Silent Protest

Sep 10

Silent Protest is a family drama about the conflict between the overwhelming longing for intimacy and the inability to communicate for love in an Asian Canadian family. It tells a bittersweet story of a young boy Ethan putting on a silent protest and doing everything to sabotage his mother’s plan of moving away after his parent’s divorce.

The film focuses on portraying character’s different emotional and relationship statuses through deliberate framing, blocking, and lighting. It seeks to emphasize the emotional distance between parent and child by utilizing longer focal lengths and juxtaposing the character with each other and the environment. The striking color varies from scene to scene directly correlates to the protagonist’s mood and implicitly reflects the interpretation of the ‘moment,’ setting an overarching tone for the film.

Silent Protest is the first fictional short film that John directed in association with York University, the Faculty of Film. It was made under the mentorship of award-winning filmmaker Tereza Berta, with generous production grants provided by SIM Camera and SIM Lighting.

The film is currently running for festivals.

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Key Creatives

Director/ Writer: Xu Tan
Cinematographer: Hayden Gallager
Production Manager: Desiree Falco
1st Assistant Director: Andrew Lai
Editor: William Farser
Sound: Kendra Howden
Art: Antonia Sinn / Shian Grace

John Tan

Silent Protest

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