Shooting a film in a single location is one of the bigger challenges for a writer-director, even a short film. However, this limitation also creates an opportunity to think outside the box. When these productions are successful, the location really becomes a backdrop to something bigger, wilder, and unrestricted by four walls.
In Ticky Tacky, Guatemalan-born Oscar Isaac plays Lucian, a wealthy man-of-leisure, who has hired a Yahoo-drinking gumshoe to spy on his girlfriend. When the pre-pubescent P.I. presents Lucian with compromising photos of his honey, Lucian resolves to exact his revenge — even if it means taking out Santa. The short takes place in Lucian’s book-lined and oak-furnished office over the course of three days. The lighting is nice and moody, and there some crafty, deep-focus, moving long takes that manage to stay sharp.
Overall, the film is tonally ambivalent, which keeps us reveling in the absurdist fun. The best part is the performances, with Isaac drawing the laughs while staying fully committed to a pretty fucking idiosyncratic character. Writer-director Brian Petsos met Isaac several years ago and they immediately bonded. As the two have remained friends, Isaac became involved in the early stages of development.
Currently, Isaac is starring in the much-anticipated Star Wars: The Force Awakens where he plays x-wing pilot Poe Dameron. Watch Isaac hit the short vowels and roll his double Rs in this recently dropped Spanish-language trailer. In addition, Variety announced last month that Isaac will be playing a Guatemalan man who solves his own murder from the grave. Titled A Foreigner, the film will be directed by Alfonso Gomez-Rejón.