Independent Short Film Premieres & Interviews // Directors Notes

Premiere Category

Emily Lucienne’s ‘Immaculate Deception’ Explores the Desperate Actions a Woman Takes As Her Options Narrow

Emily Lucienne details building the cloistered claustrophobic atmosphere of her short exploring the desperate measures dwindling options can push us to.

Live Action, Premiere

Tim Ewalts’ Primal Woodland Drama ‘Undergrowth’ Finds Two Brothers in an Escalating Struggle for Power

Tim Ewalts breaks down the fluid, improvisational approach to shooting that he utilised for his foreboding 16mm familial drama about warring siblings.

Live Action, Premiere

Chaconne Martin-Berkowicz Explores the Nuanced Complexity of Female Group Power Dynamics in ‘Scotty’s Vag’

Chaconne Martin-Berkowicz discusses capturing the subtleties of shifting female power dynamics within a college sorority in her gritty veracious short.

Live Action, Premiere

A Strange Noise in the Night Leads to a Spooky Encounter in Ben S. Hyland’s Comedy Horror ‘Bleep’

Ben S. Hyland reveals how he used misdirection to great comic effect in his short about a bickering couple investigating a strange unidentifiable noise.

Live Action, Premiere

A Mother’s Love for Her Son Is Tested by Radicalisation in Robin Summon’s Unsettling Drama ‘Victim’

Robin Summons talks to DN about portraying the worrying pernicious mundanity of Incel radicalisation on young men in his unsettling drama short.

Live Action, Premiere

Mass Panic Erupts When a Series of Strange Events Occur in Tom Salvaggio’s News Serial Homage ‘Bellingham’s Belief’

Tom Salvaggio reflects on how the rise of conspiratorial thinking inspired his uncanny Twilight Zone-esque short about a seemingly unexplainable mystery.

Live Action, Premiere

Max Lincoln’s Comedy-Horror ‘Rhyme or Die’ Subversively Critiques the Merciless Nature of the Creative Industries

Director Max Lincoln talks about devising imaginative kills and being inspired by the ruthless nature of the creative industries for his bloody comedy-horror.

Live Action, Premiere

Pola Rader Creates a Beguiling Romantic Hybrid Exploring the Shifting Phases of Love in ‘And Died Together One Day’

Polar Rader shares her careful colour correction process and high-definition lenses used to depict the journey of love amongst bitterly cold wintry climes.

Live Action, Premiere

Jon Olav Stokke Depicts the Farcical Absurdity of the Pistol Duel in His Witty Period Comedy ‘Deloping’

Jon Olav Stokke talks about the benefits of having a wet draft script version of his satirical pistol duel between two women where miscommunication runs rife.

Live Action, Premiere

A Difficult Decision Causes a Looping Infinite Reality in Tom Moran’s Pastel-Coloured Fantasy ‘Romanesco’

Tom Moran reveals how he adapted his mind-boggling metanarrative concept into a self-referential spiral of a film about a woman trapped in an infinite dream.

Animation, Premiere

A Father Attempts Everything to Save His Son in Cliona Noonan’s Heartbreaking Animation ‘Soft Tissue’

Cliona Noonan describes how her enforcement of creative limitations birthed the most interesting ideas in her tender familial animated short.

Live Action, Premiere

Elizabeth Acevedo’s Dramatic Debut ‘Mirage’ Is a Heady Examination of the Role of Memory in Relationships

Director Elizabeth Acevedo details how her actors became the keepers of their characters in her intoxicating examination of memory's role within love.