Changes

After Laura Neulip outs her bully she is cornered into lying about what really happened in order to save the reputation of the schools star athlete. In an effort to clear things up, the Neulip’s invite the family over for dinner, but find themselves in a messy situation. CHANGES is a spectacular, ambitious, and extremely satisfying short script written by Matthew Bryan and brought to life by Rhiannon Thomas, Stephanie Carpentieri, Gabriel Grier, Robinson Walsh, Julian Vlcan, and introducing Rayne Potter as the narrator.

Credits

Written by: Matthew Bryan
Directed by: Gary Jones
Produced by: Awfully Good Media

Cast

Narrator: Rayne Potter
Laura: Rhiannon Thomas
Alice: Stephani Carpentieri
David:Gabriel Grier
Tyler: Robinson Walsh
Ben: Julian Vlcan

Sound Supervisor and Editor: Ryan Gottshall

Recorded at Spacewalk Sound
spacewalksound.com

Music

Animal Assassins – Colorado 1864
Firework Festival – Game Changer ft. Robin Hawkin
Half Light – From Below
Joel Porter – St. Anthony


My Loyal Audience // Daily Short Picks

My Loyal Audience

In this dark comedy, sheltered teenage Lyla begins to suspect that her most personal, embarrassing thoughts may not be as private as she had hoped.

Director's Statement

At its core, My Loyal Audience is about the desperate lengths people go to protect each other from the truth, and the vulnerability that comes with being seen for who you truly are.

While I have always been obsessed with movies, I have realized over time that there are very few examples on the screen of a true experience of being a female in this world. The depictions of strong women protagonists were often impossibly strong and sometimes less easy to relate to than the ridiculously weak ones. They made the younger me want to be more like the character, and less like myself. This film answers my innate desire to connect with a woman on screen; to share what the strangeness, uncertainty, and embarrassment of being a human being feels like, at least for me.

My Loyal Audience stemmed from my “moment of greatest shame,” and I hope that by sharing such a vulnerable experience through the magic of storytelling and comedy, others can laugh and relate and we will all feel a little more at peace.


Memory of You // Daily Short Picks

Memory of You

Adam is having dinner with his wife, when he is disrupted by something from his past. A story about love that never was - all shot in one single take!


Acoustic Space // Daily Short Picks

Acoustic Space

This short film about how technology has changed the way we communicate features a couple have dinner at an elegant restaurant who cannot complete a conversation due to their constantly ringing cell phones.

Director’s Statement

“Acoustic Space” grew out of my love-hate relationship with technology. I love the fact that we have the ability to be connected all the time, yet I frequently find myself wondering what it is doing to us in terms of attention. As depicted in the film, we might be in the middle of a face-to-face conversation but when the phone buzzes or rings, even if we decide not to answer (and that is very rare), our attention has already been compromised. So, ultimately, “Acoustic Space” is a satire on the way we live today. You can’t go into a restaurant without seeing at least half the people scrolling or texting or basically ignoring who they’re supposed to be out with. Maybe it’s a cautionary tale, a reminder to ask ourselves what’s more important? What’s going on here or what’s going on there?


Teeth and Pills // Short Film Trailer

Teeth and Pills

Steroid pills for breakfast, Botox for dinner and chicken claws served at the funeral... This black, twisted comedy tells the story of 8-year-old Randy, who, after discovering the tooth fairy will bring him Barbies, goes to all measures to lose more teeth..


Spaceman // Daily Short Pick

Spaceman

With the world a matter of hours away from a cataclysmic asteroid impact, Myles believes he has found a way to spare his family from certain death.

Director's Statement

I grew up watching films like 'Close Encounters of the Third Kind' and 'E.T: The Extra Terrestrial'. Pieces that imbued a sense of awe, wonder, magic and mystery through their immersive storytelling and strong visual language... Spaceman is my love letter to my fond memories and my attempt to come to terms with my own adulthood and whether that means all of that magic and awe is lost forever.

