BxFW: August 2024

This August, BxFW brings you short films, from islands as far and wide as Tenerife, Puerto Rico, Australia and beyond, that take audiences on visual and lyrical journeys through stories about nostalgia, childhood, young and mature love and the interconnectedness of humanity and technology. Plus, an interview with filmmaker Ralph Calle-Schulz, Founder & CEO of RISE FLIX, celebrating the 21 Islands Film Festival’s partnership with the streaming platform that caters to student and Independent filmmakers.

• [be e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e’ ee] . A sensory and contemplative experience involving filmic and performative co-creation on the theme of forgotten spaces and realities. A journey through wool mediated by the body and the voice of its protagonists. A process of personal transformation led by Beatriz Ballester in which the lived experience is immanent throughout their aesthetic and visual journey. Director: ziREjA. Canary Islands. 19 min.
• SPARROW. Sparrow is the lyrical story of a small boy who believes he can fly. However, his life is overshadowed by the legend of his grandfather who died a hero in World War Two. One night he discovers the tale that his father so adamantly clings to, is a lie. His grandfather was a gay man, who seeing the futility of war, deserted in protest when his lover was shot in the dugouts of Egypt. In unravelling the truth behind what happened, the boy discovers the strength to stand up to the bullies in his world, in an unexpected way. Director: Welby Ings. 2016. New Zealand. 15:00 min.
• LA MAGUA. The 1950s. El Paso, in the island of La Palma. Sitting in front of the loom, the women of the town thresh the silk. As time goes by, they spend it weaving. The memories of a childhood crossed by nostalgia palpitate among the silken threads. A feeling of nostalgia know by the islanders as “Magua”. Director: Héctor García Méndez. 2021. Tenerife, España. 4:05 min.
• WE’RE GOING TO PARIS. An old married couple try to rob a bank with the purpose of saving their house which has a foreclosure on it, but the couple receive a tremendous surprise when they enter the bank. The real reason for the robbery is later revealed. Director: David Norris. 2017. Puerto Rico. 9 min.
• IRONY. A film that explores the relationship between man and technology…told from the perspective of a phone. Director: Radheya Jegatheva. 2018. Australia. 8 min.
• THE HOLE. A soldier hides in a cave to avoid the big snake in the woods. He finds a brief rest in the cave, even makes a little bat friend. But after eating all of the food, he hears the snake hissing again. Director: Fang Hsin Kai. 2021. Taiwan. 11:39 min.
• THE MACHINATOR. A love story of John, a young inventor of tin robots, and Anna, a beautiful girl selling paper cranes in place of Arthur, his father. Arthur opposes the relationship and tries to prevent it. John overcomes all obstacles and gets to his love. Director: Pablo Latorre. 2016. Antigua and Barbuda. 10 min.

Program presented in English and Spanish with subtitles.

9:30 PM | Bronx Film Wednesdays Digital on BronxNet TV — Hosted by BronxNet’s Sonyi Lopez.

WAYS TO WATCH:

Pregones/PRTT
—Facebook Live: www.facebook.com/pregonesprtt
—Vimeo: www.vimeo.com/pregonesprtt

BronxNET TV
—Cable: 67 Optimum
—Cable: 2133 FIOS
—Web: www.bronxnet.org/watch/