FILMSSHORT WINNERS - 1
Below are four of the best films from the 16th FILMSshort competition.
Prazinburk Ridge by Martin Bell (2022) (UK) (10m)
This Fs Festival Finalist is an epic animation telling the story of Douglas Clark, a rugby league player who represented Great Britain before serving in WWI, where his athleticism and never-say-die attitude helped him save himself and his fellow soldiers during a German attack. It is a moving story of heroism with exceptional animation from Bell, who has worked in the film industry for many years, especially as an action visualisation supervisor on Hollywood blockbusters.
Bystander by Rachel Aoun (2022) (Lebanon) (12m)
The Festival finalist is perhaps the best exploration of masculinity ever depicted in a short film (and written by a woman). This short drama follows the basketball coach and new father, Roger, who witnesses a vicious (and ultimately fatal) assault on his way to work but fails to intervene. He is left questioning his manhood and his feelings of emasculation are finally expressed in a wonderful scene where he berates himself through his students.
Action by Benoit Monney (2022) (Switzerland) (6m)
Action won the Best Cinematography Award in the festival. It is a brilliant black comedy following the trials of a film director as she struggles to keep her film and herself together as everything about her falls apart - quite literally. Filmed in one take, Action offers a clever insight into the stress and comical chaos that often surrounds filmmaking, but which is hidden by the facade of the finished film.
The Cabinet by Thomas Nelstrop (2018) (UK) (3m)
The Cabinet is a brilliant parody of horror stories like The Enfield Haunting. In this three-minute comedy horror, a woman seeks to return a bathroom cabinet to the retailer after discovering an irksome entity lurks beyond its looking glass. But is the demon all in her mind? This FILMSshort Festival finalist stars Elizabeth Bower and Alexander Kirk.
