ACORN

I wanted to make a simple film that showed an elderly person pondering on their age, and I thought having them observe age reflected in nature would be a great opportunity for both visual concepts and photographic quality. I ended up choosing an acorn, because there are so many opportunities to turn a plant into a visual concept.

I also decided to use the Kuleshov effect throughout the film. The Kuleshov effect is a phenomenon of sorts in which a character’s reaction to an object is defined by the object rather than the actor’s expression. For example, if you pair a shot of a character looking at an unseen object with a shot of a cupcake, the audience thinks the character is hungry. If you pair the exact same POV shot with a shot of a car crash, the audience now thinks the character is sorrowful. The Kuleshov effect is very powerful for use in experimental films, because an unexplained metaphor is heightened by the audience’s perception and shaped for each individual viewer by their life experience.

Here is my interpretation of the film as I made it, though I have heard different views. The film is intentionally vague, as I respect and love the life every eye can bring to it.

At the beginning of the film, the man grapples with the concept of age. He sees a seedling sprout on the ground. I used the Kuleshov effect here, because we don’t know if he is happy or sad. He drops a glass of water on the seedling. It is up to the viewer to decide why he did this - was he trying to water the plant? Or perhaps he dropped the water glass in a fit of anger, or even jealousy.
We then see the man scratching at his hands. Again, I used the Kuleshov effect. He may be wrought with self-hate, or perhaps he is facing the degenerating effects of age. When he looks at the ground (Kuleshov effect!) the seedling is no longer there. For me, this represents that the man is wasting himself away, setting up the end of the film.
Then, in a completion of his character arc, the man embraces age. He admires a stately oak tree with love and respect. He looks at the canopies of the forest and the foggy sky. The upward motion suggests a heavenly ascent.
To conclude the man’s story, I introduced a female character to lead him away from his ruminations. Her attire might suggest a hospice nurse, though she may be his granddaughter (I’ve heard different things - the angel of death is one.) The man walks away with her, and as he turns back, he glances at the acorn he holds in his hand (Kuleshov effect!) The cycle is completed. The return to the initial state of the plant suggests death and innocence.
The film ends at the log where the man was sitting. The seedling is no longer where it once was, as the man has taken the acorn, and sawdust scatters on the ground. As we back away, we see that it is coming from the man’s place on the log. He has ended his cycle and returned to nature, as has the acorn. The use of the log is also intentional, as it suggests that the tree he was looking at has fallen.