Art Film

Why would anyone want to go to a Russian beach in the middle of winter? There is nothing to do out here. It’s so cold out here. The sun was too weak in the sky. There will be no swimming or sunbathing. This particular beach wasn’t a pretty picture to look at. This place wouldn’t even make an appearance on a one-star travel site. The sand was littered with trash and bits and pieces from nature. Not to mention that it looked a dark grey, almost the color of pencil lead. The water looked so dull and murky as its waves crashed upon the shore. So why would anyone want to come here in the middle of winter?

To shoot a movie, of course!

Carla shaped her hands like a frame as she looked at the beach in question. She stared deep in concentration. Sasha stood behind her and shivered.

“Why are we out here?” she asked through clenched teeth. Carla didn’t answer. The rest of the crew with them had the same question. The strange girl looked through her frame. A little smile came across her face.

“Perfect,” she said. Carla turned to her classmates.

“Okay, everyone! I got it! Let’s get to work!” she said. Everyone stared at her. That grin on her face set a pit of unease in their stomachs.

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The class had to get this film made in time for the spring campus film festival. Carla was going to be the one to direct. She was nominated by a couple of egotistical boys as a joke. You can imagine their surprise when she accepted. There was no script for this film.

“So what? We’re just going to go with it?” one of the boys asked. He was probably one of the guys who tried to pull that prank on her.

“Why yes!” Carla said with that grin never leaving her face. Oh boy…

Carla walked closer to the waves. She knew where she wanted to start. Her attention turned to Shasha. The Russian girl stared at her. Her friend closed the distance between them.

“Strip,” she said. Shasha gave the English girl a strange look.

“What?” she asked. Carla giggled.

“Take your clothes off,” she said. Her tone suggested that she wasn’t joking. Shasha’s eyes shifted back and forth.

“Why?” she asked. Carla giggled.

“It’s part of the movie,” she said. The boys behind them were snickering. Shasha’s face burned bright red. She had a feeling this was why her English friend wanted to cast her in the movie. Carla may be a bit too bold with her sexuality.

“Don’t worry,” she said. “No one is going to do anyway to you.” Shasha somehow didn’t believe it. Normally, she would’ve turned around and walked off at this point. But there was something in Carla’s eyes. Something that she couldn’t put a finger to it. The Russian girl pressed her lips together as the sounds faded around her.

So there she was. Shasha was lying naked on the dirty sand. Carla had her laying out spread eagle. Some of the boys were getting an eyeful as she snickered. The director cleared her throat. Another Russian girl raised her hand.

“What exactly are we doing?” she asked. Carla broke into her trademark smile.

“This will be our opening scenes,” she said. The director glanced down at her star as she shivered.

“Our maiden wakes up from the beach. She has no memory of who she is or how she got there,” she said. “The sea calls out to her. So she gets up and walks toward it.”

“And then?” one of the boys asked. Carla looked at the cast and crew in front of her for a moment.

“We will have to see from there,” she said. Shasha stared up with big eyes. She’s joking, right?

“How come she’s not all wet?” one of the boys asked. Everyone turned to him. Shasha’s eyes widened as her teeth chattered. The boy shrugged.

“I mean… You said that she came from the sea, right?” he asked. Shasha mouthed “no” as she shook her head. Carla tilted her head and thought about that for a moment.

“Just wet her hair,” she said. Shasha breathed for a brief second. Another thought crossed her mind. Was she going to have a head cold from this?

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Shasha lay in the sand with her eyes closed. The waves filled up the silence in the background. She slowly opened her eyes. The girl lay there for five seconds. Shasha slowly sat up and looked around. The girl finally turned to the sea. She froze to her feet, backside covered in sand. Shasha began her slow walk to the ocean. She made it closer to the water. Shasha eased her feet and tried not to shiver. She walked until the water came up to her thighs.

“Cut!”

Shasha turned and ran back to the shore. One of the other girls in the group handed her a towel to dry her legs. Carla walked forward, clapping.

“Beautiful!” she shouted. “Beautiful! You did a great job!” Shasha pressed her lips together as she made a face. How many more scenes like this were they going to have to do? The girl shuddered at the thought as Carla took over with what direction the project was going to take next.