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Oscar nominated

The Cave – Hope in a Dark Place

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“Is God really watching?”

Nominated for Best Documentary Feature, The Cave takes us into the darkest of world to show us the smallest light of hope. Director Feras Fayyad received a previous Oscar nomination for his film Last Men in Aleppo. Again we see the destruction that has been happening in Syria and the bravery of some who seek to save others in spite of the risk to their own lives.

Al Ghouta, Syria – Dr. Amani (center) and Dr Alaa (right) in the operating room. (National Geographic)

Between 2013 and 2018, Al Ghouta, Syria was besieged by government and Russian forces. Gas attacks, frequent bombings, lack of food and supplies, created a city of rubble and despair filled with 400,000 people who now have no way out. A small group of doctors, led by Dr. Amani Ballour and Dr. Salim Namour, seeks to tend to the seriously injured in an underground hospital known as The Cave. Dr. Amani serves as the manager of the hospital, as well as continuing her work as a pediatrician, caring for the many children who have been injured in the bombings, and are suffering malnutrition from the lack of food.

The film immerses us into this subterranean world as we follow Dr. Amani. There are times of chaos and pain. There are quiet times when she and another woman can take part in a bit of girl talk about makeup. There are small celebrations, as for Dr. Amani’s 30th birthday which is feted with popcorn that Dr. Salim imagines as pizza with extra cheese. But throughout we see the suffering of the populace that has been under attack for five years. We see the doctors as they face feelings of helplessness. We see the fear that these doctors live with even as they strive to save others.

Al Ghouta, Syria – Dr Amani covers her ears during nearby bombings. (National Geographic)

There is no commentary to accompany the film. It suffers a bit by not giving viewers any context for the conflict or the geopolitical issues that allows such savagery to take place. But even without such explanations we realize that we are watching people who are acting heroically in a dangerous situation. Fayyad sets them (as he did with the White Helmets in Last Men in Aleppo) as lights of hope in a world that seems hopeless.

By focusing on Dr. Amani, this film also has a bit of a feminist bent. It only comes up once in the film, but Syrian society frowns on women working, especially in authority. But in this film we see not only Dr. Amani, but other women (especially Dr. Alaa and nurse Samaher) doing important work and saving lives of many people.

Al Ghouta, Syria – Children recovering with oxygen after a chemical attack. (National Geographic)

The film opens and closes with brief, poetic voice overs by Dr. Amani. They speak of light and hope. One of the lines the struck me was “I wonder if there is any space for justice.” For me this may be the key question that gnaws at me watching this. The UN has declared the siege of Al Ghouta as a war crime against humanity. But will there ever be justice? The film never asks, but I don’t know how viewers cannot ask how the world allows this to go on. Even when the world knows that the government has broken international law by using chemical weapons against its own people, nothing has been done.

National Geographic, who is the distributor for the film, offers some ways to take action at their website for the film. (The film can be screened on the National Geographic app.) I especially recommend reading Dr. Amani’s own account that is linked to there, and to consider signing the petition calling for the world to acknowledge what is happening and act.

Al Ghouta, Syria – Dr Amani amongst rubble. (National Geographic)

Photos courtesy of National Geographic

Oscar-Nominated Live Action Shorts

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Short films are important enough for the Academy to award three Oscars to shorts each year: Best Animated Short, Best Live Action Short, and Best Short Documentary. Most people haven’t had a chance to view these films, which may be harbingers of tomorrow’s filmmakers. But each year, shortly before the Academy Awards are presented, programs made up of these short films play in select theatres around the country. You can find where they will play near you at https://shorts.tv/theoscarshorts/theatrical-release/ . The films will also be available on VOD on Feb. 4. Here’s the line up for the Live Action Shorts.

