Anastasia Norenko’s On the Third Step is a 19-minute Russian crime thriller about a hit gone wrong. Seen in flashbacks, the narrative focus is on finding the rat in the three-member team. The cast is almost exclusively men, and powerful ones at that. It shows in the camerawork; whether they are shot at eye-level or… Continue reading On the Third Step: A Call, A Missed Shot, and the Unlikely Arrival of the Cops
Author: Indie Shorts Mag Team
Autumn Never Dies: Love and Heartbreak for a Simple Ostrich
Chris Quick’s 26-minute comedy Autumn Never Dies is the sequel to The Greyness of Autumn, centred on the life and misadventures of Danny the ostrich and Nelson the monkey. In Autumn Never Dies, Danny tries to move past his heartbreak, while Nelson moves deeper into his shenanigans. Co-written by Andy S. McEwan, the film enjoys… Continue reading Autumn Never Dies: Love and Heartbreak for a Simple Ostrich
Gutted: A Performance of Masculinity and the Price of it
Jacob Isaiah Kelly’s Gutted examines what it means to be a good man, a good boyfriend and an ideal supporter when put to the test by a time of crisis. At the ironical centre of the story is Jack, a man trying to be his best for his girlfriend who was assaulted mere days ago. … Continue reading Gutted: A Performance of Masculinity and the Price of it
Is Your Netflix Subscription Worth It?
For a while now, Netflix has monopolized the online streaming market. For years, the American streaming service remained the pack’s leader, churning countless films, series and short films for fans globally. However, earlier this year, Netflix made headlines when it was revealed that it had lost over a million subscribers worldwide for the first time… Continue reading Is Your Netflix Subscription Worth It?
The Other Woman: Questions of Morality Around Lust, and Questioning Domesticity
Cameron Lee Horace’s The Other Woman chronicles the life of a septuagenarian woman in a nursing home in 2004, her life narrated by her snarky younger self. Twenty-two minutes long, the film follows as Margaret recounts the pleasures of her life, that ‘Maisie’ now seems completely separated from. Rescued from her third floor apartment, no… Continue reading The Other Woman: Questions of Morality Around Lust, and Questioning Domesticity
The Pearl: Greed, Necessity, and Disasters Before and After
Terji Mohr’s The Pearl is a Faroese film that swiftly unfolds the effects of greed clashing with poverty, with the 1992 financial crisis serving as backdrop. Two men on a boat demonstrate this tension and conflict with disastrous results that extend well beyond them. The stage is set with the radio news announcing statistics of… Continue reading The Pearl: Greed, Necessity, and Disasters Before and After
Love is a Fire: Body Horror Through Everyday Things
Sofie Somoroff’s Love is a Fire deals with the horrific body. Following a couple who has just moved into a new place, the film takes great pleasure in using body horror to illustrate larger, overarching problems that plague the two. Olivia (Celina Bernstein) develops a yeast infection just after the two make the move. Parallely,… Continue reading Love is a Fire: Body Horror Through Everyday Things
Grounded: Escaping a Secure Place that is no Longer Secure
Jesse Richards’ Grounded, written by Josephine Croft, is a claustrophobic thriller following a woman who wakes up to find the aeroplane deserted and herself locked in. The question is, is she truly alone? And which is worse? A number of factors are responsible for Anne’s (played by Croft) current predicament. She fell into a deep… Continue reading Grounded: Escaping a Secure Place that is no Longer Secure
Through the Stars: Leaving Homes that are Not
Ariel Danziger’s sci-fi Through the Stars, written by Ryan Marth, is a teenager’s act of self-preservation in the face of a steadily diminishing scope to hold on to her early childhood or live freely in the present. So when Casey begins to slice through time and space, it is in pursuit of the freedom no… Continue reading Through the Stars: Leaving Homes that are Not
Unbridaled: Post-Bachelorette Party Disasters in Vermont
Chelsea B. Lockie’s Unbridaled (written by Thom Harp) is the quintessential slapstick comedy. Centred around two best friends and stepsisters, the film follows as they try to figure out what happened at the previous night’s bachelorette party and how to get to the wedding in time. Along the way, tensions surface and their friendship is… Continue reading Unbridaled: Post-Bachelorette Party Disasters in Vermont