Arts & Entertainment
Take 2: Familiar Faces Grace OFF’s 140-Plus Films
Packaging the 140-plus films that will be shown during the mid-February Oxford Film Festival (OFF) has proven to be as challenging as it was promised to be last month when HottyToddy.com began our coverage. That promise came out of compassion from “been there done that” OFF executive director Melanie Addington, and it seems, she was spot on.
Yesterday’s coverage concentrated on short films that possess (perhaps) a few familiar faces from TV and film, faces that we may recognize from other contemporary (or not) projects.
Well – turns out, we unintentionally left out a few notable selections that Addington thought might be worth an additional look:
Actor Jason Ritter stars in the short film, The Lion’s Mouth Opens, which is directed by Lucy Walker and tells the story of a courageous young Scottish actress who takes the boldest step imaginable to confront her risk of having inherited the fatal, incurable Huntington’s Disease.
In Babysitter, actor Max Burkholder stars in a film that focuses on a dysfunctional L.A. family who hires a mysterious babysitter that changes their lives. Morgan Krantz directs the film.
A.D. Calvo’s The Missing Girl tells the story of Mort, the lonely and disillusioned owner of a comic book shop, and Ellen, the emotionally disruptive, aspiring graphic novelist he’s hired. The story involves the search for a girl who isn’t missing and the discovery that it’s never too late for late bloomers. Notable actor Robert Longstreet stars in the film.
Directors Tomm Jacobsen, Michael Rousselet and Jon Salmon’s comedy Dude Bro Party Massacre III features the troupe 5-Second Films’ hysterical twist on 1980’s slasher flicks. In the wake of two back-to-back mass murders on Chico’s frat row, loner Brent Chirino must infiltrate the ranks of a popular fraternity to investigate his twin brother’s murder at the hands of the serial killer known as Motherface. Actor Greg Sestero (The Room) stars in the film.
Actor John Savage stars in the film, Texas Heart, which tells the story of Peter Franklin, a crooked lawyer who’s caught up in a loveless existence, loses a critical case for the mob and runs off to hide out in a backwoods Texas town. There, he encounters a compelling story involving a mentally challenged young man who is accused of killing a beautiful girl. Frank soon faces an agonizing choice: ignore the case in order to remain anonymous and far from the prying eyes of the mob or reach out and try to save the young man. Mark David directs the film.
The 2016 Oxford Film Festival will take place Feb.17-21 and will be held predominantly at Malco Oxford Commons. Leading to the festival’s kickoff on Feb. 17, check HottyToddy.com for other OFF features and what to expect at the popular festival.
Jeff McVay is a staff writer and graphic designer for Hottytoddy.com. He can be reached at jeff.mcvay@hottytoddy.com.
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