Mass shootings happen so often in our country that it's become routine. For the most part we make no attempt to remedy the problem, but at least we shower the victims and their families with sympathy and prayers. It's from this recognition that a divorced father and social outcast attempts to reconnect with his daughter and ex-wife. An enormously complex new short from director Joey Izzo who continues to prove he's one of the most uncompromising young American directors out there. Darius is isolated and hopeless. When we first find him, he’s making a scene at his daughter’s soccer game, he storms the field and shoves the ref. Outrageous behavior coming from a disliked and distrusted man. But what if he were to find a way to be forgiven? That night, he happens upon the aftermath of a mass shooting at a local movie theater. When the ball starts rolling down the hill, it picks up speed. Before long, Darius has concocted a bold-faced lie in hopes of reconciling with his family. Izzo thrives on challenging material. His previous films, My Daughter’s Boyfriend and Stepsister, are intensely provocative, constructed to push buttons and create conversations. I Was There Too is his most challenging piece yet, one that feeds off its own manipulations and builds to a powerful final scene that feels eerily familiar but with one major difference. -KA.

Written, directed, & edited by Joey Izzo. Starring: DeMorge Brown, Beth Lisick, Eric Dadourian