INDIE MOVIE REVIEW: FAVORITES FROM HOLLYSHORTS 2025

21ST EDITION OF HOLLYSHORTS (2025)  

The HollyShorts Film Festival is an annual Academy Awards-qualifying independent short film festival located in Hollywood, California. 

Festival date: Closing: In person 17 August 2025 (streaming) 24 August 2025

Over the past four years, I have had the distinct privilege of covering and discussing the very best in Independent Short Filmmaking, as always showcased at the annual Hollyshorts Film Festival. So here is my Indie Favorite Dozen of films I loved the most from this year's crop. Along with 3 honorable mentions. Of course, 15 films in no way cover the over 250+ that are available for you to enjoy over the next week but maybe this will get you started. 

 ***HONORABLE MENTIONS***

LITTLE BIRD

When Linh Tran, a disillusioned Vietnamese woman tasked with carrying out evictions for a landlord, is instructed to evict Vietnamese refugees, she must stare her own humanity in the face and decide whether to follow through with their eviction process or reject her career in solidarity with those who remind her of home.


Year: 2025
Runtime: 16:44
Language: English
Country: USA
Director: Oanh-Nhi Nguyen
Screenwriter: Oanh-Nhi Nguyen and Ysabeaux Ng
Producer: Eva Zheng
Cast: Chantal Thuy, Jolie Eden, Paul Yen, Perry Yung
Cinematographer: Timothy Shin
Editor: Adhyaksh Amarnath
Production Design: Bala Govind Kumar
Sound Design: Monkey Land Audio

What is very apparent right from frame one of both of the films that Oanh-Nhi has here at Hollyshorts (spoiler alert: the other I will talk about further into this review blog) is her incredible eye for movement. Now you might be saying, movement? With films that typically feature one location, there is a tendency to lean on dialogue and emotion in a static form. What we get from Oanh-Nhi is an exploration of the entire space, and even at times where we are static, we get nice crisp cuts or nice steadicam turns that change the eye level or even just change the angle.  What that did for this viewer was keep me engaged. It helps me notice the little things, the focus on busyness, that not just keeps the story validity but also extends its authenticity. In Little Bird, especially, the time period is especially important to establish, and that nostalgic feel is present in every little detail that we are now focused on because of the movement.  There is also a nice filter and use of drab colors, like a lot of browns and tans, that help us authenticate the time period as well. This is so well organized and put together as a film that you almost feel it's too real to be fiction, but not static enough to be truly documentary style either. It's this nice blend of the best of both worlds., There are some great establishing shots, and when Timothy Shin, the cinematographer, and Oahn-Nhi, the director, can go wide, they take full advantage of it. Yet they still find a nice flow through the tighter spaces, like a great tracking shot that starts from a distance within a narrow hallway. You can feel the meticulous nature of every detail being handled here, and that really allowed this audience viewer to settle into a trust that allows the message to be heard. Nothing distracts or takes you out of the story here. 

Another great aspect to this film is our guide Chantal Thuy, who plays the lead as the one delivering the eviction bad news to the residents and dealing with not just her job but her heritage and her own morality and humanity here. Chantal really tackles this with nuance and subtlety that helps us deal with how we feel watching this. Often with a character like this, you see the arch just go so wide and up and down, but here Chantal plays Linh with a built-in uneasiness that we are forced to understand where she is coming from, a very good acting choice that helps us go forward. 

All in all, this is an interesting short with a relevant subject matter in a manner in which we don't often see its message portrayed. There is an intelligence here that is of the highest degree when it comes to how Oanh-Nhi gives us what we need, sets us where we need to be set, and brings us into an emotional and moral dilemma. I think the only thing for me that sets this on the fringes of my Top 12 is I think a couple of scenes could have been cut or cut down. The effectiveness sometimes works against this film, as it is that moments or two where you feel a tad hit over the head. That doesn't mean this isn't powerful, nor does it take away from how  beautifully manicured this film is in the end. Oanh-Nhi chose to take smart chances and they pay off.   

CLOUT

A lonely teenage boy risks everything to prove himself in a bid for online fame.


