NEIL SMITH
Catharsis
Catharsis is the story of a freedom fighter captured and tortured by Cylons during the occupation of New Caprica. Neil Smith, who produced, directed, and wrote the script for Catharsis, came up with the concept while brainstorming with friends. “[W]e asked ourselves ‘what are things we really liked about [Battlestar Galactica] and why…and what are some things that interest us, but haven’t been seen yet.’” Smith and his friends settled upon a concept that would fit in with the Battlestar Galactica series theme in general, and that would have the feel of a Resistance “webisode.” According to Smith, he had a rough draft in about a day and a final script a few days thereafter.
For the uninitiated, Resistance is a short film series made by Battlestar Galactica producers for streaming on the Internet as web-based episodic installments of the televised series.
Smith, who works in video production, also enlisted the help of friends to produce his gritty tale. “We all talked about the different roles to play, both in front of and behind the camera, and all the specific things that needed to be done.” With Line Producer Susan Johnson, Smith managed to scout locations, storyboard the script, construct a set, acquire props and costumes, audition and screen test actors, rehearse, and shoot and edit Catharsis in less than two months.
To pull Catharsis together in such a short period of time, Smith utilized some powerful film making tools. He shot Catharsis with a Sony Z1U camera with a Red Rock Micro 35mm lens adapter and Nikon lenses. “The footage we got looks absolutely fantastic!” For storyboarding, he used Apple’s Pages software. “ I read online that they had a storyboarding template…The set up was fairly straightforward; and soon, I had a fully formatted script in storyboard form. Plus, I was able to put in images from the [Battlestar Galactica] video clips that I planned to include.”
Smith used Final Cut Pro and After Effects for editing the two major effects shots in Catharsis. “One was removing and relocating an actor’s arm in a shot, and the other was a digital set extension.” “Most of the other post [production] work was with building up the audio track and color correction.” He added, “I’ve put a bit of film grain on everything to give it that nice gritty look – plus that standard issue [Battlestar Galactica] blue tint…and subtle camera shake.”
To get his film onto the Net, Smith used Discreet Cleaner software. With it, he was able to compress his 680MB film into 32MB. “The only noticeable difference in the image was that it was slightly higher in overall contrast.”
With 10 or so years in film production, it is no surprise that the most challenging aspect of production was casting the film. “I guess I didn’t realize how hard this casting decision would be,” Smith said. “It actually kinda sucks. But I know a lot rides on the acting and so [I tried] to be objective and not let my feelings for my friends get in the way….”
Smith resides in Cincinnati Ohio with his wife Laura and daughter Mari. He specializes in motion graphics. He has just completed the 48 Hour Film Project with Bill Poff, Catharsis’ Director of Photography.
To view Catharsis, click here: Catharsis.