Notes on what you can expect to see this weekend at the High Noon Saloon-hosted afternoon of shorts
Apart from a lineup and the promise of a complimentary pasty from Myles Teddywedgers (Traditional, Chicken Pot Pie, and Veggie Weggie, if you’re curious), details on this weekend’s Lakeside Short Film Festival are a bit sparse. The afternoon-long marathon, sponsored by Living Storm Productions, promises three batches of short films, all of which come by way of independent production companies.
- Another Empty Space spins an awkward run-in between exes in Berlin into a glimpse inside their inner thoughts; the dual narratives at work from Davi de Oliveira Pinheiro are fascinating.
- Caroline Cuny recalls the story of her Uncle Fred Cuny in Looking for Trouble – specifically his efforts to smuggle a water filtration system into Sarajevo in the mid-90s.
- Motivated features director Craig Knitt giving himself (also Craig Knitt) a pep talk on healthy lifestyle habits while standing inside what looks like that white ethereal space from those old Apple ads.
- Remember that 30 Rock episode where Jack records tapes of wisdom for his unborn child? Good Bad Advice is that, stretched across eight minutes, and with additional notes on bears.
- The Other Shoe examines holiday generosity with its financially overwhelmed couple (Bryan Royston, Simone LaPierre).
- Once again, Ben Wydeven will screen the second chapter from his “Raven James Chronicles” short film series. Time, his alcoholic medium takes on an imprisoned spirit (Bob Moore).
- 47 Minutes approaches 9/11 from an empathetic perspective, anchoring the tragedy around a paramedic, a flight attendant, and a lawyer.
- Gather works with gorgeous, snow-covered photography and a passage from Psalm 39 for what amounts to a tone poem about the rigors of prosperity.
- Oh, and if you’ve yet to see Melonie Gartner’s Two Rivers, there’s another chance for that, too.
The attendance policy sounds pretty laissez-faire, but be sure to stick around for Finale, featured in the second session. An action-packed showdown between two soldiers in the dewey wilderness, Cole Sheldon’s short distinguishes itself from the loathsome “white dudes pretending to be hitmen” subgenre with crisp sound design and a strong central performance by Lauren McNeill. More essential is Sheldon’s inspiration, as his master class on tension is also a tangential tribute to mental illness and suicide.
- The Lakeside Short Film Festival runs from 1:00p to 5:00p at the High Noon Saloon on Sat, Oct 15. Admission for the entire afternoon is $10 and nets you one of those pasties.