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Onion- Final Film

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Onion Summary

Onion has been a journey from start to finish! We had a rocky pre-production with issues like crew, equipment, and, most importantly, casting. Casting for Skippy was definitely our biggest issue and weakness in the whole process. Having many leads who either dropped out for personal reasons or scheduling, we had to scramble to find someone last minute. we luckily got our Skippy 24 hours before shooting!

Whilst the Skippy we got was easy to work with and did us a massive favour for only being casted 24 hours prior, her performance translated differently in the edit than it did on set. I felt that her pronunciation and acting style may cause issues, and I tried to combat this issue on set. However, her delivery of lines did not work well in the edit. This resulted in us cutting the dialogue down in the first scene. It was nothing against her as an actor, but I feel like this role did not suit her style.

Sound was also a concern of ours. Filming next to the A90 motorway definitely affected our sound quality, which had to be fixed a lot in post, but Jaco did an amazing job recovering this audio and doing amazing sound design, which helped the film immensely!

The overall on-set process was very smooth, and we got all the coverage we needed without running over time or running into technical problems. The crew all followed their roles and did their highest-quality work, which translated well into the final cut.

The feedback at the crit raised both these issues and was completely valid. If I were to work on this project again, I would make sure to leave plenty of time for casting and have more reliable actors who also suit the role. I would also maybe set the first scene in an internal location to combat the sound issues of the traffic. A change of location would allow for more interesting blocking!

While there were many struggles in this production, I am proud of the work the crew and I achieved. It has taught me more about my directing style and that I really enjoy working with actors! Next year, I plan to direct again, as this is my favourite speciality.

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Dixieland Summary

As the production designer on Dixieland, I take immense pride in the visual world we built! it captures the feverish, surreal energy of a teenage girl’s psychological descent wrapped in Elvis-era obsession and gritty reality.

Dixieland was a 5 day shoot which consisted of 3 locations and 6 sets. As production designer I was present on set for all 5 days and was responsible for set design, prop placement, and costumes. I was lucky enough to have Tom as my prop master so we equally shared responsibilities between each other and produced strong set design.

I am most proud of Dixies bedroom and her costumes. I spent the most time researching and sourcing props for her bedroom which paid off well and was critiqued well in the crit. I wish that I had more elvis props just to fill the space better but the job lot I had found only arrived the day after we filmed her bedroom! The costumes were well thought out and are script accurate.

The Job lot:

Dixies Room:

Overall, I am proud of what I achieved and am grateful that I was able to help Ethan and Annabelle's vision come to life! If I were able to come back to this project, I would like to focus on set dressing and costume for the other characters and locations, just so the world building felt more dense.

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Onion Score Inspiration

I wanted the score to resemble the scores of coming of age films or films about self acceptance. I send Jacob this playlist as inspiration.

I added a lot of Michael Andrews, particularly his score for Me and You and Everyone We Know (2005)

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Dixieland- Set Pictures

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Onion-Day 2

Crew:

Annabelle Rand- Producer/ 1st AD

Chelize Bathgate-Director

Gaureekaa Gautam-DoP

Tom Arnott- Production Designer

Jacob Turner-Sound Recordist

Elliot Ducreux- Boom Operator

Heather Inglis- 1st AC

Day 2 was so good! We filmed the field scenes today, and they were exactly what I had imagined! Like yesterday, I had a meeting/rehearsal with the actors to ensure they knew what to do. Once we got on set, I did some blocking with Axe (Ruth) about where to run, how to react and where to stop. i also did the same for Arina (Skippy). I wanted a sense of freedom from both characters in this scene. the screaming in the feild represents the rebellion against the repression of Ruths church and Skippys encouragment towards Ruths actions. I wanted this to feel like a climax in the story and a resolution at the same time. The field was kindly provided by Kenny (The Horn owner) and was exactly what I had imagined during the planning process. Both actors seemed more comfortable with their characters and gave stronger performances. I think this field scene is the strongest scene of the film, and I hope that it conveys a feeling of freedom and self-acceptance in the final cut!

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Onion- Day 1

Call time: 08:00am

Crew:

Annabelle Rand- Producer

Chelize Bathgate-Director

Gaureekaa Gautam- DoP

Jacob Turner- Sound Recordist

Tom Arnott- Production Designer

Louise Thomson- 1st AD

Andy- Boom Operator

Faye Blair- Production Assistant

Cast:

Axe Mungersdorf-Ruth

Arina Wright- Skippy

Day 1 went very smoothly. I met Axe again and Arina for the first time. I decided to do some blocking/ rehearsals with them so that they could get familiar with one another before we started to shoot. Axe knew the script well and Arina surprised me as she had only had 24 hours to prepare.

