The Asian representation in Vienna Shorts this year was quite restricted with just 8 movies in the program. However, among those, there are definitely a couple of gems, while the diversity is impressive, since experimental, animation, comedy, horror, drama are just some of the elements that appear in the film. Without further ado, here is a list of all the Asian entries, in random order.
Click on the titles for the full articles.
Hito (2023) by Stephen Lopez
Stephen Lopez can easily be described as one of Khavn's “students”, since his chaotic style of filmmaking with the many, absurd vignettes, the constant mocking of a number of concepts including the title and his filmmaking itself, the music video aesthetics and the sociopolitical commentary are all elements found in Khavn's cinema. At the same time though, Lopez is somewhat more grounded in terms of his script, which does result in a compact if rather surrealistic and abstract story.
Tank Fairy (2023) by Erich Rettstadt
The short uses only a few lines of dialogue to tell its story of acceptance and confidence. Instead, it relies on a Utjung Tjakivalid cover of Bonnie Tyler's “I Need a Hero” to do the heavy lifting. The use of a song recorded for 1984's “Footloose” is maybe too on-the-nose, but “Tank Fairy” pushes that film's themes of personal freedom even further by explicitly tying them to LGBTQ+ issues. The bubblegum color scheme and humor aren't particularly novel on their own, and plenty of music videos over the past decade have balanced camp value with YouTube-era self-awareness, but there's a vulnerability to the story that elevates all of the fun. The triumphant sweetness of the dancing is palpable because this material is clearly important to Rettstadt, whose approach is infectiously upbeat. (Henry McKeand)
Our Pain (2023) by Shunsaku Hayashi
Despite the abstract, quite difficult to understand premises of “Our Pain”, Shunsaku Hayashi has induced his film with a sense of tension and intense artistry through the elaborateness of the paintings presented, that actually results in some very powerful sequences that carry the short from beginning to end. The concept of pain, and how it can be shared or transcend people is also communicated through the images and the movement, despite the fact that an intro here is a necessity. The editing also works well, inducing the movie with a very welcome sense of speed and constant, flowing motion, which is also communicated by the minimal, but quite intriguing animation which “creeps” (both literally and metaphorically) in every image in the most entertaining fashion.
Foreigners Only (2022) by Nuhash Humayun
Nuhash Humayun directs a 15-minute short that moves into two axes, one ironic/metaphoric, in terms of context, and one grotesque, in terms of presentation. Regarding the former, the irony is evident throughout the movie, with the way Hasan is treated, as if he was a leper essentially, showing the prejudice that dominates local society. Even more so, the way the attitude of the people around him, including women, changes as soon as he finds his own solution to the problem he faces, adds even more to this approach, in an element that reminds intensely of “Walking Dead”. Lastly, the attitude the pharmacist exhibits towards the foreigner concludes the particular comment. (Panos Kotzathanasis)
And Me, I'm Dancing Too (2023) by Mohammad Valizadegan
Through an approach that lingers between fiction and documentary, Mohammad Valizadegan uses dancing in order to highlight the lack of freedom women in particular face in the current Iranian regime, with even a deed as dancing in the street deemed a crime that can lead to arrest and to the court. The old man (neither his age nor his sex is by chance) who talks to Saba's camera seems to encapsulate the public opinion, particularly of the previous generations, regarding the aforementioned issues, with him clearly stating (and believing) that dancing in public is a disgrace to the Prophet and thus a crime. The systemic hypostasis of the concept is shown during the “interrogation” of Saba and Peyman, with the difference in the attitude of the police officer, and the punishment, highlighting the inequality of a truly unfair system, as eloquently as possible.
One Day in Lim Chu Kang (2022) by Michael Kam
The comments about the whole thing are also palpable, as progress in the name of capitalism (the construction that is about to happen in the area) is displacing tradition (the whole funeral concept), essentially saying that the past has no place in this time anymore. Furthermore, the issue with space Singapore faces also comes to the fore. On the other hand, one could easily think that perhaps it is time for everyone to start burning their dead, since concepts like the one presented in the movie are not exactly uncommon throughout the world, as the number of graves steadily keep rising, with the pandemic making the whole issue even worse.
Epicenter (2022) by Hahm Hee-yoon
The pictures presented throughout the film are rather impressive in their realism, and it seems that Hahm Hee-yoon followed a technique where photographs were made through filters in order to look like sketches, (or maybe photographs that were then sketched) then adding some minimal movement through animation. The result is definitely outstanding, with the quality of each vignette being top notch, and the minimal movement actually working well aesthetically, allowing the viewer to focus on the quality of the images.
The Altar (2022) by Moe Myat May Zarchi
Probably the best aspect of the 10 minute short is the atmosphere, as shaped by the photographs, sketches and the minimal animation featuring on them, the music, and most of all, the whispering narration which results in a film that is equally ritualistic, mysterious, and audiovisually captivating.
In the Big Yard Inside the Teeny-Weeny Pocket (2022) by Yoko Yuki
The approach Yoko Yuki implements here is as unusual as it is intriguing initially, with the style of the sketches and the frantic speed of animation resulting in a spectacle that is entertainingly chaotic. At the same time though, and beyond its individual elements, as a whole it makes very little sense as the sense of measured is lost early on, with the whole thing emerging as somewhat tiring and annoying, both to the eye and to the ear, even though its duration is less than 7 minutes.
