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In an era of nine-minute YouTube segments, one would think that short films would be more popular than ever. You’d be wrong. The cinematic quickie still has no outlet like the film festival. This year, the Tribeca Film Festival divides its shorts into 14 different programs according to themes, from the child-friendly Short Attention Span series to the Family Legacy group, which examines the idea of “home.” Here are a few of the most noteworthy films.

- In “Look Both Ways,” from the Short Attention Span series, a suburban hamlet of preteen computer-screen addicts undergoes a “Lord of the Flies”-like transformation when a power outage forces the kids to do the unthinkable: enjoy a gorgeous day outdoors.

A complete list of the Metro’s short film recommendations can be found in the article “Quick flicks to check out at the Tribeca Film Festival.” Many thanks to Drew Hinshaw for the mention!

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While we weren’t able to go we were told the screenings of the film were really well received, and we’re proud of the entire cast and crew for creating such a great film.

For more information about Worldfest and a complete list of winners, visit the Worldfest website.

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NYC! The Tribeca Film Festival! Such a great place to screen a film. New Yorkers love films and New York loves filmmakers. Its been a ride and we’re only in the middle. Its such an honor to be part of this international event. Our first two screenings have been full and the audience really enjoyed ‘Look both Ways’ as well as the other great films in our program.

Julian Smithers (Jimmy) came down with his mom, Sherry for the opening screening. Holly Rowe (Susie) will be in town on the 4th and 5th for our next screenings. The festival has been great to us and there are some really talented filmmakers in town for the festival. We have three more screenings before we have to say goodbye to NYC–so stay tuned!

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In our talking head culture, however, that answer is insufficent because it doesn’t fill up enough air time in the hours of confusion immediately following the horrendous act. It’s not surprising, therefore, that Dr. Phil, offered the following commentary on Larry King Live–before the shooter or shooters were even identified:

The problem is we are programming these people as a society. You cannot tell me - common sense tells you - that if these people are playing video games where they’re on a mass killing spree in a video game, it’s glamorized on the big screen, it’s become part of the fiber of our society. You take that and mix it with a psychopath, a sociopath, or someone suffering from mental illness, add in a dose of rage, the suggestability is just too high. And we’re going to have to start dealing with that. We’re going to have to start addressing those issues and recognizing that the mass murderers of tomorrow are the children of today that are being programmed with this massive violence overdose.

As it turns out, the shooter, Cho Seung-Hui, was an English major who:

“[H]ad written two plays so “twisted” that his classmates suspected he might become a school shooter.”

So will Dr. Phil now rail against the evils of English class and playwriting? Of course not. He and others like Jack Thomson, don’t care about understanding the complexity of human tragedy. Rather, they exploit it to generate publicity and ratings by falsely laying blame at the feet of the video game industry.

They should be ashamed.

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Sat, Apr 28, 11:30am
AMC Kips Bay Theater 12

Sun, Apr 29, 12:30pm
AMC Kips Bay Theater 13

Wed, May 2, 4:00pm
Clearview Chelsea West Theater 2

Fri, May 4, 4:30pm
Regal Cinemas Theater 4

Sat, May 5, 2:00pm
Regal Cinemas Theater 10

For more information and to purchase tickets, visit the 2007 Tribeca Film Guide. We hope to see you there!

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LOOK BOTH WAYS at the TRIBECA FILM FESTIVAL!

(Toronto – April 3, 2007) Canadian short film, LOOK BOTH WAYS will be screening in the FAMILY FILM SHORTS program at the 2007 TRIBECA FILM FESTIVAL in New York City.

Directed by Canadian filmmaker, Daniel Oron, LOOK BOTH WAYS is an attention-grabbing, fictional short film that explores the hidden ramifications of online gaming with children. Shot on 16mm film with high-end visual effects including newly created gaming sequences, state-of-the-art motion capture and painstaking animation, the film takes the viewer through a game where the boundaries of reality and virtual reality are blurred.

LOOK BOTH WAYS is Daniel Oron’s third Canadian film. His first film, ROY premiered on CBC and won Audience Favorite at Brisbane in 2002. Daniel followed up with SWEET SIXTEEN, which premiered at the Edmonton International Film Festival in 2003 and won for Best Director at the WorldFest Houston Film Festival in 2003.

LOOK BOTH WAYS has screened at the Miami Short Film Festival, the Canadian Filmmakers Festival and will also screen at WorldFest Houston.

The TRIBECA FILM FESTIVAL runs from April 25th to May 6th, 2007 in New York and features film screenings, special events, concerts, a family street fair and panel discussions. Visit www.tribecafilmfestival.org to see complete details.

MEDIA CONTACT:

To arrange interviews or to request screeners, please contact:

Alethea Robinson, 416-712-1323, alethearobinson@rogers.com

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“This is going to be one freaky-deaky 21st Century,” said Jerry Paffendorf, the “resident futurist” at the Electric Sheep Co., which designs virtual world projects for businesses. “The amount of technological change in the next 10 years is going to equal the entire last century. We’re not going to use that technology to send e-mail faster. We’re going to use it to build virtual worlds.”

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The audience was curious about the experience working with kids. My response was that I’ve always loved working with kids since they provide a little extra spark that is harder to get out of adult actors. Simply put: Kids just say and do things that are unexpected and occasionally help you create something that’s magic.

– Daniel

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