DISCONNECTED (2014)
Dir. Ludovic Littee, 6 min, Live-action
[ Festivals/awards ]
2014 Independent Film Festival of Boston – **WORLD PREMIERE**
2014 San Diego International Film Festival
2014 Big Bear International Film Festival
2014 Hollyshorts Film Festival
[ Director's Statement ]
At its heart Disconnected is the story about escapism. Set in the projects of Spanish Harlem the film is a character study about the external influences on a young boy Ryan and how he perceives and interprets the world around him. It’s also a film about fantasy, anger and delusion.
I wanted to make a film that talked about the social problems we face today. What it is to be a misguided, single mother, raising two kids and about youth’s addiction to violence and video games. I pulled Ryan's fantasies from my experiences as a child and from my love of martial arts. Growing up I always enjoyed playing with my action figures spinning them around and creating elaborate stories. Over time I stopped creating and started to immerse myself in others creativity, mainly video games. I came to a realization that our kids' creativity is being shut down by our societies shift towards what's on the screen and our lack of letting our kids explore themselves and the world they create.
Trying to tell a short story with so many layers was extremely challenging. One challenging aspect to Disconnected was finding a boy that could be introverted, at moments, and also become extremely physical. Jesse Spadaccini brought more to the character then I ever expected to capture on film. In conjunction, Katie Kreisler, who played his mother, brought a layer to Anne that peeled away with every action.
Disconnected offers a window into a young boys life searching for a voice; as a struggling mother fights to keep what little she has. It’s a film with many layers talking about escapism, misguided parents, our societies addiction to violence and the on going fight between fantasy and reality.