In a Bronx bar, a clash between traditional Italian-American “wiseguys” and the LGBTQ+ community leads to a confrontation that challenges the characters’ preconceptions and the dynamics of power.
Review by Julie C, Sheppard:
Arthur Ave. is a touching short set in the heart of the Bronx, New York City. There are fabulous, dizzying drone shots of the area off the top, then zooming in to Arthur Ave., and then finally landing inside the dark, smoky bar.
The narrative is excellent, with a clear situational arc — starting with the dialogue by the racist, sexist jerks in the bar, the transition to their homophobic cruelty towards the happily married gay couple and, finally, the segment of understanding towards the couple by the bar owner. The performances of the cast are outstanding, notably the gay couple and the bar owner — such genuine vulnerability and warmth in their deliveries. Kudos to Roxy the dog, who also nails her performance.
While it was satisfying to see justice delivered in this fictional tale, the real stat presented onscreen that more than 1 in 5 hate crimes are motivated by LGBTQ+ bias is quite sobering. The film is vitally important for all to see, and underscores the importance of the final note, writ large — “BE KIND TO ONE ANOTHER” — a sincere message of compassion and love.
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COOP, 19min., USA Directed by Moriah Doepken After sustaining a bad injury, a stubborn retired sheriff must learn to talk with his estranged son as they build a fence together, or risk losing the relationship.
ROSALIND, 32min,. USA Directed by Veronica A. Hodge-Hampton Vivian and Rosalind love each other, but after Rosalind was diagnosed with lung cancer she became abusive to her only caregiver, Vivian, for nine life draining years. When Vivian leaves town to see her dying father, a nurse and their close friend, Phoebe, teaches both Rosalind and Vivian a lesson in love they will never forget.
ELIZA, 11min., USA Directed by Bianca Roth After hitting rock bottom, 23 year old MIA, updates her home AI system to help turn her life around. What start out as small “life improvements” slowly begin to control her.
What motivated you to make this film? I first got the idea to make this film when I kept hearing about everyone using chat gpt… honestly myself included! Obviously this AI helps a lot of people in their day to day life which I think can be a great thing. However, as the uprising of AI technology becomes more and more prevalent I started to think about where the boundary is. How much can AI help until it begins to just do things for us, and then at what point does that begin to take over. This led me to a bigger thought of will AI get so smart it begins to take over…. I hope not! These are some of things I had in my head and I wanted to create a snapshot of one person’s experience during that AI takeover.
What were your initial reactions when watching the audience talking about your film in the feedback video? I was very happy to hear that a lot of the themes and messages I had put into the film came across. I wanted to show the buildup of how AI can start as helpful and pose the question of what can happen if it becomes too much. I am so happy people enjoyed it!
Audio engineer Becca desperately tries to convince unhinged podcast host Sean Palermo to cancel his provocative live episode featuring a controversial guest, which sparks disturbing online rhetoric and escalating violence outside their studio.
Review by Andie Karvelis:
When a controversial guest appears on a live podcast taping, things go horribly wrong. This suspenseful thriller was written and directed by Christian La Morte and what an intriguing tale he created. Sean Palermo is our influential podcast host, portrayed brilliantly by Thomas Philip O’Neill. He captured that egotistical, narcissistic charm as only a very accomplished actor could. Becca, is Sean Palermo’s audio engineer and you instantaneously like her and feel empathy for her situation. Sophia Lucia Parola portrays Becca and her acting skills are an equal match to Thomas’s making it a joy to watch them interact.
I have to admit, I fell in love with the cinematography in this film. The clarity and depth of colors brought out by Anthony Altamura was just sensational. Every frame had a cohesive look and the lighting was perfect.
Right from the start the filmmakers grab your attention with some lovely foreshadowing and visual fx from Maxwell Seiler and Greg Joblove. Adding in the talents of Benjamin Doherty to create a score that was beautifully unsettling, making you feel there was something sinister on the horizon. The entire team really paid attention to the details and it paid off
The story reminded me of an episode of Black Mirror, this is something that could easily happen in our near future if we aren’t careful. I also appreciate it when a film doesn’t spoon feed the audience everything, instead giving you enough breadcrumbs to figure it out. The filmmakers had a good balance here but I wish there were a couple more breadcrumbs at the very end.
All in all, this was definitely an edge of your seat thriller that is worth a watch.
Between 2015 and 2024, Leonard Alecu filmed the melting icebergs off Greenland’s East coast. Sailing dangerously close to icebergs, Alecu handled his camera to record the ice masses yielding to the ruthless ocean. Filmed in black and white, Ice Breath is a cinematic poem whose only elusive actor is the filmmaker’s gaze. In 43 minutes, a sequence of flat pictures turn into dynamic tableaux, an existential journey from genesis to extinction. The hypnotic feature of the film is enhanced by the soundtrack Become Ocean, a haunting composition by John Luther Adams suggestive of a relentless tidal surge, of melting polar ice and rising sea levels. Become Ocean received critical acclaim, earning the 2014 Pulitzer Prize for Music and the 2015 Grammy for Best Classical Contemporary Composition. More than an environmental documentary, Ice Breath and Become Ocean is an experimental fusion exploring the vast, inscrutable meanings of climate change.
Review by Andie Karvelis:
On Greenland’s east coast from 2019 to 2024 Leonard Alecu lived on a sailing ship filming the ice caps in the area. With the help of an intrepid inuit sailing crew, Leonard was able to capture the most breathtaking footage ever seen. Upon first glance, the detail and texture that he captured in the ice caps almost seemed like it was computer generated with artificial intelligence. It wasn’t! It was all gloriously real and I am sure it was an exceedingly dangerous journey to get that close to these majestic ice caps.
The clarity and depth he achieved with the black and white cinematography was incredibly impressive, as was the sheer size of the ice caps against the ocean. There is no voice over to distract you from the beauty you are witnessing in each frame, only the film’s soundtrack to guide your senses.
The musical score was written as a separate piece called Become Ocean by John Luther Adams. Even though it was not written for this film, it complimented it beautifully. The fading dissonance in the score gave the music depth as it seamlessly transitioned from one musical segment to another. In some areas it was light and ethereal and others it was hauntingly melancholy. Leonard Alecu’s choice to use this particular score was a definite triumph.
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LILI, 15min., Puerto Rico, Drama/Thriller Directed by Brian Rios A father and daughter must cross the border in order to find a better life, but the daughter cannot speak.
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Directed by Yolanda Reid Chassiakos Ethnic Cleansing in Smyrna, 1922: A Family’s Odyssey
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Frank, a tile and mosaic specialist receives a mysterious videotape that turns his life into pieces.
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Fear of heights, cockroaches or dark. Fear can differ; some fears are minor, while others can be big. And when you overcome them, you feel more substantial than you were as you understand they were only panic inside your head and nothing else. And you just needed a bit of courage to win over them. But what if some phobias are so real that they might kill you and the species if you don’t crush them? Maybe such fears are those you don’t mess with to save your life. This poetry can sometimes become a nightmare in reality. Is the option in our hands to choose?
Directed by Deep Malhotra
Director Statement Don’t believe what you see till you have seen the end!
Festival Reviews 