The mere fact that
The Tracey Fragments isn’t out in
American theaters or on DVD shouldn’t stop you from watching it. Or, say, stop
you from downloading it, taking it apart, and then reconstructing it into a new
form. Director Bruce McDonald
has uploaded the raw footage of The Tracey Fragments onto
the movie website and challenges all amateur
editors and mash-up artists to submit their own version of the stylistically bold indie.
Starring
Ellen Page as Tracey Berkowitz exploring the city
in search of her missing brother, The Tracey Fragments is essentially a moving Mondrian painting, with the screen cut up into small frames that capture the
scene from a multitude of angles. So, in other words, it’s like a comic book
come to life. Or maybe a pop-art, teen angsty episode of 24.
Naturally, a shoot like that will produce plenty of spare
footage. The Tracey Fragments
website hosts this footage into four separate 4.5
gig torrents (click on the "Re-Fragmented" link). There, you can find contest rules and how to submit your
disjointed masterpiece. The site also promises a link to the soundtrack by
Broken Social Scene, but that’s not yet available for download.
Even if you’re not planning on entering the contest, this
is a fascinating cinematic experiment. And, hey, your external hard drive could
use the company.
