I’ve chosen to publish Modern Prometheus on OpenFilm. Please, enjoy the film and, perhaps, when you’re done suggest it for distribution on Boxee, TiVo, HCC TV, and/or Miniweb. It’s easy, just follow those links, click the “Suggest a film” button and enter: http://www.openfilm.com/videos/modern-prometheus into the URL.
Posts tagged with writing
The Films That Inspired Modern Prometheus Part One: Frankenstein (1931)
Frankenstein (1931)
Directed by: James Whale
Written by: Garrett Fort and Francis Edward Faragoh (based on Mary Shelley’s novel)
Starring: Boris Karloff, Colin Clive, Mae Clarke, and Dwight Frye
Frankenstein was the most direct inspiration for Modern Prometheus. I got the idea for Modern Prometheus while re-watching the film in early October. I wrote the first draft of the short (about 8 pages at the time) soon after watching the movie.
Frankenstein was among my favorite movies when I was little. Probably around the time I was 10. I remember loving the movie and watching it pretty much every time they showed it on the Sci-Fi Channel. I dressed up as Frankenstein for Halloween in a smelly latex head piece with these fake neck bolts that kind of suctioned onto your neck and left little round hickeys. I painted my face green. I made the groany sounds and walked stiff. I loved Frankenstein.
Though I watched the film many times since then, I hadn’t really gotten around to seeing it in several years. So, with it being October, and me in the mood for some horror I decided to watch it again via Netflix Instant Watch. I was charmed by the movie all over again. Watching it post Film School I appreciated it for being a different sort of filmmaking than what is seen today. Less close ups, little camera movement, and everything clearly done on stages. Still a visually striking movie.
About halfway into the film the action shifts from Dr. Henry Frankenstein’s dank castle laboratory to the sort of romanticized Frankenstein estate where Henry and his fiance Elizabeth plan to wed. Henry has spent most of the film being obsessive about his work worrying his poor Elizabeth. Now, they’re together again and ready to move forward into wedded bliss. I started thinking about the effect of Henry’s obsession on Elizabeth and their relationship. Then, I started thinking about the theme of creation and how that fit with writing. The beginnings of Modern Prometheus formed in my head.
I started writing the first draft of what became Modern Prometheus while watching the end of Frankenstein. The action, focus, and length changed a lot from that first draft but the themes and inspiration remained the same.
