Lights, Cameras, Action (but keep it short)
By Rebecca Park, Contributor
A still from On the Road to Tel-Aviv (courtesy of DC Shorts Film Festival).
Kicking off September 10, the sixth annual DC Shorts Film Festival promises to be a week-long celebration of the art of precision timing (not only must the directors watch their clocks, but ardent attendees have 100 films to fit in their schedule). The Festival has grown greatly since its first outing in 2003; now, not only are their more films and showtimes, but the international presence is stronger, with 16 countries being represented this year.
Entries come from far and wide. Local, yes, but filmmakers from Bosnia and Herzegovina, Columbia, Scandinavia, and Western Europe will also be in attendance. A new program of remixes organizes previously screened films around common themes. Of particular interest is September 15’s “News Views: Arabs, Muslims and Jews” and “World Showcase: European Shorts” on September 16. From international drama to domestic intrigues, highly stylized to drably realistic, little laughs and big sighs, the only thing uniting the diverse programming is the restricted running time.
Because There are Things You Never Forget... (courtesy of DC Shorts Film Festival).
Of course, certain selections may share a common international background, but not all short films are created equally. Among the standouts from abroad are two films being, appropriately, during screening #1. On the Road to Tel-Aviv and Porque Hay Cosas Que Nunca se Olvidan (Because There are Things You Never Forget…), from Israel and Spain, respectively, represent polar opposites of film-making and story-telling, but both achieve their intended purpose. The former captures the tense paranoia that comes from living day-to-day in a conflict zone, portraying the very real danger and fear through tight camera work and an earthy palette of colors and characters. Things You Never Forget is sweet and nostalgic, a look at the struggles of childhood, in this case a full-blown battle between soccer-playing boys and their neighbor, a crotchety old women. The style is Euro-centric, all flashbacks, camera tricks and whimsy, most reminiscent of the fantasy of Jean-Pierre Jeunet’s Amélie. At the middle range are films like Paradise Lost, an intimate drama from France that, although it doesn’t say much (dialogue is limited)—and when it does, it’s rather heavy-handed—it does address the question of multiculturalism and constructed identity in a creative new way.
Short and (sometimes) sweet, subtitled (at times), the DC Shorts screenings offer a grab-bag of all kinds of film-making. For a complete schedule, check out the website www.dcshorts.com.
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