Rob Munday
On it’s surface, Does Love Last Forever? by The Glue Society’s Pete Baker plays like a traditional love-story – boy meets girl, they fall in love, the live happily(ish) ever after. It’s a story of young love (mix-tapes and all) and how that love changes over the years. A story we’ve heard a million times before…right? But what if the aim of this film wasn’t to (only) create a relatable, emotive romantic narrative? What if it was trying to do something else?
Created for Cochlear, an Australian company specialising in hearing technology, Does Love Last Forever? is actually a short looking to get its audience thinking, and ultimately discussing, hearing loss.
“Many precious moments are missed for those people living with hearing loss”, explains the film’s creative director Brian jefferson. “By creating something unique like the hearing test in disguise, we’re hoping to get viewers talking about hearing loss, sharing the film with people they love – especially those who may be in denial about their hearing loss – and ultimately, seeking help”.
Shot over 2 days (one scene each morning and evening), with a cast of 4 (2 playing the younger couple, 2 playing the older couple), director Baker and his team had to carefully think about their production to ensure they were all working towards the end goal of not just creating a short film – but getting the message of the project across. Often working against usual practice, the team used ambient sounds to mask conversation, ensured objects were often covering mouths (removing the ability to lip-read) and even made their actors choreograph their body language to portray reactions often in opposition to what they were saying.
Here at Short of the Week we’re always fascinated to see short form filmmaking put to use in creative and inventive ways. Whether’s it’s examining the possibilities of interactivity or testing video streaming, the freedom the format can offer can often lead to some innovative projects and some groundbreaking projects. Baker’s film certainly feels like one of these projects, whether it’s successful is for you to decide – but we certainly think it’s an interesting think-piece.
Playing like part creative advert, part inventive public service announcement and part traditional love-story, Does Love Last Forever? might seem an unusual choice for Valentine’s Day but with a name like that…how could we not pick it?