Youthful rebellion goes on a road trip in Martin Monk’s short film Favourites, which offers a simple, patient look at how chance encounters can reframe our perspective on life. In an unbroken opening shot, we follow behind teen Sofia (Lia Wilfing) as she strolls determinedly alongside a busy Viennese road, sticking out her thumb and…
“Living is easy with eyes closed, Misunderstanding all you see. It’s getting hard to be someone but it all works out. It doesn’t matter much to me” – Lennon and McCartney, “Strawberry Fields Forever.” After fifty years, it is still difficult to assess the full effect The Beatles have had on our culture. Even with…
When it comes to the narrative twist, there’s the element of surprise and the element of effectiveness. The best and most memorable twists entwine the two, so we’re both caught off guard and emotionally engaged enough to care. With their short Point Mugu, director Francis Dreis and co-writers Amelia Jackson-Gray and Erin Ross get halfway…
DON’T PANIC. Every fan of “The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy” trilogy (actually five books) was overheard repeating the words, “Don’t Panic.” Even I wondered aloud if the the big screen could even remotely capture the essence of the written material. Let’s just say I was pleasantly surprised. This could have easily been a train…
