Short Films

Watch TRAILER for Rose McGowan’s DAWN to Debut FREE on Youtube

Check out the new trailer to the critically acclaimed film which had its world premiere at Sundance Film Festival followed by a successful theatrical run, the taut directorial debut from Rose McGowan, DAWN, which will debut June 21st only on Youtube. Realizing that her passion lies in filmmaking, Rose McGowan’s breakthrough directorial debut, DAWN, is a disturbing tale of a young girl’s budding sexuality and one’s desire to experience the unknown. Dawn (Tara Barr) is a quiet young teenager living in Kennedy era America who longs for something or someone to free her from her sheltered life. When she strikes up an innocent flirtation with the boy who works at her local gas station (Reiley McClendon), she thinks that he is perhaps the answer to her teenage dreams. Though when she invites the boy and his friends into her otherwise cloistered world, she gets a lot more than she bargained for. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-yT4Qk3vbfA&feature=youtu.be
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Rose McGowan To Release Short Film Directorial Debut DAWN on Youtube

After the critically acclaimed world premiere at Sundance Film Festival and theatrical run, DAWN, the short film directorial debut from Rose McGowan, will debut this month on YouTube. “I’m so pleased to be able to share my Sundance Grand jury prize nominated film, Dawn, on my Youtube page. I want to promote thought and art, free of charge. I hope you’ll enjoy”, said Rose. Realizing that her passion lies in filmmaking, Rose McGowan’s breakthrough directorial debut, DAWN, is a disturbing tale of a young girl’s budding sexuality and one’s desire to experience the unknown. Dawn (Tara Barr) is a quiet young teenager living in Kennedy era America who longs for something or someone to free her from her sheltered life. When she strikes up an innocent flirtation with the boy who works at her local gas station (Reiley McClendon), she thinks that he is perhaps the answer to her teenage dreams. Though when she invites the boy and his friends into her otherwise cloistered world, she gets a lot more than she bargained for.
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First 13 Films Revealed for 2015 Palm Springs International ShortFest Online Film Festival

The 2015 Palm Springs International ShortFest & Short Film Market announced the first 13 films chosen to represent the ShortFest Online Film Festival. Now in its fifth year, the select films will play on a special section of the festival website (http://www.psfilmfest.org/onlinefest) starting May 26. Online voting for these films will open on June 9 and run through June 20, with the “ShortFest Online Audience Award” announced at the Festival Award Ceremony on Closing Night. The films selected for the 2015 Palm Springs International ShortFest Online Film Festival include: Animator vs. Animation IV (USA) – A stick figure goes to war with his maker. Inventive and compulsively watchable, this is the continuation of a series that first went viral on the web in 2006. Director: Alan Becker. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HUrmub4i4ck The Deadman (Peru) – A young man who everyone believes is dead returns to his parent’s house after seven years, followed shortly by two “detectives”… Director: Franco Finocchiaro. Cast: Miguel Iza, Hernan Romero, Ana Cecilia Natteri, Nicolas Galindo and Renato Rueda. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=C_tH_KozVt4 Elgin Park (USA) – The story of the ban behind Elgin Park, a fictional 50s any town USA created entirely through miniatures and still photography. Director: Danny Yourd. Cast: Michael Paul Smith (as himself). https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DFuas2cHkFg Evil Mexican Child (Mexico) – The drawings of a seemingly sweet 4 year old Mexican boy wreak havoc on those depicted. When his mother realizes his father has a mistress, she suddenly is more supportive of his burgeoning talent. Director: Michael Noonan. Cast: Xochitl Hernàndez, Nyno Bernal, Anahi Davila and Max De La Rosa. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vJJmFa3-ZVE The Evolution of an Artist // Thom Jones (USA) – Thom Jones doesn’t describe himself as a “designer” (except once in a while when he’s drunk), but he’s most certainly an artist – with spray paint, with wood and with motorcycle parts. Director: Craig Brooks. Cast: Thom Jones. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LrVqTAGEY6o Milk! (UK) – Two lactose-craving brothers will stop at nothing to get their daily dose of milk… Director: Ben Mallaby. Cast: Toby Williams and Paul F Taylor. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ubWYf0C0rTY NYC Life: Narrated by Dorvid Attenborough (USA) – Special measures are called for when trying to find a mate in NYC… Director: Michael Slavens. Cast: David Friedlander, Marie Smith, Mike Rosengarten, Anna Elizabeth, Geoffrey Countryman, Shaun Ahuja, Tyler Jakes, Tiffany Marie Sparks, Kristen Dausch, Christina Toth, Alexandre F. Charlebois, Bianca Boragi, Timothy Hull and Jack and Milo Uhrmacher. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AaVzzna6Erk Russian Roulette (UK) – Lucy, lonely and lovelorn, meets a cosmonaut on Chat Roulette that may be the answer to her dreams… Director: Ben Aston. Cast: Bec Hill and Stewart Lockwood. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3gAfgOOV-bY SAMUEL-613 (UK) – An angry young Hasidic man forgoes his controlling father in pursuit of a more seductive life in Eastern London. But the grass is not always greener on the other side of the cultural divide… Director: Billy Lumby. Cast: Theo Barklem-Biggs. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Z8D8QJ8n3Nc solemates (USA) – The story of love and family…as seen from a shoe’s perspective. Director: Bryce Dallas Howard. Cast: Seth Gabel, Theo Howard Gabel, Beatrice Howard, Bryce Dallas Howard, Judy Howard, Rance Howard. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pTD2nbp94rc Somewhere in Palm Springs (USA) – Shag-style animated tale about three gay men and their girl friend hanging out at a hotel pool, talking shit in Palm Springs. Director: Nate Clark. Cast: Nate Clark, Allen Loeb, Jennie Pierson, Drew Tarver and Jimmy Fowlie. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AQK18WE4PTM This Dynamic Opportunity (USA) – A not very good salesman meets an equally odd client from the internet to sell his new toothpaste brand. Director: Matt Mays. Cast: Tony Lewellen and Mike Betette. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gBMDitBSaU4 We Are Fire (India) – Stunning documentary about a group of women (the ‘Gulabi Gang’) in red saris who join forces to help other women who have been oppressed or suffered wrongdoing in India. Director: Orlando Von Einsiedel. Cast: Champa Pal and Sampat Pal. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=q4s1irbxgtI The ShortFest Online Film Festival will continue to play online through August 31 after the end of the festival.
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Oscar Nominated Short Films 2015 In Theaters January 30

