SHORTFEST 2005- SHORT FILM FESTIVAL
30th Nov 05
G'day.
Shortfest was a one-night film festival I attended and
participated in (working on some of the films as crew or cast).
Here's a brief synopsis/review that I wrote afterwards.
It's a bit of an indulgent 'vanity press' item really, so I
thought I'd log it in here since it doesn't realy quite fit on
Zero-G. However, there are several genre items that may be
viewable commercially in the future so I think some of the
content is generally relevant.
SHORTFEST 2005 FILM FESTIVAL
HELD AT THE AUSTRALIAN CENTRE FOR THE MOVING IMAGE
NOVEMBER 26TH, 2005
MELBOURNE
AUSTRALIA
BY ROB JAN (3RRR FM FILM REVIEWER AND FILMFEST PARTICIPANT- CREW
AND/ OR CAST FOR “METAL COFFIN” AND “EAT YOUR HEART OUT”)
SOME UNSOLICITED COMMENTS
In spite of his obvious nerves (obvious to me, as ‘accustomed as
I am to public speaking’) festival organiser’s Callum Perry’s
opening speech was the right length and contained the right
number of anecdotes to place the ten blocks of Shortfest’s films
in context. Well, okay, there was one anecdote that I wasn’t
totally in synch with. As a tee totalling non-smoker I don’t
share Sean McPhillip’s appreciation of a fine Cuban cigar and a
glass of rum, enjoyed according to Callum, in the line of
directorial duty during the trip when Sean shot his “Hollywood
Movie”. Not being a wowser either I do at least heartily
appreciate Sean’s appreciation!
Like a number of his friends, relatives and co-workers I’ve
‘lived with’ Callum’s commitment to this festival for several
months now, watching him become immersed in the minutia of
gathering films, a process like braiding together a
multi-stranded rope. Actually, this is Callum’s second stint as
festival director. As with the first one observing the complex
behind-the-scene negotiations and manoeuvrings has been
inspirational in itself, even before considering the filmmaker
encouragement and audience entertainment aspects inherent in the
screenings.
To get the 50 odd minutes of program content on the ACMI screen
Callum has had to beg, borrow and appeal; for a gentleman doesn’t
steal, and Mr Perry is indeed a gentleman. Those who know him are
well aware of that Callum has two of the most sympathetic ears
that any artist (in any medium) could possibly wish to bend for
counsel, support and encouragement. Callum’s interactive
engagement with the individual creators of the titles was the
moving force behind the festival, and this is before you consider
his personal contribution to the individual projects,
encompassing writing, direction, crewing, providing sage advice
and/or acting in at least five of the different titles.
For those of you who don’t know Callum personally, suffice to say
that getting this year’s festival on-screen resembled wrangling a
herd of cats to travel in the same direction to arrive at the
same destination at the same time. What a guy! (Quick, somebody
get that blush on camera!)
Enough testimonial for President Perry; he’d be the first to say,
“On with the bloody show!”
One point, the Shortfest was a rare night off for me. I wasn’t
wearing my reviewing hat and didn’t take notes. So for the fairly
uncritical approach of these comments blame indulgence, and force
of habit that they exist at all.
Momentum Animation Studios, I understand, generously bankrolled
the screenings and I’m not sorry if I’ve blown their anonymity!
I’ve been watching (though not in any obsessive, stalking sense,
‘cos that would be creepy) this powerhouse young animation
studio’s work as it goes from strength to strength. You may have
seen their despicably anarchic “Petey & Jaydee” animated
shorts on SBS as part of the “Happy Tree & Friends” slot and
during the Olympics with sports themed cartoons. I believe that
the cartoon has also been a hit with mobile phone users as a
screen based download, an application which its brief but action
packed format is particularly suited to. We saw three new PJ
cartoons last night, this time the two miniscule kamikaze
adventurer aliens ended up experiencing the lethal “Ho, Ho,
D’Oh!” of Christmas in an Earth suburban home. P & J ‘toons
have the classic simplicity of Warner Brothers Roadrunner
shorts.
