Even though you go to work every day, there are things you wish you could do or jobs you wish you could have. Maybe you want to be an astronaut, a lawyer or a swimsuit model photographer. The theme of Thursday's shorts package was On the Job and each one had scenes you could probably identify with.
The evening started with The Spleenectomy produced by Glamour magazine based off of true stories sent in by readers. Starring Anna Faris (Observe and Report, Scary Movie), the comedy followed a young mother and aspiring actress who auditions unsuccessfully for a part but then has the chance to redeem herself by accidentally filling in for her sister's (a doctor) spleenectomy. Cute and entertaining throughout.
Next was Amor a striking Norwegian story of a man who gets beat up for a living. A depressing existence for the young man until he finds someone worth fighting back for. God, I love Scandinavian films. This one is unbelievably tense, mysterious and surprising.
Charlie Thistle was another short that should hopefully make you appreciate the job you have. Named after its paper-shuffling, sad and defeated main character, Thistle starts to learn the power of approving changes in the Department of Normality, not denying them. One of the first changes to shatter his boring world is approving the colour red.
Two Canadian filmmakers offered insight after the screenings on their own shorts: Smita Acharyya's Sorry Girl (a Calgary production) and Matt Judge's I Work in Public (a Toronto production). Ironically both filmmakers shared that more time off recently due to layoffs gave them plenty of time to finish their work. Sorry Girl features a woman who says sorry to much and her boyfriend who tries to shock the bad habit out of her system. I Work in Public features a man recently laid off who starts a personal assistant office on the sidewalks of Toronto's financial district. Both were well shot and very thoughtful.
I recommend checking out more on each of these Canadian artists. Judge is also a composer for some high-profile Hollywood flicks. Smita is continuing new productions with her twin sister with their appropriately named Twinsletown Productions. Check out their interactive voting system where actors auditioning for roles can seek the public's opinion on their performances on Babycliff.com.