Boogaloo and Graham

ShortsHD and Magnolia Pictures will release THE OSCAR® NOMINATED SHORT FILMS 2015 in theaters across the United States, Canada, Europe and Latin America on Friday January 30, 2015.

ShortsHD™, the world’s only Short Movie Channel in high definition, working with Magnolia Pictures will celebrate its 10th anniversary of its Oscar shorts release by opening “THE OSCAR® NOMINATED SHORT FILMS” in a record 450+ theaters across the United States, Canada, Europe and Latin America on Friday January 30, 2015. “THE OSCAR® NOMINATED SHORT FILMS 2015” will showcase the Live Action, Animation and Documentary short film nominees as three separate theatrical events. This is the only opportunity for audiences to watch the nominated short films prior to the 87th Academy Awards® ceremony on Sunday, February 22, 2015.

This year’s release includes the following nominated short films:

LIVE ACTION SHORT FILM NOMINEES

Aya

Directors: Oded Binnun and Mihal Brezis
Synopsis: A young woman waiting at an airport has an unexpected encounter with an arriving passenger.
Countries of origin: France, Israel
TRT: 39:50
Language: English, Hebrew

Boogaloo and Graham
Directors: Michael Lennox and Ronan Blaney
Synopsis: Jamesy and Malachy are presented with two baby chicks to raise by their soft-hearted father.
Country of origin: UK
TRT: 14:00
Language: English

Butter Lamp (La Lampe au Beurre de Yak)
Directors: Hu Wei and Julien Féret
Synopsis: A photographer and his assistant photograph the inhabitants of a remote Tibetan village.
Countries of origin: France, China
TRT: 15:54
Language: Tibetan

Parvaneh
Directors: Talkhon Hamzavi and Stefan Eichenberger
Synopsis: An Afghan teenager living in a refugee center in Switzerland encounters difficulties wiring money to her family and asks a young Swiss woman for help.
Country of origin: Switzerland
TRT: 24:26
Language: German

The Phone Call
Directors: Mat Kirkby and James Lucas
Synopsis: A woman working for a crisis center phone line receives a call from a suicidal older man.
Country of origin: UK
TRT: 20:56
Language: English

ANIMATED SHORT FILM NOMINEES

The Bigger Picture
Directors: Daisy Jacobs and Christopher Hees
Synopsis: Tensions arise between two brothers as their elderly mother requires more care.
Country of origin: UK
TRT: 7:27
Language: English

The Dam Keeper
Directors: Robert Kondo and Dice Tsutsumi
Synopsis: A lonely little pig in charge of maintaining the town dam is cruelly bullied by his classmates
Country of origin: US
TRT: 18:08
Language: English

Feast
Directors: Patrick Osborne and Kristina Reed
Synopsis: The story of the relationship between a young man and the stray puppy he takes in is told through the food the dog receives.
Country of origin: US
TRT: 7:00
Language: English

Me and My Moulton
Director: Torill Kove
Synopsis: Three sisters growing up in an unconventional Norwegian family ask their parents for a bicycle.
Country of origin: Canada
TRT: 13:08
Language: English

A Single Life
Director: Joris Oprins
Synopsis: A mysterious vinyl single gives a young woman the power to move back and forth through the years of her life.
Country of origin: Netherlands
TRT: 2:18
Language: English

DOCUMENTARY SHORT NOMINEES

Crisis Hotline: Veterans Press 1
Directors: Ellen Goosenberg Kent and Dana Perry
Synopsis: Each month, the Veterans Crisis Line receives over 22,000 calls from military veterans, who account for 20% of all suicides in the U.S. each year.
Country of origin: US
TRT: 41
Language: English