A Sister (Une Soeur) (16 minutes) from Belgium, directed by Delphine Girard. As a man and woman travel in a car at night, the woman calls her sister who is taking care of her child. She’s late and wants to make arrangements. But when we see the other side of this call, we discover the real drama that is playing out. This might be the most important call she has ever made. Makes for a very good thriller in the few minutes of this film.

Brotherhood (25 minutes) from Canada, Tunisia, Qatar, and Sweden, directed by Meryam Joobeur. Mohamed and his two sons are shepherds in rural Tunisia. When his estranged oldest son, Malik, returns, everyone seems pleased he’s home, except Mohamed. Malik left the family to fight with ISIS in Syria. Now he’s back, with a mysterious wife in tow. She stays covered in her burqa at all times—even within the family, who are strangers to her. Mohamed has little patience for all of this. It is only after he has acted to get rid of Malik that he learns the real story of Malik and his wife. This is a story that focuses on judgmentalism, especially when it gets in the way of familial love.

Nefta Football League (17 minutes) from France and Tunisia, directed by Yves Piat. Two brothers come across a donkey in the desert. It is wearing headphones and carrying many bags of a white powder. The older brother thinks they have found a goldmine. They younger thinks it’s just laundry detergent. When they get to town, the older brother looks to cash in. But the younger has other ideas for using this windfall.

Saria (22 minutes) from the US, directed by Bryan Buckley. Two orphaned girls are subjected to an unpleasant life at the Virgen de La Asuncion Safe House orphanage in Guatemala. They plan an escape with many others. But they are found and brought back. If that isn’t tragedy enough, it gets worse. The story is based on the true story of a fire that killed 41 teenage girls.

The Neighbors’ Window (20 minutes) from the US, directed by Marshall Curry. A couple with two (then three) children are pretty much tired out. They don’t have time or energy at the end of the day. One evening, they see their young neighbors across the way having some very interesting sex. Since the windows are always uncovered, they become a constant source of interest for this couple. As the months pass, they see parties, more sex, and then things change a bit. Eventually they will see some very intimate and touching parts of their lives. They will also discover that perhaps they have added something to the lives of their neighbors as well.

The Live Action Shorts are usually my favorite of the shorts categories because they do such a great job of showing some of the issues we all must deal with in life. This year’s nominees, while all very good, don’t quite carry the power that I’ve appreciated in other years. That said, my top pick for Life Action Shorts is The Neighbors’ Wife. What starts out as a story about a slightly perverted voyeurism grows into a touching connection between people.

Photos courtesy of Shorts.TV

Oscar-Nominated Short Documentaries

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Short films are important enough for the Academy to award three Oscars to shorts each year: Best Animated Short, Best Live Action Short, and Best Short Documentary. Most people haven’t had a chance to view these films, which may be harbingers of tomorrow’s filmmakers. But each year, shortly before the Academy Awards are presented, programs made up of these short films play in select theatres around the country. You can find where they will play near you at https://shorts.tv/theoscarshorts/theatrical-release/ . The films will also be available on VOD on Feb. 4. Here’s the line up for the Short Documeantaries.

In the Absence (29 minutes) from South Korea and the US, directed by Yi Seung-Jun. This film recounts the tragic sinking of a ferry in 2014 and the ways the government failed in its rescue attempts—failure that eventually contributed to the impeachment and removal of President Park Geun-hye. Made up of archival footage and interviews with survivors and families, this doc conveys the tragedy in the hundreds of lives (many children) lost.

Learning to Skateboard in a Warzone (If you’re a Girl) (40 minutes) from the UK, the US, and Afghanistan, directed by Carol Dysinger. Girls are often not encouraged to go to school in Kabul, but many do anyway. We see some who along with learning to read, write, and do math, learn how to ride a skateboard. The school is known as Skateistan. Why teach them to skate? For one thing, it’s something that boys are applauded for, but girls are told not to do. It also teaches them courage and to trust their capabilities. And, it’s fun. By the way, Skateistan schools in Afghanistan are supported by the skating community around the world—who knew?

