What's In A Name?

The name Bloed Susters was a bit of a process to get to. When I first began writing the film, like many, it was untitled. Then, after seeing themes and motifs emerge, the working title became Baptized in Blood. I really like the name, but something always felt "ehh" about it.

The first go 'round of critiques I received on the script, someone told me it sounded like a horror flick. DING, DING, DING! That was the "ehh" feeling I was getting. (Just to be clear, I'm not making a horror flick).

So I went back to the drawing board. After a month or two, the title changed from Baptized in Blood to Blood Sisters, but again, it didn't feel definite. I decided to google it and see what came up and, you guessed it! Horror!

So...back to the drawing board...again. I googled translations for "blood sisters", focusing specifically on African dialects. Many of them felt too obscure, but when I saw the Afrikaans translation, it struck me. The spelling was interesting and different enough, but not so much that someone English speaking wouldn't be able to understand. AND, it didn't look like a title from a horror film. DING, DING, DING! We have a winner!

Although I'm happy with the title, to be frank, I still think about changing it. It feels just like any other part of a creative process and project. It's something that can be improved upon and isn't concrete until the project is complete, and when I say complete, I mean out into the world. But I'm sticking with it. Another imperative part of the creative process; making decisions and standing by them, so that you can move forward. Thankful.