My Films and Projects

Rory Dean, 16mm Bolex, JFK University

If you’ve spent any amount of time at Above the Line, you’ve discovered that along with being a film enthusiast who has watched literally thousands of movies, I am also a filmmaker.  Like a lot of filmmakers, my first film was a film; 8mm, in fact, and I shot it with my wife in the early 90s back when video cameras were simply not affordable or available to the masses.  Today you can’t shake a stick without hitting some new cell phone or microwave oven that doesn’t include video capture capability.  After sending my two-minute masterpiece to the lab to be developed and eagerly waiting for it to return, I got hooked on the smell and feel of celluloid and quickly picked up a super 8 camera and continued my fascination with ‘making movies’.

My first video camera was a $1,000 Sony Hi-8 ‘Handy-Cam’, model CCD-TR600 that I still have and yes, it still works.  I have 30 or 50 tapes in my archive that I look back on lovingly, and only just revisited some material for the documentary I’m working on that needed to be transfered and low and behold, I was embracing the warmth of analog tape all over again.  With a handful of different cameras, formats, and codecs behind me, not to mention an ecclectic library of films and videos, I completed an MFA in Motion Pictures & Television in 2007 and thus, here I am.

With all things being equal, here is a list of some of my projects with links where possible and appropriate.

I will be updating this page to include pictures, posters, trailers and additional links – please stay tuned.

Now I lay me Down to Sleep, experimental short,1994, super 8mm
Experimental black & white, short subject silent film.

Shark in my Head, experimental short, 1995, 1-chip, SD Video
A short dramatic video collage, an experimental narrative about the affects of industrialization on the psyche of an artist and her eventual artistic response.

Glory, dramatic short, 1996, Hi8 SD Video
An athlete experiencing recurring nightmares about a tragic accident is forced to confront his biggest fears and the awful truth behind his dreams.

Come Inside, dramatic short, 1998, Hi8 SD Video
With the help of a friend, a young woman confronts her adulterous husband with lasting consequences.

La Phantom, dramatic short, 2002, 3-chip, SD Video
When a young woman decides to get away from a hectic life, she leaves behind reality and enters a secluded forest where she meets a spirit who shows her the secret life of her dreams.

Counterfeit, dramatic short, 2002, 3-chip, SD Video
The self-portrait of a young man searching for meaning one rainy day in Central California.

Ansuz: Drawing from the Well, live performance, 2003, 3-chip, SD Video
A live performance involving free-form dance, drumming, and rituals held at JFK University in Berkeley, California.

Irreconcilable, dramatic short, 2004, Hi8, 1 & 3-chip, SD Video
Recently homeless, Jack must heal old wounds in order to reconnect with his estranged daughter before time runs out.

Mikvah, live performance, 2004, 3-chip, SD Video
A live, solo theater performance involving music and ritual, memory and themes of Motherhood.

Askance, dramatic short, 2004, 3-chip, SD Video
A successful executive must come to terms with his adulterous wife before her love interest makes him an offer he can’t refuse.

Jour de gris (Gray Day), photo montage, 2005, 35mm photography
The day in the life of a young woman who unwittingly becomes the victim of her own nightmare.

Very Light Changes, fantasy short, 2005, 16mm color film
“Every spirit needs a lift”

Just Before Over, dramatic short, 2005, 16mm black & white film
A misdirected young girl confronts her concerned grandmother for the last time with severe consequences that force her to examine her life from another perspective.

The Way We Say Goodbye, dramatic short, 2006, 3-chip, 24p NTSC Video
The Way We Say Goodbye is a story about the allusion of friendship between two Bay Area thirty year olds stuck in the malaise of their lives.

The Rail Yard, filmed stage play, 2006, 16mm color film
A filmed stage play about the beginning and the end of a volatile relationship that requires one young woman to face her demons in order to move on with her life.

Once Beautiful Past, dramatic short, 2007, HD Video
A reclusive father facing a progressive illness must come to terms with his self-interested girlfriend in order to reconnect with his estranged daughter before time runs out.

La Maniere Que Nous Disons Au Revoir, “The Way We Say Goodbye”: A young man in a dead-end job takes in an unlikely roommate but soon realizes there is more to their relationship than expected as a failed robbery attempt, an unsuccessful romance and past indiscretions threaten to bring their world crashing down around them.

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