Film: Announcement of the six long-time Crazy8s program finalists

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This year’s six finalists for Vancouver’s longest-running shorts program, Crazy8s, were announced Tuesday by co-executive directors Erin Mussolum and Paul Armstrong.

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Spanning film genres ranging from comedy, drama, fantasy and horror, the finished products will premiere at the 23rd Annual Crazy8s Gala Screening and AfterParty on May 7 in Vancouver.

From now on, the gala should be an in-person event.

“Crazy8s again saw nearly 150 submissions, despite the pandemic, and from a wide range of film experience levels,” Armstrong said via email.

“There were many themes about overcoming personal obstacles, which is natural during a pandemic, but we’re still amazed by the filmmakers’ ability to then translate those personal emotions into universal stories by telling them across the many genres that cinema allows.”

Among this original pool of three-minute video presentations, 40 filmmakers advanced and presented their project to a jury of film and television industry professionals, including Zach Lipovsky, Agam Darshi, Jayme Pfahl, Doreen Manuel and Mathew parry.

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Of these, 12 moved on to the next stage where they completed their scripts with the support of professional editors.

Those final scripts were presented to the jury for discussion and debate, which gave the green light for six projects to hit the gas and make a movie in eight crazy days from February 25.

“I think the challenge with its incredibly short timeline (eight days in total) combined with full industry support from top to bottom is really appealing to filmmakers,” Mussolum said in an email. “The secret sauce really is the vibrancy of the industry Crazy8s exists in – our sponsors, writing support, strong cast and crew base, mentorship, equipment rentals, right down to the post-production and marketing.

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“The filmmakers really feel catapulted through the process and the outcome is always positive.”

The six finalists are below:

Consumer (comedy/horror)

Director: Stephanie Izsak

Writers: Izsak and Toby Marks

Producers: Kevin Keegan, Lori Watt, Nic Altobelli and Keara Barnes

Parcel: 13-year-old girl plagued by toxic beauty standards discovers unconventional and disturbing weight loss method

Imran and Alykhan (romance)

Director/screenwriter: Shakil Jessa

Producers: Sinéad Grewcock, Kora Vanderlip and Steph Townsend

Parcel: Two boys must keep their budding relationship a secret after falling in love at a Muslim winter ski retreat.

The distant place (fantasy/horror)

Director/screenwriter: Kenny Welsh

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Producer: Po Chun Chen

Parcel: A young woman and her father, both of whom have horns, fight to avoid a cult that is trying to eradicate their species.

gold teeth (drama)

Director/screenwriter: Alireza Kazemipour

Producers: Mattisse WeylerHubert

Parcel: An Afghan refugee living in Canada asks an Iranian dentist to extract her father’s gold teeth before burying him.

Undeveloped (Thriller in French)

Director: Derek MacDonald

Writers: MacDonald and Tyler Twiss

Producer: Twiss

Parcel: An embittered, elderly veteran who owns a photo lab receives a package from a mysterious source containing images from his past that threaten his present.

Weeds are also flowers (black comedy)

Director/screenwriter: Kay Shioma Metchie

Producers: Vivian Davidson-Casto, Valerie Lopez and Alyssa Kostello

Parcel: When a woman’s jealousy takes hold, she’ll do anything to get a green thumb.

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