CANCHAS
From the moment it begins, DWF NY 2024 short film CANCHAS perfectly captures the chaos, fear, and unresolved trauma of COVID-19. The story follows a dermatologist who has become a vital frontline worker. The intimate hand camera work immerses the audience in those new and meticulous routines we created in masking, social distancing, sanitizing, and disinfecting.
Watching brings back all the PTSD for this writer of having a three and four-year-old in Manhattan during those days. Unlike so many of our lifelong city dwellers, we did not flee. It was an experience entirely different from suburban living.
CANCHAS is a beautiful platform for leading lady Anuska Martínez. She is equal parts vulnerable, strong, stoic, and resilient. Like NYC, Madrid’s nightly applause from windows and balconies in support of frontline workers felt like a single moment in the day to live in the hope of survival as a human race.
In seventeen minutes, Paula Blanco Pérez delivers a raw and personal short film that hits every emotional note, returning us to the days that challenged the globe in ways I hope we never experience again. It deserves your applause and perhaps a feature-length version.
CANCHAS Trailer: https://vimeo.com/
CANCHAS will have its world premiere at DANCES WITH FILMS NYC on Sunday, December 8. The film follows Bárbara, a dermatologist turned frontline worker in Madrid during the height of the COVID-19 pandemic, who endures exhaustion and heartbreak as she fights for her patients against the virus. CANCHAS offers a poignant glimpse into her journey of quiet courage amid an overwhelming crisis.
The film is very personal to Paula, as Bárbara is based on her mother’s experience during the COVID-19 pandemic. She can discuss her creative process and insights on capturing the essence of a global crisis through the lens of an intimate, personal story.
PAULA BLANCO PÉREZ – Director / Writer / Co-Editor
Paula Blanco Pérez is an award-winning filmmaker from Madrid, Spain, who has been making movies in Arkansas for eight years. She has a bachelor’s degree in digital filmmaking and a master’s in film from the University of Central Arkansas. She was Director of Education at Fayetteville Public TV and won a Telly Award for the “Cinematic Rig FPTV Promo” she directed. She has also directed and produced several short films like “Dust,” “Mirona,” and “Dandelion,” which won Best Student Film at the Freedom Festival International 2022 and Best International Film at The Continental Film Festival-Tokyo Edition 2022. She has also directed music videos like “Mistakes & Dear Shadow,” which was nominated for Best Student Film at the California Music Video and Film Awards 2023, commercials, and much more! Her latest film, “Canchas,” was the first international production at the University of Central Arkansas, where she shot it in Spain. She is ambitious and motivated to continue making films that combine her Spanish and American culture!
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YEAR 10
Somber natural lighting sets the tone for Year 10 from the get-go. The sweeping and ominous score plunges us deep into this near-future reality of sadness and violence. The team raises the bar even further by including heartbeat sounds, heavy drums, and dazzling strings. 
The film is a genuine family affair. Scan the credits for the many Goodgers involved in this magnificent production. Charlie Googger‘s handheld camera work is immersive and beautifully choreographed. Year 10 is quite a feat. This feature-length film with zero dialogue captivates with stunning performances wrought with panic and desperation. Toby Goodger is outstanding. His furious passion and fearless energy carry the entire movie. 
The script juxtaposes two survival styles, one of heart and kindness, and the other savagely selfish and brutal. The lack of dialogue never lessens the intensity. If anything, it allows raw emotion to convey each beat. YEAR 10 taps into the best and worst of humanity’s most feral instincts.
Beautiful camera work has an immersive feel. Eccentric production design initially mirrors Anx’s graphic artist occupation, eventually morphing to match the ever-evolving circumstances of the disease. There is a Tim Burton/JimHenson-esque quality to the creature fx. A grotesque whimsy that makes it difficult to look away.
Matthieu Sampeur and Edith Proust give us magnificent performances. The script possesses a dark inevitably the longer they are together. Director Thibault Emin, alongside co-writers Alice Butaud and Emma Sandona, delivers a surprising link to childhood trauma in Anx. The existential aspect creeps up on you and burrows under your skin. The psychosexual element is bonkers. ELSE is a genre-obliterating love story.
