[CCHU9070 - Making Movies: Creative Expression on Screen] [Semester 2, 2022-2023] [Instant Movie #2]
The Lift (2023)
3 min 50 sec | Essayistic Film, Comedy | In Cantonese with Cantonese subtitles
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Student filmmaker: YIM Ka Ho Director: YIM Ka Ho Writer: YIM Ka Ho Editor: YIM Ka Ho Cinematographer: YIM Ka Ho Sound design: YIM Ka Ho Cast: Victor WONG, Oscar YIU, Jacky WONG Narrator: YIM Ka Ho
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Synopsis: As the lift doors slowly open, a familiar face enters your sight──it is your neighbour who lives on the same floor as you. You nod your head to your acquaintance and vice versa; you make eye contact with each other; a train of thought runs in both of your mind: Should I say something? As the doors close again, there are just you and your neighbour, surrounded by an air of awkwardness. This minutes-long journey thus turns into a subtle “tug of war”──a “roleplay” stems from the tacit “elevator etiquette”...
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Artist’s statement: I always find “embarrassment” to be a particularly interesting material for comedy. What is special about “lift” and “embarrassment” is that we have an instinctive inclination to maintain social distance, but the environment of a lift simply does not allow so. “The Lift” provided me with a chance to recreate this ambivalence on screen, and to represent in a humorous way the “elevator etiquette” in Hong Kong, which perhaps most of us would find relatable.
