EarthLove is a poetic music/dance film with 6 dancers, filmed in the city of Malmö, south of Sweden. “There’s a revolution that needs to happen and it starts from inside each one of us. We need to wake up and fall in love with Earth. We’ve been homo sapiens for a long time. Now it’s time to become homo conscious.” Thich Nhat Hanh
We all reside on this little blue rock called Earth. It’s our only home and it gives us so much. Oceans to swim in, grass to play in, trees that provide oxygen, plants that give us sustenance and so much more. If we don’t take care of our home, who will.
Swedish filmmakers and musicians, Kent Olofsson and Felicia Konrad have designed this love letter to the earth through music and dance. Set inside this lush, green forest with a gorgeous pergola, it is the perfect place to film this piece. The Cinematographer, Benjamin Zadig, made excellent use of this beautiful location.
There’s a wonderful contrast between the landscape and the dancers all dressed in bright colors and patterns. The clashing colors all fit the choreography and add to the persona of each dancer. Musically this takes you in so many unexpected directions while using a unique ebb and flow of dissonance. It’s whimsical, heartfelt and has a kind of psychedelic vibe to it that makes you want to just embrace nature and dance.
Directed by William Joseph Stribling. Written by and Starring: R.J. Lewis
Meet Tony Valenci and his bona fide sideshow of eccentric colleagues. Tony has spent his life dreaming of setting a world record. Despite numerous failures, Tony has never stopped believing in himself. Now, Tony has devised his most ambitious world record attempt yet: to be the first man to blow fire while skydiving. https://www.facebook.com/downinflamesfilm
Review by Victoria Angelique:
The film DOWN IN FLAMES never evokes sadness even when Tony meets his demise. The tone is light and humorous throughout the entire mockumentary. The story is entertaining and great characters are introduced that appear realistic with how the world was set up for the narrative. Circus acts talking about Tony, the Human Volcano, wanting to break a world record without blinking an eye about the danger he’d put himself in until Tony chooses to take it too far by jumping out of plane while blowing fire.
The special effects and stunts in this film are remarkable. They seem flawless, as if the audience is actually watching these acts through a first person perspective. This can be credited to filmmaker William J. Stribling as every character is vastly different, which makes it quite entertaining to watch.
The editing is what makes this film memorable. Editor, Andy Stein, made this film feel like an actual documentary rather than a mockumentary. Footage is grainy to make it feel like it’s actual home videos of Tony as the characters remember him. The cinematography aids the editing as the set up is traditional documentary style of interviews. The end song feels like Johnny Cash meets the Devil Went Down to Georgia. It could easily become a hit.
DOWN IN FLAMES is a humorous, yet uplifting story that has the audience rooting for Tony to succeed in his endeavor to break a world record. He seems like a character that would want his every move filmed or photographed since he wants to break the record through a dangerous stunt. Tony’s death doesn’t even bring the tone down as he died doing what he loved, something most sideshow acts succumb to through their dangerous stunts. It makes the film more exciting.
What connects all things on this beautiful and unique planet we call home? Can we reach deep into our collective universal past to understand that everything is carefully intertwined and dependent on everything else? Filmmaker Barb Barton presents a visually stunning and thought-provoking journey into the origin and interconnection of all things. This documentary short film is designed to inspire the viewer to see their place in life through a different lens and focus not on what separates but connects us. Can a broader view help us heal our relationships with nature and each other?
Review by Victoria Angelique:
Director Barb Barton created a visually captivating film that is a cinematic masterpiece. The soothing narration of Ruelaine Stokes takes the audience on the journey throughout time and space to prove the film’s thesis that all life on Earth came from stardust. It’s told in a way that feels like it’s something from a fairy tale, making the concept easy to understand through a familiar trope.
This film has fantastic graphics, combining computer graphics with a compilation of real photographs to create a stunning environment. This film really should be shown in an immersive theater as it is not only a scientific film, but a beautiful work of art. One of the most stunning graphics is when the filmmaker takes a woman lying on Earth to zooming out to the furthest region telescopes can possibly go in the universe, far beyond our solar system, before zooming back down to Earth and through the woman’s eye. This really drives the point home that all life is interconnected to stardust.
This is a historical and scientific film that really shows how miraculous life on Earth is by depicting how everything is truly connected in the grand design from the universe. Barton shows that not only human life was created from stardust, but how all the elements and creatures on Earth were created from dust. It gives a full understanding of the phrase spoken at funerals, “from dust to dust”.
This amazing work of art should be shown in the NASA tourist centers. It’s written in a way that people of all ages could understand and it doesn’t contradict religious opinions to be controversial. The scientific descriptions combined with the elements gives a deep understanding of how life on Earth was created.
