The temps they are a risin’, and the Northern Hemisphere has officially been shrouded in the thick, wool itchy-sweaty sweater that is summertime. On these melty days, we invite you to turn your local library, living room, office, or closet (get creative!) into a dark, cozy icebox on whose walls you can project any and all of the nine uber chill shorts that our team discovered during the sweltering days of June.
Just as the sun mades our temperatures rise, this month’s news cycle has been increasing our heart rates. So far as videos go, the transcending theme for the Best of the Month appears to be HOPE, as many of our top picks address the woes of our world today — or follow the story of people overcoming external obstacles. A poor, aspiring athlete fashions a mountain bike out of pipes, eventually becoming an internationally known champion. A teen and his mom escape the Soviet Union and discover the healing magic of American cinema. Staff Pick alum Hiro Murai and multi-talent Donald Glover brought us a highly-charged music video about our effed up society — and more!
Turn on that AC, tune into these sweet hot flicks, and chill out.
“Little Potato” from Wes Hurley and Nathan M. Miller
The story of Little Potato belongs to Wes Hurley, a Russian man who came of age in the “most corrupt and unpleasant to live in city, kind of forgotten” in a time when the country was overcome by communism. After the Iron Curtain cracked open, Wes and his single mother were exposed to American movies, which filled them with the sense that the United States was a place of promise and prosperity that weren’t available on their home continent. Wes’ mother became a mail-order bride, and so began one of the most serendipitous and twist-filled journeys you’ve somehow never heard of. Winner of the Best Short Documentary Prize at SXSW in 2017, “Little Potato” is a treasure of a film that we’re so excited to finally share with you on Vimeo.
“Childish Gambino – This is America” from Hiro Murai
Brimming with symbolism referring to the many horses of our apocalypse (including an actual horse of the apocalypse): gun violence, racism and gleeful ignorance in the face of chaos, many-time Staff Pick alum Hiro Murai’s video for Childish Gambino’s “This is America” doesn’t need an introduction. Try watching it once just for fun, then again and again to catch all of the meaningful easter eggs addressing current social/political/economic/environmental issues that plague the modern-day planet.
“Coexist” from Michael Marczewski
At some point in the past 20 years, the advancement of technology began speeding up at such a mind-boggling pace that it almost feels as if we’ve welcomed the age of face-detecting security on phones and virtual reality in our living rooms with a shrug. Even the concept of a hoverboard (one that actually levitates and doesn’t spontaneously catch fire) seems like it wouldn’t shock us that much. “Coexist” addresses this line between real life and virtual reality that makes it all seem organic AF, where humans are doing regular ol’ tasks like blowing bubbles or using a rowing machine are placed into colorful 3D landscapes that are simultaneously kind of 80’s-inspired and new age-y. “Oh…and there’s a cave full of boobs.”
“RJ Ripper” from Joey Schusler
Kids and bikes; wherever you are in the world, they go together. The chaotic streets of Kathmandu may not seem like a typical breeding ground for world-class mountain bikers, but then again nothing is typical about Rajesh (RJ) Magar. Since learning to ride on a beat-up clunker, to becoming the four-time National Champion at age 21, RJ’s story is one of boundless childhood dreaming and unstoppable determination, forged from junkyard scraps and tested on the rugged trails of the mighty Himalayas.
“Back to the Moon – 360°” from Nexus Studios
Produced by Nexus Studios and co-directed by Hélène Leroux and Staff Pick alum Fx Goby, “Back to the Moon” celebrates pioneering illusionist and filmmaker Georges Méliès, transporting the viewer inside his magical world via some of his best known films, styles, techniques and characters. Watching this brilliant little animation is sort of like having a front row seat on Andy’s childhood room floor in Toy Story, or witnessing the origin of every classic love story in a fairy tale. On top of its adorable, vibrant energy, the soundtrack to this 360 VR piece is as emotive and magical as seeing it all performed on a theatre stage. As far as VR films go, “Back to the Moon” is an unmissable new classic.
“Prends-Moi (Take Me)” from Anaïs Barbeau-Lavalette & André Turpin
There’s no denying it – our understanding of intimacy has been undoubtedly informed by the movies. For many of us, it’s where we first learned about “the” birds and the bees, and where our sexual education began. From the thrilling highs to the complicated lows, they’ve provided us with a base understanding of adult relationships and often provide more questions than answers. But, when we consider the history of sex in cinema, there’s one glaring omission that until recently has mostly been ignored – sex and disabilities. In “Prends-Moi,” Canadian filmmaking duo Anaïs Barbeau-Lavalette and André Turpin bravely and beautifully dive right into the topic, offering a frank and moving depiction of intimacy between a couple with disabilities and Sami, a medical assistant is forced to reconcile his beliefs with his new, delicate responsibility.
“Love Is Blind” from Dan Hodgson
It starts off with a classic romantic comedy trope — two young, attractive people too taken with each other to enter a room like normal human beings, pawing at each other’s clothes like animals in heat. There’s always more to the story in these hurried and heated situations, and the circumstances in “Love Is Blind” are anything but predictable. We won’t give anything away, but you’re going to want to stick around until the very last minute of this hilarious, cringe-worthy comedy.
“DIY — Volume 1” from Encyclopedia Pictura
Ever since audiences started gobbling up the playfully sweet writing of Adventure Time in 2010, copycats have sprouted up like weeds, unafraid to address hard-hitting topics such as feelings, naps and pizza in the same breath. Known for their incredibly imaginative, vibrant worlds, animation studio Encyclopedia Pictura gave it a go with a series for DIY, a company that challenges kids to create something cool, share their projects with each other online, and earn badges. With exceptional craft and super funnny, quick-witted writing, ‘Volume 1’ follows four animal friends as they build the perfect burrito using the golden ratio, hack into a mind-melting VR headband, figure out the source of a bee’s lethargy, and more. It’s a great ten minutes of great fun especially for adults, and we definitely hope to see more of this awesome series.
“Tune In New York” from Lukas Willasch
New York has been home for popular music genres like jazz, rock, blues and it is the birthplace of hip hop. Wandering through the streets of the of the city is like listening to never-ending little concerts of all kinds of music. “Tune in New York” is a collection of different sounds and music from the streets of New York, a celebration of the sound stew that is jackhammers, tourist sneezes, basketballs bouncing on pavement, subway trains passing underfoot, and (of course!) beeping car horns sounding off all at once, at all hours of the day. In this tribute to the loud, bright and wild craziness that is the Big Apple, as Lukas Wallisch beautifully illustrates why It’s the city that never sleeps, and also the city that never shuts the f*ck up.
That Scoville Heat Unit high enough for ya?
Check out past Best of the Month lists for more heaping spoonfuls of spicy sauce.
