2012 Planet 5D Short Film Challenge

Winner of the Planet 5D Short Film Challenge.

9/10 - A very simple concept is turned into a beautifully poetic film that plays out like a dream. The music really fits in well, without being obtrusive, and the dialogue-free performance from the lead is captivating in the way that it should be. Gorgeous locations and cinematography top it off nicely.

9/10 - A brilliantly acted drama, about a real life issue, that owes more than a nod to the work of Alejandro González Iñárritu. This film also displays some top-notch night-time cinematography.

8/10 - I really enjoyed this! Very short, to the point, and very sweet! It also brought a warm smile to my face several times during its 2 minute running time. I love that there is no dialogue, and the music choice works really well. The kids are all brilliant and suitably mischievous, while the pranks that the two brothers pull on each other often make for nice little set pieces, both humorous and visually interesting. Brotherly love is also brilliantly edited, and there are flourishes of movement that remind me of Edgar Wright's style of movie making. All in all a little gem!

8/10 - As a fan of the superhero movie this film was a little treat for me. Super 'Stache has some stylish post production, a short running time, and a story that gets to the point. It plays out the way any good joke does, with a quick set up, followed by the punchline. And like any good joke it is humorous.

8/10 - While I found the subject matter of this documentary uninteresting, this did not stop me getting caught up in the beautiful imagery that has been captured. Top marks to the DP.

7/10 - A suitably creepy horror/thriller, beautifully shot, if a little too predictable. Some nice performances too.

7/10 - A slightly twisted tale about vengeful rodents. The black and white grainy footage works well to capture the atmosphere, although the use of the f-word, in written form, doesn't quite sit well with the classic silent movie approach. The film does succeed however in giving the rats enough personality to make you root for them.

6/10 - No More Room in Hell is a very short zombie movie that, like a lot of horror movies (the best example being The Thing), plays on the idea of paranoia destroying a small group of people from within. It moves at a fast pace due to some tight editing, which is nice, and I like the use of a hand-held camera. It gives a real sense of immediacy. However, the downside of this fast pace is that you don't get much in the way of character development, so everyone just ends up being canon fodder. But the performances are fairly well balanced; intense without over doing it. The sound could have been better though and it suffers from some of the typical things that make it feel like a student film i.e. zombie movie, an abundance of f-words, and end credits that go on way too long.

5/10 - While the lack of dialogue is commendable, and the black and white photography is effective, the story just wasn't all that fun to watch. It ends on a note that is both unsatisfying and a little confusing. The boy performed quite well though.

3/10 - This film was painful to watch. While it is clear that some effort has gone into the making of it, and there is some cleverly successful use of special effects, Death Wish fails on nearly every other level. There is a good story to be found somewhere here. However, it has been buried underneath the ridiculously complicated plotting, laughable dialogue, extremely wooden acting (sometimes the actors can clearly be seen reading the dialogue from somewhere off screen) and finally, the over the top musical score that often drowns out the rest of the badly recorded audio.