After his father’s unexplained death, Michael searches for anything that he can restore as a distraction. He discovers an old broken doll left behind by his late father.
This discovery is the beginning of the pain Michael has to go through. Something evil lurks as he restores the doll. Michael has no option but to confront the very being that is linked to his father’s death.
Director’s Vision for ‘Delora’
The main core of this idea is about what a father would leave behind when he passes away. What are the words he would of said if he was alive. I followed this core into developing a short piece in which the main character, Michael, has an odd job that his father didn’t approve of. That is very much how I feel. The desire for my father to express he is proud of what I do.
In order to execute this idea, I combined the angle of an antique doll restoration artist and a creepy doll. The choice is influenced by some previous films I have watched such as Annabelle. At the time, I used whatever resource I had in my home, which is a prop doll I used from an old film project years ago.
I had taken a short three years hiatus, partially due to COVID pandemic and figuring out my next chapter in life. The storytelling itch came back and I knew I had to do something. Being this was my first short in a while, I wanted to keep it within my means. I discussed with the DP on playing with interesting shot compositions and lighting. It all ended up to be a one day shoot. I am incredibly proud of how it turned out and the work the team put in. I enjoyed every second of the process.