Year: 2025
Runtime: 16 minutes
Language: English
Country: United Kingdom
Director: Jordan Murphy Doidge
Screenwriter: Jordan Murphy Doidge, Tom Dutie, Tristram Thomas
Producer: Francis Chapman, Lindsay Freya Cullen, Jordan Murphy Doidge
Cast: Archie Yates (Oskar), Nadine Marshall (Miss Fuller), Anna Wilson-Jones (Catherine), Samuel Leakey (Ben), Kit Price (Trey),
Cinematographer: Amelia Hazlerigg
Editor: Rebecca Lloyd
Production Design: Collette Creary-Myers
Sound Design: Ines Adriana

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This is one of those you have to wait to be paid off, and it becomes well worth it when you do films; at least for me, it was. Even if it was a little predictable in the long run, and looking back now, I have to appreciate how Jordan Murphy Doidge got us there. When I watched it a 2nd time and did the kind of thing you'd do with a trick ending or shocking twist, I really grew to appreciate how well this all got set up. Not just in the actions where it is most prevalent, but even in the dialogue and what might appear to be subtle jabs or even malicious intent, there is a purpose. 

That design really finds its footing in the 3rd act, but that's only because when it happens, the moment that changes everything from tone to appeal to even social commentary on us as a society, the way Jordan lays it in and just makes you absorb is very clever and effective. It almost forces you to think about going back and rewatching it. 

Add some clever turns from some very good young actors, such as Archie Yates, who plays our unreliable narrator in Oskar, and its sins as a movie become very easily forgivable. I love Archie's cadence as Oskar too and the choice to let Oskar simmer and watch his mind work as he is getting trapped, pushed, a prodded by his peers and his own headspace. It's a nice distraction that ultimately is one of those solid clues to the future experience this movie provides.

Look, I am starting to tire of the whole let's represent social media on screen with frames and overlays that make us see they are live-streaming or interacting with one another. The latter becomes super important to the ultimate sell here, so it's a little more tolerable, at least when you realize its purpose. This movie leans a lot on what kids today care about and how they care about it above all else, and also the commentary of us as a faceless critic or online bully. That is nothing new in this landscape, and it doesn't really, until the end, do anything to differentiate itself from the other movies that have utilized this device.

Although I will say there is a super clever and funny interlude of one of the school's online stars putting a viral dance routine together, in which we see it from more of a behind-the-scenes than in front-of-the-screen thing. It works amazingly, but it is also not that new of an idea either. 

I will say if you watch this film, and you should, just know that your time is not in vain, especially if you start to grow a tad impatient like this viewer did. This movie will pay you off and make you rethink how bored were you, really?

SYNTHESIZE ME

A young teenager finds a way to bring her mother's synthesizers back to life with disastrous consequences for her and her father.


Year: 2024
Runtime: 0:15:27
Language: Spanish
Country: USA, Mexico, Netherlands
Director: Bear Damen
Screenwriter: Bear Damen
Producer: Salim El Arja, Po Wei Su, Bear Damen
Cast: Ivanna Plantier, Antonio Trejo Sánchez
Cinematographer: Alfonso Herrera Salcedo
Editor: Bear Damen
Production Design: Ana Blizzard
Sound Design: Jesse Enzler, Moritz Staub, Bear Damen

I love this concept; there is a rhythm and a unique beat that permeates throughout this film. The color palette here is phenomenal, one of my favorites of the festival. It's rich and blends the grittiness of the rural area with the social standing of the cast and heritage, and yet it glows with the warmth and comfort of a homeliness that provides a vibrant blanket.

I also really appreciate that the turn in this film happens in the 2nd act. Where most shorts and most of the ones here at Hollyshorts are all turning us in the end or 3rd act.

Ivanna Plantier is a young powerhouse of an actor, and this performance is flawless. Her depth with facial expressions and raw emotion really hit hard. I also enjoyed the foil of the piece in Antonio Trejo Sanchez, as we get the multiple sides of grief and how it is managed from a younger and older perspective.

This film has an amazing tug of war going on in the emotional plane, but sometimes Indie productions suffer from its environment, and its very hard ot blame the filmmaker because this had to be hard enough to budget, but once it gets dark, that sheen, that beautiful palette is gone. That took me out for a little bit.

What is going on in that scene though, kept me watching and eventually won me back. I am also not the audience for a song to close the show, but I got why and what the song was saying had a meaning that belonged in this story.

Now here's my Indie Dozen of favorites for  Hollyshorts 21. If you come across any festival, or screening, or posting where you see these films, do yourself a favor and give yourself 20 minutes to check them out. 

