Cinematic Favorites 03/20

The first (and probably not the last) quarantine edition of Cinematic Favorites will be marked by short films which have been ruling internet during these days of pandemic lockdown, primarily thanks to independent artists and many festivals switching to live online streaming or offering their entire programs from the past years. (And not to mention that having numerous cinephiles as Facebook friends equals a continuous influx of recommendations.) But, before focusing on these small, yet valuable pieces of cinema, the easier part - ten of the most memorable recent features, ranging from weird arthouse to commercial flicks which I found immensely enjoyable despite low expectations.

1. The Bottomless Bag (Rustam Khamdamov, 2017)

2. Jesus Shows You the Way to the Highway (Miguel Llansó, 2019) 

3. Diner (Mika Ninagawa, 2019)

4. The Gangster, The Cop, The Devil (Won Tae-Lee, 2019)

5. Altered Carbon: Resleeved (Takeru Nakajima & Yoshiyuki Okada, 2020)

6. Birds of Prey and the Fantabulous Emancipation of One Harley Quinn (Cathy Yan, 2020)

7. The Manslayer/The Virgin/The Shadow (Sulev Keedus, 2017)

8. To Your Last Death (Jason Axinn, 2019)

9. Swallow (Carlo Mirabella-Davis, 2019)

10. Underwater (William Eubank, 2020)

And now, arranged in four categories, top 40 out 100+ shorts watched in March.

MUSICAL INTERLUDE

1. Never Forever (Lily X. Wahrman, 2013)

2. Coma (Pedro Cornetta, 2013)

3. El Búho - Aguas Claras (Víctor Hugo Espejo & Jessica Lopez, 2018)

4. Spiritbox - Blessed Be (Versa Films, 2020)

NOT ALL TOONS ARE FOR KIDS

1. Two Grim Ravens (Mihajlo Dragaš, 2019)

2. The Past Inside the Present (James Siewert, 2016)

3. The External World (David O’Reilly, 2011)

4. The Burden (Niki Lindroth von Bahr, 2017)

5. There Were Four of Us (Cassie Shao, 2019) (trailer)

6. How to Disappear (Merlin Flügel, 2011)

7. Flut (Malte Stein, 2018)

8. Schirkoa (Ishan Shukla, 2016)

9. Shehr e Tabassum (Arafat Mazhar, 2020)

10. The Ride (Huh Hyunjung, 2019) (trailer)

11. Symbiosis (Nádja Andrasev, 2019) (official page)

12. Familiar Strangers (Murat Sayginer, 2020)

13. Granny (Sandro Katamashvili, 2013)

CINE-LAB REVERIES

1. Witches Walk (Daniel & Clara, 2012)

2. Me the Seagull and the Sky (Chris O’Neill, 2012)

3. }Oo( (A.J. Gomez, 2016)

4. Soul Cages (Phillip Barker, 2000)

5. Zang Tumb Tumb (Tias Banerjee, 2018)

6. Night People (Daniel Fawcett, 2000)

7. 3 Dreams of Horses (Mike Hoolboom, 2018)

8. The Walking Ink (Thomas Barndt, 2006)

9. Image of Myself as Act (Wolfgang Lehmann, 2002)

10. Sightings (Kent Tate, 2013)

11. Mindscapes (Muriel Paraboni, 2018)

12. Astrology (Brittany Gravely, 2018)

13. Cassette (Péter Lichter, 2011)

MELANCHOLIA / ANTI-UTOPIA

1. The Process (Vallo Toomla, 2010)

2. 2045 (Maja Prelog & Blaž Murn, 2016)

3. The Day the Beans Ran Out (Guðný Rós Þórhallsdóttir, 2018)

4. Parachutes (Wendy Pillonel, 2012)

5. The Forest (Lia Tsalta, 2017) (trailer)

6. Jana (Freddie Favar, 2018)

7. Habana (Edouard Salier, 2014)

8. Submarine (Mounia Akl, 2016)

9. Bon Appétit (Erenik Beqiri, 2017)

10. Nation Estate (Larissa Sansour, 2013)