A sweeping opening shot accompanied by Riccardo Amorese‘s booming cinematic score immediately grabs your attention. The location is exquisite, with sprawling grounds and old-world villa architecture. THE COMPLEX FORMS is visually spectacular at every turn. Our mysterious entities remind me of the darkest Jim Henson creatures and Moana’s villainous crab, Tamatoa.
David Richard White gives leading man Christian an intriguing mix of fear and determination. Aided by D’Orta’s sharp cinematography, White compels you to root for him.
Based on the 1957 stage play The Kitchen by Arnold Wesker, filmmaker Alonso Ruizpalacios brings LA COCINA to the big screen. This exquisite drama follows the staff at a restaurant in Times Square and the coordinated (and uncoordinated) chaos behind the scenes. It is a beautiful character study that will punch you in the gut.
SYNOPSIS: It’s the lunch rush at The Grill in Manhattan, and money has gone missing from the till. All the undocumented cooks are being investigated, and Pedro (Briones) is the prime suspect. He’s a dreamer and a troublemaker, and in love with Julia (Mara), an American waitress who cannot commit to a relationship. Rashid, The Grill´s owner, has promised to help Pedro with his papers so he can “become legal”. But a shocking revelation about Julia compels Pedro to spiral into an act that will stop the production line of one of the city’s busiest kitchens once and for all.
In filmmaker Ludvig Gür’s IN THE NAME OF GOD, a young priest struggling to inspire his congregation rekindles a relationship with his long-lost mentor. Jonas’ Old Testament-style promises of a higher calling come with a caveat. The Lord grants him special healing powers only when Theodor sacrifices bad people.
Performances are solid across the board. Thomas Hanzon gives Jonas a self-assuredness that simultaneously comforts and terrifies. It is an effortlessly unsettling turn. Vilhelm Blomgren is journalist Erik. Blomgren represents the audience in an emotionally turbulent performance. 
Stories from staff, families, and residents tell tales of daily transgressions that build over time, ranging from laundry, food choice, incontinence care, medication changes, falls, and worker burnout due to understaffing. The film utilizes beautiful, childlike drawings as transitions and storytelling devices. Cell phone videos of neglect will break your heart. Photos of resulting abuse may take your breath away.
Then COVID-19 and 2020 made things so much worse. Once their failures are exposed, the government protects nursing homes from lawsuits sighting the pandemic and loss of workers. In each case, once regulations appear, they apply only to staff and never to the corporations behind the individual homes. These workers are the essential piece of the puzzle between a new standard of care and honoring their relentless efforts to do the right thing. The film delves into racism, the reductive overview of the profession, the label “women’s work,” and how simple changes would make all the difference.
The corporate lawyers use vile tactics to diminish their role, often attacking the family members with shaming language. Melissa explains this by giving her clients mock cross-examination examples to emotionally prepare them for what is coming in litigation. Another way they try to determine litigation is to delay and then drown Melissa and her team in documents. By giving her the runaround, they hope she will give up. They don’t know Melissa Miller.
The personal connections between legislation and privatization will shock no one. STOLEN TIME lays it out for you. The systemic failure, profit over people, no regulatory oversight, long-term residents are unnecessarily suffering. STOLEN TIME is about accountability and justice. The goal is an overhaul of the system. When we say long-term care, the keyword should still be “Care.”
Shadowland’s initial 38 minutes drag with long, meandering shots, particularly of Iranon (“chaos magician) doing what I would lovingly refer to as “witchy shit.” As a self-professed spooky girl, I mean no disrespect by that term. Frankly, it’s narratively monotonous.
Stanley’s response is to call the women hysterical and spew conspiracy theories rather than take accountability for his actions. Iranon reenters the fray to detail when he discovers Richard’s allegations and their ensuing physical confrontation. It’s damning.
As a contrary view, Richard’s sycophant protege and priestess, Anaiya, believes that baptism will cleanse his past. Witnessing these women embrace him feels icky. It is challenging to know if her intentions are pure or an act. But Anaiya’s journey does not end there.
His only outlet is Rikke, a woman whose own BID diagnosis manifests as self-induced blindness. As his accomplice, she offers him emotional and physical support and lines are easily blurred.
Joseph Sims-Dennett brings BAAL to Beyond Fest 2024. Upon hearing the news of her father’s death, Grace finds her estranged brother missing from their hometown. Following a strange lead and ignoring the ominous warnings from her remaining family members, she takes a journey into the wilderness, only to be tested mentally, physically, and spiritually in the worst ways possible. 
