Mood Reels in Independent Filmmaking – A Review on Come On, Harleen

Mood Reels are an effective way for filmmakers to kickstart their project. Generally speaking, mood reels are short trailers that depict what a project aspires to feel like, showcasing the genre, potential of plot, and depending on how far preproduction has gone, the cast. There are lots of times when producers and writers create a mood reel to help them envision an idea before it is completely planned out and written. Come on, Harleen is a mood reel put together by JFC Productions. Christopher Leong is the creator behind this mood reel. His previous film Poker has seen success in festival circuits in 2020, being an official selection at Altfest New York, New Filmmakers New York, Young Filmmakers New York, and the Miami Independent Film Festival. It participated in the Paris Lift-Off Film Festival, and received a Certificate of Achievement from the Los Angeles International Film Festival.

Come on, Harleen is a mood reel based on the beloved DC comic character Dr. Harleen Quinzel, most famously known by her alias Harley Quinn. The character’s origin comes from Stjepan Sejic’s creation, where psychiatrist Dr. Quinzel finds a cure for Gotham’s madness much to the displeasure of the criminal justice system and mental health establishments. Her downward spiral from there sees her character become the villainous Harley Quinn, the Joker’s paramour and accomplice in the following sagas. There have been numerous adaptations of the character, with the most notable being Birds of Prey (2020) starring Margot Robbie and Sue Kroll.

Christopher Leong’s mood reel offers an ambiguous but appealing take on the character. It is a realist depiction of Harleen, a young university student struggling to find joy on her birthday. The music playing in the background helps establish the mood of a thriller, and the appearance of a knife in her hand foreshadows a violent climax. The camera work does its best to mimic thriller cinematography, with slow pans and tilts and travelling shots following the character to her fate. She is to be surprised by her friend on her birthday, a grave mistake as she doesn’t take on surprises very well. A jump-cut shows the friend lying down with a knife in her throat, and Harleen’s face covered in white icing. The character transformation appears on the screen when Harleen raises her hand and smears the blood over the icing. All of this in less than two minutes. This is why mood reels can have a significant impact, not only as short-stint with entertainment value, but also a development tool for filmmakers to help encourage their vision gain momentum going forward.

The clip is an aide in Leong’s production toolbox to help raise funding and garner attention for the potential feature film. Seeing as how Leong is the writer and director of the project, it is a safe assumption to say that the mood reel will help the filmmaker himself develop the project further on an artistic level. Mood reels are great tools for writers to experiment with their ideas and see how they can potentially take shape. In the old days, mood reels didn’t exist as they do now—they were verbal pitches accompanied by storyboards at best. With the development of inexpensive technology, directors and producers have tools to show what their potential idea can become rather than tell investors about them. The ability to transfer the feel and sensibilities of a film are significantly improved when audiences and investors can actually see rather than being told what the final outcome may look like. This is also another byproduct of the ever-changing production-distribution landscape of filmmaking, as giant conglomerates no longer hold monopolies over the production and distribution of projects.

Independent filmmaking and various platforms of distribution have changed the financing landscape greatly, and there are more opportunities than ever before for filmmakers to get the support they need in developing their projects. Having said that, it is still extremely difficult. Christopher Leong’s Come on, Harleen is a great example for up-and-coming directors to take a lesson from. He does a wonderful job of setting the atmosphere of what the film will feel like with the right support. Using only a few minutes, we witness the potential of a plot, visual effects, score, and technicalities that with a proper support structure can help build up a promising project.