Thursday, August 24th, 2017
After month’s of judging some of the best short films from local, national and international filmmakers we are absolutely delighted to share our 2017 Officially Selected Films. Congratulations to all the filmmaker’s selected this year.
A Father’s Day
Director: Mat Johns, UK, 10 mins, #Short
Unexpectedly reunited with his daughter amongst the ruins of the world as they knew it, a father is determined to make this day special, even if they are already dead.
A Love Story
Director: Anushka Naanayakkara, UK, 7 mins, #Student #Animation
A powerful tale about love faced with darkness.
A Million Waves
Director: Daniel Ali & Louis Leeson , UK, 8 mins, #Documentary
‘A Million Waves’ is about Kadiatu Kamara, or KK, the only female surfer in Sierra Leone at just 19-years-old. When her father died 2 years ago she was left to face the Ebola epidemic alone, but she found her escape and hope in the surfing community of Bureh Beach.
A Simple Fracture
Director: Jonny Phillips, UK, 11 mins, #Short
While being interviewed for a television programme, an eminent neuroscientist falls down a rabbit hole of his own memory and rediscovers a traumatic and long-suppressed event from his childhood.
AM
Director: Lee Squires, UK, 7 mins, #Documentary
Three intimate and touching stories from people who love working early in the morning.
Anna
Director: Or Sinai, Israel, 24 mins, #Student
It’s the hottest day of the summer, and for the first in years Anna unexpectedly finds herself alone, with her son. She sets out for the day, roaming the streets of her small desert town, looking for a man who can touch her, even for just one brief moment.
Apples
Director: Milda Baginskaite, UK, 18 mins, #EastAnglia #Student
When a young village misfit starts a job at the local apple orchard, the already cold relationship with his grandfather is challenged.
Balcony
Director: Toby Fell-Holden, UK, 17 mins, #Short
Tina a troubled teenage girl, is attracted to Dana, an Afghani girl, whom Tina tells us is oppressively victimised by her substance abusing father, Karim. Initially, we trust Tina and admire her protectiveness of Dana from the kids at school, but as we watch their friendship blossom we come to suspect something is off.
Belle and Bamber
Director: Alex Forbes, UK, 15 mins, #Short
Belle and Bamber are inseparable friends. She, a 10 year old girl with a thirst for adventure; he, an imaginary blue monster. They while away their youth exploring and getting into mischief, however, when Belle’s Mother tires of Bamber’s influence, she pressures her to grow up and forget him. Unfortunately, he isn’t planning on going anywhere. Belle and Bamber is a dark comedy about a child afraid of growing up and the dangers of psychotic imaginary friends.
Big Bag
Director: Daniel Greaves, UK, 2 mins, #Short
An object lesson of when life weighs you down.
Black Road
Director: Tim Fywell, UK, 22 mins, #Short
Set in a seaside town in the North of England, Black Road explores the relationship between two strangers, Maggie (Michelle Collins) and Lilli, which develops out of a broken promise that Maggie made to herself in order to help and protect Lilli.
Blood and Stones
Director: Joshua Carver, UK, 15 mins, #EastAnglia
Ruby is collecting pebbles, but Robby doesn’t feel very well. A day out at the beach leads to some tension for the young couple, but perhaps not how they expected. A gentle little film from the Norfolk Coast that nevertheless deals with some adult themes – with just a hint of blood. And lots of stones.
Butterfly
Director: Alex Withers, UK, 16 mins, #Short
16 year-old swimmer Jane suffers the return of her epilepsy before a crucial competition. With her swimming career on hold and her quality of life under threat, she must decide just where her priorities lie – before it’s too late.
Catherine
Director: Brit Raes, Spain, 12 mins, #Animation
Catherine loves pets! But most of all, she lovers her cat. As she grows up, she can not connect with people. Her cat is her life, but will this crazy cat lady ever find friendship or love?
