As Kate Carroll details for the Frameline program, Jonathan Lisecki’s short Woman In Burka “follows real-life actress Sarita Choudhury through fictionalized auditions for a new film. Is it a drama or just a cheap horror flick? None of the auditioning actresses (each of whom, it seems, have appeared in Law & Order at some point) really know. But who cares? It’s a job! This darkly comedic short shines a spotlight on race, aging, gender and the actor’s eternal quest for validation—and a paycheck.” As part of the “Don’t Go” program of shorts, I was alerted to Woman In Burka by filmbud Barry Jenkins (Medicine for Melancholy).
Winner of this year’s Spirit of Slamdance Award and the Arizona Film Festival Merit Award, Woman In Burka is—as Nick Haramis accurately describes it for Black Book—"a real knee-slapper.” One might say it’s a post-9/11 sandwich served on dark wry. I joined the appreciative throng who poured into the AT&T Festival Pavilion to take part in the program’s Q&A.
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I just had to post this after I saw this because it’s so funny in such a low brow way. We don’t talk much about TV animation here other than a few japanese shows maybe and then it’s mostly feature length. This little pilot comes from the New Zealand production house Mukpuddy and I never would have thought that anyone, outside the Japanese maybe, would come up with an idea like this.
What happens when a family adopts a turd that pops out after their youngest daughter is born? I kid you not. That is the premise of ”It’s The Pughs!”
The animation is fantastic, fast paced and hilarious.
Below the break you’ll find the pilot along with Mukpuddy’s own web page.
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There are many, many viral videos in support of advertising just about anything these days. Few stand out from the pack. This is one of them. A faux-documentary in support of an X-Box game that delivers its marketing message in the most esoteric of ways. Or it doesn’t; in the same what that the famed BMW Shorts don’t either. When things looks this gorgeous and eccentric (think Errol Morris meets John Carpenter), one thanks the almighty that these types of things get made at all, and on ad dollars to boot.
Rob Niosi, a self-proclaimed ‘Goblin Man enthusiast’ whose fascination with the mechanical being has lead to an interesting collection of artifacts and memorabilia. Also, Professor Alistair Mclean discusses a controversial mysterious stone found near the site of the discovery and its subsequent separation from the ‘Goblin Man’ artifact.
We recently posted the trailer for Woo Ming Jin’s The Elephant And The Sea. It’s a beautifully shot feature film that has been making its rounds on the festival circuit and has won two awards. The film will finally be released back home in Malaysia in August.
Meanwhile, the DVD of four short films by Woo, called The Four: Short Films By Woo Ming Jin, is now available via the Da Huang Pictures e-store. The shorts include Blue Roof (2007), Love For Dogs (2003), Catching The Sea (2005) and It’s Possible Your Heart Cannot Be Broken (2005). The last short is a very funny “romantic comedy” starring fellow Malaysian independent filmmakers Tan Chui Mui (Love Conquers All) and Liew Seng Tat (Flower In The Pocket) as a pair of failed lovers. You’ll get to sample Liew’s rarely-seen but excellent acting chops.
Catching The Sea, meanwhile, is kind of a prelude or spin-off of The Elephant And The Sea.
If someone were to say that the only good animations from the Japanese were the animated movies and television series coming out of the studio system they would be wrong. The Emerging Auteur Animators program is proof of that. The program has 16 shorts, all very different in style and execution, covering such themes as sexuality, a call for unity amongst all creatures, loss of a friend and honesty. Others simply exist to display technical achievement and visual style. They go by quick so if you catch this program during the festival keep your wits about you.
Standouts include Nakedyouth for its combination of animated characters with live backdrops and its compelling content, a young man coming to terms with his sexual identity. Pika Pika 2007 is jaw dropping. It is a shame that you’ll only get to see it once as there is so much that happens in a single frame. I wouldn’t call it a disadvantage that it is a busy animation but there is so much happening between the foreground and background it is easy to lose track of what you’re watching. The Thaw is interesting in that it plays very well with light and shade and it’s almost sinister in its execution that I was surprised that I jumped at the end of it. It is very dark for such a brightly lit short. And you cannot go wrong with Kotatsuneko when a pissed off cat cannot reach the television remote control. Good times. And finally, we have written about Franz Kafka’s A Country Doctor around these parts so it was good to see it. Visually captivating and it has almost a rural gothic feel to it. It too has a dark edge to it and it will be a nice way to cap off the program.
Animation freaks and geeks, your Tengoku has arrived. On a global scale there are few, if any, who can compare to the Japanese and their animation prowess. They are simply deities of the animated world. And when you tap into one of the best studios in Japan, STUDIO 4°C, and create a showcase of their works you have to be prepared for the massive tide of talent. On an unprecedented evening you will bear witness to not one but two collections of short films from this massively talented studio, Genius Party and Genius Party Beyond. You also have to understand what a massive coup this is getting these omnibuses into the festival. This will be only the second time that Genius Party Beyond has screened outside of Japan. Yes. You are the privileged few.
