In the early 1990s, the film Ashes was being shot non-stop in Yulin, on the outskirts of the Gobi Desert, by Hong Kong director Wong Kar-wai.
On one particular day of filming a scene — 40 takes and counting — Mr Kar-wai periodically and composedly called out to his cinematographer, Christopher Doyle, “Is that the best you can do?”.
When asked about this encounter, Mr Doyle said he heard this question as a challenge.
“It should be the mantra for all people in the arts,” he said.
It certainly is for Leah Doyle (who is no relation to Mr Doyle).
Inspired by Mr Kar-wai’s ’90s films Fallen Angels and Chungking Express, Ms Doyle submitted her self-directed, shot and edited video, Brood, to the Shepparton Art Museum’s open youth art exhibition, SAM Fresh 2024.
“I didn’t think too much about it,” she said.
“I sent it off and forgot about it until I got the email saying I’d been selected ... that was insane to me.”
Being included in an exhibition is a first for Ms Doyle and many of the other 21 young artists from the Goulburn Valley and Hume regions.
Each piece in the collection possesses a unique method and message, with Brood residing in the mood-based realm.
The video takes viewers into the narrative of an adrift man trying to reconnect with someone from his past.
As he navigates spaces of gritty cityscapes, neon lights cut through the darkness, and the smoke of many, many cigarettes trails the protagonist.
“(The plot) centres on a situation where this person hasn’t been answering his calls, or they’re just ignoring him,” Ms Doyle said.
“He was really happy with them, but when he’s on the phone, he’s reaching out to say, ‘This is it, I don’t think I can do this any more’.”
This voice message is the only spoken word in the film, conveying one-sided communication.
To evoke feelings of melancholy and loss, Ms Doyle said she relied heavily on one of Mr Kar-wai’s techniques, step printing, which involved duplicating a single frame to create multiple frames.
The result is a slowed-down, almost jagged picture.
“It comes across as uneasy,” Ms Doyle said.
“The step printing effect occurs whenever he’s on the phone, and it looks like he’s almost taken back to where he was when he was on that phone, creating a sense of loss.
“Everyone has faced rejection and can relate to the feeling.
“It’s something to learn from, and rejection can be healthy.”
Beyond Mr Kar-wai’s work, Ms Doyle deeply appreciates films from non-English-speaking media, including French, Korean and Chinese, and believes others should hold space for them, too.
“People should look into watching a movie and not mind reading the subtitles because there are some really good stories out there that are not English-based,” she said.
Moreover, non-Western films provide a radical departure from the standard and act as a wellspring of inspiration, as they did for Ms Doyle.
“I get inspired by something, and I want to recreate it my way,” she said.
“In my mind, the vision of this film was almost to recreate his (Mr Kar-wai’s) work but in a Shepparton setting.”
Unlike Ashes, Brood was not made with 40-plus takes.
But the theory Mr Kar-wai held was inadvertently in Ms Doyle’s mind: Is this the best I can do?
“I feel like every creative or artist has that feeling about their work not being worthy enough or not good enough because you’re always so self-critical,” she said.
“I put a lot of pressure on myself but, at the same time, don’t expect much in return — I guess that’s why I kept pushing this hobby forward.
“This video, I’m actually really proud of.”
SAM Fresh 2024 is on display until Sunday, August 11, in the Hugh D.T. Williamson Community Gallery at Shepparton Art Museum, 530 Wyndham St, Shepparton.
The exhibition is open to the public.