The Seahorse Trainer, Short Film, Review And Interview

The Seahorse Trainer is a relatable tale for everyone who has pushed or is pushing to accomplish their masterpiece. Here are wonderful visuals of a fantastical setting that is charming and carries a deeper meaning of how many of us are the reason we hold back from making that great accomplishment.

The Seahorse Trainer was screened at the 2019 FilmQuest film festival (website). It was nominated for Best Fantasy Short. It won Best Visual Effects for a short film.

I recommend The Seahorse Trainer as a family friendly film everyone can enjoy.

Synopsis: Seamour is a lonely old man with a passion for training seahorses. Desperate to have his most prized seahorse perform an ambitious trick, the final day of training has come and he must see the stunt come to life. But when the hourglass turns, Seamour realizes he needs to overcome something from his troubled past to achieve his magnum opus.

Babak Bina and Ricardo Bonisoli, co-writers and co-directors of The Seahorse Trainer, were kind enough to talk about their film and other work they are doing. They also talk some about themselves and what inspires them.

What was the inspiration for The Seahorse Trainer?

Babak: The sparks of the idea came from Ricardo's fascination with sea life and our love for the eccentric. Ricardo had the idea of a mockumentary where we would go and interview a lonely man who is training seahorses in his decrepit apartment. That's where it all started, but then through many brainstorming sessions that idea has changed into a narrative short. We wanted to make a film we would have liked to watch if someone else created it. In a world over saturated with superheroes there needed to be something off-beat, odd and symbolic, in other words, a lonely old man with a bizarre obsession!

What project(s) do you have coming up you're excited about?

We are cooking up a couple of different ideas, one is an experimental music video for an emerging artist. Another idea Ricardo is cooking up is for a short film called The Ostrich. Babak is also in the writing stages of a story revolving around, a tree and a man gone missing. A story exploring the psychological process of individuation.

 

What was your early inspiration for pursuing a career in film?

We both started working in the film industry as visual effects artists. Film has always been a passion for us. As fun as it is to be a part of making a high budget blockbuster film, which helped us polish our craft, we find much satisfaction in telling our own stories.

What would be your dream project?

Our hope is to continue on creating worlds that create opportunities for exploration. New stories, new ideas. Fresh and unique are keywords for us. As visual effects artists working day jobs, we are helping to create blockbuster superhero films, and let's put it this way, that is the last kind of film we are interested in making as our personal project. There must be enough people in this world interested in seeing something a little different.

 

What are some of your favorite pastimes when not working on a movie?

Babak: Sculpting, reading, drawing, playing drums and going for long walks.

Ricardo: Illustration, jamming, traveling.

What is one of your favorite movies and why?

Ricardo: I was moved when I first saw The Wall, I realized a film can be very experimental and still being able to express a powerful feeling. I also love Pink Floyd's music.

Babak: David Lynch's Lost Highway was a film that got me into watching challenging films that require effort and multiple watches to decode. Lynch is an absolute master at creating such worlds and I love getting lost in them.

You can find out more about The Seahorse Trainer on IMDb (link).

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