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This Week's SATURDAY SHORTS Has Some Dramatic Bite to it!
Hello ladies and gentlemen, Muldoon here with this week's crop of quality shorts for your viewing pleasures sent in by some insanely talented AICN readers. Each week we get to dip our toes into fantastic worlds, funny situations, or terrifying splatterfests of horror. This week we'll be checking out some rather dramatic shorts that, while they might lack the visual punch/stab to the gut, are sure to satisfy.
Sure, I tend to focus more on horror and comedy it might seem, but as I've mentioned before - I don't get drama submissions as often as you might think and I've been craving some. I'm actually on vacation out in Vegas right now, (In fact, I'm writing this from inside the Excalibur) and I'm staring at so much time, energy, and money spent on dazzling everyone on a surface level - fancy exteriors that all house the same thing - it's the time spent on those shells that make it seem like they're not all the same. I think this week's shorts will settle that, films with substance minus bright lights, just stripped down legit filmmaking.
So go grab yourself some popcorn, lock your kids in a closet, kill the lights, relax and check out this weekly film fest we've got ourselves here:
BLEEDERS
TRT: 13:08
Up first is a boxing short from Leigh Richards that's is sure to knock you around a bit. Finn works as a stand over man for greedy property developer Lenny Gold, but dreams of success as a boxer. When one of Lenny's "errands" sees Finn cross paths with stubborn ex-fighter Sonny, Finn must decide who's side he's really on...
BLEEDERS (SHORT FILM) from Leigh Richards on Vimeo.
THE DROUGHT
TRT: 10:52
Next up is a slice of life, an excellently paced and beautifully shot short from writer-director Kevin Slate. An elderly Brooklyn native struggles with his daily routine as an umbrella street salesman during a summer drought.
The Drought from Kevin Slack on Vimeo.
THE WEIGHT OF SUNKEN TREASURE
TRT: 13:47
Up next we get to see Michael Dormin in a film by SATURDAY SHORTS alum Luke Mayze. The Weight Of Sunken Treasure is a thriller about about a lonely man who devotes his life to the search for closure after the mysterious and terrible disappearance of Mary Somerset forty years earlier.
THE WEIGHT OF SUNKEN TREASURE from lukemayze on Vimeo.
MONSTER
TRT: 24:47
To wrap up this week's selection we have Kevin Jacques hauntingly bizarre short that feels incredibly intimate and definitely worth the full 25 minutes. If you knew something before it happened, could you prevent it from happening? Would you? Monster is the character study thriller of a woman who journeys to the sea to stalk the killer of a teenage girl before it happens.
MONSTER from Kevin Jacques on Vimeo.
And that's it for this week. If you're in or around Vegas and feel like hanging out with your pal Muldoon - email me up! I'll see you all next week, but hey check out some of the past SATURDAY SHORTS if you're jonesing for quality shorts sent in by many talented filmmakers:
If you have a short and think it belongs here or are on the fence about whether to send it in, please do send it in - I'd love to see what you've put together. I've already seen hundreds of fresh new filmmakers' shorts and like any good addict, I need more!
Shoot me an email at "Mike@aintitcool.com"
In the subject line include:
“SHORTS” + “Your film’s name” + “The film’s genre”
Then, in the body of the email, please include a synopsis of the film and any contact information you might think I need or would want published.
Please don’t feel the need to submit multiple times. I swear to each of you I truly check every email I get, and sending the same short a few times just makes it a bit messier.
Remember, the filmmakers might still be in the audience, so feel free to share your thoughts in Talkbacks below. (JUST DON'T BE AN ASSHOLE). I picked them, so you know I think highly of all of these, but how about you fine folks? How'd you like 'em?
- Mike McCutchen
"Muldoon"
Mike@aintitcool.com
Readers Talkback
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....are cool.
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to call the guy above me who said "First" a douche!
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I'm soooooo lame.
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A great shorts selection this week. Loved "Bleeders" - really well made and a gripping story. Thought it was going to go all "Drive" at the end with the cricket bat! "The Drought" was rather beautiful too.
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It's the only thing that cuts through the actual dystopia.
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Love this weekly post! Every year at Fantastic Fest, there are great shorts that I miss seeing. You should do a Fantastic Fest Shorts one Saturday so we can see some of the really good ones that have been shown over the years!
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"Elizabeth Connor" and the main character has Linda Hamilton T2 thing going on. Coincidence? I think not :)
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Mind your continuity and your reflection in shny surfaces. As she is getting out of the car around 11:30. You are all too visible in the cars reflection and the side view mirror. Takes the viewer right out of the movie. Also as the main character is walking down the street tailing Elizabeth she is looking at the cars. Her POV shows a maroon looking car with a car next to it. On the next cut looking back at the main character, the same maroon car is there but the car next to it is gone.
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Have to run through these quickly this week. All had strong background scores. @Muldoon: THE DROUGHT was directed by Kevin Slack, not Kevin Slate. BLEEDERS Well put together, especially in the editorial sense, and matched by on-point cinematography. Subject matter very Australian in the machismo dept. Casting = A. OMNI Magazine! THE DROUGHT Evocative character portrait. Art direction, costumes and props also tell the tale. Has a typical Spielberg flaw in depicting the aged with *an epiphany moment*, otherwise enjoyed the light touch. THE WEIGHT OF SUNKEN TREASURE Yet more evidence of vibrant Australian indie film funding. Reminded me of that U2 song, *Stuck in a moment you can't get out of*. Frequently visually poetic, but stretches itself in vain for melodramatic notes. MONSTER Winding, overdone narration during driving, stalking and meandering montages actually does little to describe plot or character motivation. Pervasive use of Steadicam frequently wobbly. Killing of 'monster' a distracting chroma key job. Okay tone poem on a telepathic (?) assassin. Overall this week = Plus vitesse!
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(stitching together 1000+ stolen 2-6 second movie snips from youtube to make a barbarian invasion epic starring kate beckinsale in four different films all to the lord of the rings soundtrack to be uploaded exclusively to my youtube channel) will release my middle east war drama sometime in the next year using recycled syrian war footage starring bruce willis and arnold schwarzenegger..
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Bleeders: Nice camera work and pretty darn good acting I though, nice little film. Drought: This played out nicely and I think the director had a deft touch with the way they put the whole design aspect as a character as well. Thought the actors were all quite believable and casting was good. Weight of Sunken Treasure. My pick of the bunch although I have to say it was tight this selection. Monster: The voice over was nicely done and really helped move the story along. The steady cam shots really helped pull you in as an audience member. Overall nice effects too and would like to see more form this creative team.
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