2BR02B: To Be or Naught to Be

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2BR02B: To Be or Naught to Be
2BR02B To Be or Naught To Be poster.jpg
Theatrical release poster
Directed byMarco Checa Garcia
Screenplay byDerek Ryan
Based on 2 B R 0 2 B
by Kurt Vonnegut
Produced by
  • Artin John
  • Derek Ryan
CinematographyChristopher Banting
Edited by
Music byLeon Coward
Release date
Running time
18 minutes
Countries
  • Canada
  • Australia
  • United Kingdom
  • Mexico
  • Netherlands
LanguageEnglish

2BR02B: To Be or Naught to Be is a 2016 Canadian short science fiction film directed by Marco Checa Garcia and based on the 1962 short story "2 B R 0 2 B" by Kurt Vonnegut. The film was an international collaboration over nearly three years, with additional crew in Sydney, London, Mexico, and the Netherlands. [1] The film features a cameo voice role by veteran actor and The X-Files star William B. Davis. The film's sound was designed by BAFTA-winner Martin Cantwell. [2] [3]

Contents

Premise

In 2204, the Earth has become a dystopian wasteland. To maintain strict population levels, no newborn is permitted to live unless another person's life is traded in, and a receipt issued. Edward K. Wehling, Jr. sits in Chicago's Lying-In Hospital waiting for the birth of his triplets, but he has no receipts to collect them.

Cast

Production

An IndieGoGo crowdfunding campaign was announced in a press release on 20 November 2013. [4] Shortly after, it was announced that actor Paul Giamatti was attached to the project as the character Dr. Hitz. [5] Actor Mackenzie Gray took the role of Dr. Hitz after Giamatti left due to scheduling conflicts. [6]

The film's visual design was prepared by artists working from Vancouver, Sydney, and the Netherlands. [7] Filming took place over three days at the Waterfall Building in Canada. [7] Visual effects were mostly done by Facet School of VFX, Mexico. [6] The film was edited in Vancouver, but its picture lock was undone and post-production was moved to Sydney for editing, additional visual effects and music. [7] Sound designer Martin Cantwell joined the project, working from London. [6]

Music

The film's soundtrack makes extensive use of Schubert's Ave Maria in a version recorded especially for the film by Australian soprano and conductor Dr. Imogen Coward. [2]

Release

The film premiered at the Sci-Fi-London festival on 29 April 2016, [8] and later in Los Angeles at the Oscar-qualifying HollyShorts Film Festival. [9] Shortly after, the film was selected for the Oscar-qualifying LA Shorts Fest. [10]

Reception

2BR02B: To Be or Naught to Be received positive reviews from critics, festival organizers and festival audiences. Daniel Abella, director of the New York Science Fiction Festival, called it one of the six must-see films of the festival [11] and Outer Place critic Chris Mahon described it as "well-executed and beautifully shot." [12] WILDsound Fest's official full-length review of the film by Kierston Drier described it as "one of those rare gems of short cinema that will set your philosophical mind in motion... There is a level of polish and richness that any lover of science fiction and literature will appreciate and admire." [13] Screenwriter and Motherboard contributor Michael L. Piel praised how the adaptation "unfolds like a finely-tuned play, revealing world and character details at a steady, controlled pace." [14] John Vaughan, director of The Golden Blasters (The National Irish Science Fiction Film Festival) described the film as "An unconventional short film... it captures the sense of unease that would come if you glimpsed this particular future." [15] Dumbbells & Dragons critic Rachel Bohlen rated the film as her third favourite from the HollyShorts Film Festival (Los Angeles), describing the film as a "terrifying view of our future" and that the adaptation "adheres almost completely to the short story, and I must warn you – there's no happy ending here. It's bleak but thought-provoking." [16] Lund International Film Festival's Jimmy Seiersen described the film as "suspenseful and thoughtful." [17]

Both the film's art direction and soundtrack have also received critical praise. CEO of WILDsound Fest, Matthew Toffolo and the festival's audience praised Leon Coward's interpretation of The Happy Garden of Life mural into a complex, story-rich work of art, concluding that "from a cinematic point of view... they did nail it." [18] In an essay/interview published in The Schubertian (Journal of the Schubert Institute UK), Anna Black described the soundtrack's use of Schubert's Ave Maria as "a lasting and haunting shred of beauty and humanity in a future where it has otherwise been abandoned." [2]

