The team and I are super excited to be sharing with you our latest picks of the best short films from New Zealand and all around the world. We’ve received our largest number of entries ever this year, so the quality is top notch, and just quietly, we think the resulting line up is our strongest yet.
In this year’s line-up, and shortly on the screens of your cinema, you will find tales of wonder and delight, stories of heroes, explorers, love lost and battles won. Short films have an amazing way of distilling the essence of a story, and the best ones deliver a powerful emotional response to a character, place or predicament. We aim to have you laughing in delight, gasping in shock, grasping your cinema seat in fear, tearing up, squawking with surprise, or at least silently noting a shared moment. Maybe all of those.
Some interesting themes emerged from the selected films this year, as filmmakers turn powerful moments into compelling shorts. Technology clearly plays a large role in the subconscious minds of our filmmakers, as they wrestle in a battle of man versus machine. There’s also a trend towards environmental awareness and conservation. The strongest theme to emerge this year though is that of telling stories about our heroes – be they brave explorers of new worlds, or more humble men and women in our lives struggling to get by. There’s nothing more uplifting than watching films about inspiring people rising above their circumstances to make life better for those they care about.
Our films are conveniently packaged up into watchable sessions of about seven short films. There are six different themed sessions to choose from, so pick one or more that you like the sound of from: Comedy Corner, Explorers, Love & Other Catastrophes, My Hero, Nerds’ Revenge and Unrestricted Access.
Don’t forget to also check out our StarNow Short Film Seminars if you’re interested in hearing some of the filmmakers talk about their work. It might even inspire you to create something of your own to enter next year!
Gina Dellabarca
Festival Director
[...] out the Festival Preview. For some more insight into this year’s programme, check out our Director’s Welcome and, of course, the Programme itself. We hope to see you soon in a theatre near you! [...]