Thrilling, powerful and sinister are the three adjectives that most perfectly define the experience of interacting with I'm Still Here. The film takes us into the very uncertain, and therefore, doubly horrifying reality of a woman called Maggie who is hiding in a basement while waiting for her parents to come back. The latter had ventured out in search of supplies seven days ago and have not been heard from since. 

 In the process, the film invokes the deeply disconcerting situations of emotional isolation, along with a physical kind, allowing it to be a more hard-hitting story in a world that is only beginning to get back on its feet from the lonesome existence of a pandemic. The physical threat is never truly revealed to the viewer, thereby allowing it to invoke fear of a distinctive visceral kind, individual to each mind, one heightened by concealing more than what the story reveals. However, in addition to this, it is the oppressive internal, emotional threat that truly captures the viewer's attention and ensures they are unable to look away even in the face of something potentially fatal awaiting the protagonist. 

 There is further much to be said about the expert and sophisticated manner in which sound is employed to conjure the world Maggie inhabits. Markedly, it is indeed another woman's voice on a walkie-talkie, Emory, that allows decisive and crucial forward movement of the plot. As the two women find themselves a space of companionship, solidarity, and hence, much-needed strength during a moment of paralyzing panic, the film conveys all of its intentions in a notably effortless manner. Moreover, it would indeed be quite something to see the short film as a longer project.

I'm Still Here | Short Film of the Day

Without warning or preparation, the short film throws you into a world marked by its immense vastness that is stunning in its beauty and glory, but overwhelming in its scale. This serves a two-pronged purpose of not only catching your attention and ensuring it remains tightly within its grasp throughout, but also establishing a premise that has already begun to invoke unsettling emotions within the viewer. A solitary figure of a woman, her face protected by a gas mask, further underlines the loneliness of this seemingly post-apocalyptic reality where only the wind and the sea break the oppressive silence. 

 Equipped with an economy of dialogue, along with a remarkable background score, the film introduces us to a setting that is defined by a deep sense of isolation. Finding herself to be the only survivor in a massive space, the woman moves from one discarded object to another - rejects and leftovers on which now her survival depends. However, it is the emotional needs of existence that dominate the physical ones in the narrative. The thought gains increasing resonance in a world which is only beginning to come out of a pandemic, after ensuring each of us has waged our own individual battle with despair and seclusion. 

 In the process, West Winds not only becomes a sophisticated example of skill and finesse, but also a much needed expression of the many challenges of mental health. The woman is unnamed and hence could be anyone of us in her quest to find comfort. Her limitless surroundings can thus be viewed as a metaphor for the endless pits of mental and emotional demons. This, in turn, allows the story to communicate not only important lessons on the aforementioned issues of mental health, but also about the significance of companionship, kindness and the warmth of friendship that is capable of enveloping you in an unbreakable armour against the many onslaughts of despondency and hopelessness.

West Winds | Short Film of the Day

From online workouts with chirpy fitness instructors to music that would have once uplifted your spirits, from the overwhelming deluge of news, content, celebrities' two-pence on the health crisis that has followed in the wake of a pandemic, to political figures accepting or denying it - the conversation around the coronavirus is endless. The film is a portrayal of how the protagonist gets sucked into this vortex, it's pull strengthened by the emotional as well as the physical isolation she is already grappling with in an empty house with only voices on screens as a companion. The grainy, dimly-lit visuals further serve to communicate a sense of remoteness and aloofness as we find ourselves emotionally, more than physically, distanced from one another. At first glance, the film is about no more than a woman's emotional health spiralling into chaos. However, the narrative is perhaps also about the quest for some semblance of control, as false as it might be, coming from washing your hands obsessively or dancing around in your bathroom, dressed up in bling and shimmer, perhaps allowing yourself to forget, even if just for a fleeting moment, that a pandemic has not brought the world down to its knees. This when coupled with beautiful shots and a seamless edit, translates the protagonist's thoughts and internal state of being to the screen with an honesty and truth that will ring loud and clear with several viewers. And yet, look closer, and there is another important concern the film engages with - one about the 
ubiquitous nature of technology when it comes to human existence. It's infestation in our day-to-day lives is a deeply internalised and normalised reality. However it's presence acquires a herculean proportion when we are removed from human contact. As the voices continue on our several gadgets, soon devolving into a cacophony, the noise breaks the silence with an overwhelming, immensely disorienting force, suggests the narrative. Will this pull the protagonist deeper, to a place of no return, along with the viewer, or would it finally allow her a respite, a moment of complete abandon away from it all?

Noise | Short Film Nominee

‘Albacore’ is a lovely exploration of a woman’s struggle with everything that she once desired, and the hollowness of life, the ennui it entails, now that she has attained it. Water remains an ongoing metaphor throughout, after having being established in the image of a fish that the title conjures. The forward propulsion of the narrative is defined by the pursuit of the discomfort of a fish out of water, her desperate desire to find that release and perhaps an eventual return to it. 
The protagonist, though a laconic woman, is a force to be reckoned with. Her most meaningful conversations take place with another woman, a younger self of sorts, who is a reminder of a past that no longer exists. When all of these elements are weaved together, the result is engaging, and soulful. 
There’s further an inherent quietness to the film, and the isolation of vast, endless spaces, evident in its visuals, that further aid this communication of intentions, ensuring that 'Albacore' remains lucid and meaningful throughout.

