3500+ Films - 2.5 million words – 1 million viewers! Founder and Curator Carmela selects some of our most entertaining, powerful and inspiring short films screened at Sundance at We Are Moving Stories including those by women filmmakers, animation and international.
Total length of this section: 21 films.
<WOMEN FILMMAKERS>
LostFound - is a portrait of a woman in the Nation of Islam. Length: 12 minutes. Director Shakti Bhagchandani:
“The film touches on themes of sisterhood, community, disaffection and love. It begins like any other day but ends with a longing for something different.”
Little Chief - The lives of a Native woman and nine-year-old boy intersect over the course of a school day on a reservation in Oklahoma. Length: 12 minutes 49 seconds. Writer/Director/Producer Erica Tremblay:
“Little Chief is a love letter to my mother and all of the other matriarchs in my life who are working through their own trauma in order to heal themselves and others in our community.”
While I'm Still Breathing (Tandis Que Je Respire Encore) is the blurred portrayal of a young woman through three steps of her sexuality. Length: 12 minutes 25 seconds. Writer/Director/Producer/Actor Laure Giappiconi:
“When I tell stories, I always start from myself, because it’s the only way I can talk about the world - from where I breathe, see, think. I believe in an intimate voice, which ends up speaking about all of humanity.”
Hold On - Family bonds are tested when a young man is left to care for his grandmother one morning. Length: 9 minutes. Writer/Director Christine Turner:
“I came to know an elderly woman with dementia while I was serving as a hospice volunteer a couple of years ago. I was very much moved by the experience and inspired to make a film on the subject of care giving.
It’s a story we don’t see very often and a chance to see Bethann Hardison, an African American runway model who broke racial barriers in the 70s, in her film acting debut.”
Danny's Girl - Danny meets his online girlfriend for the first time but accidentally discovers an unspeakable possession of hers, which throws their first night together into a dizzying tailspin. Amidst the chaos, their mutual vulnerability and desire to connect pierces through and changes their lives forever. Length: 13 minutes. Writer/Director Emily Wilson:
“I like to explore themes of loneliness, profound disappointment, and feminine frustration. And how people react when they are most vulnerable. The characters in Danny’s Girl are offbeat and feel isolated in their own way, which I think everyone can relate to in one way or another. Although these themes can be heartbreaking, there is also so much room for humor and extreme absurdity within them. It’s the nuances of human behavior that really tell a story.”
He's the One - A girl meets a guy and falls head over heels, but a shocking discovery forces her to question everything. A dark comedy about falling in love with the one person you're supposed to hate. Length: 10 minutes. Writer/Director/Producer/Actor Jessie Kahnweiler:
“Is it possible to forgive someone who hurt you? (Including yourself)”
Eadem Cutis: the same skin - ‘I just want to be seen as the one I am today’ – In this experimental animated documentary, John takes the viewer with him into the world of body and identity. Length: 5 minutes 34 seconds. Director/Animator Nina Hopf:
“I really wanted to portrait my twin-brother, so I made my graduate film about him. His character and the way he deals with himself are absolutely astonishing and extraordinary and I felt the urge to pay tribute to this.”
Character - A meditation on power, privilege, and the perils of being a "type." Length: 16 minutes 45 seconds. Director/Producer/Editor Vera Brunner-Sung:
“It’s a truism that through specificity, we can find the universal. My film is about one person’s career and experience, but it’s a lens through which we can understand our own ambition, dreams, and disappointments.”
<WOMEN’S STORIES>
While Mortals Sleep - When a cold case novelist's career implodes, she seeks refuge in her friend's remote vacation home. Upon arrival, she encounters a strange couple who claim to be the caretakers. As tensions build, a dark secret begins to emerge. Length: 14 minutes 10 seconds. Writer/Director Alex Fofonoff:
“I wanted to explore themes of accountability and action, and people can twist reality in order for the means to justify the end. Personally, I always love stories that explore family or community, and all the different shapes and sizes it can take.”
Sometimes, I Think About Dying - Fran is thinking about dying, but there's a man in the office who might want to date her. Length: 12 minutes 20 seconds. Writer/Director/Producer Stefanie Abel Horowitz:
“You should watch this film because it’s a very human, personal story about a woman who feels insecure and uncertain in the world but manages to find a connection despite that. Also, it’s funny and moving.”
<GLOBAL>
The Geneva Convention - As Hakim is waiting for the bus after class, he is caught in a vendetta between teenagers. He is not exactly keen to get into a fight, but how can he possibly avoid an awaited confrontation? 14 minutes 58 seconds. Writer/Director Benoit Martin:
“I tried to tell a story about how an individual defines herself or himself in a group, how the experience of the collective - the solidarity - helps her or him reveal herself or himself. How it is to think not only for yourself but for others, too… The teenage years are the first moment when you have to make decisions, nobody does it for you like when you are a child. And it’s also the first moment in your life when you spend time without your parents but with friends and those decisions you have to make involve others. And I hope this interests people.”
