From Man to Mallard: Our Short Film Project

Grace Le

Creating our short film, From Man to Mallard, was a hilarious and insightful experience that pushed us to explore storytelling in a creative way. What started as a joke about geese quickly evolved into a full-fledged story about guilt, transformation, and—of course—chaos.

How We Came Up With the Idea

Our brainstorming session began with random ideas such as a dead tree, fire, and geese poop (which we see everywhere on campus). We chuckled about how everyone had strong feelings about geese, and eventually a tale arose. The core idea of someone hitting a goose, feeling horrible, and then embarking on a spiritual journey to become a goose really resonated with us. We aimed to combine crazy humor with an unexpected character arc, making the story both silly and strangely meaningful.

The Creation Process

Each team member took on different roles to bring our characters to life:

●      Luke played the lead role of the goose-hit-and-run driver who undergoes a bizarre redemption arc.

●      Grace (aka myself) took on the role of the passionate goose defender, ensuring the emotional stakes were high.

●      Harrison was the voice of reason, keeping the reactions grounded (well, as grounded as possible in a film about goose transformations).

●      Kayden delivered an amazing performance as the goose-hater, adding comedic tension to the story.

●      Lyli took the responsibility of editing the pieces, turning them into a complete movie.

●      Me and Erik were responsible for script writing and co-directing.

●      Everyone contributed to brainstorming and filming, making it a true collaborative effort.

We filmed in two primary locations: the classroom and the campus, employing various shooting techniques to enhance the comedy and drama. The most entertaining (and crazy) part was filming Luke's "goose study montage," in which he mimicked a goose and we were eventually chased by one!

(A peaceful scene before Luke got chased by a goose)

Lessons Learned from Fiction Storytelling

This project taught us how to shape a narrative through fiction, balancing humor with a structured story arc. Unlike documentary-style storytelling, which relies on real-life events, this required us to think critically about pacing, character motivations, and comedic timing. Writing a script, planning shots, and directing performances gave us a better understanding of how small details—like sound effects or reaction shots—can enhance storytelling.

Future Applications of These Skills

The skills we learned in this project will be useful beyond just film production. Understanding character development and comedic timing can apply to marketing, advertising, and social media content creation. Additionally, directing, script writing, and editing the film helped us improve our video production skills, which are essential in today’s digital landscape.

Whether it’s creating promotional videos, storytelling through branded content, or simply making engaging TikToks, this project showed us the power of fiction in visual storytelling.

Behind the Scenes & Final Video

Here are some behind-the-scenes moments from our filming process:

(Erik’s filming Harrison’s interview)

●      Watch From Man to Mallard here: Our Short Film

●      And if you’re curious about geese after watching our film, this article might be for you: Why geese are so aggressive?

This event served as a lighthearted reminder that, with enough imagination and collaboration, even the most ridiculous concepts can become something truly remarkable.

We hope you enjoy watching the movie, as much as we liked making it!