Albacore | Short Film of the Day

The Fall Line offers itself as a thriller that smoothly steers clear of the low hanging fruits of the genre. Instead of taking refuge in a jarring background score or heady visuals, it brings to life a world marked by an eerie silence and muted palettes. 

Two rangers, Everette and Murphy, are wintering in a remote cabin at a national park. They are distinctly portrayed with opposing personalities, further revealed by the differing effects of the physical and mental isolation on them. The patience in one is offset by the annoyance in the other, if one's verbosity is notable, the other is defined by his laconic demeanour. It is precisely in this manner that the narrative draws you into its disconcerting developments without your being able to put a finger on what is exactly amiss. 

 The progression of events so far allows the film to succeed at invoking unease in the viewer, fulfilling its aim as a thriller. The final product thus becomes an engagement with the internal, disturbing aspects of the human mind more than the external, overt tools that are often employed within this specific realm of storytelling.

The Fall Line | Short Film of the Day

An empty subway takes you into the world of the film marked by a very strange event that threatens to annihilate the very existence of humanity. Amidst it all is a protagonist, Sunny, confined to a bar with only a dog for company, awaiting the arrival of a friend or colleague. The introduction to the latter is only by way of voice messages, while the former moves from one corner of emotional and physical isolation to another. 

 The visuals come across as one of the most standout characteristics of the film, along with the efficient use of limited space, and a smooth edit. The performance of the film's sole actor also does a notable job of bringing out the effects of isolation, along with the despair and uncertainty of waiting. 

 In the process, Last Call becomes a unique, engrossing union of a joie de vivre vibe with an apocalyptic reality. The union can perhaps even serve as a disconcertingly lovely metaphor for contemporary existence. On the whole, the visuals and performances triumph over the other elements in the film, not because the rest are any less, but because these two are specifically skilled. It would be interesting to see the short film developed as a longer, more cohesive narrative.

Last Call | Short Film of the Day

The film is a brief, crisp, fast-paced story about a woman who is grappling with immense change in her life. Sam has recently moved to a new city with her husband. Away from loved ones and a life she was more familiar with, she now finds herself physically and emotionally isolated. 

 Throughout the film, there is an overarching suggestion of the loneliness she battles in her marriage as well. With an absentee husband, Sam only has her own terrors and nightmares as companions in the darkness of the night. The film explores all of this and some more in its few minutes, roping in jump scares and a suggestion of the darkness of the human mind, to bring its intended horrors to life. 

 There is a suggestion of the internal demons of the mind making their way into the corporeal, physical reality of the protagonist, while keeping the viewer guessing about the nature of the haunting - whether supernatural or psychological. In the process, the final result becomes an engaging and absorbing ride, one that will keep you at the edge of your seat all along.

A Bitter Murmur | Short Film of the Day

A visual flow of its intentions replaces any verbal exchanges in the film. It portrays its world simply by way of what is happening to the characters, which is silently coupled with the constant presence of the metaphor that the title offers. Cramped, closed indoor spaces are first employed to suggest a sense of oppressive isolation both a man and a woman are separately dealing with. This would serve as a contrast eventually at the film’s conclusion when it presents its primary message to you. 

There is also the attempt to portray how lonely and overwhelming existence can be if your mind chooses to withdraw to its own dark recesses, drowning in its own internal noise. The film presents all of these ideas, while keeping the narrative concise and brisk. Events continue to develop in a fast-paced manner, allowing it to avoid a didactic, overbearing tone. 

Kindness and hope are two sentiments one would like to see in a film that deals with a dark subject matter of this kind, and it is indeed these that the story offers as the overarching thread that finally takes it home. This, in turn, also allows for the metaphor established in the title, to attain articulation in a simple, but complete manner.

Where the Noise Ends | Short Film of the Day

The film premises itself on the age-old philosophical question - if an event occurs, but there is no one to perceive it, did it take place at all? If a tree falls in a forest and no one hears it, did it fall at all? When the evasive and seemingly unachievable answer to this question is tied with the contemporary reality of a pandemic, that forced people into isolation with their thoughts, its significance can potentially achieve staggering proportions, as is also true for the protagonist and her lived experience in Sway. The film drops hints throughout its narrative about the direction it is headed in for the attentive viewer. The beauty of the story does not lie in confronting its core dilemma, one that arises out of loneliness, and the extent you're willing to go to fight it off, but in the realisation of its inevitability. It is precisely for this reason that the narrative does not become any less engaging or lose its impact even after it has revealed all of its cards to you. Completely shot indoors, Sway is further a noticeable piece of art to come out of a quarantined existence. As the protagonist struggles with notions of reality and illusion, compelling the audience to perhaps face the confusion and unanswered questions within, there is a coherent and cohesive plot presented forth to drive the message home in a skilled manner.

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