Project
development
The Sound of Milk (prologue) is an ongoing exploration
into a speculative fictional projection of how gender will be defined
in a futuristic post-human era. The science fiction genre is a general
reference for the themes and iconography of such a speculative narrative,
however notions of the body, genetics, race and land are central to
this project – as they have been in much of my film research and
production to date.
The Sound of Milk project has been organically developed
over the past 7 years. Ideas have been sketched continually over this
time (incorporating drawn images, written scripts, recorded sounds and
filmed imagery) as part of an extended investigation into how these
ideas and materials they might be assembled. This experimental
collage/layering approach is one that Philip Brophy has developed for
many of my film, video and sound projects.
While a feature-length script has been completed for The
Sound of Milk, the audiovisual
actualisation of this DVD short funded by the AFC Strand-X is crucial
to the overall project. The feature script articulates causal, narrative
and character ideas, which in term have strengthened notions as to the
types and figures which might best service the project’s concepts.
The
Sound of Milk (prologue) tests some of these ideas in
sound and image rather than in written dramatic form alone. Technological
issues also determine this direction, as the suitability of formats
in relation to the amount of post-production requires considered attention.
This project aims to find ways of utilizing compositing and layering
in ways that references the flat planar quality of Japanese Edo prints
and contemporary manga (comics). The style being explored is more of
a flat hyper-designed look than an old world European naturalism which
tends to govern many of the more grand sci-fi spectacles. Illusion is
not the central concern of The Sound of Milk: this
is a film about ideas of how sex and gender will be in the future.
The
Sound of Milk (prologue) is a stand-alone work,
but one which also references the larger feature film project, eventually
expanding and exploring these themes in a more formally innovative narrative
structure. In the science fiction genre, particularly for long form
features, visualisation is now the norm as a development tool. An evocative
audio-visual sample is a pre-requisite of many financiers and potential
co-production partners who are interested in the genre.
Consequently, the experimental short structure of The
Sound of Milk (prologue) is based around
suggesting a sexual tonality of a series of character portraits. Each
character is set against a highly stylised landscape or background,
produced by processing footage shot predominantly in Tokyo, Hong Kong,
Bachus Marsh & Melbourne. These backgrounds’ stylisation suggests
a sci-fi setting, but more importantly take on a psychological dimension
(recalling the use of landscape in film’s like Antonioni’s
Red Desert, Tarkovsky’s Stalker and Kobayashi’s Kwaidan).
Recent films which have influenced through their suggestive approach
to portraiture in non-narrative form are Philipe Grandrieux’s
La Vie Nouvelle and Kitano Takashi’s Dolls. The project's overt
mix of sexuality and futuristic technology directly references anime
like Neon Genesis Evangelion, Ghost In The Shell and Akira.
Characters
Font – early-30s, lithe, soft, focussed. She
is a Griller, conducting border patrols along the WoSpan perimeter.
She has a distinctive Amazonian feel about her and enjoys the solitude
of her Griller patrols. Font is attracted to Ra's frailty which resonates
with Font's own inner softness. Calm, smooth, rigorous.
Ra – early 20s, slim, petite, androgynous. She
is a Mutant Skeleton, exhibiting discernible traits of femaleness. She
always seems lost, but comfortable. Ra gravitates toward Font in a relationship
which deepens and gains attraction. Tender, mysterious, innocent.
Tork – mid-40s, chubby, unkempt. He is a Chem
– a freelance chemist involved in trying to invent a synthetic
sperm. He has invented Ra as part of his hidden agenda to invade WoSpan
by himself. Anonymous, secretive, cynical.
Ro – 30s, muscular, brooding. He is a Zoner –
a type of sheriff or street cop, usually corrupt. He knows the whole
of Lock1 is corrupt and wants in on it all. Intense, volatile, unpredictable.
Shon – 30s, athletic, robust. He is a Zoner working
with Ro. With an endearing dumbness, he follows every order given him
by fellow Zoner Ro. Immature, impressionable, naive.
Boushinja – large, stocky, early 50. He is a
powerful head of one of the top Orgs in Lock1. He has funded Tork's
experiments for many years: Boushinja wants to control the Locks through
the discovery of a synthetic sperm. Theatrical, sullen, envious.
Cassandra – 50s, elegant, statuesque. She is
the Crone of WoSpan. Her strength and resilience lies in her commitment
to governing WoSpan with a compassionate firmness. Mature, eloquent,
decisive.
Kuhlshahl – 40s, large, imposing. She is an Alien
- a breed of genetic humans indigenous to the island terrain of the
Southern Hemisphere. She works closely with Cassandra and greatly respects
her - though she is dubious about Font. Pragmatic, lateral, clinical.
Skeleton – early 20s, thin, jaundiced, early
20s. Someone employed by Zoners to cross-over into the wome's world
to retrieve informatgion. Dangerous, deadly, spiteful.
