This July, movie buffs will gather with movers and shakers of the motion picture at the first-ever Summer Shorts Film Fest in New Paltz. Presented in a partnership between Throughline Artists and the DENIZEN Theatre, it will showcase works by emerging talent as well as big wigs like director-screenwriter Neil LaBute, whose 2016 short, The Mulberry Bush, stars J.J. Kandel, founder of Throughline Artists.
The film festival will run from July 20-23 at the Water Street Market, providing film buffs with the chance to rub shoulders with creative talent whose work they admire—and maybe even do a little shopping, eating, and antiquing along Water Street. Seven 90-minute film blocks will be presented (including one family-friendly series), each comprising five to seven movies followed by Q&A sessions with the filmmakers in attendance. Festival passes run $50, and tickets to individual film blocks cost $10.
While several of the to-be-screened shorts are yet to be announced, six are set in stone. Here are the films attendees can look forward to at the Summer Shorts Film Fest:
The Mulberry Bush
17 minutes
dir. Neil LaBute
On an autumn day in Central Park, two men make small talk. Their nonchalance is disrupted when the conversation takes a personal turn, revealing that the meeting isn’t happenstance—and it’s headed towards confrontation.
In attendance: J.J. Kandel, Victor Slezak
Good Luck (in Farsi)
18 minutes
dir. Jessica Cummings
In this short, Gia Crovatin and Elizabeth Masucci play two actresses after the same role. As they await their auditions, they attempt to psych each other out, humorously illustrating the bitterness of rivalry.
In attendance: Gia Crovatin, Elizabeth Masucci
Demon Box
14 minutes
dir. Sean Wainsteim
After constant rejection, a filmmaker transforms his intensely personal story about trauma, suicide, and the Holocaust into a “painful, blunt and funny dissection of the film and his life.”
The Old Young Crow
12 minutes
dir. Liam LoPinto
At a graveyard in Tokyo, an Iranian boy befriends an old Japanese woman.
Really Good Friends
10 minutes
dir. Adam Sekuler
This short portrays a sexagenarian as she develops an odd friendship with a mysterious man she met online.
The Social Chameleon
10 minutes
dir. Alex Ross
Cosmo the Chameleon doesn’t quite fit in with anyone in the animal kingdom. Then, everything changes when Cosmo meets another chameleon who shows him how to “live by his own true colors!”
Looking for updates on the Summer Shorts Film Fest? Head to its website or follow along on Instagram.