Life Overtakes Me (40 minutes) from the US, directed by John Haptas and Kristine Samuelson. Hundreds of immigrant children in Sweden have developed what has become known as Resignation Syndrome. They go into a catatonic state for several months. The reason seems to be the uncertainty in their lives. They come from traumatic backgrounds, and the constant possibility of deportation is just too much for them to bear, so they sink into a coma-like state. We watch as three families try to deal with their affected children, plus their own uncertain futures.

St. Louis Superman (28 minutes) from the US, directed by Sami Khan and Smriti Mundhra. Bruce Franks is a battle rapper, a Black Lives Matter activist, and member of the Missouri state legislature. He is not your typical politician. As he strives to pass a law that recognizes youth violence as a public health matter, he also is striving to come to terms with his own trauma, seeing his nine year-old big brother shot and killed.

Walk Run Cha-Cha (20 minutes) from the US, directed by Laura Nix. Paul and Millie Cao were youthful sweethearts in Vietnam during the war. After the war, Paul and his family fled, eventually reaching the US. Later he was able to bring Millie. After their years of work to establish lives in their new country, they have formed another bond in ballroom dance. They are more than just recreational dancers; they take lots of lessons and compete. This is a film that will feed fans of “So You Think You Can Dance?”

Among the nominees in this category, my favorite is Learning How to Skateboard…. It is a story of hope. Many of us in the west may cringe at the way women are often treated in some places around the world. Skateistan provides a vision of shaping women who will overcome the strictures of their society.

Photos courtesy of Shorts.TV

Oscar-Nominated Animated Shorts

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Short films are important enough for the Academy to award three Oscars to shorts each year: Best Animated Short, Best Live Action Short, and Best Short Documentary. Most people haven’t had a chance to view these films, which may be harbingers of tomorrow’s filmmakers. But each year, shortly before the Academy Awards are presented, programs made up of these short films play in select theatres around the country. You can find where they will play near you here. The films will also be available on VOD on February 4th, 2020. Here’s the line up for the Animated Shorts.

Daughter (Dcera) (15 minutes) from the Czech Republic, directed by Daria Kashcheeva. This is a wordless story of a woman and her dying father. She remembers her father’s part in her childhood. It is a poignant story that is an emotional minor key, but still touches the viewer.

Hair Love (7 minutes) from the US, directed by Matthew A. Cherry, Everett Downey Jr., and Brice W. Smith. A young African-American girl wants to style her massive, unruly head of hair. Following some videos leads to less than perfect results. Her father sees her struggles, and steps in to get her hair the way she wants it. Then they set out on a journey that puts it all in context. It wouldn’t hurt to have tissues nearby for this one.

Kitbull (9 minutes) from the US, directed by Rosana Sullivan. This is a Pixar film, but it doesn’t look like it because it is 2D animation, and mostly hand drawn. But Pixar knows well how to create a quality story. Here a feral kitten and an abused pit bull share a backyard. An uneasy start gives way to these two becoming the only friend the other has. In time, crisis will lead them to a new, better life.

Memorable (12 minutes) from France, directed by Bruno Collet. Louis, a painter, sees his world changing around him. What the viewer sees is what it may feel like to go through the degeneration that characterizes dementia. Things and people lose their familiarity and even meaning.

Sister (8 minutes) from China and the US, directed by Siqi Song. A boy recounts the arrival of his little sister and what their life was like. There’s love, and sibling rivalry—all the things that mark a brother/sister relationship. [spoiler] But the twist comes when we discover that he was born during China’s one child policy.

My favorite of the nominated films is Hair Love. While all the films provide us insight into the human condition (even Kitbull), Hair Love shows us what love can mean in many different ways.

The theatrical release also includes some “highly recommended” shorts to fill out the program. While not nominated, they are also very excellent animated films.