Chippy Tea
Director: Will Herbert, UK, 14 mins, #Short
An ordinary Friday night and as usual the Railton sisters are having their traditional Chippy Tea – Secrets boiling under the surface and an unwanted guest mean that the usual Friday supper is turned on its head and things emerge that will change lives forever.
Cul-De-Sac
Director: Nick Flugge, UK, 12 mins, #Short
A private detective (Mike Wozniak) has a routine stake-out ruined by his sister intent on fixing his life.
Curing Albrecht
Director: Jessica Wright, UK, 5 mins, #Short
A young man checks into a bespoke institution, hoping to be cured of his inability to stop dancing.
Dumbboat
Director: Laura Spini & Laurence Brook, UK, 8 mins, #Short
Snack-addicted bedroom-musician Lewis Bewlis is visited by a mysterious stranger, tasked with turning his life around.
Edith
Director: Christian Cooke, UK, 15 mins, #Short
Edith explores how we move on from bereavements. How we make peace with our past and find something worth living for. This film features stand out performances from Peter Mullen (War Horse, Tyrannosaur), Michelle Fairley (Games of Thrones, Harry Potter, Suits) and supporting roles from Elliot Tittensor (Shameless) and Sia Bennett (Mr Selfridge).
Edmund The Magnificent
Director: Ben Ockrent, UK, 13 mins, #EastAnglia #Short
When news breaks that the county pig fete’s being revived, the once-legendary Farmer (David Bradley, Harry Potter, Games of Thrones) decides to make one final roll of the dice – and invest his life savings in a thoroughbred piglet with which to breed new life back into his now dilapidated farm. But when he puts young Edmund out to breed and the lad abstains, the Farmer’s forced on a journey that will challenge everything he thought he knew about pigs, love and the true value of life… This short is narrated by Sir Ian McKellen (Lord of the Rings, X-Men).
Flat
Director: Michael Finn, USA, 1 min, #OMM
What could possibly go wrong if you get a flat tyre on the side of the road?
Flight
Director: Laura Wadha, UK, 11 mins, #Documentary #Student
Two young sisters are forced to grow up quickly when their family flee the war in Syria and make the dangerous journey to Sweden. As they begin to settle they are faced with new difficulties – they are becoming teenagers in a new world and long for the Syria that once was. They try to hold on to memories of their once beautiful home while struggling to deal with the repercussions of growing up surrounded by conflict.
Handmade Films
Director: Christina Lenna, Canada, 5 mins, #Documentary
Handmade film is a rarely practiced craft in today’s film industry. Lindsay McIntyre spends three days making the film emulsion she shoots on than develops herself.
HashtagWill
Director: Per Sundstrom, Sweden, 22 mins, #Short
A teenage Video blogger with suspected self-harm behaviour uses the school auditorium alone to record a video but after strange events and threats he has to gain control of both his mind and own destiny.
Homecoming
Director: Sinéad O’Loughlin, Ireland, 14 Mins #Shorts
In Homecoming, we meet two young Irish people who for many different reasons (and some similar), chose to leave Ireland. Together again, even briefly, they are both forced to confront their shared history, their relationship with “home” and their differing paths in life since a devastating past experience that wounded them both deeply.
Howls
Director: Catriona MacInnes, UK, 16 mins, #Short
A young mum runs away with her fragile son to a woodland hut community in Scotland and door steps a random boy she has recently met. When hope of acceptance in his community quickly fades, she loses control, whilst her son finds solace in a mysterious wolf
Hunger Keeps Walking
Director: Giulia Canella, Italy, 17 mins, #Student
Charles is a complicated guy. He feels so lonely that every night he calls an erotic hotline, asking only for one person: Bijou. The call-girl makes Charles forget his solitude for a while, but one night he wants more and asks Bijou to go out for a date. The woman doesn’t say yes or no, but Charles starts preparing for this unusual meeting. At the end, Charles’ self doubts will point out his difficult relationship with his body and food.
