Official Selections for Bicycle Shorts Film Festival 2023
Official selections for Bicycle Shorts Film Festival 2023 are listed below in alphabetical order. Each film will be screened twice, once on Friday night and again on Saturday afternoon. Check the festival homepage for showtimes.
1-800-Beer-By-Bike
Main Program, Block I, Documentary, U.S. 2023, 5 min.
Director: John D McMahon
Co-Director/Animator/Editor: Masanori Naka
A delivery guy’s bumpy ride through the 2020 lockdown, recording jingles as he navigates New York’s strange new reality.
The Bicycle Thief
Main Program, Block I, Documentary, Norway 2023, 20 min.
Director: Simon Braathen
Producer: Karianne Berge
Rumours has it that there are more bicycle thefts in Oslo, than in Paris. Who are they? And why do they make us so mad? When director Simen Braathen discovers that his bike is stolen, an all consuming hunt for the thief begins. With the help of his children they find clues that help them in the further investigation. A series of unexpected events leads to an unusual friendship. A funny and moving detective film that gives us a new impression of the bicycle owners and thieves of the city.
Blue Moon
Main Program, Block II, Narrative, U.S. 2022, 20 min.
Director: Diliana Deltcheva
Writers: Alex Frnka, Taylor Lewis
Cinematography: Emmerry Lee
Featuring: Pat Skipper, Alex Frnka, Taylor Lewis, Lizzie Fabie, Larvell Hood, Varda Appleton
A family unravels one evening as they struggle with the best course of care for their mother who is in the later stages of Alzheimer’s.
City Sway
Philly Films, Block I, Narrative, U.S. 2023, 20 min.
Writer/Director: Nia Primus
Cinematographers: Miranda Schollenberger & Mary Endy
Featuring: Nia Primus, Jessa Jordan, Korin ‘Skoop’ Pridgeon, Tina Kortland, Adrian Espinal, Alphonso ‘Chance’ Lingard, Candice Rogers, Nika Primus, Nisa Anastasia, Shawn Primus, Seth Witcher, Taphari, Mary Endy
Imani and her friends Prez and Doni are young black queer women who are struggling to make ends meet. When they decide to embark on a business venture with a local drug dealer, the situation proves to be a troubling experience for the trio.
A City Under Protest
Out of Competition, Block I, Documentary, U.S. 2020, 10 min.
Filmmaker: Joshua Crone
Filmed in Manhattan on June 2, 2020 and shortly before curfew on June 1, this short film documents BLM protests and clashes with police in the midst of the Coronavirus lockdowns following the death of George Floyd.
Los Delivreros
Main Program, Block II, Documentary, Mexico, 2022, 5 min.
Director/Producer: Ambar Reyes
Featuring: Juan Solano, Cesar Solano, Miguel Angel Garcia
Los Delivreros is a real-life action film about delivery workers, migrants from Latin America in NYC, organizing to contend with the lack of response from the police and government when they request for help and protection. In Los Delivreros, delivery workers come together to locate and recover their stolen e-bikes.
Finding Melania
Out of Competition, Block II, Narrative, U.K. 2023, 12 min.
Writer: Denise Rosamund Stephenson
Directors: Sarah Calver and Evie Fehilly
Producer: Iskandar R Sharazuddin
Featuring: Denise Rosamund Stephenson
What if the Trumps never left the White House but are secretly existing in the hidden chambers buried deep below the building, in the belief that they will one day return. What did it take to prop up Donald and his authoritarian demands? Always believing she has an audience Melania lives out her memories, dreams, and fantasies while the world has forgotten her
The Inconvenience
Main Program, Block I, Narrative, U.S., 2023, 9 min.
Writer/Director: Earl Shirley Jr.
Featuring: Allie Nelson, Dori Levit
Ever wonder where your other sock went? Or have a feeling that your keys somehow were moved from where you remember you put it? Well Kathy reveals secrets to the host Glenda Housekeys about the things she did as a member of a secret annoying group called “The Inconvenience.”
The Killers
Out of Competition, Block II, Narrative, U.S. 2018, 13 min.
Writer/Directors: Alexander Slesers and Gabriel Schwalenstocker
Cinematography: AC Sico and Christopher Dodge
Featuring: Alexander Slesers, Desean Terry, Gabriel Schwalenstocker, Annabelle Huber
A young couple on a camping trip find themselves at the mercy of two hit men. A modern adaptation of The Killers by Ernest Hemingway.
Ode to Exploration
Experimental, Block II, Narrative, Australia, 2022, 5 min.
Writer/Director: Mateo Arango
Cinematographer: Roberto Olivares
Art Director: Juan Pablo Ramos
Featuring: Camilo Arboleda
Ode to Exploration is an enlightening trip to the darkest places of our minds. Places we need to visit and ride through so we can find light in our lives. Places we can only get to through exploration. This is an ode to the limitless potential of the human spirit to push beyond its boundaries and embrace the unknown.
Ractors
Main Program, Block II, Narrative, U.S., 2023, 11 min.
Directors: Shankar Sudhakaran, Eva Nel Brettrager
Writer: Eric Mansfield
Cinematographer: Dred Geib
Featuring: Samantha Cocco, Mike Frye, Hayley Johnson
David’s obsession with his ex-girlfriend leads to an emotional showdown at their favorite restaurant that redefines the idea of ‘dinner theater.’
Scars
Experimental, Block I, Narrative, U.S., 2023, 3 min.
Director: Lilton Stewart III
Writer/Producer: Dave Champ Moore
Cinematographer: Damola Ajanaku
Composers: Harshit Khoja and Hrishikesh Vasishth
Featuring: Dave Champ Moore
Leon finally gets to enact revenge on the man who has ruined his life.
Shear Disturbance
Philly Films, Block I, Narrative, U.S. 2023, 8 min.
Writer/Director: Nate Reynolds
Cinematography: Andre Adderley
Featuring: Devon Grevious, Tyler McCray, Nate Reynolds
A timid young man deeply struggles with generalized anxiety while getting a haircut.
Le Tour
Experimental, Block I, Narrative, U.S. 2023, 7 min.
Writer/Director: Johnny Yager
Producer: Cindy del Rosario
Cinematography: Emmerry Lee
Featuring: Russ Hess, Jeremiah Soderstrom, Darielle Campbell, Mitchel, Ethan Valdez, Montrel Howell, Coleman Donaldson, Cindy del Rosario
A stubborn and unfriendly cyclist learns to enjoy the moment, after a supernatural encounter in a road race.
Towar (The Goods)
Out of Competition, Block II, Narrative, Poland 2016, 7 min.
Writer/Director: Joshua Crone
Cinematographer: Michal Dymek
Producers: Milena Milewska, Ludomila Kierczak
Editor: Piotr Krygiel
Featuring: Bartosz Szpak, Delfina Wilkonska, Joshua Crone, Martin Rath, Rafal Zawierucha
A Polish drug smuggler almost gets busted on the train from Berlin.