Kickstart Laura Point: The Film and Q&A with Writer/Director, Daniel Antebi

Co-written by Daniel Antebi

Former classmate and friend of mine, Daniel Antebi, and his award winning filmmaking crew have a vision… or rather a lack of one. With 10 days and 13,965 dollars left to go, they are attempting to raise money for a short film called Laura Point. The official synopsis reads:

“Laura Point is a thirty-something woman living in the heart of New York City. She’s headstrong, opinionated, and a tad selfish. But when she experiences the jolt of a lifetime—a diagnosis of retinitis pigmentosa, a disease which will slowly render her blind in less than a month—she is, for the first time in her life, caught off guard. We’ll be able to see how she wrestles with accepting her fate, as well as her resistance to accepting the support of those who love her. We all face challenges in dealing with our blind spots. This is Laura’s story.”

Rather than just bully you into helping Kickstart Laura Point, I talked to Daniel about his fascinating project and his overall motivation for making the film. The following Q and A section is transcribed from an audio chat that I had with Daniel:

David:

Hi Daniel. Let’s jump right into questions now. Q: So would you say this film is being made more to establish yourself as a filmmaker or to make a statement about blindness?

Daniel:

A: For me, this film is not about establishing myself as a filmmaker or even to reveal facts about blindness that people do not understand. This story is just another story I needed to tell. Something that I felt compelled to reach inside myself and pull out. I think those are the greatest stories to be told.

David:

I absolutely agree. We need more of those good storytellers these days. Q: So another thing that I was wondering was how did you get acquainted with some of the people in your award-winning crew?

Daniel:

A: I met Cary about three years ago. I had an internship with a filmmaker named Michael Morgenstern and I was helping him network his short film and shooting a couple of music videos. One day, his friend needed a cameraman for shooting a little comedy thing and I went. So I went and I met this guy, Cary Woodworth, and we became really close. He read my script for another film we did together that was terrible (pauses), but he believed in me for some reason. Cary and I stayed in touch and he really mentored me.

David:

Q: So before I ask my next question, I was wondering if it’s ok that I mention that you’re starting your first year at the TISCH program at NYU? Assuming that is ok, does the fact that you are 19 years old and have not even started college make this project seem daunting or does it take away from the film?

Daniel:

A: I’m totally cool with you mentioning my age and how I am going to college this year. The fact that I am leading a crew that has been to Cannes and to TriBeCa and that in a way. For me right now, this is my biggest project to date and I am learning even more every day.

David:

Q: Is there anything in particular you plan to do next after Laura Point?

Daniel:

A: I like to think about one thing at a time most of the time [regarding future film projects]. Cary [Woodworth] talked to me about making this a feature film and I actually turned him down on that. But who knows? Maybe this could end up being a feature film one day?

David:

Who knows? Q: So my next question is who or what are some of your film influences for Laura Point?

Daniel:

A: I love the film, Mar adentro (Original Spanish title for the 2004 film, The Sea Inside), starring Javier Bardem. Mar adentro is about a man who is paralyzed from the neck down. You really got a sense of how Bardem’s character was feeling. There is a moment in the film where Bardem’s character wants to commit suicide and his fingers were close to the fingers of the woman he loves and she asks him why he wants to commit suicide. His response is, “Because the inches between our fingers are miles I cannot walk” or something along those lines. That was beautiful to me. I thought, “Wow! I really feel his struggle.” That is another example of feeling someone’s struggle and really sympathizing with that person even when you could never imagine going through what they did. I want to give people that sense of emotion with Laura Point.

David:

Q: Are there any other films that you can automatically think of that inspired you?

Daniel:

A: One of my favorite films immediately comes to mind, which is Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind. Through shots where the audience sees what Jim Carrey’s character, Joel, is seeing and the montages of moments throughout life and generally the fact that memories overlap each other, we feel what Joel is feeling. I loved that. I love when a filmmaker helps the audience feel exactly what a character is feeling.

David:

Those are two great influences. Eternal Sunshine is a favorite of mine. Q: Now just moving back a bit, I know how you met Cary, but how about the rest of your crew?

Daniel:

A: Cary connected me with Lucinda Rodgers, the lead actress of the film. She really has a passion to connect with the characters and she is brilliant at it. I met Ben Liu, who is one of our lead producers. He is really great and he’s been on the ball. We’ve also got Jing Wang [one of the film’s producers] and Yi Feng. It’s an assortment of people who are fantastically talented. One of the people I’m very excited to work with is Ming Kai [Leung], he is our cinematographer. You can look him up [here], he is on our website. He is beyond brilliant.

David:

Sounds like you have a great crew. Q: So moving on, in what ways would you say that the character of Laura Point is unique?

Daniel:

A: She [Laura Point] is really difficult, determined, and in a way, neurotic. These kinds of characters are the most interesting and unique of characters. She isn’t happy. We don’t fall in love with her because she is a great person. We fall in love with her and really get to know her because of her struggle.

David:

Q: Is there anything else that you want to mention that makes your film particularly unique?

Daniel:

A: Another thing that I think makes this film [Laura Point] unique is its pacing. In many ways, it is the classic three act structure: the hook, the climax, etc. But I toy with the audience and what they expect to see. Another facet that I play with which I think is huge are POV (Point of View) shots. As the character goes blind, so does the audience as they see her blindness through point of view shots where it would slowly fade to vignette. I also think that strong female characters are very underused. I think that strong female characters are phenomenal to watch. There are too many films that do not have enough strong female characters and could really benefit from them.

David:

Sadly, film as a medium is not as equal in terms of gender as it should be. But it is up to filmmakers like you to create strong female characters. Well Daniel, it’s been great talking to you and I wish you the best of luck on the rest of your funding and production on Laura Point.

Daniel:

Thanks David.

For more information on Laura Point, I highly recommend checking out its Kickstarter page, Facebook page, or website. By clicking on the hyperlinks throughout this article, you can check out the Kickstarter page. Click here to check out the film’s Facebook page. Click here to check out the film’s website.