KAM
A FILM BY ARNOLD POLLOCK
SYNOPSIS
Kam exists in a virtual world, on a journey to reach the top of Killer Mountain. But as he nears the summit, he falls, down into our world.
Kam wakes up in Manchester, England. And though he’s clearly not of flesh, the people show little interest. Without a mountain to climb, Kam is left to wander the land.
But as he moves through the city, the fabric of reality quakes, and it is time for his return to the mountain.
SPECIFICATIONS
Runtime: 12mins 23seconds
Aspect ratio: 17:9 DCI 4K
Director: Arnold Pollock
Composer | Sound Design: Jack Hughes
Cast: Kamran Ali
Featured by Directors Notes
KAM from Arnold Pollock is a brilliantly concise and profound sci-fi gem which masterfully inverts the fish-out-of-water trope. When a digital protagonist falls into our world, the real alienation begins. Pollock finds a quiet, haunting beauty in the mundane streets of Manchester and explores a universal quest for purpose. A thought-provoking and visually arresting journey that lingers long after the fabric of reality settles.
Honorary Mention
Official Selection
Wild Indie Sci-Fi & Fantasy Film Festival
Nominee Made Up North
Official Selection
Bolton International Film Festival
Animation
Official Selection
Matera International Film Festival
An inital, 6 minute pilot film of Kam was also selected and premiered at HOME cinema in Manchester as part of the Manchester Open Exhibition 2022 Film Programme and was further nominated for the People’s Choice Award at the Manchester Open 2022.
From the Director
What began as a joke between myself and my former housemate, Kam, gradually evolved into a serious project. One that came to encapsulate and, in some ways, prophesise the state of the world we now inhabit.
It developed as a series of cinematic accidents spanning seven years from 2018, going out to hunt with a film camera and responding to Manchester’s industrial streets, changing seasons, city centre development, national mood, litter, lockdowns, the advent of AI, and the increasing atomisation of the individual.
KAM is unique in that not even I know what it’s about. Each scene is a reflection of something that caught my interest in the landscape, egged on by our digital hero, until a story emerged.
The virtual world where KAM is from is inspired by the maps and characters of early ’90s games consoles. They are the root of many themes within KAM: the ability to wander a map, perhaps even fly; a physical boundlessness, but an inhuman purposelessness.
No AI was used in the making of KAM. It does not escape me that a seven-year effort could, in some ways, be shortened to several seconds with today’s AI prompts. By the time of KAM’s release, many of these themes are already coming to fruition and being felt more widely.
