Gruenfeld
New/Next '23 + '24
•
Fantasy, Horror, Short Films, 30-Oct-2024
A knight in an accursed and shattered world tempts fate with a mysterious song. Albert Birney’s “Gruenfeld” boards a medieval quest where fantasy is suddenly met by horror. Told from the deep voice of an anonymous narrator, we observe the weathered knight, Sir Garreth, as he desperately searches to cure his ailing beloved and their unborn. After he discovers a sacred musical composition said to cure the most ill using celestial forces, the knight sets off to perform the piece on a hill-side piano. But to Garreth’s misfortune, the performance instead opens a portal to a “distant place of unending rot.” Throughout the tale, Birney encompasses us in an ominous musical score while also offering horrific textures through practical gore and tightly composed visuals. It’s a certainty in style and genre observed from his other projects, “Strawberry Mansion” and “Tux and Fanny,” but a venture into a more hellish world. -JM. Director: Albert Birney. Cast: Albert Birney, Kristin Tata. Cinematography and Color: Tyler Davis. Score and Production Design: Samuel Garrett. Production Assistants: Nick Shamblott, Corey Hughes, Jaynell Aggrey.
Up Next in New/Next '23 + '24
-
Traveling Man
A guy minding his business strikes a daring deal with a mysterious man he meets in the park. Graham Mason’s “Traveling Man” is a modern-day fable where an everyday man, played by Eric Rahill, is enchanted, possibly to his own demise. Through black-and-white grain while a liturgical melody plays, ...
-
Nell
As the date of her first televised appearance draws near, a cello prodigy and her stage mother grapple with public expectations. Clara Mamet directs and stars in “Nell,” an enthralling dark comedy dissecting and disassembling themes of fame and physical appearance. A slow punch-in brings us into ...
-
Living Reality
An exploration of the emotional divide between fiction and reality in the American sitcom. Philip Thompson’s “Living Reality” puts the peculiar form of sitcom into perspective when a character shows strange symptoms and signs of longing. The spoof TV-show, also called “Living Reality,” starts and...
