July 18th, 2007 | by Gautam |
In his own words he says pump “explores the hybridization of the bicycle and the cyclist”. Director Sinisa Kukic achieves the above mentioned statement and more in his short-film “Pump”. Shot entirely with Super 8 cameras mounted on bicycles, “Pump” is an innovative ride.
The 5-minute short-film opens with the shot of a street in San Francisco and a back-packed biker lifting his bike from the sidewalk. With this gesture, the bicycle and the cyclist become a single entity. What follows next is a wonderful journey through the streets of San Francisco as we view the imagery through some very unusual camera angles. Once again the innovation not only lies in the placement of the camera but also certain other elements, like the running undercurrent of the original music by Mandy J. Matz and the fact that the film is shot on Kodachrome 40, which provides a very slide film-like appearance.
What is seen is an impressive array of blurry buildings, pedals, feet, the radial grill of the back wheel, chain-links and faceless people being passed by. And then, we see a pair of red canvas shoes walking on a sandy beach followed by a deep blue sea painted against a silenced background score. A frothy wave splashes on the shore and once again we are back on the street. There is a kinetic energy that prevails through the entire length of the film. The editing is done with pin-point accuracy and truly delivers a fine piece of work.
Kukic provides us with a fine example of what can be done with minimal, gritty and plain honest film-making.
“Pump” is available for your viewing pleasure here.
