Meital Cohen Navarro’s OVER MY DEAD BODY explores the shared heartbreak of a Jewish Iranian family torn apart marriage
Meital Cohen Navarro’s OVER MY DEAD BODY explores the shared heartbreak of a Jewish Iranian
Lauren Noll’s HONOR can barely bottle the tension as a young woman lands on a religious hot seat after she is outed
At the end of the day, the events of the film are fictional and didn’t all happen in my own life, but Laine’s fears and conflicts were my own when I was a student at BYU. That scene is just simply the truth for someone in that moment of their journey. As a performer, I did initially try to reign it in and keep it smaller for fear of too much ugliness showing, but my wonderful on set acting coach (who also served as the film’s editor) coached me into the performance that made its way into the final cut.
Maverick Moore’s MY DINNER WITH WERNER knowingly, and lovingly spoofs Werner Herzog and Klaus Kinski
Our goal from the beginning was for the film to be a good time at the movies – whether or not you catch the references. We wanted it to be fun for everyone – both for folks familiar with Herzog and Kinski, and for folks that have no clue who they are. So, it was very important that the movie would be understandable to all audiences.
Britt Lower’s CIRCUS PERSON: Review; Utilizes a circus of images, moments and animation in tale of a woman finding herself after a breakup
But as Ava becomes a circle, so too does the movie around her. Interspersing realism with vintage circus footage, dreamlike moments, mime, and stop-motion animation using both Lower’s full body and animated paintings on her body-as-canvas. There’s also a talking fish…sort of. Lower intends the short to be the start of something more, and with this level of visual flair, it’ll be exciting to see what happens to Ava once she moves past her break-up.
SHORTS AND TO THE POINT: Emily Wilson’s DANNY’S GIRL amps up the WTF as an online couple meet for the first time
“Since the world of the film is heightened and the premise is a bit wacky, we needed to make sure that the character’s motivations and behaviors were rooted in sincere emotion. So we rehearsed a lot before shooting in order to make sure that we understood their decisions, cared deeply for them, and ultimately were rooting for them. Since that was the foundation, it freed us up to embrace and experiment with the darker, zanier stuff.”
SHORTS AND TO THE POINT: Jay Dockendorf’s THREE DEATHS Tolstoy adaptation is a classic short film as cinematic short story
“Shooting on film felt like a straightforward way to connect with the past. I think film evokes the “old world” origins of Tolstoy’s story as well as a sense of film history that I wanted to tap into. 35mm also has a deeper, more emotional feeling, I find, and I wanted to soak up the sadness of the story and performances.”
SHORTS AND TO THE POINT: Narcissister’s NARCISSISTER BREAST WORK shows that New Yorkers can somehow manage to go about their day despite a topless woman walking next to them on the sidewalk
As far as public reactions go, in both cases I was most struck by how much cell phone culture defines street life; most people we passed in the street had their faces down looking at the phones and barely noticed a woman with bare breasts passing by!
SHORTS AND TO THE POINT: Alexandre Dostie’s I’LL END UP IN JAIL gives us a woman discovering her inner badass
Writing this film, my dream was to build that character from hopeless mom to kickass take-no-prisoner woman. The model was based on my mother with hints of Geena Davis’s ‘Thelma’ from THELMA AND LOUISE. It felt right on paper, but you never know how it will translate to screen. Maureen really came alive with Martine Francke’s performance. She is Maureen. She is a genuine badass.
SHORTS AND TO THE POINT: Will Stewart’s ALL WE ARE delivers a compelling story of the yearning heart; Review from Oxford Film Festival
The beauty of Stewart’s directorial debut is the answer is “all the above” and even “all the below.” The longtime casting director doesn’t simply excel in mining multi-layered performances from John Lacy and Matthew Risch, who deliver fine performances as the two men, he also packs a visual punch with his frame composition utilizing the simplicity of the setting to allow the two characters to fill the frame with their longing for connection.
SHORTS AND TO THE POINT: Rachel Sweeney’s DEAD GIRL is a dead-on look at the actor’s daily dance on hell’s stage REVIEW from Oxford Film Festival
As we teeter on the edge with Sweeney’s aspiring actor, we’re less concerned about who will show up to see her production of “Hamlet” as we are concerned whether or not her boyfriend will need to have her committed before the curtain is raised.