Is there really such a thing as a hopeless situation? In the eyes of a learned, life weary adult then perhaps so, but through the eyes of a child the world is still open to boundless possibilities and exciting, imaginative concepts that the years of adulthood slowly wear down over time. It is important, I think, to revisit those times and to not lose that sense of wonder and magic in our lives. I’m sure we have all been guilty of doing it as we get bogged down with work pressures, struggles and other ties of adulthood, so through telling this story, I hope that we can all re-awaken that sense, even if for a few minutes, within each other.


30 Minutos Con Laura || Daily Short Picks

30 Minutos con Laura

Laura, a woman with a complicated life enters a very complicated situation.


These People // Daily Short Picks

These People

A bourgeois dinner. The table is flawless: chandeliers, fine porcelain, divine dishes, delicate wines. Seven guests are sitting. They all are charming... from the outside.

What are they truly thinking about?

Director's Notes

These People is the first short film I ever wrote and directed. It started off as an exercise I gave myself : I had a bit of time on my hands, a good camera and mostly… no money. Around those obstrictions, I wrote this V.O.-led short film and explored some themes that were important to me back then : social hypocrisy, self-consciousness and alienation in human interconnections.
I was (and still am) obsessed by how we see ourselves playing different parts when interacting with certain people. In spite of us, we all give in to power games, especially in seduction and love. We all are either someone’s bully or someone’s victim at one point, to a certain extent... And we become alienated in a part which isn't us, and that we ironically created ourselves.

In this film, each character is actually a declination of myself. A bit of self-mockery never hurts...

We made this film with a very small budget… I could have never pulled it off without my AMAZING cast & crew who committed themselves 100%. It really was a family project made with love.


My Dinner With Werner // Crowdfunding Campaign

My Dinner with Werner

Inspired by the real-life, insane "friendship" between madman German filmmaker Werner Herzog and maniac German actor Klaus Kinski, MY DINNER WITH WERNER is a ridiculously wild and wacky comedy about an 80s dinner date with an unsuspecting murder plot as the main dish.

We have an excellent cast and crew lined up for this movie, but now we need your help to turn this fun, crazy story into a reality.

Please check out our page and consider donating. Thank you!


Check Please || Featured Short Film

Check Please

In a fancy restaurant, Ben plans to propose to his long time girlfriend, Laura, only to find out that his ring was mistakenly sent to the wrong table.

We've all heard about or seen films about proposals going wrong, in Daniel Sorochkin's dinner proposal story we focus on the often forgotten aftermath of standing up for yourself. In Check Please the protagonist, Ben, has to stand up for himself and get his ring back from Mike. But he also has to understand the inevitable price he has to pay - that his marriage proposal will not be as romantic and intimate as he wished for. His dream of a perfect night is ruined whether he claims what’s his or not.

I always liked telling stories about one’s need to stand up for himself. That theme has come up in a few of my projects. My protagonists need to push themselves out of their comfort zones in order to get what they want and deserve. In some of my films the protagonists succeed in standing up for themselves, in some they fail. Just like in real life, you win some you lose some. But even if one succeeds it always comes with a price. I feel like these themes are very relatable. We all have been in situations that challenge us to stand up for ourselves, and there is a price to pay for doing so. I know I personally have been there many times.

The idea of Check Please came to men as I was trying to think of a short that is contained to one location. But as soon as I wrote the script I realized the difficulties that it brings. How do you make a film that takes place in one location always engaging, entertaining and powerful?

Broken up in pieces, Daniel's story makes sure it entices the audience early with the main event occurring within the first minute, where the protagonist’s goal and flaws are very clear and the stakes are constantly raised. As we carry through we are made sure to be kept on edge with a balanced structure and constant introduction of new events to decay the situation even further.

I knew that each beat of the film should feel different, new and nuanced, raising new challenges or uncertainties and keeping the tension high, otherwise the audience would easily turn away. In rehearsal with my wonderful and dedicated actors, we worked on exploring various blocking and rhythms to the acting beats. This was crucial. I made sure that dramatic moments are interwoven fluently with the comedy, and that the characters constantly change tactics while attempting to achieve their goals. This was the way I chose to keep my audience engaged, surprised, and feeling a range of emotions. I hope these attitudes helped make the film captivating even if it’s all at the same location.