To Love a Ladybug Film Spotlight
Today’s film spotlight focuses on the short film To Love a Ladybug directed by Mikael Trench.
What is the title of your film and what inspired said title?
My film is called To Love a Ladybug. Originally, when the film’s concept was of a dying cockroach reflecting over his entire life, it was going to be entitled A Bug’s Death, which was partially meant to be a riff on the Pixar movie title. Once the concept changed to simply have him reflect on the relationship he had with the ladybug, the title obviously had to change, so I figured To Love a Ladybug would be the most appealing.
Tell us a little bit about the story and origins of your film.
The film tells the story of a dying cockroach in the alleyways of Paris who reminisces of the time he fell in love with a ladybug and what that relationship means to him during his final moments.
The idea, as mentioned previously, was originally going to have the cockroach reflect upon his entire life from birth to death. I came up with the idea as a teen while looking up at the light on my bedroom ceiling and seeing a cockroach that somehow got trapped in the light fixture and was frying underneath the light. All I was thinking about was what that bug was thinking about as it passed and if it made anything of its life while it had it. The first time I pitched it was for a project I was invited to work on by a friend in early 2019. The team really liked it, even though we ended up going with another idea instead. They recommended I pitch the idea for my senior film, which I did some months later and got a similar positive reaction, so I chose to focus my efforts on bringing the idea to life.
As the development phase went on, however, it was becoming difficult trying to nail down just how we were going to execute this insane vision. What parts of his life are most important to focus on? How would it be paced? Will this be too much to pull off? It was becoming way too overwhelming to make work for a short film, so I went back to the drawing board and tried stripping the film down to its basics to see if maybe there was a way to get the story across while keeping it manageable to execute. And what kept ringing in my mind was a section intended for the end of the film, where the cockroach would recall the time he fell in love with a ladybug after saving her from a threat and would share a sweet dance with her. Out of all the concepts for the film, it was the one I had strongest visualized, and I felt as though it would make the production far more feasible to pull off. Thus, we moved forward with that.
Any films or filmmakers that inspired this film?
While I didn’t have any particular films or artists in mind when originally conceiving the idea, there were definite inspirations that came to me as I continued on in development. For stop motion enthusiasts, the works of Ladislas Starevich may come in mind when hearing of the idea. Starevich was a pioneer in the realm of the medium as he created some of the very first notable stop motion films, including his genius 1937 dark comedy fantasy “The Tale of the Fox” (if you’re a fan of Wes Anderson’s stop motion films, this is of a similar taste), and before that, several short film subjects that utilized actual taxidermized insects that were modified for animation, most notably his 1912 short, “The Cameraman’s Revenge”. He has been one of my favorite stop motion artists for years and it’s hard to make any stop motion film staring insects without thinking of his influence.
Similarly, Adam Elliott, who has been one of my very favorite filmmakers since I was in high school, was an undeniable influence. His several shorts, such as Harvie Krumpet and his outstanding 2009 feature, Mary and Max, are amongst some of my very favorite movies ever. Elliott blends heavy dramatic elements and quirky comedy seamlessly to celebrate societal outsiders and oddballs, which I feel encapsuled a lot of what I was attempting to do as well.
While not a filmmaker, I’d be remiss if I didn’t mention the immense influence of singer Edith Piaf had on so much of the film. Originally in planning, I didn’t know where the film’s city setting would be set, but as I was doing research for the musical score while creating the storyboard animatic, I was swept away by Piaf and her powerful musical talents, particularly “La Vie En Rose,” which I used as temp music for the animatic. It was through her music that I chose not only to try getting a French sounding score, but to place the film in Paris as a means of emphasizing the love story aspect while playing with the irony of the main character being a nasty cockroach.
What is the goal of the film for you?
From a practical standpoint, I’m hoping the film opens doors for me as a filmmaker. I don’t see it as a flawless masterpiece by any means, but I feel as though it encapsulates a lot of who I am and like to see, as well as pushed me as a leader and artist. This was my first time working with a crew, many of whom I collaborated with on smaller projects before, but would love to link up and work with again down the road.
