Health advisories have never been more colorful and trippy (with the most fitting background music to go) than this short film. Employing humour as a device when contemporary global reality feels bleak beyond salvation, here is a wonderful reminder for you to keep your wits by yourself in times of Coronavirus and the consequent Covid-19 infection. As country after country finds itself enforcing a lockdown to contain this contagious virus, where else can we turn to for comfort if not art? Beyond the topicality of its subject, it also boasts of adept technique and skilled execution of the video. Attempting to have fun with mobile filmmaking, How to Survive a Pandemic entirely relies on dim-lit shots to weave and narrate its story with finesse. The camerawork deserves special mention for the intelligent way in which it brings a fresh breath of air to every visual. The story is primarily of a woman, who could potentially be any of us, watching the endless deluge of news on the pandemic. With every headline and new update, she seemingly finds herself sinking deeper into despair. However, before allowing the overwhelming sense of imminent doom get the better of her, she decides to turn things around and voila! She is soon sipping on a homemade concoction of the antidote. While we may have still not reached the same conclusion as our fictional protagonist, there is indeed a lesson or two in calmness and rationality to be picked along the way from her.

How to Survive a Pandemic | Short Film of the Day

The coronavirus pandemic has introduced us to an isolation quite unprecedented in human history. While the adherence to the lockdown has brought with it financial tribulations and all sorts of practical difficulties, another huge hurdle to accompany it is that of the emotional well-being of a people who now find themselves devoid of the safety of a community they might have even taken for granted earlier. Distance bases itself on the same premise, endeavouring to be an exploration of not only the physical distance, an absolute must to combat the novel Covid-19 virus, but also the emotional distance we may find ourselves face to face with. In essence, our quarantine is not simply confined to physical boundaries, but has stretched its limbs to the mental and psychological aspects of our day-to-day lives as well. The film employs a straight narrative to suggest fighting the obstacles with kindness and by the simple act of reaching out to one another. It ties together the experiences of three different households, each dealing with their own set of problems as they grapple with an uncertainty with no end in sight, and finds a way to communicate its point of making their presence felt irrespective of their limited physical freedom. The visuals are sophisticated and smooth, exhibiting skilled camerawork. The film also manages to make efficient use of its limited resources and opportunities as a result of its adherence to the official health guidelines.

Distance | Short Film of the Day

Have you ever been creeped out by your reflection in a mirror or some shadows bouncing off a reflecting surface? If your answer is yes, you're definitely in for an interesting, and perhaps disturbing ride with Spectrophobia, borrowing its name from the irrational fear of mirrors and what the reflection can potentially stand for or signify. It can exist in varying degrees in people, and the film endeavours to play on the same, be it a subtle unease or extreme fear. In the case of the protagonist, and by the film's own acceptance (read: Vimeo description), the story premises itself on the tricks her mind is playing on her while she is quarantined amidst the coronavirus pandemic. As she flees from one reflecting surface to another, will she finally be able to get rid of what she sees when she looks in the mirror? The film is short and crisp, wasting no time in taking the viewer straight into the center of chaos. The camerawork as well as the smooth edit further complement the atmosphere of thrill, agitation and fear the narrative wants to conjure, allowing it to be an engaging and entertaining watch.

Spectrophobia | Short Film of the Day

The Covid-19 pandemic ushered with it a reality that deprived us completely of any semblance of the world as we knew it. Amidst every corner of the virtual space spewing words like "the new normal" and "unprecedented times", and the tedium of video calls and incessant work meetings, we were left drowning in this abruptly changed, completely alien way of life. 

The short film conjures the same reality as it takes us into the experiences of the protagonist, a woman who is quarantined by herself. While disturbing news headlines continue to break the silence of her empty house, the consequent emotional and physical isolation threatens to overpower her existence further. If the lockdown had begun with a routine of exercise, fulfilling work duties and finding a general order to things in life during lockdown, it has now devolved into despair, lethargy and lack of interest in the same activities which had once kept her afloat. 

 While we may be all too familiar with the bleakness and despondency that came to predominate our lives during this time, the plot wants to take it a step further and remind you of the hope that still shines through it. Though the pandemic might have brought the world to a halt, we are all indeed together in it, and the film wants to simply employ the thought as a reminder that this too will be over soon, enabling us to emerge out of it stronger.

On Repeat | Short Film Nominee

The coronavirus pandemic has ushered in a plethora of intense stories marked by a bleakness of tone that has come to pervade much of our lived reality as well in the days that followed outbreak of the virus. Consequently, when a funny, lighthearted narrative about an actor during quarantine appears, it is indeed a refreshing experience. An actor gets a call for an audition one day, but it is clearly for a role that has put him at unease. Reluctantly so, he begins his preparation anyway, working towards recording the audition video at home. The story develops notably supported by visuals displaying potential, weaving an interesting narrative which is moving towards a single moment that would allow the film to deliver its final punch. When it arrives, it is marked by humour and a much-needed buoyancy in a world that has come to be defined more by its lows than highs in the year 2020.

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