Celebrating their 25th Anniversary the Odense International Film Festival (affectionally known as OFF) in Denmark screened some intriguing shorts films internationally and nationally alongside various other screenings and events. All events were free (which is good given that the country is otherwise eye-wateringly expensive) and attracted a young audience eager to learn more about a type of cinema that they had never experienced before. With a varied selection on offer they were certainly given an opportunity to expand their horizons.
Short films from Denmark have been doing quite well in the past year or so with Danish films picking up both the Oscar for the Best Live Action Short and the Best Short of Cannes Critic’s Week. The former was won by The New Tenants (directed by a Dane but filmed in the US), a twisted drama about a couple who move into a new flat only to discover that it’s previously been the scene of a murder. They’re soon visited by a myriad of oddballs, drug dealers and old ladies all with a different – and usually quite violent – agenda. This is a slightly surreal blend of dark and sick humour with strong performances from the likes of Vincent D’Onofrio.
The Cannes winner was an altogether different experience with Berikbeing a tender and emotional piece of work about the relationship between a man disfigured by Soviet test nuclear bombings and a lonely 11-year-old boy. Marked by a remarkable central performance (the titular character is a real person suffering from the effects of Soviet experiments) the film manages to avoid sensationalism and be a measured and moving affair.
Elsewhere, Megaheavywas a deserved winner of the Best Danish Film with its brilliant coming-of-age tale of an introverted teenager whilst they were also explorations of masculinity in the films Beastand Picnic. The former is a raw examination of a violent father and his son which culminates in a shocking stand-off: it manages to pack a tremendous amount of tension and social commentary in its short running time. The latter is an uncomfortable story of a couple who, in the process of spicing up their love lives, have a confrontation with a pair of violent youths. Exploring notions of virility and gender stereotypes, the film manages to ask some uncomfortable questions about being a man in the 21st Century.
The animation was also particularly strong with Clean Carousel (a sick and extremely funny little piece about why little children shouldn’t be allowed anywhere near that you want to keep clean) and The Guest a dark yet lovely piece about a little old lady who harbours a criminal.
Animation also played a large part in the international competition with OFF Grand Prix winner A Lost and Found Box of Human Sensationan absolutely stunning short about a young man dealing with the loss of his father to cancer. Taking an impressionistic approach to the complex and painful emotions that such a time brings, the film is technically brilliant and emotionally gripping. Including the voices of Sir Ian McKellen and Joseph Fiennes, it’s one that is going to win many more awards over the coming months.
Angry Man, the Norwegian winner of the Best OFF Animation Award, was also an extremely beautiful film. Shot with a childlike sensibility, it manages to pack a very serious message about parental abuse within the confines of a fairytale story. But it never feels glib and it’s a remarkable achievement. So is The Little Dragon,a gloriously entertaining about a Bruce Lee doll that becomes possessed by the spirit of the Kung-Fu master himself. It manages to be both tremendous fun whilst having a underlying melancholia about the ephemeral nature of cultural icons and fame.
Fardwas an extremely stylish sci-fi actioner that utilised rotoscope techniques to tell the story of a grey world underneath which lies the secret of colour and life. An intelligent and clever dystopian slice of sci-fi dystopia. Also engaging was Spinby the artist/animator Max Hattler, a very clever examination of the way in which the lines between war and entertainment have increasingly been blurred.
One of the most controversial films was of the festival was Be Loveda German documentary about people who have emotional and sexual relationships with their animals. The film holds nothing back in its depiction of the ‘relationships’ and would certainly disturb those of a sensitive disposition. But the film goes beyond mere shock tactics and it’s an earnest examination in to why people would find such extreme solace with their pets. It also gives to rise to one of the most unwittingly hilarious lines of the festival: when lamenting the fact that he and his ‘partner’ can never have a full relationship in the eyes of the law, one person laments “What am I suppose to do with my mother? Say ‘Here’s your new daughter-in-law, shake her by the paw.”
Also disturbing, but in a completely different way, was the Norwegian film Daddy’s Girlabout a girl who attempts to dispose of her father’s body lead to a rather unconventional and disgusting solution. This dark fairy tale has an air of Tim Burton about it and is marked by a striking lead performance. Similarly striking is Peter Mullan in The Neighbours, a fun Scottish short based on a Raymond Carver short story.
A middle-aged couple life a mundane life, but when their neighbours go on holiday they begin to find a new lease of life when curiosity leads them to explore their new house. David McKay directs a great adaptation from scriptwriter Ronnie Mackintosh and is well served by Mullan who is typically excellent in the lead. Blending comedy and drama with aplomb, it’s a fine example of short filmmaking coming out of the UK.
As was Strange Lights an experimental piece from filmmakers Joe King and Rosie Pedlow. Inspired by an incident in 1980 at Rendlesham Forest, in which American servicemen at the RAF Base claimed to have seen ‘unexplained lights’, the film is an almost transcendent piece which utilises time lapse photography and some excellent sound design to show how the other-worldly can be created even when you are close to home.
Similarly Mr Bradley Mr Martin Hear us Through a Hole in Thin Air created a sense of the surreal setting one of William S Burroughs cut-up poems to some stunning visuals. Director Grieg Johnson’s ability to evoke the feeling of Burroughs’ work is uncanny and it’s an extremely well put-together film. Meanwhile, Abstract?was a deceptively simple idea in which a close-up was slowly revealed to be something else. Bringing in questions about perception and art, the film was a beautiful example of how short films can be used.
And, after all the seriousness, Protoparticles was a very funny (and quiet sweet) Spanish film about a time travel experiment gone wrong and a man who has to stay in his spacesuit. An extremely clever idea that was done with style.
Given that the town of Odense in Denmark is the birthplace of Hans Christian Andersen it is perhaps appropriate that many of the screened shorts celebrated the fantastical side of life. Like the stories of Andersen, long may the festival and the films that it screens live in the memories of audiences for a long time to come.
For more information on OFF go to filmfestival.dk
Laurence would like to thank Alexei, Greig, Heinz, Insa, Joe, Jukka, Jussi, Linda, Monserrat, Ronnie, Søren and Swenja for everything. A special thanks to Connie, Laust and all the staff at the Odense International Film Festival.
Odense International Film Festival 2010 – Round Up (text) by Laurence Boyce is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 3.0 Unported License.
