DVC23 - The Coffee Thief - Derwin Dalida

[Derwin Dalida]

Thank you Andrew, very happy that you enjoyed it :)

[Tim Lewis]

I showed this to my fifteen year old son. He was very engaged in watching it all the way through. That's an achievement right there.

As Burgess and Stubbs walk off in the last shot, just before the titles, I heard my son say "Burgess" completely unprompted. Maybe it runs in the family?

[Derwin Dalida]

Hahaha that's awesome Tim! You made my day :)

[Adam Snow]

Originally Posted by Derwin Dalida

Thanks Adam, exactly what we where thinking! In a 3 minute short, it's tough to make something elaborate and heavy, so we went the exact opposite route :)

Ultimately, most everything can be boiled down to something simple. Yes, you could make something more elaborate... you can always make something more elaborate. And a lot of times when you try to cram in so much substance into a small space makes it so everything becomes more muddled and you leave your audience with an odd taste in their mouth. By keeping it simple you were able to expand on something simple rather than simplifying something complex. This left your audience knowing what they had tasted by the end of your piece. Yes, we can always improve things and try to brew something better -- no matter how awesome a piece you made you'd be able to say that -- but you made something smooth that was both fun an engaging.
...I carried that coffee metaphor a bit too much, lol.

[Andres Mata]

It's a funny film, and I find the acting really excellent in the mood of the film. Great lighting in some scenes, and camera angles too. Great job!

[Derwin Dalida]

Adam - What you said is definitely what I try to do: a simple story with complicated emotions. It's so much easier to muck up a complicated story line. Why do I always want a cup of coffee after reading this thread? :p

Andres - I'm glad you enjoyed it! Big ups to my actors (my best friends, haha). Thanks for the lighting comment, for someone like you who has a great eye for cinematography, that is a major compliment :)

[Adam Snow]

Originally Posted by Derwin Dalida

Why do I always want a cup of coffee after reading this thread? :p

Some very subtle subliminal messaging. ;-)

[Andrew Bove]

"Burgess."

[Randy Smith]

Very entertaining!

[Derwin Dalida]

Adam - Don Draper would be proud ;)

Andrew - "Sgt. Det. Nick Burgess, Jr.!!!"

Randy - Thank you! I live to entertain :)

[Toni Dolce]

Hi Derwin!

Stubbs was perfectly cast! I love the tone, the B&W, the feel of the movie. It is definitely a different type of movie compared to all of the other entries!

My only flinch moment was seeing Burgess wear flipflops. With the costuming such a throwback with the hats and suit jackets, my suspension of disbelief was thrown.

Great job!

[Derwin Dalida]

I'm really glad you like it Toni, thank you!

The flip flop shot seems to be hit or miss in terms of the comedy. We were actually thinking about him changing to dress shoes for the shot, but it made us laugh so much we just kept it :)

[Lorinda Norton]

Derwin, you really had me going until the scene with the goofballs emptying the cupboard. I loved the thoughts of Burgess and laughed out loud at "brain tumors." :)

I went back and forth between admiring the tone, camera angles, dialog and acting, to feeling like the gags and expressions were a bit forced. By the end, though, I realized that a dream would be over-the-top silly. If Stubbs could be barefoot in his first scene it only follows the weirdness of dreams that Burgess would be in a suit and flip flops.

Thanks for the fun and interesting entry! Hope to see you back for more.

[Derwin Dalida]

Thanks Lorinda, very happy you enjoyed it! Had a great time doing this, and hope to do more DV Challenges in the future :)

[Derwin Dalida]

The Coffee Thief (Colorized Version) - YouTube

For those interested, a trippy "colorized" version of the film that Ted Turner would be proud of. Thanks guys :)