Nightfall poetically portrays people going through the routines and rituals at the end of their day. On the surface these tasks seem ordinary – brushing your teeth, scrolling on your phone, waiting for an Uber. But, the fleeting hours after the sun sets are sacred and universal, and through this film we seek to find a sense of transcendence in these otherwise “common” moments. Nightfall is a film that leans towards experimental, telling these stories through extended takes with no dialogue. Sound design and music function as supporting characters, emphasising the subtle emotions of our characters and representing the ominous pulse of a city that never sleeps.

Director’s Vision for ‘Nightfall’

Nightfall was an incredibly rewarding film to work on. We shot over the course of 4 evenings in Los Angeles with an agile and talented crew. I wanted to create a piece that felt both relatable and profound. I’m endlessly fascinated with trying to find beauty in the small moments of life and this film provided an amazing opportunity to do just that. Our approach was to capture scenes in extended takes using a long zoom lens, the goal was to capture moments without cuts. In the edit it can be daunting to see shots that are 30s long and I was constantly grappling with the fear of “boredom.” But, when you sit on a shot and watch it play out in real time it evolves, 15s seconds in it becomes a different shot than it was at the beginning. It also starts to change the perception of the activity, taking it from something mundane to profound and very human.