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Big Mouth Billy Bass

Boisterous, cruel, and legendary fisherman Bill Anderson embarks on a path of madness and vengeance to reclaim his long-standing record from a small child.

  • Julian Figueroa
    Director
    Slug Girl, Roaming Hungry
  • Julian Figueroa
    Writer
  • Maddie Kasper
    Producer
  • Max Clough
    Key Cast
  • Rosi Hunter
    Key Cast
  • Charles Pickering
    Key Cast
  • Jackson Runkle
    Cinematographer
  • Project Type:
    Experimental, Short, Student
  • Genres:
    Comedy, Horror, Thriller
  • Runtime:
    8 minutes 15 seconds
  • Completion Date:
    April 8, 2016
  • Production Budget:
    3,000 USD
  • Country of Origin:
    Canada
  • Country of Filming:
    Canada
  • Language:
    English
  • Shooting Format:
    Digital - BlackMagic Pocket
  • Aspect Ratio:
    2.35:1
  • Film Color:
    Color
  • First-time Filmmaker:
    No
  • Student Project:
    Yes
  • University of British Columbia Summer Film Festival
    Vancouver
    Canada
    July 15, 2016
    Audience Choice
  • POV 26 Film Festival
    Vancouver
    Canada
  • Fanboy Film Festival

    August 1, 2016
    Top 20 Shorts Worldwide
Director Biography - Julian Figueroa

Julian Figueroa is a graduating student from UBC's Bachelor of Fine Arts Film Production Faculty. Growing up in Sechelt, BC, his love for filmmaking began when he was 14 and his main influences are Terry Gilliam, Stanley Kubrick, and Edgar Wright. Julian has a deeply rooted passion and expertise in film editing and visual effects - currently working as a post-production supervisor/lead editor at Vancouver-based ad agency Red+Ripley.

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Director Statement

Filmed on the beautiful Sunshine Coast in British Columbia, Canada, Big Mouth Billy Bass (BMBB) is primarily inspired by a deep appreciation for visual storytelling - from the silent masterpieces of Buster Keaton and Charlie Chaplin, to the surreal and visually striking works of Terry Gilliam and Edgar Wright.

**SPOILERS BELOW**

The theme of the film grew out of the initial concept, which at first was just about an old fisherman who gets hooked and dragged into the ocean. As I researched more about fishing, I thought it would be interesting to create a world in which the fish had a stake as characters in the film and I ultimately linked their poor treatment/abuse as a karmatic means for the fisherman's demise. The secondary theme of Bill's jealousy and paranoia grew out of my own self-reflection - after initially pitching this film in a voting process to have it rejected, I realized the danger of pent up jealousy and anger towards peers as a very powerful force that can get the best of you if not kept in line. I didn't want Bill to be a one dimensional character in the sole regard that he was an abuser of fish, but that also his need to be number 1 causes a chain of events that ultimately leads to his demise as well.

The score and sound design of the film was always heavily involved in the production process. I wanted the film to sound just as grandiose and exaggerated as the actions we see, and most of the film takes on a heavily instrumental and orchestral tone, wonderfully composed by Ondrej Soukup. The sound design was crucial in highlighting many of the actions in the film, always crossing the line from diegetic to non-diegetic with not only the sounds of Bill (bed squeaks, heartbeats, chewing, casting), but also the forces and sounds of nature (thunder claps, whale calls, choppy oceans, running rivers, whistling winds). This approach to sound design offered me a lot of creative freedom, and since we didn't record any audio on set, it has been a great exercise for me in creating foley and SFX and learning how to create emotion through audio.