Many years ago, while my father was working on his Bonsai plants in the garden, my mother said to me “He made my life a Bonsai” The result, decades later was this extremely personal work intertwining the technically brutal creation of the beautiful bonsai tree with the life of my mother.
Review by Andie Karvelis
Director and Choreographer Leslie Watanabe has done an artful job with this film. One of the most clever things is to incorporate two narrators. David Janowiak and June Wright provide the voices for the film and both are so important for the story. David takes you on an educational journey about the Bonsai trees while June provides the voice of the “Mother”.
You can definitely see the correlation between the Bonsai and June’s portrayal, entwining them into one story. This was only heightened by the creativity of the dancers and Leslie’s choreography. The way the dancers formed the different shapes of the trees and the film superimposed that tree over their image was lovely.
The film’s score was provided by Lance Riley and it was absolutely beautiful. It captured your imagination and transported you to Japan. The costumes were amazing to see, very traditional Japanese and I personally loved learning about the different types of Bonsai trees.
.. love fairy tale situated on undefinite time ,an research for an ideal harmony between woman and the man ..
Review by Andie Karvelis:
Prepare to embark on an abstract journey through infinite time and space. Through this endless void of loneliness you have one objective, one driving need…love.\
Love is something that all of us desire. Whether it’s the romantic kind or the kind of love you feel for friends and family. Love inspires us, it comforts us, and it gives us hope. The filmmakers of “V” crafted an enigmatic tale through computer generated animation that was stylishly done.
The music threaded throughout the film is impressive and reminded me of a heart beating.
V invites you to be subjective and take what you want from it. I think that was very clever of the filmmakers because love is, after all, subjective.
SEDUCTIVE DEVOTION, 7min,. USA
Directed by Destin Gerek
In a society where narratives of male perpetrators and harm inflicted upon women prevail, “Seductive Devotion” emerges as a powerful experimental short film presenting an inspiring alternative. Through captivating imagery and a stirring poetic voiceover, the film portrays a positive model of how a man can profoundly and healingly show up for a woman. It challenges societal norms and redefines love, intimacy, and relationships, highlighting the transformative energy between souls. “Seductive Devotion” celebrates vulnerability, courage, empathy, strength, receptivity, and grace, igniting a yearning for the level of committed desire depicted on screen. In a time marked by mistrust and division, this visually arresting and emotionally resonant film offers a refreshing perspective on the healing power of love and understanding, fostering positive change in our perception and engagement in intimate relationships.
The intense poetry coupled with the brilliant cinematography invokes feelings of intrusion and intimacy in the film SEDUCTIVE DEVOTION. Attention is grabbed instantly through the opening shot, which only builds with the score and the romantic, breathy recitation of the spoken prose. The entire film feels like a moment stuck in time, repeating over and over as the viewer witnesses the extraordinary chemistry between the love artists, Elie Prana and Destin Gerek.
The entire nature of the prose gives the feeling of witnessing a private, almost forbidden nature of the couple. Writer and Director Destin Gerek is brilliant as his shots and poetry touch the soul of a woman’s heart, speaking what many women long to hear from their significant others. It leaves the heart racing when seeing how the man worships his lover as if she’s his entire world. It’s not just about sex, but the desires of each other to create an epic romance by imbedding each other into the other’s spirit.
SEDUCTIVE DEVOTION feels as if it belongs with the classics, as Gerek is not afraid of judgement from his words and film, but using them to touch others soul to soul. The shots and wardrobe gives the feeling of an epic romance from ages long past. The film exudes beauty within every frame.
The film draws from several pop culture references, while still remaining on its own. It’s a beautiful work of art and the desire to know this couples entire story allows imaginations to run wild. The fact that the world is witnessing a small glimpse of what couples usually leave private aids to the feeling of the remarkable short.
EIGHT OF SWORDS, 19min., UK, Drama
Directed by Patricia Downey
Set in Belfast, in an ordinary house, in an ordinary street – it could be your street or next door. Helena from Poland and locals Patsy and Eva fight for survival under the rein of Russian Human traffickers.
Review by Victoria Olson:
The film, EIGHT OF SWORDS, gives an inside look at the world of human trafficking from the perspective of the women who’ve been victimized to the point that they’ve become numb to the harsh realities of their world. Director Patricia Downey did a wonderful job at depicting the coldness of a subject many artists refuse to capture in ways that feel realistic. This film was nuanced, showing the reasons each of the women became involved in trafficking drugs and sex while still portraying them as human beings that can easily hide amongst the general public without anyone suspecting that something might be wrong behind closed doors.
The leader of this particular operation, Patsy, at first glance appears cold and callous. She’s merely doing what it takes to survive so that her daughter is not killed in Cairo. This is something she proves when she’s willing to kill Helena to protect her own child. Helena is quite the opposite, protecting her own son but wanting to go to the police to be done with this world.
