Proposal:
After watching Nausicaa, I want to try making a post-apocalyptic story with a focus on exploration of unfamiliar environments. The story I have in mind is about an extraterrestrial scholar arriving on Earth to study nature and the recently-abandoned ruins of civilization. I might represent the alien with some kind of posable figurine, or an animated character over the video footage, or I could find an actor and rotoscope them to make them look non-human.
5-Point Story Structure Idea
I’m not sure if this will make it into my video, but it could be useful to work off of.
1: Situation
An alien is exploring Earth after the human race has disappeared.
2: Desire
The alien wants to find out how humans disappeared.
3: Conflict
The alien cannot find anything that could clue them in on what happened to the humans; everything appears untouched, with no signs of a struggle. They’re also starting to get sidetracked looking at different forms of life – trees, flowers and other plants, some of which are wild, while others appear to have been cultivated.
4: Change
The alien decides that their search for humans should be put on the backburner, and helping these plants survive and flourish for later studies should be a priority instead.
5: Result
The alien sets off to tell their kindred about their discoveries, and gather a committee to help preserve the surviving life on planet Earth.
Inspiration Models
I want to try getting some good close-up scenes of nature using a macro lens (or digital settings that are similar). There’s a lot that goes on in just one patch of grass or flower cluster that’s tough to catch from a distance.
I also want to make sure all of my shots are free from human activity, since the fictional setting I have in mind is one in which humans are recently extinct. This will require careful planning, especially if I film scenes in the middle of the day.
Besides these things, I want to keep filming techniques fairly simple. I’ll have a lot of still shots to give a sense of quiet curiosity, not a whole lot of moving.
Princess Mononoke
Nausicaa
Macrophotography
Liminal/Unpopulated Spaces
(Note: the macrophotography and liminal spaces photos are all from Pexels)
Sample Video:
(Picture a little extraterrestrial critter sitting on the bench, scanning their surroundings or writing notes about the potted flowers.)
