Versione inglese a cura del Master in Traduzione per il Cinema, la Televisione e l’Editoria Multimediale
Article by: Maria Cagnazzo
Translation by: Cristina Di Bona
Nowadays, most of people communicate through digital media, which compulsively transmit information and show every kind of situation. Sensationalism is more heterogeneous: news is no longer represented by an important event concerning society and even a daily situation can have a relevant social role. The Belgian collective Leo Gabin has made a social experiment with No panic baby, editing web videos. This film puts together different moments, creating a collage to describe a new human being. Between the various videos, the story of the road trip of two young people is told.
Remarkable the editing of sounds and voices, which characterizes the different kind of human beings of the movie. Music, original voices, total silence and voice off are alternated. A warm male voice, particularly, with a creepy tone, persuades its interlocutor to be free, putting aside all worries and fears. This speech takes place several times, producing the opposite effect. Words, indeed, have an antithetical meaning, because they are matched with rambling images.
Remarkable the editing of sounds and voices, which characterizes the different kind of human beings of the movie. Music, original voices, total silence and voice off are alternated. A warm male voice, particularly, with a creepy tone, persuades its interlocutor to be free, putting aside all worries and fears. This speech takes place several times, producing the opposite effect. Words, indeed, have an antithetical meaning, because they are matched with rambling images.
A plane in the sky, a burning house, a girl shows her body, another one tells us what she likes wearing. These are the web stories. Taken individually, they have different degrees of importance; but put together, they become a great portrait of life.
The film coldly shows us that in our society, every situation can become an important event thanks to the habit of filming everything.
The edited scenes lead the viewer to wonder what the truth is. When people use the camera of their phone, they expect to show their real daily life, but it’s clear that they are actually driven by the desire to show off and to be seen, putting their lives on a pedestal.
The young main characters of No panic baby, are bored with an empty life that they try to fulfill it playing with a gun and taking photos of each other. The weapon has lost its meaning of danger, turning into a fashion accessory.
The Leo Gabin collective describes the contemporary life and reflects on it. Format and the quality of the video don’t care. This set of news, people, voices and portraits give us the chance to be the viewers of a world that mirrors us and that belong to us.
No panic baby begins with the close- up of a girl. She is taking her mask off. This scene represents the heart of the movie: the entire world is sensationalized. Everyone has a mask like that girl: we hide our soul showing our face, we are attracted by affected things that catch our attention and that produce great feelings. Truth has been replaced by ostentation.