Hobson's Choice is a 2006 fantasy brickfilm by Peter Friend. It follows a man, Hobson, who discovers that he has the ability to jump between his various lives in parallel universes.[1]
Plot[]
As Hobson gets on the bus to go to work, he laments the fact that his daily life has become so mundane and predictable. Just then, a car crashes into the side of the bus Hobson is sitting on, but Hobson suddenly finds himself sitting on the other side, and unharmed. Hobson thinks little of it, assuming he was mixing up his memories with the previous day.
While at work, he begins to think about a TV show he saw where a professor theorized that every time you make a choice, the universe splits into two, with parallel universes for every possible life you could have lived. Hobson begins to wonder if he somehow hopped between universes, when he notices that it is suddenly the end of his work day and all his work has been completed. He wonders if he can control this newfound ability to skip the boring parts of life, but acidentally skips the weekend.
Hobson decides to stop thinking small, and tries to jump to a universe where he has a more interesting life. First, he finds one in which he thinks he is a superhero, until he realizes he is at a fancy dress party. He next finds himself stranded on a desert island. He then finds himself back on the bus heading to the office, and the crash happens once again. Hobson begins to wonder if he is actually just dreaming, or if the crash was real and he is dying and hallucinating.
When Hobson finds himself at the bus stop once again, he chooses to split the universe some more. He decides to not go to work to begin to get out of his rut, and starts driving his car instead. However, he accidentally jumps universe and crashes into his usual bus. He realizes that he is stuck in a paradox, as he cannot have simultaneously caused the crash and also have come to harm on the bus. He decides he must pick a stable universe and stick with it, and returns to the universe in which he is stuck on a desert island.[1]
Awards[]
| Year | Competition | Category | Result |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2006 | Wellington Fringe Festival | 3 minute film competition | Won |
| Flying Fives Short Film Competition | n/a | Second runner-up | |
| Bad Horse Video Awards | Best Directed Video | Won | |
| 2007 | Sir Julius Vogel Awards[2] | Fan Production | Nominated |
As a result of the placement in the Flying Fives Short Film Competition, the film was show on New Zealand television in early 2007 as part of the Rialto Channel screening of The Flying Fives Show Reel 2006.[3]