Henrietta Bulkowski (16 minutes) from the US, directed by Rachel Johnson. A woman with a deformity that causes her to always look at the ground, longs to fly. She begins restoring a damaged plane, in hopes for using it to fulfill her dreams. It ends with a bit of magical realism. This is a much more complex story than we usually see in shorts. It shows that shorts need not be a quick one note piece.

The Bird and the Whale (7 minutes) from Ireland, directed by Carol Freeman. A young whale separated from family and a caged bird among the flotsam of a shipwreck form a connection as they try to survive at sea. Interesting bird/whale duets and pas de deux.

Hors Piste (6 minutes) from France, directed by Leo Brunel and Loris Cavalier. A mountain rescue team helicopters up a mountain to bring down an injured skier. But something goes wrong, then something else, then something else…. This is the most humorous of the short films in the program.

Photos courtesy of Shorts.TV

For Sama – Oscar-Nominated Love Letter

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Nominated for Best Documentary Feature, For Sama brings a personal perspective to the Syrian conflict. The conflict in Syria has been fertile ground for documentary films. Two years ago The Last Men in Aleppo was among the doc nominees. This year The Cave is also nominated in this category. The war going on in that nation is a story of human suffering that needs to be brought to our comfortable lives. For Sama was shown on PBS Frontline, and is now available to stream on PBS.org, Amazon Prime, and YouTube.

Filmmaker Waad Al-Kateab (who shares directing credit with Edward Watts) chronicles five years in her life from the beginning of the revolution against the Assad regime. Hopes were high in those early days, but the regime (with Russian support) soon cracked down. In time the city of Aleppo was under siege, being bombed daily. As the siege gets worse, Al-Kateab films the life people were forced to live, as well as the injury and death that was all around. Much of what she filmed takes place within a hospital trying to do the best it could in such dire circumstances.

But it is not just the story of what was going on in Aleppo, it is also Al-Kateab’s story—including falling in love, getting married, and becoming a mother in the midst of this war. That personal story is highlighted by the fact that she designs the film as a love letter to her baby daughter, Sama. In many ways it is an apologia for the choices she and others have made and for the life that they have subjected Sama to.

As we overhear Al-Kateab explain this war to Sama, it gives us insight into those who have chosen to stay in their home rather that become refugees. The hardships and danger that fill the city are all that Sama has known in her few years. Was it right to have brought a child into this kind of life? That is part of what Al-Kateab ponders as she shares the story with her daughter—and with the world.

But a key part of what she shows us is not only the hardships they deal with, but the human need to which they have dedicated themselves to deal with. This is a film with lots of pain, anguish, death, and destruction. But it is also a film that shows triumphs in the midst of all this. But more than anything else, this is a film about caring—caring for family, caring for neighbors, caring for humanity. The love letter that Al-Kateab creates for her daughter teaches us all about the deep meaning love can have in the midst of suffering.

Corpus Christi – The Body of Christ

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“Each of us is a priest of Christ. Me, you. Each and every one of you.”

Oscar-nominated Corpus Christi (for Best International Feature Film) explores what it means to be a priest of Christ. But it does so through the story of an imposter who finds a community in need. The story is inspired by actual events. There are various such accounts for the filmmaker to chose from. The story is told with comedy, but also with darkness and pathos. In doing so, the balance creates an environment to consider our own role in serving Christ.

Twenty year old Daniel (Bartosz Bielenia) has had a spiritual awakening while in a juvenile detention center. He serves as an acolyte for the Father Tomasz who holds services. When he is to be paroled, he wishes he could go to seminary, but none will accept him with his criminal record. He goes to a town where he is to report to a sawmill for work. He wanders into the church and meets Eliza (Eliza Rycembel) a young woman whose mother (Aleksandra Konieczna) seems to run the church. Trying to impress Eliza, Daniel claims to be a priest, and has a clergy collar to prove it.

