Private Project

Countdown

A man with a toothache tries to read while waiting for his long-overdue dentist appointment, but gets interrupted by an annoying family who starts talking, and doesn't stop talking.

  • Ruairi O'Brien
    Director
    Between the Floor and the Ceiling
  • Ruairi O'Brien
    Writer
    Between the Floor and the Ceiling
  • Ruairi O'Brien
    Producer
    Between the Floor and the Ceiling
  • Jordan Brown
    Producer
    Red River, Sunrise
  • Darren O'Brien
    Key Cast
    "Man"
  • Darren O'Brien
    Key Cast
    "Soldier"
  • Krystel Seier
    Key Cast
    "Mother"
  • Chip Davison
    Key Cast
    "Father"
    Li'l Mayne and the Knuckelheads
  • Grace Gonzalez
    Key Cast
    "Daughter"
  • Korin O'Brien
    Key Cast
    "Receptionist"
  • Project Type:
    Short, Student
  • Genres:
    Comedy, Family
  • Runtime:
    8 minutes 52 seconds
  • Completion Date:
    December 9, 2019
  • Production Budget:
    100 USD
  • Country of Origin:
    United States
  • Country of Filming:
    United States
  • Language:
    English
  • Shooting Format:
    RED
  • Aspect Ratio:
    1024 : 427
  • Film Color:
    Color
  • First-time Filmmaker:
    No
  • Student Project:
    Yes
  • MCOM 3359 FIlm Festival
    Huntsville
    United States
    May 10, 2019
    Best Editing
  • Ravenwood Film Festival
    Huntsville
    United States
    June 30, 2019
Director Biography - Ruairi O'Brien

Ruairi is a multi-talented sound designer, musician, and filmmaker from Houston who's work evokes the silly and the weird. He has recorded and mixed sound for multiple award-winning films, and is currently signed to the record label Very Jazzed - LP "Ataraxic" out now

Add Director Biography
Director Statement

A goal I set out for Countdown was to create the anxiety of being trapped inside your own head in a funny and abstracted way. I wrote the screenplay after talking with a couple of friends about how stressful it is to be trapped between tasks, unable to make headway on one task before a new one distracts you - there are days where I walk in circles for hours, and I wanted to provide some catharsis for that.
The main character is simply trying to read a book to distract him from an awful toothache, only to be interrupted by a loud, scatter-brained family, again and again. As the interruptions increase in size and amount, the main character's anxiety grows and grows until he snaps, and reality breaks.