The Politics of Art & Authenticity

Mark Osborne’s short film, MORE, was amazingly done. This six-minute film took Osborne nine months to finish it. It took so much effort and time to put this piece together. The grey civilians were very detailed. One can see the bags under the eyes of the main character. It must have been very difficult and time-consuming to make every single factory worker move in multiple frames. Although there is a somber mood throughout the story, I would definitely recommend seeing this film because of Osborne’s brilliant artistry and it has an important message.

The main character in the beginning of the short film was a lowly worker creating “Happy” products for an oppressive boss. Everything in this world was grey and dull. He wanted to make people see the world in a new blissful way. He used his imagination and the magic inside of him to create “Bliss”, an invention that can change the way one views this dull world into lively and colorful one.

Even though the main character became wealthy and was considered the greatest inventor ever, he became this tyrannical person like his former boss. He loses himself and the magic that was inside him is now gone. His original intentions of the “Bliss” product have been overshadowed by fame and money. This product creates a virtual dynamic world through a pair of lens.  However, reality doesn’t change; the world is still gloomy and people are still unhappy. It only creates bliss temporarily.

The message the creator was trying to convey was that no one could buy happiness. It isn’t something one can obtain in a box. At the end of the short film, it shows children who are having fun on the merry-go-round. It is odd how the children are colorful in a grey world. This symbolizes youth and joy from such a simple object. Melodramatic music is played throughout the film. Whenever the clips of the children on the merry-go-round show, laughter will play. The creator wants to show that as one gets older, they lose their happiness. The short film gives off this depressing vibe of inevitably growing up and ending up being someone you once hated.