desert
by tim parks
PALM SPRINGS SHORTFEST THE SHORT… AND LONG OF IT
After 24 years The Palm Springs ShortFest, has
become the largest short film event in the United States, attracting 22,000 attendees annually. Each year, ShortFest receives somewhere in the neighborhood of 4,200 submissions from over 100 countries, with only 325 films being selected to be shown in 90-minute themed screenings with the event. These films, while short on run time are big in scope, training their laser focus on telling their stories in a shorter amount of time. The Rage Monthly corresponded
with the festival’s director Lili Rodriguez to get the long and short about what it takes to put on this annual event. Rodriguez explained the mission
out there and it can be a little overwhelming. So as a film festival, I like to think we provide our audience and industry, a platform to discover works and talents they may miss otherwise. For us, it’s also about showcasing work that stands out artistically. It’s not the typical sort of thing many people see when they go online for short form content.” She talked about the selection
FOR US, IT’S ALSO ABOUT SHOWCAS- ING WORK THAT STANDS OUT ARTISTICALLY. IT’S NOT THE TYPICAL SORT
of ShortFest. “Palm Springs ShortFest falls under the educational branch of our organization [Palm Springs In- ternational Film Festival]. Everything we do, from screenings to the Forum where we do classes, panels and industry one-on-ones, even the parties, are designed to provide filmmakers with some level of education or networking op- portunity,” Rodriguez explained. “Our mission is to equip filmmakers with some of the tools they’ll need in their careers and to put them face-to-face with the audience who will be seeing their films and the industry players who will potentially be working with them.” Rodriguez discussed why a festival like this is
important for showcasing this particular genre of short form storytelling. “There’s a lot of content
OF THING MANY PEOPLE SEE WHEN THEY GO ONLINE FOR SHORT FORM CONTENT.”
process and how many hours they spend going through submissions. “Personally, I’ve lost count for this year. But we received 5,400 submis- sions and the average run time for our shorts is around 15 minutes. That’s 1,350 hours or around 56 full days of content. We’re lucky to have a great pre-screening team made up of our audience, film students and programmer and cinephile friends who lend a hand.” Several of those previously
highlighted films from years past have gone on to win Oscars and Rodriguez gave us examples of a few. “Last year alone, we hadEdith + Eddie, Dekalb Elementary andEleven O’Clock that went on to get nominations. We also hadFacing Mecca and Lost Face that made the shortlist. It’s always great seeing ShortFest alumni getting recognized outside of the festival.” As to what can audiences expect from attend-
ing the festival for 2018? “They can expect to see some great films across all kinds of genres and styles. They can also expect that great energy that filmmakers bring year after year to Palm Springs!
Some highlighted stories about the LGBTQ human condition and how it plays out in other countries:
Avec Thelma: Jean and Vincent become surrogate parents thanks to an Icelandic volcano blocking the air space over Europe that keeps the parents of Vincent’s three-year-old-niece, Thelma, in their care for an indeterminable amount of time in Brussels.
The Mute:A Vietnamese girl is desperate to find the true meaning of love before she embarks on the road of matrimony.
Una mitología placentera(A Mythology of Pleasure): A group of Spanish women spark a revolution and call upon their gods and goddesses to help them in their efforts to bring joy to the people of Valencia.
Khol(Open): The story of Vijay and the effects of coming out to his traditional Indian family—even ten years after the fact—when he returns to the small town after his father unexpectedly dies.
The Sermon: Words delivered in a small, English countryside parish are ones of hatred, but the preacher’s daughter holds a secret that could destroy the religious sect. Writer/director Dean Puckett’s horror film about a Westborough Baptist preacher’s gay child and what it would be like for said offspring to live in such a hateful environment.
The Palm Springs ShortFest runs from Tuesday, June 19 through Monday, June 25. For festival passes or more information, go to
psfilmfest.org/2018-shortfest.
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RAGE monthly | JUNE 2018
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