Organizers of Filmfort 2022 delivered on the promise of a bright, wacky, and weird lineup for the second block of short films on the screening schedule. And there was barely a chair to be found when lights dimmed for the start of the 7-film session.
Scam Likely (comedy)
The Orange Candidate (documentary…well, you decide)
Gottaroli (documentary)
Little Creep (animation)
Cylinder Days (animation)
Meet Daddy (comedy)
Our Mine (tragicomedy)
The audience responded with laughs and chatter to ‘Scam Likely,’ ‘Meet Daddy,’ and ‘The Orange Candidate,’ and directors and actors Collin Insley, Marc Ewins, Elliot Norton of ‘Scam Likely;’ Ryan Weibush of ‘The Orange Candidate;’ and Paul K Oh of ‘Meet Daddy’ were on hand for a fun post-screening Q&A session. Collin Insley’s dry sense of humor created delightful confusion, making him a filmmaker to follow for this indie film lover.
The brightest, wackiest, and weirdest of the bunch, however, is arguably ‘Our Mine.’ Pitched as ecofeminist tragicomedy, it is a brilliant expression of creativity written and directed by Shayna Strype.
Strype describes herself as an “interdisciplinary artist working in film, animation, live performance, and puppetry,” and ‘Our Mine’ puts all of it on full display. From my seat at the back of the room, I couldn’t help but watch the audience watch the film. We were all all in. Whether it was for the message or the execution, it is a thoroughly engaging film that continues to play on the screen of the mind long after its credits roll and the house lights go up.
It comes as no surprise that to date it has won a Jury Citation Award at the Thomas Edison Film Festival, Best Experimental Film at the Brooklyn Film Festival, and Best Experimental Film at the Dumbo Film Festival.
If this aptly named category block is on next year’s schedule, I’ll be the first in line for a seat.
To watch available film trailers for this odd and outstanding collection of shorts, click the film title: ‘The Orange Candidate’ and ‘Our Mine.’
Photo Attributions
Filmfort Sign Cristen Iris
“Our Mine” Film Poster