 #12 THE PAINTING AND THE STATUE   

 

A painting and a statue meet across a crowded room that transitions through 200 years. It just takes one look, one breathless moment, to bring them alive...literally.

Year: 2025
Runtime: 0:19:59
Language: English
Country: United Kingdom
Director: Freddie Fox
Screenwriter: Freddie Fox, Tanya Reynolds
Producer: Karima Sammout Kanellopoulou
Cast: Andy Monaghan, Tanya Reynolds, Nathan Stewart Jarrett, Mark Gatiss, Asim Chaudhry, Will Merrick, Fenella Woolgar, Hannah Onslow
Cinematographer: Ryan Eddleston
Editor: Paulo Pandolpho
Production Design: Violet Elliot
Sound Design: Stuart McCowan

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• In a unique juxtaposition of Oanh-Nhi films, Freddie Fox actually utilizes a polar opposite philosophy for about 90% of his film. Put a camera in one spot and have the actors work within the frame of a makeshift POV, and strangely and very neatly, it works. In fact, it works so well that when we are removed from that perspective, it's kind of like looking in the sun for about 5 minutes straight and then looking away, there is a period of disorientation and adjustment.  
• 
  With a movie like this, you saw what was coming and you were waiting for it, but I think what Freddie does so smartly here is he plays with your expectations, with a small foreshadowing here or a little spark there. All the while letting this wonderful cast just be purely be audacious and let loose. Boy, do they, and it makes for an entertaining bit for a while. I also love the fisheye lens framing that makeshifts an eyeball POV. Which ironically accompanies some of the best depth of field work of any short I have seen in this year's crop of films.  Why not have a little auteurism with our reality scope. 
  
  For me, the longing to get to the payoff is the only thing that, admittedly, for this impatient filmgoer, kind of made me a little antsy, but honestly, that's more of a personal thing than a filmmaking flaw or criticism. The jokes hit well, the payoff and its punchline hit even better, and this is a fun romp with an impeccable production design, into what is an interesting set of history.
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#11 LUX CARNE     
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Anyone who wants to eat meat must kill an animal.


Year: 2024
Runtime:  0:18:06
Language: French
Country: switzerland
Director: Gabriel Grosclaude
Screenwriter: Gabriel Grosclaude, Luca Moessner
Producer: Filippo Bonacci, Tenzin Yangdon Nesar
Cast: Georgia Rushton, JÃrÃmie Nicolet, Carl Laurent, and Emma-Lisa Roux
Cinematographer: Rafael Graf
Editor: Felix Scherrer,
Production Design: Lina Doll
Sound Design: Kevin Kandl

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• Some movies technically excite me as a "film guy". Then some just know how to tell an exceptional story, wherein the technicalities don't necessarily take a back seat, but they don't wow me either, and that's okay. All I know is how long I had to sit with and absorb what I just saw when it came to Lux Carne. This is an exceptional story, told in a manner that modernizes real life health concerns and brutal truths about us as animals. It is exceptionally acted by its lead, Georgia Rushton, who for me is one of the breakout stars of this festival. 
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• Watching her go through the processes as the Young Reporter, getting sucked into a crisis of conscience, is so utterly fascinating. I was riveted by her conviction and her struggles as well. There are several things Gabriel Grosclaude does here to help Georgia, the long lingering close up shots, where we all but see the thought process of this young lady, the shaky steadicam movements that jerk us into a false sense, and then just the whole idea of this being stripped down from the modest production design of essentially a dystopian society or at least a time period beyond to the utmost barbaric tools. All of it so well designed and with Georgia's tact and approach, we really feel in that room, we feel her conflict, and we start to wonder how we would handle all that is being seen here.
  
  I could not be more riveted for almost 19 minutes and yet so shaken in the same breath. The ending captures a lot of that anxiety so amazingly, with just a simple concept to it. This one will stay with me for a good period of time. 


#10 LEARNING TO DRIVE

                                    

Bettina, a recent LA transplant and struggling actress-turned-babysitter, must chauffeur precocious preteen Wynn, to a birthday party in Laurel Canyon. There’s just one problem — she barely knows how to drive a car.