And do not forget about STUDIO 4°C - Animation in Translation Symposium with SHINICHIRO WATANABE of Cowboy Beepop and Samurai Champloo fame.
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Really who wouldn’t like to title their program ‘Short Films Project in Commemoration of the Celebration on the Auspicious Occasion of His Majesty the King’s 80th Birthday Anniversary’? But when the word count is your enemy when it comes to program space calling it ‘Thai Spotlight’ simply saves a lot more room on the page. ‘Thai Spotlight’ is the collection of short films made by Thai filmmakers to commemorate the 80th birthday of their king. It provides a very diverse range of short films with equally diverse approaches to filmmaking, from the very polished and significantly budgeted to the very rudimentary and lo-fi. Some films proved to be a delight to watch, others proved to be challenging. But that is all very subjective isn’t it? Here are some of my highlights.
When it comes to Thai film there are three directors that we talk about a lot here at Twitch; Pen-Ek Ratanaruang [Last Life In The Universe, Invisible Waves and Ploy], Apichatpong Weerasethakul [Syndromes and a Century] and Wisit Sasanatieng [Tears of the Black Tiger, Citizen Dog and The Unseeable]. So when all three directors submit a film you pay attention.
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Good morning everyone! The program preview continues for the Worldwide Short Film Festival. I hope you’ve all bought your tickets, especially for anything that our lord and master Todd has programmed. Tonight we preview the second half of the Midnight Mania program, CREEPY. We’ve got drills, butterflies, psycho hillbillies and a whole lot of biting going on!
The program starts off with the very slick Desmond Coy [left] the story about a young couple out for a night on the town and it goes downhill from there. It’s got a tight script and really good production value. Top notch stuff and one of the more pleasant displays of blood splatter that you just don’t get to see that often. James Wilkes, a good old Canadian boy is responsible for this gem.
Next up is Collector, a very dark and very grim piece from Russia. A young man collects butterflies but he has his heart set on other things. Hardly a word is spoken in this fantastic short from Egor Abramenko. The music by Ivan Sokolov and the cinematography by Michail Kelim help make this one come highly recommended.
Straight out of Norway is Øystein Mamen’s The Dreamhouse. Almost so short you miss it. Sanne Goli is mesmerizing as the little girl, engulfed in manipulating her favorite doll. But how far will this manipulation go? Then, from Spain comes the stop animation Violeta. This is pretty much the most disturbing piece of animation I have ever come across. If the visuals don’t freak you out by golly the sound design will. It makes my skin crawl just thinking about it. The other animated short is X.Pression, from France. Trying to put to words what this really is about is hurting my head and we have other shorts to talk about. You’ll know what I mean when you see it.
I promised you biting and here it is. First, let’s start with Elsewhere/Utkant by Patrik Syversen, also from Norway. It raises the question, what is worse? Experiencing a zombie apocalypse, or, being stuck on a lighthouse island with your brother while the apocalypse is happening elsewhere. Few zombie movies will approach this level of humanity as this film does. Then there is the creature feature from France by director David Morley. His film Bitten/Morsure is very well crafted, very tense, and very bloody. It really is the best way to cap off the program. Biting. Blood. The French. The copy I previewed didn’t have subtitles. Not that I needed them. Biting. Blood. The French.
Saving the best for last? You bet. What else is there to say when you have a short titled Psycho Hillbilly Cabin Massacre! The title really says it all. Psychos. Hillbillies. Cabins. Massacres. Not convinced? Let me add something else. Fraternity girl, stripped down to her lingerie, bathed in blood, running with a pitchfork. Really it is a frat boy’s wet dream this is.
Big Buck Bunny is an amusing animated short with funny characters and the best part is that its free. The CG animation was produce by Peach Studios in a period of six months. While the primary objective of this short is to promote and demonstrate the technical aspect of the 3D software Blender, all the same, its well-worth checking out for a good laugh.
Big Buck Bunny is a comedy about a well-tempered rabbit “Big Buck”, who finds his day spoiled by the rude actions of the forest bullies, three rodents. In the typical 1950ies cartoon tradition Big Buck then prepares for the rodents a comical revenge.
The DVD or the Blu-ray edition is available for order at the official site.
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It was only a matter of time when I was going to preview one of the programs created by Twitch’s lord and master, that lovable rapscallion Todd. Now, I cannot say for sure but I will assume that in each program at any festival you’re given a glimpse into the psyche of the programmer. After all what appeals to them or what is deemed suitable for viewing enjoyment by them is in itself also a sign of their tastes and mental fortitude. So when you sit down in a couple weeks to watch the Freaky program as part of the Midnight Mania evenings you will understand what I have known for the past 15 years. Todd is a bit of a freak!
