Love Your Shorts Film Festival underway in Sanford

The sixth annual Love Your Shorts Film Festival presented its opening-night movie block last night at the Wayne Densch Performing Arts Center in Sanford, with Leo’s Love Letter taking home the audience award. It will move on to the “Best of the Fest” block on Sunday night and compete with the audience winners from the remaining film blocks to be shown today and tomorrow. A panel of judges will choose the overall winner.

The film by Gabriel Rhenals was one of seven presented Friday night. It was a diverse group ranging from animation to drama to comedy to documentary.

My top pick for the evening would be Circus Nowhere, a heartfelt and surreal Danish film directed by Lisa Svelmoe. Second would be The Night Witch, a nicely animated and refreshingly succinct documentary about an all-female Soviet bombing regiment in World War 2. And third would be Suddenly, a metatheatrical look at writer’s block, directed by Merav Elbaz Belschner.

For more information, including tickets prices and a full schedule, visit www.loveyourshorts.com.   

This article appears in Feb 10-16, 2016.