Leo Butler's Boy, Filmed, Flipped and Re-Imagined Under Lockdown
Created by students training within East 15 Acting School's Certificate of HE Theatre Arts.
Process Designed and Facilitated by Chris Meads.
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So, it's April 2020. We're all set to begin rehearsals for a theatre production of Leo Butler's play Boy, to be staged in East 15 Acting School's Corbett Theatre.
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But then lockdown happens.
So, over the next six weeks, we learn how to script, shoot, act in and edit short films with our phones or laptops, using free software and apps. We then invent ways of doing this within lock-down circumstances and while based in different cities and countries. We discover how difficult it would be to film most of the scenes from the play, so instead we transform and expand it to offer you this online, multi-platform storytelling experience: The Boy Universe.
Come and join us on our 'lockdown film-making' adventure...!
Immerse Yourself In The Characters' Worlds
Leo Butler's Boy depicts the journey of one teenage boy through contemporary London and his brief encounters with over 100 characters. The Boy Universe project 'flips' that premise: each company member has chosen one character who appears fleetingly within the play and then, using their imagination, developed them into people with dreams, struggles, inter-relationships and social-media lives. For a vivid introduction to the project, watch The Boy Universe trailer video above.
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Experience the self-scripted and directed short films, interactive online character worlds and virtual location tours that each company member has created HERE.
Watch Short Films Inspired By The Play
When The Boy Universe project began, none of the company had any experience of film-making. Five weeks later, the project culminated in the company utilising all of their newly acquired 'lockdown' film-making skills to transform scenes from Leo Butler's play into short films. You can watch each of these short scripted films HERE. [For copyright purposes, this page is password protected.]
Explore Each Creative Team's Process
FLAMING ARROWHEAD PRODUCTIONS
MOLLITIAM PRODUCTIONS
NETHER ZONE STUDIOS
PERSPECTIVE
During The Boy Universe project the company developed their 'lockdown' film-making techniques and their problem-solving skills within online-media creative teams. Clicking on the team logos above will take you to each team's creative process hub. Once there, you can meet each team member, learn how the project changed them and explore their creative processes via video and audio content.
Watch 'Making Of' Videos
How do you film and edit a cohesive scene involving three or more characters when the actors are filming at different times and are hundreds of miles apart? How do you intermix live-action footage with specially created animation? Where do I set the camera-phone while I'm acting? And can I convince my dad to play the character's school teacher? Discover the ingenious creative solutions to these challenges and many more by watching the 'making of' video above. Then, for a deeper dive into our 'making of' story, click the team logos!
Take Virtual Google Tours
Each team has created an immersive, 360 degree tour of character-led locations using Google Tour Creator, with pop-up images and character story info.
For an even more immersive experience, once on a tour, click on the white 'cog' icon in the top right of the screen and then activate the two audio options (see image, left) to experience a team-created sound collage.
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To take each team's Virtual Tour, simply click on the team logos above.
The Boy Universe project was developed with East 15 Acting School.