This film also has an important aspect that anyone addicted to social media and desperate for fame should see as it portrays the real dangers behind apps such as TikTok. Olivia should have had a bright future, but she trusted who she met online and ends up in a would where she might never see her family again as she’s trafficked to different parts of the world. This is something many individuals, particularly adolescents, should see because it puts the scenario into a real world situation that is understandable and frightening rather than just words that often fall on deaf ears.
Downey used a brilliant technique of not using a score, making this film feel more like a documentary rather than a narrative. This method is a way that will stick with the viewer as they witness what the world is like from the victims and that it is not an easy situation to walk away from to get help.
Human trafficking is a relevant topic discussed on social media platforms and in the news media on how to end it and who’s involved, when a film like EIGHT OF SWORDS shows that it would be difficult to discern who truly is involved as the victims can blend in with the rest of the society. This film can bring further discussion on the travesty that is drug and sex trafficking so that perhaps one day it can be put in the past as a moment of the world’s dark past.
FIRST SLOVAK PRIDE, 29min,. Slovakia
Directed by Roman Stranai
What is PRIDE? How it came about in Slovakia? Was the 2010 PRIDE parade in Bratislava the first one in Slovakia? Activists from the 2010 PRIDE team as well as Hana Fabry, Jaroslav Gyurik, which where present in queer activism in the early 90s talk about important events which led to the creation of the first PRIDE parade in Slovakia.
Review by Parker Jesse Chase
“First Slovak Pride” is a poignant and inspiring documentary capturing a pivotal historical moment, shedding light on the long road this LGBTQ+ community travels towards true equality and acceptance. Roman Stráñai masterfully guides us through the journey of the first creation of Slovak Pride, providing an intimate glimpse into the struggles, triumphs, and heartfelt experiences of individuals fighting for their right to be seen, heard, and celebrated.
Set against the backdrop starting in the early 90s, the film follows the remarkable journey of LGBTQ+ activists as they embark on the groundbreaking mission to establish a safe haven for public expressions of homosexuality and the forging of connections among like-minded souls. Through personal accounts and powerful imagery, the film delves into the complex and emotional process of coming out, emphasizing the importance of fostering understanding and compassion within a society who has long suppressed these voices.
The documentary’s standout moment is when two brides, adorned in rainbow veils, leave a trail of hope and symbolism through the rainy streets of Slovakia. As raindrops fall, a radiant rainbow emerges in a fountain – a timeless memory that encapsulates both the struggles and the inherent beauty of the LGBTQ+ community’s fight for visibility.
“First Slovak Pride” doesn’t shy away from the challenges faced by the activists. The narrative paints a vivid picture of the difficulties they encountered in their bid to organize the Pride March, including the threat of extremist opposition and the eventual cancellation of the first event held. However, the film expertly shifts the focus to the silver linings, highlighting the accidental formation of a rainbow-flag-adorned human chain across a bridge, a testament to the resilience and unity of those pushing for change.
As the years progress, the documentary artfully illustrates the evolution of Slovak Pride from a human rights campaign to a vibrant week-long celebration. Stráñai takes us through the transformation, demonstrating that while progress is being made, the fight for equality is an ongoing battle, a marathon rather than a sprint.
Through compelling storytelling and a well-crafted narrative, “First Slovak Pride” emphasizes the importance of activism and community-building. It serves as a reminder even in the face of adversity, individuals can come together to challenge societal norms, and gradually transform a nation’s perspective. The film underscores the significance of pride, not just as a colorful spectacle, but as a powerful force for social change and acceptance.
Roman Stráñai’s direction shines as he captures the emotional highs and lows of this inspiring journey. With an eye for detail, he guides the audience through the streets of Slovakia, effectively translating the atmosphere and emotions of the era onto the screen. The documentary’s culmination, an awe-inspiring shot of the expanding crowd overlooking the country, leaves a lasting impact, symbolizing the triumph of unity and the emergence of a brighter future.
“First Slovak Pride” is an extraordinary cinematic exploration of a crucial turning point in Slovak LGBTQ+ history. Through Stráñai’s lens, the film honors the bravery of those who dared to demand equality, celebrate diversity, and pave the way for a more inclusive society. This documentary is a testament to the indomitable human spirit, an eloquent call to action, and a vibrant tapestry of hope, resilience, and the unbreakable bonds of community.
A WAY FOR TOMAS, 29min., Columbia
Directed by Andrés Ricaurte / Martín Agudelo Ramírez
Tomás, desperate, knocks insistently on the door of a lonely house. Nobody opens it. When he leaves the place, he sees some bushes moving and goes into a wooded path. Along the way, from his memories, he faces several episodes of fear in his life until he reaches the exit of the path, which takes him back to the door of the house. Tomás enters and talks with a woman (who represents death), at which point he decides to face his fears.