Two little green men land in their pint-sized flying saucer on
Earth. One has a successfully fun play with a lawnmower, kitchen
blender, Christmas Tree light, photocopier (insert favourite
appliance/power tool), which his mate then gleefully tries to
mimic with immediate
deadly consequences. Sick, and, for our collective cultural sins,
comprehensively hilarious green blooded fun! As with Golden Age
Warner Brothers shorts, the strengths of the format is Bedrocked
(sorry, that’s Hanna-Barbera) in finely honed comic timing,
splendidly detailed backgrounds and richly evocative character
animation.
I’m also beginning to see what appear to be subtle second-tier
gags in the stories. For example, the ‘lil Bug Eyed Monsters
discover Christmas cards on a mantelpiece above a roaring open
fire. Standing inside the fold of a card one punches his arms
through the covers to make crude gliding wings. Zip! He’s on a
nearby tabletop, safe and sound. Second alien copies him, bangs
into the edge of the tabletop, loses the wings, crash-lands to
the floor and is decapitated by the falling wings. Now, I’d
pegged the punch line being that he arcs up to the table, doesn’t
make it, and swoops backwards into the fire. Poof! Crispy
critter. The fact that he didn’t do an obvious Icarus,
perversely, made it funnier for me, a kind of end run around the
obvious jeopardy. Or it could just be my devious mind meeting
itself coming around a corner.
A fortuitous result of block programming three “Petey &
Jaydee” episodes in a row is that you get hooked on the
repetition of that cunningly inane theme! Now that’s really
sick.
The other Momentum piece “Dragonslayer Junior” opened the
festival with another trio of slightly less graphic but arguably
more sophisticated animated mayhem. Again, a classic scenario of
a young knigget repeatedly trying to splash an equally juvenile,
singularly cute pink dragon against the setting of a well
realised generic fantasy castle. Less spartan than “Petey &
Jaydee” the “ ‘Slayer” introduces a third character, in the
hapless, but not ultimately helpless, chicken which is
incorporated into the series of Wallacian (as in “Wallace &
Gromit”) armaments used by the knight errant in an attempt to
bring down his prey. The firing mechanism is funny in itself. An
automatic mallet bops the bird on the head, inspiring her to lay
an egg with enough explosive force to propel the projectile from
the gun. Multiple rapid-fire hits produce a stream of eggs, which
looks, and is knowingly filmed, precisely like one of the more
outrageous weapons frequently deployed in first person shooter
computer games. Picture’s worth the thousand words it takes to
describe it. It’s funnier to see than it can be explained,
especially since the gun inevitably, frequently ‘fowls’, with
cumulative consequences that contribute to ‘Dragonslayer” being
more of a serial than P & J. On a technical note, I
particularly appreciated the effortlessly fluid motion achieved
in the dragon’s flight, contrasted with the often played for
laughs mechanical aviation preferred by the knight. Definitely a
bootstrapped upgrade for Momentum, and another natural step
towards the natural challenge of a feature length film. Not that
shorts necessarily need to be seen as mere precursors for longer
works, anymore than a perfect short story has to be expanded into
a novel. Still, it is a logical progression.
Sean McPhillip’s “Hollywood Movie” is very much a shoot from the
hip piece that you can maponto whatever themes you want to. A
deceptively simple multi-angled view of the iconic Hollywood sign
(which used to read “Hollywoodland” before Steve Spielburg blew
it up in the movie “1941”) I can’t tell if the slightly hazy view
is down to hazy atmospherics, timing of the shoot, typical
characteristics of a Super-8 camera when panning, or just the
need to get it done before the antiterrorist squad comes rolling
down on the cameraman with a suspicious interest in the national
landmark. A famous landmark, incidentally, that just happens to
be made from Aussie Bluescope steel. Well, the short concisely
complements the title pun; what more do you really need?
Patrick Goldsworthy’s “Shanghai Dreaming” doesn’t just depend on
its eponymous exotic (to Westerners) locale for its flavour. The
delicately farcical romance that it revolves around is given an
energy boost by way of the punchy editing of a Hong Kong action
genre, along with Buster Keatonish slapstick as the star-crossed
characters pelt headlong through the streets attempting to
achieve their rendezvous. Still, the setting is another distinct
character, from the signature larger-than-life plastic animal
totems that are an officially cheerful feature of the Chinese
urban landscape (often serving dual purposes as ashtrays, water
fountains and the like) to the increasing futuristic buildings
that dot the ever changing skyline. Moments of inbuilt natural
comedy pepper the dialogue free narrative, a key sequence being a
valiant attempt to clean an apartment. Pathos with more than a
hint of a smile.
