Director: Jack Gastelbondo
Running Time: 10 minutes
Genre: Thriller
IMDB Page

The Clearing is an intense thriller about a man living in a society that has installed microchips in the back of everyone's skulls to control thought, temper violence and keep people in line. Taught and thought provoking, the acting and dialogue make for a world of intrigue and subtle tyranny.

Director: Geoff Yano
Running Time: 11:48
Genre: Drama

Heart Box is the story of a robot who falls in love. Despite mediocre technical elements the robot is made to seem able to move and even love on its own. The plot is easily related to even if the protagonist is artificial.

Director: Peter Besson
Running Time: 10 minutes
Genre: Comedy, Drama
IMDB Page

True Beauty This Night is a very, very different kind of love story. First-rate technical elements and acting combine with a quirky but very funny plot so far out of left field that the audience never sees any of the multiple plot twists coming. Energetic and innovative, it gives whole new meaning to 'love at first sight.'

Director: Christopher Moore
Running Time: 5 minutes
Genre: Drama, Thriller

The Collection is an intense story of a man reflecting on his love life. Mediocre acting and script cannot detract from a story that is thrilling and tightly wound despite its brevity.

Travelling is a fast paced video montage of Kerala, India. Without narration, you only find out where you 'traveled' through in the credits. Despite a shaky camera, the incredibly brief short is able to capture a level of energy and excitement, whisking the audience through the city and the lives of its people, one gets the impression they themselves have been there.

Director: Devi Snively
Running Time: 14:53
Genre: Comedy
IMDB Page

Death in Charge is a clever and amusing tale of the Grim Reaper finding herself baby sitting a precocious young girl. Strong technical elements support an original plot that often touches funny even as it explores humanity's violent inclinations and nonchalant view of death.

Director: Katy Scoggin
Running Time: 9:25
Genre: Drama, Comedy

Slavenka is a drama about the title German high schooler visiting an unruly American German language high school class. Uncomfortably high school, the short is well shot and the barriers created between the two languages make for an interesting story. Adult themes are set against an incredibly juvenile plot that nevertheless tells a story the audience can relate to.

Director: Olivier Hoedeman
Running Time: 11 minutes
Genre: Documentary

Global Europe: An Undemocratic Love Affair is a one-sided documentary arguing that the European Union places corporate interests over the interests of European and global citizens. More political ad than it is true documentary, the short is very well done. It pays no heed to the other side and does everything it can to paint them in a negative light, but the argument it makes is a strong and convincing one. Innovatively edited, the creative presentation is able to keep audiences tuned in, maintaining an interesting and lively feel.

Director: Mike Rymer
Running Time: 15 minutes
Genre: Drama
Web Site
IMDB Page

Sick is a nonlinear but very powerful discussion of the multi-generational affects of depression. Difficult to discern at first, by the end the short completely resolves itself. Heartrending and universal, the strong acting and visuals make for a world where the audience is made to understand all that comes from depression and all that it means. Not so much about the story as about the message, it gives the audience a detailed glimpse at this particular 'sickness.'

Director: Natalie Brady
Running Time: 5:38
Genre: Drama
Web Site

Home Time is a very brief story of a school girl going home. Relying mostly on what is unsaid, the short is a little difficult to discern but well shot and allows the audience to interpret volumes in what is not said.

Director: Carl Flood
Running Time: 9:19
Genre: Fantasy

'Tis Wonderful is a childish but cute tale about a little boy and the adventures of his imagination. The audience is never really sure what's going on but as in the games children play, you know it's something wonderful. The film looks like it was shot with a home video camera but that's the point, it's quaint and adventuresome like only a child could create.

Director: David Yohe
Running Time:19:25
Genre: Fantasy
IMDB Page

The Book of Tomorrow proves that sometimes all it takes is a little advanced warning to be a hero. Billy is an ordinary boy in an ordinary town until he finds the title comic book, one that changes each day to predict that day's events. Whimsical and childishly delightful, it benefits from excellent animation and other technical elements. The plot is predictable but it does nothing to detract from the simple joy of knowing what comes next and a young boy with a wall full of comic books every nerd wishes he had. Who needs football when you can see the future?

Director: David Heiman
Running Time: 17:37
Genre: Drama

What They Want is a drama about a man running for an anonymous Congressional district haunted by the tactics of his amoral media consultant, a consultant concerned only with winning and not with maintaining morality and integrity. Not especially subtle in its message, the short takes a while to build up the tension but the buildup keeps going for the entire story. By the end one has gotten a depressing but incredibly truthful look at politics and the win-at-all-costs attitude of modern campaigning.

Director: David Broyles
Running Time: 9:42
Genre: mystery, drama
IMDB Page

It takes a while to realize what's going on in Bar Flies. A man walks into a bar and instead of a punchline gets some of the strangest regulars you've ever seen. Subtle and clever, the short is intriguing with strong technical elements and enough mystery to keep you watching if for no other reason than to figure out what is what. Fortunately, the reveal does come and while the short remains strange, its strength is in its ability to completely resolve itself by the end.

Don't fight it, you know you want to come see us come September! If Washington City Paper and its readership ranks us like this, we must be good.