And the Award Goes to... Third time’s the charm, as the SFF@NST By Stephen Vrattos If the turnout to this year’s event is any indication, the SFF@NST (Short Film Festival at North Shore Towers) is here to stay. A mere two year’s young, the 3rd Annual celebration of short filmmaking packed the Towers Cinema both nights of the event—Tuesday, September 29 and Thursday, October 8. There literally wasn’t an empty seat in the house with many residents turned away at the door long before the scheduled 7:30 pm start. In fact, after the initial night’s tremendous success, word of mouth resulted in the second night filling even more quickly! 11 films were presented over the two evenings, five the opening night and six the second, encompassing a variety of themes, styles and storytelling. But all shared the highest standards of quality. Veteran movie and TV-screen actor and NST resident Marilyn Chris, who founded the SFF@NST with husband and fellow thespian Lee Wallace, accepted nothing less, often hounding filmmakers for better quality prints of their work, if she found them wanting. The opening film, “Water Dogs,” written, directed and edited by Matthew Slamowitz, won the first evening’s Audience Appreciation award, easily outdistancing its closest competitor, the poignant and beautiful documentary, “It Happened in Havana: A Yiddish Love Story,” written, directed and produced by Judy Schiller which garnered the second highest tally. The lighthearted “Seraglio,” plays to standing-room-only crowds written and directed by Gail Lerner and Colin Campbell, took top honors the second night. It, too, easily beat the competition, closest of which was the bittersweet “The Boy and the Bus,” directed by Simon Pitts and written by Rod Arthur. Following the opening evening’s movies, Judy Schiller, writer, director and producer of “It Happened in Havana: A Yiddish Love Story,” and husband and wife team, David Little and Susan Einhorn, who wrote, starred, and directed (with Robert Clem) the one-man comedy, “My Name Is Oscar,” were in attendance to take questions from the audience. One audience member shared his admiration and disbelief at Little’s tour-de-force performance, a fifteenminute monologue the actor presents to his reflection in a bathroom mirror in “Oscar.” Schiller was also noted for the incredible archival footage she was able to obtain of her parent’s courtship in Havana before the coup that put Fidel Castro in power. Founder Chris had hoped to have more filmmakers present the second evening, but last minute personal issues and travel hiccups prevented their attendance. Still, the SFF@NST continues to make its mark in the world of short filmmaking and offers NST residents a wonderful evening’s worth of unique entertainment. Photos courtesy of their respective filmmakers North Shore Towers Courier n November 2015 21
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