Sci-Fi Shorts A
I have loved Science Fiction since I was little, so I was stoked to start off my journey at the 2014 Phoenix Film Festival with some Sci-Fi Shorts!
Library
The only animated short in this group, Library starts off with what, to many, would be one of the worst nightmares: An entire library filled with burning books, destroyed in the name of power, watched over by ravens, cawing at the loss. Sometime later, we see that the library still stands, and the written word might have been saved, albeit in a very odd manner. The animation was simple but interesting, and the story is fairly straight-forward.
Pale Blue Dot
When a wormhole opened up nearby, an astronaut was sent through it, to discover the fate of the world. She finds a world destroyed, no humans left alive, except one. Can she go back? Will she be able to warn everyone, and avert this disaster? While the story was interesting, the “space suit” was mind-boggling. I never realized that astronauts needed to accessorize with so much jewelry. Still, costuming aside, I was intrigued for the duration.
Wars of Other Men
Set in an alternate world, circa the 1920’s or so, two armies are at war, and one side has this deadly fog stuff. The other side wants to steal it, sending a Lieutenant and some soldiers to kidnap the scientist responsible for creating it. When the Lieutenant has a moral crisis, the mission is put in jeopardy. The world seemed interesting, with gigantic battle-zeppelins flying around and whatnot, but in the end, it was all just set dressing for a war story.
The Escape
In a very twisty, turny, convoluted world, a man has escaped his pursuer, and is trying to save himself, and the world. The special effects were, at times, laughable, but overall it was an intriguing short. I was left wanting to know a whole lot more, which is never a bad thing!
The Horizon Project
A disease has run wild in the future, killing many, many people. Those who aren’t infected are allowed into a safe refuge, and then sent on to a city free from the pandemic. All is not as it seems, though, and the Horizon Corporation might not be the savior they claim, when a boy’s test results aren’t clear. I’d like to see a feature length of this short, the story was really interesting, and the characters were as well.
The Developer
Golden Dimension controls everything in future Budapest. When something is stolen from the GD’s President’s home, Lens is called in. He has the ability to see a short way into the past, and future, and burn a picture of it onto photo paper attached to his head. When he sees a disturbing future, he must decide what exactly to print, and what the ramifications will be. There are hopeful plans for this to be a feature length film soon, and I’m in full support of this. The world was so rich, it was a veritable feast, visually. The cinematography was really fantastic. It was all very professionally done, from the script to the CGI. I was really very impressed with everything. If this does make it to full movie status, I would recommend seeing it!
As an avid Jill-Of-All-Trades, I dabble in many things, but I've always been passionate about writing and photography. I read like a fiend, all sorts of genres and authors, and I hope someday to write my own novels. I've been taking pictures since I was little, and I strive to improve my skills everytime I pick up a camera. I love all kinds of movies, from those terrible-yet-hilarious B movies to the latest superhero blockbusters. I play video games, roleplaying games, even Magic: The Gathering (much to the chagrin of my wallet, at times), because I adore delving into these other, amazing, created worlds. Check out all my interests and projects, or get in touch with me, on my Facebook page at: Http://www.facebook.com/SamanthaCantrellAZ
