Valentina El Harizi talks about her personal crusade against screen addiction in BEHIND THE SCENES
Seventeen-year-old Valentina El Harizi displays a remarkable sense of image and message in her short
IN THE BETWEEN director Mark Koetsier and writer/producer Dublin Wahlberg talk about addressing PTSD and opioid addiction in their moving short
Before the world premiere of the film at NoHo Cinefest in Glendale, we spoke with director Mark Koetsier and writer/producer Dublin Wahlberg about directing In the Between, casting the lead actors, and the devastating topic of PTSD. The film was an awards finalist at that fest, and followed with a win for Best Narrative Short at the 2022 Venice Shorts Film Festival. It looks to continue its strong film festival run throughout 2023.
Melody Gilbert and Her Mother’s Voice Show Us Mortality, Art, Acceptance in “Judy’s Thoughts”
A conventional documentary idea turned into something that grabs hold of the viewer with its imagery, conveying the fragmented mindstate and memories of a mom with very little time to look back. The audio is real. The imagery could be described as hyperreal.
Gareth Kelly introduces us to the exhilarating life and skill of a groundbreaking yacht racing photographer in FRESH TO FRIGHTENING: THE SHARON GREEN STORY
With the music we tried to stay true to both Sharon’s persona as well as match the drama of what she is doing. Sharon is such a gentle, bubbly character we didn’t want the music to overpower her. That said, you will notice in both the on-the-water race start sequence and the in-the-air helicopter sequence we decided to kick things up a bit to highlight the drama and the action.
Jamie Meltzer captures the beauty and heartache of artist Suzanne Brennan Firstenberg’s COVID-inspired art installation in NOT EVEN FOR A MOMENT DO THINGS STAND STILL
Each day, walking through those flags, one saw the many hues of humanity. Visitors came from across the nation, even Alaska and Hawaii…and other countries. Some came in the first-class cabin, others on a Greyhound bus. As I archive the 20,000 dedicated flags, I find flags dedicated in an array of languages and an array of sentiments. Their commonality lies in loss.
Julio C. Padilla’s THE ISLAND OF THE DOLLS does some taboo-busting with his short film …From Screamfest 2021
Julio C. Padilla: “The way I see this story is that it is not pro-life or against it. Abortion itself was not intended to be the central theme or idea. It is more about one of the many ways an abortion can be done and about the situation behind the abortion (what leads Xochitl to make the decision to abort). Based on my research some women die because of clandestine abortions, others may regret what they did, while some may not care.”
Craig Low ‘s MOVIN DAY: the deceptive simplicity of his short film, MOVIN DAY from Screamfest 2021
Craig Low: “I find that people love sad details, whether we want to admit it or not. It’s odd, but everyone always wants to know how it happened when they hear of someone’s death. The opening shot is designed to have the audience asking, “How and why is that box sad?”. Then when they find out, they’re not just hearing exposition but actually listening to it.”
MANASANAMAHA director Deepak Reddy talks about flashbacks, relationships and the universality of debating where to eat dinner
You might as well practice saying “Manasanamaha” now. An inspiring and original short film that’s been collecting awards, it’s set for expansion into a feature next. Literally meaning “Salutations to Mind,” it’s not quite as cerebral as all that, though the slightly unreliable narrator Surya (Viraj Aswin) may think it is. As he speaks directly to camera, he remembers failed relationships, assesses them, and attempts to demonstrate how they all began happily, even though in most cases there were plenty of red flags indicating how things would end.
Justin Wang Powell’s FALLING SPARROW is an indie-budgeted debut film short that also happens to be a martial arts epic
Justin Wang Powell’s “Falling Sparrow”, which recently won a Special Jury Award at Waco’s Deep in the Heart Film Festival, offers something one doesn’t expect to see in a film festival short. Elaborately choreographed martial arts…to the death. And that’s not the only unexpected aspect. It begins in what could easily be the Old West, albeit one where a menacing man in samurai shoulder armor shows up to retrieve a family sword and is rebuffed. Years pass, but at first it seems like centuries, as the action cuts to a modern MMA gym. But no…the time period was always modern, and the man now has the sword, and runs the gym. But his niece is grown up, and she has no qualms about bloody vengeance for all that has transpired in the meantime.
Paolo Mancini and Daniel Watchorn’s Bloodshed Deliver Scares for 2021 Deep in the Heart FF’s Horror Shorts Program with scares, dread, and some fresh talent
Ever since the likes of Saw, Mama, and Lights Out went from being short films to high-profile features, filmmakers and fans have increasingly seen the potential for horror shorts to create interest in longer versions. Who knows when Guillermo del Toro will next be on YouTube, deciding he wants to pay for 80 more minutes of the nifty, scary video he just watched? Numerous horror shorts in the Deep in the Heart film festival appear to have this in mind, leaving the viewer either wanting further explanation, or just more time with the same great premise. Indeed, when the entire shorts program ended, I was not ready, and wanted it to keep going. Considering that so much studio horror feels lethargic at present, it’s a blast to be energized by the scares of the likely next generation.