This short film is an over the top comedic look at addiction, support groups and helpfully unhelpful friends. Written, directed and produced by Matt Jenkins, Vapor Trails stars a cast of zany characters that Jethro ( portrayed by Dan Perrin ) navigates while he is trying to quit vaping.
The storyline was well put together and had some very funny moments, especially during the therapy group session. One of the things I thought was seamlessly well done is the vaping news brief on the television, the masking/insert/overlay the filmmakers used to make it look as if it was broadcasted on TV was great.
Randy Traxler handled the cinematography and it was beautifully done, everyone was lit really well and the clarity and coloring of the film was gorgeous. This was a light hearted and fun comedic film.
Trapped in a fluorescent maze, an overworked employee realizes the office building may not want her to leave.
Review by Andie Kay:
Having a job that you don’t love is rough, having to stay beyond the usual 8 hour day is a nightmare. Steven Kilper taps into that nightmare with this bite sized horror film that he wrote, directed, edited, and created the visual effects for. What starts out as a typical leaving work scenario turns into an inescapable maze of fluorescent hell.
I loved the premise of this film and thought it was a wonderfully original idea. Steven executed so many things fantastically. The cinematography was great and I really appreciated the visual effects of the text messages and how he displayed them on screen. The soundscape was perfect and the way the staircase was shot was absolutely ingenious! Katrina Reese is our overworked, trapped employee and I liked her performance, although I wouldn’t have been as calm as she was if I was in her position.
That moment where all the lights start going out one by one is so frightening and I loved the build up but I wish the ending was her screaming NO in that text message and having everything go back to normal. The elevator doors ding as they open and she leaves having set some boundaries.
In a quietly radical act of feminist performance art, Vienna-based artist Rozina Pátkai transforms an ordinary suburban zebra crossing into a stage for the unseen labor of domestic life. Carrying an impossible accumulation of household objects: a drying rack, shopping trolley, mattress, pushchair, child’s bicycle, she repeatedly attempts to cross the street, stumbling under the weight of these everyday burdens.
Review by Victoria Angelique :
The artistic short film, INVISIBLE, is a thought provoking piece that can raise many questions with its very title. The title suggests a woman that would be invisible, but she’s not in the physical sense because the cars are stopping at the crosswalk as she continues to walk back and forth with various objects. It’s what she is carrying that makes her invisible because at first it’s a usual scene only to become more elaborate as the seconds pass.
There’s not much unusual about a woman crossing the street with a pram, as this is quite an everyday scene in many countries. It becomes a social experiment when the woman begins adding to it, carrying quite large objects as she struggles to cross the street as she struggles to get the stroller across the crosswalk without dropping objects. Cars continuously stop, waiting patiently for her to cross without honking their horns, and it’s only at the halfway mark of the film that one person helps this woman with what she’s carrying. One person throughout the entire film chooses to help her.
This raises several questions about these situations. The woman even abandons the scenario with the pram a couple of times to see if it would change things, still carrying items that would relate to childcare, and it doesn’t change anything. This poses questions such as have people become so uncaring that they no longer help a struggling mother like they used to, if it’s this particular city, or is there something about this particular woman? This film makes the viewer think that maybe that as humans we have become so self-absorbed that we care more about getting to our destination than taking a few seconds to help another person.
INVISIBLE is certainly a thought provoking film, since it literally shows that the majority of people are no longer helping. They are simply moving about their business when someone is literally struggling while pretending not to notice. This film might motivate someone to help next time they see someone that needs assistance.
Shortly after her husband passes, a new widow wrestles with her grief as she prepares to forge her path forward. Based on a true story.
Review by Victoria Angelique:
The tribute film, DEAR ERNIE, is a heartbreakingly beautiful film that will leave the viewer smiling. The first few frames plunge into the piercing silence of grief after Ernie has passed away, following his new widow as she attempts to process her world without her beloved husband.
The devotion of husband and wife doesn’t end at “til death do us part,” as wedding vows so often imply, because this couple’s love appears to be eternal. The widow remembers the recent days, blurring the past and present as she grieves, proving that taking care of Ernie wasn’t a burden but a clock that was ticking down to the days when her heart would finish breaking. She loved everything about her husband. He was her world.
This film will make everyone want a loving marriage like Ernie had, one a relationship that lasts nearly five decades. The widow writing her eulogy as a letter to Ernie in heaven is sweet. It turns the film from heartbreaking to beautiful as she reflects on their life together. It’s at this moment that the viewer can begin to mentally picture this couple’s entire life together with the widow needing to speak the words as their love was just that strong. Her eulogy doesn’t cause tears, but smiles as the widow speaks with a reassuring confidence that she will see her wonderful husband waiting for her in heaven.
The filmmaker, M.D. Walton, making this film a tribute to his father just makes it that much better. It shows the love for the filmmaker’s father and mother.
Farzaneh was a compassionate mother and a faithful wife. The life with love was going on, but unfortunately, her life was overshadowed by the shadow of darkness. While she was struggling with problems and circumstances, she accidentally found a secret that changed her life course completely….
Directed by Hamid Reza Mahmoudi Mehrizi
Cast: Elnaz Naghibi, Majid Norouzi
Director Statement I am trying to use more of the social realities in my filmmaking. I believe that creative filmmaking is not a place for repetition and regurgitation. I hope that I can have good relationships with all artists around the world in different fields of film and be able to produce up-to-date films with attractive creativity.
