LOS ANGELES — Filmmaker John Irwin (www.john-irwin.com) recently wrote and directed Sold (www.soldfilm.com), a 12-minute short film that’s been entered in Ridley Scott's "Your Film Festival."
Sold is about a female journalist who convinces her boss to allow her to go undercover as an illegal immigrant in an attempt to reveal the injustices they face in the workplace. She ends up being captured by a human trafficking ring and soon realizes her life is on the line.
According to Irwin, production took place over a four-day period, with cinematographer Andrew Waruszewski using a Canon 5D Mark II with a set of Zeiss Prime Lenses. Much of the short takes place in the trunk of an old sedan, where the kidnap victims contemplate their escape.
“Up until very close to filming, we didn’t know how we were going to film the interior trunk scenes with the time, money and resources we had,” he notes. They were able to rent the villain car for a day — a vintage Mercury Marquis — thanks to a listing on Craigslist. The website was also used to secure locations, including an office, a basement/alley, and private land for the outdoor shoot.
David L. Snyder served as a visual consultant on the film, which was edited by Irwin using Final Cut Pro over the course of a month. He employed FCP’s color correction tools in conjunction with Red Giant’s Magic Bullet and Adobe After Effects.
“The whole experience was amazing and quite a challenge and I’m really proud of the outcome. We made the short to act as a demo for the feature version that we are currently seeking funding for.”