Kierston Drier

Film Review: SNOOT IN THE CITY, Australia, Animation

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Played at the March 2017 ANIMATION Film Festival

MOVIE POSTERSNOOT IN THE CITY, 1min, Australia, Animation
Directed by Stephanie Davidson

On the rooftops above a cold, ironclad city, Snoot lives in a nice, warm home. When an intruder invades, his territorial instincts kick in and it’s up to him to protect his home, even if it means going face to face with a giant house-crushing robot.

Review by Kierston Drier:

This one minute comic animation from Australia, directed by Stephanie Davidson, is a simple film that delivers the whole package- a good story, a charming character, a great twist- in less than 60 seconds.

Snoot, our adorable mouse-y creature, just wants a quiet night roasting their bone at home next to their warm furnace. Snoot won’t get it though. A huge monster is on the horizon and headed right towards are quite hero. But Snoot will not have their evening ruined, and fast thinking is required.

What is great about this film, is that the story is well developed, despite the tiny time allotment. Snoot is able to use what they glean in the first few seconds of the movie to great effect later. By utilizing a faulty heating system and their own sheer grit, Snoot can defend their home and their evening from a hideous invader.

Bravo to Stephanie Davidson and her team. They clearly know that most important part of any film is the story! And to deliver one so clear and comical in a compact 60 seconds is a talented feat. Great job team, Snoot in the City is worth a watch, maybe two!

AUDIENCE FEEDBACK VIDEO. Moderated b Matthew Toffolo:

Film Review: WALL, Taiwan, Animation

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Played at the March 2017 ANIMATION Film Festival

MOVIE POSTERWALL, 5min, Taiwan, Animation
Directed by Chia-Yin Chou

Their are evolutionary stories happened on ordinary street. The sight from the bottom can only see a huge foot wearing somethings nice , stepping on the poor for fun , giving leftover for handouts occasionally.

Review by Kierston Drier:

Quick, symbolic and filled with stunning visual metaphor, Wall is a piece about social power and economy, although at first glance it gives the cheery tone of a Pixar short. Rats and mice litter the inner city streets-scurrying about as best as a bottom feeder can and praying to the Big cheese above them for the crumbs that filter down.

And against the colorful crowd of feet walking past and a sweeping orchestra of music, one Rat attempts to climb the steep steps to a better future. But is whatever lives above him willing to open its’ doors?

Wall is a funny little film. It’s metaphors are not immediately obvious. Unless you are critically looking at it, this film appears to be a simply physical-schtick comic piece, full of patchwork scurrying mice, a slick fast thinking Rat and a ominous and unknowable villain towering above them.

But if you give it thought, it becomes a deeply layered piece about our society, economy and our difficulty in climbing the corporate ladder, when even its bottom rungs are high above you.

Watch Wall if you want a short, subtle comic piece that is a metaphor to the human rat race. Watch Wall if you want a relaxing visually pleasing comedy. Or watch it simply because it’s good.

AUDIENCE FEEDBACK VIDEO. Moderated b Matthew Toffolo:

Film Review: MY LIFE I DON’T WANT, Myanmar, Animation

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Played at the March 2017 ANIMATION Film Festival

MOVIE POSTERMY LIFE I DON’T WANT, 12min, Myanmar, Animation
Directed by Nyan Kyal Say

A short animated film about the life of a Myanmar girl inspired by a true story.

Review by Kierston Drier:

With bright simple visuals and powerful symbology, this dramatic and powerful Myanmar animation coming to us from director Nyan Kyal Say is the story of one sunny optimistic young girl put through the hardest sides of life simply because she is born female.

Victim of a systemic gender bias family and society, our heroine is a unrelenting easy to love, even when she walks alone down a road that will lead her to endless heartache.

What makes this piece so admirable is it’s ability to draw on hope- our character is broken again and again by life’s cruel circumstances. She is shuffled from family to family, from one abusive situation to the next, from one misfortune to another- all while appearing to never give up. Until, of course, all seems dark…

But what happens to our heroine is just one story in a sea of heartache. For the issues of gender injustice in our world are plentiful, and the fight for equality rages on.What choice does our heroine have?

Where does she go when all is lost? To know, you must watch the beautiful, simple, powerful and bright film that is My Life I Don’t Want.

AUDIENCE FEEDBACK VIDEO. Moderated b Matthew Toffolo:

Film Review: HANGING, USA, Animation

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Played at the March 2017 ANIMATION Film Festival

MOVIE POSTERHANGING, 6min, USA, Animation
Directed by Nick LeDonne

An abstracted animated documentary based off of Nick LeDonne’s personal struggle with depression and suicidal thoughts after a near attempted hanging in November 2014. His feelings of depression are personified through a dark luring fog and a loving mother desperately trying to keep her son alive.

