Project Link
https://opal.ils.unc.edu/~aanton/GoldfishNoir/KorsFile/

Goldfish Noir

"Goldfish Noir" utilizes the non-linear and database-oriented video storytelling software, Korsakow. The viewer swims through scenes of a stoically depressed detective, interrogating the main suspect of a crime: a Goldfish. An absurdist and experimental take with Noir stylistic elements, you get to swim mundanely with or without a purpose observing this fish-bowl of a film.

Both a video game and film, you may attempt to solve the mystery using clues sprinkled throughout each nihilistically driven interrogation scene.

  • Alex Anton
    Director
  • Alex Anton
    Writer
  • Noni Shemenski
    Writer
  • Alex Anton
    Producer
  • Michelle Li
    Producer
  • Bruce Rosenbloom
    Key Cast
    "Detective (actor)"
    Captain America: Civil War (extra)
  • Alexander Boudreau
    Key Cast
    "Detective (voice actor)"
  • Julia Haslett
    Mentor/Professor
  • Joyce Rudinsky
    Mentor/Professor
  • Vincent Luciano
    Mentor/Professor
  • Mark Robinson
    Mentor/Professor
  • Kit Olstead
    Production Assistance
  • Evelyn Moses
    Production Assistance
  • Eduardo de la Parra
    Production Assistance
  • Project Type:
    Experimental, Short, Student, Web / New Media
  • Genres:
    Noir, Absurdist, Comedy, Game, Interactive, Murder Mystery, Point-and-Click, Korsakow
  • Runtime:
    25 minutes
  • Completion Date:
    June 17, 2022
  • Production Budget:
    300 USD
  • Country of Origin:
    United States
  • Country of Filming:
    United States
  • Language:
    English
  • Shooting Format:
    BlackMagic 4K
  • Film Color:
    Black & White and Color
  • First-time Filmmaker:
    Yes
  • Student Project:
    Yes - UNC-Chapel Hill
  • UNC Department of Communications Awards Ceremony
    Chapel Hill
    United States
    April 30, 2022
    COMM 647 Premiere Screening
    Jim Lampley Award for Excellence in Multimedia
  • UNC Department of Communications Awards Ceremony
    Chapel Hill
    United States
    April 30, 2022
    COMM 647 Premiere Screening
    Rick Dees Scholarship
Director Biography - Alex Anton

Goldfish Noir is Alex Anton's filmmaking debut, and he was honored to have the opportunity to create it as his senior capstone project.

Alex Anton is a New Media Communications major with a minor in Data Science at UNC-Chapel Hill graduating in December 2022. He’ll be spending his last semester studying Film & Media at the University of Glasgow in Scotland.

Alex was the first New Media student to enroll in the senior capstone program, where he received the Rick Dees Scholarship to develop Goldfish Noir from January to May 2022. His experience in New Media the past four years have involved graphic design, video game design, Twine projects, video/audio editing, and more.
Alex plans to study New Media beyond graduation, potentially looking into grad school.

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Director Statement

Goldfish Noir is an interactive and experimental web browser-based film inspired by old point-and-click mystery games. I utilized the German software, Korsakow, which uses database-driven and non-linear narrative structures to design an experimental murder mystery interrogation of a Goldfish.

There is an answer to the mystery, with hidden clues sprinkled throughout every scene like fish food. However, contrary to classic video game mechanics, there is no specific element of progress. Just like the goldfish, our noir detective also swims aimlessly with no purpose; the only progress being the prosaic passing of time getting closer to the end of life. Players click on each item on the interrogation table to investigate, but never get a clear answer. The Detective says it best, "If you have the chance to not see something, don't see it. Stop trying to see what's outside your fishbowl, and let yourself be at peace not knowing the truth."

The filmic game is absurdist at heart: dancing around the conflict between the human tendency to seek inherent value & meaning in life, and the human inability to find these with any certainty.