A look into existing post-apocalyptic films (Shorts & Features)

Brief analysis of various existing short films & features...

Over the summer I had a look at a number of existing post-apocalyptic/apocalyptic sci-fi style short films & features. 

Dypstopia (2016) - A short film by Joe Eastley

This film follows the story of one boy's struggle for survival as he is forced to "walk the ruins of humanity" (Eastley, 2016) after some catastrophic event of some kind wiped out most of the human race. The boy, whose name we don't know, lives a very nomadic life style in this post-apocalyptic earth. Throughout the film we see shots of him crossing out various places he's traveled to on a map. This would imply that he has nothing left to do other than explore what's left of the world, and this is made very clear through the dialogue and cinematography. Living under very extreme conditions, he also has to defend himself against hostile entities, such as fellow humans and scavengers.

The film was shot in 1 location and features a voice over of the character, yet still has very minimal dialogue as the protagonist hardly says anything. But thanks to his superb acting we were still able to work out his motives and feelings. 

Abandoned (2013) - A short film by Wes Palmer

This short follows the story of two brothers attempt to find their loved ones while being pursued by the military.

There isn't really much to go by as there's no backstory or synopsis to help us understand why the characters are in this place, at this time. All we know is that they are being hunted by the military.

The Waste (2014)- A short film by Aaron Lochert

The waste is a short film that follows the story of a man's fight for survival after some major catastrophic or apocalyptic event of some sort wiped out a considerable amount of the human race. The only humans that are left employ extremely desperate measures in order to survive, such as human trafficking.

This film is a textbook example of the 3 act structure in action: In the film we see the protagonist searching for food through a derelict house. Immediately his attention is drawn to a disturbance nearby (<<Inciting Incident), which happens to be a group of men violently escorting this young girl, who is cuffed, to some location.

The protagonist pursues the group of men and the young girl and tracks them to this nearby storage facility, which we see has been converted to some facility for the facilitation and running of the human trafficking business. (1st act turn)

This sudden revelation causes the protagonist to go and find anything he can to purchase this little girl in an attempt to free her, which he eventually does, but he is saddened because he later finds out that his best-friend was killed by members of the trafficking group (climax).

The resolution appears to occur in the final 20 seconds of the film when the little girl he saved brings the protagonist a Dog, which seems to have lifted his mood. Perhaps he can find solemn in knowing that he has some company now that his best-friend is gone.