As I was scouring the web for a quick film fix! I went to one of my usual places to search for cinematic treasures (Shortoftheweek.com) and I stumbled upon this gem. At only 4 minutes long, this is another great example of why I enjoy short films so much. The story, albeit not a very complex one, still grabs your attention right from the jump. After a few seconds of watching a coin spinning we see a lonely skater who happens to ride past it but his attention was immediately drawn to the coin. Once the skater examines the coin and puts it in the meter the action commences.
Filmmaker Simeon Duncombe was able to bring us a skate trick video with style and grace.Visually the film makes an impressive use of VFX to set the atmosphere and tone of the film. As a one time professional gamer (and by professional I mean playing video games in my room till the sun came up) I really enjoyed how with each trick our skater found himself in a new level, and how he only had 3 lives(try’s) to pull the trick off with each level being just a tad bit more difficult then the last. This is a great homage to the side scrolling games of the past like Mario with a Tony Hawk twist.
In all actuality I consider this film to be a great Genre-bender because with no actual dialog this can technically be viewed as a silent film, and with the great use of VFX, stop motion, and camera tricks Simeon delivered an interesting short. He brought us into and gave us a small glimpse of whats in his creative mind. According to the write up on shortoftheweek.com, this was actually filmed in 2012. This was a passion project for Simeon who worked on it during his spare time throughout the course of the years. This serves as a great lesson of patience and perseverance for any struggling filmmakers out there. Just don’t give up on your ideas and see them through until the end. Trust me when I say you will be happy with the results even if it isn’t 100% how you pictured it was going to come out. My first Short (Un Enemigo Disconsiderado) came about in the same manner, I filmed it a few years back and then shelved it for many different reasons. I would pick it back up every now and again, and when I finally finished it I sat back and said, “Jesus Christ this sucks”. Being overly critical of my first attempt to make a short film, I was still extremely satisfied and happy that I ACTUALLY created something. I decided to release it online simply as a reminder for myself of not only the amount of work I have ahead of me to become a world class filmmaker but also to remind myself that I CAN DO IT, and so can you. Now although I know how busy you all are being productive and saving the world, please take a moment and watch Trick Meter, you will be back to your regularly scheduled program after about 4 minutes!
Trick Meter from Simeon Duncombe on Vimeo.
WiseMind Films 
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