The Way You Move

When a wary young man receives his compulsory VR headset in the mail, he reluctantly puts it on and enters 'The Real World'. The journey of self discovery it leads him is stranger than he'd ever imagined.

  • Michael Mclennan
    Director
    pinch me, Go Quickly, A Tea Party for Sad People, Traveller
  • Michael Mclennan
    Writer
    pinch me, Go Quickly, The Way You Move, Traveller
  • Michael Mclennan
    Producer
    pinch me, The Way You Move, Traveller, Aristeia
  • Henry Lopez
    Key Cast
    "Malcolm"
  • Rhiannon Jean
    Key Cast
    "Lana"
  • Luke George
    Key Cast
    "The Shepherd"
  • Tim Lim
    Key Cast
    "Tanner"
  • Lauren Berard
    Key Cast
    "Gai"
  • Gabrielle Karbowiak
    Key Cast
    "Dr Francis"
  • Yogish Sharma
    Key Cast
    "The Inspector"
  • Miriam Green
    Key Cast
    "Shepherd's Flock"
  • Nicola Frugtniet
    Key Cast
    "Shepherd's Flock"
  • Natalie Low
    Key Cast
    "Parvati"
  • Jesse Watt
    Composer
    pinch me, Traveller
  • Rahul Dorai
    Cinematography
    Aristeia, Damsel'd
  • Project Type:
    Short
  • Genres:
    Sci-Fi, Odyssey, Satire, Dystopia
  • Runtime:
    28 minutes
  • Completion Date:
    January 31, 2023
  • Production Budget:
    18,000 AUD
  • Country of Origin:
    Australia
  • Country of Filming:
    Australia
  • Language:
    English
  • Shooting Format:
    Digital Ursa G2 Ironglass Lenses
  • Aspect Ratio:
    2.35:1
  • Film Color:
    Color
  • First-time Filmmaker:
    No
  • Student Project:
    No
Distribution Information
  • Wavelength Films
    Distributor
    Country: Worldwide
    Rights: All Rights
Director Biography - Michael Mclennan

Michael McLennan is an Australian-based writer/director whose short films have played at film festivals around the world. These films include 'Aristeia', 'Damsel'd', 'pinch me', 'Traveller', ‘Standby’, ‘A Tea Party for Sad People’ and ‘Go Quickly’. He was Head of Production and Head of Film at Sydney Film School, where he taught Screen Language, Writing, Post-Production and Creativity, and supervised hundreds of films made at the School. He has taught film more broadly at Academy of Film Theatre and Television, AFTRS, Excelsia College, Bradfield College, the Conservatorium of Music, TAFE NSW and AIT. Michael currently has three feature scripts in development, and is completing post-production on science fiction project 'Initiate: Connect'.

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Director Statement

2021 was a confusing year. Vaccine mandates became real, Facebook proposed a Meta(verse) future, QAnon started to affect the real world, and information warfare and civil disruptions surged alike. A casual chat with the average person surfaced untold hours of internet research that confirmed their greatest fears. Tolerance for these iconoclasts wore thin by others who accepted what they were told on trust and couldn’t understand why others would not do the same. Dining room tables were riven - each side seeing only blindness across the table.

One morning in September, The Way You Move came in a dream. It poured onto the page in the early morning, fuelled by Bee Gees, ABBA and Boney M. It felt unlike any film I’d seen - somehow both a sincere Hero's Journey and a critique of it. The hero - Malcolm - is the everyman, unconvinced change is necessary. Change is thrust upon him, and for all its dark potential, what bothers Malcolm most is that he likes it. He is led through subworlds of characters who all seem convinced they know what's going on, all of them eager for a follower to join their crusade. All the while, his partner in life - Lana - seems to have had the better day by choosing not to get 'caught up in it all'.

The Way You Move is also the search of a very typical man for what kind of man to be in the world. His avatar tests how he sees himself. When he questions whether this is right, an unamused medical elite can't see the problem. He meets the ultimate man - a man for whom every problem is a nail looking for a hammer - but this approach barely hangs together long enough to introduce itself. Finally there is a cult, led by The Shepherd, a feminine man gives himself over to his avatar. Which of these is the answer? The film suggests none.