“TIDE” Press Kit

 

Released March 30, 2008  -  10 Minute Narrative Short

 

 

Fact Sheet

 

 

Title:                           Tide

Release Date:              March 30, 2008

Tagline:                       “What is, we can not be certain; what will be, we can never know.”

Rating:                         NR

 

 

Format:                       Super 35mm

Runtime:                     10:14

Picture:                        Color

Aspect Ratio:              2.35:1

Sound:                         Stereo

Language:                    English

 

 

Writer:                         Shane Rocheleau

Producers:                   Bryant Dameron, Jacob Dodd, Shane Rocheleau

Excutive Producer:      Jacob Dodd

Director:                      Shane Rocheleau

Editor:                         Bryant Dameron

 

Cast:                            Ken Abrams

                                    Maddie Gunter

                                   

 

 

Production Company:

                                    White Stone Productions (http://tide.projectoctober.com)

                                    Project October (http://www.projectoctober.com)

                                    Spoos Pictures (http://www.spoospictures.com)

Country of Producion:

                                    USA

Budget:                        $25,000 (US)

 

Official Site:                http://tide.projectoctober.com

 

Contact:                      boat@projectoctober.com

                                   

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The Filmmaker’s Approach

 

We knew from the outset of this project that we wanted the film to be a very visual experience.  That made choosing to shoot on Super 35mm, and using the Kodak Vision II stock a really easy choice for  capturing as much detail as possible.  While story-boarding we often discussed perspective.  Visually we tried to be aware of not forcing any shots and just letting the film have its own existence.  The result of that idea was placing the camera in natural viewpoints on the island.  The viewpoint of birds, sand crabs and fish were the main inspiration.

 

In terms of narrative we wanted that to exist independently in the same way as our shots.  Some of the ideas behind the story were attention to process, frustration and failures of communication.  The long opening scene of HAL on the beach is all about process as we watch his daily routine over a period of perhaps hours or even weeks.  Rather than using a filmmaking device like parallel editing to connect the chracters it is the process, or rather the unintended product, that connects the film and drives the narrative to a resolution.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Synopsis:

 

Hal is an everyman, alone on a beach, drifting from routine to aimlessness and back. His task is plain: decorate the slow, expansive time stretched endlessly before him. Anna, too, is alone, a carefree child tied - like all of us - to the peculiar and apathetic alchemy of the universe.

 

 

 

 

 

Reviews for "TIDE":

 

"A beautiful, compelling film"

 

- David D. Williams (Director of "Thirteen" and "Lillian," Sundance winner)

 

 

 

 

 

"TIDE again proves that 35mm photography in high contrast and difficult location situations is still the only way to capture world class cinematic images...images here wash over you with both beauty and a dread that walks hand in hand in both nature and cinema.  Well worth a look."

 

- Rob Tregenza (Director of "Inside/Out" and "Talking to Strangers," Cannes Participant)

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Production Notes

 

 

 

 

 

The Planning:

The planning for Tide began with the location.  Producer, Bryant Dameron explained an island that he lived near as a child to Shane Rochelau and Jacob Dodd.  The island in White Stone, Virgnia, refered to locally as “The Ceders,”  is in fact not really an island at all.  It is connected to  the mainland by a large marsh.  In post-production the opening shot of the film had CG work to make the island into a real classical film type island.

 

Getting the Shots:

There were many challenges in making "Tide." Aerial shots, under-water shots and floating camera shots were some of the special circumstances that we had to plan for in pre-production. We built our own floating high-hat to be able to get shots from the perspective of a wave. We considered building our own underwater housing, but instead ended up renting a hydroflex. The aerial shots we created by simply shooting out of the window of an small single engine airplane to simulate the viewpoint of a bird. We wanted all of the shots to be from a "natural" viewpoint, so we were constantly doing things like digging holes in the sand to get the camera lens down to ground level.

 

The Actors:

There was no casting for Tide.  Ken Abrams is a friend, and former Boy Scout leader of Producer  Bryant Dameron.  Ken had a lot of outdoor knowledge from his experiences in the army and scouting.  In addition when he was younger Ken homesteaded in Yellow Stone National Park for serveral months before the Park Rangers discovered his prescense and forced him to leave the park.  Also he knew how to carve and even made all the prop boats for the film.  All those experiences allowed Ken to truly become HAL when the cameras were rolling.

 

Maddie Gunter is another nonprofessional actor, althougth she did play a drowning child in play for the school where her mother teaches.  Unlike in Tide,  the water in the play was only confetti.  Producer, Shane Rocheleau reccomended Maddie for the role, and she was chosen as soon as Bryant Dameron and Jacob Dodd heard her sing the opening lines of the film.

 

About the Filmmakers

 

 

	Shane Rocheleau   Writer/Director/Producer   Shane Rocheleau was born in Falmouth, Massachusetts in 1977. He currently resides in De Pere, Wisconsin. He received his B.A. (1999) in Psychology and English from St. Michael's College in Colchester, Vermont, a Post-Baccalaureate Certificate (2005) in Fine Arts from Maryland Institute College of Art in Baltimore, Maryland, and his M.F.A. (2007) in Photography and Film from Virginia Commonwealth University (V.C.U.). Presently, he serves as a Professor of Art at St. Norberts College.
	Jacob Dodd   Excutive Producer/Camera Operator   Jacob A. Dodd is originally from Kittanning, Pennsylvania. He graduated cum laude from Ithaca College earning a B.F.A. in Film, Photography, and Visual Arts and a minor in Art History. Dodd received his M.F.A. in Photography and Film from Virginia Commonwealth University in Richmond, Virginia. Dodd's work has been recognized by the Athens International Film + Video Festival, the Rosebud Film & Video Festival, the James River Film Festival, and the DC Independent Film Festival. Dodd works fulltime at Virginia Commonwealth University as an Assistant Professor and Department Coordinator of Technology.
	Bryant Dameron   DP/Editor/Producer   Bryant Dameron was born in White Stone, Virginia in 1983.  He has exhibited work internationally and across the USA in film festivals, gallery exhibtions, and television.  Recent exhibitions include Videoholica 08 in Bulgaria, and 809 International New Image Art Festival in China. He graduated Virginia Tech in 2005 with a degree in Mass Media Communications, and in 2007 received a MFA degree from Virginia Commonwealth University. He currently lives and works in Richmond Virginia.