Kierston Drier

Film Review: BLACK BIRD, (USA, Experimental/Fantasy)

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BLACK BIRD, an American four minute mixed media , this is a film that begs you to interpret it. Several animated blackbirds fly through a live action urban setting, with the outside world curiously shown upside down.  Symbolic and metaphoric, this piece may be one person’s journey through an urban metropolis on their way to freedom- or it could be a comment on the lost connection between nature and civilization. Yet still- it may be one person’s metaphorical journey through life and into death. BLACK BIRD won’t tell you- it will ask you to guess. One thing is for certain, between the engaging audio, the stunning visuals and the entrancing concept BLACK BIRD is a piece not just to watch, but to experience.

Review by Kierston Drier

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BLACK BIRD, 4min., USA, Experimental/Fantasy 
Directed by Haonan WangThe journey of a man escaping the concrete jungle of the modern city with help from spiritual black birds.

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Film Review: TRAINS – RADIO CUT, (UK, Music Video)

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A three minute UK film, TRAINS is utterly gorgeous to behold. Spectacular natural vistas are animated through the energy of music. As pebbles vibrate off the ground, being acted on by beautiful music, we are hit over and over again with breathtaking moment after breath taking moment- mountains, streams, train tracks against trees…only to discover these vista exist within a piano being played.

What does TRAINS tell us? That music acts as both a journey and a key. It unlocks us  to a world with a deeper appreciation of nature, and it takes us on a journey through it. In this bright and highly polished visual metaphor of a piece, music acts as the DNA of the cinematic story, binding together the visual images and giving them context. The world of the cinematic story is generated by the music and created within it.

TRAINS is simply beautiful to watch. Boasting high production value and beautiful composition, do not miss TRAINS, it is stunning.

Review by Kierston Drier

Watch the Audience FEEDBACK Video of the Short Film:

TRAINS – RADIO CUT, 3min., UK, Music Video 
Directed by Jola KudelaEverything is a form of vibration,
One needs to hear it and transform it into music
The world is a piano and the piano is the world
The musician becomes the creator of the world

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Film Review: EPINEPHRINE, (USA, Experimental/Music Video)

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This six minute American film about music, dance and politics. Intercut between left-wing political issues (marchs, voters rights, reproductive rights) are modernized dance sequences performed by female dancers and a young woman on her computer. As beautiful to look at as it is engaging to think about, the main goal of this piece seems to be drawing attention to the world of the female millennial. The issues affecting women in media and in politics seem to permeate every aspect of one’s life. The dance sequences themselves seem to act as a sort of metaphorical interpretation of that anxiety and introspection that is created by the constant stream of information being hurled at females through screens. Behave this way, behave that way, look like this, act like this, stand for this, fight for that… It is a story rewritten anew with every generation as we dance forward in a world careening in uncertainty: Who am I and what is my place in this world? EPINEPHRINE attempts to answer that, in a film full of sound, movement and compelling modern events.

Review by Kierston Drier

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EPINEPHRINE, 6min., USA, Experimental/Music Video
Directed by Kat ScottA millennial girl influenced by internet age is absorbed in queer beauty, but experiences a visceral response to addiction. After crumbling, she is liberated by various social movements as a source of independence.

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Film Review: CALO MESA – TECHNO HIPPIE, (Experimental/Music Video) 

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This three minute USA film is a homage to retro music and neo-classic musical cinema. A simple set up with two dancers, a musical piece and a old-school style video feedback, creates a series of bright images while re-creating a nostalgic feel from generations past.

What is excellent about TECHNO HIPPIE is how beautifully is draws ties together two different worlds. It is a film made and constructed in the twenty-teens, executing the stylings and techniques of decades prior. An homage, a love letter, and tribute to a style of musical cinema we do not see anymore in our current ingestion of media, TECHNO HIPPIE shines a light on the past through the music of today.

Review by Kierston Drier

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CALO MESA – TECHNO HIPPIE, 3min., USA, Experimental/Music Video 
Directed by Jon MeyerMusic video using nothing but old school video feedback manipulation with two dancers.

CLICK HERE – and see full info and more pics of the film!

Film Review: THE NIGHT SKY, (Sweden, Experimental) 

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THE NIGHT SKY, a three minute Swedish film, captures something truly difficult to encapsulate in film- a sense of awe. In three short minutes, without any words, we are taken on a journey through the vistas of a night sky. The camera acts as our eyes as we look upon treetop lined horizons and see millions of years of light from the stars shining back at us. Countless hypnotically moving images of the night sky transport the viewer to those blissful and serene moments of time where the world is quite and full of starlight. Rarely in a film are you able to experience the solitude and beauty and majesty of the great outdoors. THE NIGHT SKY takes you there.

Review by Kierston Drier

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THE NIGHT SKY, 3min., Sweden, Experimental 
Directed by Leigh Bloomfield

A night looking up at the stars can reveal many surprises.

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Film Review: VOICES, (Italy, Experimental/Music Video) 

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Musically vibrant and full of life, VOICES, a six minute piece from Italy, is a black and white acapella music video. Boasting crystal clear voices of a talented Choir and a haunting and entrancingly beautiful song, VOICES is a strikingly piece to behold. Both visually, with its sharp editing and it’s beautiful composition, and auditorily with its moving vocal chords.

