De website Vimeo houdt geregeld competities tussen filmmakers. De opdracht was om met enkele woorden, die een diepere betekenis hebben, een filmpje te maken. Ik koos de term l’esprit de ‘escalier en maakte bovenstaande filmpje met mijn oom in de hoofdrol. Hieronder staat de tekst die ik bij mijn video plaatste.
Created for, and winner of, the Weekend Challenge: Vimeo Weekend Challenge,
Do you know the feeling when you close the door and suddenly know what you should’ve said mere seconds ago? But you are too late. This is called “l’esprit de l’escalier”, the thoughts that sprout in your mind the moment the conversation is over.
Although it is often used in the translation ‘staircase wit’, it can be used for anything that you only think of when you are gone, for example an emotional goodbye. Should I’ve gone back to say what I wanted to say? There are so many words unspoken, and I’d love to go back and talk to my uncle. But the door is closed, and I’m running down the stairs…
Words by Edgar Allan Poe, taken from his poem ‘The Raven’