The documentary has a difficult premise - the nexus of art and war. However it achieves the most brilliant execution for it because what is war if not simply a dance between soldiers and civilians (as the film itself goes ahead to portray in one of its sequences). Exit 12 is about a dance company of the same name founded and now run by people most intricately connected with different wars the US has been part of over the last few decades. From Vietnam to Iraq to Afghanistan, there is a glimpse into what they did to those who either fought in them at the front or participated as family members and loved ones of those who were in the line of fire. The dance sequences are weaved most effortlessly into the narrative. Other than being a display of exceptional skill and seamless visuals, they further succeed in delivering their bit of the story most poignantly. Using these, the film follows the experiences of three characters and how they use dance to make sense of their post-war reality. At the heart of the narrative is a moving question - when you are trained to kill, how do you come back and embrace your reality as a human? How does one reconcile the horrors of war with their day-to-day existence? Consequently, without spelling anything out explicitly, the film becomes an engagement with the post traumatic stress disorders veterans grapple with. Mental health and the desire to end one's own life find echoes for the viewer that are loud and clear. However, despite it all, there is a sense of hope and empowerment which is invoked at the idea of people coming together as a collective to share their experiences in an attempt to successfully assuage their pain. It is this idea of hope which finally ties the film together in a cohesive and comprehensive way allowing the intense emotional experience to be moving in a constructive manner.

Exit 12 | Short Film of the Day

The internet loves to talk about ‘athleisuring’, with constant reminders of the implicit union of fashion and fitness that it has ushered in. However, despite the obsequiousness of this fashion and social media trend, beyond the greenwashing done by a handful of brands, there is very little conversation around the environmental effects of the same. 

The short film does a notable job of performing this task, earning extra points for the subtlety and ease with which it draws your attention to it. The protagonist of the documentary, Ultrarunner Dan Lawson, works with his partner on the restoration, reuse and upcycling of discarded running shoes. Consequently, instead of ending up in a land-fill, the shoes are allowed a new life. 

The story thus brought to life serves a double-edged purpose of not only highlighting the results achieved by the film's namesake initiative, but also to reveal the glaring absence of efforts on the part of the companies to ensure their products don’t add to the already existing, overwhelming environmental concerns. The narratorial development is marked by ease, brevity and remains lucid throughout in the communication of this very important message.

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