by Nadira Amrani
The local Shoreditch company Irresistible films has won Best Short Film at this year’s 64th Berlin International Film Festival, making it the first UK winner of a Crystal Bear. Mike was selected as Best Short Film from a tough competition within the category Generation 14PLUS. Mike was filmed in collaboration with The UK Film Festival, as their winning script from their 3 minute short script competition.
“We’ve decided on a short movie that illustrates an intricate topic in only a few minutes,” said the Youth jury, Simon Kalmbach, Luca Kokol, Karla Laitko, Leonie Mo Munder, Paula Noack, Nicola Scholz, Florian Stündel. “The movie creates a frame which spectators then can fill with their own imagination, leaving space for their own interpretation. With subtle imagery, this film tells a story that takes an unexpected turn.”
Directed by Petros Silvestros and starring Lucian Charles Collier as Mike, and Louise Breckon-Richards as Mike’s mother, the 7 minute short starts off as a mundane trip to the hairdressers as Mike drives his younger brother. Mike, a reluctant adolescent teen refuses to take his brother into the salon and waits for him in his car. After a while, Mike gets a bit anxious about his brother and goes in to investigate. In a turn of events and with delicate subtlety the film addresses deep issues of guilt, denial and a cold ending that stays with you well after watching the film.
Well done guys! Making Shoreditch proud!