When the local vicar has a spiritual breakdown and must go for treatment, he convinces Daniel (going by the name Father Tomasz) to fill in for a day or two. It is Daniel’s dream come true. But it turns out to be more than just a day or two. Soon Daniel is having to deal with various spiritual issues that the town is struggling with—especially the grief and anger over several people killed in an auto accident.

He soon becomes an important part of the community. He connects with young people (especially Eliza). He uses the kinds of therapy sessions he experienced in juvie to lead the people through their grief. His preaching brings joy and hope. He reaches out to the woman who many blame for the accident. He goes to the sawmill where he was supposed to work to give a blessing. But that also leads to problems when someone recognizes him.

During a Q&A at the screening I saw at AFI Fest, director Jan Komasa noted that the Catholic Church did not want to cooperate with the film because they thought it made it seem like anyone could act like a priest. I sympathize with that sentiment. Most churches have requirements about who can be ordained. Those standards are important. The fact that Daniel was not ordained could well bring into question the validity of the rites he presided over. But it is also true that Daniel was a gifted young man who brought the healing grace of God into a community that sorely needed it. He was, despite being an imposter, truly the priest of Christ for those people.

The title of the film comes from the Feast of Corpus Christi, which is one of the events Daniel presided over. It becomes a key event in the crisis the town is experiencing. That feast focuses on the real presence of Christ in the elements of the Eucharist. The term translates as “Body of Christ”. In this story we see what it means for the church to be the body of Christ—and for Christians to be Christ’s presence in the world.

Even though I understand the Catholic Church’s opposition to this story, I also support the way this film brings forth an important concept, the priesthood of all believers. Even though we may see the ordained ministry as important, we also need to remember that the ministry of God in the world is not limited to the men and women who have had hands laid on them. The words Father Tomasz (the real one) speaks to his juvenile detention center congregation (the quote that opens this review), is a reminder to us all that we are all, each and every one, priests of Christ to those we meet and serve.

Photos courtesy of Aurum Films

Oscar Watch – Best Documentary (Short Subject)

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The Oscar nominees for Best Documentary (Short Subject) show us some of the real life struggles that people face. Through these films we get a chance to examine issues of race, aging, drugs, mental illness, and chances for former prisoners to find new lives. Some of these films may be hard to watch because we know we are seeing real people dealing with real problems. Some of them offer hope, but not all of them. Some have enough controversy to allow us to consider our reactions to what we see and hear. All of these films, however, are worthy of our consideration.

 

Edith + Eddie (29 minutes), by Laura Checkoway, is about bi-racial nonagenarian newlyweds. It may seem amazing that these two people found happiness in each other so late in life, but the film takes us into their life together. But soon their marriage faces a severe challenge when part of Edith’s family (along with her custodian, a lawyer who has never met her) seek to move her out of her home to live in Florida. Such decisions often seem to be a battle between the rational and the emotional. This film focuses almost exclusively on the emotional aspect. We really don’t get background into the family dynamics and how Edith even came to have an appointed custodian. As I watched, it felt as though I was expected to see great injustice in the way Edith and Eddie were being treated, but having had to deal with this on a personal level, I knew that hard decisions are often necessary, even if it is emotionally devastating for those involved.

Mental illness is front and center in Frank Steifel’s Heaven Is a Traffic Jam on the 405 (40 minutes). The focus is L.A. artist Mindy Alper who recounts her life struggling with mental issues, suicidal thoughts, and a ten year period of silence. She has now found an outlet for her feelings and thoughts in her art. There is a certain level of discomfort watching this film. In part that may be her idiosyncratic language skills, but also by the depth of the mental illness that we learn of in her first person narrative. But it is also a story of finding voice, and acceptance through her art.

