COMEDY, DRAMA, COMING OF AGE.
These are just a few of the genres of short films seen at the Blackbird Film Festival this past Friday. It was the perfect activity for a gloomy and rainy evening.
Do you have an interest in film and media? Maybe you create short films yourself, even if it’s not the case the Blackbird film festival offers something for a wide range of interests. You might have missed out on it this time around but be sure to check it out the next time it comes to SUNY Cortland.
A nonprofit organization with headquarters in central New York State. The Blackbird Film Festival honors and supports independent filmmakers from all over the world. After attending this past weekend, it is evident that those who put together films and the event worked hard to create a welcoming festival atmosphere. The festival was full of seasoned professionals and passionate aspiring filmmakers that were able to meet and interact with others who share the same dreams and goals as well as the possibility to learn from one another.
The festival not only offers all sorts of genres to choose from but the way the weekend is set up allows you to fit a certain time block of showings to perfectly fit into your schedule. The Friday block I was able to attend offered 7 short films and the viewing was a little over 90 minutes with a quick Q&A panel concluding the showtime.
After attending the event and having now seen the short films from Fridays showtime, I am really glad that I decided to attend, and I was able to learn more about such a unique and inspiring festival. The filmmakers flourished with talent and after hearing them describe their filming process showed those in the audience how much goes into their work as well as their creative planning process.
Although I thought all the short films were fantastic in their own ways, there were three that really caught my attention, and I enjoyed being in the audience for.
“Lioness” was a heartbreaking drama short film that was only seven minutes long but nonetheless had the audience feeling all kinds of emotions. An inspirational film displaying the determination and primal instincts of a mother and how powerful the relationship and bond between a mother and child truly is. Despite the situation the family is in the mother goes to whatever lengths it takes using raw materials to ensure the happiness of her child.
“This whole experience was really cool; I’ve always been interested in short films, and this was my first time checking out this event. The atmosphere was great and the fact that some of the filmmakers were able to attend in person was awesome! By far my favorite was “Aaron with 2 A’s”.” Said Osha Harrycel Mabilog a Blackbird Film Festival attendee.
A crowd favorite, “Aaron with 2 A’s”, a feel-good film that told a story with a clear message in seventeen minutes. The film introduces us to Aaron who is a 65-year-old man who starts his 2nd career in the acting business. We see him experience highs and lows and his struggles both internally and externally, but his main battle is himself. We watch as Aaron learns to get out of his own head, and it was a very fun film with a meaningful message behind it that I think others can relate to.
Lastly another one of the short films I enjoyed was “Couple of Guys”. This film told the story of a newly divorced attorney that recently came out after accepting his sexuality and is ready to put himself out there. The story portrays a second chance at love for these guys who are in two separate paths of life, but we see as they each step out of their comfort zones and work on building a future.
“This was an awesome event and stories shared were so interesting to learn about, one of the filmmakers was actually from Costa Rica which I thought was sick.” Said Melissa Leiter, an attendee from Friday’s event.
The Blackbird Film Festival was such a cool experience and I’m happy I was able to attend. It opened my eyes to the behind the scenes of film and I enjoyed a relaxing night full of entertainment across genres. So, the next time the Blackbird Film Festival comes to SUNY Cortland head on over to Old Main and enjoy a night of short films!