The Fourth Annual Big Bad Film Fest continues with the short film section.
Festival Shorts are a look into the future. A way to see relationships with the festival being born and burgeon, and talents emerge. Short Films or short subjects (call them what you will) are a way for audiences and creators alike to venture into new territory and test themselves.
Patrick and Powell, who have organized the fest for the last four years, had the shorts scheduled on the last day. Even the short films of Big Bad Film Festival lived up to what it is described as on the official site:
If these shorts appear online, I have posted them. If I could not find them, I posted a link to their social or YouTube page. If you see something of interest, follow them on social, like and subscribe to their YouTube page, as it supports them and their careers.
Night Shift (dir. Lorenz Hideyoshi)
A mysterious woman leads a taxi driver into danger in this comb short film on location in Vietnam. Director Lorenz Hideyoshi does a great job of using the widescreen frames within the close quarters of the alleys of Ho Chi Mein City. It’s nice that there is an implied larger story, but it does feel slightly disconnected. The action, however, was keyed in with a surprisingly varied use of the locations during the fight scenes.
One Last Job (dir. Spencer Schwendiman)
The setup of the two bounty hunters on a job for each other is ripe for comedy that the short does deliver on. Beyond the Midnight Run of it all, they seem to be inspired by the legendary back alley fight from They Live and its comedic, arched tone. It’s a successfully charming piece that leans more on the comedic action than any sort of brutal fisticuffs. Stars Aaron Vargas and Nnanyere Okoro really do have great chemistry and a back and forth something that isn’t often present in shorts (the duo also starred in the opening night short Mind, Body, & Soul).
Stronghold (dir. Reginald Johnson)
A martial artist (Sam Lee Herring) must face off against his inner demons and emotions in this interesting short. Director Johnson has the goods. The metaphysical portions of this make for an interesting Matrix-of-the-mind combat meeting the inner turmoil of the soul that feels open for further exploration. It’s a unique approach that, with further development, could turn into something truly arresting.
A blink and you miss it all too short time loop film. It’s gorgeous and well executed. One just wishes it was two minutes longer (it only runs 3 minutes with credits) to at least take use of the concept that is only revealed at the end.
The Mime (dir. Kevin Barile)
What director Barile has is gold. Though this could use a slight edit to trim some of the fat. The setup is a bit long in the tooth, but once we’re into the crux of the story, the short soars. Truly an inventive piece of action comedy that the audience loved.
Man, this short has some truly great sound design. Lloyd truly did design the scene around showstopping, ingenious use of sound, which played great in the theater (the director also did the sound design for the short). The story concept/set up could have used a bit more time for clarity’s sake. That minor quibble aside, Lloyd has the chops to create some truly wonderful subjective forward work, which is a rare skill set indeed.
The best short of the bunch. From concept to execution, director Shane Chung’s short is a perfect slice of unexpected action cinema. It’s stylish, funny, and sly in the way we want a short or even a feature film to be. It takes the concept of two friends (Richard Yan and Sukwon Jeong) paying a bill and the diaspora of Korea in America to a wonderfully heightened place. The biggest compliment I can make is that I can’t wait to see what else Chung and his cast and crew have in store for us.
A fun time action scene where three ladies (Aicha Tremblay, Viviane Gyr, and Alyssa Pellerin) all fight over a prized possession held within a fanny pack. The brawl definitely has the feel of an 80s WWE bit by way of The Warriors. The way Earp sells the payoff of what is exactly the prized possession is one of the best bits of direction in the shorts segment.
Guard (dir. Jose Escorcia)
A horror-influenced short that shows the brutal costs of fighting. Escorcia is able to make a heightened underground fight seem plausible in the way that The Purge films make that specific set of dystopian concepts a reality. There is a stylish nightmare with some great logic setups that pay off effectively. It is all in service of the greater theme of the piece: the emotional, physical, and spiritual toll that any fight takes. Escorcia could very easily make the transition to feature films with a body horror-themed film, as he definitely has a strong grasp of the subgenre.
Remember this name: Euri Sakamoto. The young man has it. You know what it is. You can see it the moment this short starts. A college student pisses off two of his fellow undergrads, and a fight ensues in the confines of a college courtyard. Sakamoto (who directed, co-starred, and choreographed the action) puts it all together in a tight, compact package that feels both hard-hitting and playful, inspired by the work of Jackie Chan (their use of the various furniture in the courtyard… chef’s kiss). One can hope this short gave Sakamoto and his collaborators the bug to make more and go bigger.
We will be back with coverage of the feature films from the final day of the festival!
The Fourth Annual Big Bad Film Fest continues with the short film section.
Festival Shorts are a look into the future. A way to see relationships with the festival being born and burgeon, and talents emerge. Short Films or short subjects (call them what you will) are a way for audiences and creators alike to venture into new territory and test themselves.
