Waiting for the first train
The train was cancelled. We filmed the waiting instead.
Eleven seconds on an empty platform, waiting for a train that did not come. We filmed it on a Sunday morning in a town where nobody takes the first train.
Chapters
- 0:00 Platform
- 0:05 Nobody waiting
Empty places
Some places are only interesting when they are empty. A station platform is built for crowds. Without them, it becomes a set: long lines, repeated shapes, and a very clear sense that something is supposed to happen here and is not happening.
We went to film the first train arriving. It was cancelled, and there was nobody to tell us. So we filmed the waiting instead.
Symmetry
The shot is almost symmetrical: the camera sits in the centre of the platform, level, at eye height, looking down the tracks. Symmetry makes a place feel still and a little strange, which is why it appears so often in films about loneliness and waiting.
At 0:05, a person walks into the far end of the frame. We did not plan them. They were the only other person on the platform, and they were also waiting for a train that was not coming.
We set out to film a train arriving. We came back with a film about waiting. The second one is better.
Theo Brandt
Notes
| Setting | Value |
|---|---|
| Lens | 35 mm |
| Height | 1.6 m (eye level) |
| Frame rate | 25 fps |
| Sound | Platform ambience, two announcements removed |
We removed the announcements from the sound because they gave away the town. What is left is the hum of the lights, a pigeon and the wind along the tracks.
The person at the end of the platform
We never spoke to them. They stood for about twenty minutes, checked their phone, looked down the track, and left before we did. We have thought about them more than is reasonable since then. Every film has a moment you did not plan, and the best thing a filmmaker can do is notice it and keep the camera running.
Why eleven seconds
Waiting is hard to film because waiting is long, and a long film about waiting is a test of the viewer's patience. Eleven seconds is enough to feel the emptiness of the platform, notice the person, and wonder about them. Any longer, and you start waiting for the film to end instead of waiting with them.
Filming in public places
A station is a public place, but it is also someone's workplace. We always speak to the staff first, explain what we are doing, and ask where we can stand without getting in the way. Most of the time the answer is friendly and slightly amused. The station master on this morning told us which bench had the best view, which train was usually the quietest, and that the first train had not been on time for a month. He was right about all three. He is thanked in the credits.