I had the privileged opportunity to view Bri Prooker's film, GUT-TO-GO, at the 2010 Action on Film International Film Festival. As a filmmaker myself, I participate in lots of film festivals and screening in Los Angeles, New York City, and Toronto. I see hundreds of independent films at the most prestigious festivals every year, for many years, and let me tell you, Prooker's film was a standout. Prooker is the next great thing to happen to the world of cinema. A triple-threat (Prooker wrote, produced, and stars in the film), her work is sheer genius. The concept for the film is innovative, truly unique, and the execution is flawless. Prooker's script is hilarious and smart. In my experience, it can be difficult in the case of shorts, especially comedy shorts, to be strong enough to really impact the audience in such a small time period. But because of the brilliance of Prooker's writing and the strength and genius of her acting, viewers are fully engaged and committed within the first seconds of the film, where we see Amy (played by Prooker)dancing/jazz-ercizing to some music. A few perfectly awkward, ingeniously comedic kicks, twirls, hips rolls, and I was hooked, fully invested in the character and the film. Impressive, as this is no easy feat. Prooker continues to shine throughout the entirety of the film. She plays two other characters (so three in all)and each one is brilliant and hilarious in their own way. Each of Prooker's characters are completely distinct from one another, which is amazing. She completely transforms herself and is absolutely convincing (case in point: after the screening, Prooker was invited onstage for a filmmaker's Q&A session, and the crowd went wild when they discovered that she played three parts in the film because they didn't recognize her in such completely distinct roles. And one filmmaker in the audience even raised his hand to comment that he expected a young southern woman to speak (one of Prooker's character's is Georgian) but instead she had a standard American accent, and, to his disbelief, was the same woman who played two other roles in the film. He (and everyone else in the theater) were just in awe. Prooker is a gem. She has the kind of comedic ability that cannot be taught. It's raw and subtle and absolutely hilarious to watch. What I really love about the film itself is its uniqueness. Comedy (both mainstream and independent) is becoming so predictable. The stories are all the same, the jokes are cheap, the plots are predictable. Not so with GUT-TO-GO. Prooker's film is like a breath of (extremely funny) fresh air. Everything about the film is avant garde and unique. Besides being hysterical, the film has a subtle sweetness to it. The film contains a really lovely message that is present enough to warm your heart, but subtle enough not to interfere with or diminish the comedy in any way. GUT-TO-GO is definitely a feel-good comedy. Prooker's acting is amazing and she is an absolute riot in her film. I was so happy to read that she won a Best Supporting Actress award for GUT-TO-GO. She really deserves it. I'm glad that this brilliant film and even more brilliant actress is beginning to garner some of the positive attention that both absolutely deserve. This girl's the one to watch!
