What is love? A contract of marriage? A smile between mother and child? A bond of friendship that lasts through the decades? Romantic or otherwise, love is a rare and precious thing. The stories collected here are about people finding love and going to extreme measures to protect the ones they love.
Estimated total run time: 90 minutes
[Note censorship ratings to be advised. Please contact your cinema for details.]
The Wilding
New Zealand Premiere
Drama, 16 mins, Aus
Dir./Writer Grant Scicluna Prod. Jannine Barnes
When juvenile inmate Malcolm is offered a chance at parole, he is torn between his chance for freedom and protecting the one he loves.
El Cortejo (The Courtship)
New Zealand Premiere
Drama, 14 mins, Spain
Dir./Prod./Writer Marina Seresesk
Capi is the oldest gravedigger in the cemetery. Used to working amidst the suffering of others and the jokes of his colleagues, there is only one person capable of taking him out of his daily routine.
Gemalogia
New Zealand Premiere
Romance, 11 mins, Spain
Dir./Prod. Rick Limentani Writer Rebeca Cobos & Rick Limentani
The whimsical tale of a diamond expert who falls in love and discovers that imperfections are the very thing that make something or someone uniquely perfect.
Ellen is Leaving
Romance, 16 mins, NZ
Dir. Michelle Savill Prod. Desray Armstrong Writer Marthy Hardy-Ward
On the eve of departing overseas, Ellen makes the fateful decision to gift her boyfriend to another girl.
This is Libby
World Premiere
Romantic Comedy, 11 mins, NZ
Dir. Ruby Railey Prod. UNITEC Writer Lucy Zee
Libby decides it is time to find someone to share her life with, and sets about dating up a storm. But of course, it’s not that easy.
Andy
New Zealand Premiere
Drama, 6 mins, NZ
Dir. Jordan Dodson & Bryan Lee Hudkins Prod. Alix Whittaker & Bryan Lee Hudkins Writer Oliver Page
An unlikely meeting in a crowded cinema forces old acquaintances to address their shared past; his name is Andy.
Tatau
Drama, 16 mins, NZ
Dir./Writer Chantelle Burgoyne Prod. Zanna Gillespie, Graeme E. Bibby & Chantelle Burgoyne
Siaki, an elderly Samoan man struggles to come to terms with the lifelong shame of having an incomplete traditional tattoo and the new shame of now losing his sight.
[...] Every now and then a festival program comes along that we are just made for – like this one – Love and Other Catastrophes at Show Me Shorts. We’ll be touring around NZ in the next couple of weeks so kiwi friends check the dates here. [...]