Flickers: Rhode Island International Film Festival

"And when you gaze too long into the abyss, the abyss also gazes into you." – Friedrich Nietzsche

Sweep | Directed by Spencer Gillis | 13 min. | USA, 2015. New England premiere. 
A tense chance encounter at a local recycling center leads to an instant friendship—which in turn leads to a bitter moment of reckoning.

Timmy II | Directed by Imran J. Khan | 9 min. | USA, 2014 | East Coast Premiere. 
Timmy II tells the story of a robot who doesn’t fit into the human world of his father. After being discriminated against for being a robot, Timmy II undergoes cosmetic surgery that leaves him with a Middle Eastern looking human head. Then 9/11 happens. Encountering a new form of discrimination in a post-9/11 world, Timmy II escapes to the Middle East where he finds acceptance. Or so he thinks. He is eventually thrown into prison by a despotic dictator who suspects him of being a spy for the United States. Eventually, he arrives home to reconcile with his father whom he abandoned and accepts his dual identity as part human and part robot.

The Mother | Directed by Paolo Monico | 11 min. | USA, 2015 | World Premiere.
When a hardened widow receives an unexpected visit, she is given the chance to shed light on her husband's death.

The Loyalist | Directed by Minji Kang | 19 min. | South Korea/USA, 2015.
A North Korean general checks in on his daughter at a Swiss boarding school to test her loyalty to her motherland.

What If... | Directed by Riza-Rocco Avsar | 25 min. | Germany, 2015 | East Coast Premiere. 
We have learned to be the creators of our own lives in the decisions that we make, and often we take this for granted. The human mind bears the ability to think freely but what if, all of a sudden, we forfeit our ability to choose?

Over | Directed by Jorn Threlfall | 14 min. | United Kingdom, 2015 | East Coast Premiere. 
'Over' appears to present a police crime scene. During the course of 14 minutes and 9 wide shots (told in reverse order), we watch as an intriguing story unfolds and heads towards a dramatic conclusion. What has happened in this quiet, suburban neighbourhood? Has there been a murder, a hit-and-run, an accident? The reality is both profound, and deeply unexpected.

Last Day of Freedom | 31 min. | Directed by Nomi Talisman and Dee Hibbert-Jones | USA, 2015 | East Coast Premiere. 
When Bill Babbitt realizes his brother Manny has committed a crime he agonizes over his decision- should he call the police? Last Day of Freedom is a richly animated personal narrative that tells the story of Bill’s decision to stand by his brother in the face of war, crime and capital punishment. The film is a portrait of a man at the nexus of the most pressing social issues of our day – veterans’ care, mental health access and criminal justice.