspects of something like ‘1984’ (instead simply implying it). This is the same again with the Westworld influence - there are no western elements, nor is it very action-packed. However I have taken the bare-bones elements of what makes these properties similar and applied it to my own short film, which takes the form of Essence. It’s really in terms of aesthetic that I wear the influences for Essence on my sleeve, with the Blade Runner-esque opening text, the sometimes synth-style score, and the opening shot (and extreme close-up on a character’s face).

    From a story point of view, the inspiration would not be quite as obvious had I not make direct reference to it in my short film. This being the story of Superman. I saw the two characters’ journeys to be very similar, in that they are simply trying to find their place in a world that they don’t truly belong. As a result, I included very clear visual references and sound reference to ‘Superman: The Movie’. However where I wished to differentiate my film from Superman: The Movie was with how the character’s journey actually pans out. Where Superman obviously becomes the hero we all know, Ben #38 (my protagonist) instead is simply killed. I wished to portray a dark world in which if a clone (which is essentially a tool) ceases to function effectively, then are disposed of, as any tool would be. This is where I refer back to my former influences for Essence; the darker, more mature media that inspired me initially.