Festival selections, awards, and nominations

YearFestivalCityNominationResult
2016 Sci-Fi-London (International Festival of Science Fiction and Fantastic Film) London, UK
2016 HollyShorts Film Festival Los Angeles, California USA
2016 LA Shorts Fest (Los Angeles International Short Film Festival) Los Angeles, California USA
2016 Miami Short Film Festival Miami, Florida USABest FilmNominated
2016Best Short FestSan Diego, California USABest FilmNominated
2016Sydney Indie Film FestivalSydney, AustraliaBest Sci-Fi ShortWon
Best Short Screenplay (Derek Ryan)Nominated
2016KaPow Intergalactic Film FestivalCorona, California USABest Sci-Fi ShortWon
2016Indie Fest USA InternationalGarden Grove, California USA
2016Silicon Valley International Film FestivalCalifornia USA
2016 The Golden Blasters Science Fiction Short Film Awards (The National Irish Science Fiction Film Festival) Dublin, IrelandBest FilmNominated
2016YES! Let's Make a Movie Film FestivalMontreal, Canada
2016The Montreal International Wreath Awards Film FestivalMontreal, CanadaBest PictureNominated
Best Director (Marco Checa Garcia)Nominated
Best Actor (Tyler Johnston)Won
2016Fantastic Planet (Horror, Sci-Fi & Fantasy Film Festival)Sydney, AustraliaBest FilmNominated
2017New York Science Fiction Film FestivalNew York USA
2017Vancouver Short Film FestivalVancouver, Canada
2017WILDsound FestToronto, CanadaBest FilmWon
2017 Boston Science Fiction Film Festival Boston, Massachusetts USA
2017The Philip K. Dick Film FestivalNew York USA
2017 Lund International Fantastic Film Festival Lund, Sweden
2017 Signes de Nuit Lisbon, Portugal
2017Eerie Horror Film FestivalPennsylvania USA
2017 Buffalo Dreams Film Festival Buffalo USA
2017 Utopiales Nantes, France
2017 VonnegutFest Indianapolis USA
2017Canada Shorts Film FestivalCanadaBest PictureNominated
2017Bucharest ShortCut CinefestBucharest, Romania
2018Miami International Sci-Fi Film FestivalMiami, Florida USA
2018Dam Short Film FestivalBoulder City, Nevada USA
2018Love Your Shorts Film FestivalSanford, Florida USA
2018Top ShortsOnline Film Festival (February), Los Angeles, California USABest Sci-FiWon
Best Director (Marco Checa Garcia)Won
Best Actor (Tyler Johnston)Won
2018Festigious International Film FestivalOnline Film Festival (February), Los Angeles, California USABest PictureWon
Best Sci-FiWon
Best Actor (Mackenzie Gray)Won
2018The Monthly Film FestivalOnline Film Festival (February)Cinematographer of the Month (Chris Banting)Nominated
2018Los Angeles Film AwardsLos Angeles, California USABest Sci-FiWon

The film screened at VonnegutFest in November 2017 at the Kurt Vonnegut Museum and Library, Indianapolis. [19]

The film screened, accompanied by a talk "Vonnegut's 2BR02B on screen: the art and music of the 2016 adaptation (dir. Marco Checa Garcia)", at the joint NZMS (New Zealand Musicological Society) & MSA (Musicological Society of Australia) conference in Auckland, December 2017. [20]

References

  1. ↑ "International recognition for young film-makers". The Weekly Times. Sydney, Australia. 17 August 2016. p. 10. Retrieved 6 October 2016.
  2. 1 2 3 Black, Anna (2016). ""...for a father hear a child!" Schubert's Ave Maria and the film 2BR02B". The Schubertian. July (91). The Schubert Institute (UK): 16–19.
  3. ↑ "British Academy Film Awards, 2007 Sound winners" . Retrieved 6 October 2016.
  4. ↑ John, Artin (20 November 2013). "Derek Ryan - Kurt Vonnegut's 2BR02B". EIN Presswire. Retrieved 24 October 2016.
  5. ↑ Ryan, Derek (22 November 2013). "Adapting a Literary Piece". Eat Sleep Write. Retrieved 24 October 2016.
  6. 1 2 3 Masson, Sophie (19 October 2016). "2BR02B: the journey of a dystopian film–an interview with Leon Coward". Feathers of the Firebird (Interview).
  7. 1 2 3 Coward, Leon; John, Artin (19 October 2016). Meet the Filmmakers! (Speech). Sydney Indie Film Festival. Darlinghurst, Sydney, Australia.
  8. ↑ "Sci-Fi London film festival 2016 programme". 12 April 2016. Retrieved 2 May 2016.
  9. ↑ Curchod, James (13 August 2016). "HollyShorts Film Festival 2016 Film Guide" . Retrieved 6 October 2016.
  10. ↑ "88th Academy Awards Short Films Qualifying Festival List" (PDF). Retrieved 6 October 2016.
  11. ↑ Kis, Eva (13 January 2017). "6 films you must see at NYC's first-ever Science Fiction Film Festival". Metro. Retrieved 17 January 2017.
  12. ↑ Mahon, Chris (23 January 2017). "The Five Best Films From the New York Sci-Fi Film Festival". Outer Places. Retrieved 28 January 2017.
  13. ↑ Drier, Kierston (6 February 2017). "Film Review: 2BR02B: TO BE OR NAUGHT TO BE (2017)l". Metro. Retrieved 14 February 2017.
  14. ↑ Piel, Michael (28 January 2017). "The First NY Sci-Fi Film Festival Was No Match For Reality". Motherboard. Retrieved 16 November 2017.
  15. ↑ Vaughan, John (5 October 2016). "2BR02B: To Be or Naught To Be". The Golden Blasters (The National Irish Science Fiction Film Festival). Retrieved 22 October 2016.
  16. ↑ Bohlen, Rachel (22 August 2016). "Best of the HollyShorts Film Festival". Dumbbells & Dragons. Retrieved 22 October 2016.
  17. ↑ Seiersen, Jimmy. "SCI-FI: 2BR02B: To Be or Naught To Be". Lund International Fantastic Film Festival. Archived from the original on 25 October 2017. Retrieved 5 February 2018.
  18. ↑ 2BRØ2B: TO BE OR NAUGHT TO BE - Audience Feedback from the Fan Fiction January 2017 Festival. Toronto, Canada: WILDsound FEEDBACK Film Festival. 1 February 2017. Retrieved 14 February 2017.
  19. ↑ "Sneak Peek at our Four Vonnegut Films for VonnegutFest!". Kurt Vonnegut Museum and Library. 12 October 2017. Archived from the original on 22 October 2017. Retrieved 22 October 2017.
  20. ↑ "NZMS & MSA Joint Conference "Performing History" Programme" (PDF). Musicological Society of Australia. Retrieved 16 November 2017.
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