Shorts
Reviews, previews and highlights of features and shorts from the myDylarama team and guest writers.
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Q&A with Mila Araoz, director of FILMS OF FURY - EFN CRITICS’ AWARD WINNER
20 October 2021, by Mydylarama teamA short documentary following a young couple as they prepare to make their first action film in El Alto, Bolivia. Films Of Fury won the Critics’ Choice Prize at the latest edition of Emerging Filmmakers Night. We chatted to Mila about her work. Well done for your win for Films Of Fury. What an original, offbeat and truly moving short film. Could you tell us more about its inception? How did you meet our protagonists? Why Bolivia? I am half Bolivian, so I spend a lot of time in the (...) -
Warton’s war on Yemen, directed by Phil Miller
18 October 2021, by Abla KandalaftInvestigative journalism website Declassified UK) is back with this short doc. At only 26 minutes, it lays bare Britain’s complicity in the atrocities committed in Yemen, while the people on the ground in Warton are kept in the dark. Presenter Matt Kennard elicits a range of reactions. Some residents are just happy with the job creation that comes with the industry but others express sad and shock and remark that money is better spent dealing with the current misery and poverty plaguing (...) -
Floppy Toast with Drippy Butter, dir. by Paul Stainthorpe
3 September 2021, by Nia JonesEvery now and then we highlight a quality short that’s caught our attention. This one’s available to view online and is reviewed by writer Nia Jones. Floppy Toast with Drippy Butter A short film by Lone Pine Pictures Written by Simon Jefferson and Paul Stainthorpe A troubled, bullied teen, Chloe (Ellie Bindman) is struggling to cope with the situation at her new school. Finding her way in desperation to a bridge, she encounters a mysterious stranger who could offer her some hope, the (...) -
Q&A with Tiffany Tong, director of MOTH - EFN CRITICS’ AWARD WINNER
28 August 2021, by carrieAnimator Tiffany Tong won the Critics’ Choice Award at the last edition of Emerging Filmmakers Night for her short Moth. She tells us a bit more about the film and her background in animation. Moth is available to view online. There is so much to unpack in the 3 minute run-time of Moth. First of all, can you explain the choice of title? Moths are attracted to light, drawn to bright lights. It represents Hong Kong residents, seeking the light in the dark, like chasing hope in the dark. (...) -
Q&A with Zillah Bowes, director of STAYING - EFN AUDIENCE AWARD WINNER
10 June 2021, by Abla KandalaftZillah Bowes is a Welsh/English writer, director and photographer. She trained at the NFTS and has made films as a director and cinematographer, which have been shown worldwide. She won a John Brabourne Award from the Film and TV Charity in 2020. Her debut SMALL PROTESTS was nominated for a Grierson Award and won the Current Short Cuts Vimeo Award and Best Short Documentary at the London Independent Film Festival. As a cinematographer, her feature films include ENEMIES OF HAPPINESS, which (...) -
Interview with Charline Bourgeois-Tacquet
7 June 2021, by Abla Kandalaft, Brasserie du Court team, Clotilde CouturierIn light of Charline Bourgeois-Tacquet’s participation at this year’s Semaine de la Critique in Cannes, we thought we’d publish this interview we conducted with her in collaboration with the Brasserie du Court at the Clermont-Ferrand International Short Film Festival, where her short Pauline Asservie was in competition. A quirky, touching yet highly amusing little film that encapsulated the skills Charline is now deploying fully in her most recent work. -
Short of the Week: Stones in Hand by Mo’min Swaitat
7 June 2021, by Alexandra OlleyThis week, we thought we’d highlight this wonderfully engaging zero-budget short by Palestinian director Mo’min Swaitat free to watch on Youtube. Stones In Hand is an experimental docu-fiction based on the director’s experiences and memories of growing up in Jenin City in the West Bank. It’s an interesting and rough collage of archive footage, uprisings, scenes in London, music, and lengthier recollections based on the cast’s own memories of the homes they left behind, all combined to (...) -
I Am An Island, dir. by Damian Draven
7 May 2021, by Abla KandalaftJohnny drives home late one evening to spend time with his wife. He runs her a bath and goes to the kitchen to pour them both a glass of wine. We hear the disembodied voice of the wife shouting from the bathroom about a call from a producer whilst Johnny’s mobile is being constantly called by a woman driving and begging to speak to him. Thus begins the film’s opening sequence before things start to get confusing... Damian Draven is a production designer and director, beginning his (...) -
Interview with Denis Dobrovoda, director of Savage
19 April 2021, by Abena Clarke, Mydylarama teamDenis is the director of short film Savage, a dramatised account of the abhorrent but sadly little-known concept of human zoos, a practice that was part and parcel of Britain’s colonial empire. With great attention to detail and historical accuracy, Savage is an original, moving take on a phenomenon that plays an integral part in the development of modern institutionalised racism. Lead Florence Nzenwefi gives a touching and dignified performance as man cruelly uprooted from his home and (...) -
Interview with Audrey Jean-Baptiste and Maxime Jean-Baptiste, codirectors of Écoutez le battement de nos images
12 April 2021, by Clotilde CouturierIs your film mainly an account that you want handed down? How did you construct the voice-over? The film is essentially tied to my desire to breathe life back into the things that disappeared when the Guiana Space Centre was set up in Kourou in the 60s. To script the voice-over, we dipped into our close networks. For example, our father’s , who’s from Guiana himself. So we were able to exchange ideas in a trusting atmosphere, which helped elicit memories. We also met people whose (...)