The Toronto Youth Shorts Film Festival is a volunteer-run not-for-profit initiative that works to bring a series of events for local young and emerging filmmakers in the Greater Toronto Area. If you’re a fan of independent cinema, the festival gives you the opportunity to enjoy and support projects by up-and-coming talent. It also offers an educational forum for participants the chance to learn from one another and engage with experienced industry veterans. This year, the festival will feature 36 short films.
In light of the upcoming festival screenings on Saturday, September 27th, here is a list of films I’ve previewed along with some thoughts on these.
Programme: Questions And Discovery
Jessie MacAlpine: A Story of Youth and Science
Nicole Cedic / Documentary
Science prodigy, Jessie MacAlpine, has been impressing those around her with her inquisitive and humanitarian nature since childhood. Jessie has also made the news as in her first year in a Life Sciences program at the University of Toronto, as she discovered a potential treatment for malaria using mustard oil as its main ingredient. This short film is a look at this charming young woman, her passion for science and learning, while at the same time aiming to use her scientific research to benefit others. Interesting and inspiring.
Programme: Personal Portraits
Alouette
Michaela Kurimsky (director), Leanna Kruse (producer) / Drama
This short film had an Indie GoGo campaign earlier this year, and I had read about it in The Arts Guild. The film about the power struggle between two sisters and their entanglement with psychosis. The relationship between the sisters is tense, yet loving. The setting, a cabin in the woods in the middle of winter, adds to this tension. Themes of temptation and sexuality also come to play here. The short is atmospheric, and its minimal dialogue, will challenge you to sort out the interplay of emotions, tension, and the bond between siblings.
Rhonda
Ashlee Mitchell / Documentary
In this very personal short, Ashlee Mitchell introduces us to her mother, Rhonda Mitchell. Unfortunately, Ashlee did not get to know Rhonda, as she passed away from cancer while Ashlee was still quite young. Through interviews with family, and friends, we learn the vibrant person Rhonda really was. Along with these, there is the creative layering of old family video clips and photographs. A personal letter to her mother, and a means for Ashelee to know more about her, Rhonda is a touching short film.
Programme: The Bonds That Bind Us
Beauty, Ravaged, Change
Anna Shannon, Pegah Peivandi (directors) / Animation
Stop-motion animation shorts are some of my favourite types of short films. It not only takes a lot of dedication, and time to make a cohesive story, but they can also be very engaging. In this film, Shannon and Peivandi cleverly remind us of the interconnection between humans and their environment. This connetion implies we have direct impact on one another. In a very short amount of time, the filmmakers are able to clearly and charmingly get this message across, and send us a good reminder as well.
Shepherdess
Jill Lefaive / Drama
I came across an article on this short film on another website. Lefaive stated she was inspired to make the film from a French folk song called Il étais une bergère, which she learned while growing up in the Lafontaine region. The film is set in the time of the Great Depression in rural Canada. It tells the story of a young girl, Marie, who lives in a farm with an abusive father, and of her uncle Sévère who resides at another farm with his ailing male partner Aimé. Heavy religious undertones of guilt and penance, the film is about familial connections. It also shows that one can find strength, love, and moral support when most needed from even the youngest of relatives.
The screenings will take place at the Maple Leaf Cinema in the CN Tower this Saturday, September 27th.
For the second year in a row, I’ve been invited to join the festival’s Critics Panel as a jury member for its Critics’ Choice Award… such a great opportunity! Join us for the Awards Ceremony on Sunday, September 28th also at the Maple Leaf Cinema in the CN Tower. For full listings and ticketing information, visit torontoyouthshorts.ca.