Review by Kierston Drier:

Hanging a USA animation directed by Nick LeDonne, is a deeply emotional, deeply powerful piece that takes a raw and honest look at the seriousness of the depression in the mind of a misunderstood boy longing for comfort.

Told through a voiceless abstract lense, our character battles the onslaught of words and labels- symbologies for the troubling thoughts that plague his mind- and must choose between the relief of death or the trauma of continuing to live. The personification of a mind of suffering may be a difficult viewing experience for some- but for many it will be an eye opening and important film.

There are very few films that so clearly capture the sense of entrapment and suffocation of mental illness. The visual style personifies the depth of despair- something that is perhaps difficult to understand if never experienced first hand.

While Hanging has a darkness to it, it also has unspeakable bravery- a clear and heart wrenching look at the battle one men wages between his inner demons and the sanity of his mind and soul. A difficult film to distill, because it is such a powerful film to witness.

 

AUDIENCE FEEDBACK VIDEO. Moderated b Matthew Toffolo:

Film Review: KAROUMA, United Arab Emirates, Animation

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MOVIE POSTERKAROUMA, 12min, United Arab Emirates, Animation
Directed by Boubaker Boukhari

Karouma is a Unique gift striving to break through and to leave his parent’s nest to live pursue his dreams and live his life in its full potential.

Review by Kierston Drier:

This UAE animation is the story of a strong bright child born without arms. Despite the limitations of their lives, our hero Karouma refuse to lose his sunny disposition and bright optimism.

Perhaps most surprising in this film is that the dialogue is nonsense words- the inflection of speak is certainly there, but what is actually being said is unknown. This creates a beautiful sense of anomie within films’ universe and the child’s world.

Through the eyes of childhood, Karouma is sheltered from the gazes and whispers of the world around him. What matters is not the dialogue, but the actions.

Although fairly sheltered, Karouma is able to break free and see the world, only to discover it a difficult place to be when you are different. But Karouma’s uncrushable spirit allows him to rise above his differences- literally.

Whether symbolic and based on true events, Karouma is a tale of triumph over adversity. Karouma reminds us we are as free and boundless as our imaginations.

 

AUDIENCE FEEDBACK VIDEO. Moderated by Matthew Toffolo:

Film Review: BABY AND GRANNY, Animation

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Played at the March 2017 ANIMATION Film Festival

MOVIE POSTERBABY AND GRANNY, 2min. USA, Animation/Comedy
Directed by Zheng Kang

A 2D animated action-comedy about a baby and granny who share a common bond (Baby’s Mother is Granny’s Daughter) but who fight like crazy when left alone. The visuals are highly-influenced by the work of 60’s Pop Artist Roy Lichtenstein

Review by Kierston Drier:

 
Short, punchy and full of action Baby Vs Granny will turn classic familial love of a grandmother and a grandchild on it’s head. This two minute UAE animation directed by Boubaker Boukhari boasted bright colors, lighting fast reflexes and two family members ready to square off when no one else can see them.

This piece totally delivers where color and character are concerned. Stylishly animated mostly in black and white with special attention paid to coloring the main characters, it is a lightening fast and never skips a beat.

It speeds through it’s short time with whirl-wind intensity, feeling like it is only a few seconds long, rather than a few minutes.

A comedy which needs little to know dialogue and is outstandingly visual, BABY AND GRANDMA is an awesome film to watch!

 

AUDIENCE FEEDBACK VIDEO. Moderated by Matthew Toffolo:

Film Review: POKER NIGHT, 11min, Canada, Comedy/Romance

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Played at the March 2017 COMEDY Film Festival

MOVIE POSTERPOKER NIGHT, 11min, Canada, Comedy
Directed by David Metcalfe

A fun, comedic short film about a group of twenty-somethings living in Toronto; poking fun at stereotypes, and breaking expectations.

Review by Kierston Drier:

This subtle, sweet romance-comedy film will test your knowledge of relationship boundaries. Poker Night is a great Date-Night discussion piece directed by David Metcalfe. When the girls’ poker night is crashed by the hosts boyfriend, the tension is palpable. But it gets worse when the boyfriend invites over his own friends to alleviate his boredom.

His heart’s in the right place it would seem, as he brings his friend to set him up with the one single-lady of the group- but is this ill thought plan going to work?

Falling more on the romance spectrum of comedy, this bright, Canadian piece will remind you of (or make you think of) the youth en metropolitan. The cheap beer, late nights, romance-in-the-eyes-of-every-stranger intoxication that is so often associated with the youth that almost has life figured out. Too old to be kids and too young to be adults, Poker Night will make you chuckle at the good-will but sloppy execution of our leading man and will definitely lead a viewing couple to discuss who “crossed the line” in crashing poker night.

