TheWrap is pleased to announce the 12 finalists for its fourth annual ShortList Film festival, which launches today on www.shortlistfilmfestival.com and runs through August 18, 2015.
The 12 finalists include shorts prize winners from the Sundance Film Festival, Tribeca, Slamdance, Sundance London, Cinequest, Los Angeles Film Festival, Palm Springs Shortfest and other prestigious festivals. The films and filmmakers come from the United States, China, Chile, Hungary, Iran, Italy, Sweden, United Kingdom and elsewhere around the globe.
The ShortList showcases 12 award-winning short films hand-picked from world’s top film festivals of the past year. The shorts are available now through August 18th for online voting at http://shortlistfilmfestival.com/films.
We are pleased to announce this year’s distinguished jury including: Craig Kestel, Motion Picture Agent, WME; documentarian Brett Morgen (“Montage of Heck”); Keith Simanton, Film Editor, IMDb; producer Alicia Van Couvering (“Digging for Fire,” “Cop Car”); Victor Moyers, president of production, Broad Green Pictures.
The jury will vote on the Industry Prize, sponsored by EPIX.
The shorts will also air on the EPIX network August 13 at 7pm ET/4pm PT and again in EPIX’s Hits on August 13 12 midnight ET/August 13 9pm PT.
The Audience Prize sponsored by YouTube winner will receive a $10,000 budget to make a short film with world-class production partner 1st Ave Machine for a slot on Field Day – a new YouTube channel focused on experimentation: connecting creators to resources and opportunities, and allowing them to try something new with a platform to showcase their work. The Industry Prize winner, sponsored by Epix, will receive $5,000 cash prize at an awards ceremony on August 18 at the YouTube Space LA.
This year the ShortList has added a new category for an original film. The Creators League prize launched in partnership with the Creators League, a content initiative led by Pepsi, will include a $5,000 cash prize and an artist-in-residence status with a $15,000 living stipend, plus an invitation to be the next Artist in Residence at Creator League’s New York Studio. The winner will be chosen by Pepsi’s Creators League.
All winners will each receive a Los Angeles permit waiver valued at $625 courtesy of of FilmLA.
The ShortList is proudly sponsored by Pepsi, Creators League, EPIX, MTV, YouTube, Broad Green Pictures and FilmLA.
The finalists in the awards category:
The Baby
Directed by: Ali Asgari
Iran/Italy, 15 Minutes
Narges and her friend have just a few hours to find someone to take care of her baby for some days.
Bear Story
Directed by: Gabriel Osorio
Chile, 10 Minutes
An old, melancholy bear tells his life story through a mechanical diorama
Drama
Directed by: Guan Tian
China/USA, 11 Minutes
A young couple having sex in a car realizes that there are no more condoms left…
German Shepherd
Directed by: Nila Bergendal
Sweden, 9 Minutes
Are we born to do good or are we here just to save ourselves? This animated film provides disconcerting answers.
Myrna The Monster
Directed by: Ian Samuels
USA, 14 Minutes
A heartbroken alien dreamer from the moon transitions into young adult life in Los Angeles like any other 20 something.
Mulignans
Directed by: Shaka King
USA, 6 Minutes
mulignan(s)/moo.lin.yan(s)/
n. 1. Italian‐American slang for ni**er.
Derived from Italian dialect word for eggplant.
See also moolie.
*source: urban dictionary and every mob movie ever
One Year Lease
Directed by: Brian Bolster
USA, 11 Minutes
Told almost entirely through voicemail messages, One Year Lease documents the travails of Brian, Thomas and Casper as they endure a year-long sentence with Rita, the cat-loving landlady.
Audience Awards, Netherlands International Film Festival ’14
The Pride of Strathmoor
Directed by: Einar Baldvin
USA, 9 Minutes
Extracts from the journal of Pastor John Deitman, Strathmoor, Georgia. June & July, 1927
Russian Roulette
Directed by: Ben Aston
UK, 5 Minutes
London seems a little less lonely when Lucy meets a libidinous cosmonaut on chat roulette…
Send
Directed by: Peter Vack
USA, 9 Minutes
Separated for the summer, the only way for a teenage girl to communicate with her boyfriend is over the Internet.
Smilf
Directed by: Frankie Shaw
USA, 9 Minutes
A young single mother struggles to balance her old life of freedom with her new one as a mom. It all comes to a head during one particular naptime when Bridgette invites an old friend over for a visit.
Symphony No.42
Directed by: Réka Bucsi
Hungary, 10 Minutes
The film applies an unconventional narrative. It presents a subjective world through 47 scenes. Small events, interlaced by associations, express the irrational coherence of our surroundings. The surreal situations are based on the interactions of humans and nature. Differences between human and animal diminish, everyone is doing their jobs and leaving traces. Every small movement affects another, building an unpredictable, irrational system.
The finalists in the Creators League category:
100 Second Chances
Directed by: Drew Dickler, Jakob Hochendoner
USA, 5 Minutes
Employment is the most important factor for those who successfully re-enter society after prison. Edwins Restaurant offers those trying to make this difficult transition an opportunity to succeed.
1st Squad, 3rd Platoon
Directed by: The Rauch Brothers
USA, 4 Minutes
In August 2005, Marine Lance Cpl. Travis Williams and his squad were sent on a rescue mission in Barwanah, Iraq. En route, their vehicle was hit by a roadside bomb. Of Travis’ entire 12-person team, he alone survived. Here, Travis reflects on the hours and days after the explosion, as well as his life now, and pays tribute to the men he left behind.
Meghan Is On A Bender
Directed by: Chioke Nassor
UK, 3 Minutes
Girl meets boy, boy robs girl, girl drinks a lot and makes dubious decisions.
The 2015 festival is programmed by Landon Zakheim. Viewers can also screen the films at any time during the festival: http://shortlistfilmfestival.com and vote from August 4 – 18.
About The ShortList:
The ShortList (http://shortlistfilmfestival.com) represents the best of the best of filmmaking in the format that young filmmakers and enthusiasts use most often: shorts. The ShortList showcases 12 award-winning short films hand-picked from world’s top film festivals of the past year. An Audience Award is chosen by viewers’ online votes and a Jury Prize is chosen by the Industry jury, a five-person panel of veteran independent film professionals. A new ShortList category, The Creators League prize launches in partnership with the Creators League seeking a new an original short up to five minutes. Winning films will be announced at a special live event on August 18 in Los Angeles and will air on the EPIX network.
