Life- A Mud Pie - Trailer - 2016

Format: Trailer

Role: Director, Director of Photography, Editor

Duration: 1 minute

Tools Used: Final Cut Pro

Director: Jonathan Duffy

Production Company: 10 Finger Theatre

Broadcaster / Platform: YouTube, Marketing Materials, Press Kits, Festival Applications, Grant Applications

Project Overview:
This trailer was created for Lífið (Life, a Mud Pie), a highly visual children’s theatre production with no spoken dialogue, designed for both Icelandic and international audiences. The theatre company needed an English-language trailer they could use for marketing, press outreach, festival submissions, and grant applications. After attending a live performance to understand the structure and tone, I returned with a small crew to capture the full show across two cameras. Using the production’s soundtrack, I crafted a short trailer that highlights the show’s charm, physicality, and playful narrative without revealing all of its surprises.

Recognition:

The trailer was used extensively by the theatre company as part of their marketing efforts, press kits, and international festival submissions. It became a key tool for presenting the show to English-speaking programmers and successfully supported the company’s outreach and funding applications.

My Contribution:

  • Directed the trailer and defined the overall visual and editorial approach.

  • Worked with one assistant and shot the entire performance using a two-camera setup.

  • Selected and shaped the narrative arc of the trailer to appeal to families, educators, festival programmers, and arts presenters.

  • Integrated pull quotes to highlight critical appeal and family-friendly value.

  • Used the show’s full soundtrack to choose music that matched the pacing and emotional tone.

  • Completed editing, colour grading, and titles, delivering a polished promotional asset.

Creative / Technical Notes:

  • Capturing a no-dialogue show required focusing on rhythm, physical expression, and dynamic staging.

  • Two-camera setup ensured enough coverage to build a trailer with narrative flow without restaging scenes.

  • Editing prioritised movement, colour, and audience-friendly pacing.

  • Balance between revealing visual highlights and preserving surprises for paying audiences.

  • Trailer crafted to meet the needs of multiple uses: marketing, grants, festivals, education sector outreach.

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