I am Dyslexic
Director: Mads Johan Øgaard, Norway, 6 mins, #Student #Animation
The animated short film I AM DYSLEXIC expresses what it feels like to have a learning difference in our current school system. The film uses strong metaphors to portray these emotions, as we follow a little boy in his journey to climb a mountain in a world made of books.
I Love New York
Director: Christian Vogeler, UK, 11 Mins #Short
In a city where everyone’s got an angle, how does you survive? After an NYC first-timer befriends a savvy street girl on the train, she takes him on a fantastical ride through all the city’s pitfalls. But nothing’s free in this town, so tighten up your hustle or you might just get hustled yourself.
Infinite
Director: Connor O’Hara, UK, 15 mins, #Short
In his last months alive, a young man (George McKay) calls upon his four closest friends to make his existence infinite, through the assembly of five key elements from his life.
iReal
Director: Florent Sabatier, France, 1 min, #OMM
If you we could pay for another reality, during a dream, a memory… what reality would become ours ?
Kin
Director: Helena Middleton, UK, 15 mins, #Short
Kin tells a story about the relationship between two brothers raised in the children’s care system, and the turning point they face when told their application for a kinship care arrangement has been denied.
Memory Hospital
Director: Pedro Paulo de Andrade, Brazil, 18 mins #Short
A night at an unusual hospital reveals secrets, sorrows and memories.
Meteorite
Director: Miles Fleet, UK, 1 min, #OMM
Two astronauts watch the destruction of the earth from far away.
Moose Limbs
Director: Phil Hardy, UK, 14 mins, #Short
In a rural English village plagued by rats, an other-worldly new Doctor arrives for his first day at work.
Norwich…..A Story
Director: Rob Whitworth, UK, 2 mins, #EastAnglia
An exciting look at the stunning cathedral in Norwich and its wonderful surroundings.
One, Two, Three
Director: Ethan Roberts, UK, 10 mins, #Student
A short music documentary that explores the ideas of career,
happiness and success through the thoughts and opinions of three individual musicians. It answers the question can and should your passions become your career
Oneness
Director: Kate V Lewis, UK, 7mins #Documentary
The Barber P.G.R. has been living and cutting hair for the homeless in Dalston, London, for 22 years. As part of his philosophy of ‘Oneness’ – that “all humans are equal, 100% individual” – he has created a space for the homeless who have nowhere else to go: cutting their hair for free, and making them tea and sandwiches. But with a shortage of paying customers, rising housing prices, and an increasingly rundown shop, his future there is precarious.
Panoramic
Director: James Ivett, UK, 4 mins, #EastAnglia
A young girl wakes to find herself surrounded by floating screens, visualising the outcomes of every thought she has as she gets lost in a surreal world of missed opportunities.
Perched
Director: Liam Harris, UK, 10 mins, #Student #Animation
Hamish Fint, a crotchety old man used to a life of seclusion inside his submarine balanced precariously atop a mountain, struggles to maintain equilibrium when an unwelcome visiting seagull rocks his world.
Pollyanna
Director: Roman Gubin, Canada, 1 min, #OMM
A young girl’s internal struggle is expressed through a contemporary dance.
Push
Director: Henry Scriven, UK, 1 min, #OMM
A bike thief instantly regrets his actions.
Real Artists
Director: Cameo Wood, USA, 12 Min, #Short
Against all odds, Sophia Baker just scored her dream interview at the world-famous Semaphore Animation Studios — who’d have thought a fan edit of one of their hit films could land her a shot at a job? But when she meets arch, mysterious executive Anne Palladon, she soon learns all is not as she expects behind the curtain. Every instinct Sophia has ever had about art in filmmaking is about to be challenged.
Right of Passage
Director: Emma Wheeler, UK, 15 mins #Documentary
‘Right of Passage’ is a personal look at three LGBT refugees resettling in Germany: Ibrahim, Hamid, and Ali. As they share details of the struggles they have faced, both in their countries of origin and now in Germany, we learn about the extraordinary circumstances behind why they decided to seek asylum and what their future holds for them.