You ever fall in love with a girl and you just cannot stop thinking about her? Did it seem like nothing could get in the way of that crush, that you could not stop staring at her when she was in the room? Would your crush even survive, say, a zombie apocalypse? Aussie director Spencer Susser sure thinks so. I Love Sarah Jane and nothing, not even zombies, is going to stop my love for her.
A trio of animated shorts made it into the roster this year. The Flower is the story of an eternally optimistic daisy and is disturbing at best. I would like to think that Carla Coma took a cue from a Hitchhiker’s reference to Mice and Spiders when she created The Squirrel Next Door but I am very likely reaching here. And I for one am a cat person, I know that Todd has three living in his house, so that makes Melty Kitty the feel-good short of the festival for us.
In what I can only describe as experimental cinema meets puke fetish meets cowboy/horror hybrid the most colorful film of the program is most certainly The Rambler. Boasting a vibrant color palette on grainy film stock it is definitely one of the more cryptic of the bunch. But, it does ring patriotic with a lo-fi synth version of ‘Oh Canada’ in it. Yay! Speaking of Canada, a familiar face from Canadian television Colin Cunningham has his own short Centigrade in this program. To say his short is chilling is rather antonymous but serves as a stark reminder why you shouldn’t beat your children. And while on the theme of keeping clear of picking on minors our trip down into Mexico in Fernando Fidel Urdapilleta Jimenez’ Pretty Little Thing will have you second guessing your thoughts the next time you drive by a pretty girl in a school uniform. His short really has… bite.
We’ll end our tour tonight with a couple shorts busting more of a industrial vibe. Samuel Jørgensen’s film Katie’s Journey visits the inner world of a child in mourning. A child’s own imagination can create events that are more terrible than that which she is mourning. Beware the Tall Man and the Breathing Man. Then proving that you can mash together Horror, Sci-fi and Martial Arts the duo Benni Diez and Marinko Spahic will end your night with Kingz. We’ve spoken a bit about Kingz here on Twitch already and you will be pleased to know that it rewards all anticipation. Kampfansage‘s Mathis Landwehr gets to show off his martial arts skills. I have four words for you. Two. Big. Ass. Knives. At the end of the night remind yourselves this, Kingz was shot as a student thesis film.
Time once again for another preview of part of the program of this years Worldwide Short Film Festival. Today, the safety is off and taboos are set aside as we explore the kinky side of short film with a selection of humorous and sexy shorts.
Things get ‘animated’ right from the start as we here the woes and troubles of Richard in A Day In The Life of Richard, a six foot penis with trouble fitting into normal society. Other animated and funny offerings include two very quick shorts from Wade Vroom, T-Sex and Daddy, Where Does Chocolate Milk Come From?, and The Adventures of Baxter & McGuire - call that one a different take on the buddy flick. Way different.
When approaching the theme of ‘exploration’ I honestly hope that none of my mates ask me what hard-rocking Pera asks of his band mate in A Mate. I think my friends will be pleased to know that I am not… uh… that committed to our friendships. In I’ve Never Had Sex, offering his mobile phone as a digital tell-all and confessional, director Robert Kennedy asks just how far, or where, or how, some folks have gone into their sexual escapades.
In Size Matters and Love is Love the gender and orientation roles are reversed respectively. Does anyone remember that episode of Family Guy where Stewie says something along the lines of, ‘It’s like throwing a hot dog down a hallway’? In Size Matters a woman can’t keep a relationship because she is simply to big for the boys, if you know what I mean. It’s funny, but could have benefited from cutting out the jokes at the end. They felt unnecessary, like grasping at the funny straws. And Turn on your Strai-dar, Love is Love asks what if homosexual relations are the norm and heterosexuals are ostracized. Look for Margaret Cho’s cameo as the butch!
Finally, in what I’ll dub the ‘punchline’ shorts, Souvenir takes a humorous look at landing a celebrity in bed only to be baffled by his apartment’s plumbing the morning after. And in A Dose of the Guilts we see that promiscuity and the hard of hearing don’t always make good bed mates. Both shorts use the length of their films to build up to the big punchline in the end. A Dose of the Guilts chooses to go the funny route while Souvenir fuddles about at a posh Parisian house party before settling down to set up the big joke at the end of film. Nice pay off though.
Round two of our preview of this year’s edition of the Worldwide Short Film Festival. Tonight we look at the Sci-fi program Sci-fi: Out There. Compiled of 9 short films and clocking in over and hour and a half the program will offer viewers a diverse perspective on sci-fi cinema. Personally, I thought the bill started a bit slow but by golly does it pick up after the first couple shorts.
