Lament

Title of the project: Lament

Estimated budget: 64,350.00 €

Logline:

Mother is searching for her sons on the battlefield only to realize that she is not among the living and that her boys are leaders of the conflicting armies. Trying to reach their hearts, she realizes that the only way to do so is through her song.

Description of the main story and poetics:

The story of Lament is a communal drama set in a fictional era of WW1. It follows a tale of a mother’s ghost facing the horrors of war that her own children brought over their own homeland. The main inspiration for the film is music and its importance in the sense of identity and culture. The twin brothers and their armies are presented as beastly monsters with the disharmony of static noise and a male choir. In contrast, the harmonious, orchestral music with a choir and female soloist represents the mother and the fallen civilians.

Concept:

In a small village, a mother of twins is living a peaceful life with her children. Her song spreading over the fields is an inspiration for the boys. Through their arguments and rough play, the boys’ love for one another turns into hate. Unable to defuse the conflict between the two, mother faces the wrath of war that brings misery to everyone. At first, she believes that her boys are victims of conflict. She finds out that she is not among the living and that her offspring are the cause of destruction. She laments the tragedy and the condition of her children’s misfortune as her song slowly reaches the conflicting armies. The spirits of the fallen join the lament. They appear as ghosts and inspire soldiers to end the bloodshed. Only the brothers remain in battle. The combat finally ends upon discovery of their mothers’ grave atop which the sons almost kill one another. They can finally hear the song of the fallen and reconcile. As spirits finally find peace, the living are left with hope for a brighter future.

Director’s biography:

Miloš Djurdjević, graduated from the High School of Music at the Vocal-Instrumental Department and the Belgrade Polytechnic at the Department of Graphic Design. A traditional animator and visual artist, he worked in Illusion Studio as lead animator and character designer on short animated films and music videos. With Creative Buzz Films, he worked on awarded animated shorts Second Chance and Superheroes.

Presentation of the production company:

Talesgate, founded by director and animator N. G. Nash, is the successor to the Illusion animation studio & association and its works which include a large number of short films, music videos etc. Talesgate emerged from the desire to push the boundaries of animation and reach a wider audience by focusing on creating works with a good story, regardless of the technique and means required.

List of partners on the project so far/ Amounts already negotiated:

Film Center of Serbia / 16,170 € / grant, secured

WaveForm Studio (Serbia, Belgrade) / 3,000 € / contract

WolfGang & Dolly (Croatia, Zagreb) / 6,900 € / deal-memo

Talesgate (Serbia, Belgrade) / 7,280 € / in-kind, secured