A third of the way into the year, and we’ve had so many great films coming through our screening series, and this is no exception. With over a dozen incredible films over two screening sessions, there’s going to be plenty for everyone to enjoy. For those interested in checking out the impressive slate of films, those in the greater Los Angeles area can get tickets for the night’s festivities through our partnership with LOOK! Dine-In Cinemas when the showing takes place on April 30th. For those unable to attend in person, the films will also be available on BitPix shortly after the screenings take place. So without wasting much more time, let’s get to the screenings!
$55 Private Room In A Safe, Quiet Neighborhood – Lauren Norby’s short film is a fun and wild film that sees Jennifer (Gillian Todd) come up with a complex and very unique plan to get out of her marriage. With her husband out of a town and a local gun show on the way, Jennifer decides to rent out the spare room in her home, seduce her new visitor and frame her husband in such a way that the gun-loving guest takes care of her husband problem for her, in the guise of protection. But plans don’t always exactly go off without a hitch, and Jennifer’s go up in smoke when a new revelation rears its head upon her husband’s return. It’s a fantastic, funny and strange film that is pulled off brilliantly by Norby and the cast.
Hot Soda – Tuisdi Layne stars in this film about revenge, drugs and family as Meg (Layne) protests the approval to double the amount of fracking being done in her hometown, an act that is not only destroying her home, but contributed to the death of her mother years ago. Helping out at her father’s restaurant, Meg faces a dilemma when the very CEO she was protesting enters the establishment, the man’s stature within the city causing Jack (Aeron Macintyre), Meg’s father, to jump at the chance to serve him, with Meg’s help. So Meg does what any self-respecting person would do: goes to her car, eats a handful of mushrooms, get wildly high and comes up with a plan to teach her adversaries a lesson by dosing their food, an act of rebellion that goes off without a hitch, though the results of which are very different than expected. It’s a film that mixes commentary with humor, adding the personal touch as well in a combination that is vivid and wildly interesting. It mixes mediums, with animation and hallucinatory sequences that fit the story of the film and make it really feel like we’re taking in a part of the experience of the characters, which is a testament to the way writer/director Nello DiGiandomenico chose to make this film.
Infinity! – Benjamin To’s short about a Japanese-American couple dealing with the rising tensions at the start of World War II is a beautiful and emotional film that sees Sunny (Jonathan Tanagaki) and June (Olivia Cordell) attempting to escape the watchful eye of those looking to put them in a concentration camp while also attempting to live their dreams as performers. The film is heartfelt and heartbreaking, watching the couple express their love for performance and each other while trying to find a way to live outside the racial discrimination that emerged at the onset of the global conflict. Tanagaki and Cordell are brilliant, and To’s story is sure to not leave a dry eye in the theater during its showing.
Farmers Dating – Alle Hsu’s fantastic short film follows Victoire (Marion Servole), a woman working on a farm in rural France. When her husband leaves her for another woman he met on a farmer-focused dating app, she attempts to do so herself, despite her lack of ease with technology. It’s a wonderful slice of life film that shows the universal struggle that people face in trying to find love and lead life in a way that makes them happy, and how that can be compounded by both technological advances and in how news travels in a small town. Hsu, who co-wrote the film with Chris Vennemeyer, does an excellent job behind the camera, really letting us into Victoire’s life and perspective with their shot selection and storytelling.
VS – Jole Sanchez’s short film is one that is filled with nostalgia, for better and worse. Justin (Deuce Basco) is a young Filipino kid who helps out at his father’s liquor store and whose beloved pastime is the Street Fighter arcade cabinet at the store. We see his love for the game and for the camaraderie that it can build as he plays with a few of the locals, until prejudice rears its head in several directions, both levied Justin’s way when a white kid named Cory (Everett Harrison) challenges him to a game, and towards others when Justin’s father (Derek Basco) shows his own bias towards a local African-American guy, Marcus (Derrick Watson). The conflict escalates, leading to a fight and some very uncomfortable truths about how the conclusions made towards others, leaving Justin and his father in their own head to head conflict. Sanchez makes a terrific and poignant film here, using the game itself to show people at odds with one another, for various reasons, and the harm something like that can cause.
The Last Mermaid – Sophia Seraphim West writes and directs this musical drama about a mermaid named Ophelia (Alicia Maye) whose voice lead her to pursue a singing career outside of the safety of the ocean, finding reality is not quite what she’d hope. Now married to husband Declan (Gabriel Pranter) and basically confined to a bathtub under the control of her husband and former creative partner, Ophelia has to decide for herself what she wants to do with her life and how she can still make her dreams come true. It’s an interesting film, as it parallels both traditional lore about mermaids, as well as some more mainstream pop culture versions, melding them into an interesting story that is both bittersweet and a bit terrifying, but full engrossing.
Vial – Caroline Iaffaldano’s fashion horror short film is reminiscent of another hit full length film that hit theaters recently, and that is meant as a compliment. Claudia Sulewski stars as Poppy, a fashion model whose time is running short in the spotlight, and is sent by a renown fashion photographer to an apothecary for something to help with her fading stardom. Whatever is given to her works wonders, but when Poppy takes more than directed, things start to go awry. It’s fun, visually stunning and a cautionary horror film that uses fashion and the predatory nature of the industry perfectly. Sulewski and Pter Vack, who plays photographer Keith, are both excellent, with Poppy encapsulated as a desperate star aging out of her industry and Keith the sleazy manipulator who knows just that and can use that to his advantage.
Bajo La Tierra – Making a return after its selection in our October screening, Pablo Guillen’s emotionally powerful and frightening film is just as good the second time around. Susana Elena Boyce plays Alma, a potter whose obsession with her work is amplified after the passing of her mother (Ivette Gonzalez). Bonding as a family and with Alma’s promise to her mother to bring some notoriety to their humble family as a child firm in her mind, Alma grieves the death of the person closest to her by burying herself in work, even as things around her become more and more supernatural. With a fantastic twist and incredible acting, this is a film that deserves a second run, and will thrill audiences just as much as it did hit with the spotlight last time.