“neon | skin” (Nicole Dominic & Tim Webster) efficiently
underlined textured light; that is, light from a neon sign given
intricate form when it plays across a number of surfaces that
include water, pavement and skin. Rather than being a lack the
absence of a soundtrack helps focus attention without implied
narrative distracting from the interplay of primal elements.
Again, another one open to interpretation. Myself, I couldn’t
help but be reminded of evolving organisms under some powerful
scanning instrument, reminiscent of the ever-changing
extraterrestrial micro-colony in Robert Wise/Michael Crichton’s
movie, “The Andromeda Strain”. Less generically, but along
similar biological lines, a new microphotographic exhibition
featuring extraordinary images of stem cells
(www.stemcellcentre.edu.au) puts me in the same frame of mind as
Nicole and Tim’s simple but complex fractal visions. As a
shutter-bug obsessed with the beauty of small things myself I
simply liked the look of this film.
If Simon Imberger’s “Metal Coffin” is a trailer for a potential
feature film then it’s a semitrailer and maybe even a road train.
Entirely appropriate considering its main character is an undead
School Crossing Guard raging against, well, road rage, who is
most convincingly played by Max Fairchild, whose character laden
face and form will be familiar to most mainstream Australian
audiences, and could be made much more so were this film to go on
to achieve its full length potential. Simon and his partner
Georgina Capper, have been working on this concept for a long
time and it’s clearly been worth the wait. I’d write ‘em a damn
cheque on the spot to fund the feature but it’d bounce; no way am
I going to cross a Director with such an inventive turn of
vengeful mind.
“Metal Coffin”, or “Lollipop Man” as Simon’s remarkably
long-suffering but generously patient friends (!) affectionately
call it, has all the potential to be ‘the next big genre hit’
without pandering to the less creative clichйs of the slasher
genre. Working with practically no budget Simon has conjured up
an impressive work-in-progress with some first-rate disturbingly
chilling images by juxtaposing the mundane with the
extraordinary. Red and white striped school crossing flag support
posts rise sinisterly from the pine cone strewn floor of a
plantation forest that portentously grows a functional traffic
light to serve as a metaphor for the protagonist’s mission in
life, or indeed undeath. Simon’s special effects are a tribute to
what can be done at home with Final Cut Pro and AfterFX software,
not to mention basic inexpensive prosthetic horror make-up!
There’s a superb scene where Max stops a car by smashing in its
hood with his preternaturally enhanced ‘Lollipop’ Stop Sign, and
some very effective digital eye removal done on Georgina’s ‘Death
Angel’ character that, complemented by some particularly spooky
body-English on the actresses part, wouldn’t look out of place in
one of Joss Whedon’s stylish Buffy or Angel episodes.
Yep, my partner and I crewed on “Metal Coffin” (Simo, maaate,
where’s my film logo T-Shirt or embroidered baseball cap?) so
maybe you might want to discount my comments by a discreet
percentage to make up for vested interest. That still leaves a
lot to gasp at beyond the star turns by my boof-headed cat and
the scene shot in my over cluttered workshop, and Simon’s
evocative soundtrack. In any case, you should watch out for this
filmmaker : it’s his dream to give you nightmares.
What should we make of Callum Perry’s suicidal “Dirge” or the
fact that he plays a victim in three of the festival’s films and
was also offed in one of last year’s submissions? I politely
decline to speculate beyond noting that if anyone has an axe to
grind against the festival director then you’re too late; he’s
self-avenging!
Shot on a camera that was originally designed as a toy but which
is now a pop culture classic “Dirge” captures a potentially
terminal razor edged moment as a man literally reflects upon a
knife edge, his fate in his hands, perhaps pondering the ironic
empowerment that he’s discovered in his final act. Then again,
maybe he’s just wondering if he’s got enough time to have a shave
before dashing off to work? It’s interesting how the limitations
of the camera automatically enhanced the imagery, the grainy
picture heightened the emotional tension. Callum’s eccentric
little camera reminds me that the Festival covers a whole
spectrum of recording devices, from good old Super-8 to
contemporary chipped cameras.
