Beyond Chicago Shorts: And Then What
- SHORTS PROGRAM | 94 MINUTES
ABOUT THE EVENT:
Every catastrophe starts small. A toast. A dinner bill. A chair. A ride home. A crossing guard who’s had enough. Another chair. In this block of wildly escalating, oft-bizarre comedies, the mundane and the unhinged are separated by a single bad decision, a wrong turn, or in at least one case, a divine wind.
These films share an almost mathematical commitment to the bit: take a simple premise, apply maximum force, and see what breaks. What breaks, it turns out, is usually everything. Mayhem is the throughline here, served up in a variety of styles ranging from martial arts farce to haunted house procedural to post-slasher errand comedy.
These aren’t comedies that announce themselves; the humor arrives sideways, on a delay, or occasionally disguised as something else entirely. Unpredictable, assured, and gleefully unhinged, this is some of the finest comic filmmaking working today — just make sure you choose your seat carefully.
ABOUT THE FILMS:
“Uncle Morris,” Dir. by Victor Tadashi Suarez & Max Azulay, 9 Min, USA
Morris tries to make a simple heartfelt toast for his brother’s baby shower but instead completely unravels into a spiral of hit and run guilt, cultish east LA domestic rituals, and a tiny crown of destiny.
FORMAT: DCP
“Wall Udder,” Dir. by Alexandra Hayden, 9 Min, USA
A dissatisfied woman confronts repressed feelings of malaise after her partner comes home smelling like milk.
FORMAT: DCP
“The Chair,” Dir. by Dustin Tan, 7 Min, USA
A carpenter makes a chair for a customer, but it’s not a normal chair.
FORMAT: DCP
“1-800-TIME-TRAVEL,” Dir. by Michael Nusair, 4 Min, Canada
Frank gets the opportunity to go back in time to confront an internet troll. Things do not go as planned.
FORMAT: DCP
“Final Form,” Dir. by Jesse Rothenberg, 6 Min, USA
Crossing Guard vs Car, the final showdown.
FORMAT: DCP
“Check Please,” Dir. by Shane Chung, 10 Min, USA
Two headstrong Koreans can’t agree on who’s treating who to dinner, causing their casual restaurant outing to spiral into a martial arts deathmatch.
FORMAT: DCP
“A Story of Divine Wind (神風物語),” Dir. by Johnson Cheng, 9 Min, Japan
A divine wind blows through Edo.
FORMAT: DCP
“We’re Not Them,” Dir. by Stirling McLaughlin & Wilder Konschak, 8 Min, USA
A group of hapless survivors huddle in a desert cabin, surrounded by murderous cultists. But a far greater danger lurks in their midst: valid criticism.
FORMAT: DCP
“Halfway Haunted,” Dir. by Sam Rudykoff, 17 Min, Canada
A tenant in a haunted house teams up with a ghost to stop a real estate developer from demolishing the home they share.
FORMAT: DCP
“CHÄIR,” Dir. by Chris McInroy, 6 Min, USA
Carl just wanted to sit down. The chair had other plans.
FORMAT: DCP
“Blossom Needs A Ride Home,” Dir. by Tim Schwagel, 9 Min, USA
After defeating a bloodthirsty maniac, Blossom needs a ride home. What a hassle.
FORMAT: DCP