AFI Visual Essay - 2025JOURNEY
A strange pond in an abandoned building… a vial of azure blue liquid retrieved… and a visit from the woman’s younger self… in life’s journey, have we lost touch with our youth? Or have we conquered it?
In this confrontation, it was important to create a place of escape for Eld, that would fit the style of the space and create a curiosity, a mystery at the same time. That’s how the idea of the arched drapery was conceived.
We hung different colored drapes from the 3-foot flat serving as the doorway, and tied them to a thick, natural rope to create the scrunched stage curtain effect.
“As the ripples settle, a younger version of herself with dark hair replaces her reflection in the pool…
Eld looks down at the younger version of herself longingly.”
“The younger version of herself rises from the pool, dripping wet in an almost identical silver dress. This is YUNG.”
When Eld views herself in the pool, we wanted the image to be clear, while still getting a natural rippling of water.
So we bought a mirror from Facebook Marketplace and spray foamed the outside, then began decorating with all the natural twigs, rocks, and leaves we could forage, directed by our Set Dec. Amir Gold and our PD Demie Cao.
We poured a thin layer of water on the resulting mirror, and I slightly tapped on the corner just out of frame, to create the desired effect.
Since the mirror reflection shot was top-down, we had to build and rig a 5’ x 5’ ceiling to play as the entire ceiling. It was built using 1’ x 3’s for a frame, crosshatched by thin moulding we painted brown.
On top of this we drilled a plexiglass sheet and distressed it by cracking the panes, staining it with various paints, and scattering grass, leaves, and twigs.
“…with Eld in the center, newly grown greenery surrounds her. She rises and exits the room where more greenery awaits her.”
In these photos to the left, the thick ropes used to hang the drapes are shown hanging over the other side of the custom flat we built, teasing what might have been higher out of frame.
We foraged real plants and plotted them in sand and mulch bases to create the effect that they had just sprung out of the earth.
The furniture was covered with white fabric and tied up to look ensnared yet transient.
The mirror pool was removed in this final shot, its place filled with sand, as Eld has killed her younger self. The pool has dried up, but the water has gone to help nourish the blooming foliage around her world.
Director: Rana Roy
Producer: Becca Davis & Jeffrey Ramos
Screenplay: Ethan Delaney & Rana Roy
Cinematographer: Nyssa Gluck
Production Designer: Demie Cao