INDIE SHORT FILM SHOWCASE

 I often get asked to review Indie short films and I struggle with this request because they aren't exactly available for you all to see and also they aren't movies that people usually look to check out. However, personally, I think some of the best art in cinema that I have seen has come from this medium over the past few years. Now while these don't usually get mass distribution so the general public can see them, they are making rounds at film festivals, oscar contender screenings, and then sometimes just go right online. If you are somebody who likes to follow trajectories, might see it at a film festival you are attending, or is looking to collaborate with like minded artists this is often the type of media that helps with that and I would be doing a disservice if I didn't steer you in their direction. 

So here now are some of the ones I have seen in the fall of 2024 and what I think about them. I will try to do this once a quarter. 

THE REBEL GIRLS
 

RUN TIME: 22 Minutes

GENRE: Drama

SYNOPSIS: "The Rebel Girls" is inspired by the true story of the 1960s fight for Civil Rights through the eyes of the girls who reinvigorated the struggling movement through the power of magical thinking, friendship, faith, and fortitude.

WRITTEN & DIRECTED BY Felicia D Henderson

STARRING: Mike Bash, Nika King, Ed Ackerman, Julyza Commodore, and Avynn Crowder-Jones

This was an absolute triumph. It's technically flawless, the following shots, the transitions from bright, vibrant colors to dark and drab, and the move from the 1st Act into the 2nd. Coupled with historically perfect dialogue, the cadences of the acting, and the mood shift that is so amazingly drastic and just unbelievably set up. I can't wait till someone gives Felicia D Henderson a chance to tell a full-length narrative, her style is just so pitch perfect and her command of what we see, hear, and know is all timed to the nth degree. 

A monster stand-out performance from Nika King here. Her shifts, her choices, all play so well in Felicia's framework. All the young ladies who took this on and showed their bravery in going for rewarded us so plentiful as an audience.

This is the voice we have been missing within the civil rights storytelling genre and I love that this movie grabbed me, made me smile, made me mad, and kept me on the edge of my seat for the entire 22 minutes. 

This is easily one of the best things on screen I have seen all year. Hopefully it gets an oscar run and if it does, do not miss the shorts program when it comes through a theater in your town.

YOU CAN FOLLOW FELICIA AND THE FILM'S JOURNEY HERE

WHERE ARE YOU REALLY FROM? 

 

RUN TIME: 19 Minutes

GENRE: Comedy/Drama 
SYNOPSIS: "An ambitious first-generation Indian managing director at a major London bank loses his British accent in a stroke. Comedy ensues, threatening his identity and career as he must re-learn his accent or risk losing it all."

WRITTEN & DIRECTED by Keshav Shree 

STARRING: Ruchika Jain, MJ Lee, Gbola Adewunmi

This short piece is a heavy unpacking,  even when it boxes us in and punches at us lightly. Keshav Shree is exceptional in his acting role and his writing here is equally impressive. Not to mention the opening shot of the movie is wow, breathtaking. I like how Keshav tackles the absurdity of the ruling class but more so the perils of seeking that acceptance. There is a neat moment at the end of this movie that does well to bring it all to the forefront in both directions you might think it could go (a kind of nice nod to Clue with a dual ending). I just wish the movement here was a lot like the opening shot. This is one of those stage play Indies that has a lot to say but does so stuck in one spot. While there is just too much static here at times and a weird turn where the film gets darker not just in tone but in the visual presentation, this ultimately has a lot to say and that's a credit to Keshav obvious talent.

Beyond that, the side characters work because they lean into the caricatures. Ruchika Jain is especially memorable as the mother figure. These also do a nice job of setting up the 3rd act and selling the subtle jokes that sprinkle into the narrative. I do like that while in your face, they aren't too heavy-handed and yet effective, a credit to the acting choices and the writing. This needed one more editing round and maybe a way to find a little more movement but what it does sell, and when it does work I am in and buying.  

YOU CAN FOLLOW KESHAV HERE

   MEOW

RUN TIME: 14 Minutes

GENRE: Comedy/Drama 
SYNOPSIS: "An absurd short comedy in the themes of magical realism with a modern twist. It is a non-spoken film shot on 16mm in the settings of the Gothic architecture of Prague. The story is about a young toilet attendant (Paige Janey) trying to find her pet cat. She follows the tracks left by mysterious hunchbacks, whom, she believes, hold her cat captive. These forlorn, puerile creatures lurk around town trying to get her attention by stealing the things that she values, namely everything that reminds her of her lost cat, Meow. Along the way she trades her ‘feet pics’ with a deranged river hunchback to unlock the door that leads her into their secret castle. Inside she discovers the depths of their obsession when, in disguise, she witnesses a secret shadow-puppet theatre adaptation of her life reenacted by the hunchbacks. But her shock gives way to disappointment when she realizes they don’t have her cat.
"

WRITTEN & DIRECTED by Michal Vojtech and Ariel De La Garza

STARRING: Paige Janey, Raphael Ruiz

There is a neat old Vaudevillian feel along with this interesting, almost Live Action capturing of a pseudo-Tom and Jerry or Road Runner Wile E Coyote episode. The visuals here are really nice, the actors do a great job of selling everything with expressions and movements. There is a nice color pallet that springs to life this almost dystopian backdrop. I love times how quickly this movie moves and again another great opening shot. However this movie needed a moment or two where we are left to think a little harder about what we are experiencing through the characters' eyes, it would have been nice to see a subtlety here and there. 

I think Vojtech, uses great devices like background news clippings and music to sell us. The music in fact is absolutely amazing and perfectly designed for this narrative.  I think this would be a tough movie beyond its 14 minutes here but a great short film and a really example of the medium is all about.

