Ambitious World Premiere Short Films Will Be Plentiful at Oxford Film Festival

HottyToddy.com’s continuing coverage of the 2016 Oxford Film Festival (OFF) continues today by featuring an amazing slate of 21 short films that will show as world premieres, a slate defined as “ambitious” by organizers of the popular festival in its 13th season.

All of the following 21 world premiere short films will be launched for the first time in public with new films vying for top spot and a coveted Hoka award at the festival’s end:

Director Michaela O’Brien’s Anatomical Gifts

Director Michaela O’Brien’s Anatomical Gifts is an intensely patterned silent film spanning three generations of palpable minds. All medical imagining is sourced from the related grandmother, mother and filmmaker.

Araignee by Jeremy Jensen’s

Jeremy Jensen’s Araignee is a short about two talented spiders compete against each other. Who will be the best weaving master?

Booker Wright’s Mashup by George Gross

George Gross’ Booker Wright’s Mashup is musical video mashup of Booker Wright’s infamous 1966 monologue on NBC News’ TV documentary, Mississippi: A Self Portrait.

Bottle of Sunshine by Damein Wash

Newcomer Damein Wash’s Bottle of Sunshine centers on boy who, all clean and dressed up, is denied ice cream and forbidden to get dirty by his mother. She leaves him on the bench as she goes into a shop. Then, a little girl appears.

G.B. Shannon’s Broke Dick Dog

G.B. Shannon’s Broke Dick Dog focuses on three newly acquainted brothers confront their long absent and indifferent father.

Cannot Predict Now by Kimberly Burleigh

Kimberly Burleigh’s Cannot Predict Now is a short, experimental 3D computer animation film. It features a spherical form that continuously evolves to perform its function as a predictor of the future.

The Favor by Eileen Myers

Eileen Myers’ The Favor explores what it means to be a daughter, a husband and ultimately a partner. Ellen and Ralph have differing views on how to handle Ellen’s dying mother’s imminent passing. Finding a weathered photograph of her mother in happier times, Ellen is convinced this youthful love is what her mother needs to make her death easier.

Fiddler’s Green by Thad Lee

Thad Lee’s Fiddler’s Green film is actually is a song about a mysterious afterworld for people who are too bad for Heaven and too good for Hell.

Hit & Run by Jordan Liebwitz

Jordan Liebwitz’s Hit & Run: After a car accident disrupts their plans, two low level drug dealers scramble to dispose of the evidence only to discover their unwitting victim may be far more dangerous than they first imagined.

Sajad Abbas’ The Iraqi Superman

Sajad Abbas’ The Iraqi Superman is a six minute film about a tormented young man constructing an ingenious device to rescue his father from Abu Ghraib prison. What he finds there is far from his expectations, revealing the mistreatment and torture of prisoners. His hopes and dreams for a brighter future are dashed upon finding his father.

Kudzu King’s 20th Anniversary by Tate Moore

Tate Moore’s Kudzu King’s 20th Anniversary is a much too short (in our opinion) 18 minute film featuring the Kudzu Kings and shows the band’s celebration at a special one night show at the Lyric Oxford.

Little Sticker by Michael Jackson Chaney

Michael Jackson Chaney’s Little Sticker features a couple who arrives home after a tragic loss. As they process their situation they engage in very different methods of grieving and struggle over how to address the remnants of a kitschy family icon. Ultimately they come to terms with the possibility of reconciliation and remembrance.

Tim O’Grady’s Mo’ Bout Joe

Tim O’Grady’s Mo’ Bout Joe is about “Outsider” artist Joe Wrenn of Charleston who is featured in this 25-minute documentary. The viewer gets a glimpse into his life and his amazing and storied paintings.

The New Orleans Sazerac by James Martin

James Martin’s The New Orleans Sazerac is a short documentary that explores the expansive history and modern applications of the classic cocktail through interviews with historians, authors, experts and bartenders.

Nancy Maria Balach and Katie McLaughlin’s Ole Miss Rebel Blues

Nancy Maria Balach and Katie McLaughlin’s Ole Miss Rebel Blues celebrates music, football and the social culture of Oxford, Mississippi. This Mississippi music video was created, produced and performed by established artists (University of Mississippi faculty and alumni), who worked side by side with current UM students and children from the Oxford community.

Once A Month by Alice Walker

Local favorite, Alice Walker’s Once A Month is a film about Tom and Tina who have their friends Bob and Betty over once a month for dinner; but this is the first time they have gotten together since Bob’s death. When Betty arrives, Tom and Tina realize that the evening may be a little more “lively” than expected.

Jason Rochelle’s One Star Delta Night

Jason Rochelle’s One Star Delta Night is a love story in the heart of the Mississippi Delta; a night where everything is just right. Where a romantic night turns into a beautiful relationship.

Preacher man by Calum MacDiarmid

Calum MacDiarmid’s Preacherman is a music video featuring Melody Gardot, based on the story of civil rights hero Emmett Till.

Gloria Chung’s River Moon Black Birds

is an experimental documentary on recent hurricane landfalls (2009-2014, eastern seaboard of the United States). “An alarm sounds over a quiet river. Supermoons are burning. Blackouts across the city. Storm winds carry tropical birds.”

The Sibling Code by Roberta Munroe

Roberta Munroe’s The Sibling Code is a seven minute short about two siblings (Austin and Sheryl) who, in the midst of choosing between a traditional Miyazaki funeral and letting the ashes be one with the wind, duke it out.

Gloria Chung’s Take the Bus on a Hot Summer Day

Take the Bus on a Hot Summer Day by Gloria Chung explores a bus ride through Midtown. A reverie of blurred colors, kaleidoscopic movements and muffled sounds on a hot summer day in the city.

The 2016 Oxford Film Festival will take place February 17-21 and will be held predominantly at Malco Oxford Commons. Leading to the festival’s kickoff on February 17, check HottyToddy.com for other features and what to expect at the popular festival.

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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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