Festival Update #2: Atlantic Shorts at HIFF Announced

Since its inception, the Halifax Independent Filmmakers Festival (HIFF) has showcased the region's most innovative and original short films. HIFF 2018 includes two exciting programs of twenty-one short films made by filmmakers from the Maritime provinces.

This year’s Atlantic Auteurs - Program One (Wednesday June 6, 9 pm) features recent work by well-known names in the film community paired with exciting offerings from new local voices. Halifax legend James MacSwain presents a 16mm animation titled The Red Purse based on a story from the Halifax Explosion. After the success of her feature film Werewolf, Ashley McKenzie returns to HIFF with a meditative journey through a Cape Breton waterfall in Martha Brook Falls. Todd Fraser continues his process-based experiments using both DV cameras and 16mm hand processed film in the surprisingly funny it’s good to go see different areas. A bold new voice that stands out is Petra O’Toole with Madár, an understated documentary evoking big questions as an elderly woman attempts to rescue a dying bird.

The diverse selection showcased in Atlantic Auteurs - Program Two (Saturday June 9, 7 pm) includes Wintering, a thoughtful take on beekeeping made by Keelin Jack through the CFAT Media Arts Scholarship program, as well as new work from HIFF alumni Josh Owen, Billy’s Behemoth Blast - an astonishingly detailed, mind-bending animation. The Importance of Dreaming by Tara Audibert playfully immerses the viewer into a lush world of woodland creatures. Featuring natural and complex performances by a young cast, Daniel Boos’ Thug tells the thought-provoking story of how far an actor will go to get a role. In contrast to this drama, the subversive dark horror/comedy Dogged by Nicole Steeves & Struan Sutherland will surprise and shock you with its twisted ending. There is something for everyone in this exciting collection of new shorts at HIFF 2018.

Atlantic Auteurs Program One

Wednesday JUNE 6 || 9 PM || NEPTUNE SCOTIABANK STAGE THEATRE || 63 min.

Roller Skates & Hand Grenades || Dominic Fegan || 5:30 min.

Ring Ring, Death Phone || Tyler Messervey || 1:38 min.

krotoplaxx diary disc 1.1 || Ryan O’Toole || 11:40 min.

it's good to go see different areas || Todd Fraser || 3:18 min.

Family Notices || Lynne Fox || 4:58 min.

The Red Purse || James MacSwain || 4:05 min.

Martha Brook Falls || Ashley McKenzie || 6 min.

Baby || Kenneth J. Harvey || 3:38 min.

Madár || Petra O’Toole || 3:02 min.

Missy || Jon Mann || 16:59 min.

Boil || Tim Tracey || 4 min.

Atlantic Auteurs Program Two

SATURDAY JUNE 9 || 7 PM || NEPTUNE SCOTIABANK STAGE THEATRE || 68 min.

Journey of Feet || Erica Meus-Saunders || 3 min.

Torture By Sound || Gwyneth Christoffel || 4:40 min.

Wintering || Keelin Jack || 7:18 min.

genizah - passages from the lublin book graveyard || Solomon Nagler || 9:52 min.

Billy's Behemoth Blast || Josh Owen || 6:15 min.

Thug || Daniel Boos || 15 min.

elmiteskuatl || Bretten Hannam || 2:48 min.

The Importance of Dreaming || Tara Audibert || 10:39 min.

Dogged || Nicole Steeves & Struan Sutherland || 4:46 min.

I'm Bad || Seth Smith || 5:14 min.

In addition to screening their films at HIFF 2018, these twenty-one filmmakers will be invited to take part in exclusive professional development opportunities including the Programmer Initiative, the Distribution Initiative and the HIFF Masterclasses. Through the Programmer Initiative, programmers from the Vancouver International Film Festival, Berlin International Film Festival, Rhode Island International Film Festival, and Calgary International Film Festival & The Calgary Underground Film Festival will attend HIFF to watch local shorts and take part in one-on-one meetings with local filmmakers. Filmmakers will learn how independent film distributors operate and what they can offer artists through The Distribution Initiative with Monica Lowe, Distribution Director at the Winnipeg Film Group. The HIFF Masterclasses will provide local filmmakers with the opportunity to learn from visiting filmmakers through a series of day-time masterclasses.

ATLANTIC AUTEURS RECEPTION || Neptune Scotiabank Stage Theatre

On Wednesday, June 6, following the Atlantic Auteurs Program One screening and Q+A period, you are invited to join us for a casual reception celebrating all of the talented Atlantic filmmakers featured in this years' festival.

Atlantic Auteurs One Facebook event page: https://www.facebook.com/events/589816911404200/

Atlantic Auteurs Two Facebook event page: https://www.facebook.com/events/184098169085680/