DJ Ethan Kiermaier opens the evening at 7pm. Films start at 8pm. Tickets: $10 regular / $8 student and senior. Q&A with Calmin Borel, Curator of the LAB (Experimental Film and Animation) Competition, Clermont-Ferrand, France.
One of the world's leading festivals devoted to short films, Clermont-Ferrand in France is a vital showcase and a market for shorts, attracting over 100,000 visitors each year. Often referred to as the ‘Cannes’ of short film, it is now in the fourth decade. Originally Clermont-Ferrand screened only fiction films and only on 16mm and 35mm. But with the arrival of new technologies, a new competition called LABO (The LAB) was established in 2002. The LAB brings audiences films at the crossroads of different techniques and genres such as Fiction/Documentary, Experimental/Fiction, Animation/Documentary, etc. With the support from the Cultural Services of the French Consulate in Boston and New York, Balagan is thrilled to host the LAB's curator Calmin Borel who, together with Balagan's co-curator Alla Kovgan, compiled a diverse and eclectic mix of films from the Clermont-Ferrand International Short Film Festival.
PROGRAM
Heavy Heads / Denmark / 2010 / Animation / 07'34 / LABO 2012
dir. Helena Frank
In a grey kitchen, Monika lives a solitary life, to the sounds of a dripping water tap and a buzzing housefly. Monika is attempting to seduce the housefly when a sad stranger suddenly surprises her by entering through the wrong door.
On the Way to the Sea / Canada, Quebec, China / 2010 / Documentary/Experimental / 19'37 / SPECIAL JURY PRIZE, LABO 2011
dir. Tao Gu
A combination of fictional elements, documentary fragments and visual abstraction, reflecting on the fragile human condition.
Il Capo / Italy / 2010 / Documentary/Experimental / 15'00 / GRAND PRIX, LABO 2012
dir. Yuri Ancarani
In a marble quarry, the chief coordinates and guides quarrymen and heavy-duty machines using a language consisting solely of gestures and signs.
Choros
/ United States / 2011 / Animation/Experimental / 12'44 / LABO 2012
dir. Michael Langan, Terah Maher (in attendance!)
A chorus of women emerge from the movements of a single dancer in this dreamlike pas de trente-deux.
Muro / Brazil / 2008 / Fiction / 18'00 / SPECIAL JURY MENTION LABO 2009
dir. Tião
Soul in vacuum, desert in expansion.
Bobby Yeah
/ United Kingdom, England / 2011 / Animation / 23'00 / SPECIAL JURY PRIZE, LABO 2012
dir. Robert Morgan
BOBBY YEAH is a petty thug who likes brawling and stealing stuff. One day, he steals some very dangerous individuals' favourite pet, and finds himself in deep trouble. He really should learn, but he just can't help it.
The Centrifuge Brain Project / Germany / 2011 / Fiction / 07'00 / LABO 2012
dir. Till Nowak
The "Centrifuge Brain Project" is a scientific experiment that started in the 1970s. It involves an amusement park to enhance peoples' brain capacity. Dr Laslowicz explains the project. He believes that centrifuging people with 20.000 horsepower solves human problems.
Generously sponsored by the Consulate General of France in Boston and Cine2000.