While I don’t feel that it’s anything deep, I hope that the film is able to reach out and move someone in a way they weren’t expecting. The world hates so many of us just for the way we were born, something none of us has the power to go about and change. And so it’s easy to hate the world back for throwing you such a card. But when you really take the time to sit down and look at all the blessings and joy that have or are coming your way, it’s easy to walk out with a whole new perspective. Here is a creature who is looked upon as lowly as it gets, who’s dying alone and cold in an alleyway. But all he can think of is the wonderful life he led and the beauty he experienced, so maybe it was all worth it at the end. It’s nothing especially profound, but in a world saturated with negativity, hate, and unfair comparisons to others, I’m glad I was able to add even a little something to this world that says something positive.
What has the journey been like getting the film into production?
Insane! Following the film’s troubled development phase, pre-production, production, and post provided seemingly endless challenges. Designs had to be completely altered, puppets malfunctioned while shooting, delays occurred, the sets had to be built while we were animating, extremely tricky scenes had to be reshot over the span of several weeks, we had to switch our shooting space to another room entirely at one point, and, oh yeah, there was a worldwide pandemic that complicated the post-production process. And that doesn’t even scratch the surface. I could probably write a series of novels on every stage of the process, from concept to post and the insanity that occurred. Keep in mind, I was also completing two other full-time courses, working two part-time jobs, and was President of a club that I was actively trying to take on a field trip at the time. Words can’t describe how nuts it was, but at the same time, myself and my team made the best out of it and had quite a bit of fun that made the experience ultimately worth it. It was somewhat nice that our school wasn’t as equipped to handle stop motion productions of that caliber, because we were sort of left to our own devices, which allowed us to be able to experiment some more and not have the pressure of too many others looking over our shoulders.
One thing you learned from this project?
Oh boy, where do I begin! I suppose if I were to state the most important out of the countless lessons learned from this project is to know when it’s time to rely on others, but always be prepared to dive in and do the work when you have to. As I stated before, this was my first time working on a film with a team, whereas before I was always a one man show with my films outside of maybe a few voice actors here or there. So, in a lot of ways, I entered the production with that mindset, but in doing so, I still needed to be open to the collaborative process, especially in animation. This meant hearing out ideas, taking suggestions, and knowing when to back away and let others do their work since they could do it way better than I could. At the same time, with so few people in the school who knew much about stop motion, I was still mostly running the show in just about every department and had to often jump in and complete tasks when others wouldn’t show up, which is generally how it goes with indie film. If you’re not 110% committed to see your vision come through, no one else will be, so you have to be ready to be more than just the person who shouts orders right off the bat.
How can folks find you and your film online?
The film has dropped on the YouTube channel for my new production company, TriClops Films, where you can also find a 35 minute long behind the scenes video diving into the film’s making into even greater detail, as well as the full soundtrack suite by Mariana Calegari.
Any last pieces of advice for fellow filmmakers?
It’s probably not the most original piece of advice out there, but if you’re still early in your career, do not be afraid of risks! This is the time to truly express yourself to your fullest extent when you have no one to look over you, no serious financial obligations to attend to, and no particular audience to serve. So many promising artists from my school with outstanding ideas for senior films ended up dropping there’s, feeling as though their ideas weren’t good enough or wanting more resources to make them better. While I wouldn’t advise to make a film if you’re genuinely not passionate about it, I feel as though so many aspiring young filmmakers are intimidated by the mountains of professionally made content and works being created now, that they feel their ideas aren’t worth sharing unless they can compete. If you’re a human being who has lived life and has thoughts in their heads, then guess what-YOU CAN! Filmmaking, art in general, is not at its core about who has the most flashy effects, the best sound, the biggest celebrities-it’s about you, and your voice, and what you bring to the table that no one else can. Access to the needed technology is easier than ever, so don’t get overwhelmed by all that technical junk. Ask yourself honest questions, give out honest answers, learn from your mistakes, and tell the most kick-ass story that the world isn’t ready for.
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