For two days during Göteborg Film Festival, Gothenburg Film
Studios invites festival participants to "Open Set." Film enthusiasts
can follow the work on set, and also get an insight into post-production
work.

On my visit, I am drawn into the filming of stunt scenes.
Director Torbjörn Martin and his crew are in the middle of filming a
short film
with emphasis on stunt work. A stunt actress playing a laboratory
researcher is
about to swing through the air with the help of strong wires. A monster
that
has been trapped in a box has managed to get out and is now chasing the
woman.
It's an intense psychological thriller.

A big crowd has gathered to watch the scene, and when later
on I sit down with Martin, I ask him what it was like to direct in front
of a
live audience.

"This was my first experience directing in front of an
audience. It was very intimate. I even had audience members coming with
suggestions for the scene," he says.

Were you distracted?

"I'm very tough on myself to begin with. And naturally I
felt some pressure to ‘perform' as the director in front of the
audience. Not
only to direct, but to ‘be' the director so to say. But it was a great,
interesting experience."

Martin grew up in an artistic family and has a background in
directing commercials and music videos. Since three years, he works
in-house as
a director at Stark Film & Event AB in Göteborg.

His goal is to direct feature films, and he is currently
writing a feature script together with a writing partner - a
psychological
thriller. And he has already directed some short films.

"You learn so much by directing commercials," Martin
emphasized. "The technique, the graphics - you have to be good at that
to
direct commercials."

Next, it's time for post-production work on the stunt film.
Martin estimates that the short film will be ready to show in about two
weeks.
He smiles when I say I can't wait to see it!

Solveig Haugen

Correspondent, filmfestivals.com