I must admit that I’ve been paying a lot more attention to shorts lately, and not just the leg-revealing ones that have arrived with the warmer weather. The last time I covered the CFC Worldwide Short Film Festival, in 2007, I expressed a certain befuddlement when it came to actually writing about these mini-movies. But I’m convinced that short films are not only the training ground for feature directors, but may even be the future of film. During the most recent Sundance Film Festival, the programmers made a number of the short films screening there available for free through the iTunes music store. As more and more of us acquire mobile devices that are capable of playing video, the market for short films will grow. We may not have time to watch an entire feature film during our morning commute, but something in the 5–30 minute range might just be perfect.
So if you want a glimpse at the future of filmmaking, whether it be a director who remains a specialist in shorts, or someone who graduates to longer work, don’t miss this year’s festival. As in previous years, the screenings are organized into thematic “loot bags” with lots of potential for discovery. Here are the themes for this year:
And those are just the Official Selection competitors. There are lots of other thematic screenings, including sections focused on horror, comedy, music, and a special focus on Belgium this year. This year’s festival runs from June 16–21 at the Cumberland and R.O.M. cinemas. The exception is the opening night screening (featuring award-winning shorts from around the world) which takes place Tuesday June 16 at 7pm at the Bloor Cinema.
P.S. You just might find me at the Celebrity Shorts program on Thursday June 18 at 7pm at the R.O.M. cinema. It will feature the Canadian premiere of Eve, Natalie Portman’s directorial debut, starring Lauren Bacall, Ben Gazzara and Olivia Thirlby, and with a score by Sufjan Stevens. I’m also interested in seeing Sparks, which is the directorial debut of actor Joseph Gordon-Levitt. It’s based on an Elmore Leonard short story, and stars Eric Stoltz and Carla Gugino. Will these just be celebrity vanity projects or has acting actually taught these two something about filmmaking? Come and see!
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#wsff09,
shorts,
worldwideshortfilmfest
The Danish PoetTonight’s programme consisted of award-winning shorts released in 2006, and just watching them one after another led me to a few conclusions about short films in general. To compare them to written works, they’re a bit like poems to a feature film’s novel. And to compare to spoken word, they’re like jokes as opposed to sagas. With such a short amount of time, they need to make their points quickly, so there is often a high “cleverness” factor and the endings often feel like the punch line of a joke. This can work well, but a film that stands out is one that doesn’t make these tropes so obvious. Here, in my order of enjoyment, are tonight’s selections:
- The Danish Poet (Canada/Norway, 2006): With lovely narration from Liv Ullmann, this story felt the most organic and the least gimmicky. Even though there is a sort of punchline “payoff” at the end, it’s telegraphed early enough to set us down gently. The whimsical animation style and always-great use of animated (but non-speaking) animals made this a worthy Oscar-winner this year. Check out the film’s web site. (9/10)
- Dreams and Desires — Family Ties (UK, 2006): Another animated short, this one cleverly used animated sketches to simulate a wedding video filmed by the oddly cinephilic Beryl, a large woman of grandmotherly vintage. Her attempts to film the disastrous occasion in the styles of famous directors from Eistenstein to Riefenstahl, all the while keeping up a steady stream-of-consciousness narration, keeps this one rollicking along, despite the nearly impenetrable accents. (9/10)
- Tanghi Argentini (Belgium, 2006): This is a charming tale of an office drone who just might be an angel. André needs to learn to tango in two weeks so he can meet his Internet crush, so he turns to his colleague Frans to help teach him to dance. Will love bloom? (8/10)
- Contact (Raak) (Netherlands, 2006): Three characters paths cross again and again in this cleverly-edited short. There’s that word “clever” again. (7/10)
- The Substitute (Il Supplente) (Italy, 2006): A class of high-school students is terrorized by a Scott Thompson (ex-Kids in the Hall) lookalike, who then gets his comeuppance. Funny in an odd sort of way. (7/10)
- Make A Wish (Atmenah) (USA, 2006): A straightforward, almost documentary-like tale of a young girl who will go to any lengths to get a special birthday cake. Only it’s set in the West Bank. The filmmaking is pretty rudimentary and there’s a bit of a (tragic) punchline at the end. (6/10)
- Imagine This (Australia/Ireland, 2006): Sometimes a short should also be a “small.” Using found internet footage to make George W. Bush “sing” John Lennon’s “Imagine” was a pretty funny idea. But it really shouldn’t have made it off the YouTube site. (5/10)
Tagged as:
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canada,
denmark,
italy,
netherlands,
norway,
palestine,
shorts,
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worldwideshortfilmfest
I’ve been fortunate enough to obtain press accreditation for the 13th annual Worldwide Short Film Festival, which is running from June 12–17 here in our fair city. The motto this year is “Shorter is Better” which suits me fine, since I’m on the lower end of the height scale. It will be a particular challenge, though, to actually review these films, since the various programmes often cram ten or more shorts into each screening. But I’m going to do my best. My only confirmed screening so far is the Opening Night Gala being held tomorrow evening. It gathers a number of award-winning shorts into one programme:
- Imagine This (Australia/Ireland, 2006)
- Contact (Raak) (Netherlands, 2006)
- Dreams and Desires — Family Ties (UK, 2006)
- Make A Wish (Atmenah) (USA, 2006)
- The Substitute (Il Supplente) (Italy, 2006)
- The Danish Poet (Canada/Norway, 2006)
- Tanghi Argentini (Belgium, 2006)
This is my first time attending this festival and really my first time attempting to review shorts, so I’m sure I’ll learn a lot.
Tagged as:
shorts,
worldwideshortfilmfest
