HollyShorts Pt. 3 Final Films and the Oscar-Qualifying Winners

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Oct042021

Monday, October 4, 2021 at 2:00PM

By Ben Miller

The virtual HollyShorts Film Festival is at an end. Showcasing the newest and best films under 40 minutes, I was able to watch dozens of great short films across a myriad of categories. Here are my thoughs on ten more films as well the festival winners...

LGBTQIA

Little Sky (d. Jess X. Snow)
Chinese American drag sensation Sky returns to their hometown to confront their estranged father. Wo Chan is a showstopper as the titular Sky, whose palpable pain resonates through their performance. Raises interesting questions about why we love the people who don't love us back and the family we make for ourselves. Powerfully performed and memorable.

Beautiful They (d. Cloudy Rhodes)
A pair of youths meet after sharing weed and head to the solace of the beach. Touching, gentle exploration on the nuance of gender and attraction. Lovely, sweet and sexy without the lingering darkness you keep waiting for. Boldly performed by Morgan Davies and Sariah Saibu, shows the importance of finding someone who loves you for you.

Thriller

Kick! (d. Alex Backes, Tanner Boyajian)
Things go extremely awry when an expectant single-mother asks her neighbors to keep their music down. Essentially Game Night if Rachel McAdams' character was terrified at everything that was happening. Oddly clashing tones, with an expectation of humor but the reality being much more sinister. It does finish with a nice comment on what people expect out of expectant mothers.

Follow Me Please (d. Ian Matthews)
A young man desperate for internet stardom gets more than he bargained for when he follows a mysterious figure on Instagram. Heavy-handed message about the reception of content rather than the content itself. Eschews internet celebrities, but does it in too obvious ways. The suspense elements do hold up, though.

International

Clara With a Mustache (d. Ilir Blaḉori)
A banknote travels the world an reveals terrible stories with an undercurrent of hope. Fascinatingly innovative animation, with a memorable message about the horrors of the Kosovo War. The animation style almost forces you to not take the terrible goings on too seriously. Despite the banknote being the narrative device, the people and personalities are at the forefront without a distinguishing visual difference between the characters. Innovative storytelling without the crutch of exposition.

Ruwatan (d. Ernest Lesmasa)
A woman accompanies her mother as she undergoes alternative therapy. Shows the lengths people will go to in order to be healed without the benefit of expensive therapy and how people will manipulate the needy for their own creepy needs. Powerful message that you never know what the people closest to you are actually going through.

Kid's Animation

A Tiny Tale (d. Sylvain Cuvillier, Chloé Bourdic, Théophile Coursimault, Noémie Halberstam, Maÿlis Mosny, Zijing Ye)
An abandoned dog, a wannabe astronaut and a professional cyclist connect through circumstance. Fun, clean animation with a distinct visual storytelling structure. Though obviously not made with the highest budget, it never feels cheaply made.

Beyond the Line (d. Jinuk Choi)
A group of disability assistants dream of race track stardom. Cute premise with a simple execution that effectively sells the story. It's a welcome sight to have wheelchairs and crutches be at the forefront of the action. It probably would have been a bit better if the vehicles had any personality outside of their functions.

Action

Maximus (d. Richard Predergast)
A young warrior fights for his life, as told through the his little sister. What starts as a brooding epic of action and war turns into a lovely tale of actual heroism and bravery. The action scenes are superfluous as the real-life tale supersedes any care about the war-based story. A touching ending with a sweet message.

Hard Out (d. Ben Leiataua, Brett Benson)
When drunk patrons interrupt filming, a production crew shooting a commercial in a bar decide to settle their difference with a fight. Enjoyable simple action is sometimes the best action, but there should be some type of innovation, of which there is very little. More of a good idea with poor execution

17th Annual HollyShorts Award Winners

These three films are now Oscar qualified given their wins: