The Short Films of David Lynch
The Short Films of David Lynch (2002) is a DVD collection of the early student and commissioned film work of American filmmaker David Lynch. As such, the collection does not include Lynch's later short works, which are listed in the filmography.
The films are listed in chronological order, with brief descriptions of each film. The DVD contains introductions by Lynch to each film, which can be viewed individually or in sequence to each other.
Six Figures Getting Sick (Six Times)
Six Men Getting Sick (Six Times) (1966). Originally untitled, "Six Men Getting Sick" is a one-minute color animated film that consists of six loops shown on a sculptured screen of three human-shaped figures (based on casts of Lynch's own head as done by Jack Fisk) that intentionally distorted the film.[1] Lynch's animation depicted six people getting sick: their stomachs grew and their heads would catch fire.
Lynch made this film during his second year at the
The Alphabet
The Alphabet (1968) was made for the Pennsylvania Academy of Fine Arts, and combines animation and live action and goes for four minutes.[2] It has a simple narrative structure relating a symbolically rendered expression of a fear of learning.[1]
The idea for The Alphabet came from Lynch's wife, Peggy Lentz, a painter whose niece, according to Lynch in Chris Rodley's Lynch on Lynch book, "was having a bad dream one night and was saying the alphabet in her sleep in a tormented way. So that's sort of what started The Alphabet going." Based on the merits of this short film, Lynch was awarded an American Film Institute production.
In 2023, MovieWeb ranked The Alphabet as the 9th creepiest short horror film of all time, writing that the film captures "Lynch's unique talent for crafting an atmosphere of absolute dread".[3]
The Grandmother
The Grandmother (1970, 33 minutes). After the success of The Alphabet, one of Lynch's friends, Bushnell Keeler, recommended that he check out the American Film Institute.[1] Keeler's brother-in-law had been involved in setting up the AFI. Lynch submitted The Alphabet, and wrote a script for a short film entitled The Grandmother. He sent the script and a print of The Alphabet to the AFI in Washington. Lynch got a call from George Stevens Jr. and Tony Vellani at the AFI, who wanted to know if Lynch could make The Grandmother for $5,000 (it eventually cost $7,200).
The short film combines live action and animation. The story revolves around a boy who grows a grandmother to escape neglect and abuse from his parents. It is mostly silent with only occasional vocal outbursts of gibberish and soundtrack cues used to convey story.
The music in the film was provided by a local group known as Tractor, and marked the first time Lynch would work with Alan Splet, who was recommended to the filmmaker by the soundman of The Alphabet. Initially, Lynch and Splet intended to use a collection of sound effects records for the film, but after going through them all they found that none of them were useful. So, Lynch and Splet took sixty-three days to make and record their own sound effects.
After finishing The Grandmother, Lynch took the film to be shown at the AFI in
The Amputee
The Amputee (1974) was made for the
The Cowboy and the Frenchman
The Cowboy and the Frenchman (1988, 26 minutes) is slapstick, made for French television as part of the series The French as Seen by... by French magazine Figaro.[5] It stars Harry Dean Stanton, Frederic Golchan and Jack Nance.
Premonitions Following an Evil Deed
Lumière: Premonitions Following an Evil Deed (1996, 52 seconds) was originally included as a segment in the 1995 film
References
- ^ a b c d Lynch and Rodley 2005
- ^ Svehla, Gary J. (1996). Guilty Pleasures of the Horror Film. Midnight Marquee & BearManor Media.
- ^ "10 Creepiest Short Horror Films of All Time". 17 October 2023.
- ^ ISBN 978-1-83871-520-5.
- ISBN 978-0-8108-6371-2.
Bibliography
- Lynch, David and Rodley, Chris (2005). Lynch on Lynch (revised ed.). New York: Faber and Faber. ISBN 978-0-571-22018-2.)
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