Director Statement

 A Little Resistance began as a solitary act of creation. It was a way to move forward when I felt stuck.In the early days, there was no cast or crew - just an idea, some sketches, and a quiet obsession with building a world. 

What began in 2005 as a war film, influenced by the scale of Apocalypse Now, gradually evolved into something more intimate and stylised. Subtle but profound influences like Wes Anderson and Baz Luhrmann began to shape the tone, showing me that emotion could be heightened, not hidden - and that handmade filmmaking still had power.

The story, led by Princess Sophia, was meant to look back at conflicts past. It explored the cycles of power and resistance that haunt history. But heartbreakingly, its themes remain just as relevant today. 

That weight stayed with me through the years, and as my research deepened and I grew older, the project continued to grow with me. The process became a kind of creative refuge — a safe space I could return to again and again.

Over more than a decade, I collected props and costumes from thrift stores, salvaged hard rubbish, and built miniature battlegrounds by hand. I dug trenches in my parents’ backyard, laid down sandbags, and raised cover and tattered flags.

Every element of A Little Resistance was constructed slowly and stubbornly, piece by piece. I’m grateful to the friends, family, and believers who became heroes simply by showing up.

When the cast and crew finally joined the journey - and Charles Terrier told me, “Now is the time to do something with all the pieces you’ve built” - the film changed again. 

It became a shared act of creation. Of trust. Of friendship. Together, we crafted a story that sits somewhere between dream and memory: an industrial fantasy built from grit, theatre, and a love of the handmade.Across the years - and especially during my mum’s battle with breast cancer - the film gave me something to build toward. 

It became purpose. It became continuity. And in many ways, it became resistance to the normality of life.A Little Resistance is not just a film. It’s a monument to perseverance, to creativity against the odds, and to the small acts of courage that shape us.I’m proud to finally share it - and, in many ways, to let it go.

— Michael Loder - Creator  

Miniatures were something I would often make as a child—not the polished, expensive ones you might find in Warhammer collections…

My grandfather, however, would take me to see scale miniature train sets assembled by enthusiasts at local town halls. We would then try to recreate them using soup cans, scrap cardboard, straws, paint, and LEGO bricks.

Together we filmed stop-motion videos with toys and little plasticine characters.

The realisation that I could use miniatures in A Little Resistance was exciting, adding another layer of design that felt true to my early filmmaking years.

Initially, I used cardboard for a papercraft style reminiscent of the flats you might find at a movie studio. But as the process evolved, I was inspired to embrace three-dimensional model-making. I would take apart small toys and objects found at op shops to add fine details to the set designs.

Discovering remote-controlled toy tanks was a bonus, and repainting or remodelling planes from $2 shops gave each piece its own unique design—bringing the war machines, buildings, and boats further into the world of the film.

- Michael Loder

I started working a retail job at a department store and quickly noticed that a lot of great material was being recycled or heading for the bin. I asked my manager if I could take home some of the rubbish that tends to accumulate in a workplace like that.

Thankfully, it wasn’t a problem—and suddenly, I had new materials to work with! A major revelation was using Styrofoam. In the past, I’d found it frustrating to work with, as it breaks apart easily and makes a mess. But this was a denser, more concentrated version that cut smoothly and was far lighter than the clay and real rocks I had been using.

From this point on, as the film entered its second phase (visual effects and green screen sequences), my miniatures became lighter, more detailed, and—most importantly for a budget film—far cheaper to produce.