Short and sweet

Now that the kids are getting older, Mike and I have been able to make most Friday nights our regular movie night. Even with the convenience of Netflix and Pay-per-view, we prefer to be the suckers that hand over extra coin to sit in a crowded theatre with sticky floors. Hey, it's an 'outing' for us. And I guess there's a certain nostalgia attached, harkening back to younger days when Mike used to buy a huge tub of popcorn and watch back-to-back double features at the theatre across the street from the school we attended.

Yesterday, I watched a short film by Julia Stiles called Raving. I missed seeing the film when it was released in 2007 on IFC and Sundance but came across it when I was looking for videos of Hello Dolly. The film is posted in 5 minute increments on YouTube, although there are sound glitches- I think its twenty minutes has the same remarkable impact as a good full length feature. I am so sold on the idea of short films! And not because I'm tying into the causal mass-market short-attention-span argument. The same way poetry gives larger interpretation and room for reflection upon the written word and the space between words, so do the techniques employed in short filmography.

So find a short film to watch! You'll be sweeter for the experience... and you'll still have time to finish that hefty novel you've been working on.

Okay, I'm unable to resist posting this now. Zooey Deschanel (wearing Armani,) singing 'Hello Dolly' in the credits for Raving:
It starts on a scene change so the screen will be black for the first few seconds.


Zooey Deschanel sings "Hello Dolly." From Raving. from Gowanus Sound Initiative on Vimeo.