A trip to Montana and discussion over the next post delayed the second installment of my "weekly posts" (great track record, I know). But it was hard to be on a computer when travelling places like THIS:
I'll take some time in the near future to share full projects that are already on Film Annex later. Today I want to talk about a few very different films I experienced at Palm Springs. If there is ANY way for you to see the full versions, do. You won't regret it.
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BLANKETS:
I was turned on to this film after meeting the writer, Casey Whelan. You don't quite expect this level of awesomeness from shorts. Blankets follows a couple through a whimsical tale dealing with the trials of teenage love and the optimism that comes from that age. What was particularly special about this film as a short was not the amazing special effects (and they were amazing), but the fact that the story and actors so expertly created a world where the special effects were 100% necessary. I was very touched by every aspect and the two gave wonderful performances. It really reminded you of what it was like to fall in love at 16.
Blankets Trailer
KING OF NORWAY:
King of Norway was a film I was lucky enough to stumble across. It was in the first block of films I saw at Palm Springs. The writer/director, Sylvia Sether, had such a strong support team around her and they very much stood out in that little theater in the way someone does that makes you want to meet them. And then her film played. Wow.
King of Norway details the loss of a father, first through memory loss and then through death as told through the eyes of his daughter. It was heart-wrenching, beautiful, and so expertly done. The girl cast as the younger version of the daughter was natural in a way you don't often see from child actors. After meeting Sylvia, the entire film totally made sense. This is an awesome project with an awesome creator that I truly hope to see in the feature format.
King of Norway Trailer
REQUIEM FOR ROMANCE:
I've never met someone who thinks like Jonathan Ng (I could write a whole blog about this guy). He created (wrote, animated, directed, produced etc) an amazing piece called Requiem for Romance. Sort of like Blankets, it's so expertly done that you almost miss the complexity of the work that is done. This seven minute piece follows an audio-phone conversation of two people who are breaking up mirrored by a kung-fu animated fight in feudal China. For instance, when she says she wants to call it off on the phone, the animated character draws her sword. It took some time for me to wrap my head around it when Jon first explained the idea. But that's what his work is: innovation in film and thus takes more than the average film training to get it.
I was a bit floored when I actually watched his film. It was one of those pieces you just sit there staring at the credits absorbing what just happened.
Jon also has a lot of great info on how to access his work on his website jonjonphenomenon.com
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Lastly, after those deep projects, I have to leave you with one of the funniest films at Palm Springs, Crush No. 472. Though this version is shorter than the one they screened, it is still very much worth your 2:20 minutes. Check it out!
