Pond - Mesh Flinders' independent short film

[Nora Volkova]

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Cl03MT0uM3I


Before we got to know Bree, Mesh introduced us to Ana, another quirky loner girl out to solve a problem. "Pond" is Mesh Flinders' atmospheric, independent short film created before the Telegraph Avenue team coalesced.

Many thanks to all members of Team Pond who assisted, and special thanks of course to you, Mesh!

-- Nora

[gogo]

This short film demonstrates such depth of character, subtlety and attention to language in a solid, sophisticated plot. I really enjoyed viewing this. Thanks for posting this, Noa. It is neat to see this character who M.F. stated was living in his head. The underlying theme of questioning where one belongs and the conflict between isolation (whether it be self-imposed or "inflicted" by others) and solitude as self-acceptance (whether it be loneliness or meditative) is not lost on me (i.e. a lonely girl finds herself in helping someone else find his place). Engaging.

[Way2Curious]

Was this short film ever on IFC or Sundance (the tv channels)? It seems so familiar.......

[Nora Volkova]

I don't believe it has been on either channel yet, but Mesh probably ought to weigh in definitively. It certainly ought to go there; it deserves to be seen as widely as possible. Tonight I'm working on submitting to a few other sites in the hopes of having it several places for the holiday crowd, but I wanted to go ahead and get the YouTube edition up and running.

Gogo, that tension is exactly what struck me when I first saw a smaller clip of this a few weeks ago. Being an introspective soul myself, I adore anything that celebrates that introspection and reveals that quiet sorts have treasures to offer inside -- even if they've forgotten that about themselves. It's an understanding which everyone needs to be reminded of periodically. There aren't many treatments or writers who explore this as beautifully as Mesh has done here.

[Ennovi]

I liked it. The ending is very good. Great job Miles!

[curiousGeorge]

Wonderfully done and a tribute to what can be done with the short form. Simply Outstanding.

Bravo Mesh!

[Way2Curious]

I don't believe it has been on either channel yet, but Mesh probably ought to weigh in definitively. It certainly ought to go there; it deserves to be seen as widely as possible. Tonight I'm working on submitting to a few other sites in the hopes of having it several places for the holiday crowd, but I wanted to go ahead and get the YouTube edition up and running.

Gogo, that tension is exactly what struck me when I first saw a smaller clip of this a few weeks ago. Being an introspective soul myself, I adore anything that celebrates that introspection and reveals that quiet sorts have treasures to offer inside -- even if they've forgotten that about themselves. It's an understanding which everyone needs to be reminded of periodically. There aren't many treatments or writers who explore this as beautifully as Mesh has done here.

I agree, it does deserve be seen as widely as possible. It's very interesting and the entire thing is very beautifully done.

I'm not sure why it strikes me as familiar...Does anyone know if the actress in it has been in any other indie films?

[milowent]

I'm not sure why it strikes me as familiar...Does anyone know if the actress in it has been in any other indie films?

not according to imdb: http://www.imdb.com/name/nm2277184/

though she is different in some ways, the ana character immediately struck me as alternate reality version of bree.

.. or if you really want to stretch it, you could argue that ana is related to cassie and pond is frank .... which makes the ending really freaky.

[meso293]

Personally I think this film glorifies smokin. I wouldn\'t want my thirteen year old to see a young beautiful girl smokin.

\"But he still clung to the sin to which Jeroboam, son of Nebat, had lured Israel; this he did not give up.\" 2 Kings 3:3

[gogo]

Yeah, this project is smokin'...

Nora- the relationship between these two very different characters (child/adult; female/male; present/past) reveal so much about the human condition and how these "opposing" factors can be transcended by the concerns of finding oneself and the necessity of belonging (especially for the introspective soul), and most especially how these connections/relationships can lend needed solace in a world that, at times, can seem so confusing, unfair and contradictory.

Out of curiosity, Nora, how did you come across this?

Kudos to Mesh. Thanks for getting this award-winning short film made. It was refreshing to watch.

Thanks to Nora, again, for posting this.

Thanks to curiousGeorge to alerting me of Nora's post

(Oh what the heck, I want to thank everyone! Thanks, Mom and Dad! Thanks, Coach! Thanks to God, the academy and all the little people for their support...We did it, baby...yeah, yeah...I know, I'm odd...)

[Nora Volkova]

Yeah, this project is smokin'...

Nora- the relationship between these two very different characters (child/adult; female/male; present/past) reveal so much about the human condition and how these "opposing" factors can be transcended by the concerns of finding oneself and the necessity of belonging (especially for the introspective soul), and most especially how these connections/relationships can lend needed solace in a world that, at times, can seem so confusing, unfair and contradictory.

Out of curiosity, Nora, how did you come across this?

Kudos to Mesh. Thanks for getting this award-winning short film made. It was refreshing to watch.

Thanks to Nora, again, for posting this.

Thanks to curiousGeorge to alerting me of Nora's post

(Oh what the heck, I want to thank everyone! Thanks, Mom and Dad! Thanks, Coach! Thanks to God, the academy and all the little people for their support...We did it, baby...yeah, yeah...I know, I'm odd...)

Oh, I have my wily ways, lol. I originally found out about this just from googling the tar out of Mesh (did it tickle?) and exploring IMDb back when we first became aware of him in September. Immediately I sent out some feelers to a couple of acquaintances I made from a friend who went to film school a few years ago, and they managed somehow to find me some images and a tiny clip. I decided not to even ask where they got them!

Then recently I was fortunate enough to stumble across and get to know some wonderful people who knew the movie even more intimately, and they inspired me to want to share it. It is a short that seems to compel that response.

It does leave me wondering -- since Mesh wrote *and* directed this, is there even more of him in Ana than there is in Bree?

[gogo]

...It does leave me wondering -- since Mesh wrote *and* directed this, is there even more of him in Ana than there is in Bree?

Good question, Nora. Perhaps Mesh would be willing to extract some more Ana and inject it into Bree (since she's used to getting injections, anyway).

I find it interesting that Bree seems to be a character of collaboration. I wonder how the writers reconcile their own visions, perspectives and ideas into one character/plot without feeling like they are losing any of the investment in and committment to their crafts or original intentions.

I view collaboration in writing to be a difficult process, but one that can have amazing results with the right partners. The risks and willingness a collaborator must take/make in including or deleting ideas must be a trying process and seems to involve must trust and faith in partners. Musicians seem to do it all the time (and some writers, of course). However, I view writing as a singular pursuit. You know, meshing out (no pun intended) ideas in one's head, considering language, laboring over revision, even the self-consciousness of wondering if the product is clear enough or “good enough” for the reader/viewer. I am certainly interested in knowing more about the writers' process of collaborating. I would like to see what this collaboration looks like as it happens --you know, one of those-fly-on-the-wall perspectives.

(I did not miss the irony of using a cliche in a comment about the work of writers.)