Céline Roustan
Being a telemarketer is a tough and repetitive job, and James is definitely on edge after being hung up on repeatedly throughout his workday. All that changes when the next person he calls is actually a radio host who tells him that he’s just won a contest. S/W alum Sandy Honig (Pennies from Heaven) is back with new short Caller Number Nine!, an absurd comedy that successfully builds a hilarious escalating intensity. Buckle up, because James’ day won’t be like any other.
“It was fun to build characters around a premise, rather than have a character in mind first”
It all started with a “note in my phone from 2017 that said ‘a telemarketer calls into a radio contest and wins’”, Honig shared with us, adding that she started writing the script in 2018. She crafted the rest of the story from that starting point, confessing that “it was fun to build characters around a premise, rather than have a character in mind first”. The absurdity of a telemarketer calling a number to make a sale, but ending up live on the radio is already incredibly promising, but Honig ups the antics by turning their conversation into a showdown. While this is still quite absurd and surreal, Honig admitted that she “wanted to experiment with making something a little more emotionally grounded with fewer jokes”, as her usual approach is “very joke dense and light on emotional truth”.
The story primarily unfolds through the phone conversation between Maria and James. Yet, two distinct universes are created for the protagonists, allowing us to understand them through their environments. From James’ office to Maria’s living room/radio studio, they both have a unique and specific atmospheres that contributes to building the characters and adds to the comedic layer of the film. The contrast between the two, from the detailed and precise production design by Violette de Laet to the way DP Natasha Duursma frames them and their different color palettes, is paramount in enhancing the comedic side of the story, but also the entertaining pacing of the film.
Freddie Meredith stars as a telemarketer with a severe anger problem in Caller Number Nine!
Editor Andrew Balasia and Music and Sound Designer Nicky Green create the mounting intensity of the film in post-production. The quick cuts between the two characters, the different angles, it all creates a certain tension that keeps on escalating, as the two start losing it in different ways. Watching the film almost turns into watching a tennis match, going back and forth between the two protagonists and awaiting a response to what was just said by the other.
Patti Harrison as Maria and Freddie Meredith as James masterfully capture the tone of Honig’s screenplay, each in their own unique register. Their ability to perfectly embody a comedic style that balances surreal and absurd is truly remarkable, as they remain hilarious and compelling throughout the insane journey their characters embark on during that phone call. Their performances ground the film emotionally, while simultaneously pushing the film in its absurdity. Even though they are not in the same room, they manage to build a chemistry, playing off of one another, which makes watching their conversation incredibly funny.
Caller Number Nine! had its World Premiere at the 2024 edition of SXSW, and is still on the festival circuit, making a stop at the Palm Springs ShortFest before debuting online as a Vimeo Staff Pick. Honig is currently developing new projects with her previous collaborators Annabel and Sabina Meschke, aiming to expand the universe of Pennies from Heaven into a feature script. She has also completed another short film with Blink Industries (Caller Number Nine!) and its two actors Patti Harrison and Freddie Meredith.