Year: 2024
Runtime: 0:09:58
Language: English
Country: United States
Director: Tyler Cunningham
Screenwriter: Bettina Bresnan
Producer: Bettina Bresnan, Vic Brandt, Brittany Suzanne Kelly, Jackson Rickun
Cast: Bettina Bresnan, Kayla Teruel, Gable Swanlund, Alisa Torres, Alicia Silverstone
Cinematographer: Seannie Bryan
Editor: Kate Pedatella
Production Design: William Lynch
Sound Design: Aaron Glascock

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• Sometimes the best scripts and surprises come from something you read a byline and go, "ugh". However, this is one of the best written pieces of the entire festival. I laughed, cringed, and shook my head in disbelief and mild disgust for about 9 minutes straight. A funny thing happened within that, there is a life lesson that for sure me completely missed on the characters in this piece, but subtextual for the audience hits a tad harder, and it's amazing to feel something like that when its all said and done. Let's probably be blunt, though, and say that might not have been the true intention of the filmmaker and writer, who is also our lead in this film. I, as always, am probably getting a lot more out of it than intended.
  
  The satire, the self-depricating wit and audaciousness are so on point and dare I say, totally slay.  I love how all the actors leaned in and went all in. Alicia Silverstone's little bit was also a welcome smile and chuckle. Bettina really embodied this young lady, and played into the cringiness factor of disillusionment to perfection. The writing is sharp, and stings with the vigor it no doubt intended to leave you with. 
  
  I also have to say I never thought there would ever be a day in which I would have 1, let alone 2 films worth mentioning that had a vile, viral tiktok dance rehearsal scene in it. If you just want to laugh for a bit, this is the short to check out.
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#9 SUNDAY SAUCE

A repressed father. A buried secret. A chaotic family dinner. As tensions rise, Catholic guilt warps reality—and hidden desires manifest into something surreal.

Year: 2025

Runtime: 0:14:25
Language: English, Italian
Country: USA
Premiere: West Coast
Director: Matt Campanella
Screenwriter: Matt Campanella
Producer: Matt Campanella, Anthony Campanella
Cast: Cathy Moriarty, Matthew Risch, Nicole Ehinger, Matt Campanella, Vincenza Campanella, Maria Carrozza
Cinematographer: Stefan Nachmann
Editor: John Rafanelli
Production Design: Cat Gubernick
Sound Design: Vinny Alfano

• I love films where we get these sleight of hand, unreliable narrator POV's but often times that can be a slow burn or a tip of the cap that leads to us discovering the trick or the real story. Oftentimes, we are the fooled in these films, not the observer of those who are the actual fooled. So this time, smartly crafted by writer/director Matt Campanella, we not only get an interesting false narrative sell, but we also get it in the manner of this frenetic pacing that once it starts rolling downhill, it leads a film-goer wondering how it could stop?  The editing here is spectacular, not only does it set a tone, but it pushes two separate narratives from truly one perspective and does so with ferocity that marvels a Formula 1 race.. 
  
  Equally frenetic are the choices of our unreliable narrator, Matthew Risch, who really helps us navigate the tension with his ridiculous assumptions and notions, all while trying to be calm, mask his contempt, or keep from his head popping off (both of them ;) ). I love how it builds for Gino, Matthew's character, into something where he could lose us or gain us to maybe sympathize? Leaving for us, which to choose. That's the sleight of hand that works well. What helps that is the ridiculous, over-the-top, true nature of his daughter, played by up-and-coming Nicole Ehringer, and his mother, played by the legendary Cathy Moriarty. Both of these savvy actors know how to lean into the culture and stereotypical cadences so well that the sell job is easier than one might expect.   
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Now, not to get it twisted, Matt's brilliant writing and the editing are not here to play mind tricks with the audience; we serve more like the jury than the cross-examined. I also have to say here is yet another short in this year's selections that utilizes modern technology on screen in an overlay of text messages and vid pics in the beginning but unlike the others I saw this one is a tad more preserved by the POV and not used to make a point about modern society but more about mdoern relationships. So its a unique way in which we see this device's device. 

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• This film in no way feels like 15 minutes, and it plays out perfectly to the satisfaction of no one and that's its subtle charm.
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#8 WINDOW CLEANERS

                                                               

• When two undocumented window cleaners witness a domestic conflict inside a high-rise apartment, they must decide whether protecting their jobs and livelihoods is worth betraying their moral responsibility.

