"Game Brunch," a short we shot in November is finished! Check out its teaser below. And find out more about the film in our BTS post.
"Game Bruch" Teaser
in Short Films
7th Annual Best of Fest!
in IndieWorks
Celebrating another amazing year of films & filmmakers!
IndieWorks screens short films every month produced by emerging filmmakers throughout New York. It provides a platform for those filmmakers to showcase their work in front of an audience and to network with individuals in the local film community. We aim to create a space that sparks discussion & collaboration and pushes our peers and ourselves to find inspiration from each other.
Our annual season runs June through March, culminating in our Best of Fest Finale every April. Out of 133 submissions during our 7th year, we were able to screen 46 fantastic films. On Tuesday, April 21st, all 10 of our monthly Silver Whiskers Award winners of the year were meant to screen again in the theater at the Made in NY Media Center! Unfortunately, due to COVID-19, we had to cancel the screening and find a way to bring the celebration online. This is it! We hope you watch the films over the next few days (some won’t be watchable after the 25th) and let the filmmakers know what you enjoyed about their work.
The top prize comes with winning the Golden Whiskers Award, our version of Best Picture; but we'll also be awarding Best Director, Best Ensemble, Best Cinematography, and Best Editing at the bottom of this post!
Watch our intro and the films below!
Neighborhood (14:30) directed by Ben Garchar
Will I Say So (6:48) written & directed by Jamie DiNicola (@jamiedinicola)
(Excerpt) Film no longer available.
Bath (14:56) written & directed by Meredith Dobbs (@meredobbs)
End of Summer (14:39) written & directed by Serena Kuo (@serenackuo)
(Trailer) Film no longer available.
(Trailer) Film no longer available.
The Shallow End (10:22) directed by Cynthia Silver (@ccsilverdirects), written by Wendy MacLeod
Take a 10 minute intermission. Maybe find the last 5 directors on social media and do the mingling you would’ve been able to do in person. Tell them what you thought of their film!
Eudaemonia (14:28) written & directed by Julia Ngeow (@juliagneowfilms)
(Trailer) Film no longer available.
A Poem in Bamboo (4:34) directed & animated by Luke-Yao Chang (@lukechang676) & XuFei Wu
Power Out (5:40) written & directed by Ben Myers (@benjaminlawrencemyers)
The Gaffer (7:58) directed by Paul Robinson (@sen3paul), written by Sashia Dumont (@sashiadumont)
Come Be Creepy With Us (15:39) directed by Beth Fletcher (@ebmfletch), written by Michael Calciano (@neeshcalneesh)
Now maybe find those 5 directors on social media and tell them what you thought of their films!
All 10 Silver Whiskers Award Winners are eligible for the Golden Whiskers Award. The other nominees are:
BEST DIRECTOR
Come Be Creepy With Us (Beth Fletcher)
The Shallow End (Cynthia Silver)
Bath (Meredith Dobbs)
BEST ENSEMBLE
The Shallow End (Zoe Wilson, Zoe Manarel, Sanai James, Parker Winston, Trevor Brooks)
Bath (Georgia Clarke-Day & Joseph Cullen)
The Gaffer (Sashia R. Dumont, Brent Bruckner, Dan Aloisi)
BEST CINEMATOGRAPHY
Eudaemonia (Scott Miller)
End of Summer (Hannah Kitasei)
Come Be Creepy With Us (Jesse Coyote Sanchez-Strauss)
BEST EDITING
Neighborhood (Ben Garchar)
The Shallow End (Will Mayo)
A Poem in Bamboo (Chun-Yao Chang & XuFei Wu)
THANK YOU.
To all of the incredible people involved in this community who submit their work, attend our monthly series, follow our content, and spread the word of anything IndieWorks... we truly thank you. It's been another great year of innovative, imaginative & inspiring local films and filmmakers.
AND THE AWARDS GO TO...
CongestedCat & IndieWorks founder Christina Raia allowed her cat Addie to help present (photobomb) the physical awards. We will ship them out to the winners!
BEST CINEMATOGRAPHY: “Come Be Creepy With Us”
BEST EDITING: "Neighborhood”
BEST ENSEMBLE: "Bath"
BEST DIRECTOR: "The Shallow End"
GOLDEN WHISKERS (BEST OF FEST): "The Shallow End"
Golden Whiskers Award Winner:
Winning filmmaker gets $100 towards a future crowdfunding campaign should they choose Seed&Spark as their platform.
A 1 hour production, post-production, or marketing phone consultation from 4milecircus.
CongestedCat Productions will offer free script coverage for the director's newest shorts.
Category Winners:
Each winner gets $50 towards a crowdfunding campaign should they choose Seed&Spark as their platform.
THAT'S A WRAP!
As we take next month to recover from the circumstances of the pandemic, we hope you will too. Safety pending, our 8th Year of IndieWorks kicks off in June, with our Pride-themed screening. That isn’t looking likely at the moment, but that lineup is set and will be the first of Year 8, even if it needs to happen at a later month. In any case, we hope we’ll be able to see YOU there. Keep in touch & stay up to date through our social media accounts. Be well!
