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★
Directed by #MartinDelCarpio
Written by #MartinDelCarpio
Starring #StuLi
I, Dreaming is a short film written and directed by Martin Del Carpio in 2018. I say it is a short ‘film’; however it is definitely more of an experimental production. The story takes place within a man’s troubling dream as he tries to make sense of where he is and what is happening. I say ‘story’, but there is not much of a story.
The whole project is very abstract, which makes sense as it is set in a dream state, and yet for something that is meant to be abstract... it was rather boring. There just wasn’t much to it. I didn’t get what was happening or the importance of what was happening and why I needed to watch it. There is a feeling that something sinister is occurring but I still don’t really know what I watched.
The soundtrack of the piece, which is not exactly music and so may be better described as a sort of soundscape, consists mostly of static and synthesizer sounds, which make the setting seem very whimsical in a disturbing way. The soundscape is very nostalgic of some general Sci-Fi themed show I probably watched when I was younger but, again, it wasn’t bad but it also wasn’t impressionable enough to impress.
The cinematography was decent, as were the special effects, although the green screen effects were rather noticeable and this was sometimes irksome. Whilst the cinematography was good, it wasn’t mind-blowing quality and it certainly wasn’t enough to make up for everything else that seemed to be lacking. In fact, my contentment with the cinematography might just be because it was the least disappointing thing about I, Dreaming.
Stu Li stars as the dreamer, and he delivers a good performance however, there wasn’t much he was able to showcase in terms of his ability as an actor simply because the plot didn’t allow for this to happen. I think there was a lot more that could have been done with this character but then again, for such a short film that is experimental in nature, character may not have been the most important thing for Martin Del Carpio’s vision as writer and director of the film.
Overall, I may be being quite harsh on my judgement but I, Dreaming just seemed like an unimpressive project that had a lot of potential regarding what it centres on. When you focus on a subject like dreaming, the possibilities are literally endless and provide so much to play with for a writer and visual director. Therefore, my high hopes and high standards were just not met. I, Dreaming is just over 6 minutes long, so check it out if you’re curious, but I wouldn’t say it’s a must see.
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