Poker Night does one more amazing thing- it gets tops marks with this reviewer for a kissing scene nothing short of magical. It captures the nervousness, delight and excitement that all the best movie moments have- maybe even more, as it feels so authentic. For that, bravo to Metcalfe, and the ensemble of Poker Night.

AUDIENCE FEEDBACK VIDEO. Moderated by Matthew Toffolo:

Film Review: A BAD DAY AT THE OFFICE, Australia, Comedy/Crime

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Played at the March 2017 COMEDY Film Festival

MOVIE POSTERA BAD DAY AT THE OFFICE, 7min, Australia, Comedy
Directed by Sam Reiher

This job doesn’t turn out quite as well as hoped for these two loveable, yet useless, thieves.

Review by Kierston Drier:

This Australian comedy from director Sam Reiher will remind you that there are bad days in every profession. Two professional criminals case a local house. Unfortunately, they are so practiced at their work and relaxed with their comical discussions that they forget the most important part of their job- like making sure the house is empty before they walk in to rob it.

 

This is one of those short, laugh-a-minute films that ties together slap-stick and witty banter. The characters are loveable flawed anti-heroes that you can’t stop watching. Like any good comedy, the stakes slowly mount higher and higher until our heros are undone by their own faulty desires. The best part of this film is waiting to the final joke. The entire film will keep you laughing, but that end punch line is totally worth it!

 

A classic structure, with a fresh take on a bad day at work, this is a delight little comedy to unwind to at the end of your own long working day.

AUDIENCE FEEDBACK VIDEO. Moderated by Matthew Toffolo:

Film Review: THE BODY I LIVE IN, Documentary

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Played at the March 2017 DOCUMENTARY Festival

MOVIE POSTERTHE BODY I LIVE IN, 7min, USA
Directed by Sam Davis-Boyd

A personal-narrative documentary that follows Sam Boyd on her journey of self-love and acceptance, in a world that tells fat women they don’t deserve it. There is a large cultural narrative about female attractiveness, especially fat woman’s attractiveness (or lack thereof) that pervades fat women from feeling like they deserve to be loved, respected and wanted by another human being in a romantic way.

Review by Kierston Drier:

 Exceptionally strong and unwaveringly brave The Body I Live In directed by Sam Davis-Boyd, follows the narrative story of an American woman on the journey of love. Not romantic love, she’s found that, by means of a caring and supportive fiance.

But the love for herself is another story entirely. Despite being a beautiful, funny, inspiring woman, Sam is plus size. She grapples with the emotional and social repercussions of this everyday.

In Sam’s journey, we see her family, her partner and herself talking openly and honestly about what it means to live in their bodies and how it is to see Sam in hers.

This director should be commended for the honesty she puts into her work, and the very real world she puts the audience in. More importantly, this film leaves no easy answers, but still manages to show us unbreakable positivity. Sam has a rich full life, lacking in nothing sweet, loving or wonderful, and she knows it. For those watching The Body I Live In, there is much to love.

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Film Review: THE SAD MONK, Documentary

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Played at the March 2017 DOCUMENTARY Festival

THE SAD MONK, 11min. Germany
Directed by Diana Frankovic

Following this path to Nepal, we meet the young Tibetan buddhist monk Tenzin, a representative of a new generation, who is grappling with the questions of life and his religion. But instead of enlightenment, we find doubtful young monks who are asking the same kind of questions about their lives as we do about ours.

Review by Kierston Drier:

 Coming to us from Germany, The Sad Monk directed by Diana Frankovic, follows Tibetan Monk Tenzin and his journey through the corporal world. Monks’ are considered followers of faith, aspiring to higher purposes and searching for greater goals than found in the material world. This is why The Sad Monk is a rare find- it showcases the struggles one must face when committing to a life of higher aspirations.

Tenzin joined the Monastery as a young boy, but as he grew, so did he yearnings for the outside world. We see him weaves his way through the emotional up and downs of a life of solitude, a lack of material possessions, sexual frustration, longing for close personal friendships outside of the monastery, and a desire to see the world. As Tenzin even states, Monks must do everything alone, even experience joy.

What is most captivating about this bright and brilliant piece, outside of the fascinating character of Tenzin and the unique approach to his life- is the music. We may often think of a mon living a life of quiet reflection, but Tenzin lives in a world of vibrant sound. The bustle of the towns and streets surrounding the monastery are ever present, perhaps a constant reminder of what lives just outside of Tenzin’s reach. A poetic and beautiful look at one human life and the sacrifices made in the pursuit of our faith.

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