YOU CAN FOLLOW THE FILM JOURNEY HERE 

PASSIVE POWER  

RUN TIME: 11 Minutes

GENRE: VR Experience 
SYNOPSIS: "A travelling through dimensional soundwaves."

WRITTEN & DIRECTED by JB GHUMAN JR 

I don't have a VR headset but that didn't prevent me from enjoying this experience. It is hard to do a normal review when the narrative of this movie is in a flow state that has no true plot line. So I will just say what I got from it was a nice, calming effect. It is visually stunning and obviously, there is something to be said for that both in technique and from a storytelling perspective. I chose to utilize it as a meditation tool and worked extremely well for that. 

JB has a great grasp of colors and how to manipulate them so you do get this unique and enhanced flow state. I have to imagine that plays well behind a headset. I have done the VR thing before and I am always impressed by its near-perfect pitch to bring a person in and absorb them into a setting. This has all the makings of that for sure and I think would be a great experience for anyone willing to try it or meditate off of it, that worked well for me.

YOU CAN FOLLOW JB HERE

WRECKED A BUNCH OF CARS, HAD A GOOD TIME

 

 RUN TIME: 11 Minutes

GENRE: Documentary 
SYNOPSIS: "Documentary following four participants in a demolition derby as they experience the thrills and camaraderie of smashing cars together."

DIRECTED by Matt Ferrin & James P Gannon

I gather this is a proof-of-concept vehicle for a bigger ambition of maybe a feature or series? Which this filmgoer would welcome. I was riveted by the action, it was a great choice to feature that. I thought the shots were well composed and it's difficult in an environment like that to get the kind of clarity Matt and James found. I love the color filter to give it that nostalgic feel too. This is very good filmmaking from the action aspect of this and the little subtle glimpse into introducing the players. I thought working within the 11 minute framework the filmmakers did all they could do to get you interested and involved. Obviously though, if you are aiming for this to be expanded, knowing the players, and getting some intimacy and insight into who they are would add to the cheering or jeering in this space. I also think there is potential to get a really good look into those who put on the events. I think there was a nice tease in that direction with the announcer shots and organizer laying out the rules. All in all very nicely done, hope to see more of it down the road. 

YOU CAN FOLLOW THE FILM' S JOURNEY HERE

7 FOIS 

 RUN TIME: 17 Minutes

GENRE: Drama
SYNOPSIS: "One afternoon a polite young boy, Elio, meets his tutor's secret lover. When he confides in her, sharing an even bigger secret, she's convinced he's joking and bursts out laughing."

WRITTEN & DIRECTED by Christine Wiederkehr 

STARING Vidal Arzoni, Luna Wedler, Mona Petri 

This is one of those pieces that sticks with you and in many ways, you don't want it to but in saying that it is very well constructed and very nicely done. There is a great contrast between innocence, maturity, false maturity, and just a hint of darkness that forbodes in the foreground and pushes in the background. I love Christine Weiderkehr's approach here, the ominous music, the nice space she gives everyone, and the framing, in particular the last shot of the film which I won't soon forget. Vidal Arzoni is a star in the making. The choices he makes are so delicate and yet echo with this strange air of confidence that comes with innocence. It is powerful and you get this incredible sense as do all the characters along with the audience of this need to protect what Eilo has. Yet in playing it the way Vidal does there is a turning point to his character that will be lost forever and the reconciling of that is stark for the audience because Vidal plays it with this need to be adult about it; brilliant choices. I like that we get just enough of everyone else too, a nice touch by Christine to keep it in Elio's perspective.

I love pieces like this that utilize the short film concept and never waste a second. There is so much in every bit of every frame. Things we see, things implied, things we don't want to see, and then all of Elio's wonder cascading around that. It is really powerful and left this moviegoer stunned.

YOU CAN FOLLOW THE FILM'S JOURNEY HERE 

TRIPTYCH 

 RUN TIME: 15 Minutes

GENRE: Horror
SYNOPSIS: "A high-end art dealer is haunted by a mysterious force from her past that threatens to destroy everything she's built."

WRITTEN by Atticus Hoffman & Roland Walters

DIRECTED by Sophia Ray

STARING Angela Nedyalkov, Emmanuel Imani, Emma Suki

This is a fantastic concept, that pays you off in spades with a nice build and ending. It is one of the best edited films I have seen this year and maybe in many years. I love the transitions from the real to the ethereal world, light to dark, and even in the reveals. I also love the depth of field blurs and wides that give this grandiose scope and then narrow into what you need to focus on. Although I will say I could have done with one less dolly tracking shot here. Angela Nedyalkov is good, especially in the moments when we are right on her in a close-up or two shot. I think for me Emmanuel Imani steals the show, his character has this nice foil aspect to it that turns, and when it does, its interesting the choice Damien makes at the end and what he sees. 

I do think there is some stiffness to the acting a little. There's one particular scene that just misses for me involving the most overt physical contact in the entire narrative but the grit of this wicked tale is there and shines well. I also love the use of color and its role in each aspect, again utilizing depth of field in what we see adds this weird halo effect on the beyond aspect of this story and turns the utter darkness into this strange muted gray.  Reminded me of the great scenes in Hellraiser, Army of Darkness, and Re-Animator. It had that "fake" but real feel to it. 

I think Sophia Ray really goes for it here, and maybe it is a little much at times but the crux of it and bones of it are really spectacular. This is the kind of macabre the genre has been missing and I am happy to see it back in this form.  This could easily have fit into Tales From The Crypt or The Outer Limits.   

YOU CAN FOLLOW THE FILM'S JOURNEY HERE