Another film I worked on was Jason Heller’s cheerfully eccentric
Zombie musical “Eat Your Heart Out” I built the Zombie-Zapper
wrist gauntlet the heroine wields so expertly and also
resurrected myself as a Zombie D.J (Rob Zombie in the decaying
flesh), not very much to the surprise of my colleagues at Triple
R F.M. As proud as I am of my (rotting) part in the film it’s
very much Jason’s twisted vision and jauntily appropriate
soundtrack that literally brings the piece to alternative life.
He conjured it up from whole cloth (probably a burial shroud) at
a lurching, staggering and growling pace that can only be
described as ‘breakneck’. Distracted only by the inevitable
Zombie jokes and puns Jason (dis)assembled a cast of shambling
actors who rose to the occasion, whether it be stumbling along an
inner city street, infesting back alleys or, in the case of
Marcus the male lead, literally giving his heart to his beloved.
In Zombie movies a good part of the fun lies in the
characterisations. In this film the all dancing, all groaning
lead is an oddly touching walking corpse who thinks he’s a
perfect match for Jane the arse booting sheila, who prowls the
streets terminating the Zombs with extreme prejudice. Shot in
traditional Romeroesque black and white “Eat Your Heart Out”
doesn’t so much tug at the heartstrings with its
love-that-should-not-be-named as chew on them with deviant
relish. Pass the chocolate sauce and blood capsules!
Anyone who has every done frame-by-frame animation knows what a
painstaking process it is. Belle Bassin’s “Scratch Film”
compounds the difficulty by adding in the complication of
composing the animation from scratches on blackened film stock.
I’ve done my share of intricate scratch board drawings in my time
but thinking about how much work the seven hundred odd sketches
that make up this 30 second short makes me dizzy! I’m not as
familiar with the background of this film as I am with most of
the others but Bassin’s images of winged creatures also has me
wondering if they’re a metaphor for what the animator feels when
released from doing all that meticulous work.
Which brings me to the final film, Chris Jones’ purely
astonishing C.G.I animation, “The Passenger”, telling the
fearsomely clever tale of a bus passenger who discovers something
horrifically fishy on his daily commute. The level of detail in
this one implies a level of passionate obsession that will make
seasoned animators seriously bug their eyes out from their
sockets on foot long stalks as their jaws drop six feet to the
carpet. I want to see this again just to marvel at the
reflections on the chromed handrails on the bus, the opalescent
whites of the passenger’s terror-stricken eyes, and the insane
rendering of the show-but-not-bus-stopping Big Bad
Goldfish.
Incidentally, the reversal that occurs near the end of the film
is a classic, and reminds me of the 2003 Academy Award Best
Animated Short Film "The Chubbchubbs" because it's essentially
a bit of a 'shaggydog' story that relies upon a neat twist in
the tail. The ‘quick-change’ monster transformations also remind
me of a couple of classic Warner Brothers cartoons; you know the
ones, where Sylvester or Bugs drink a Jekyll and Hyde potion. It
also, nostalgically, reminds me of a similar trick that I once
played on a neighbour’s annoying yapping dog using a recording of
a T-Rex roar culled from “Jurassic Park” played from behind the
fence on a gutsy portable boom box. A clear sign that Chris has
tapped into a heartfelt desire to turn the tables on your
tormentor which in its turn gives the story universal appeal. An
entirely finished Masterpiece, in the old craft Guild sense of
the word, where an artisan had to produce a single great work
before he could call himself a Master. This is one of those
detailed packed pieces that you just know would reward closer,
freeze-framed and slo-mo study. What can I say, I’m an
Uber-Geek!
Well now, it’s taken me far longer to write this off-the-cuff
commentary than it took to watch the films themselves but then I
am something of a hobby costumer so pardon my cuffs for being a
tad wide and over-embellished.
Much credit to all concerned for giving a sharp hour of
fascinating entertainment, for me at least I watched them with an
appetite sharpened by having participated in some of the films,
and having heard at length about many of the others while Callum
programmed them. Lucky me!