A Look into Short Films

In week three of this course, we were introduced to a new type of film, following the viewing of old movies like "The Cabinet of Dr. Caligari" from 1920, and watched a short film. This documentary was simply called "Snowy" and showed the unfortunate life of a turtle named Snowy who lived as a family pet for over 10 years at the time this documentary was filmed.  

Snowy spent almost all of his life locked away in a small fish tank, banished to the basement window, and was typically visited only once a day, by his caretaker Larry. The directors Alex Wolf Lewis and Kaitlyn Schwalje saw how Snowy was living and felt a need to help improve his situation, helping Snowy go from surviving every day to truly living. Throughout the telling of Snowy's story, the directors used certain shots and angles to create an unignorable contrast of Snowy's tiny window in the basement to the thanksgiving feast with the family all together. Creating this shot of viewing both situations through the windows, occurring simultaneously, paints a picture of what Larry and is family value and how Snowy doesn't even make the list. 

In the redemption arc of the documentary, Larry is provided correct care information from a turtle specialist who is able to intervene and correct the unintentional wrong doings of Larry, in terms of taking care of Snowy. We are shown the redemption of Larry, atonning for his mistakes and providing the propper environment and care for Snowy especially showing him what it is like outside. Seeing Snowy outside, there is a visible shift in the turtle's attitude as well as a shift the shots and music that the directors chose to use. They used those specific frames and songs to show Snowy overcome his continuous fight to survive, and finally began living. 


You can go here to see the website for Snowy the Film.

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