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• Year:
  2025
• Runtime:
  0:11:11
• Language:
  English, Spanish
• Country:
  USA
• Premiere:
  West Coast

• • Director:
    Sylvie Weber
  • Screenwriter:
    Sylvie Weber
  • Producer:
    Sue-Ellen Chitunya, Avril Speaks, Doménica Castro, Constanza Castro
  • Cast:
    Ezekiel Pacheco, Alejandro Patiño, Allison Walter, Travis Hammer
  • Cinematographer:
    Gaul Porat
  • Editor:
    Randi Atkins
  • Production Design:
    Freyja Bardell
  • Sound Design:
    Bryan Parker

  
  
• Sometimes you see a short and you see how well suited it is for the medium. Whether we are witnessing a ton of great movie magic or a truly crazy idea being filmed as only an Indie can, in the raw, rigged to the tilt, this reverse Rear Window experience is really amazingly orchestrated. It has the kind of raw, grittiness, and still yet beautifully fashioned look of a very well thought after and constructed piece.
  
  
• First and foremost, I love the authenticity of it all. I think of all the films I have on this list, maybe other than 1 film I will talk about down the list, the details here sell so much more because they are not the gimmick. They are the catalyst, and not in Chekov's gun sort of way either, more like Jimmy Stewart's wheel chair in Rear Window sort of way. I love that here. 
  
  
• I also think Sylvie Weber's script and the natural dialogue flow worked extremely effectively here too. There is no suspension of disbelief, and the incident that percolates,its not outrageous, and very plausible. That's also when the message of this movie really starts to shine through within the interactions of all involved. I love how that brings up these social contracts for all four of these characters. Ezekiel Pacheco shines brightly here as Juan, the young man on the outside looking in, literally and figuratively. I love his quick wit, his defiance, and sheer bravado. It has this nice trickle down effect for the other 3 actors. Especially Juan's Father, Miguel played nicely by Alejandro Patino. 
  
  There is a nice shot through the glass that also extends the grit and realism, framed with each worker on the edge of each side of the frame. Loved that composition. I also love the ending and how not everything has to be this nicely packaged box with a bow on top. Sometimes reality doesn't favor that as its solution. Instead we get the grand introspections from the character's POVs and that says a lot more in the long run. This is 11 minutes I would spend again.
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#7 SHADOWS IN THE SUNLIGHT

A vaccine health-worker in Pakistan battles against cultural and religious suspicions, risking her life in a nationwide effort to eradicate polio.

Year: 2025
Runtime: 0:22:24
Language: Urdu
Country: Pakistan, United Kingdom, Sweden
Director: Ruhi Hamid
Producer: Harri Grace, Paul King
Cast: Ishrat, Sana Malik
Cinematographer: Chris Omand
Editor: Michael Nollet

• This was my favorite documentary of the bunch I got to see at this festival. It's look and its shot construction are top notch. There is this gorgeous glow over this bleak circumstance and wrought subject matter that creates a very uncomfortable but never dull viewing experience. I think the contrasting ideal of making it look beautiful or shining the beauty in the forefront is masterful here because if the heaviness with drab and flat this would not be as interesting an experience. Cinematographer Chris Omand really knocks it out of the park with the shot selection, the use of the natural lights availablem and the filters he uses when he uses them (meaning there is a certain look fo rthis part of the film vs any of other). 
  
  As with a lot of what I liked at this year's festival, there is a clear and strong message being purveyed but this one has the nice observer touch from director Ruhi Hamid, wherein we are privveyed to the message but not the solvant to it.  There are nicely touched counterpoints that while not being celebrated or pushed they are there and that lends to what might sway another viewer a different way even if it required a Mr. Fantastic-like stretch to get there. Make no mistake the humanity is prevalant and should be, but I get the extenuating circumstance elements, and to have ignored that would have made this preachy and not polarizing.
  
  All in all where documentaries slip for me is to pay no mind to the aesthics and this film does more than pay attention, it raises the bar. 
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#6 THE STAND

When her mother is forced to leave their family’s bustling food stand, a determined immigrant girl must team up with her pesky kid brother to keep things running — and earn enough to give their mom a rare night off to attend her choir concert.

