Day Four rolls around and I’m sure you get the drift. Another cracking day of features and shorts, so here we are talking about them. Jules and Dolores Between Us El Pastor UK Shorts European Shorts An Interview: Szymon Kapeniak
Raindance Day Four
UK Shorts
Dunroamin: 4/5 Nominated for: Best UK Short Film Oliver S. Milburn’s unnerving Dunroamin takes everything that is quintessentially British and puts it, as you might expect, in the form of a black comedy. The two leads were outstanding in their portrayal of a seller and a buyer with an unknown history, deeply evocative of BBC’s Inside No. 9; a familiar space becomes a claustrophobic and wholly uneasy scenario – and that of course is a good thing. The dialogue was ambiguous and only revealed as much as was necessary, constantly…
El Pastor
Nominated for: In Competition Feature Films Anselmo is a solitary Spanish shepherd, but he is not lonely. He has his faithful dog Pillo. He has his routine: tending to the sheep, trips to the library, nightly drink at the bar. Born in the shack in which he lives and, by and large, content with his lot. The embodiment of the dignity of labour. The sort of good man who would not engage you in frivolous chatter at the bar but you are glad he is there nonetheless. Anselmo looks like…
Between Us
Nominated for: In Competition Feature Films Between Us tackles the issues of what happens following the ‘happily ever after’. It follows a bohemian couple, Dianne (Olivia Thirlby) and Henry (Ben Feldman), who are both starting to question whether they are suited for each other. With slightly different worldviews, each of them finds another person who seems to be more ideal but who are ultimately disappointing. The film is an honest depiction of a long-term relationship in which the ‘spark’ seems to have gone, but where ultimately the couple do love…
European Shorts
Nkosi Coiffure 3/5 This Belgian short creates the perfect opportunity for many views to come together to discuss abortion. Set in an African salon following the argument of 34 year old Eva and her boyfriend, the women inside rally around the shaken lead and uncover precisely what the spat was about. Initially they discuss the roles men and women have in relationships – an enjoyably varied discussion – and find their way to the crux of Nkosi Coiffure, the choice of whether or not to keep a child. The film…
An Interview: Szymon Kapeniak
Szymon Kapeniak, director of Moloch, met with James Baxter-Derrington and Elliot Burr prior to its screening to discuss everything that went in to the production, from writing to directing, and his own history with the picture. The film has been nominated for Best Short Film of the festival, how was getting that recognition? Was that an expected outcome or quite a nice surprise? No, no, completely not expected! [laughter] I really hoped, obviously, I always hoped the movie will be liked be people when they watch it, but, to be honest,…
Jules and Dolores
Nominated for: In Competition Feature Films Brazilians are universally known for their passion, and what better way to celebrate that passion than with Caito Ortiz’s sensational romp Jules and Dolores (‘O Roubo Da Taca’). It’s an hour and a half of pure joy – a crime caper that absolutely zooms by, celebrating Brazil’s rich, colourful neighbourhoods and the country’s love for the beautiful game. We learn at the start that ‘some of this actually happened’, a blasé, tongue-in-cheek addition to what is a wholly complete work. When cheeky chappy…
Raindance Day Three
Day Three. More films. More interviews. More everything. Raindance is really getting into it’s stride now, so hopefully we are too. A Double Life An Interview: Joaquin Del Paso & Lucy Pawlak Growing Up Coy An Interview: Eric Juhola International Shorts 1 International Shorts 2
An Interview: Eric Juhola
Clare Clarke and James Baxter-Derrington have got used to this all interviewing stuff recently and were lucky enough to chat with Eric Juhola about his documentary ‘Growing Up Coy’. Eric gives an insight into the making of a three year on-and-off feature and the difficulties he faced when attempting to document such a difficult topic with a young family. We thank him for giving us his time. What drew you to transgender issues to start with? Well, in the United States anyway there’s been a lot of progress with gay…
Growing Up Coy
Nominated for: Best Documentary Feature Growing Up Coy is a documentary with both political and social impact. It focuses on the Mathis family, in particular their transgender daughter Coy and her right to use the school bathroom of the gender she identifies with. As their son Max says simply during the movie, ‘it’s about Coy, as a boy, turning into a girl’, and there’s something about seeing the other Mathis children being so unfazed by Coy’s transition that is truly striking. The documentary is then not only about the landmark…