Do you remember the good old days when cinemas used to show some crazy short film before the main feature? Well, I've got some good news for you. Short movies are making a comeback!
David Black is a filmmaker in Melbourne, Australia and has been busy over the last couple of years making off-the-wall shorts. 17 in fact, and some are now being shown before the main features at cinemas like Roxy 14 in California, Filmscene in Iowa, The Logan Theatre in Chicago (as part of the Sinema Obscura nights, at the Carlisle Club Cinema in the UK and there are more cinemas adding his shorts to their main features all the time.
Just like feature movies used to get a cinema run and then end up on the television, there are TV shows also showing those films now. You can see them on occassion on Lord Blood-Rah's Nerve Wrackin' Theatre on WAOE My 59 Peoria IL and WISE MyTV Fort Wayne Fort Wayne In, KCTH Comcast 27/AT&T U-Verse 99! San Francisco Bay Area and VCAT Vallejo Public Access Comcast 27/AT&T U-Verse 99! San Francisco Bay Area. Also showing my films on TV are Sinema Obscura on CAN TV in Chicago and Spine Chilling Cinema 0n Roku KSUN, Charter channel 983 ksun, TDS sd 13 and HD 1013. More are adding his films on so the list will grow.
And believe it or not, just like films that had been shown on TV would then be trotted out on DVD, some of them have been added to DVD anthologies, such as Grindsploitation 666, Schlock-O-Rama, Halloween Hellnight, Drive-In Grindhouse and Trasharts Killers Vol 2.
This has all been happening over the last year, so its' quite new and therefore flying under the radar. Therefore, we'll be doing a two-part feature on his work on the site with the possibility of more to come. You've read his interview HERE, so now we'll look at several shorts that he's directed or produced now.
This was a solid and incredibly silly short. The over-the-top act that starts this off, with his goofy facial expressions and her nonchalant reaction believing him to be another client, sets the stage for all the goofiness that follows which is genuinely hilarious. From the ghost trying to come to grips with his condition to the inanimate objects trying to contact her and provide further confusion to it all, this is a solid and generally enjoyable feature.
Sex Robot-
This was an absolutely hysterical effort. The one-joke gag, about her turning everyone of his expressions and comments into literal sex acts, provides some solid physical comedy that's only enhanced by the outstanding physical reactions he provides upon realizing what he's done on accident. Upon realizing that, the short comes off as rather predictable but it's not enough to bother much as the resulting gags are that good here.
The Road to Hell is Still Undefined-
Overall, this was quite an ambitious and enjoyable effort. The steam-punk setting and complete lack of understanding how the world works with his fire-and-brimstone speeches that are counteracted at every turn give this far more social awareness and impact than expected when it starts getting into the philosophical ramifications of everything he's saying. Armed with a great twist ending and solid special effects work, there's a lot to like here.
Parental Duties-
The longest short in the package, this post-apocalyptic fare is certainly memorable enough. The philosophical questions and debates that are engaged throughout here mean the short tackles some tough subject matter and is commendable on that end for having logical debates for both sides. However, at it's length, this is just too long and feels somewhat repetitive at times as it goes on. Still, the ambitiousness and philosophical nature of it all manages to overcome that for the most part.
As I said, we may be doing more of these over time so check back soon to see if more of these shorts are covered on the site.
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