Portfolio
pre & post-production
The final script from my latest short film, ‘Crazy Ivan’, which I created following a brief of “a film involving a narration or narrator” and a maximum run time of five minutes. The narrative idea for the film is a moral lesson with the purpose of bringing awareness to the idea of unconscious bias, using the story of a naïve village delivery boy and his encounter with lonely old man to express this.
Click Read to open the script.
A small selection of storyboards, plans, and other pre-production documents that have helped me to express my ideas to achieve more thought-out final productions and more efficient shoot days – particularly when in collaboration with other crew members.
For the sound unit of my Digital Media qualification, I was given a muted clip from the children’s animated series ‘Pingu’ and was tasked with the independent planning, creation, and editing of synchronous foley sounds to match all of the action in the video clip lasting just under 3 mins. I was awarded a distinction grade for this piece of work.
Click play to watch the film.
Crazy Ivan
By
George Perkins
INTRODUCTORY NARRATION (V.O)
SAM (V.O)
I used to think I had the whole world figured out.
FADE IN:
My grandfather would always say “Sam, take people as you find them”. I thought that meant people who were nice to me were… well, nice people. To be fair, he also called me naïve. So, this is the story of how I lost my naïvety . It started on the most ordinary of days helping out with the village postie… and with an unexpected parcel, for someone called Ivan.
CUT TO:
INT. POST OFFICE. DAY
A young teenage boy, SAM, wearing post office uniform is sat listening to loud music using large headphones. He is unaware of his surroundings as he drums to the music. A stack of parcels is dropped abruptly in front of Sam by Mr. Brown, a middle aged man dressed smartly, startling Sam and causing him to take off his headphones.
SAM
Morning, Mr Brown.
MR. BROWN
Chop Chop.
(indicates to parcels)
Sam fills his postal satchel with the parcels and begins to leave – until Mr. Brown hands him one final package.
MR. BROWN
This one is for Ivan.
SAM
Who?
MR. BROWN
Oh never mind. He’s quite the local character, if you know what I mean.
SAM
Whatever
(muttered)
He shrugs and places the package in his satchel.
CUT TO:
EXT. POST OFFICE. DAY
Sam walks out from the office. He climbs onto his bike and cycles away. He can be seen cycling through the village towards cottages, his satchel slung over his shoulder.
SAM (V.O)
At this point in my life ‘The Whole World’ was, well, this village and I knew everyone in it.
Maybe this ‘local legend’ was the old man who lived way up the hill? I needed to find out more.
Luckily, I knew just the person to ask.
CUT TO:
EXT. BEN’S GARDEN. DAY
BEN, a stocky middle-aged man is stood aside an empty driveway, tending to his plants. Sam stands in the street talking to him. Ben is holding the package addressed to Ivan.
BEN
Ivan? I saw him down by the scrapyard when I sent off Polly.
SAM
Who’s Polly?
BEN
My car.
Sam nods in understanding.
BEN
He was hunched over, rummaging through the rubbish. Marge tells me he was mumbling on about a time machine. He must have found what he was looking for because next thing I know, he was gone. Just like that!
Strange fella, I’d keep my distance if I were you.
CUT TO:
EXT. VILLAGE. DAY
Sam cycles through the village as he makes his way to the
house of his next delivery.
SAM (V.O)
That was pretty weird coming from Ben. I’d never heard him say a bad word about anyone.
But things were looking up. Next was Lucy, who was kind, pretty and, ok I had a bit of a thing for.
But I was sure she’d set the record straight about this guy Ivan.
CUT TO:
EXT. LUCY’S HOUSE. DAY
Sam arrives outside a small cottage. He stands at the door of the house. It opens revealing LUCY, a young woman.
LUCY
Hi Sam. How are you doing?
SAM
Hello.
(smiling awkwardly)
Pause on Lucy’s face.
LUCY
Do you have something for me?
SAM
Oh, Yes… yeah, sorry.
(embarrased)
Sam rummages through his satchel and produces a small package addressed to Lucy. He passes it to her.
LUCY
What’s on your mind, Sam?
SAM
Do you know someone in the village called Ivan?
Lucy chuckles to herself nervously for a moment, then stops (realising Sam’s unaffected, confused expression).
LUCY
Of course, everyone knows about Crazy Ivan.
LUCY
Yeah, I saw him walking his cat by the pond, leash and everything. He was talking to the ducks. Guess that’s why people call him Crazy Ivan…
SAM
Right. Weird. Thanks Lucy. I’ll, er, keep that in mind.
