SOFT VS WASP

SOFT vs WASP

Soft is a short film directed and written by Simon Ellis and is about a father who is forced to confront his fears at the worst possible time in front of his own son who he poses as a role model to. The film’s genre is social realism because of the many realistic aspects of society that occur during the film. Crime is also one of the genres due to youth delinquents causing terror to a vulnerable family. Themes that occur around this film are fear, anguish, hate, terror and humility. These themes are explored throughout the film and the director embraces them to create tension and a sense of unease for the viewer.

Wasp is also a short film however directed and written by another producer, Andrea Arnold, who has also directed another film in the same genre that’s extremely similar to Soft and Wasp; which is Fish Tank. Wasp is about a mother who lives in poverty, struggling to look after her children as a single parent. However an old potential lover enters her life, which forces her into a situation where she constantly has to choose the priority over him or her children. Both short films are very similar in regard to the genre of social realism and the reoccurring themes.

However what’s  to take note of is the technical and visual codes in wasp. The big difference in both films and what I especially liked is how the editor used the visual effects of the insects to create symbolism of how the children are no different than insects trying to survive off of food left over on the street. This technique was employed extremely well because it contrasts and teaches the audience how poor some people are in England.