The Pivot that Broke My Ankle (Next Point Wins)
- Danny Chicon
- Jul 31
- 3 min read
The Chicon Chapters (Chp 4)
Next Point Wins: A hard reset on my creative process, Next Point Wins. Originally a short about two brothers competing in a basketball game while stuck in a time loop, taught me the consequences of pivoting too hard.
Next Point Wins was the next project up after Crossing. I wanted a simple reset, something I could focus specifically on one or two things and start learning to trust the talented people around me. This was the first film I chose not to act in and focused solely on the writing and directing of. That was intentional. After Crossing, I knew I had to make a change in the way I worked and Next Point Wins was my first crack at that.
The original concept was simple, two brothers, while playing a basketball game get stuck into a time loop that only one seems to recognize. One location, two actors, minimal set dressing. Easy, right?... Unfortunately not...
Now the script came together for NPW, the actors (Dante & Jerome) had a ton of chemistry and Drifting Astronauts Productions graciously agreed to produce the film and supply their beautiful camera (with cine lenses :0). I finally allowed myself the chance to focus solely on directing, working with the actors and DoP in creating exactly what I envisioned for the short, which led to one of the best looking projects I'd made at that time. So, what happened?
This was a project that taught me that, sometimes, you can pivot too hard. From the beginning we struggled to find a location we could shoot at for 2-3 days in a row. Rain threatened outdoor shoots, one of our "probably" locations could only give us a single day and no matter where we went, we just couldn't find a basketball court where we'd be left alone for more than a few hours (mind you, it didn't help that we had absolutely no money). So, as per usual, I pivoted... But this time, a bit too hard.
Instead of focusing on one location, I decided to cobble together all of our offers. I rewrote the script. Instead of a time loop, it would follow different versions of these brothers in multiple universes playing the same game. As we explored each version, the older brother (Jay), would start to recall the memories of his other versions which would eventually lead him to have a breakthrough about his relationship to his brother... Complicated, ain't it? That was the problem.
It was meant to be an eight minute short and though it was acted well, shot well and took some big swings, the rewrite proved to be just too complicated to understand when watching the film. It also didn't help that our second (of three) sequences was riddled with audio issues (who could've predicted a construction team would set up right next to our set (ON A SUNDAY - WTH NEW YORK?!).
You know, the more I write these the more I realize, they're mostly for me to not only repurpose some old work in fun ways but also for me to reflect on what these things did teach me and how they led to future success. I think NPW allowed me to shed some of my ego, I no longer needed to be in front of the camera, the center of attention and saw how magical things can become when you allow others to interpret your work.
Years later I started from scratch again and the result is what you see above. My first crack at an experimental film that also serves as an ode to the relationship that inspired the initial idea - the one I share with my younger brother.
This first few pivots didn't work, but a ton of others since then have. Its a weird balance filmmakers need to strike, being open to letting the vision evolve in accordance to the resources available without compromising what made the project work in the first place. Its a balance I constantly keep an eye on... And thats thanks to Next Point Wins. Check out its newest form above!
Talk soon,
Danny (now with fully healed ankles)
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