BY ROBIN E. SIMMONS
Each of the approximately 90 minute programs referenced below include about five films in addition to these noteworthy and memorable titles. Like great short stories, these movies will engage and linger long in the mind. Like a lucid dream.
All screenings are at the former Camelot Theater now rebranded as the Palm Springs Cultural Center.
GOOD PEOPLE (21 minutes)
Program: Secrets & Lies. Thursday, June 21,7:45 PM
Overwhelmed with guilt after an intense affair, Emma returns home to her family hoping to reconnect with her husband. The 5 films in this program reveal the things we keep hidden from ourselves and from each other. Gregory Kohn’s film is about the misinterpretations, deliberate distortions and shocking revelations that embed our lives. (USA)
BLACK LINE (10 minutes)
Program: Around the World in 90 Minutes. Friday, June 22, 3:30 PM
A woman fishing in turbid waters, a suffering nature, the broken chant of the muezzin—all linked by a thin, black line. (Switzerland/Bangladesh)
THE PASSAGE (22 minutes)
Program: And Now For Something Completely Different. Saturday, June 23, 4:45 PM
Phil—mute, wide-eyed, and all-too trusting—flees from an unfulfilling life of privilege in search of deeper human connection, running from mysterious, goose-stepping agents who always seem to be one step behind.
From the howling cockpit of a falling airplane to floating alone in the vast expanse of the ocean, Phil, a sweetly mysterious and childlike wanderer, adventures across a surreal multicultural landscape in order to escape the clutches of two bumbling pursuers – all without uttering a single word.
My current fest favorite looks at relevant themes of immigration, the longing for human connection, and the tragedy of never being able to find peace through a decidedly comedic lens. This heartfelt and very funny film pushes the boundaries of what we will laugh at.
Premiered at the Sundance Film Festival in January, has since won at the Nashville Film Festival and Aspen Film Shortsfest, making it an Oscar-qualifying film.
Filmmakers Philip Burgers (writer/actor) and Kitao Sakurai (director) will speak at the Q&A following the screening. (USA)
TWO MEDUSAS (12 minutes)
Program: We are the champions. Sunday June 14, 1:30pm.
Scott Hamilton Kennedy’s funny and bittersweet coming-of-age story set around the drama that happens when two young girls have the same costume for their elementary school Halloween contest. Brilliant premise and very funny. A gem. Not to be missed. (USA)
