Purgatory

After two men wake up in an unknown basement, they are forced to compete for their lives in front of a live stream audience.

At the beginning of purgatory, we see Lencho wake up in a strange basement with no windows . Lencho then realizes another person is laying out in the room, that person is Jaron. They then hear the voice of a strange man called "The collector" that tells them to compete with each other for their livestream called purgatory, and that they’ve been injected with poison and the only way out of this is to get two wins from different purgatory game rounds.

As the rounds progress, Lencho and Jaron realize that they’ve been selected for purgatory because of the deaths they cause to each other. The first death was a medical mishap. The other death was from a shooting incident. With this being at the forefront of their minds, they also begin to feel the poison more from each one of them losing and winning a round. Through this, they begin to understand why the live stream is called purgatory.

As for the ending of purgatory, Lencho decides to give the only antidote to Jaron. Jaron bounces back from the poison and from this act of sacrifice, Jaron decides to try and save Lencho. While the collector is in awe from witnessing a result he didn't predict to happen.

  • Tim Jones
    Writer
  • Tamia Atkins
    Producer
  • Tim Jones
    Director
  • Harrison Baldwin
    1st Assistant Director
  • Roman Ruiz
    Director of Photography
  • Jhai Flowers
    2nd Assistant Camera
  • Dennis Albert
    ELECTRIC
  • Kyle Leal
    ELECTRIC
  • Kyle Banks
    Key Cast
    "Lencho"
  • Stephuan Anu
    Key Cast
    "Jaron"
  • Andre Melgacio
    Key Cast
    "Collector"
  • Fabian Augustin
    Sound
  • Electria Pullum
    Sound
  • Tim Jones
    Editor
  • Dunston Darius
    Colorist
  • Project Type:
    Experimental, Short, Student
  • Genres:
    Thriller, Sci-fi, Dark Comedy, Horror
  • Runtime:
    9 minutes 8 seconds
  • Completion Date:
    June 1, 2023
  • Production Budget:
    2,000 USD
  • Country of Origin:
    United States
  • Country of Filming:
    United States
  • Language:
    English
  • Shooting Format:
    RED
  • Aspect Ratio:
    16:9
  • Film Color:
    Color
  • First-time Filmmaker:
    Yes
  • Student Project:
    Yes - savannah college of art and design
Director Biography - Tim Jones

Tim Jones is a filmmaker in Atlanta, Georgia that wants to give viewers a chance to have a part of his work. He is determined to discover other ways to get audiences interacting with the film itself rather than just watching through introducing other elements outside of the film.

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Director Statement

The overarching story in Purgatory is about two people that caused deaths to each other but never knew until they were forced to confront each other through a livestream called purgatory. In the making of the story, I went through numerous drafts that led me to focus on the experience of the two people and the host leading the stream. Though the viewers of the stream happen to be us. We’re watching the collector watch Lencho and Jaron settle their debts.

When it comes to the challenges in each round. I wanted to make them to be comical in a twisted sense. So Rock Paper Scissors was a game of chance. Them being the causes of each of their grievances. The puzzle was a game of connecting things together. When they come to the realization why they’re there and the key hunt as a way to face fate. Though I decided that Lencho will go against fate and save Jaron to put an end to the cycle of death as he remembers Jaron’s son as he was about to leave.

Though the decision leaves Jaron and the Collector asking why he chooses to save him. To which Jaron helps Lencho who is still battling against the poison through finding out what’s the poison from the Collector. The ending is ultimately about a change of heart that infected both Jaron and The Collector.

On the post production side of things Purgatory is a project I wanted to test out merging different styles of editing into one cohesive project. While editing this project I discovered ways to link Davinci Resolve Adobe Premiere After Effects Photoshop and blender with the hopes of telling the story as best as possible with the time available.