Baby Shrek, talking snails, and women possessed: all could be found between the walls of the Lee Strasberg Theatre & Film Institute on the evening of Sunday, May 5th. Young filmmakers and industry professionals mingled over margaritas, Mezcal and tacos before getting into the night’s entertainment: 10 comedy shorts.
The 50/50 Comedy fest is one of the two bi-annual events thrown by 50/50 Festival; the other being a Horror showcase in October. The film festival was conceived by two students from the University of Southern California’s School for Cinematic Arts. Luke Steinfeld, after seeing a thesis showcase, suggested to his friend, Michael Sunkin, that they should create a space to gather their fellow filmmakers and showcase their work.
Some SCA students are already working in the industry, some are working for mainstay talent-support like United Talent Agency (UTA) and Creative Artist Agency (CAA) as interns, while others are creating short films of their own. 50/50 is indicative of the two sides of Hollywood represented at the festival: both the artists and business-sided movers and shakers.
They focused on making the screening size small and intimate, connecting the right people to the right projects rather than casting a wide net of viewers. Steinfeld explained, “Three hundred people watching a movie is cool or getting a million plays on Youtube is cool, but at the end of the day, if the one right person sees that, especially in this industry, that’s such a massive step for a young filmmaker.” He emphasized the importance of being connected to an agency, being connected to the right production or management company. When it came to putting the invites together, Steinfeld talks about how Sunkin played an integral role in getting the industry side.
After the success of the first year, they have seen the festival expand significantly.
“I’ve been getting calls from agency people and management people, like production companies basically asking how they can get involved,” Steinfeld excitedly shared.
Pairing this year with FilmFreeway, a company that helps festivals connect with filmmakers, the Comedy Fest received 220 submissions from 35 different countries. The 50/50 team narrowed the selection down to 10 top picks and Steinfeld curated the titles in an order that he felt best brought viewers through the night.
“It’s so much about the flow, the actual curation of the lineup and making sure the programming [works]. I was a DJ back in the day, so it’s so similar in that way. You can’t be playing crazy, crazy, crazy [films back to back]. You need a nice pace.”
Steinfeld emphasized the focus at 50/50, especially when it comes to picking the film finalists, was to find pieces that reflected the current younger generation’s interests and humor: “It’s like it’s made by us, and it’s for us as. And it’s made by young people. And it’s for young people. So the programming team is very much our age.”
“Hallelujah”
Brooklyn based Elena Ridker created a hilariously fast-paced, cleverly written sketch set in a hospital delivery room where a woman in labor asks for the song “Hallelujah from Shrek” to play while her baby arrives.
As the hospital team rebukes her for failing to understand the weight of the song and its history, citing Leonard Cohen and Jeff Buckley, the script delivers more than just a baby with a gut-busting twist.
“Little Issues”
Jana Miley is an actor who wanted to create something that she could put out into the world to showcase her talent rather than waiting to get cast in other peoples scripts.
In “Little Issues” plays up the pleasures of food, whole discussing other types of pleasure.
“Bummer”
With “Bummer,” by Arthur Goldbart and starring Steinfeld, scored laughs with its distracted therapist, powerless against the distracting draw of Game of Thrones while his morose client bares his soul.
“Dafanifi”
“Dafanifi” impressed with its production design and witty script by French filmmaker Jonathan Figoli. Though the humor, which is positioned around poking fun at a dialect (A French analogue to Pig Latin) might not completely resonate with American audiences, the film itself is fun to watch and engaging from start to finish. This piece solidifies Figoli as one to watch.
“Paulie Gets Whacked”
Inspired by her recent watch of “The Sopranos,” Millie Cupp’s submission, alongside River C. Johnson, shows three stooges, herself and the hilariously costumed Laurel Kathleen & Stephanie Corkery, as a bunch of tough guys who get very… close at their weekly poker night.
“Adulting”
Zach Shenouda and Ryan Robinson’s entry is about what happens when two distant friends get together. What seems like a familiar and well-worn premise quickly reveals truths that flip the script on its head while escalating in unexpected ways.
“Extra Special Delivery”
Micah H. Eisenberg is only a Freshman (at USC), but he has a sophisticated and strange sense of humor that already feels so distinct.
Jokingly introduced as Luke Steinfeld’s clone, Eisenberg’s work calls to mind Bo Burnham’s masterful “Inside” by blending the real with the absurd in a meta commentary about comedy and his personal life.
“Ariel’s Prized Possession”
Karolina Esqueda Rocha’s addition to the female demonic possession on film canon is singular. It is hilarious and showcases Adrienne Picciotto’s masterful delivery throughout her uninhibited performance that drives the piece.
“Lovebugs”
Profound, enchanting, and intricate, “Lovebugs” was this year’s festival winner. The world inside this film was brought to life by the exceptional talent, Teddy Alvarez-Nissen. Alvarez-Nissen spent the better part of a year building out miniatures showing an entire city that exists behind a Los Angeles homes’ bookshelf. Living in the miniature world is an elderly snail– performed by a rotating cast of actual snails Alvarez-Nissen raised for the film– with a story about love and life. It is inventive, elaborate, earnest and profound.
“Gardens of Remorse”
The final feature of the night was Jasper Hamilton’s whimsical odyssey of one man’s dramatic apology. With a clever, goofy premise and sepia toned landscapes, Hamilton’s comedy short stars Luca Rugiero and the audience giggling throughout to cap the night.
The event was made possible by their generous team of sponsors: Canva, Leilo, FilmFreeway, La Tierra de Acre, and De la Calle.
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