16th Annual AT&T St. Louis
International Film Festival

Shorts Programs

Pre-Feature Short
“Muertas,” Ryan Piers Williams, USA, 2007, 9 min. A young American journalist attempts to piece together the fractured memories of a love lost amid the Juarez, Mexico, murders. With “The Melon Route”

Aardman Animations
90 min.
Sunday, Nov. 18, 6 p.m., Webster University

In this survey of Aardman Animations’ delightful work, SLIFF shows off the impressive range of the cheeky British company responsible for “Wallace and Gromit,” “Chicken Run,” and “Creature Comforts.” Although director Nick Park’s signature clay-animation style makes several appearances, this compilation also features animated films from his filmmaking colleagues, who work in a wide variety of media but display the same characteristic wit and intelligence.

  • “Morph: Grandmorph’s Home Movies,” Peter Lord and Dave Sproxton, UK, 1989, 5 min. Gobbledegook plans to show pictures of his home planet and give a talk about it.
  • “Loves Me Loves Me Not,” Jeff Newitt, UK, 1992, 8 min. In an infinite landscape, a sharply dressed dandy comes across a small daisy and thoughtlessly begins to tear out its petals.
  • “War Story,” Peter Lord, UK, 1989, 5 min. An interview with a wartime factory worker turns up some memorable tales.
  • “Purple and Brown: River Dance,” Rich Weber, UK, 2006, 2 min. Two blobs dance up a storm.
  • “Shaun the Sheep: Still Life,” Chris Sadler and Richard Goleszowski, UK, 2007, 10 min. The farmer takes up oil painting, and during a break, the flock investigates.
  • “Wat’s Pig,” Peter Lord, UK, 1996, 11 min. Two babes from a fairy-tale kingdom are separated in a bungled kidnapping attempt.
  • “Creature Comforts: Monarchy Business,” Nick Park and Richard Goleszowski, UK, 2006, 10 min. What happens when an Indian elephant breaks into Buckingham Palace? Why do the royal ravens wish the Queen would get a proper job?
  • “Wallace and Gromit: A Close Shave,” Nick Park, UK, 1995, 29 min. In this Wallace and Gromit short, there’s a wool shortage in town, and it has the newspapers all in a knot.
  • “The Pearce Sisters,” Luis Cook, UK, 2007, 9 min. An amusingly bleak-hearted tale of two weather-lashed spinsters.

Family Shorts Program
90 min.
Saturday, Nov. 10, 1 p.m., Saint Louis Art Museum
Free

A program of shorts that offers fun for the whole family.

  • “Flatlife,” Jonas Geirnaert, Belgium, 2004, 10 min. The lives of four neighbors intersect.
  • “Game Over,” PES, USA, 2006, 2 min. A re-creation of classic arcade games.
  • “Bolt,” Joey Ingram and Josh Mahan, USA, 2006, 5 min. A robot named Cog wrestles with the confines of his controlled existence.
  • “Zoologic,” Nicole Mitchell, USA, 2007, 5 min. A fussy zookeeper contends with an uncooperative little penguin.
  • “The Little Gorilla,” Harry Kellerman, USA, 2006, 12 min. A boy tries to conquer a jungle gym.
  • “Kiwi!” Dony Permedi, USA, 2006, 3 min. What lengths are you willing to go for a dream?
  • “Doxology,” Michael Langan, USA, 2007, 7 min. An experimental animation whose cosmic playfulness ranges in subject from spiritual enlightenment to Oldsmobile tangos.
  • “Lost Cargo,” Pieter Engels and Efim Perlis, Netherlands/Belgium, 2006, 15 min. A bigger robot is not always better.
  • “Collision,” Max Hattler, UK, 2005, 2 min. A swirling array of kaleidoscope images.
  • “Robota,” Marc Beurteaux, Canada, 2005, 10 min. A down-and-out robot in a Lego underworld searches for a quick fix.
  • “Small and Deep, Love Stories,” Hsinping Pan, Taiwan, 2005, 7 min. Four short love stories about an angry couple, a machine, a clock and a coffee cup.
  • “Pierre, a Hole with a View,” Danger Brown, USA, 2006, 7 min. A mouse falls in love with a human girl and tries to win her affection.
  • “When I Grow Up,” Michelle Meeker, USA, 2007, 7 min. A juxtaposition of the boundless ambition of youthful expectations and the unpredictable and sometimes tragic realities we end up living.

Global Lens Shorts
90 min.
Friday, Nov. 9, 2:30 p.m., Plaza Frontenac
Tuesday, Nov. 13, 2:15 p.m., Plaza Frontenac

The Global Lens series offers a selection of award-winning shorts from around the world.