Huntington, WV, is becoming the overdose capital of the world. Heroin(e) (39 minutes) by Elaine McMillion Sheldon is the story of three women working in different ways to deal with the manifestation of the opioid epidemic in that city. Fire Chief Jan Rader spends much of her days delivering the antidote for overdoses in hopes of saving lives for a second chance. County Judge Patricia Keller presides over Drug Court which monitors several people in recovery and often relapse. Necia Freeman started Brown Bag Ministry, which feeds the prostitutes selling their bodies for drugs—and creates a relationship that may move them off the street and into recovery. This is a story of people caring for some that much of the world might write off as lost. But because of their compassion, they are making a difference in peoples alives and in their community. Heroin(e) is currently streaming on Netflix.

Knife Skills (40 minutes) by Thomas Lennon is the story of trying to start a world-class French restaurant in Cleveland—staffed mostly by men and women recently released from prison. Edwins is both a restaurant and culinary school. The staff is learning from scratch about cooking, wines, serving. Those who enjoy the Food Network’s shows about going to various restaurants may like the twist found here. The owner of the restaurant has his own dark background that has led him to create this opportunity for people coming out of jail to give them a chance at a new life.

Perhaps the most controversial of the short docs is Traffic Stop (31 minutes) by Kate Davis. We watch on a police car video as a white police officer pulls over a twenty-six-year-old African American teacher on a routine traffic stop and how quickly it escalates to violence and an arrest. Is it abusive policing? Is it the woman’s fault for not complying with what the officer asked? My wife and I had two very different takes on what we saw. Because the case is still being litigated, there are many questions and perspectives that are left uncovered in the film. This is an HBO documentary and will be premier on HBO February 19, with and an early preview on HBO NOW, HBO GO and HBO On Demand on February 16th.

My favorite of the collection is Heroin(e), for it hopeful perspective on a very dark subject and the inspiration that these women provide for anyone who seeks to bring whatever change they can into the lives of others.

The Oscar Nominated Shorts will be playing in select theaters worldwide beginning February 9.

Photos courtesy of Shorts.tv

 

Oscar Watch – Best Animated Short

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When I was young, there would always be a cartoon that was part of the program of going to the movies. (Of course, those were also the days when you always saw a double feature.)  Those cartoons were always comical, often with cartoon characters we knew from TV cartoons. The art of making animated short films is developed greatly since those days, as is evident to the films nominated for Best Animated Short Film. These films vary greatly in terms of artistic style as well as in the kind of stories they tell and the messages the share. Many people may think of Animated Shorts as an unimportant category within the Oscars, but I’m really impressed with this year’s nominees. Give just a slight difference in how one weighs each film, any one of them could be a worthy winner.

Let’s start with the question of whether Kobe Bryant needs an Oscar to go with his five NBA championship rings and two Olympic gold medals. Dear Basketball (6 minutes) is an adaptation of his retirement announcement. It has been animated by Glen Keane (also nominated), who trained as a Disney animator. Add to that music by the incomparable John Williams. It is Bryant’s love letter to the sport that has been his life since he was six years old. As a wannabe jock, his love for playing a game resonated strongly with me. Too often athletes seem to make their performances all about their skill. In this film, Kobe focuses on the game that has given him a life of enjoyment. “I’ll always be that kid with a rolled-up sock, garbage can in the corner, five seconds on the clock, ball in my hand. 4, 3, 2, . . . 1.”

Suppose a mansion sits idle for some time, what kind of things could amphibians find there? Garden Party (8 minutes) from a French animation team follows toads and frogs through a house and yard that seems abandoned. Is this a post-apocalyptic world in which amphibians get to enjoy our leftovers? (Not exactly, but close.) The animation here is outstanding and beautiful. And there is great humor in watching these animals discovering the things we may think of as the good things in life. As we watch and wonder what happened to the people, we may also wonder about the age-old question of what is the value of things that are left behind.

Lou (7 minutes), directed by Dave Mullins, is no doubt the most widely seen of the nominees, because it played before Disney/Pixar’s Cars 3 this summer. When a playground bully steals various treasures from the other kids, the monster of the Lost and Found box takes notice. As the battle to rescue the things the bully has taken escalates, the monster learns the boy’s name and realizes that he has lost something special as well. That provides the leverage to change the boy so he learns that giving is far more blessed than receiving. (Seems like I read that in scripture.)

