Author

About the Author /

James is DN’s resident horror fan and is inspired by all academic, formal and Ethan Hawke-related aspects of filmmaking. When he isn’t writing for DN you’ll most likely find him on Bluesky, reading a graphic novel or and being sat on by his cat Peanut.

Animation

A Night’s Sleep Is Anxiously Interrupted in Ida Melum’s BAFTA Nominated Stop Motion ‘Night of the Living Dread’

Ida Melum guides us through the unique joys of the stop motion animation process of her film about a sleepless encounter with unwanted guests.

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Live Action, Premiere

Tomas Gomez Bustillo Curates a Collection of Quotidian Memories in ‘Museum of Fleeting Wonders’

Tomas Gomez Bustillo conveys the challenges of capturing the magical moments of the everyday in vignettes for his enthralling short film collection.

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Film Festival

10 Essential Shorts From the National Film and Television School’s 2022 Graduate Showcase

An impressive display from the future of filmmaking - DN offers a collection of recommended shorts from the NFTS 2022 Graduate Showcase.

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Art & Fashion

Mona Namer & Sofia Aedo Zahou Traverse Birth and Metamorphosis in Dance Film ‘A Bath in My Mother’s Womb’

Mona Namer and Sofia Aedo Zahou discuss the cyclical nature of introspection at the heart of their dreamlike experimental dance film.

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Live Action, Premiere

Will Wightman’s Frenetic Short ‘Heart Failure’ Is a Whip-Smart Gen Z Take on Modern Relationships

Will Wightman speaks about his desire to convey the rollercoaster of romantic turmoil that comes with being a 21-year-old in his musical dating comedy.

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Documentary

Leo Pfeifer Captures Blind Skater Justin Bishop’s Triumphant Return to the Ramp in ‘One Day You’ll Go Blind’

Leo Pfeifer breaks down the technicality and considerations of contributor comfort behind his naturalistic approach to documentary filmmaking.

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Live Action

A Woman Finds Herself Obsessively Compelled to Dig a Hole in Anna Maguire’s Metaphorical Drama ‘It’s Nothing’

Anna Maguire and Julia Lederer discuss the transitional process from stage to screen of their drama about a woman's self-destructive compulsion.

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Live Action, Premiere

Chloe Sarbib & Amy Taylor Rosenblum Depict the Self-Questioning Fear of Confiding in ‘Go Tell Your Fathers’

Chloe Sarbib and Amy Taylor Rosenblum deconstruct the considered approach behind their portrayal of a woman struggling to confide in her family.

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Live Action, Premiere

A Nosy Scholar Encounters Dark Secrets in Ryan Mackfall’s Macabre H. P. Lovecraft Adaptation ‘Backwoods’

Director Ryan Mackfall and Screenwriter Neil Fox walk DN through the literary challenges of adapting H. P. Lovecraft for their chilling horror short.

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Live Action

Joseph Amenta Tells a Tale of Personal Refuge Within Kiki Ballroom Culture in LGBTQ Short ‘Haus’

Joseph Amenta discusses the research they did into the Kiki Ballroom scene in order to create a faithful representation of community.

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Animation

Retaining Your Humanity Is Key In Tomek Suwalski’s Pulse-Pounding Trailer for ‘Dying Light 2 Stay Human’

Tomek Suwalski breaks down his live-action approach to CGI animation for the cinematic trailer of revered apocalyptic action-shooter Dying Light 2.

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Live Action

Koya Kamura Crafts a Humbling Contemplative Drama About Grief in His Fukushima-Set Debut ‘Homesick’

Koya Kamura reflects on his successful decision to make the leap from a decade in commercials into his narrative debut, a drama set in post-disaster Japan.

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