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Shorts 7: Portraits
September 2 @ 6:15 pm – 7:45 pm EDT
A collection of narrative and non-narrative portrayals of the human form and condition. Learn more below.
From Fish to Moon
“From fish to moon” is a common expression in medieval Persian verse, meaning ‘from the depths to the heights’. In Pahokee, Florida there is a grocery store, those who work at the ‘Thriftway’ arrive early, and stay all day roaming the aisles. One of these employees is Jean Voltaire.
Director/Producer: Kevin Contento
Producer/Featuring: Jean Voltaire
2022 | 13 mins | US | English | Color | 🏆🍊🦩 | Documentary, docufiction
Carte Blanche à Yang Jiechang
Contemporary Chinese artist Yang Jiechang speaks of his work and offers a glimpse of his life in this short-documentary filmed for his one-man show at the Musée Guimet. Directed by his daughter, Chinese-German filmmaker Felicitas Yang, peels back the layers of what we generally like to perceive as artistic processes by showcasing the rudimentary yet skill-intensive methods Yang Jiechang uses to produce his artworks, all while interacting with the world around him in a charmingly playful manner.
Director: Felicitas Yang
Producer: Martina Koeppel-Yang, Véronique Jaeger, Jiechang Yang
2022 | 18 mins | France | Chinese, German, French with English subtitles | Color | 🏆 | Documentary, art
The Reluctant Icon: A Tribute to Laura Gemser
A poignant ode to the star of the Black Emanuelle series and the real-life love story at its core, written, directed and narrated by Kier-La Janisse based on an interview with longtime Italian journalist Manlio Gomarasca. Editor Stephen Broomer’s layered visuals are punctuated with rotoscope animation by Ashley Thorpe (Woodlands Dark and Days Bewitched) and handmade stop-motion sequences by Leslie Supnet, all rendered into a moody paean to one of exploitation cinema’s most beloved and bewitching stars.
Director/Narrator: Kier-La Janisse
Animator: Ashley Thorpe
Stop-motion: Leslie Supnet
2023 | 20 mins | US/Canada | English | Color | 🏆 | Documentary, historical, cinema
Ike Brown
After learning that his son has been shot to death, Ike Brown begins the seemingly impossible process of forgiving his son’s killer. A thoughtful short documentary that contemplates the seemingly impossible act of forgiveness, and even more importantly, that idea that acceptance of someone’s differences is a choice everyone is free to make.
Director: Caleb Clowe
Producer: Matthew Veeder
Featuring: Ike Brown, Takoya Criner
2023 | 15 mins | US | English | Color | 🏆🍊🦩 | Documentary, true crime, religion
Krush the Wrestler
Exploring the innate intimacy of submission wrestling, a lifelong wrestler turns his talents into an on-demand fetish video service.
Director: Alex Megaro
Producer: Ian Bell
Music: Asger Baden & Peder
2022 | 14 mins | US | English | Color | 🏆 | Documentary, portrait, sports, LGBTQIA+
The filmmaker Alex Megaro is expected to be in attendance for a post-screening discussion about the film.
Prep
A bodybuilding fever dream fueled by childhood trauma, food porn and acid techno music. Prep is a portrait of all that can simultaneously build and destroy us; an expression of the traumas we attempt to evade and the loneliness that accompanies many when striving to push our limits.
Director/Writer/Producer: Raymond Barnett Knudsen
Producer: Paul Andrea González-Nasser, Stephen Musumeci, Melina Valdez
Cast: Chibueze Anyasor
2023 | 14 mins | US | English | Color | 🏆🍊🦩 | Drama, experimental, portrait