Sound of Love (BRA)
Love comes in all shapes and forms, whether it be love for another person, music or city.
With love in the air, Melbourne WebFest is proud to show off web series Pillow Talk (ISR), Wind Bell (KOR), Sound of Love (BRA) and Involontario (ITA), which bring their series to life and make us have all the feels!
For creator, actor, and writer of International Spotlight series Pillow Talk Ezra Ani, it was through his own personal relationship with his girlfriend that inspired the web series.
“I started writing Pillow Talk the same time I moved in with my girlfriend. The main drama of my life was the drama of our relationship and the challenges of our new proximity. As a writer, it was only natural for me to translate that drama into quirky dialogues that tried to deal with the complexities of intimacy,” says Ani.
Pillow Talk (ISR) shows the intricacies of a monogamous relationship through short dialogue. As the series name would suggest, the narrative is set in the bedroom.
Creator, writer and actor in the series, Ezra Ani, decided to have the conversation as the focal point of the story. This places the audience in a situation where they need not only to interpret the words that are spoken but also tone and delivery.
“The challenge of telling a story exclusively through a conversation where the drama is dialogue, has always interested me,” says Ezra Ani,
“The dialogue of romantic relationships is perfect for such a challenge, both because of its insular nature and the level of drama it contains.”
The theme of relationships was important to the creator, and Pillow Talk manages to capture our attention with its ability to resonate and draw us into the on-screen relationship.
“I wanted to write conversations that said something about relationships, not only in their content but in their essence as well. Throughout Pillow Talk, there are many arguments but never any winners or losers. Neither character is ever given the upper hand.
The conversations themselves don’t further a plot or develop a character; they ultimately go nowhere. Instead, they show the natural ebb and flow that real-life relationships and conversations so often have,” says Ani.
Ani explains that he has many pains and frustrations with how relationships are shown in media currently and that he wanted to change that.
“The way in which we portray relationships on-screen has an impact on the way we think about relationships in real life. More often than not, I’m disappointed with the way relationships are portrayed in films. Love stories easily devolve into kitsch narratives, present us with misguided expectations, and fuel toxic gender stereotypes,” Ani says.
“With Pillow Talk, I tried very hard to write a series about love that avoids those issues and presents a different conversation about intimacy.”
“These conversations also resist gender stereotypes. The characters of Pillow Talk switch off being needy, emotional and irrational and take turns taking care of each other. They struggle with their differences as inherently separate human beings, and not because of their different genders or sexuality”.
While the series flowed seemingly effortlessly on-screen, Ani describes how rigorously they stuck to the script while filming. Through concise planning and attention to detail, they pathed a way for amazing storytelling that shouldn’t be missed.
Official Selection Wind Bell (KOR) is another series that focuses on love and relationships, but from a different point of view. In a nutshell, the web series explores the story of Daniel, a world-class novelist who was adopted overseas. It collaborates with the City of Seoul to showcase the beauty of South Korea’s capital and what it has to offer.
“There are many Korean web dramas about nice locations, but not many are made about the city of Seoul,” says Eun Young Lee, Tourism Department Manager of Seoul.
“Bukchon Korean guest house is the main location of Wind Bell. There is so much warmth and love in that house. We wanted the audience to feel this and that’s why this web drama was made”.
When asked whether there was a particular message they wanted to share through Wind Bell, Eun motions how “family love, called ‘Jeong’ in Korean” is important. “Through this story, we want to bring the feelings of the emotional Jeong to … the audience”.
In addition, the title of the web series Wind Bell holds significance to the story. “A wind bell makes a beautiful sound, it’s a very traditional Korean sound,” says Eun.
Coupled with the traditional surroundings of Bukchon old town, it creates an immersive experience that follows Daniel’s journey.
Another international series that captures the Sound of Love (BRA), pun intended, was written and directed by Gustavo Seabra.
The international Spotlight Series follows Dito, a hopeless romantic trying to win back Marina’s heart. Like many romantic tales, not all is fair in love and we follow as Dito competes with Galvao, his only rival in the quest to conquer Marina’s heart.
Music is used to help the love story flourish. Seabra says, “love is the basic principle for a good coexistence and prosperity in life. Music is fundamental in our history and it is through music that our protagonist, Dito, expresses his feelings.”
Without spoiling the ending, another key inspiration for the series was the environment itself.
“One thing that inspired us was the high rate of crimes of passion that have occurred in Brazil in recent years. Some men have felt like they own women and have extrapolated the limits of rationality and humanity. In spite of this, we treat the subject in a light and humorous way,” says Seabra.
“The message of Sound of Love is to know how to enjoy life, with friends, with their relationships and overcoming difficulties. Despite the cliché, in the end, love always wins”.
Sound of Love truly celebrates how love can conquer almost anything.
Last but not least, Official Spotlight selection Involontario (ITA) also shares how special the love of music can be.
“We wanted to promote a project that brings music to the hospitals with young talented artists as the protagonist and, more in general, communicate to young people that volunteering activities are something extremely attractive and funny, that can help young generation to grow up in the best way,” says creator, Ugo Vivone.
Using the web series format was important, as Vivone comments how it allowed Involontario to reach a number of young people in a smart way. It also allowed for “proper storytelling of our project in the hospitals”.
By sharing this series online, it focuses on the impact of the web series.
“For us [the theme] was extremely natural, because it comes from our personal experience of being in hospitals for the last 10 years,” Vivone says.
“We wanted to explain that through volunteering you can find love, friends and become a better human being. The message is, if you help yourself and also, volunteering is cool and fun”.
These beautiful web series encapsulate how great it is to give love, feel love, be loved. Share your love with us at Melbourne WebFest! We can’t wait to see you there.