REVIEW by Victoria Angelique
The powerful Columbian film, A WAY FOR TOMÁS imparts a powerful message that will stick with the viewer. The idea of confronting Death head on certainly isn’t unique, but it’s rarely done in such a profound and memorable way through every part of a film is rare. The attention is captured instantly through the beautiful cinematography. Every shot is carefully designed, to enhance the struggles that Tomás has been going through his entire life.
The story begins with Tomás meeting with his younger self, at the moment where his ability to dream of the future died with the death of his father. The focus of a toy airplane signifying life to the young boy when Death takes his dad is a powerful tool to show how significant a parent’s role plays in a person’s life. He allows himself to become afraid to live and love as Tomás goes through his past selves, relishing in the dark moments over the happy ones. The soundscape aids in the storytelling by allowing sound and visuals to tell the story, overshadowing the dialogue as the struggles Tomás faces plays out on the screen.
The dialogue is carefully crafted, especially in regards to Death. The wisdom in her words could be spoken to anyone resigned to sadness and anger like Tomás when he confronts her face to face. She’s straightforward, but a message that many need to actually live their life rather than just existing in this world. The fact that Death gives Tomás a choice shows the importance of free will. She could have very easily gone on her way without confronting this particular lost soul, but his emotional state was taking over his entire world so it left her with no choice but to force him to face his fears.
The filmmakers leave it open to interpretation whether Tomás chooses to finally live or if he’ll disregard Death’s message, but the important part is the powerful sentiment behind the mythical character’s words. She allowed him to confront his fear of living and of death, but to still continue on his way with the choice to live as he has been or actually live life to its fullest.
A WAY FOR TOMÁS is a beautiful film that directors Andrés Ricaurte and Martin Agudelo Ramierz created as their passion for the material shines through in every frame. It’s a film that deserves every award it has received and stands as a gorgeous work of art.
Blue Burrow is a short movement based film fully immersed in the sun, sand, and water of Lake Huron. The shore is the meeting place for characters of different species, while the world underwater comes to represent the subconscious. Perspectives shift from fish to human to sun, and metaphors about our relationship to the natural world emerge.
Review by Parker Jesse Chase:
“Blue Burrow” is a mesmerizing short film in which transports its audience to the serene landscapes of Lake Huron, where elements of sun, sand, and water intertwine with the lives of humanity. Director Leah O’Donnell takes us on a visual journey in which seamlessly blends human nature to aquatic plantlike worlds, crafting a unique narrative that dives into exploring our relationship with the natural world.
The film begins with capturing the vulnerability of human nature when the camera provides an extreme close-up of a paddle boat as it gives way to a high-angle shot, symbolizing the emotional currents that bind us all. The connection between music and emotion becomes evident as the characters, dressed in intimate flesh-toned undergarments, engage in meaningful gestures of connection. These moments highlight the grounded relationships we build within the elements – water, sand, and seashells – underlining the primal human need for connection, both with each other and with nature.
The color blue, typically associated with melancholy, is transformed into a symbol of calmness and serenity throughout the film. The blue of the water and sky provide a soothing backdrop, fostering a sense of peace that resonates deeply. This multifaceted approach to storytelling mirrors our complex interactions with the world around us.
A standout scene that involves humans holding water plants in their own mouths as the audience is suspended in the aquatic realm, offers an elemental twist on the familiar image of human interactions with plants. This creative approach reinforces the interconnectedness of all life forms and introduces an innovative visual metaphor, deriving from inspirations from plant surrealist photographer Supinatra.
Leah O’Donnell’s direction and choreography expertly guide the cast through a fluid dance that bridges the boundaries between humans, animals, and nature. The film’s cinematography, under the skilled hand of Robert Platt, is nothing short of breathtaking. From the floating water mattress sequences to the challenging in the body of water shots, every frame captures the ethereal beauty of the lake and its counterpart surroundings.
The collaboration between Michael Wall and Lily Gelfand results in a musical score that is both emotionally evocative and healing. The classical compositions complement the visuals, guiding the audience through the emotional journey of the characters as they seek physical and emotional connections.
The film’s location, Lake Huron, becomes a character in itself. Its sun-drenched shores and shimmering waters provide the perfect backdrop for the exploration of human relationships and their ties to the environment. The film successfully marries experimental, surrealist and abstract elements with the grounded nature of its subject matter. In “Blue Burrow,” humanity’s innate need for connection and physical touch is portrayed with poignant sensitivity. O’Donnell’s masterful direction, combined with Platt’s cinematography and Wall and Gelfand’s music, create a symphony of emotions that resonates long after the credits roll. As the characters embrace elements of earth, they remind us of the natural world we are privileged to inhabit. This film is a beautiful ode to life, earth, and nature, an experience in which truly immerses the audience in the depths of our collective existence.
Festival Reviews 