Patrick and Powell, who have organized the fest for the last four years, had the shorts scheduled on the last day. Even the short films of Big Bad Film Festival lived up to what it is described as on the official site:
“Big Bad Film Fest enters its 4th year presenting a line-up of Independent and International Action Films in Los Angeles, CA focused on cultivating the indie filmmaking, stunt and action community all in one place. Our constant mission is to celebrate and promote the action films and stars we love from the past, present, and future.”
If these shorts appear online, I have posted them. If I could not find them, I posted a link to their social or YouTube page. If you see something of interest, follow them on social, like and subscribe to their YouTube page, as it supports them and their careers.
Night Shift (dir. Lorenz Hideyoshi)
A mysterious woman leads a taxi driver into danger in this comb short film on location in Vietnam. Director Lorenz Hideyoshi does a great job of using the widescreen frames within the close quarters of the alleys of Ho Chi Mein City. It’s nice that there is an implied larger story, but it does feel slightly disconnected. The action, however, was keyed in with a surprisingly varied use of the locations during the fight scenes.
One Last Job (dir. Spencer Schwendiman)
The setup of the two bounty hunters on a job for each other is ripe for comedy that the short does deliver on. Beyond the Midnight Run of it all, they seem to be inspired by the legendary back alley fight from They Live and its comedic, arched tone. It’s a successfully charming piece that leans more on the comedic action than any sort of brutal fisticuffs. Stars Aaron Vargas and Nnanyere Okoro really do have great chemistry and a back and forth something that isn’t often present in shorts (the duo also starred in the opening night short Mind, Body, & Soul).
Stronghold (dir. Reginald Johnson)
A martial artist (Sam Lee Herring) must face off against his inner demons and emotions in this interesting short. Director Johnson has the goods. The metaphysical portions of this make for an interesting Matrix-of-the-mind combat meeting the inner turmoil of the soul that feels open for further exploration. It’s a unique approach that, with further development, could turn into something truly arresting.
Time (dir. Bulent Ozlarusso)
A blink and you miss it all too short time loop film. It’s gorgeous and well executed. One just wishes it was two minutes longer (it only runs 3 minutes with credits) to at least take use of the concept that is only revealed at the end.
The Mime (dir. Kevin Barile)
What director Barile has is gold. Though this could use a slight edit to trim some of the fat. The setup is a bit long in the tooth, but once we’re into the crux of the story, the short soars. Truly an inventive piece of action comedy that the audience loved.
Waterlogged (dir. Kent Lloyd)
Man, this short has some truly great sound design. Lloyd truly did design the scene around showstopping, ingenious use of sound, which played great in the theater (the director also did the sound design for the short). The story concept/set up could have used a bit more time for clarity’s sake. That minor quibble aside, Lloyd has the chops to create some truly wonderful subjective forward work, which is a rare skill set indeed.
Check Please (dir. Shane Chung)
The best short of the bunch. From concept to execution, director Shane Chung’s short is a perfect slice of unexpected action cinema. It’s stylish, funny, and sly in the way we want a short or even a feature film to be. It takes the concept of two friends (Richard Yan and Sukwon Jeong) paying a bill and the diaspora of Korea in America to a wonderfully heightened place. The biggest compliment I can make is that I can’t wait to see what else Chung and his cast and crew have in store for us.
TCG (dir. Jeremie Earp)
A fun time action scene where three ladies (Aicha Tremblay, Viviane Gyr, and Alyssa Pellerin) all fight over a prized possession held within a fanny pack. The brawl definitely has the feel of an 80s WWE bit by way of The Warriors. The way Earp sells the payoff of what is exactly the prized possession is one of the best bits of direction in the shorts segment.
Guard (dir. Jose Escorcia)
A horror-influenced short that shows the brutal costs of fighting. Escorcia is able to make a heightened underground fight seem plausible in the way that The Purge films make that specific set of dystopian concepts a reality. There is a stylish nightmare with some great logic setups that pay off effectively. It is all in service of the greater theme of the piece: the emotional, physical, and spiritual toll that any fight takes. Escorcia could very easily make the transition to feature films with a body horror-themed film, as he definitely has a strong grasp of the subgenre.
Kicks of Fury (dir. Euri Sakamoto)
Remember this name: Euri Sakamoto. The young man has it. You know what it is. You can see it the moment this short starts. A college student pisses off two of his fellow undergrads, and a fight ensues in the confines of a college courtyard. Sakamoto (who directed, co-starred, and choreographed the action) puts it all together in a tight, compact package that feels both hard-hitting and playful, inspired by the work of Jackie Chan (their use of the various furniture in the courtyard… chef’s kiss). One can hope this short gave Sakamoto and his collaborators the bug to make more and go bigger.
We will be back with coverage of the feature films from the final day of the festival!
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