Short film research: Kiss Chase/Drama

Clare pursues a girl, estimated in the description to be around eleven years old. Nonetheless, the performer appears to be around 14 years old, as do the other actors who are purportedly her age. Her classmates, who appear to share private sexual encounters they're a little too young for, exclude her from their activities. There are hints that she is one of the few POC pupils present. Until she has a private moment with a male classmate she likes, she feels excluded. That's about it; I didn't particularly enjoy this one. Although I felt the story was realistic, I disagree with it's message and possibly morals; it's an uncomfortable narrative; I am not sure if this was this the intended outcome. To be honest, I'm not sure, but I didn't think the story was good. The script was ok; it was somewhat based in reality. To a certain extent, I say this because the children are making far too much of the protagonist. The camera doesn't move around much, but it still does a good job of capturing the action. It felt quiet a lot of the time, so narration would have been beneficial. There isn't much music; when it was, it was mostly extended sound effects that didn't advance the plot. It feels like a filter is being used throughout the entire movie. Everything is a little muted because it sounds nostalgic, as if it were being played on a VHS machine. The children all dress rather brightly, pushing color. Their attention to detail is something I thought would fit in well with my film. It's very "show don't tell"; a character will play with something if they're nervous, etc. I like the cozy atmosphere of the location, but there were many elements that I will not be using, such as the private moments and the sparse dialogue. In any case, I intend to make mine less muted. However, the nostalgic vibe might be effective.