Jerk Off

Storyline

In a former grand old hotel, the destinies of several boys intersect. When they understand what binds them, it will be too late. Room 23: Maxence and Paul explore their sexuality. Room 32: A group of fifteen boys have a party. Room 45: Thomas and Hugo share a moment of rare intimacy. Room 24: Matt, Leo, and Nicolas live a relationship unlike anything they have ever experienced, or will ever encounter again. Unfortunately, this love will end suddenly and unexpectedly.

Director's Note

« Having an opinion and being nonconformist doesn’t make you very popular. In fact it's the opposite, having believes and expressing them and you are viewed as a suspicious character. A troublemaker. Someone dangerous. Yet I always had the will to express myself, to take sides for what I believe in and to try to create something different. I think that it is our convictions that define us and that we should not repress or be afraid to express them.

I feel that in creation as in our relationships with others, we’ve lost the taste for risk. Everything looks or tastes the same and it’s difficult to stand out and to create something different.

Jerk Off is a bitter criticism of the overproduction of digital content, devoid of any artistic value and intended to be consumed in a few seconds and then forgotten. The audience jumps from one content to another without any commitment. Considering Cinema as apart of this ocean of content, they are devaluing it as an art form.

I want to raise awareness and challenge the audience. Through a love story between three boys looking for existential answers evolving in a queer community released I wanted to highlight what "consume" could mean in every sense of the word, even the most disturbing.

With Jerk Off, I write an open letter to the cinema, to its audience, but also to the human beings behind their screens to encourage them to express what they feel without being scared of the consequences.»

Production's Note

« It is not uncommon for the subject of a film to be related to current events, or with a certain general state of mind which leads several producers to propose the same subjects at the same time. For no apparent reason, it seems like there are times when a film should come out. This is, in my opinion, the case for Jerk Off, an experimental short film about the fashion world and the LGBTQ community directed by Axel J.Sannino.

Born of a deep desire to denounce the underworld of this venerated world of fashion, Axel J. Sannino portrays the lines of a queer youth who frees themselves from social barriers, prejudices and clichés. (talk about the creative context based on the creator's note of intent)

When Axel J. Sannino introduced me to the project and I was immediately struck by the aesthetic dimension of his quest: to oppose fashion and cinema face to face, to duel to denounce prejudices and clichés about people from the LGBTQ community.

I understood the incredible potential of the subject which is carrying many facets that bring to light, both the fashion world, the aesthetics of a timeless cinema but also the meeting of bodies sublimated by the light of Cyprien Mur.

Jerk Off which means familiarly "masturbate", is also a vector of awareness of the opinion regardless of the world of fashion. Highlighted by great creators, the public worship these icons but does not question them. The viewer will live the film as an experience of visual and disturbing denunciation.

We made the choice of a split shoot; episodes in episodes, the writer-director reveals us "the truth" about his working environment linked with references to iconic movie scenes and a strong voice over.

Jerk Off is the story of a comeback by director Axel J. Sannino. An outrage and a rage gathered in a short film that wants to be aesthetic and intelligent. An experimental project that must be released to show a community inclined to dominate the art of fashion. »

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A short film by Axel J. Sannino
Production Company: Playground Bully
Director: Axel J. Sannino
Writer: Axel J. Sannino
Producer: Gaetan Cerrillo
DoP: Cyprien Mur
Production Manager: Lou Crémont
Production Assistant: Bérénice Badinier
Script: Marie Fritel-Sina
Costume Designer: Jules Devaux
CD Assistants: Mathis Dondey
                         Maelis Merand
Props Assistants: Josephine Roulleau
              Emeline Roudaire
1stAD: Maël Carradec
2ndAD: Alexis Gouverneur
Camera: Matthieu Legoupil
Gaffer: Sebastien Eraso-Rojas
Electricians: Milena Tessereau
                      Tristan Pasqualini
Sound Engineers: Thomas Laubry
                               Gregoire Louis
                               Edouard Falempin
Casting: Axel J. Sannino
Make Up Manager: Charlotte Marsy
MU Assistant: Clément Riesen
Make up artists: Elisa Bonin
                            Laurie Oler
                            Flore Aubin
Location Manager: Timon Milon
LM Assistants: Émeline Roudaire
                          Ruben Regnier
Editor: Paxti Arsa
Colourist: Milo Lee
Social Media Manager: Arthur Lefebvre