The Balloon Shipment
Abstract
The Balloon Shipment is a feature-length screenplay that utilizes surrealist and absurdist methods of storytelling to create a unique narrative experience. The script blends elements of black comedy, twisted logic, and surreal imagery. Techniques such as associative thinking, unlikely juxtapositions, and irrational logic are prevalent throughout the script. The Balloon Shipment attempts to balance these more experimental methods with a convergent narrative structure. This type of structure interweaves disparate stories that tie together by the end of the script.
The central storyline is built around Hodgeworth, an eccentric entrepreneur, who has devised a way for balloons to ship themselves by utilizing wind currents. Hodgeworth discovers that one of his laboratories has just invented the cigarette as a lung-strengthening tool for firefighters. He is so enamored with this discovery that he takes his close associate, RHM, with him on a mission to seek out new inventions.
From the very beginning, the story consistently takes unexpected turns. At a moment's notice, the story may delve deeper into a character through a series of flashbacks. At other times, it may follow characters that are unimportant to the overall plot, but have an interesting story to tell. The events that comprise this story are as diverse as snowflake microphotography, coughing fits, impending dust storms, vomiting inflictions, and tea dreams. This method of tangential storytelling creates a nontraditional narrative experience.
Notes
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Thesis Completion
2005
Semester
Spring
Advisor
Johnson, Mary
Degree
Bachelor of Fine Arts (B.F.A.)
College
College of Arts and Sciences
Degree Program
Film
Subjects
Arts and Sciences -- Dissertations, Academic; Dissertations, Academic -- Arts and Sciences; Motion picture plays
Format
Identifier
DP0021895
Language
English
Access Status
Open Access
Length of Campus-only Access
None
Document Type
Honors in the Major Thesis
Recommended Citation
Blatman, Andrew, "The Balloon Shipment" (2005). HIM 1990-2015. 443.
https://stars.library.ucf.edu/honorstheses1990-2015/443