Hold up, there’s a pinball machine, a puggle, a WWE wrestling belt, cult movie references and skateboarding? Halifax filmmaker Dave Hung has tapped into my deepest fantasies with his new short, Oddfellows, which screens this Friday at the Oddfellows premiere party at Pro Skates (6451 Quinpool Road). Produced by Our Dynasty, Our Destiny (ODOD), the swagged-out #Dartmouth team behind videos like “Mad Crack” and “GOiN HAMiLTON,” this four-minute story centres around a freaky version of Oddfellows Barbershop, the real barbershop located at Pro Skates run by Joel Martell, that takes us through the daydreams of a dog named Grady who, like many of us, just wants more out of life.
“It all started when Joel got the Flash Gordon pinball machine for the barbershop,” says Hung. He and Tyler Ross were trying to break pinball records when they realized that Martell’s little in-shop buddy had very human characteristics. “The idea came up to make Grady into this pushover with a shitty 9-to-5 desk job who sees an ad for Oddfellows and gets a haircut that changes his life,” says Hung, who says his first time filming with a dog was a challenge but the dog was “professional.” Plus, Oddfellows further refines Hung’s directorial style with its neon accents, 1980s cinematics and an unsettling atmosphere. “We wanted the barbershop to really stand out as bizarre and as ODOD,” he says, mentioning Office Space and Beetlejuice as influential moods, “There’s also a throwback character from Zach Tovey and Jason Eisener’s The Teeth Beneath, which has always been a big inspiration for me.”
Hung says the free premiere is going to be awesome: “We’re having a pinball tournament, a mini-ramp jam and we’ll screen some skate videos before the show.” And you can meet the star! “Grady’s going to be the next Ellen Page so come take selfies with him.” The short will also be released online on Saturday.
Watch it now!
ODDFELLOWS from Dave Hung on Vimeo.
