‘Ollie’ is deliberately constructed in a way that ensures we don't see the titular character on screen, and yet, his presence never stops molding the film. Randy has just dropped his differently-abled son at a facility, leaving himself alone in the house for the first time in three years. As emotions begin to overpower him, and he moves from one mundane, empty task to another, we begin to get more glimpses into this broken family. 
A phone call from an unhappy family memmber is followed by an unannounced visit by Randy’s estranged wife, Pat. The narrative confines itself only to the house, further marked by Randy’s interrupted efforts to repair a broken window. The desire to fix something, however, might not always translate into the result one seeks. 
The same thought finds an echo in the ensuing argument between Randy and Pat, a conversation that encapsulates guilt, grief, resentment, bitterness, and all of the heart-shattering sadness that can sometimes define life. The performances, screenplay, and narratorial progression all ensure that the one distilled moment the viewer is presented with to portray this life is explored with authenticity and meaning.

Ollie | Spotlight

Ali is faced with the indomitable task of tying loose ends after the death of a family member, his sister, Mahra. The subsequent story that comes into existence is a moody thriller about societal pressures, and more importantly, a fractured psyche that can follow in the wake of all of these pressures. 
Ali is left powerless in the face of what is expected of him, and how he must navigate his family’s position which is now incontrovertibly tied to his sister’s suicide. The crushing fear of the truth coming out is palpable in the portrayal of the protagonist, alongside an equally complementary performance that brings him to life. 

If on the one hand, there is concealment of the true causes of Mahra's death, in a bid to protect the family’s reputation and sense of honor, on the other hand, is a grieving brother with no time and space for his pain to be dealt with. The chasm between what one wants to do and what is expected of them is allowed a notable portrayal in the film. The narrative handles the intensity and the direness of the circumstance that Ali battles with earnestness, alongside deliberate stylistic choices of visuals and background score, to further embellish the storytelling, making the film an engaging watch.

The Apartment | Spotlight

The film is an amusing exchange between two men located on opposite ends of a spectrum, the spectrum of love for pickleball. The conversation is between a therapist and a client, a devout lover of the sport, and a passionate hater, respectively.
It develops much like a match, from one opponent to another, all along defined by the film’s consistent lightheartedness. The narrative does not bog itself down with forced layers or complexities. The consequent straightforward approach to the story and screenplay works in the film’s favor, supported with ease by the back-and-forth banter of the two actors. 
Perhaps there could be more episodic snippets giving glimpses into their lives in the future, exploring more of this buddy-film-esque chemistry.

Picklelove | Spotlight

The short film attempts a lot of things and succeeds at all of them most gloriously. The narrative is an engagement with the transience and impermanence of things in so many ways. It foregrounds the inexorable passage of time felt in every moment of it, further emphasised by the voice of the narrator, overflowing with a gravity that will set the pace just right for the plot to develop. The film is also a visual feat achieved most effortlessly by the seamless weaving together of a sprinkling of live action visuals with stunning animation. Primarily using the location of a beach the protagonist grew up on, the sand in itself becomes a character, the medium of narration, taking the viewer by the hand on her journey. There is still so much more the film engages with - female friendships, the forever forward moving path of life from childhood to adulthood, an underlying strain of homosexuality, the relationship between the past, and the present and the unreliability of memory. Guaxuma does a stellar job of tying it all together, without making it look like a laborious task, and before the viewer can realise it, they have covered a huge distance within while seemingly partaking in the experiences of the protagonist.

Guaxuma | Short Film of the Day

The short film is the most beautiful and brilliantly executed engagement with the notions of memory, time, nostalgia and the familial space. As the protagonist shares his technique of packing, one passed on to him by his father, he takes the viewer deeper into a moving, poignant narrative, marked by the same minimalism as that of its parent text by Ron Koertge. Before you even realise where you have located yourself, the story has already managed to engage and involve you beyond the point of no return. The visuals use stop-motion animation in a skilled and sophisticated way, marking transitions in the narration of the protagonist's past experiences by vividly surreal images. The film ends with a beautiful metaphor allowing the negative space to be a comment on the gaps in communication that may have potentially been part of the protagonist's relationship with his father, as well as being a potent marker of what truly came to define their equation - the art and technique of packing.

Negative Space | Short Film of the Day

The scene is set for a Christmas party when the host realises that her mother has been missing for three hours. Additionally, the story of a recent engagement of a peer and clues about her whereabouts are explored parallelly. The film offers a convincing and sincere exploration of familial ties that consist of high-strung relatives, sibling tensions and identifying and locating familial dynamics of care and concern despite all conflict. It further does a notable job of providing moments of comedic drama despite the tragedy that might potentially be unfolding for the family. Additionally, it is refreshing to see an all-female space that makes no attempt to make its presence felt, but simply exists as an attempt to invoke a normative reality that an otherwise male-dominated screen space might unwittingly omit.

Kim Bush’s Abduction | Short Film of the Day

Using dialogues as a precious commodity, the film invokes a powerful narrative about a sense of loss and parting. As Alex' relocation to another community in Miami begins, Loggy, her best friend, finds it difficult to cope with the change. The palpability of her anger and grief is achieved expertly by the narrative. This is owed majorly to the positioning, structuring and weaving together of the few, but significant events in the story. From doing each other's hair to building a little memorial to mark the move, Liberty employs subtle tools to portray the grief of its characters. The story in itself is told in a simple and direct manner, and it is in this that the success of the film lies. It does not take refuge in grand gestures or gaudy techniques to convey what it had set out to at the start. With strong performances and convincing chemistry, the film makes full use of its cast. The camerawork ensures that the viewer is entirely engrossed in their story and the writing keeps the pace just right. Consequently, owing to the wholesomeness of all of these elements, the gravity of the movie is successfully communicated to the viewer, now an equal participant in the loss of the protagonist.

Liberty | Short Film of the Day

While romance per se might seem like a go-to subject when it comes to filmmaking, truly capturing its essence is not the easiest task. Weaving a narrative with nuances, subtleties and poignance requires a skilfulness which Lavender exhibits. The story of a young boy getting involved in the marriage of an older couple in itself is a premise that requires mature and intelligent handling, which this film succeeds at achieving. It opens with a tight shot of a couple sitting at a piano, the perfect picture of love and affection. However, soon the idea of the normative, monogamous couple is disrupted by a third man who joins them, yet the scene continues in the most calm and undisturbed manner. Through its delineation of the equation of the three lovers, the film attempts a moving exploration of sexuality, emotions and boundaries, allowing it to be a quiet embrace for the viewer whose warmth and scent continues to linger long after it's passed and over.

Most Viewed

Genres

Awards

Follow Us

Quick Links