CUT TO:
INT. JANE’S HOUSE. DAY
JANE, an elderly woman with grey hair sits opposite Sam in
her lounge, both of them sat on armchairs. Sam holds a
steaming mug.
JANE
I heard he was in the Russian military. Or something illegal like that. Definitely suspect. What’s your business with him anyway?
SAM
My last drop off is for him. What’d you think it could be?
JANE
Well, I don’t know. Could be anything. But make sure it doesn’t fall out of your satchel – it could be explosive!
CUT TO:
EXT. VILLAGE. DAY
Sam is leaning over his handlebars, contemplating his last delivery. He then looks down into his bag and pulls out the final package, addressed to Ivan.
SAM (V.O)
At this point, honestly, I wasn’t going to deliver my final package. But then I thought… how bad could this man really be?
SAM
Screw it.
(mutters)
Sam promptly rides off.
EXT. VILLAGE. DAY-EVENING
Sam cycles through different landscapes. Match cut between environments showing how far he is travelling. Eventually he arrives at a winding path which leads to a cottage in the woods.
EXT. IVAN’S COTTAGE. EVENING
A small cottage sits alone, surrounded by field and thick woods. Windows of the cottage are lit by warm light and smoke billows from the chimney. Sam drops his bike to the ground and walks down an overgrown path towards the cottage.
SAM (V.O)
As I approached the house at the top of the hill my brain was on fire. Be careful. Keep your distance. He’s a strange one that Crazy Ivan. Had I made the right choice coming here?
He stops just outside the door and hesitates before knocking twice.
Heavy footsteps can be heard from inside the house. Sam becomes more and more anxious as they approach. It is cold and Sam is shivering.
IVAN
Who is it?
(sternly)
The door opens. IVAN, a tall bearded old man stands in the doorway, towering over Sam.
Ivan squints his eyes, looking closer at Sam.
SAM
I’m Sam.
(hesitantly)
IVAN
I know who you are. I’ve watched you grow up from afar. What are you doing all the way out here?
Sam takes the last package out of his satchel and offers it to Ivan.
SAM
This is for you.
IVAN
Oh, I was expecting that. Thanks for dropping it off.
Sam is frozen. After a moment, Ivan begins to close the door on Sam.
SAM
My neighbour thinks its a bomb.
Ivan opens the door again, wide.
IVAN
Really? What do you think?
Ivan shakes the package.
SAM
I don’t know…
IVAN
Why don’t you come inside so we can find out. It’s freezing out here.
SAM
Wait. Are you going to kidnap me? Jane says you were an assassin, or something.
Ivan bursts into laughter. He turns and walks inside, leaving the door open.
SAM
Okay.
Sam follows Ivan into the cottage.
INT. IVAN’S COTTAGE. NIGHT
The room is warmly lit, a classic cottage interior. They walk over to a table and Ivan places the package on the table.
Ivan leaves the room, leaving Sam alone.
Ivan walks back into the room carrying a large knife in one hand.
IVAN
So what have you been told about old ‘Crazy’ Ivan? Let me guess. I’m a member of the Russian mafia, I’ve killed dozens of people, I talk to myself – am I close?
Ivan cuts down the seal of the package.
SAM
You’re building a time machine.
IVAN
Ha brilliant that’s a new one… Well, people do love to talk. Particularly when they don’t know what they’re talking about. You should take care around people who speak their opinions as facts. Some things are worth finding out for yourself, don’t you think?
A ticking noise comes from the package.
SAM
Fair enough. Though your package is..erm…ticking.
Ivan opens the package and takes out an alarm clock. Winks at Sam. Sam laughs.
EXT. IVAN’S COTTAGE. NIGHT
Closing monologue:
SAM (V.O)
So that’s when it hit me. Here was Ivan, a lonely man who just wanted his own space. Not the cold, dangerous recluse I’d been told. And that I’d totally believed.
I felt terrible. After I left, it wasn’t just Ivan I saw differently… it was everyone.
I used to trust what people said without question. Maybe that’s what my grandfather really meant. To think for myself, make up my own mind and to see people for who they really are.
Not all of the big lessons in life, it seems, are dramatic. A chance meeting with a complete stranger can quickly and unexpectedly shift how you see the world forever.
I’ll never forget that day.
And I’ll never forget Crazy Ivan.
ON-SCREEN GRAPHICS
Crazy Ivan is defined in the Urban Dictionary as:
By analogy, any quick, unexpected and radical change in direction, literally or metaphorically.
