While lists of directors who made and broke through with their first film in their 40s can provide encouragement to those trying to get into the industry, so can this short in a very different way; it shows that Nolan was not a master from the second he first got his hands on a 16mm camera but, crucially, kept at it, kept learning and incrementally amassed an impressive set of cinematic skills that put him in command of huge budgets that allow him to fully achieve his vision.