Sand Men
Director: Tal Amiran, UK, 14 mins, #Documentary
Neculai, Aurel and Raj all left their homes in Romania for the same reason – to seek a better life for their family. Now, in Britain, with their loved ones depending on them, they survive by creating sand sculptures on London’s streets. They try to find hope in the hardships they endure, while thoughts of their children’s futures keep them going.
Sin Bin of The City
Director: James Armstrong, UK, 17 mins, #Documentary
Sin Bin of the City uses a rich tapestry of archive and testimony to delve into the political and social upheaval of Liverpool’s black community in the summer of 1981. Unravelling the events and cutting through the noise to the voices at the centre of the conflict, Sin Bin of the City asks what, if anything, has changed in the community today.
Spilt Milk
Director: James Dunstan, UK, 23 mins, #Short
An unrequited love story between two teens leading up to the night of their prom as they begin to understand the differences and similarities of love, sex and gender.
Sweet Maddie Stone
Director: Brady Hood, UK, 24 mins, #Student #Short
15-year-old Maddie Stone rules her school yard under the protection of her family name. But after discovering her notorious father has been arrested, she has to make his bail money or lose the yard. The more Maddie fights, the more her world spirals out of control–and the closer she gets to becoming the man she’s trying to save.
The Backseat
Director: Miranda Howard-Williams, UK, 17 mins, #Short
“The Backseat” tells the story of a lonely but upbeat girl called Shelby who rides the local buses in an attempt to keep warm and find meaningful connections with her fellow passengers – in a world that all too often looks the other way.
The Beast Underneath
Director: Anaelle Morf, Switzerland, 13 mins, #Short
On the 27th of February 2016, in the city of La Baie, Quebec, the famous fisherman Marc Gagnon discovered a new species of halibut that could reach several meters. Because the man is always looking for controlling the nature. How far his megalomania is going to take him?
The Birch
Director: Ben Franklin & Anthony Melton, UK, 5 mins, #EastAnglia
A bullied teenager, fearing for his life, turns to an ancient creature of the forest for protection… and revenge.
The Crossing
Director: Jack King, UK, 15 mins, #Short
Battling infertility and failing to cope with the breakup of his relationship, Terry is plagued by recurring nightmares and a profound uncertainty about his future. When a chance encounter with his ex-reveals he’s been permanently left behind, Terry is forced to confront his anxieties head on.
The Dog and The Elephant
Director: Michael Sharpe, UK, 25 mins, #Short
Set in the violent world of Victorian boxing and the honour code of the Romany Gipsies, ‘The Dog & The Elephant’ is the compelling story of the unlikely kinship between young boxer Bendigo Barlow and ‘Ina’, an elephant from a travelling menagerie. Bendigo’s struggle to live with Tourette’s syndrome is made all the more difficult by fear and ignorance as he is violently shunned by those who simply don’t understand. Bendigo’s fractured life leads him on a brutal journey of destruction, retribution and ultimately revenge.
The Driving Seat
Director: Phil Lowe, UK, 9 Mins, #Short
One Saturday morning, a middle aged couple decide to make love in their car in the driveway to put a spark back in their marriage – only to find it has rather the opposite effect..
The Fox
Director: Henry Scriven, UK, 9 mins, #Short
Hot on the heels of a wanted thief nicknamed The Fox, the London Police force set up undercover agents across the city. But the elusive thief is not deterred and proceeds with what he thinks should be a straight forward robbery.
The Full Story
Director: Daisy Jacobs and Chris Wilder, UK, 8 mins, #Animation #Short
When the dad next-door walks out, five-year-old Toby discovers that parents leave. As the shock hits, the entire room catapults skywards, morphs in mid-air and lands as a different space. The rooms keep pace with Toby’s volatile emotions as home life spirals out of control in the divorce boom of the 1970s and 80s. Forty years on, kaleidoscopic scraps of memory still cling to the walls; and Toby clings to these fragments, trying to piece together the full story.
