One of the El Dorado Film Festival’s highlights is its strong support of short films from around the world. And this year’s lineup may be their best yet. Short Film Block #1 offered festivalgoers a curated collection of eight short films that spanned different genres and showcased several fresh and exciting voices. It made for a great kick-off the second full day of the festival.
Here are a few impressions out of the eight films included in the block…
An imaginative and unexpectedly tender story lies of the heart of “Patina”, a subtle blend of life-affirming drama and time-hopping science-fiction from writer-director Jake Hull. Charles John Wilson plays 12-year-old Jackson who begrudgingly joins his father at a nursing home to visit his grandpa on his 84th birthday. It’s there that Jackson has a surprise encounter with a “giant” elderly woman named Patina (Casey Camp-Horinek) who’s looking for her lost pocket watch. Jackson ends up finding her cherished heirloom which transports him back in time where he meets someone who will forever change his life. “Patina” offers a moving examination of memories and the connections we make through them.
VERDICT- 3.5/5
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“Fireflies in the Dusk” is an offbeat time-travelling culture clash comedy that seems custom-made for a feature film adaptation. Writer-director Jonathan Hammond transports us back in time to the Victorian Era where Charlotte (Emily Gross) is being pushed by her mother Edith (Amy Yasbeck) to marry the stiffly proper Cecil (Hale Appleman). But her heart belongs to another – a goofball from our modern day named Zach (Nick Ballard). The two exchange love letters through a magic, time traveling desk drawer. But when a desperate Charlotte crosses over through time, the story takes some wild turns. The story doesn’t always make sense and it milks some jokes dry. But the chaos keeps you glued to the screen, even as the whole thing threatens to fly off the rails.
VERDICT – 3/5
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Jonah Haber’s “We Were” is an emotionally rich meditation on the trajectory of life and love as seen through the reflections of a brokenhearted man named David (Kevin Romano). We peer back to the tender affection that 10-year-old David shared with a young girl named Janelle (Vivienne Cvetkovski). We then see him in high school with his first true love, Amy (Amanda Thamage). And then we visit his adult years with his girlfriend Mia (Jessa Richer). But when David and Mia’s relationship falls apart, all he’s left with are the echoes of bittersweet memories that hearken back to some of the best and worst times in his life. Haber examines it all through an evocative lens and with the kind of emotional honesty that should speak to anyone’s heart.
Keith & the Movies 