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The Gap
Short Film written
& directed by Davi Snively
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| That's me in
the distance, center of photo, back to you. The cameraman is laughing because
I'm supposed to be rollerblading ... well. I, as Mom, am coming home with
the evening groceries. I travel by rollerblades because in this futuristic
short by Davi Snively, Mom is a grunge rollerblader who has simply aged
with time. Davi proposes the future of typical Generation X'er. |
Fortunately for my ego, the crew
only laughed at my skating skills behind my back. |
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Bringing home the bag of air for dinner.
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In this future,
I feed my teenage children heated bags of nutritious air and other assorted
natural "foods." The film was shot in one apartment and the quiet
street, above, in what I call the Potrero Flats - around 15th and Arkansas
Streets. Of course, when we wanted to shoot the rollerblading scene, traffic
never stopped, one lone car at a time. This film is supposed to be set in
a typical post-apocolyptic, deserted city. It took most of the afternoon
to shoot a few minutes of footage uninterrupted by passing cars. I might
also add, never having been on rollerblades before this shoot, it took some
doing to get me to look like an old pro. Davi gave me the rollerblades,
but not the pads, so I was a bit apprehensive and I'm afraid it showed. |
| Here
are Mom's two children. And isn't it always the case that the children rebel
against whatever their parents represent. In this case, Generation X. My
generation destroyed the planet with our lazy, greedy, conspicuous consumption.
Mom's children, like most in this future world, have been recruited into
a rigorously stoic religious order that believes in sacrifice. These children
are so committed to their asceticism, they not only shave their heads monk
fashion and wear drab robes, but they amputate their own limbs as acts of
devotion. Kids will be kids. |
This next generation has no sense of humor. |
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Of course, Mom
is upset, but she tries to be cheerful through it all. Times are tough,
food is scarce, her son cut off his arm and both kids are always complaining
about her attitude. Still, she is capable of a few fancy moves in the livingroom
on her rollerblades. It's really for the best that it takes so little to
keep her going. Did I say it was a real pleasure working with Davi Snively?
Shortly after this shoot, she moved to Seattle and is teaching film in some
university up there. Wish she'd come back and make more films. They're smart,
witty, efficient, and she's a really snappy dresser. |
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Now, all I have left of
the experience are a copy
of the film on tape, these photographs and the rollerblades, which I contemplate
(right). Immediately after the shoot, I put them back in their box and
stored them in my locker at home.
If anybody needs
a pair of men's size 8 roller blades, e-mail me.
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