The Knackerman
Director: Tom Shrapnel, UK, 18mins, #EastAnglia
A contemporary Western set in the heart of rural East Anglia, The Knackerman tells the story of Ron – an aging Knacker who is responsible the disposal of ill horses. When his own horse falls ill, Ron must decide it’s fate and in doing so, face his own mortality. Starring Donald Sumpter (Game Of Thrones, Girl With The Dragon Tattoo) and Adam Long (Happy Valley).
The Morning After (The Night Before)
Director: Radford Nicholls, UK, 7 mins #Short
Jim finds the courage to tell his girlfriend, Tabby that he is ready to start a family. But is she?
The Other Side
Director: Griselda San Martin, USA, 6 mins, #Documentary
The Other Side is the story of deported musician Jose Marquez and his daughter Susanna who have been separated for almost 15 years but meet every month on either side of the US-Mexico border wall.
The Wyrd
Director: Chloe Wicks, UK, 20 mins, #Short
In 7th century England, a pagan community are hit by plague, forcing a young woman to make an impossible sacrifice for the greater good.
They Live In Forests, They Are Extremely Shy
Director: Saeed Taji Farouky, UK, 4 Mins
“They Live in Forests, They Are Extremely Shy” tells the fictionalised story of an Indigenous Australian man invited to London for the Colonial Exhibition of 1886. He’s a reluctant ambassador, negotiating for the safety of his people and ancestral land as the British Empire continues to colonise and brutalise indigenous Australians. He plays the “good native”, until a chance encounter forces him to decide whether to live his life with diplomacy or authenticity.
To Be A Tree
Director: Xin Sun, Germany, 6 mins, #Animation
If there is rebirth after death, wish to become a tree, stand for eternity, no postures for grief and joy. Half reposing in the dust, half soaring in the wind; half spattering the shade, half basking in the sun. Greatly prideful, greatly taciturn, never to cling, never to seek.
To Build A Fire
Director: Fx Goby, France, 13 mins, #Animation
To Build a Fire is an animated short film in 4K Cinemascope that tells the tragic tale of a man and his dog trying to survive in the overwhelmingly freezing and hostile nature of the Yukon Territory.
TriGGA
Director: Meloni Poole, UK, 16 mins, #Short
She’d rather not speak and prefers life as a horse, but the girls at school just won’t leave her alone.
Ugly
Director: Nikita Diakur, Germany, 12 mins, #Animation
An ugly cat struggles to make friends in an evil neighbourhood, but finds a soulmate in a Native American chief who helps it on its journey to restore balance within the world.
What We Lose
Director: Jakob Valdemar Mørk, Denmark, 12 mins, #Short
Vagn, an old school, conservative primary school teacher who lives a simple, safe and structured everyday life is forced to deal with the insecurities of life, when he is faced with challenges both in his professional and personal life.
The Whale Bowl
Director: Emily George, UK, 12 Mins #Documentary
The Whale Bowl is a short documentary about Lolita- the world’s loneliest orca. Through a combination of animation, archive and live footage, the film explores Lolita’s history and the people fighting to set her free.
Whoever Was Using This Bed
Director: Andrew Kotatko, Australia, 20 mins, #Short
A married couple is woken in the dead of night by a mysterious phone call. Unable to sleep, they are drawn into an unsettling examination of their fears and desires. Based on a story by Raymond Carver (Birdman), This short psychological drama starring Jean-Marc Barr (The Big Blue), Radha Mitchell (Man on Fire) and Jane Birkin (Blow Up).
Weston Canoes
Director: Peter Naylor, UK, 3 mins, #EastAnglia
A short craft film about the love of canoeing told by canoe builder Nick Hannington. Based just outside of Norwich, Nick hand crafts beautiful wooden boats which are the perfect vehicle to explore the UK’s wild waterways.
Venice
Director: Venetia Taylor, Australia, 4 mins, #Short
Josh is in Venice, Mum is in Sydney. Josh doesn’t understand backpacking, Mum doesn’t understand Skype.
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Posted in: Films
