This program left me constantly looking over my shoulder. Kinda creepy that so many filmmakers thought of zeroing in on voyeurism, yet they all tackled the topic from a different direction.
Petros Silvestros’ “The Admirer” dives right into creep territory. A brother becomes worried for all the wrong reasons when his mute sister receives flowers and drawings from a secret admirer. The flick was the first to leave the audience holding their breath, and refused to tie the story up neatly (I’m a fan of a few loose ends).
Iain Atkinson and Philippa James’ “In Tune” (read my review) jumped from dark watchdog into accidental inspiration. A nice and lighthearted circle of events centers creates a humorous, wordless musical.
Marcin Pieczonka’s “A Few Pictures” finds a photographer intrigued by his lovely neighbor and unknowing subject. Her marriage is on the rocks and his relationship is recently ended, but there is no tidy conclusion once they actually meet (again, perfectly fine with me).
David Maddox’s “The Box” allows the audience to make presumptions about its central character, though suspicious viewers like myself caught on that all was not what it seems. However, distracting non-clues were cleverly dropped in with actual clues, and the character’s lack of dialogue made her actions even more questionable (this would become a running choice throughout this program, and the director admitted it made for a difficult shoot).
Maddox was inspired when he signed for a neighbor’s box that ended up sitting in his house for a month. He became interested in neighbors as strangers and never really knowing one’s own surroundings.
Michael Tiddes’s “Crawl Space” is also great at misdirection. An innocent situation appears to be the result of a devious undertaking, and just when the audience is convinced this is a romp after all, things turn bloody.
Tiddes was inspired after having to wire cable through his crawl space while his friends warned him about become trapped if there was an earthquake. He loves working on shorts (this was his first) as it provides him with a chance to work with filmmakers who love movies (and will work for free). He stressed that a good crew is key, as everyone can build off of each other’s talents and allow the work to metamorphosize into greatness.
Kester Dyer’s “The Listener” (“L'Ecouteur”) fits in well with “The Box,” as a silent neighbor hears far more than he should. However in this tale, the stethoscope-brandishing character begins merely pervy, and quickly traverses into criminal tastes.