  • “Absent (En Ausencia),” Lucia Cedron, Argentina, 2003, 15 min. In the few minutes that it takes to learn the results of a pregnancy test, Maria sits alone in the empty bathroom of her apartment. Her memories of exile and violence are mingled with the eternal hope that of a new life that might soon begin.
  • “Broad Day (Üks päev),” Rajeev Ahuja, India, 2004, 11 min. Based on a true story, “Broad Day” follows several passengers on a Mumbai train as another passenger is raped. Filmed with a handheld camera, using amateur actors on the actual site, without rehearsal, “Broad Day” captures the passengers’ reactions to an event that never seems to end.
  • “Girl of Faith (Mina De Fé),” Luciana Bezerra, Brazil, 2004, 15 min. Silvana and boyfriend Maninho struggle to survive by outwitting both the police and the rival gangs in the favelas high above Rio De Janeiro.
  • “A Little Bit Higher (Kami Balatar),” Mehdi Jafari, Iran, 2005, 12 min. Two men who have never met wait in their trucks for their jobs as crane operators to begin. One is a young man consumed by his love life, and the other an ex-teacher who hopes no one will notice him standing in for a friend.
  • “The Perfect Day (El Día Perfecto),” Bernardo Loyola, Mexico, 2004, 13 min. Sergio dreamed of sharing a tragic death with someone he loves. With no luck in love, he resigns himself to planning the spectacle himself, when his life is changed by a mysterious phone call.
  • “Riding With Sugar,” Sunu Gonera, South Africa, 2005, 10 min. Terrence is a South African teen who dreams of escaping the world of drugs to become a BMX champion rider. He stumbles into a precarious and unlikely relationship with Olivia, a beautiful girl who appreciates both his dream and drive.
  • “Your Dark Hair Ihsan (Tes Cheveux Noirs Ihsan),” Tala Hadid, Morocco, 2005, 14 min. A young man returns to his hometown in North Africa when he learns of his mother’s death. Navigating between dreams and memories, the young man is constantly reminded of his mother, as he learns of her amazing efforts to give him a better life.

Jamie Travis Shorts
72 min.
Saturday, Nov. 10, 9:30 p.m., Tivoli Theatre

SLIFF presents a retrospective of shorts by Jamie Travis, who’s built a strong reputation in Canada’s independent film scene as a director of precise vision. His short films have consistently premiered at the Toronto International Film Festival, traveled extensively on the international film-festival circuit, won prestigious awards, and aired nationally on television. Comparisons have ranged from Peter Greenaway to David Lynch to Alfred Hitchcock. Based in Vancouver, British Columbia, Travis is currently working on his first feature script.

  • “Patterns,” Canada, 2005, 9 min. Pauline waits for a phone call, misses the phone call, gets the phone call, and regrets the phone call in this first chapter of “The Patterns Trilogy.” Stop-motion animation adds chilly unease to Pauline and her mystery caller’s unusually intimate conversation.
  • “The Saddest Boy in the World,” Canada, 2006, 14 min. Timothy Higgins, picked last for the team, is the saddest boy in the world. Friendlessness, suburban complacency, and prescription drugs have conspired against the youngster to make this his worst year yet.
  • “Patterns 2,” Canada, 2006, 14 min. After finding some mystery Chinese takeout at his doorstep, Michael finds himself unable to resist phoning the woman he suspects sent it. In this second chapter of “The Patterns Trilogy,” the identity of Pauline’s mystery caller is revealed and Pauline’s innocence is put into question.
  • “Why the Anderson Children Didn’t Come to Dinner,” Canada, 2003, 16 min. Things are a bit off at the Anderson home. Young Chester has a fixation with the toilet and a propensity towards kleptomania. His sister Eliza likes her paint-by-numbers a little too much. Brother Godfrey can’t tell the difference between the things he loves and the things he wants to eat. And matriarch Maud devotes her days to filling the stomachs of her little ones.
  • “Patterns 3,” Canada, 2006, 19 min. A vibrant split-screen musical finale to “The Patterns Trilogy.” Pauline, having washed her hands all night, suffers from the driest of hands. Michael, having sent her paper-airplane love letters all night, has a bad case of paper cuts. With damaged hands and anguished hearts, Pauline and Michael reveal through song the nature of their enigmatic relationship.

Director Travis will attend.

Neal Gabler on Walt Disney
Thursday, Nov. 15, 7 p.m., Saint Louis Art Museum

As part of the Children’s Film Symposium, a presentation of Washington University’s Center for the Humanities, Neal Gabler, author of the major new biography “Walt Disney: The Triumph of American Imagination,” screens a trio of hand-picked Disney shorts – “Steamboat Willie,” “The Three Little Pigs,” and “Toot Whistle Plunk and Boom” – and discusses both the cartoons and the man who made them. Gabler, a Senior Fellow at the USC Annenberg Norman Lear Center, is also the author of “An Empire of Their Own: How the Jews Invented Hollywood,” “Winchell: Gossip, Power and the Culture of Celebrity” and “Life the Movie: How Entertainment Conquered Reality.” He has contributed to such publications as the New York Times and Esquire, and appears regularly on “Fox News Watch.” As a bonus, the program includes five additional classic Disney shorts: “Flowers and Trees,” “The Tortoise and the Hare,” “Who Killed Cock Robin?,” “Three Orphan Kittens,” and “Ferdinand the Bull.”

