This is what it's all about:
LARP is a hobby where you slip into the roles of chosen characters and dress, speak and behave like them. It is something between pen & paper role-playing and improvisational theatre, without an audience. These larpers play in a predetermined setting with a plot that leaves plenty of room for unforeseen events and surprises. The players rarely fall out of their roles.
We are organising a larp convention for our documentary and will follow the players on their adventures with the camera:
The year is 1013 after the Enlightenment in the fantastic empire of Cendara. A medieval world that serves as the roleplay basis for a Swiss fantasy larp campaign that has been running for several decades. This story follows several players as they travel to northern Grünenwald to follow an abbot’s call for help. The sect of Pekar’s Witnesses has been wreaking havoc in unsupervised Keyptur for some time and is now demanding a ransom for an inquisitor who has fallen into their clutches. Rescuing the Inquisitor has top priority! There are also secrets surrounding Pekar’s witnesses that are just waiting to be revealed. Our protagonists follow the abbot’s call. Characters played by participants in the larp. How the game will actually turn out remains uncertain. Through the documentary medium, the freedom of action of the larpers can be captured and narrated. Will they secure the handover or fail the challenge?
Project description:
The production of the film mainly comprises of the two days of shooting on which the larp convention takes place. The experiences of three selected protagonists take center stage for us and should result in a classic story arc, similar to fictional feature films. The dramaturgical structure of the plot and the players’ freedom of action in this combination will ensure a cinematic experience that goes far beyond the boundaries of the usual documentary film. In addition, the characters comment on the events in interview situations.
All participants of the larp will be briefed that this is a documentary film. Nevertheless, everyone should behave as if it were a normal larp convention. In order to maintain immersion as much as possible, the crew will consist of a maximum of five persons and will be dressed appropriately for the larp. Immersion breaks on the part of the players are nevertheless part of the game, which makes for humorous scenes and deliberately draws attention to the boundaries between fantasy storylines and documentary film-making.
We need support for this:
In order to be able to cover the production costs we need financial support for our project. It is important to us to be able to pay all crew members, including technical equipment, as well as those involved in post-production, whether in editing or sound design, a fair wage. Of course, an original score is also essential to provide a musical accompaniment to the epic events.
We are Colin and Lilith. We are just as enthusiastic about documentary film as we are about the genre of medieval fantasy. We want to utilise our shared enthusiasm and combine these supposed opposites. As members of the core team of the Documentary Film Festival in Brugg, we are all too familiar with the genre and are constantly working on the subject. Neither of us are unfamiliar with filmmaking. With experience in the film industry, a broad knowledge of documentary film and a great love for larp, we want our documentary film to convey our enthusiasm for this fantastic hobby to the audience in an immersive and as yet unknown way.
