A Taste of Shorts

Posted: Tue 23 Feb

Highlights from Sundance, Venice, London, and Toronto abound in this program that sees a range of styles, from local animation and comedy to universal stories of love are placed alongside heart-wrenching tales of loss. If a forbidden romance among the cornfields (The Field by Sandhya Suri) or a minimalist examination of nostalgia and competition (Rules of Play by Merlin Flügel) does not pique your interest, then perhaps a story of an unusual creature applying for asylum (Magic Alps by Andrea Brusa, Marco Scotuzzi) will – there really is something for everyone. 

- Mia Falstein-Rush, MIFF Programmer 

dance of the dead
'Dance of The Dead'; Scarlet Sykes Hesterman; Australia (2019)

 

  • Dance of The Dead; Scarlet Sykes Hesterman; Australia (2019) 

A gathering of native animals welcome a new member of their group in a bittersweet celebration. A glass display cabinet sits dormant in a large silent room when, slowly, something stirs. 

  • Magic Alps; Andrea Brusa, Marco Scotuzzi; Italy; (2018)

When an Afghani asylum seeker brings his beloved pet goat on his months-long journey into Italy, immigration authorities are confronted with the task of processing the two as a pair. Based on true events. 

  • Rules of Play; Merlin Flügel; Germany (2018) 

A gathering of weary playground visitors meet for one final showdown. 

Merlin Flügel (Echo, MIFF 2013) explores the concept of play in this minimalist world. Familiar games, ritualistic and ordered, bring a sense of nostalgia but also an intoxicating competition. 

  • The Field; Sandhya Suri; France, UK, India (2018) 

Sandhya Suri (I For India, MIFF 2006) returns to MIFF with an award-winning short which tells the story of a female agricultural labourer and her illicit romance in the cornfields. 

In The Field, winner of the Best International Short Film at TIFF 2018, a woman dreams of a different life away from the pressures of being a wife and mother. 

See what we have planned on the BIG Screen for summer 2020/21