St. Louis Filmmakers Showcase Shorts 1
84 min.
Tuesday, Nov. 13, 5 p.m., Tivoli Theatre

A sampler of the best dramatic shorts from the 2006 St. Louis Filmmakers Showcase.

  • “Forgiven,” Pete Vander Pluym, drama, 19 min. Mrs. Bell is in the depths of depression after eight years without her son, who was killed in a drunk-driving accident by his best friend, now paroled and attempting to make amends.
  • “Jacob’s Room,” Ken Calcaterra, 7 min. Two young boys appear to have normal lives until one fatal night, when the monster in their closet invades their home.
  • “The Loneliest Place on Earth,” Cody Stokes, 13 min. Two lonely men in a cold and dark city need a human connection.
  • “Mudman,” Trevor Fields, 4 min. The journey of man from creation to enlightenment through the elements of nature.
  • “The Quiet Place,” Jason Christ, 15 min. Based on the Rebecca Kennebeck poem “Her Soul Flies Free,” this film traces the emotional downward spiral of a girl trying to escape the torment of a recent personal tragedy.
  • “Recompense,” Alex Lotz, 8 min. An ethnobotanist living in space ponders the way humans have destroyed the uninhabitable Earth.
  • “Silence American,” Carson Minow, 18 min. In this horror story for the electronic age, a young woman is monitored and stalked by a rogue FBI agent.

St. Louis Filmmakers Showcase Shorts 2
86 min.
Wednesday, Nov. 14, 5 p.m., Tivoli Theatre

A compilation of the best comedic (and seriocomic) shorts from the 2006 St. Louis Filmmakers Showcase. As a bonus, the program includes the winners of the 2007 Volunteer Lawyers and Accountants Association’s “Left Brain/Right Brain” shorts competition: Tim Snider’s “88.1%,” Brian Spath’s “Conflit d’Interet,” Lynelle White’s “The Loss of the St. Louis Drive-In,” Dale Ward’s “The Two Sons and their Crogzookles,” and David Raymond’s “Processing a Memory.”

  • “Actors,” Joe Leonard, drama, 22 min. Three unconventional stories set in Los Angeles whose characters literally act out their lives by encountering the world in a direct and fearless way.
  • “The Agonist,” Doc Crotzer, 10 min. For one guy, money doesn’t grow on trees – it falls from the sky
  • “Bodega,” Brian Billow, 15 min. A robber of a convenience store decides to work as a cashier for the night to make more money to steal. Produced by St. Louisan Nathan Brown.
  • “Fleshy Loves Kittens,” Jeremy Corray, 4 min. A freakish man-monster changes his lifestyle in an attempt to impress his beautiful captured victim. Wrote, shot and edited in one week as part of an “On the Lot” film challenge.
  • “Raising the Bar,” Jay Kelley, 20 min. After losing his girlfriend, Sam finds himself lost until he meets a self-serving womanizer.

Shorts Program 1: The Best Medicine
94 min.
Saturday, Nov. 10, 2:30 p.m., Tivoli Theatre

We’ve scoured the world for the funniest and most outrageous shorts. We did the hard part … all you have to do is laugh.

  • “Silencer,” Frazer Bailey, Australia, 2006, 7 min. Beware the thought bubble.
  • “Wigald,” Timon Modersohn, Germany, 2006, 11 min. Killing yourself has never been so hard.
  • “Coco-Nuts (Kokos) ,” Charlotte Blom, Norway, 2006, 10 min. Part fiction, part documentary, part musical, part batter.
  • “Raymond,” BIF, France/UK, 2006, 5 min. A swimming instructor wants to discover the oceans but is too lazy to do so.
  • “The Nightly Potato, Episode 4: Dialog with America,” Chris Hayes, USA, 2007, 2007, 9 min. Pundits and politicians help a channel-surfing couch potato become a better-informed citizen.
  • “The Adventures of Big Jeffrey: Bushcraft Alphabet,” Tom Parkinson, UK, 2006, 2 min. Learn the alphabet from a naked Australian on roller skates.
  • “The Job,” Jonathan Browning, USA, 2007, 3 min. The office park will never be the same.
  • “Stuff,” Karl R. Hearne, Canada, 2007, 7 min. A story about the man who had nothing and the woman who had everything.
  • “Journey to the Disney Vault,” Robert Marianetti, David Wachtenheim and Glen Steinmacher, USA, 2005, 3 min. Mickey Mouse takes two lucky children into the fabled Disney Vault, where many of Disney’s secrets have been locked away.
  • “Introduction,” Charity MacDonald and John Bollinger, USA, 2007, 7 min. John meets John meets John.
  • “Divis