I enjoy the grab bag nature of shorts programs, and Black Maria always feels like it contains even more variety. So many shorts feel like an audition for a feature - be they narrative, documentary, animation. Black Maria always features some work that lies outside those parameters.
A notable example in the program I caught was Neil Needleman's film Corporate Art Policy, which was essentially a video essay. I've heard work like this derided at festivals as better suited to a blog or You Tube. But despite it's low technical aspirations, it tells a story, it's got a point-of-view. Plenty of more glossy films don't manage to do that.
On the high end of the production scale was the PBS-ready documentary Worlds of Sound: Ballad of Folkways, telling the story of Folkways founder Moe Asch, and narrated by Pete Seeger. If this hasn't been picked-up for broadcast, I'm sure it will be. It's a solid, informative doc.
Pickles for Nickels was a unique, hand-crafted piece of animation. It was so well-done, I wasn't surprised to see CalArts scroll across the credits. There was a bit of narrative to the film, but also plenty of non-linear elements more associated with art film. The filmmaker, Danielle Ash's voice comes through very strong and makes the film something more than an audition for Pixar, as animated shorts so often are.
Sebastian's Voodoo by Joaquin Baldwin is more Pixar-like in its computer animation and its storytelling - but in a good way. The simple story of individual sacrifice elicited an audible gasp when it ended.
As always, this Black Maria program delivered a variety that made it well worth making time for.
1 comment:
Thanks for the kind words about my video "Corporate Art Policy." If you're ever in the mood to watch it again, it's on my You Tube Channel: youtube.com/2see2dream.
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