Desserts (film)
| Desserts | |
|---|---|
| Directed by | Jeff Stark |
| Written by | Jeff Stark |
| Produced by | Jill Robertson |
| Starring | Ewan McGregor |
| Cinematography | Kate Stark |
| Music by | Simon Boswell Alex Heffes Algernon Thompson |
Release date |
|
Running time | 2 minutes 35 seconds |
Desserts is a 1998 British short film directed by Jeff Stark and starring (as the only actor) Ewan McGregor.[1][2][3][4] Desserts won the Silver Bear for Best Short Film at the 1999 Berlin Film Festival.[5][6][7][8]
Cast
[edit]- Ewan McGregor as Stroller
Plot
[edit]A man (the stroller) is walking along a beach and finds a chocolate éclair, ponders over it for a bit then decides to eat it, then suddenly is yanked into the sea by a hook and line.
Production
[edit]The film has no dialogue.[9][10] "I was faxed the script - and it was just one sheet of paper, but it made me laugh so much that I just had to do it." explained Mc Gregor.[11] The film was his third short and the "black humour" and "minimal commitment" implied decided the actor.[11]
The film was produced by Jill Robertson (producer’s assistant on Trainspotting and production supervisor on A Life Less Ordinary), who approached the actor. It was filmed in a single day at Turnberry in Ayrshire on a budget of £13,975. [12]
Release
[edit]The film was released in October 1998.[12]
Reception
[edit]The short was described as "a typical “funny with a twist” short that uses one of our weak points to question how we feed ourselves as a species: greed."[13] The short was also praised for its "sense of reduction and simplicity".[14] Other commentators found it was "a cruelly funny short film"[11] and " one of those shorts that function like jokes and whose success hinges on the punchline. The sheer unexpected violence of the denouement [...] leaves the audience stunned."[12]
It received the Silver Bear for Best Short Film at the 1999 Berlin Film Festival.[15]
It was screened in various festivals, including Busan[16] and Sundance.[17]
References
[edit]- ^ Nash, Patrick (2012-01-12). Short Films: Writing the Screenplay: Writing the Screenplay. Creative Essentials. ISBN 978-1-84243-519-9.
- ^ Cineforum (in Italian). Federazione italiana cineforum. 1999.
- ^ L'alternativa VI Festival de Cinema independent de Barcelona: 19-27 novembre '99 (in Catalan). La Fábrica de Cinema Alternatiu. 1999.
- ^ Kwartalnik filmowy (in Polish). Państwowy Instytut Sztuki. 2000. p. 366.
- ^ "Film card". Torino Film Fest. Retrieved 2024-10-28.
- ^ Jacobsen, Wolfgang (2000). Fifty Years Berlinale. Nicolai. p. 150. ISBN 978-3-87584-906-6.
- ^ Cinemaya. A. Vasudev. 1999. p. 52.
- ^ Dyja, Eddie (1999-12-01). British Film Institute Film and Television Handbook 2000. Bloomsbury Academic. p. 73. ISBN 978-0-85170-764-8.
- ^ Tinnin, Drew (2023-03-31). "Celebrating Ewan McGregor's All Too Brief Horror Legacy". Dread Central. Retrieved 2024-11-19.
- ^ Cotter, Padraig (2022-08-07). "Ewan McGregor Horror Movies, Ranked". ScreenRant. Retrieved 2024-11-19.
- ^ a b c Robb, Brian J. (1999). Ewan McGregor : from junkie to Jedi. Internet Archive. London : Plexus. p. 124. ISBN 978-0-85965-276-6.
- ^ a b c Pendreigh, Brian (1999). Ewan McGregor. Internet Archive. London : Orion. pp. 236, 239. ISBN 978-0-7528-2595-3.
- ^ "Short films for foodies". Flicks.co.nz. Retrieved 2024-10-28.
- ^ Brütsch, Matthias; "The art of reduction: notes on the dramaturgy of the short fiction film" (p. 3-5)(https://www.zora.uzh.ch/id/eprint/9900/12/Bruetsch2008V.pdf (University of Zurich)
- ^ Film-Dienst (in German). Katholisches Institut für Medieninformationen, Katholische Filmkommission für Deutschland. 1999. p. 19.
- ^ "Busan International Film Festival". Busan International Film Festival. Retrieved 2024-11-19.
- ^ "The British Television Advertising Awards 1999: The Chairman’s Award - Sponsored by Channel 4/Jeff Stark". www.campaignlive.co.uk. Retrieved 2024-11-19.