Mare Nostrum - On the shore of the Mediterranean Sea, a Syrian father makes a decision that puts his daughter's life at risk. Length: 13 minutes. Director Rana Kazkaz and Anas Khalaf:
“The themes we wanted to explore with this film are sacrifice and hope. These are the motivations that drive the urgency of every scene.”
Symphony of a Sad Sea - Hugo, a Mexican boy victim of the violence in the country, flees from his town with the dream of crossing to the US to meet his father, who is the only relative that he has and to forget the past. Length: 12 minutes 25 seconds. Producer Claudia Vicke:
“Just because it is a different story, he is not the usual victim. Hugo is not the common kid that we are used to seeing in the movies, and the way that we try to show him... I think it’s a good but bitter experience.”
Birds in the Earth is a short film based on dance, telling a bit of a melancholic story about Sámi people´s rights in today´s Finland, the Sámi being the indigenous people of Northern Europe. The story is told through the dance performances of two young Sámi sisters, Birit and Katja Haarla. Length: 10 minutes 42 seocnds. Writer/Director/Producer Marja Helander:
“Birds in the Earth was born out of my interest in making a film about my people, the Sámi people, who are the indigenous people of Scandinavia and Russia. I was interested in combining the strict and disciplined art form of ballet with the wild arctic nature to show the contradiction between Sámi people and the state of Finland, concerning the ownership of the land and sovereignty of Sámi people.”
The Tough - A discovery arouses a man's imagination and propels him forward in an uncouth and obsessive way. Step by step, the camera participates as he explores places hitherto unknown to humankind, which offer increasing resistance to human delicacy. Length: 14 minutes. Writer/Director Marcin Polar:
“I gained my experience as a caver at the same time as being a filmmaker. I have been doing this for some years and one day I came to an idea to combine these two worlds. No one before – at least in Poland – has done this.”
<ANIMATION>
Reneepoptosis -Three Renees go on a quest to find God, who is also Renee. As they traverse the mountains and valleys of Renee, they discover all the great mysteries, sadnesses, and joys of being Renee. Length: 9 minutes 55 seconds. Director Renee Zhan:
“ It’s a very personal film, with every character being me, but I hope that the themes of loneliness and self-discovery resonate with a wider audience.”
By Water - An unlikely hero's journey into his own memories becomes a vehicle for reconciliation and healing for himself and his sibling. Length: 12 minutes. Director Iyabo Kwayana:
“My film is very personal, yet it is ultimately the story of reconciliation and healing. It also challenges audiences to identify with the underdog and enter their experience and be invited into empathy.”
Count Your Curses - In a town where supernatural beings are part of everyday life, two roommates face a recurring problem: their house spirit was devoured by an unknown creature overnight. They go on their way to find a replacement spirit and a solution to their pest problem. Length: 8 minutes 30 seconds. Writer/Director Lorène Yavo:
“It is lighthearted and funny with warm tones and a fantasy setting, so if you want to clear your head and explore a new world, it may be just what you need! It may remind you of previous experiences or see things differently, and I hope you’ll enjoy it!”
Chichi - My dog had a dream and he told me about it. I made a movie about that dream. This is that movie. Length: 9 minutes 37 seconds. Director David Nessl:
“You should watch CHICHI because it’s an out-there alternative comedy with mock infomercials and situational humor. This film is also the product of my subconscious connection to my dog’s brain and the script for the film was greatly influenced by the weird, disturbing things that my dog dreams about. ”
The Phantom 52 - Loneliness: a trucker who calls out on his CB radio waiting for a reply that never comes. A ghost that haunts the deserted highways. A whale that sings at a frequency no other whale can even hear. Length: 7 minutes 52 seconds. Writer/Director/Animator/Producer/Editor Geoff Marslett:
“I made The Phantom 52 because I was moved by the story of a real whale out there in the ocean speaking in a frequency no other whale can hear. It is sad, but it is also amazing. This whale has persevered since at least 1989.”
The Driver Is Red - Set in Argentina 1960, this true crime documentary follows the story of secret agent Zvi Aharoni as he hunted down one of the highest ranking Nazi war criminals on the run. Length: 15 minutes. Writer/Director Randall Christopher:
“I read an article in early 2016 related to Adolf Eichmann and went down the proverbial rabbit hole and became more and more fascinated by the story. The spy angle really hooked me. An entire team of secret agents covertly entered a hostile country to carry out an operation. It had secret cameras, disguises, forged documents, and ingenious ways of hiding their tracks.”