Year: 2025
Runtime: 0:14:33
Language: English
Country: USA
Director: Oanh-Nhi Nguyen
Screenwriter: Oanh-Nhi Nguyen & Corey Pinchoff
Producer: Constanza Castro, Doménica Castro, Amanda Cruz Gonzales, and Stephanie O'Neill
Cast: Jovie Leigh, Kailen Jude, Nicole Santiago
Cinematographer: Ed Wu
Editor: Ace Jing Wang
Production Design: Bala Govind Kumar
Sound Design: One Thousand Birds

Well here's the 2nd film in this festival from Oanh-Nhi and while they both are super impressive in style, structure, and overall execution, this one (no un intended) stands out to me just a little bit more. 

First because I love that here we are for the most part, 85-90% of the movie set in one spot, not just one location, one spot at that location and yet the manner in which the whole entire space is explored is super impressive. It never feels static, it never feels claustrophobic, not just for us the audience members but for the actors too. I love the soft pans that lead to stark reveals. I'm thinking of a certain moment with a couple cartons of food sitting on the top of the glass transaction counter.   

The other reason is Jovie Leigh, who is spectacular and carries every moment of this film with every emotion you can exercise and does so with the kind of control it takes the savviest of veteran actors to master. Much like her character, Quinn, she seizes every moment she can. 

There seems to be a polish on this film that didn't exist with Little Bird and while that film showcases a lot of what Oanh and her crew can do , this one shows it in spades. There is a confidence that breathes throughout every frame and even in the toughest of spots, where light is lost or we need to hear a conversation in a busy alley we are never for a second lost ourselves. That is a skillset unteachable and untanigable. I can't wait to see more from this filmmaker and what she does with a feature length project. This is one heck of a short film to leave (if for now) the medium. 

#5 WE DO OUR BEST

 On a school night in New York City, a mother helps her daughter appear older to spend time together at a cocktail lounge, leading to a night of revealing truths and reflection 
 

Year: 2025
Runtime: 0:13:41
Language: English
Country: United States
Director: Hannah Rose Ammon
Screenwriter: Hannah Rose Ammon
Producer: Gaby Leyner
Cast: Jennifer Esposito, Madalynn Mathews, Taylor Rosen
Cinematographer: Agustina Biasutto
Editor: Leeda Yazdi
Production Design: N/A
Sound Design: Jeff Seelye

Like a good cocktail, a film, even within 13 minutes, can be with the right mix of ingredients, the perfect pour, and just the atomosphere itself can be an experience. This what Hannah Rose Ammon has slid across the bar for us. There is a different level of elegance, poise, and just a great sense of timing, spacing, and editing that coupled with an awesome lighting job and amazing actors, displaying impeccable chemistry that really hums here. 

The writing reminds me of a Mamet play scene, rich and smart layered with subtlty and subtext. Jennifer Esposito plays her role of Mother in the cool, calm, and collected way only she can. She has this great demeanor about her and we have seen it roles of hers before but this is the quiet outstanding and loving aspect o fthat demeanor and personally i think it was the absolute right choice for her character here. The guiding hand she provides really leads one of the break out stars for me of this festival in Madalynn Mathews. Madalynn has this gentle naive swagger about her that shines a really interesting one minute coy and shyness and the next brave and fearless. Its hard to believe we get 2 very powerful arcs from two strong leads in a 13 minute, essentially one room setting but that is exactly what this film does. 

I love the atmosphere on top of the interplay between the Mother, Daughter, and Bartenders. It is rich, has this glow about it that speaks comfort and mischief all in one. I also love that we start out in this overlit apartment kitchen that serves as a stark reminder that life is life but that everyone deserves a little fun and adventure. 

The ending is the cherry in the drink. This is really incredible writing, near flawless acting, and just the right place at the right time for the right story. 

#4 SECOND TIME AROUND

On a rainy night, while closing a café, a young waitress is confronted by a mysterious older woman.

Year: 2025
Runtime:  0:12:18
Language: English
Country: United Kingdom
Director: Jack Howard
Screenwriter: Jack Howard
Producer: Ash Horne, Max Marlow
Cast: Caroline Goodall, Hannah Onslow
Cinematographer: Ciaran O'Brien
Editor: Jack Howard
Production Design: Set Sisters
Sound Design: Dan Pugsley

Back in the day, the short film format used to be much more about experimenting with story in a more abstract and vague circumstance. Not so much stylistic but more subtextual and subversive, leaving the audience to figure out the meaning or to draw their own conclusions. Some would say audiences got way too hip to that, and it bored them. Some might say that to get a bigger audience for the short film marketplace, it worked and helped to dumb it down. Whatever side you fall on, if you are like me and you missed that type of short, well, you can thank Jack Howard for bringing it back, like I am about to. 

