What happens when an everyday slacker gets his helium
dose wrong? HELIUM MAN. Also the first narrative short by Backyard director
Nick Piper which recently debuted with rave reviews in the comedy genre at the
Beverly Hills Short Film Festival (and moving on to the prestigious Atlanta
Film Festival later this month).
Transitioning to shorts has been a long time coming for
the director who specializes in special effect commercials. But, it wasn't
until he had a dream based around the concept of losing gravity that gave him
an idea worth committing to.
"Stock markets were crashing, the world was
spiraling into a recession. What next?" he said, "No more
gravity?" It turns out that making one person float is a bit less
complicated than making gravity disappear altogether, and so the adventures of
Helium Man began.
For Nick, the easiest part was writing the story. On the
contrary, "Producing the bloody thing," he says in his 'Home of Chip
Butties' North England accent, wasn't exactly a walk in the park. Not to mention
organizing technocranes, multiple camera crews, a rigging crane (the same one
that made Tom Hanks weightless in Apollo 13), and nearly 100 extras.
"I'm getting a producer for the next one," says
Nick of the short which would have cost nearly $2M if it weren't for lots of
helpful folks in the industry who volunteered time and gear.
Keep your eyes peeled for a feature...
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