As with many film festivals, Fantasia has a ton of short films playing every single year. Here is but a small selection of these:
astroNots (2024)
A commander sits ready to launch with his pilot who suddenly becomes very honest, too honest even. Written by Adam Dunn and Aaron Glenane and directed by Dunn, this 10-minute short is a fantastic comedy where the two characters involve have a conversation. There isn’t much action, but the two of them are incredibly funny and the shorts makes the most of its runtime. Dunn and Glenane also play the two leads beautifully well, showing a wide range of emotions and nuances in a frustrating situation, leading to wanting just a little bit more. astroNots is beautifully shot, edited, and designed. It’s a short that shows how to make an effective conversation into a short film that catches the attention and doesn’t let it go.
Faces (2024)
An entity joins a group of friends without being noticed. Soon, they find their way into a party where they can really do some damage. Written and directed by Blake Simon, this short feels like it is part of a much bigger story, something that could easily become a feature film and expand on the being’s search for… something. Here, the 14 minutes the film is given is enough to whet the appetite and make the viewer want more. The cast is solid, the images are pretty, the effects work. The film has a few influences that are obvious (possibly Maniac original and remake and The Stylist), giving off an air of old school horror set in modern times. This is one to look for on the fest circuit and if it became a feature film.
Hell is a Teenage Girl (2024)
As Halloween approaches, a town haunted by a serial killer prepares for safety, but one teenager decides that enough is enough as she takes things in her own hands. A wee bit reminiscent of Night of the Slasher, this one takes a new twist on the story and goes in a different direction, making it similar, but different enough. Written and directed by Stephen Sawchuk, Hell is a Teenage Girl is entertaining and makes the most of it short runtime. Lead Skylar Radzion is fantastic, and the supporting cast works quite well with and around her. The cinematography looks good, the sound is on point, this is one strong slasher short film.
Dirty Bad Wrong (2023)
A mother trying to make ends meet loses her bag and must do something she previously did not want to so that she can make her son happy on his birthday. Written and directed by Erica Orofino, this short has a message here about doing what one must’s, self-respect, and what is too far. Unfortunately, some of it seems to be going one way about what this mother is doing and some of it seems to be going in the opposite direction. The film doesn’t really feel like it’s putting judgment on the act, but something feels like it kind of is. This leads to losing a bit of its effectiveness. That being said, while the writing and direction may seem a bit contradictory to themselves, the performances are solid with Michaela Kurimsky being absolutely fantastic in the part of the conflicted mother. This short may require more than one viewing to fully connect the dots and see what it is trying to say exactly (yes, some of that messaging is clear, but not all of it, so it’s difficult to pinpoint).
Berta
From writer/director Lucía Forner Segarra (who’s short Dana we covered here) and executive produced by Patricia Chica, Berta is Forner Segarra’s follow-up to both Dana and Marta, her previous films where women exact revenge on men who have wronged them or other women. Berta’s story is more personal to the lead character and her revenge is more direct, making her victimizer suffer. Here, a lot of the film is more cerebral than physical, eventually going towards the more physical side of things. There is a balance of things here that is carefully planned and achieved. The performance by Nerea Barros as Berta is strong and powerful with a touch of emotions, giving the character a not-to-be-messed-with feel. Her work here is shot beautifully well by Claudia Rodríguez who makes it all look bright and easy to watch while the action gets increasingly stressful. This is a solid short and a great follow-up to Dana.
This year the Fantasia International Film Festival ran in Montreal from July 18th to August 4th.