By: Henry J. Fromage –
Behold, the great International Documentary Association short film voting extravaganza 2024. Might see some of these at the Oscars.
664. Nine Easy Dances
This short is sees a young woman recast her own parents in a dramatization of their lives together (which doesn’t really bother Mom much, but Dad’s an actor and maybe a little sad). It’s also supposed to be a choreographed dance, so there’s that. This touching, amusing portrait adds unfortunate pathos when Mom’s cancer metastasizes, although their humanity shines through despite it all. Two Beers.
665. Modern Goose
This is indeed about geese, Canadian geese to be specific. The camera just sits back and observes a flock of them next to a highway, which adds some life and very graphic death stakes. A necessarily extremely adaptable animal, the juxtaposition of nature and smoggy modernity is nonetheless stark and striking. Two Beers.
666. Amma ki Katha
An Indian tone poem, this one fixates on children being raised in Hindu faith and tales, but also juxtaposes how that same belief is being weaponized to support the authoritarian leanings of an increasingly powerful nationalist movement. Three Beers.
667. The Sparkle
This short follows a group of Carnies around Quebec as they run their fair in idyllic neon-lit summer nights. In the final summer for one, who intends to quit and pursue his dream of searching for precious stones, the experience that would be freeing to many begins to sour. Three Beers.
668. Gaza Diaries
This urgent documentary gleans footage from five brave young people living right now under constant bombardment in Gaza. There’s no politics on display here, just raw survival instincts and earnest pleas for it all to stop, if only for them or their small brothers and sister to spend a single night without mortal fear. Two Beers.
669. Instruments of a Beating Heart
My favorite of the bunch also happened to land the top Documentary Short prize at IDA. An absolutely adorable Japanese first-grader dearly wants a part in her classes “Ode to Joy” performance for the incoming new class. There’s surprisingly relevant lessons in perseverance and discipline here, in such a very Japanese way, but these kids are what it’s all about. A Toast.
670. Until He’s Back
This short portrays a particular kind of horrific limbo- no longer waiting for news of the son who’s chosen to take the treacherous sea passage to Europe in search of a new life, or even after learning that he has not made it, but now waiting an interminable time to accept his body back to bury him properly. This extremely affecting documentary shows the good people on both sides of the Straight of Gibraltar trying to do right by the dead. A Toast.
671. The Poem We Sang
Another artsier one, this one interweaves beautiful imagery with a poem about the Palestinian struggle, and the filmmaker’s family’s experiences from the same, from 1948 to 1967 to not quite today, their already having left their homeland in search for a new, more accepting one. Three Beers.
672. A Movement Against the Transparency of the Stars of the Seas
Did I say artsy? This one is shot entirely in split-screen, juxtaposing imagery (and more challengingly, audio) between vibrant scenes of the Philippines and the lives of Filipina domestic workers elsewhere in the world. It’s an approach that’s easy to appreciate intellectually, if not always super easy to parse IRL (which is entirely the point, I understand). Three Beers.
673. A Move
This Iranian short sees a modern young woman come to Iran to help her family move from their long-term home to another. She comes as she is- no hijab, short hair- which challenges her relatives, but also seems to energize the younger woman in a country that seems on the cusp of modernity, if not for reactionary forces that are increasingly resorting to violence. Recent legislation does not give much hope in the short term, but the moral arc of the universe… Two Beers.
674. Old Lesbians
This is just fun as a bunch of, well, old lesbians, recount old battle tales of their struggle for justice and fair treatment- “Herstory”, as they call it. That might tweak some overly sensitive anti-PC ears, but when it’s coming from a bunch of frankly adorable Grandmas (not all actually Grandmas, but still), just sit at their knee and listen awhile. Two Beers.
675. Bad Hostage
Speaking of badass Grandmas, Michaela Madden stands undaunted today, a woman who was taken hostage in her home with her children in 1973, then soon came to realize the people most likely to get her killed were the Police surrounding the house. This harrowing story is juxtaposed with the true story of Stockholm Syndrome, as well as the Patty Hearst story (which, of course, happened very far from Sweden). The common thread? Law enforcement more focused on winning whatever rules of engagement they are playing under than the safety of hostages or anyone around them. This easily could be a feature (and I’d be all for stretching it out to one). Two Beers.
676. Ted & Noel
Another LGBTQ story of those who’ve gone through the wars, Ted & Noel were a couple for decades, until Noel’s dementia took him. It was the homophobic treatment he received in his nursing home that is truly tragic, though, and now a year later Ted, a leading figure in London’s civil rights movements that clearly still have miles to go, is in a crisis of faith. Three Beers.
677. OUTCRY: Alchemists of Rage
Whitney Bradshaw photographs women mid-scream in group therapy sessions, which produces both striking images and a bit of a snowballing movement since, if you haven’t heard, Women’s Rights in the United States are on a bit of a backslide these days. The Women are Angry. Take heed. Three Beers.
678. Here We Are
Another artsier one (read: harder to follow), this one combines imagery across the last century of Thai history in a film within a film watched by a housekeeper and made by her daughter. These images remind the mother of her own story of immigration from countryside to city. Three Beers.
679. Squid Fleet
This one is an elliptical but always visually striking story of the massive Chinese squid boats combing the continent’s seabeds for the delicacy. It’s a striking and cruel world, shot like a Harkonnen invasion, one with implications for all of the life caught up in it, human or aquatic. Two Beers.
680. The Passing
This affecting portrait of a shaggy veterinarian who has been doing housecalls for over 30 years, forming special bonds with both pets and their owners, which is especially beautiful and heartrending when the journey of a pet is nearing an end. Pet-owners who are prone to tears, beware. Two Beers.
681. The Medallion
This beautifully shot documentary reunite a filmmaker daughter and her mother (a theme this year!) in Ethiopia, where after the joy of meeting the mother sets to recount her experiences during the Red Terror, a cleansing of young intellectuals and others deemed threatening to the new regime, which claimed the lives of between 10,000 and 980,000 in 2 years. How do more people not know about this, indeed. Two Beers.
682. In Flanders Fields
This was the least successful of the bunch of nominees and finalists (in which group this one fell) for me. Shining light on the 1.4 million Indian conscripts that fought in WWI for the British Empire is a worthwhile subject, but the mixed media approach here just didn’t hit the mark, at least for me. Four Beers.
683. ENCHUKUNOTO (The Return)
This doc sees another young female filmmaker returning to her people, this time the Maasai. Her perspective on her joint belonging and otherness, the ways tourism can help and hinder her people, and the effects of climate change are all fascinating- another one I’d love to see expounded on at feature length. Two Beers
684. Margie Soudek’s Salt and Pepper Shakers
I went ahead and included a short that Sundance sent me as they do. This one has a young female filmmaker letting her grandmother tell the story of her pretty damn sweet (and extensive!) salt and pepper shaker collection, and bringing in some of the sweet special effects experience she herself has to zazz it up a bit. Just a joy. Two Beers.
685. Take Me Home
Another free short film courtesy of my Sundance membership, this one is a dramatic one about a differently abled young woman living with her aging mother who places a call to her sister when mother seems to stop moving. Her sister is forced to come home and set all of their affairs in order. A well-acted if dramatically straightforward short. Three Beers.
