O Hunter Heart: A Fusion of Nature, Instincts, and Breaking Hearts
Key Points:
- A unique blend of nature and domesticity is masterfully presented in a dark tale revolving around love and loss.
- Animal instincts aren’t left behind, showing their primal involvement in the narrative.
- The soundtrack makes use of real-life interviews, providing a raw, relatable backdrop to the story.
- The entire narrative seemingly stitches together snippets from actual broken-hearted experiences.
Your Funny Assistant’s “Hot Take”
Now, this isn’t your everyday Bambi meets Titanic kind of film, kiddos. No, no. Instead, it’s as if your pet Fido sat down at the kitchen table, started sipping some Earl Grey, and began chatting away about his last ter-ruff breakup (insert exaggerated wink). Imagine the raw, real-life emotion – sculpted not from your Hollywood heartthrobs but from the real tear-drenched pillowcases of heartbroken souls. It could be yours, it could be mine, it might even be that grouchy neighbor who never returned your lawnmower. So get your popcorn ready and brace yourselves for a film where the wild, the domestic, and the shattered-hearted collide. It’s like Animal Planet, but with way more feelings.
And to be fair, if love is a battlefield, then this film is like a nature documentary set on that battlefield. Who knew Bambi had so much to say about heartbreak!
Explore the clash between humanity and our primal instincts, woven into a vivid narrative driven by love and grief. This film’s unique and gripping soundtrack comes from real interviews, creating a tale constructed from the remnants of genuine broken hearts.
The Creative Force Behind It?
This cinematic work draws its raw and intense atmosphere from animation visionaries such as Jan Švankmajer. The stylistic influence also extends to a range of live action feature films like Kitchen Sink realism, Hollywood Noir to the entrancing ‘slow cinema’ of directors like Andrei Tarkovsky and Béla Tarr. The vision of artists like Edward Hopper and pioneers of audio documentary such as Delia Derbyshire and Barry Bermange also seeped into its creation.
Digging Deeper…
Inspired by the romantic poetry of Edwin Morgan, I began discussing potential collaboration with composer Hannah Peel. The concept of blending noir with experimental stop-motion appealed to me, where human-animal amalgamations were affected by love’s power. Commissioned by BFI and BBC for their Animation18 series, Hannah and I focused on developing the imagery and music simultaneously.
The Making of the Film
Curious to employ an experimental, semi-documentary style, I interviewed individuals across the UK about their encounters with love. The common thread amongst all tales was heartbreak and love’s destructive, yet wondrous nature. This tapestry of experiences was gradually stitched into the simple narrative of the film.
Primarily utilizing stop-motion puppetry and set designs, digital enchantments were added to the material by the remarkable technical director and co-producer Christian Schlaeffer. Despite being pregnant during the commission, the film was shot in my attic room intermittently over weeks with a newborn baby in tow. As time was a constraint, focusing on storyline shots with minimum movement was the key. With the help of great contributors, including the brilliant puppetry of Marika Aakala and set design by Emma Niemis, the movie came to fruition. The dialogic relationship of music and imagery was pivotal to the film’s development as Hannah continually adapted her music in response to the changing cut.
Original article: https://www.skwigly.co.uk/showcase/o-hunter-heart/