VOICES is startling simple, as a cinematic piece. Like any true experimental film it’s primary focus seems to be to make you feel and experience a wide range of emotions in the course of the work. Yet, like a music video, it’s goal is to showcase the song and the performers. On both fronts, VOICES succeeds, and the viewer of the film walks away feeling uplifted and moved by the music, and visually engaged. A gorgeous song with a beautiful composition, VOICES is a wonderful film.

Review by Kierston Drier

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VOICES, 6min., Italy, Experimental/Music Video 
Directed by Alberto Nacci

Seventh short film of the Body & Sound series by Alberto Nacci on the relationship between musicians and their musical instruments. A b/w film on the relationship between body and voice with the collaboration of the vocal quartet Leg’gio with Paola Milzani, Caterina Comeglio, Elena Biagioni and Simona Zambetti.

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Film Review: NIGHT LIVE, (China, Experimental/New Media)

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This strong and compelling seven minute film from China is a statement on society, and modern love in the age of technology. Our young hero, a gay techno-savvy man with a father bent on his professional success, hooks up with a online celebrity he meets on an online dating app.

Their encounter is fun, effortless and almost seems meaningless, but the entire process is steeped in technology. From their app-based connection to their live-streamed meeting, to their most intimate moments revolving around watching a screen. Technology both unites them together and divides them from a real human connection. But who is to say what is a human connection anymore when our worlds are so fully integrated with technology? The plot peppered with political commentary and overrun with the youth-in-revolt vibe, NIGHT LIVE tells  remarkably relatable stories for young and old alike. It is about a generational clash of a father and his son, it is about self discovery and the trails of youth, it is about technology and world around us.They are age-old stories done in a startlingly relevant light. A strong piece with deep undertones, NIGHT LIVE is not to be missed.

Review by Kierston Drier

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NIGHT LIVE, 7min., China, Experimental/New Media 
Directed by Dazhi HuangA young gay man starts an online livestream with someone he just met on the gay social app, and of course, it leads to unexpected consequences.

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Film Review: JOY! BLUE MOON, (USA, Animation/Music)

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This bright, happy musical number is full of starlight and technology. Literally. When the city goes to sleep, the technology that monitors the heavens comes to life. This three minute animated comedy is joyful romp through music and memory. Coming to us from the USA, the piece follows observatories, satellite dishes and radio towers all joining in harmony to the song “Blue Moon.” All bookkended by some very confused evening crew monitoring the event at their seats in the station.

There are many charming things about JOY BLUE MOON. One is that is uses a dated song and blends it with moderns technology, creating a lovely blend of old-and-new to create something lively and entertaining. Another, is that the animation somehow manages to capture a feeling a joy within the context of the technological pieces it uses as actors. The “actors”, the observatory, the satellite dishes, don’t have mouths, or even animate in a human-like way, yet they use what moveable parts they do have to give the impression that they are not only singing, but engaging in a chorus all their own. Away from humanity they sing to each other and for each other- a secret world of music under the stars.

Fun, fantastical and full of light hearted musical effervescence, JOY BLUE MOON is not to miss.

Review by Kierston Drier

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JOY! BLUE MOON, 3min., USA, Animation/Music 
Directed by John VollmerMusic and images intertwine for a joyful experience.

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Film Review: ORNAMENT OF BEAUTY, (USA, Thriller/Fantasy)

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This short and stunningly beautiful film comes to us from the USA. Set squarely in the realm of fantasy and inspired by Shakespeare’s’ Sonnets, ORNAMENT OF BEAUTY follows a beautiful maiden running through a graveyard, forced to face the voices that plague her and the visions that haunt her.

 

The film boasts sumptuous cinematography, gorgeous editing and brilliant casting. All the elements are delightful but what really shines if the aesthetic design. The Production design and production value make this work a cinematic joy to behold. The costumes, set and scene are meticulous and there is clearly painstaking detail taken in every aspect. The hard work pays off, and  ORNAMENT OF BEAUTY is a gorgeous film, inside and out.

Review by Kierston Drier

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ORNAMENT OF BEAUTY, USA, Thriller/Fantasy
Directed by Andy Fortenbacher

A beautiful maiden is forced to confront the slanderous voices that torment her from the shadows.

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Film Review: WINE AND EGGS, (Turkey, Drama)

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WINE AND EGGS, a five minute Turkish film is equal parts mysterious and thrilling. It leaves us constantly guessing as to the hidden story that is never revealed. A slightly disheveled and exhausted husband comes home from the rainy weather to greet his innocent and beautiful wife, who has been waiting for him at the window. She convinces him to go across the street for eggs to make dinner- and he finally relents. When he leaves however she is pours herself  glass of wine and watches (without a trace of surprise) as he is hit by a car.

 

We never know what has happened between them- but how accurately that mimics real life. After all, do any of us really ever know what goes on inside the relationship of our closest friends or net door neighbours? Behind closed doors, what secrets do we all keep? Whatever secrets lied between these two lead to a dark and sinister end.

 

Beautifully casted and with a subtle, smoldering sensuality, there’s something irresistible about this film- it pulls at you seductively, begging you to sit and ponder what details to you may have missed to undercover our heroines motives. To make a guess yourself, you’ll have to watch WINE AND EGGS.

Review by Kierston Drier

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WINE AND EGGS, 5min., Turkey, Drama
Directed by Sertac Bozkurt

A woman watches out the window of in the house. The excitement that she had when her husband’s knock the door shows us that days end would be different than other days.

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