When the folks at MainStay Productions released their short Hunger Games film earlier this week, the fandom went into a frenzy. At last check, the video had over 6,800 views -- and it's only been up since Monday.
The short film portrays the emotional scene between Katniss and Rue, as the latter lays dying.
John Lyde, from MainStay Productions, says the idea for the short film came to him shortly after reading the scene from the book.
"I went out for a run and was listening to Linkin Park. 'Wretches and Kings' was playing and I thought it conveyed the feeling of what it would be like in the Hunger Games. Then right after that song, 'Iridscent' started and it gave me all these visuals of what the movie could be like," Lyde said. "I ran home and told my wife that I wanted to make a short film."
Lyde said he already knew that Gary Ross was the (likely) director for the movie adaptation from Lionsgate -- but he wanted to give some of his young actor-friends a chance to prove their chops on these dramatic roles.
"I knew that a few of my friends would be perfect for the roles and wanted Lionsgate to see their talent," Lyde said.
He wrote the scene in just a few minutes, essentially taking it directly from the book. He then arranged to use equipment from a company he freelances for, and set up a shooting date for November 6th.
He rounded up more friends for crew members, tracked down the assorted props, and they were good to go. Of course, the whole production wasn't entirely smooth sailing.
"We shot the chase scene in the morning and right after lunch, the camera stopped working," Lyde said. "I knew this was the only day that we could get everyone together, so we used another camera, that wasn't as awesome, but still got us what we needed."
Lyde went back a few days later for some additional shots -- a close-up of Katniss firing the arrow, the three finger kiss and the final walking shot.
When it came time for post production, Lyde cut the footage together himself, enlisting the help of a friend to do the sound mixing.
"I really hope that the Lionsgate film is cast right," Lyde said about his reasons for making the short film. "I hope they don't cast actors who are too old for the parts. What made the books for me was the innocence and youth of the characters being put in such a precarious situation. I think you would lose some of that by casting older actors in younger roles."
And though their chances may be a long shot, Lyde is a champion for his actors -- Danielle and Savanna, who portrayed Katniss and Rue, respectively. "They are both so talented, easy going and fun to film with," Lyde said. "They are the right age and have what it takes to appease the fans of the books."
"Gary Ross is very talented and I look forward to his vision of the film," Lyde continued. "I hope they get the casting right. The wrong girl for Katniss could ruin everything. I thought Danielle Chuchran would be perfect for the role, bringing out the innocence, youth and vulnerability that Katniss has. I also want the movie to be something that Suzanne Collins will be happy with and proud of."
That's a sentiment most fans would agree whole-heartedly with -- and perhaps it is Lyde's status as a fan himself that helped make his short film so emotionally powerful.
So does Lyde have plans to shoot any other Hunger Games films? "No plans at this time," Lyde said, though he added, "The scene where Katniss finds Peeta could be pretty awesome."
On a final note, Lyde credits his friends for helping get this short film made.
"I love my friends. I could not have made this without them. They all did it for the fun of it," he said. "The moms of all the actors (Sharon, Sally, Misty and Carri) are awesome for letting me film with their kids and make them all muddy and bloody. For the death scene, we were running two cameras. I was on one and Paul Green was on the other. He got the close up from above of Rue as she was dying. When I saw his footage, I was so happy because he captured her performance perfectly. Yeah for Paul Green."
If you haven't seen the video yet, check it out in the sidebar on your left.
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