Joanna
Director: Aneta Kopacz
Synopsis: As she faces a terminal illness, the mother of a young son writes a blog in which she tries to leave a record of what she hopes to teach him.
Country of origin: Poland
TRT: 45
Language: Polish

Our Curse
Directors: Tomasz Śliwiński and Maciej Ślesicki
Synopsis:
A mother and father face the difficulties of caring for a baby who has been born with a life-threatening congenital breathing disorder known as Ondine’s curse.
Country of origin: Poland
TRT: 27
Language: Polish

The Reaper (La Parka)
Director: Gabriel Serra Arguello
Synopsis: For the past 25 years, Efrain has worked in a slaughterhouse, where he has developed an intimate relationship with both death and what one must sometimes do to live.
Country of origin: Mexico
TRT: 29
Language: Spanish

White Earth
Director: J. Christian Jensen
Synopsis: Three children and an immigrant mother face a long and difficult winter in North Dakota, which has attracted many people seeking work during an oil boom.
Country of origin: US
TRT: 20
Language: English
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Oscilloscope Lab Grabs 95 Seconds Short Film TIM AND SUSAN HAVE MATCHING HANDGUNS

Joe Callander’s 95 seconds short film TIM AND SUSAN HAVE MATCHING HANDGUNS, scheduled to have its world premiere at the 2014 Sundance Film Festival, has been snagged for U.S. release by Oscilloscope Laboratories. TIM AND SUSAN HAVE MATCHING HANDGUNS is described as a romantic tale of love, life, and the right to bear arms.

About the acquisition, O-Scope’s Dan Berger and David Laub said, “TIM AND SUSAN is a remarkably assured, economical, and entertaining film. Joe’s deft filmmaking and Tim and Susan’s undeniable connection will warm the cockles of your heart. We’re gonna figure out a way to put this film in front of your faces.”

Filmmaker Joe Callander said, “I’ve been watching Oscilloscope films for years and it’s quite the unexpected honor to be working with them on this short. My first film was two minutes long, this one is 95 seconds. I’m hoping that if this trend continues, one day I’ll just wake up, sneeze, and everything will become pure light.”

TIM AND SUSAN was produced by Dave Munson and Saddleback Leather, purveyors of fine leather goods and fine films. Joe Callander is Saddleback Leather’s filmmaker in residence.
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Short Film: Forget Your Cares and Go, “DOWNTOWN” at Cannes Film Festival

by Jaclyn Gramigna

My newest film, “Downtown,” is a registered film in the Short Film Corner at the Cannes Film Festival! At a running time of just under 3 minutes, this super short film poses the question, “what if a girl has a very private moment, in a very public place?” Despite its length, “Downtown,” takes its audience on a roller coaster of feelings. Beginning with a touch of confusion (which quickly turns into heated desire) the film challenges its audience’s comfort zone and makes even the most self assured blush.

The film features up-and-coming starlet, Aurora Heimbach, who’s openness and commitment is much of what makes the project successful. A graduate of the Savannah College of Art and Design, Aurora moved to NYC just over a year ago and has already graced the stages of more than a few of its theaters. Viewers of the film have said that she is a sure star in the making; don’t be surprised if you find her lingering in your thoughts. Another up-and-comer, Benjamin Frankenberg (also a graduate of SCAD), plays an enthralling counterpart to Aurora’s spark.

I’m delighted to say, that the film was shot, on location, in Brooklyn, NY. My cinematographer, Caitlin Machak, and I made the decision to shoot on 35mm film and, though it increased our budget (between processing, telecine and professional color correction) it was well worth it. This was my first opportunity to work with 35, and as film stock is disappearing from the film industry, it might be one of the only chances I get; needless to say, I went for it. The shots, themselves, give a beautiful, floating, view of the action and these days, short films are rarely shot on film, so the look definitely sets it apart from the crowd.

It has been a great journey, making this film, and to see it garner such a wonderful response, thus far, is fantastic and incredibly humbling. I have begun submitting it to festivals around the world and am very much looking forward to representing it at Cannes this May! Look out for “Downtown,” at a film festival near you!

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Pharrell Williams Partners With Creative Growth Art Center to Launch Youtube Short Film Series

Grammy Award winning singer/songwriter/producer Pharrell Williams is partnering with Creative Growth Art Center to launch “CREATIVE GROWTH,” a new series of short films introducing viewers to what they describe as the extraordinary geniuses of the center that provides a haven for adult artists with mental, physical, and developmental disabilities. The first look is available now on the i am OTHER YouTube channel.

Directed by “Everybody Street” filmmaker Cheryl Dunn and produced by ALLDAYEVERYDAY, the films embody i am OTHER’s passions for the pursuit of individuality, the defiance of expectations, and the arrival of a new class of visionaries. The artists defy what society tells them they have the ability to do, using painting, fashion, and animation as tools to communicate what their words cannot.

http://youtu.be/LE8q4vJwfvA
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