![]() |
Denmark's Oscar winner Helium |
There’s a great range of shorts to see at
the screenings. A handful of Oscar nominees are on hand, including the strong 2012 film Death of a Shadow, Do I Have to Take Care of Everything, and the 2013 winner Helium.
Films from some EUFF favourites show off more work from Latvia’s Signe Bauman,
whose short Dentist will please
fans of Rocks in My Pockets, while
previous festival selectee Adrian Sitaru (Domestic)
screens his short film Art. French
filmmaker Laurent Ardoint,
finally, will be on hand for a Q&A following his
film Un bonne affaire on Thursday,
the 28th. Add a dozen
extra shorts from just as many countries, and local film buffs have a
smorgasbord of shorts!
Select shorts in review:
Do I Have to Take Care of Everything? / Pitääkö mun kaikki hoitaa?
(Dir. Selma Vilhunen; Finland, 7 min.)
This madcap comedy is a hilarious farce of Murphy’s Law that sees a beleaguered wife and mother (Joanna Harrtti) ready her family for a wedding one chaotic morning. Vilhunen explodes the situational humour and delivers one amusing slice-of-life gag after another. The control of the film couldn’t be better, as this brisk comedy, which plays like a blow-for-blow between Harrtti and Santtu Karvonen as her husband, is refreshing, relatable humour. The comedic timing Vilhunen displays in the editing brings the film to life with a zany energy. (She cut the film herself.) It’s a fun romp for shorts fans.
This madcap comedy is a hilarious farce of Murphy’s Law that sees a beleaguered wife and mother (Joanna Harrtti) ready her family for a wedding one chaotic morning. Vilhunen explodes the situational humour and delivers one amusing slice-of-life gag after another. The control of the film couldn’t be better, as this brisk comedy, which plays like a blow-for-blow between Harrtti and Santtu Karvonen as her husband, is refreshing, relatable humour. The comedic timing Vilhunen displays in the editing brings the film to life with a zany energy. (She cut the film herself.) It’s a fun romp for shorts fans.
Screens
Thursday, May 28
(Dir. Alan Holly;
Ireland, 9 min.)
A favourite from last
year’s Ottawa International Animation Festival, Coda takes a more philosophical approach to seeing one’s life flash
before one’s eyes with a deep, fleeting meditation on crossing over. This elegiac
exploration of the journey from life to death is beautiful, moving, and
strikingly composed.
Screens Friday, May 29
(Dir. Anders Walter; Denmark, 23 min.)
The 2013 Oscar winner for Best Live Action
Short Film, Helium is a touching
story about teaching a child about death and the afterlife. Alfred (Pelle Falk
Krusbæk) is a young boy with terminal illness. He asks the janitor, Enzo
(Casper Crump), a clumsy man tasked with cleaning Alfred’s room on his first
day of work, the story of “helium.” Enzo, sensing the child’s uncertainty in
the next step of his life, regales him with fanciful stories about the faraway
land of Helium. It sounds like a nice place for escape. Enzo is right and Helium
is a great escape for how subtly and lovingly it uses the power of the imagination
to harness closure and catharsis. The small touch of fantasy that pops-up at
the end of this otherwise soberly realistic drama reminds viewers of the power
of storytelling—both as a visual art and as a medium to convey ideas too
difficult to put into words. The closing shot of Helium is a delicate,
touching, and bittersweet nod to the imaginative flights that connect us all.
Screens Saturday, May 30.
It’s Time for Shorts! runs May
28-30 at Club SAW in Arts Court (67 Nicholas St.)
Screenings start at 7:00pm, but
get there early to grab seats and food!
And did I mention that screenings
are FREE?
Please visit www.cfi-icf.ca for more information and for the full line-up of films.
Please visit www.cfi-icf.ca for more information and for the full line-up of films.
(function(i,s,o,g,r,a,m){i['GoogleAnalyticsObject']=r;i[r]=i[r]||function(){
(i[r].q=i[r].q||[]).push(arguments)},i[r].l=1*new Date();a=s.createElement(o),
m=s.getElementsByTagName(o)[0];a.async=1;a.src=g;m.parentNode.insertBefore(a,m)
})(window,document,'script','//www.google-analytics.com/analytics.js','ga');
ga('create', 'UA-30395848-1', 'auto');
ga('send', 'pageview');