This film is beyond smart. It is heartfelt and meaningful, and it aims high and lands higher. Unlike most of those films of those past days, this film does not strike a mean bone or stand to gross you out or make you jump. In fact, just the opposite. It's almost embarrassing, or I am a little embarrassed to think those moments might be coming. The thought did enter my mind, but then I realized at a point, there was a pivot, a brilliant dialogue pivot in a short film that is full of distractions and just incredible stimuli, tethering clues and leaving crumbs without ever saying a word. When that moment happened, a strange calm came over me I realized what I was watching. 

I think this and the film above I just wrote about might be tied for the best production design. In fact, in the ultimate irony, they are very similar to one another. Dark but musky, but where there was this feminine lore penetrating masculine in We Do Our Best, this film actually softens the hard-edged atmosphere and does so through the brilliant performances of Caroline Goodall and Hannah Onslow. Again, as with the above the film we are talking about 2 powerhouse actors, one in Goodall, who has been doing incredible stand out work since Schindler's List, and Onslow, who is just starting to find her footing and making a name for herself. It has to be said too, for her very small part, Genevieve Lewis deserves if nothing else, helping sell the mystical moment being captivated here, and its uncanny. 

This movie is not out to fool you, its out to make you think, make you ask and answer the one fundamental question we all have in the end when we mourn, long, and regret. It's coupled with an absolutely gorgeous design that is utilized in the full space by Cinematographer Ciaran O'Brien, who again goes old school, the pans, the pull out reveals, and then the just serene over the shoulder two shots. All of this works like Movie Magic should work, leaving you to think about what it is you just experienced.     

#3 LUZ DIABLA

 Martín, a flamboyant urban raver, is involved in a strange accident on the road on his way to a party in the middle of the Argentine Pampas.

Year: 2025
Runtime: 0:11:10
Language: Spanish
Country: Argentina, Canada
Director: Gervasio Canda, Patricio Plaza, Paula Boffo
Screenwriter: Gervasio Canda, Paula Boffo, Patricio Plaza
Producer: Courtney Wolfson, Iouri Stepanov, Gervasio Canda, Patricio Plaza, Paula Boffo
Cast: Gianluca Zonzini, Gulliver Markert, Mario Alarcón, Emanuel Gabotto, David Tokar
Cinematographer: N/A
Editor: Patricio Plaza
Production Design: Gervasio Canda
Sound Design: Pomeranec Música y Sonido

When it comes to animation, it is a skillset I so envy, and when it is done on the caliber in which it is here, it is spellbinding and just so awe-inspiring to say the least. Now I will say, and I don't know why, but this animation style reminded me a lot of when I used to play Dragon's Lair and Space Ace. Not that it's a bad thing, I loved that nostalgic feeling I got from watching it. The color palette here is astonishing and it guides a frenetic pacing that is unmatched on this list or from this festival. I love Frank Miller-esque conversational hipster jive that accompanies the madness here too. It is well written, even in its crassness.

The thing I can't get over is how much this piece moved like a film; there are tracking "shots", jump cuts to close-ups, and almost a dolly shot-like feel to the movements outside of the car. I also love the shadows and light bursts that give the animation depth of field and depth of 3D dimension. I can't remember an animation that did all this, sans maybe Waking Life by Richard Linkletter. There is a pseudo rotoscoped feeling to the human characteristics that are contoured and layered here. 

I also like that we are watching someone get what they deserve here, as well as the POV and inner workings of their unreliable narrator's journey. The ending is really awesome. 

#2 HEIRLOOMS

Jaime’s quest for healing leads her to restore a family heirloom. But what begins as a therapeutic project, soon spirals into a battle against an ancient evil that has plagued her bloodline for generations.

