DVC23 - The Coffee Thief - Derwin Dalida

[Derwin Dalida]

The Coffee Thief on Vimeo

The Coffee Thief - YouTube

[Marc Burleigh]

Hey hey, so the caffeine fiend is the first one up.

OK, my two spoons of sugar (and a dose of brandy) on your entry:

First up, well done on looking for the humour in the theme. Humour still seems to be what plays the most in shorts, and you had a couple of good jokers to put in front of the camera. I also appreciated the half-film noir, half-grainy film look, which lends itself to "mystery". To start with that look, and a hefty lead, well, could someone be a fan of "A Touch of Evil"?

Anyway, the guy who played Stubbs, Pat, had a nice touch in front of the camera; good delivery and hitting the right notes. The actor who did Detective B, Dick, was somewhat more expansive in his take, reaching for the humour rather than letting it come from the character.... He did have a bitching earring though, and his flip-flop braking moment was nice.

Storywise, well, 'investigating' a cup of coffee seemed a little thinner than the style deserved. You had a look you were going for, a decent voice-over, and a couple of actors up for anything. Just my personal taste of course (honed from many years of watching Bogie and French versions of noir), but I would have liked a bigger subject, even a ridiculous one. Because the coffee joke seemed to play out by the time Det. B. said he planned to get to the bottom of the cup. And for Stubbs to say it was all a dream just seemed a too-easy out. Borrowing more of the tropes, even turning them on their head, could have given more meat to the viewing pleasure. (As an aside, but still in the fun film noir vein, have a look at this one: The Bloody Olive | Short of the Week).

But anyway, I found it a nice, stylish piece, from a genre that I love. So well done!

[Chris Barcellos]

I thought this film was fun. I enjoyed the humor, and the subject was also fun. I also enjoyed the noir technique employed.

Many a time, I have wondered who took my coffee like this character.

[Derwin Dalida]

Marc - I haven't seen Touch of Evil yet haha, but definitely plan on it. I've seen Casablanca and The Maltese Falcon, and I love those films :) The mundaneness of the stolen coffee is a play on the heaviness of most noir films where the subject is about murder, extortion, etc. Thanks for the feedback, glad you enjoyed it!

Chris - Thanks! All this coffee talk makes me want to get some :)

[Henry Williams]

I loved the exaggerated intensity of the opening. Jumping in on such an odd CU without introducing the characters, or letting us get our bearings, really bought me into the action straight away. It was enhanced by your lead's facial expressions during the V.O. Great fun, a little reminiscent of Kevin Smith's Silent Bob. It had me in stitches. I thought both actors did very well with their respective parts.

Did you achieve that look in camera at all or was it done entirely in post? Either way it worked, and the titles fitted the rest of the piece very well. I also loved the oblique camera angles and thought the tight edit was really fun and enhanced the mood (like at 1.42 when the car stops abruptly).

Worth saying that the audio sounded nice throughout too, which is no mean feat.

Henry

[Derwin Dalida]

Henry - We shot 16mm Black and White, of course ;) JK, It was shot all on a hacked GH2 (exposed normally, no tricks), added RGrain to the top layer, added the black and white plugin, and adjusted exposure and density in Colorista. Many thanks for the comments, you're too kind :)

[Sean Clancy]

I really liked this Derwin. The actors really carry the playful tone of the piece and you've done a great job on aping that familiar noirish aesthetic.

[Derwin Dalida]

Thank you Sean, much appreciated! It was joy to make it :)

[Adam Snow]

Great work Derwin! Your film set a really nice tone and mood right off the bat and took us on a fun ride.

Although after a second viewing I understand where Marc is going with the desire for a fuller story to develop past the coffee I think that the simplicity underscores the theme well. Mystery doesn't have to be some giant, elaborate thing. It can be found everywhere - even around the smallest of things. You were able to take the simplicity of missing coffee and turn it into a question that the audience wants to be answered.

[Derwin Dalida]

Thanks Adam, exactly what we where thinking! In a 3 minute short, it's tough to make something elaborate and heavy, so we went the exact opposite route :)

[Tim Lewis]

I loved it.

The only thing I wanted was "Burgess" quietly as the credits faded. Too cliched perhaps?

[Derwin Dalida]

Tim, that would have been perfect, I'm a little sad I didn't come up with that, haha! Glad you enjoyed it, thank you :)

[Tim Lewis]

You can always add it in for the cinema release or the director's cut DVD!

[Derwin Dalida]

You'll be the first to get a copy, Tim :)

[Andrew Bove]

These guys are too funny. The acting performances were amazing!
Both of them perfectly cast, great facial expressions, great deliveries.
Nice black and white treatment, cool lighting, great job!