We filmed the back of diner scene today which I think was perfect for the actors to ease into these characters. Since Arina has a europen accent, we discussed that she would drop the scottish dialouge just so it felt more natural and not forced. Keeping some words like "hen" just so it felt relevant to the script and location.

Watching that burger scene unfold felt like really good and I thought the actors had a good dynamic. The entire set was very chill and everyone knew what they were doing. I think what made the day feel so grounded was the care everyone brought to the material. From set design nailing that oversized "Skippy" jacket to sound picking up every tiny shuffle and exhale, it felt like each department showed up fully.

Excited for Day 2!

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Dixieland Diary

Below are images of the diary prop:

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Dixieland Props/ Costume

Things like costume and certain props I had to source online due to time restrictions and lack of items in charity shops. This was a costly sacrifices to the budget which is not ideal but needed to be done in time for filming.

Other props I sourced from charity shops or made myself like a diary filled with Dixies entries, a clock, photo prints/ posters of elvis and a bullet board/ shrine board.

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Onion Shotlist

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Onion Moodboard

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Dixieland Character/Costume Board

This is the costume inpiration for Dixie, The Figure, and Gregory. I want costume to be vibrant and distinguish each character.

Charcters like Dixie and her school friends need to capture the adolecence of teenagers and their need to look older than they are. the school unifrom will be dishelved and altered to suit "fashion" trends between teens like loose ties and unbuttoned shirts.

Inspiration for the nun costumes comes from films like Ms.45 (1981) where a traditional nun costume is worn with embellishments like red lipstick and heavy makeup.

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Dixieland Moodboard

This pintrest board is some inspiration for Dixies bedroom and costumes.

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Onion Inspiration

This scene from Life is sweet (1990) has inspired blocking ideas.

Timestamp- 1:45:26 - 1:47:55

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Dixieland Pitch- 25/03/2025

Production Design is very important for this film. Not only are we trying to recreate 1970s Edinburgh, but we are also exploring the adolescent mindset of a teenage girl. The production design will establish the difference between the mundane reality of the world around Dixie and the heightened fantasy in her own space. The aesthetic will be a balance of muted, desaturated tones in spaces like the kitchen/living room and the school, while bursts of vibrant, flamboyant colours will fill Dixie's bedroom.

Dixies bedroom is a claustrophobic shrine to Elvis. Filled with posters, vinyl records and memorabilia, reinforcing her fixation. Meanwhile, Gregory’s home has cold, lifeless décor, which will symbolise his rigid and detached nature. The school cafeteria will feature dull institutional hues, while the party scene will be chaotic and vibrant, to match Dixies mindset.

Locations:

Feedback:

some feedback myself and the team recieved was the possible issue we will face if we try to set the film in the 1970's. Finding period accurate props and costumes with our £200 budget will be difficult so i might have some discussions with the team to see how we can resolve it. I know there is talks about changing it to modern times but we will see.

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Onion Pitch-25/03/2025

As a director, I took a lot of time and care into reading and understanding 'onion' My initial readthrough of the script left me with an intrigue to get to know more about these characters and their dynamic. After a few more reads I not only discovered the characters, but also a deeper meaning within the script. This story is not just about burgers and onions, but it is about survival, identity, and the little acts of kindness which remind us of our worth.

The small seemingly insignificant moments like a burger, a joke about onions, or screaming in a field may feel irrelevant or small but can hold so much power for someone who feels powerless. Skippy brings power out in Ruth.

Ruth and Skippy are opposites yet complement each other nicely. Ruth is raw, wounded and on the search to find herself. Skippy is proud, loud, and cares for Ruth deeply. She understands Ruths pain and tries to absorb it. their unlikely friendship is built on humour, intrigue, and an unspoken understanding of each other's pain.

I see Onion as a memory neither Ruth nor Skippy have forgotten. Their future is irrelevant and all that matters is each other's presence in that moment.

I find a personal connection with both characters and feel stories like theirs need to be told without tragedy being the focus point. The quietness of this film shows how scary and freeing vulnerability can be, even when shared between strangers.  That is why I believe in this films vulnerability, humour, and message of turning our pain into love for others and ourselves.

Inspiration:

I take a lot of inspiration aesthtically from films/ tv shows such as:

Life is Sweet (1990)

Blue Jean (2022)

The End of the F...ing World (2017)

Feedback:

Some feeback we recieved is to secure our location and think about how we can incorporate more scottish themes into the script (eg., through dialogue) as the lecturers feel it is a bit Americanised at the moment.

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Sound Concern

This is a video I took at the location reece to illustrate the sound issues we may face .