Hello ladies and gentlemen, Muldoon here with your very own weekly film fest nestled safely in the confines of SATURDAY SHORTS. This week we're going to mix it up a bit with a few horror, a few thrillers, a drama (which is nothing short of amazing), and perhaps a sci-fi or two. If you've been following SATURDAY SHORTS at all, you've probably noticed I tend to feature a lovely amount of comedy and horror - and the occasional sci/fi or drama cluster. Ever so often I like to mix it up with a bit of variety, so you're constantly getting to cleanse your palate with each short you click on.
If it's here, it's because I personally think it's a cool/interesting/unique film that needs to be seen. I more than hope you guys and gals dig them too, but hey - feel free to shoot your thoughts out in the TalkBacks below. There's always filmmakers in the audience and occasionally they'll respond, so if you're like "Why the hell did they pick that song for that scene?" or "Holy hell, how did they pull that shot off?" - ask! That said, this is a No-Troll-Zone and unlike any other TalkBack on AICN, if you're dying to say something hateful or be a dick, go do that in another article por favor - or better yet, don't.
Go grab yourself some popcorn, lock your kids in a closet, kill the lights, relax and check out this little weekly film fest we've got ourselves here:
AUTOMATE
TRT: 7:00
(Sci/Fi)
First up for this week is Martin Stirling's high concept, well executed, and simple story done right. It's got a TWILIGHT ZONE vibe mixed with a rather musty color palette. "With Automate, you don't need to date" Ann, a lonely career woman, struggles to connect with a robot companion designed to love her. If you dig the short, you ought to give Martin's site a tiny bit of your time, HERE.
AUTOMATE from Martin Stirling on Vimeo.
BLOOD ON MY HANDS
TRT: 6:53
(???)
Up next we have a short from master editor Stef Hrycyk (seriously, check out the guy's website, he's a beast). BLOOD ON MY HANDS is an interesting short in that it almost goes out of its way to play with your expectations. In his own words, "[It's a] short film playing on people's perception of character." It's like solving a puzzle almost - short and instantly hooks you in.
INITIATIVE #435
TRT: 5:52
(Sci/Fi - Action)
Here we are with another high concept short done well. The production design is pretty cool, again simple, but done well. The film was directed, written, produced, and edited by Shawn Costa and I really dig it. "A cyborg named Abel escapes a top-secret facility. A detective named Cain is hired to track it down and in process, Cain discovers the shocking truth about himself."
THE GIFT
TRT: 15:00
("Magical Realism")
I don't think I've ever heard of "magical realism" before, but Andrew Griffin's short is something else. It's an incredibly beautiful film jam packed with performances that don't let down. It's "a tale of a troubled couple, visited by an ominous stork bearing both hope and tragedy."
RAVEN'S HOLLOW
TRT: 10:59
(Horror - Animation)
So here we have a cool little Halloween-vibe type short that's pretty cool. Average moviegoers, and not so average moviegoers are becoming more and more accustomed to Pixar and Dreamworks style 3D animation and if that's what you're looking for here, you're in the wrong place. This short incorporates a few different styles of animation to tell the story.
Billy, his sister Lisa, and her boyfriend Mike spend Halloween at the drive-in after trick or treating. When Billy threatens to walk home through an dark cornfield, Mike tells him a legend of Old Farmer Blood, who is said to have seeded his field with the blood of murder victims. When Billy disbelieves, Mike leads the trio into a nightmare of unrelenting terror.
RAVEN'S HOLLOW is a short film co-written, directed and animated by Colin Clarke, made entirely on home computers using off the shelf software. Clarke's previous credits include "Frankenstein vs the Wolfman in 3D", and the Gothic superhero short films "Raven" and "Raven 2".
Raven's Hollow from Colin Clarke on Vimeo.
That's all for this week folks, see you next week!
Thanks for reading/watching. If you feel like checking out more SATURDAY SHORTS, click any of the links below:
If you have a short and think it belongs here or are on the fence about whether to send it in, please do send it in - I'd love to see what you've put together. I've already seen hundreds of fresh new filmmakers' shorts and like any good addict, I need more!
Shoot me an email at "Mike@aintitcool.com"
In the subject line include:
“SHORTS” + “Your film’s name” + “The film’s genre”
Then, in the body of the email, please include a synopsis of the film and any contact information you might think I need or would want published.
Please don’t feel the need to submit multiple times. I swear to each of you I truly check every email I get, and sending the same short a few times just makes it a bit messier.
Remember, the filmmakers might still be in the audience, so feel free to share your thoughts in Talkbacks below. (JUST DON'T BE AN ASSHOLE). I picked them, so you know I think highly of all of these, but how about you fine folks? How'd you like 'em?
- Mike McCutchen
"Muldoon"
Mike@aintitcool.com