Harpazo – A delightful and wildly offbeat film, it sees Zeke (Maezi Kacey) and Harpo (writer and star Jamie Munsey) as two young people in a small community who face personal crises in the midst of a very public one. You see, a member of their church group has had a dream that the end of the world is coming, with it arriving to take them all by Saturday. This coincides with a very personal play being put on by Harpo, with Zeke dealing with their own issues, which cause the two best friends to diverge in ways that see their limited time left (if their community seer is correct) at odds, unable to admit or communicate to themselves or each other what they need. It’s very queer, very funny, and really encapsulates the feelings of many of the younger generation, who see the world, and subsequently their lives, as doomed. Director Anna O’Donnell and writer Munsey deliver a bleak but heartfelt classic as the two friends go on their own journeys to find their way back together.
The Last Embrace – A beautiful black and white film that serves as a mirror to the isolation felt during the quarantine and social distancing phases of the COVID-19 pandemic, Diego Contreras’ film is an ephemeral black and white piece that focuses on a mother and son (Marian Moneymaker and Brahim Rachiki) who embrace one last time to show the love and power of human contact before being isolated into small, transparent boxes, quarantining themselves away during a pandemic. This metaphorical representation of what we all went through in these years is powerful and a painful reminder of what was lost during that time, either through mental trauma, physical loss and the grief of loved ones who lost their lives during this time. It’s an incredible and poignant piece by Contreras, who created a wonderful piece of art with this film.
Rodent – Joe Fereday’s short focuses on a world unlike our own, or rather, a world after our own, with life in shambles after a mysterious event. The film follows a small rat, voiced by Art Malik (in the form of narration), who is making its way through the barren landscape looking for food to feed its family. As it scavenges for whatever it can find, we see more and more of what the world has become: dilapidated ruins, a total lack of humanity, and terrifying advances in technology roaming the now-deserted streets.
Films set in the apocalypse and post-apocalypse are nothing new, but this perspective really changes the way it’s seen. Without us to continue destroying the planet, life will continue on in whatever form it takes—and our imprint will also live on in what we’ve left behind. For better or worse, this film shows something that feels more like an inevitability than a hypothetical, which brings out myriad emotions as we hurtle closer and closer to something like this becoming reality. It’s extremely poignant and well done, bringing true gravity to the way we are currently living our lives and affecting those around us with those choices.
Mistakes You Make Before You Die – Jett Juriansz and Terry Hu star as Dora and Lennon in this film written by Juriansz and director Nicole Lipp. Lennon, after dealing with a major medical treatment is encouraged to make a bucket list of things to do before dying as a way of dealing with the trauma, leading them to standing outside the door to an orgy, completely unprepared. Instead of a list of things to see or do, Lennon instead makes a list of dumb mistakes to make, thinking this is a better way to truly live. The list and the tasks bring them closer together as a couple, and caps off beautifully with a couple of those mistakes in what promises to be an interesting, if not dangerous life for the two of them in the future. It’s funny and honest, with both Hu and Juriansz having excellent chemistry in this heartfelt and kind of silly film.
Jane’s In The Freezer – Caleb Joye brings us this film that stars Krysten Shelley-Olson as Jane, a woman in her middle age who is searching for connection and a social life, despite being rebuffed or ignored in most instances. Living her life in public but not really a part of it, Jane navigates the isolation that can be felt, even when surrounded by others. It a bittersweet film, as Jane’s life is very much something that can be identified with, even as her relentless determination inspires. It’s a very moving film that feels like a glimpse into a life that so many experience, especially as time passes and the world evolves around them.
Young Hot Bloods – Jade Ang Jackman’s period action film set during the suffragette movement was a pleasant surprise, with intricate and engrossing storytelling mixed with a fantastic fight sequence that mirrors the reality of what happened during the time, with suffragettes learning martial arts to defend themselves against the sexual abuse of what was the precursor to MI5 during the period. The cast of Aliyah Odoffin, Alfie Allen and Ayeshad Hussain are all excellent, with Hussain and Allen really going all out in their action scene, mixing the typical stylings of a period drama with some brutal fight work. A blend of genre that feels wholly unique, this film is sure to continue to turn heads for those who get to see it.
Zasady (The Rules) – Amanda Renee Knox writes and directs this film starring Taylor Owen as Hannah, we see an unspecified dystopia, with Hannah doing everything she can to just make it through. While traveling, she is pursued by an known being that seems set to end her, with her own narration overlaying her escape and attempt to find shelter away from what’s chasing her. It’s a harrowing, tense and engrossing film that keeps you both curious and uneasy, making it a very enjoyable watch.
Disordered, Recovered, Whatever – McKenzie Moser’s film about disordered eating is a really nuanced look into what people with the condition can go through when their disorder really takes hold. Lily (Annalise Bloom) has a moment of weakness after attempting to stick to a restrictive diet, binge eating a pie meant for the Thanksgiving dinner her and her mother were attending. Now, with an hour before her mother’s return to replace the pie, Lily, with the help of the personification of her eating disorder (Annika Foster), goes on an adventure to hide her shame and attempt to let go of her issues once and for all. It’s a powerful film that shows that struggles people go through with disordered eating, and the many ways in which that presents itself, with Moser and the cast doing an excellent job is putting that on screen.
That’ll be all for this month! A big thanks and congratulations to all the filmmakers whose films were selected, and a big thank you to all those in attendance both in person and online! We hope you enjoyed this month’s selections, and look forward to coming back next month with more incredible films!
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