For English senior Naveen Singh, the film he and interdisciplinary humanities senior John Versical are working on is not a completely profound work of art fit to engage the intelligence of the audience. He just wants to get some laughs.
“I could be really pretentious and say that not only will this movie entertain beyond belief, but that it is a brilliantly scathing critique on the state of love and relationships in the college world,” Singh said. “I’m joking. I just hope that, for 10 minutes, we will be able to make people laugh and forget about the worries around them, at least until the movie is over.”
The plot, developed by Singh, follows a random night in the life of a very “unlucky” college student named Joe who decides to go to the grocery store and finds himself in the produce section.
“The only other person in the grocery store is a young, somewhat mysterious woman who decides to mess with Joe’s imagination when she notices him peering at her,” Versical said. “She kisses a cantaloupe somewhat randomly, and he falls into a sort of trance. After purchasing the very same cantaloupe later and bringing it home, the nightmare begins. The cantaloupe comes to life later that evening and after a long, drawn-out struggle, kills Joe when he mistreats it.”
And, Singh said, this is the vague but true plot he developed after Versical approached him, asking if he would be willing to write a short comedy script for him with the initial intention of airing it on public access television or campus television.
“His only criteria was that the main character must be defeated by an everyday, inanimate object,” Singh said. “So, I had the idea for the script and use of the cantaloupe as the ‘villain,’ so to speak. I guess if the movie fails to please audiences, then I would get the brunt of the blame.”
Last week, the two student filmmakers began filming the short comedy, called “I, Cantaloupe,” shooting the beginning grocery store scenes at L&L Food Centers using equipment borrowed from Jim Jabara, a nature photographer and cinematographer who owns and operates Our Small Planet Productions, 201 1/2 E. Grand River Ave.
Jabara, a 1978 MSU graduate, has actually worked with many students in the past.
“I have been working with students for years,” Jabara said. “This time we’re making this short film and hopefully it will be an award-winning production and will entertain audiences.
“John actually helped me put a roof on my house this summer in exchange for my help,” he said. “He is absolutely committed to this project, as are many other people, including myself.”
Versical and Singh both said a lot of their thanks go to Jabara for his help.
“We have already completed our grocery store scenes at L&L Food Centers and are currently shooting all of the Joe’s apartment scenes,” Versical said. “Most low-budget films are shot on digital today, but with the kind assistance we have got from Jim, we have been able to shoot with the superior quality of super 16 mm cameras.”
The two filmmakers pride themselves on the originality of their movie, and they said expectations are getting higher every day.
“Our short-term plans are to have the film ready by the deadline for the East Lansing Film Festival,” Singh said. “Beyond that, I would like to see it on Web sites that cater to short films, like ifilm.com. A submission to the more underground Slamdance Film Festival for next year is also on my mind, among other things.”
Although Versical believes the true success of the film will rely on how well it is received by audiences, both believe it will, inevitably, be successful at MSU.
“Halfway through production, we all predict it will cause some good laughs,” Versical said. “If nothing else, it will prove to prospective film students that the talent, resources and drive to make movies exists at MSU.”
