A Little Death
| A Little Death | |
|---|---|
.jpg) | |
| English | A Little Death |
| Directed by | Simon Perkins Paul Swadel |
| Written by | Simon Perkins Paul Swadel |
| Screenplay by | Simon Perkins Paul Swadel |
| Story by | Simon Perkins Paul Swadel |
| Produced by | James Wallace |
| Starring | Jed Brophy Josephine Davison |
| Cinematography | Peter Bannan |
| Edited by | Peter Evans |
| Music by | Dave Whitehead |
Production company | James Wallace Productions |
| Distributed by | Creative New Zealand |
Release dates |
|
Running time | 10:52 minutes |
| Country | New Zealand |
| Language | English |
| Budget | (NZD) $13643 |
A Little Death is a 16mm short film that was created by Simon Perkins and Paul Swadel in 1995.[1] The film was nominated for Best Short Film in the New Zealand Film and TV Awards in 1995.
Concept
Its concept evolved from an earlier idea called 'Into The Void', which involve a male character walking in on his lover in bed with another. The interest of the idea centred on the ambiguity of the lover's gender, and by inference the sexual orientation of the observer.[2][3]
Plot
A Little Death has a somewhat abstract plot - a man and a woman are having sex, at the moment of orgasm (the “little death” of the title), the man is suddenly trapped behind an image. At this point, the film changes from colour to black and white. The woman damages the images of the man, which in turn damages the trapped man. The woman eventually comforts the man, and he returns to his normal form.[4][5]
Production
Paul Swadel and Simon Perkins started production of the film in the mid 1990s, while Swadel was studying for an MA in intermedia at Auckland University's Elam School of Fine of Arts.[6]
The script for this film was written as a Beatscript[7][8] rather than a conventional screenplay.
Reception
A Little Death attracted critical acclaim, and the attention of awards committees.[6] It was a finalist in the 1996 New Zealand Film and Television Awards, and the 1996 Hamburg Film Festival.[9]
The film has been recognised as one of a select number of early NZ short films which pushed the envelope in terms of visual design and cinematic language, and cited as one of a select number of shorts that heralded The Coming of Age of The New Zealand Short Film (Paul Shannon, 1995).
References
- ^ Perkins, Simon; Swadel, Paul (1995). "A Little Death film credits" (PDF). folksonomy. UK. Retrieved 28 March 2017.
- ^ Perkins, Simon; Swadel, Paul (Directors) (1995). A Little Death (16mm). Auckland, New Zealand: James Wallace Productions.
- ^ "A Little Death". folksonomy. UK. 24 February 2004. Retrieved 3 September 2010.
- ^ "A LITTLE DEATH". www.ngataonga.org.nz. Retrieved 15 July 2025.
- ^ "Shorts: A Little Death".
- ^ a b "Stuff". www.stuff.co.nz. Retrieved 15 July 2025.
- ^ Perkins, Simon (2005). "Beatscript: action-centred scripting for shortfilms and animations". folksonomy. UK. Retrieved 3 September 2010.
- ^ Perkins, Simon (2005). "Beatscript: action-centred scripting for shortfilms and animations" (PDF). folksonomy. UK. Retrieved 3 September 2010.
- ^ ""Accidents" Synopsis" (PDF).
