4. Voice-over

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Likes, dislikes

I think there is something unique, light and brief but weirdly insightful about how characters were introduced in Amélie (2001,
Jean-Pierre Jeunet) through their likes, dislikes, and small peculiarities. They didn’t necessarily comment directly on their character, but could suggest some traits. But I think that’s what the movie showed so beautifully, with all the nostalgia and sentiment – that our habits, stories, memories, make up who we are.

Here’s a scene where the movie introduces characters from Amélie’s workplace:

…

So I started with writing my likes and dislikes, imagining that I could put a voice over my footage, telling what I like and don’t like.

  • I like to feel the speed on my bike, the sense of freedom it gives
  • … nature, open sky, and sunshine
  • I like to go somewhere on my own, discover new places
  • … view points from where I can see things from above
  • I love the sea, the vast space, and feeling of eternity
  • I adore cats, their grace and beauty, and way of being. How they keep you company within a safe distance, how curious they are, how they like to observe
  • I like immersing in books and forgetting about the whole world
  • I like small rituals
  • I like good coffee
  • although I shouldn’t drink that much
  • Every year I buy a calendar believing that this time I will really use it and organise my life
  • I’m always late, always late…
  • I’m so chaotic and messy
  • I hate dealing with paperwork, I feel like a child in the world of adults
  • I’m horrible with saving money
  • I can’t deal with letting people down, and moments when I have to rise up to the situation to fix things up
  • I always apologise first
  • I rarely miss people, or get attached to anyone or anything
  • I always forget birthdays
  • I get cold easily
  • It’s my fault when things don’t work out
  • I should go back to a healthy morning routine
  • I’m so in my head
  • People used to tell me I live in my own world
  • I like having hiding places where I can escape from everything
  • I’m very selfish when I feel down
  • I feel bad for talking too much when seeing people
  • I can’t stay too long in one place
  • I often change flats
  • I like making my room really my own
  • I used to feel like an outsider when people didn’t understand me
  • I used to be so judgmental about people who were not hardworking
  • I used to be very anxious about joining a new in a group of people
  • I used to freeze and shut down when someone would get angry at me
  • I can get so nerdy about certain subjects
  • Everyone tells me I worry too much
  • I have such a sweet tooth
  • I am an overthinker
  • I hate small talk

With time, the list it went more in direction of ‘shoulds’, or emotional patterns. Habits are not only activities that we repeatedly do, but also things that we repeatedly feel, think, say. Patterns. This is also an aspect of our habitual nature.

Our way of being and self-perception are constantly feeding into one another. What we say about ourselves is not just an afterthought, a reflection on our behaviour. In fact, these small statements set expectative for the future, and in that way feed back into our actions.

So in a way words, statements, beliefs they set the frames for everyday situations, and give safety of knowing who you are. But at the same time they predict, bias, limit possibilities, and make it harder to change, to evolve.

I also went in the direction of things I used to think, do or feel, but they don’t happen consistently now. They are still a part of my story.

First videos

I recorded some of the statements and put it together with a video I had on hand, the one from the project Present, where I’m just making coffee.

At first, I let the thoughts drift from likes to dislikes, judgements, negative self-talk etc.

It looks to me a little bit as if I was actually making coffee in the morning and (over)thinking to myself.

Later, I mixed the order. In both cases, watching the video, I identified the voice with the hands making coffee, building up sort of fragmental images of the person.

Combining with footage

The next step was to put my own videos over the voice, trying to see how it works with the footage. When combining videos, I realised that indicating my presence by showing myself on the videos tied the visuals better with the voice.

Image of the city

After seeing intro to Woody Allen’s Manhattan (1979), I thought found it smart and unconventional to show a character through expressing his opinion about a certain topic, like a city. Through that narration, we get a brief impression of the city, the narrator, and the character described by him.

Having already reached for some of my footage, I was curious to see what could I get out of it, how could I show myself through talking about London, and if it would be possible to introduce some kind of humour as well.

I think there might be something here in showing the most the thing that is not mentioned by the narrator, which says about certain tendencies that she is not fully aware of.

And I think there’s something true to life here, as we’re often blind to our traits of character, mindsets, convictions that are clearly visible to others.