Year: 2025
Runtime: 0:12:45
Language: English
Country: Canada
Director: Dan Abramovici
Screenwriter: Dan Abramovici & Peter Lavoie
Producer: Ali Mashayekhi and Zeus Kontoyannis
Cast: Chloe Van Landschoot, Ryan Bruce, Nicolle Moller
Cinematographer: Ian Macmillan
Editor: Mike Reisacher
Production Design: Thomas Hart
Sound Design: Jonah Blaser

Speaking of old school filmmaking, this classic horror format is going to remind you of many different films, but I wonder will it leave you the same way those before did? Heirlooms hits differently because it does something very unique in horror; it breaks its own rules, and it works to perfection. Sure, there are the standard camera pushes in on the artifact of evil and then static shot, the trick door, the jump cuts into madness but what unfolds from all of it is a unique look at a twisted logic and captivating character turn for the ages. 

This all rests on the shoulders and in the hands of a maestro with everything, expressions, the words, the panic, and then the turn in Chloe Van Landschoot. Chloe is masterful in every sense and every second of this short. She demands your attention even when the Heirlom is trying to get it and she gives us a POV that not only strings us along but makes us pause. Wait is she? No way? I loved every second of that idea. 

I also really loved the uniqueness of it being in musty daylight, how the colors were as much the tomfoolery as the nature of the characters were, paisley walls, light blue overalls, pink nail polish, and gold combs. It even uses modern technology overlays with some hashtagging and facetiming in it.

Which Ryan Bruce deserves a shout-out here too. He plays his role to perfection as well and gives us what we need when we need it most to just be completely awestruck by the starkness of it all. I wish I could say more, but kudos to Ryan for what he means to this film. 

I would love to read this script because I have a feeling this might be one of my favorite reads. I am so impressed by how this film lures you in, keeps you on the hook, makes you go one way, only to fuck you up in the end and just totally 180 on you, brilliant.

 

#1 UNDER THE ICE

On the last glacier, a data analyst is sent to investigate a stalled climate mission. As ancient vapors rise from the ice, layers of deep time blur with her inner world—and reality begins to shift.

Year: 2024
Runtime: 0:19:59
Language: English, Russian, German
Country: Switzerland
Director: Michel Kessler, David Oesch
Screenwriter: Jonas Staehelin
Producer: Levin Vieth
Cast: Lena Tronina, Cosima Shaw, Alireza Bayram, Michael Neuenschwander
Cinematographer: Natascha Vavrina
Editor: Tim Egner
Production Design: Simona Mele
Sound Design:  Jakob Eisenbach

In total transparency and honesty, the main reason this movie is my #1, that it separates it from #2 to #3 is it does both of the things I praised the #2 and #3 of doing here in this 20 minutes of film. For that, it has to get its flowers. 

This movie uses the terror of the unknown with the intelligence of the matter, with the subtext of environment and beyond, to hone a narrative that I would love to see get 90 or so minutes more. 

It is masterful and old school in the way it sets everything up, where you think one thing about what is going on here, to only be brought to the fold of what is really going on here. It is the best written short of this year's crop. 

It has that special big cinema feel to it as well. The shots are grandiose, the moments are doused with frantic but perfectly stilled steadicam work, the sets feel like Hollywood lot sets, and there is a faint musical accompaniment that leads to a visceral exchange of calmness and zen that leads to a big reveal and even bigger accomplishment for the characters involved. 

Lena Tronina is the Ellen Ripley/Dr. Arroway (google them I don't have time to educate you) in full force here. She has a toughness and grit to her that when needs to show compassion and forethought it comes smartly and extinctively. I love her analytical yet stern tact here. It was the perfect way to play a character of this magnitude. 

Michale Kessler and David Oesch direct, along with the beautiful shots from Natascha Vavrina a wonderful exploration here with mild sedatives to set the audience up for when the mainline adrenaline kicks in. Yet when we come down from the spike they are there to guide us home with just some of the most gorgeous scenic shots of any film here. 

This is the peak and valley type film that screams opening night chatter. It has such a huge scope of thought provoking connotation, coupled with people on a mission, and the one sent in to rescue someone or something from themselves, realizing they have only half the story whom we all gravitate and lena on for the ride that this film takes us on.  

As you have read I am pretty happy that this year we got a lot of what I love and a sort of return to what the short film does when done right. There are so many more I didn't talk about here that I saw and liked but these films are ones that will stay with me for a long time to come. 

If you want to learn more about how you can see them or be a part of this fesitval in the future you can go here and start your journey. These films are up on the BitpixTV site until August 24th.