Negative Space (6 minutes) by Max Porter and Ru Kuwahata, shares a boy’s story of how his father taught him how to pack a suitcase. It seems the father was often traveling for business, but the boy seemed bonded with his father by being able to pack for him—and the appreciation of filling in space. There is a metaphorical element that becomes evident in the ending. How do we fill the spaces in our lives—and what spaces will remain unfilled?

The longest and most complex of the films is Revolting Rhymes (30 minutes) by Jakob Schuh and Jan Lachauer. It is based on Roald Dahl’s retelling for familiar fairy tales. In this version, a wolf meets a babysitter in a coffeeshop and tells her the sad stories of the demise of his nephews. We recognize the stories of Little Red Ridinghood, Snow White, and the three little pigs, but of course the wolf has a much different perspective. The reimagining of these stories is filled with Dahl’s somewhat twisted (and I mean that as a compliment) sense of humor. Because it has a longer running time than the other nominees, it is able to delve a bit deeper into characters and give us new insights into the familiar stories.

As I said, I could probably make a case for any of these films being a worthy winner of the Oscar, but I’m going to go with the one that touched me the most—Dear Basketball. For runner-up I’ll go with Lou as the one that carries the best message in an entertaining format.

The Oscar Nominated Shorts will be playing in select theaters worldwide beginning February 9.

Photos courtesy of Shorts.tv

 

Oscar Watch – Best Live Action Short

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Each year, the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences recognizes the best of filmmaking with the Academy Awards, aka the Oscars. Among the films honored each year are three categories of short films. These are films that few people get to see (unless you go to festivals), but these films are just as worthy of recognition as the big-name films that everyone gets to see. Because they are short (maximum running time of forty minutes including credits), these films tell their stories with conciseness and clarity. Each year when I watch the films nominated for Oscar in short film categories I wish that distributors would package a short with each feature film. (Disney/Pixar does this very well.)

Five films have been nominated for Best Live Action Short.  It is an eclectic set of films including a comedy, some “ripped-from-the-headlines” type stories, and a children’s advocacy piece. Four of the films are based or inspired by true events. Two are from the US, with others coming from Australia, the UK, and a German/Kenyan project.

DeKalb Elementary (21 minutes) from Reed Van Dyk is inspired by a 911 call placed from a school office when a man shows up with a gun. The film is essentially a two-character play between the school receptionist (Tarra Riggs) who is being held hostage by a gunman (Bo Mitchell) who seems intent on committing suicide-by-cop. The receptionist serves as the mediator between the gunman and the police over the telephone and in the process creates an opportunity for things to have a more positive outcome than we might expect. The specter of gunmen in schools is all too familiar to Americans. This short is not about finding an answer to the problem, but rather it shows us a human side of those involved that allows for hope.

In 1955, in one of the many heinous acts of racism in American history, fourteen-year-old Emmett Till was lynched for whistling at a white woman. Kevin Wilson, Jr.’s My Nephew Emmett (20 minutes) tells that story from the perspective of his uncle Mose Wright (L. B. Williams), a Mississippi preacher who sought to protect his nephew. We may feel that we have made progress from those days (and we have in many ways), but when we must still assert that Black Lives Matter and witness the reemergence of alt-right politics, this film serves as a reminder that we must continue to seek justice and reconciliation.

Derin Seale’s The Eleven O’Clock (13 minutes) has a Monty Python-esque feel to it. In a psychiatrist’s office two men (Josh Larson and Damon Herriman) have a therapy session. One is the actual psychiatrist, the other his new patient who has delusions that he is a therapist treating a man who believes he is a psychiatrist. But which is which? The film rests on witty dialogue as each man asserts his sanity and the other’s madness. It really is quite fun.