BAAL explores the devastating effects of unresolved trauma and guilt. As the film ended, I found myself scratching and shaking my head. Even after the final scene, I am unsure what was real and what wasn’t. I have so many questions. Sims-Dennett combines multiple tropes but never quite makes a cohesive product.
Saoirse Ronan narrates the constant temptation in scientific terms while scenes of alcoholic behavior play against her words. Rona’s work in rehab is beautifully juxtaposed with her nature work in Orkney. This narrative device becomes a repeated reprieve from her reality. It feels poetic.
Saoirse Ronan is spectacular, delivering a raw portrait of a fractured and flawed woman. Rona is incredibly lonely, seeking genuine human connection. When drunk, she is emotionally abusive. Saoirse explores every facet of sickness and redemption. It is a nuanced turn. Give her an Oscar already.
PÁRVULOS 
Two surprising performances will blow you away, but I won’t spoil that with specifics. I will only say that Norma Flores and Horacio Lazo give us everything they’ve got. Our three young brothers are magnificent. Mateo Ortega Casillas gives Benny the right amount of innocence and rebellion. Leonardo Cervantes delivers vulnerability and compassion as Oliver. Farid Escalante Correa gives Salvador a perfect mix of resentment and raging hormones. Together, they warm and break your heart.
Masterfully absurd, Lenny and Harpo Guit’s latest film, HEADS OR FAILS, introduces Fantastic Fest 2024 to the ceaselessly irresponsible and eternal hustler, Armande. Down on her luck and owing money to everyone in her path in Belgium, risky wagers are her bread and butter. Whether they pan out is another thing entirely.
A MISTAKE
Christine Jeffs writes, directs, and produces the adaptation of the best-selling novel by Carl Shuker, A MISTAKE. The film follows Dr. Elizabeth Taylor, a teaching surgeon whose resident falters during a routine cut. The script jumps right into the case in question. The next morning’s death of the patient begins an avalanche of questions, accusations, and steering misogyny. We witness the systematic attempt at taking down a successful female surgeon who challenges power.
Elizabeth Banks starts as a confident and calming presence in the OR. Amid the chaos, Banks walks a tightrope of mothering Richard through his doubts and defending her skills and judgment. As circumstances spiral, her protective, almost cold exterior begins to crack, and mistakes manifest outside the hospital. One scene with a dog will bring you to tears and puts Banks’s character on the other side of loss. It’s a subtly powerful performance.
The cinematography, especially the quiet moments, has an emotional impact. Jeffs masterfully captures the nuance of being a woman, particularly in any position of power. Words and actions somehow have an entirely different meaning if you are female. Jeffs highlights the infuriating double standards. A MISTAKE delves into the wildly erratic medical field, the human element of playing God, and noble pursuits.
SUPERBOYS OF MALEGAON
Director Reema Kagti brings TIFF ’24 audiences a dramatized version of the 2008 documentary Supermen of Malegaon. The film begins in 1997 and follows aspiring amateur filmmaker Nasir Shaikh and fellow hometown artists in Malegaon, India. SUPERBOYS OF MALEGAON is a story of small-town dreams coming true. Get ready to feel all the feels.
THE CRITIC
Lush cinematography and lighting immediately draw you into the narrative alongside McKellen’s iconic voice. From the costumes to the jewel-toned sets, it’s a period drama fans dream.
Sir Ian McKellen is vicious and brilliant. Playing Jimmy Erskine, he is a rather vile curmudgeon who revels in taking down enthusiastic artists and their work. Jimmy is an unapologetic diva. The fear he leaves in his wake destroys careers with the stroke of his pen. McKellen succeeds in making audiences adore a genuine villain.
Frida Kempff brings TIFF 2024 audiences the true story of Sally Bauer, a single mother attempting to swim the English Channel in 1939. THE SWEDISH TORPEDO is a unique and multilayered sports docudrama. It will take you by surprise. 
Viktor wants to be a soldier, but his deafness prevents it. His late father instilled “the military spirit,” and by Miyamoto Musashi’s canonical The Strategy of the Samurai, Viktor aspires to a noble warrior philosophy. Facing rejection after rejection, he finally convinces the local army to take him on as a volunteer field photographer. This opportunity to pursue his talent changes his path forever.
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