An annual tradition prior to the Oscars, The Center and Magic Lantern give film lovers the chance to see all the Oscar nominated shorts in four evenings. Wednesday, February 15 features the Live Action shorts and Thursday, February 16 will feature Animated shorts. Please note: there will be three added Animated shorts screened that were not nominated for Oscars to fill out the program. Films are good for kids 8 and up, except for the final film of the night (Pear Cider and Cigarettes) which is not. It will be preceded by a parental guidance title-card and will give parents and caregivers a moment to depart the theater.
(Running Time: 86 minutes)
Borrowed Time – dirs. Andrew Coats and Lou Hamou-Lhadj, USA, 7 minutes. A weathered sheriff returns to the remains of an accident he has spent a lifetime trying to forget. With each step forward, the memories come flooding back. Faced with his mistake once again, he must find the strength to carry on. Borrowed Time Trailer
Pearl – dir. Patrick Osborne, USA, 6 minutes. Set inside their home, a beloved hatchback, PEARL follows a girl and her dad as they crisscross the country chasing their dreams. It’s a story about the gifts we hand down and their power to carry love, and finding grace in the unlikeliest of places. Pearl Trailer
Piper – dir. Alan Barillaro, USA, 6 minutes. Directed by Alan Barillaro and produced by Marc Sondheimer, PIPER, the new short from Pixar Animation Studios, tells the story of a hungry sandpiper hatchling who ventures from her nest for the first time to dig for food by the shoreline. The only problem is, the food is buried beneath the sand where scary waves roll up onto the shore. Piper Trailer
Blind Vaysha – dir. Theodore Ushev, Canada, 8 minutes. Vaysha is not like other young girls; she was born with one green eye and one brown eye. But her odd eyes aren’t the only thing that’s special about her gaze. Her left eye sees only the past. Her right, only the future. Like a terrible curse, Vaysha’s split vision prevents her from living in the present. Blinded by what was and tormented by what will be, she remains trapped between two irreconcilable temporalities. Blind Vaysha Trailer
Pear Cider and Cigarettes – dir. Robert Valley, Canada and UK, 35 minutes. Drink and smoke…that’s what Techno Stypes really liked to do. And fight. He was in no condition to fight. He was sick, really sick. His disease had whittled him down to a shadow of his former self. He was crippled from a car accident when he was 17 but that’s not how he lost his big toe. He lost that in a motorbike accident. Yeah, he was broken alright… what the hell was he fighting for anyway and what was he still doing in China? His father had given me two clear instructions: 1. Get Techno to stop drinking long enough to receive the liver transplant, and 2. Get him back home to Vancouver. This was not going to be easy. THIS FILM WILL BE SCREENED LAST AND IS NOT APPROPRIATE FOR CHILDREN. There will be a parental guidance screen and parents and caregivers can exit at that time. Pear Cider and Cigarettes Trailer
Additional films that will be screened prior to Pear Cider and Cigarettes (these were not nominated for an Oscar).
The Head Vanishes (additional film) – 9 minutes
Asteria (additional film) – 5 minutes
Once Upon A Line (additional film) – 7 minutes