It’s Not So Easy — PROOF OF CONCEPT
By William J. Hammon, ActuallyPaid.com
Strap on your meta shoes for Proof of Concept, a new short that recently screened at the Tribeca Film Festival (one of the stated goals within the film itself). This six-minute breakdown of the actual process of making an independent film is funny, heartfelt, and surprisingly informative, challenging the almost fantasy ideal of what it really takes for a new, artistic voice to announce themselves on the world stage.
Written and directed by Max Cohn and Ellie Sachs, the film features Sachs as a version of herself named Chloe Cohen, who wants to make a short as a literal proof of concept in order to get funding for a feature. However, in order to do that, she needs a loan of $10,000 from her uncles, Eddie (Will Janowitz) and Robert (veteran character actor Richard Kind). The entire story is about Ellie, through Chloe, explaining exactly what goes into making even the tiniest of short films, how there will basically be no return on the investment, and how the whole process is not just to show what she can do, but to prove to herself that her ambitions have value.
The meta jokes are through the roof here, and very cleverly presented. She mentions the need to hire one well-known actor to help sell the project, hence Kind’s presence. The trio sit in a cafe, where Chloe would like to shoot a scene, and she notes all the permits and insurance she has to get in order to pull it off, as well as replacing all the customers with extras, gesturing to them so that we all know that these are in fact background performers. There’s discussion of just how competitive it can be to get your work even shown at a prestigious festival like Sundance or Tribeca, much less win an award, knowing that while we’re watching it, Cohn and Sachs have at least accomplished that small percentage goal. And of course, on a sad but comedic moment, the whole thing ends with a poignant note on how anything can be negotiated and agreed upon so long as someone gets shortchanged.
It’s telling that anyone reading this has spent more time taking it in than the actual film’s runtime, but that’s sort of the point. We all have these preconceived notions of the likes of Kevin Smith or Quentin Tarantino busting their humps to make their passion projects and launch themselves into artistic superstardom as filmmakers. But for the vast majority, it’s a profession, one that requires funding to pull off even the smallest of endeavors. It’s never as simple as that romantic idea of just picking up a camera and telling your story to the world, and it’s well worth your time to see what it really takes, and to spend even longer contemplating just how committed someone is to even attempt it.
Originally published at https://behindtherabbitproductions.wordpress.com on June 20, 2023.