Dealing with disabilities is the focus of Chris Overton’s The Silent Child (20 minutes). Four-year-old Libby (Maisie Sly) is profoundly deaf, but her busy middle-class family only wants her to be normal. When a caring social worker introduces her to signing, Libby’s world opens up. But will her family open to her as well? Title cards at the end of the film share percentages of deaf children who are mainstreamed in schools without signing, effectively limiting their potential.

Watu Wote: All of Us (23 minutes) is a German/Kenyan film by Katja Benrath. The area between Kenya and Somalis has been troubled for many years by Al-Shabaab, an extremist, terrorist organization. Distrust in the area between Christians and Muslims runs deep. The film portrays an event from December 2015 when an Al-Shabaab group stopped a bus in a remote area and demanded that the Muslims on board identify the Christians so they could be killed. The Muslims however rejected the demands, even arguing the ways that this was not the way of Islam. Some of them even put their lives on the line to protect the Christians. Confronting evil is not as simple as standing up and saying no. But then again, sometimes it is.

My favorite among these nominees is Watu Wote, for the power of the storytelling and the message it shares that peace can sometimes happen between people even in the midst of terrible evil. My runner up, for sheer enjoyment, is The Eleven O’Clock.

The Oscar Nominated Shorts will be playing in select theaters worldwide beginning February 9.

Photos courtesy of Shorts.tv

I Am Not Your Negro – The More Things Change…

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“The story of the Negro in America is the story of America. It is not a pretty story.”

Can the words of an African-American writer who has been dead for three decades speak to the America of today? I Am Not Your Negro is almost entirely the words of James Baldwin, some from archival TV footage, some in voiceover by Samuel L. Jackson. The world that Baldwin speaks of is the America of the 1950s through 1970s. His words are augmented by news and TV footage of that time and by movie clips that reflect that time period. But there are also news clips that reflect today’s America as well. We are asked to consider if Baldwin’s words are still applicable today.

Baldwin was an extremely articulate voice in matters of race. He also brought great insight into an issue that was more than just about skin color. When we see him in archival footage he speaks in an almost cerebral manner about issues that are very visceral. We can sense an anger within him, yet he holds that back in order to speak in words that can be heard and appreciated for their intelligence more than merely as rhetoric. The voiceover (taken from his writings) have the same tone; they are not emotionless, but the passion is always just a touch under the surface.

Viewers might think that this is essentially a work about history. It is after all about a different period in American history, told in the words of a man who has long since passed. The violence of the racial struggle of that time is brought forth vividly in the archival footage. It also comes out in Baldwin’s words. He reminds us that African-Americans faced terrible violence at that time. The greatest examples of this are the deaths of Baldwin’s friends, Medgar Evers, Malcolm X, and Martin Luther King, Jr. in a five year period. But those deaths echo a broader vicious atmosphere that confronted schoolgirls seeking to go to school and men and women who sought the rights that belonged to them. Baldwin rightly notes that violence and anger are present in both white and black citizens throughout this struggle.

Of course, in 2017 we have made progress in racial matters. Integration is no longer a matter being fought school by school. Even with last year’s “Oscars so white” controversy, people of color are far more represented in today’s arts and media than film after film with Sidney Poitier in that era. Many even spoke of a post-racial society with the election of Barak Obama in 2008. But when we hear Baldwin’s words, we quickly understand that at a foundational level, little has changed in the last few decades. His words, spoken so long ago, still resonate in a world in which we have to be reminded that black lives matter and in which people of color continue to suffer unproportionately from poverty and incarceration. Baldwin’s understanding of the fears and rage of both White and Black are still just as valid today as they were when he spoke and wrote about them.

The takeaway for this film is that even though we do indeed live in a different time, there are still far too many similarities with those past years for us to ignore the racial issues that still exist in our society. For those who desire to understand the ongoing struggle that racism represents, I Am Not Your Negro is a good starting place.

Photos courtesy of Magnolia Pictures