Things really started clicking for me with the animated short Rocket Science which had this great 1950s science fiction film approach but with noir film dialogue. She’s not just a woman, she’s a scientist. Great stuff.
Another favorite of mine was Martians Go Home!, a Spanish language film about alien invaders raising the dead to take over the world. At first I thought the director, Dani Moreno, was channeling Guy Maddin in his first scene but he switches lenses and films the meat of the film in such a way that you’d think you were watching an after school special you found on a VCR cassette at the neighborhood garage sale, Martians Go Home! Is saturated with vibrant colors, gallons of alien bodily fluid and a lead character I swear would pass as a Spanish Geddy Lee. It comes as no surprise that he picks up a guitar near the end of the short.
We’ve spoken a fair deal about Blood Will Tell, the animated short from Andrew McPhillips, and it is clear to see why. Oh. My. God. It is haunting. It is gorgeous. And it features music by Sigur Ros. Really, need we say anything else about it? See for yourself.
The icing on the cake is Ascension. During a blackout a tenant mistakenly walks into another apartment and disturbs a doomsday cult mid-ceremony. Stephen Irwin’s very funny film comes to us from Australia and is guaranteed to make you chuckle not once, not twice, but at least thrice. A very funny piece to cap off a strong program.
The short film gods have smiled kindly upon me and I will be previewing a number of the programs for the upcoming Worldwide Short Film Festival. Tonight we start our tour with Shorts For Shorties: Into (And Out of) This World! a program that it tailored for the young and young at heart.
Oh man are you guys and gals in for a treat. To start, this year they programmed three, yes, count them, THREE! Shaun the Sheep shorts from the Aardman Animation series. Stick With Me, Hiccups and The Snore Worn Shaun are laugh out loud funny. Other very funny entries include Because You’re Gorgeous, a story about a warthog with vanity issues, and Twit-Twit, a very sharp CG short about robots on pump trolleys, passenger powered rail cars, meeting at a toll booth in the middle of a desert.
No program for children would be complete if it missed the opportunity to inform and educate them as well. World in Your Hands and Emission Admission touch on taking care of the world we live in. Emission Admission is especially catchy with its hip-hop score. Aboriginality is an absolutely stunning mix of animation and live action, a story about a boy who discovers some traditional First Nations dance while watching television. It is in fact too short, I wish it was longer.
And the man with his finger on the pulse of Canadian and International culture, George Stroumboulopoulos- if ever I had a favorite Canadian on-air celebrity this is the guy- lends his voice to narrate the film Back In ‘93, a story of a young boy living in Toronto who comes out of the Hockey Closet and shows his devotion to the Montreal Canadiens after they won the Stanley Cup in 1993. It features a young boy who wears a fake mustache. How can it miss?
There are 18 shorts in Shorts for Shorties and all help make it a very eclectic and entertaining program.
The World According to Shorts has acquired all U.S. rights to six notable French short films and will release the films theatrically in New York as a package, under the title “L’origine de la tendresse” and Other Tales, on May 30 at Cinema Village, followed by a national release.
The program, created by Jonathan Howell, founder and director of The World According to Shorts, Inc., is the organization’s second release, following the critically-acclaimed release in 2006 of an eponymous package of six award-winning international shorts, which was also distributed nationwide, and subsequently released on DVD by New Yorker Video.
The program features the work of a generation of young, up-and-coming filmmakers—the first program of such work from France ever to receive distribution in the United States—and includes a broad range of styles and genres, from animation to fiction to documentary, reflecting the diversity of both the visions of contemporary French filmmakers and the people of France—from foundry workers in Brest to Algerian immigrants transplanted to Paris; the malaise of la vie quotidienne for a wealthy married couple to flirtatious youths in the capital’s Metro system.
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Last Fall I sampled the regional filmmaking to be had at the Idaho International Film Festival in Boise, Idaho. One of my favorites was the comic short The Mix-Up by A.J. Eaton. I was hoping it would be picked up by the San Francisco International but they chose to pass on it. Not so with the Cannes Short Film Corner, part of the 2008 Cannes Film Festival. Additionally, just a few weeks later The Mix-Up will then make its Asian premiere at the Short Shorts International Film Fest in Tokyo, Japan in international competition.
Of related interest is that Walter “Mr. Fix-It” Dalton—the avuncular star of The Mix-Up—just walked the Cannes red carpet for the premiere of Wendy and Lucy co-starring Michelle Williams, one of 19 features selected for the Cannes Un Certain Regard. Says A.J. Eaton: “This is indeed a testament to Wally’s great talent and versatility. It’s not every day someone has two films playing at Cannes—especially a comedy and a drama. It was a true pleasure to work with Wally. Not only is he an excellent actor, but he is also a brilliant writer. I look forward to working with him again.”
Congratulations A.J. and Wally! Cross-published on The Evening Class.
