If You See Ringo, Run! Don’t Shoot! (2023): DIY Filmmaking and the Italian Spaghetti Western

One of the best practices any young filmmaker can follow is to emulate their biggest influences - in this way, each film feels like an exercise in style, in which they are constantly developing their own personal style. Judging from If You See Ringo, Run! Don’t Shoot, no one understands this quite as well as director Blake Erickson. Two actors, some fake blood, and an open field is all Erickson needs to craft this action-packed homage to the Italian spaghetti western - a subgenre of western cinema popular in the 1960s. These films were typically produced under incredibly low budgets, and it's clear their DIY nature left a lasting impression on future generations of filmmakers. Erickson immediately pulls the audience into this subgenre through the film’s hyper-stylized opening credits - however, unlike many other films paying homage to classic cinema, the inspiration doesn’t end at the surface. The Italian spaghetti western is encoded into the very DNA of the film, as Erickson utilizes a variety of different techniques to craft striking images with minimal equipment. The most impressive of which occurs during the climax of the film, when Ringo gets the upper hand on our protagonist and fatally shoots him. To capture such a shot practically (a rarity in most short films), Erickson used his very own makeshift squib. The result is a shocking and devastating moment that paints the screen red. By effectively executing this complex effect, Erickson delivers one of the strongest shots in the entire film. As the score leads the film into its finale, Erickson’s ingenuity and faithfulness to the Italian spaghetti western leaves the audience with a powerful, lasting image.

Check out more of Blake Erickson’s work here!