Sleep Always (2002)

Recorded entirely on super 8 film, Sleep Always tells the story of a lonely and isolated Canadian jazz musician who forms a friendship with Nada, a strange homeless girl, and his growing obsession with her.

Directors:

Rick Palidwor, Mitch Perkins

Writer:

Rick Palidwor

Stars:

Ed Fielding, Laurie Maher, Fred Spek

Cast

Credited cast:
Ed Fielding	...	The neighbor
Laurie Maher	...	Nada
Fred Spek	...	Frank

Storyline

Working by day and playing jazz saxophone by night, Frank's isolation deepens when he becomes obsessed with the enigmatic figure of Nada - an alluring homeless girl. Intent on saving Nada from life on the street, Frank pursues the object of his social and sexual fantasy at all costs.

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Genres:

Drama

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Details

Official Sites:

Official site

Country:

Canada

Language:

English

Release Date:

7 December 2003 (USA)

Filming Locations:

Toronto, Ontario, Canada

Box Office

Budget:

CAD 60,000 (estimated)

Company Credits

Production Co:

Friendly Fire

Technical Specs

Sound Mix:

4-Track Stereo

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

One of very few films to be shot entirely on super 8 film, next to the films Mary Jane's Not a Virgin Anymore (1998) , Ozone: The Attack of the Redneck Mutants (1986) , Year of the Horse (1997) and The Manson Family (1997) . Super 8 film can be a difficult format to wok with as it was originally intended to be just home movie film for amateur filmmakers. A typical cartridge of super 8 film only records for three minutes, so Sleep Always is a technical achievement because of its over-an-hour length. The filmmakers recorded numerous scenes on different cartridges and later spliced them together. Super 8 film is a silent film stock as well, meaning that audio was matched up to the characters' lines and actions after recording.

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Soundtracks

Sleep Theme
by George Perkins

User Reviews

Masters of Super 8!

As many have already observed, Sleep Always is a brilliant technical achievement. The Super-Duper 8 format gives an affordable film stock the impressive look and feel of 16mm. In fact, I was floored when I found out this wasn't 16mm. The film also has seamless synchronized sound, which is often next to impossible to achieve with Super 8.

This on its own is impressive, but filmmakers Rick Palidwor and Mitch Perkins have also crafted a film perfectly suited to this format, the tale of a man, Frank, with a doomed obsession for a homeless woman, Nada. The actress who plays Nada, Laurie Maher, has a commanding on-screen presence. The character Frank is wonderfully meek, although somewhat grating at times. The chronology of events is deliberately skewed, adding interest to the way the characters interact. There is a definite disconnect from reality throughout film, creating a dream-like atmosphere, yet the characters are both familiar and real.

A film that should be required viewing for all independent film enthusiasts, hopefully Sleep Always will reach a wide audience over time and inspire others to work with this amazing new film format.