Private Project

The Marionette

The man finally confronts an old puppeteer who he believes has led his first love to death; and while the truth unfolds, it is then he that releases that blood might be on his hands as well, and more that was hidden, starts to emerge.

  • Marty Liu
    Director
  • Marty Liu
    Writer
  • Varvara Dzhi
    Producer
  • Hamish Brewster
    Key Cast
  • Karolina Ludwiniak
    Key Cast
  • Paul Dewdney
    Key Cast
  • Lachlan kiss
    Co-Scriptwriter
  • Sudiardi Sudyono
    DOP
  • Xinting Jiang
    Sound Recordist
  • Mia Wiles
    1st AD
  • Caroline Ty
    Music Composer
  • Kai Zhao
    Editor
  • Xinting Jiang
    Sound Designer
  • Project Type:
    Short
  • Runtime:
    14 minutes 42 seconds
  • Completion Date:
    May 18, 2024
  • Production Budget:
    4,000 GBP
  • Country of Origin:
    United Kingdom
  • Country of Filming:
    United Kingdom
  • Language:
    English
  • Shooting Format:
    Digital
  • Aspect Ratio:
    16:9
  • Film Color:
    Color
  • First-time Filmmaker:
    Yes
  • Student Project:
    No
Director Biography - Marty Liu

Marty Liu grew up in an impoverished and remote town in Northern China. Her mother was a writer, greatly influenced her interests in arts and literature. She developed a passion for film during high school and fell in love with theatre university. At 22, she managed to pull up the resources herself, applied to and attended Met Film, London for a graduate degree. She completed her first short film, "The Marionette” after her degree. After her first piece, she worked in various professions to gather more inspiration and support herself for a life in London while seeking more opportunities to direct and produce. She worked as a line producer at a short video production company, and later became a freelance photographer while working part-time as a fee-earning docent at the National Gallery and the British Museum. These work experiences provided her with many new ideas regarding colour, visuals, and storytelling. Her dream is to become a professional filmmaker, dedicating her life to film productions. She is currently building her directing career and writing scripts for her second project, a feature film.

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Director Statement

After graduating from film school, I turned a concept I had right after the time of my graduation into a film. The initial idea was a story of an "unreliable narrator", and once that was set, I started to find a scene emerging in my mind: a pair of murky eyes, lurking beneath dim lighting. One moment a convincing story was told, questioned by the audience in the next ...
I believe that the less Lucy is seen, the better. The uncatchable pigeon at the end of Michael Haneke's "Amour" inspired me to try a form of storytelling that expands the content of the film beyond the imageries; and keep the focus on the present the story. The biggest challenge in script development was that there were too many events in the past and the budget was very limited. In my original construct, I had an idea where Lucy, on a foggy morning, runs from her home to the riverbank. She is petite while her pregnant belly looks worryingly large, and her descent into the water resembles the fall of a weightless moth. Unfortunately, I was unable to complete this scene. In a rush to find another solution, I encountered a puppeteer who did not speak English, but she and her puppets inspired me to give Eoin's profession and the final form of the play-within-the-play. Paul’s performance was astounding, and his exceptional synergy with his character made the ending deeply moving.