American Short Shorts Film Festival 2000

Keiko ibi	Michael Goetz	Greg Pak	Mark Osborne	Roy Unger
Jim Fleigner	Jochen Schliessler	Charlie Call	Erisabeth Lohen	Grant Barbeito
Keith Milton	Christine Swanson	Mitchel Rose	Chris Harwood	Bruce Laffey
Michael Cargile	Joan Raspo

REQUIEM is the only sci-fi film in the festival. Roy explains how he came up with the idea of this film. "First, the image of fluid inside a syringe being injected into a tube came to my mind. From that point, I gradually came up with the idea. I didn't use many words in the movie, but I did communicate ideas with images, instead of words." Roy loves the movie "Blade Runner," and he adopted some images from that film for his scene in the prison. As a matter of fact, the prison scene, which might look very simple, was the most expensive to shoot. He tried to limit the budget for the futuristic scene with the virtual reality machine as much as possible. "This is not a joyful movie that everyone can laugh at. But I put a lot of effort into selecting music for this film, and I am sure everyone can enjoy it."

This film is about the aspirations of a young African American boy, but Jim Fleigner, who wrote and directed the film, is white. Jim explains that the reason why he decided to take up this theme was because "the two leading boys were actually my friend's sons. Although they lived in underprivileged circumstances, they were great kids and full of love. I was inspired by them to make this film." This is the first time that FROM THE TOP OF THE KEY has screened outside the US. "This story is so American and I was worried if the film would be well-received by Japanese," says Jim. "But I got very good responses from the Japanese audiences, so I am very happy."
Jim has already made two other shorts, and his next challenge will be to make a feature-length film. "What sets short films apart from features is that when you make a short, you have to be very clear about what you want to tell in such a small amount of time. It is important to grasp whether the theme of your film would come across better in a short film or in a feature."

Canadian producer Jochen Schliessler is the only guest filmmaker who does not live in America. He discussed the meaning of the fish in his film. "I meant for the fish to represent both life and death.
First I came up with the idea for the ending--letting the fish go. And then I gradually created the rest of the film around that idea." Fundraising is one of the greatest challenges that most filmmakers face, but Jochen didn't have trouble finding people to help with his film. "My brother is a director, and he helped me make this film. Also, I had support from many friends in the movie industry. In Canada, people are very supportive in order to encourage new figures in the movie industry." Now Jochen is raising money to make another short film he wrote about a clown. He is also currently writing a script for a feature film.

Charlie started making films with 8 mm and 16 mm cameras as a high school student, but he has never studied filmmaking formally. Nevertheless, PEEP SHOW, his debut work, has proven to be an overwhelming hit at over 70 film festivals around the world. The two male actors in PEEP SHOW came up with the idea for the film, and the leading actress suggested what the actors should say to excite the peep show customer. You cannot watch this film without laughing. So what does Charlie think of the lines the men use on their customer? "I myself thoroughly appreciated the actress' ideas. Actually, I learned a few useful phrases for picking up women. I was like 'Okay, I see!'" he laughed. Charlie has some advice for young people who want to make films but don't know how to start. "Either 8 mm or 16mm is fine. Just try to make something with your friends who are willing to help. It will get too expensive if you get too serious. Start with a 1 minute movie.
Then try to make a 5 minute film. I think that is a good way to start making movies--with your friends."

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