The Inga Alley-Cropping pilot is in year 13 in rural, northern Honduras and has impressive results for carbon sequestered and avoided–876,000 tons in 12 years–trained and assisted by an all-Honduran team, 500 smallholder families have planted over 3 million native, nitrogen-fixing trees on steep, highly degraded land. The clearing/burning stops when a family plants their alley (a process that destroys 200,000 acres a day).
I’M BACK, 4min., Ukraine Directed by Ilya Noyabrev “I’m back” is a heartfelt song about coming back home after a long absence. The singer reflects on the warmth and familiarity of her homeland, where every breath feels easier and every moment more meaningful. Through vivid imagery of maternal love and the embrace of the earth, the song captures the deep emotional connection to one’s roots, offering a sense of peace, freedom, and rediscovered desire for life.
TALK, 8min., Australia Directed by Dario Nadile “TALK” starring Detroit’s Tony J Black ( Sting; Apples Never Fall) is a drama delving into the nuances of love, communication, and the mysterious impact of silence. The narrative unfolds through the complex dynamics between characters, exploring emotional connections and the unspoken aspects of relationships. As the story meanders through intimate scenes, it gradually reveals the main character’s struggles with communication and the consequences of having unresolved conflicts in his relationships. The evolving plot touches on isolation, education, and transformation, leaving the audience to contemplate the intricate dance of human connections.
It Came to This, 25min,. USA Directed by Sheldon Schiffer It Came to This is a short romantic fantasy comedy about a woman writer and her boyfriend whose plans to move in together are interrupted. Love should inspire compromise, right? At least until an ugly lamp becomes more than just a light, but the flame that could light their relationship on fire.
LOSS, 14min., Israel Directed by Sivan Levy Zakin Nine-year-old Goni has always run faster than the boys, always scored more goals. Until the day they decide she’s gotten too good at winning. The beating that follows is methodical, almost ceremonial – childhood cracking along lines that were always there.
pink marker, 4min., USA Directed by Bianca M Persicketti a reflection of my first, strongest relationship–my queer discovery– and it’s ending. simple as that. my way of shutting the book.
Promises, Promises, 15min., USA Directed by KC Simmons When a closeted Brooke meanders into a 1980’s underground party and meets wild-card Rio, the duo finds themselves in a week-long whirlwind relationship.
Stalling, 12min., USA Directed by Jasia Ka An unlikely queer love story unfolds when two women bond over a shared cheating ex, and they connect year after year in the same bar bathroom.
Lossnord, 3min., Norway Directed by Madelen Schønningsen A fallen viking warrior is saved from despair by a Nordic healer. Through recovery they grow closer, but the warrior is distracted, haunted by her violent past.
Differently Water, 8min., Italy Directed by Daniele Catini Two Arab women meet underwater to express their love. The sea becomes an accomplice to a secret in which their eyes reveal that desire hidden from a world that cannot understand
TELLING, 16min., USA Directed by Sean Dugan A previously estranged father and son spend a rare, unexpectedly fun weekend reconnecting — until something unspoken becomes spoken. Can their fragile bond survive the truth? And whose truth is it?
ISS TARAF, 9min., India Directed by Shrey Leena Shah Iss Taraf offers a glimpse into the quiet struggles and momentary victories of a trans man living in a cisnormative world, navigating the journey of acceptance in daily life.
Accepting any poetry in any genre or length that’s about GRIEF in any way.
All poems will be posted on this network. Over 95,000 unique visitors a day. The winning poem will have their poetry made into a movie.
The RULES are simple:
1. Write a POEM that’s about GRIEF. Send it to this contest for $15 and it will be POSTED on this site, guaranteed for 100,000s to see. (you own all rights to this poem)
2. SUBMIT as many poems as you like.
3. The poem can be anything about GRIEF. An event/situation that occurred about GRIEF in general.
4. PAY THE $15 SUBMISSION FEE. Guaranteed post on this network. Results to be emailed in 3-5 weeks. We will turn the winning POEM into a movie. (You’ll also garner an IMDB credit as your film will be played at various film festivals. Guaranteed!)
Submit your screenplay that’s a thriller/suspense genre and/or plot line to the festival.
Full feedback on your screenplay from our committee of professional screenwriters, production heads, and script consultants. Get your entire script performed at the writing festival.
SUBMIT your FEATURE, TV PILOT or SHORT SCREENPLAY.
Submissions take 3-5 weeks for evaluation. Looking for screenplays from all over the world.
This festival has a guaranteed 4-tier set up for each accepted script. (No matter what, all screenplays submitted receive FULL FEEDBACK on their work.)
1st Tier: FULL FEEDBACK on your screenplay (all submissions)
2nd Tier: Accepted scripts (25% on average of submitted entries) get a best scene of their screenplay performed by professional actors and made into a promotional video.
3rd Tier: We will send you a list of questions to answer for our blog interview that will promote you and your film.
4th Tier: Then we will set up a podcast interview on our popular ITunes show where will we will promote the winning writer and script.
(BONUS: 5th Tier. A winning screenwriter’s WhatsApp group has just been formed. Over 50 writers to date. Great way to share ideas and contacts with people in the industry.)
Festival Reviews 