Yvette Farmer’s Hitchcock-Inspired Alien Mystery

Released this month, ‘Have Some Pride’ is short film style promo written and directed by Yvette Farmer, a truly Hitchcock-inspired alien mystery for the electro-pop duo ‘People Like You’.

Yvette immediately connected with the track and theme leading her to create a cinematic, narrative promo filled with obsession, referencing Hitchcock’s ‘Vertigo’ (1958), whilst at the same time playing with the audience’s perception of who is alien and who is human as the story unravels.  

“Visually, the mystery woman needed to stand-out like an escaped budgie as an exotic and colourful presence in the film. I was inspired for this by childhood my pet budgie.  It escaped, and the kids on the street told me it wouldn’t last long because the local birds, the starlings & sparrows, would attack it for being so foreign. That’s why the character’s hiding her bright yellow body under a beige coat…,” said Yvette Farmer

It was important for Farmer, that the film’s look referenced the Technicolor of Hitchcock’s films from this period and the work to achieve that started in wardrobe & art direction choices, choosing colours to ‘pop’ on screen and continued into the grade where she spent many hours achieving a close match.

Shot over 2 days at several locations in North London, this quirky film’s final location was set in the abandoned platform location was the site of Crouch End Railway Station.  The man sized ‘Spriggan’ sculpture by Marilyn Collins featured refers to a local urban legend, a ghostly 'goat-man' who apparently haunted the walk in the 1970s and 1980s. Local children playing out in the evenings would 'dare' each other to walk the Parkland Walk from the Crouch End Hill bridge to the Crouch Hill bridge in the darkness. The sculpture, and Parkland Walk generally, also provided the inspiration for Stephen King's short story "Crouch End".

Credits

Director - Yvette Farmer


Production Company – 4am Films


Exec Producer - Corin Taylor 


Producer - Liam Creighton
DP - Annette Remler

Label – Pschent Music

Featuring


MIBs - Adrienne Dennehy & Manuel Moutier aka People Like You


Mystery Woman - Anna Swan


Mechanic - Natan Barreto


Garage Boy - Leo Green

Casting Director - Sophie Dewey

Focus Pullers - Ryan Parkins, Sebastian Cort


2nd AC - Ozlem Akturk


Grip - Rupert van den Broek


DIT - Esrael Alem
Gaffer - Aaron Szogi


Sparks - Harry Gay, Sebastian Cort, Jonathan Tomlin, Mirco Valenza, Diana Olifirova


Art Director - Thomas Durrant
Stylist - Sara Polonghini


Make Up & Hair Artist - Ala Pangracova


Production Manager - Dave French


1st AD - Liam Creighton


2nd AD - Charlie Galustian


PA/ Drivers - Celia Watson, Kenny Douglas

Editor - Simon Brasse


Colourist - Belgin Kaplan


VFX - Dirk Riesenfeld, Ursula Prieto & Lukas Schwabe


Additional - Jan Daube & Andrea Dutti @ whambamproductions.com


Online - Jason Farrow