"School Bus Friends" a coming of age short film

Brought to you by the creative team behind “Lights, Camera, Perth!” and “Uploaded.” Both of which have been accepted to the 2024 Revelation Film Festival.

Synopsis:

Martin gets on the bus for his first day at his new school. Though he is anxious, his nerves quickly part as he meets Sofie who wastes no time to welcome him. Despite the two not being in the same grade at school, their interactions on the school bus form a flourishing friendship that lasts a lifetime, surviving distance and changing circumstances.

Theme:

The story revolves around those nostalgic friendships we had in our highschool years and as we all go our separate ways in life, these friendships slowly fade. The film explores the bittersweet nature of growing up and drifting apart, serving as a reminder of life’s natural progression and how relationships change over time.

Aesthetic:

To reinforce the feeling of reminiscence we want to set the story in the past. We want to capture West Australian culture in the 80s and 90s to connect with all types of audiences. Visually, we plan to feature a film aesthetic using grainy textures, warm lighting and retro colour tones. We also plan to use music and sounds that are reminiscent of that era, adding another layer of nostalgia and allowing us to widen our audience to those who experience the same era first hand.

Director Statement:

School Bus Friends… I think everyone has one, though you might not know what it means. The premise of this film comes from a personal friendship of mine. In high school, I took a bus to school from Abbotsford to Langley in British Columbia. Close to a 40km trip, and almost always experiencing traffic, this trip often took close to an hour. I had several friends on this bus but let me tell you about the particular friendship that inspires this film.

The friendship was with a girl in the grade below me. We never had class together, weren’t in the same church, so never had church together, and our friend groups didn’t intersect, so we didn't interact with each other in a friend group either. The only time we interacted was on the school bus. We had similar interests and often had deep conversations. After I graduated, I moved down to California, then back to Australia. Because of the inevitability of adulthood and the distance it brings to friendships in high school, we ended up seeing each other’s lives unfold on Instagram.

That’s the premise, the dynamics of the relationship, however, is much more inspired by the friendship between my wife and her friend. They have been friends for about a decade and became close when they were in high school. Though for them, the more accurate descriptor would be ‘church friends.’ Sofie is very much inspired by the energetic and eclectic nature of my wife.

‘School Bus Friends’ shows the inevitable distance that time brings to friendships. But it also shows that this is not a bad thing. We are all on our own path and friendships will have their hills and valleys, closeness and distance, but in the end, we will always have the memories of the life we lived and the people we met along the way.

Producer Statement:

When Aren first approached me with the script, I was immediately hooked on the relatability of the characters and the nostalgic portrayal of friendships we form during our high school years. My "school bus friend" was more like a "school handball friend." As a fairly quiet kid in high school, Handball was a way for me to express myself and an opportunity to bond with friends. I remember a time where I would eagerly awaiting lunch breaks, not just for the chance to relax, but for the excitement of playing handball.

There was one person in particular that was always down to play a game of handball and our friendship grew from those lunchtime matches. However, this same year, my friend had to move to the other side of the country. We exchanged messages occasionally, but over time, it eventually came to an end. Since then, we haven't communicated. Recently, I saw a photo he posted on Instagram and it brought back nostalgic memories of our handball games. This is the impression I want to leave on the audience as they experience this film.

The film's story, though centering on a school bus friendship, captures the same essence of those shared moments and friendships that grow from them. It resonates because it reflects a common experience and explores the bittersweet nature of growing up and drifting apart. It's a reminder of the natural progression of life and the ways relationships change over time, and on the other hand, celebrates friendships no matter how big or small they are.

BUDGET GOAL: $5000

Cast and Crew: 20.00% ($1,000.00)

Our cast and crew will be spending countless hours working towards Aren’s vision and making it come to life. To ensure each person is compensated for their vital roles, we need $1000.

Costume/Makeup: 9.00% ($450.00)

To give the illusion of a past time in Australia, we need $450 to dress our cast!

Equipment: 20.00% ($1000.00)

For hiring extra specialised equipment to help Aren's vision come true from a technical aspect, we will need $1000.

Catering: 6.00% ($300.00)

Feeding your crew correctly is always the first step to ensuring a good morale and comfortable environment on your set. In order to correctly feed and take care of our crew we are seeking $300.

Production Design: 13.00% ($650.00)

Just like past era Australian costumes we also need props! Due to this, it is going to require a fair amount of money to make sure that we get all of the supplies needed. We are needing $650 in order to make that happen!

Locations: 12.00% ($600.00)

As you can imagine, we need locations to shoot at! And most of the time it will come with a fee. In order to secure locations, our goal is to have $600.

Festivals: 20.00% ($1000.00)

To show off to the world how amazing we are, we need to show people our hard work. We need $1000 to have a successful festival run.