Be sure to submit your films on our IndieWork page, and watch episodes of our Insider Series with the monthly Winners from all 7 years to get more insight into their screened films & upcoming work. Also, films that are available for free online from ALL 7 years are watchable on our Past Films page.
7th Annual Best of Fest next week!
in IndieWorks
Celebrating another amazing year of films & filmmakers!
IndieWorks screens short films every month produced by emerging filmmakers throughout New York. It provides a platform for those filmmakers to showcase their work in front of an audience and to network with individuals in the local film community. We aim to create a space that sparks discussion & collaboration and pushes our peers and ourselves to find inspiration from each other.
Our annual season runs June through March, culminating in our Best of Fest Finale every April. Out of 133 submissions during our 7th year, we were able to screen 46 fantastic films. On Tuesday, April 21st, all 10 of our monthly Silver Whiskers Award winners of the year were meant to screen again in the theater at the Made in NY Media center! Unfortunately, due to COVID-19, we had to cancel the screening and find a way to bring the celebration online. And we’ve done just that! So come back to this blog starting at noon on the 21st through 8pm on Saturday, the 25th to watch the films and find out the grand prize winners of Year 7!
Will I Say So (6:53) written & directed by Jamie DiNicola
Simply, a story of vulnerability. (June Winner)
Neighborhood (14:30) directed by Ben Garchar
The lives of three strangers—a pigeon keeper, a webcam model, and a man haunted by ghosts—intertwine mysteriously amidst the backdrop of a rapidly gentrifying Bushwick. (August Winner)
Come Be Creepy With Us (15:26) directed by Beth Fletcher, written by Michael Calciano
A millennial nightmare that follows Anna, a young woman stuck in the midst of a quarter-life crisis, who learns how to keep on living after being haunted by the undead spirit from her summer camp past. (October Winner)
Power Out (5:40) written & directed by Ben Myers
A group of Millennials' night takes a turn when the lights suddenly go out.... "Cloverfield" meets "High Maintenance" in this 'experimental political-art- dramedy.' (December Winner)
Bath (14:56) written & directed by Meredith Dobbs
Discussions about sexuality and politics during a weekend away in Bath prove to Nick and Ella that despite their six years together, they don’t have it all figured out. (February Winner)
Eudaemonia (14:47) written & directed by Julia Ngeow
A talkative Australian traveller and a reclusive artist form an unlikely bond after an accidental 'break and enter' in Brooklyn. (July Winner)
End of Summer (14:39) written & directed by Serena Kuo
On the way to college, Dawn's life is flipped upside down when her father is struck by a heart attack in the middle of the desert. (September Winner)
The Shallow End (10:21) directed by Cynthia Silver, written by Wendy MacLeod
A group of teenaged girls jockey for power in the savage summer society of a community swimming pool during the summer of 1984. (November Winner)
A Poem in Bamboo (4:34) directed & animated by Luke-Yao Chang & XuFei Wu
Life is not always smooth. When bad things happen, some people are lucky enough to move on, but not the old lady A-Yuan. (January Winner)
The Gaffer (8:00) directed by Paul Robinson, written by Sashia Dumont
When Daniel Foster crosses a dangerous crime leader, he resorts to humor in a desperate attempt to save his life. (March Winner)
All 10 Silver Whiskers Award Winners are eligible for the Golden Whiskers Award. The category nominees are:
BEST DIRECTOR
Come Be Creepy With Us (Beth Fletcher)
The Shallow End (Cynthia Silver)
Bath (Meredith Dobbs)
BEST ENSEMBLE
The Shallow End (Zoe Wilson, Zoe Manarel, Sanai James, Parker Winston, Trevor Brooks)
Bath (Georgia Clarke-Day & Joseph Cullen)
The Gaffer (Sashia R. Dumont, Brent Bruckner, Dan Aloisi)
BEST CINEMATOGRAPHY
Eudaemonia (Scott Miller)
End of Summer (Hannah Kitasei)
Come Be Creepy With Us (Jesse Coyote Sanchez-Strauss)
BEST EDITING
Neighborhood (Ben Garchar)
The Shallow End (Will Mayo)
A Poem in Bamboo (Chun-Yao Chang & XuFei Wu)
Winners will be announced on Saturday, the 25th!
Golden Whiskers Award Winner:
Winning filmmaker gets $100 towards a future crowdfunding campaign should they choose Seed&Spark as their platform.
A 1 hour production, post-production, or marketing phone consultation from 4milecircus.
CongestedCat Productions will offer free script coverage for the director's newest shorts.
Category Winners:
Each winner gets $50 towards a crowdfunding campaign should they choose Seed&Spark as their platform.
SEE YOU BACK HERE ON APRIL 21ST!
"Shadows" Teaser
in Short Films
Why Online Festivals During COVID-19 Are Essential
Christina wrote a piece for Seed&Spark’s Sparking Conversations blog.
