Shorts 6: Youth Works
Description
This collection of accomplished short documentary, narrative and animated films will leave you confident that the future of cinema is very much alive and well. Come experience a cinematic world full of new ideas, fresh perspectives, masterful technical skills and unique visions unclouded by age and cynicism. Just think, someday you could say you knew these rising stars before they were famous!
Recommended for ages 11 and up
Cupcakes
This delightfully sweet tale of young love and desire unfolds during a high-pressure school cake-baking exam. Not to be confused with that other baking export, The Great British Bake Off. (Charlotte Dolman, UK 2013, 4 min)
Godong’s Party
A party just isn’t complete without cocktails, cats, dogs and pop music. This rollicking hand-drawn adventure brings them all to life. (Seona Khil, South Korea 2014, 6 min) In English and Korean with English subtitles.
Keep It Clean
This experiment in film noir tells the story of an odd, neurotic clean freak and a greasy, disgusting salesman. Only one will survive. (Matthew Rivera, Evan Sennett, USA 2014, 11 min)
Kers
A young woman deals with the taboo of being a graffiti artist. Braving the public’s criticizing eye, she reveals her talents and takes us through the struggles she faces in her art form. (Alexia Salingaros, USA 2014, 5 min)
Not Just a Tree: Friends of the Urban Forest
A look at some of the enriching work being done by Friends of the Urban Forest (FUF), a non-profit based in San Francisco, that teaches teenagers how to plant and maintain trees in urban settings through their Green Teens program. (Reyna Colt-Lacayo, Marwaun Brooks, Walden Smith, Mauricio Romero, USA 2014, 7 min)
This is a Cinema by the Bay film.
The Off / Season
This visually striking documentary follows record-holding free agent Kahlil Bel, who after losing his job, spirals into obsession to reclaim former glory and return to the NFL. (Lance Oppenheim, USA 2014, 11 min)
Sophia
Take a glimpse into the creative mind of Sophia Higman, a talented young musician who uses her skills on over six different instruments to play bluegrass and Swedish folk music. (Lukas Dong, USA/Sweden 2014, 10 min) In English and Swedish with English subtitles.
Stranded
A broken-down school bus leads a young performer down an unsettling road in a quest for perfection. (Clio Gevirtz, USA 2014, 10 min)
This is a Cinema by the Bay film.
Two and a Quarter Minutes
What goes through one’s mind in the two-and-a-quarter minutes it takes on average for a person to drown? For a young boy, it’s plenty of time to closely examine his life and what the future holds in store. (Joshua Ovalle, USA 2014, 7 min)
The Waiting Game
An uninspired young writer gains experience in life after the loss of a family member and learns how to find purpose again. (Maria Alvarez, USA/Netherlands 2014, 8 min)
—Keith Zwolfer