This past weekend, I attended the 2014 edition of the Berkshire Shorts Film Festival, which showcases short films from local, independent filmmakers. Things kicked off with the humorous introductory short “Call an Ambulance”, and then moved onto “Model U.N.”, which I had the honor of working on as an editor and background extra.
The next three shorts were part of the Berkshire Filmmakers Challenge, and viewers were given the choice of voting for their favorite. First was “The Search”, which involved a search for the Dragon Balls (from the popular manga and anime series of the same name). Then there was “Welcome to World”, which had a humorous and somewhat subversive tone to it, but lacked any real focus. And then there was “Wake the Dead”, a horror-themed short which had a fittingly ominous tone, and was not only my favorite of the three, but was the audience’s, as well.
After an intermission, the next short shown was “Bach of the Antarctic”, which tells of the famed composer’s alleged days as an explorer. I can’t speak for the short’s historical accuracy, but I can say that it got a few good laughs out of me. Following it was “Alien Runners”, which had no dialogue, and involved a female runner’s encounter with a wolf, but the short was not particularly comprehensible.
The next film was actually a music video for War on Drugs’ “Red Eyes”, which depicted an offbeat talent show. And then there was perhaps my favorite film of the festival, “Love Letter”, which involved the fantasy of a young girl dealing with her parents’ divorce, which managed to be whimsical and creepy all at once. The next film, “Wartime”, involved a grandfather and grandson sharing stories of their days in service.
Perhaps the oddest entry in the festival was “Jellyfish Panda Water Larry Moving” – a nightmarish experimental film which is said to depict a young man’s psychological breakdown. Things got more light-hearted with another music video, this time one of Big Ghost’s “Medford Girls”, which depicted the band stuck in barren school, doing odd tasks. The festival closed out with the humorous “New in Town”, involving a man’s encounters with a very strange person.
All in all, I had a great time, and enjoyed seeing the works of aspiring filmmakers. Watching these films definitely made me want to advance my own plans for making movies, which is probably the highest compliment one could make.
– John Pannozzi
PS: While we wait for the above movies to load on YouTube, take a look at this hilarious 2-minute MUN Style short: