The 2021 SXSW festival, like many other film festivals this year, has gone the way of virtual in lieu of threats from Covid-19. Often buried beneath the scope of feature films, shorts make up the backbone of any film festival; they offer relevant information in a concise, digestible package, and often leave just as big an impact as feature films.
The ‘Documentary Shorts Competition’ at SXSW is no exception, and is this year poised to bring many important pictures to the fore, ranging from skateboarding legends (“Joe Buffalo”) to highlights of the migrant crisis (“Águilas”) to artistry and photography (“Sophie and The Baron”).
Here, I want to focus on two films from the ‘Documentary Shorts Competition,’ what they bring to the festival, and initial impressions.
Evidence of poacher stealing Dudleya farinosa from California cliffside. Photo: District Attorney Office in Monterey County.
I’ll start with “Plant Heist,” directed by siblings Chelsi de Cuba and Gabriel de Cuba, who are also intimately involved in other aspects of the production, such as cinematography, production, and editing. The film is a look at the issue of plant poaching, something I’ll admit I wasn’t that aware of until this screening. The plant in the spotlight of this documentary short is the succulent Dudleya, which, astoundingly, can go on the Asian market for anywhere from $50 USD for small rosettes to upwards of $800 USD. The focus of the documentary is on California, particularly Northern California, and the park rangers and local residents who notice the phenomenon and try to combat it.
“Plant Heist” is a very good film, and in fact has already nabbed a Grand Jury Award nomination at SXSW 2021. What is special about it is its approachability, which starts simply yet forcefully by showing the sea-soaked roads of California and darkened paths of its National Parks, which have been the site of the massive trafficking operations involving succulents (I learned that decorative plant heists are a worldwide phenomenon, and as fast as scientists are to label new species, thieves are wont to spring up and capitalize on them in the international smuggling market).
The film also brings several important topics to light, told mostly through the experience and eyes of Patrick Freeling, California Department of Fish and Wildlife (CDFW) Warden, who discusses the detection of smugglers in the Northern California Area and the effect of the removal of these plants on the parks. I learned an interesting fact during the documentary—California has only 400 game ardens, one of the lowest in the United States, which seems alarming for a large state with pressing concerns for many of its National parks.
Chelsi and Gabriel de Cuba have done a fine job with this documentary, highlighting an issue that many may not know a lot about, and also making the material approachable and engaging. The film has a sub 18-minute run, but between the interviews, the bright and pristine cinematography, and the information being presents, the film passes quickly, and I was in no quick hurry to see it end. If any small criticisms present themselves, the film spends much of its run-time on the hunt for botanical poachers and less on the effect the poaching has on the environment, though plenty of research exists on the topic in the news for interested parties. “Plant Heist” does what a good documentary short is supposed to do: it educates, engages us, and makes us want to learn more. It’s wholly deserving of its Grand Jury nomination, and we will be eager to follow up to see any awards it proffers. The film is showing today, March 16th at 1 PM CST, and will be available to ticket holders until Sunday, March 21st at 1 AM CST.
*Follow us for an interview with the de Cubas, to post later this week.
A scene from the documentary short “The Box.” Photo: Scott Siracusano.
The next film, “The Box,” is likewise powerful, and is an exploration of solitary confinement in America’s prisons. The film closes on a startling fact: on any given day in American, 80-90,000 men, women, and children are imprisoned in solitary confinement. Growing up on ‘90s action movies, ‘the box’ was always a highlight of these films, somewhere convicts go after a crowd-pleasing fight where they can plot their escape or revenge. However, in actuality ‘the box’ is a terrible place to be…and James Burns and Shal Ngo’s 16-minute documentary short shines a spotlight on just how damaging a place it can be.
What is unique about “The Box” is it is told entirely through inmate experiences, which it ought to be. The film focuses on three individuals’ stories: Five Mualimm-Ak, Pamela Winn, and filmmaker James Burns. The opening highlights the socioeconomic conditions that often lead youths to prison before quickly catapulting into the effects of solitary confinement. That is what works about this film: this isn’t an exploration of what brought people to prison, or even wether or not the punishment fits the crime, but instead the lasting effects of solitary confinement on prisoners’ psyches. And should you think solitary is reserved for the worst of the worst, in quick time we see small infractions—from having too many toilet paper rolls to even asking the guards for too many privileges—can lead to hefty amounts of solitary.
What Burns and Ngo accomplish with this film is to let the audience feel the effects of solitary, even though they may be from different walks of life. This movie is for both those who have never been to prison and those that have: the former to encourage understanding and empathy, the latter to give voice to the voiceless. With re-enactments, blurred cameras, and a low, droning soundtrack, “The Box” makes you feel like you’re there. Mualimm-Ak confides that he has Schizophrenia, and you really feel for the mind tricks that ‘the box’ can play on you. I tired to imagine what spending a day or two in a room without light or windows or people would do to the psyche…how a room without any sense of time must be a horrible ordeal to undergo. And then Burns casually drops he spent 11 straight months in solitary, with Mualimm-Ak topping him off at five years. You read that right: five years. Horror doesn’t begin to describe that concept, all the more frightening as you realize that time in ‘the box’ usually only leads to behavior problems and infractions that lead to more time in ‘the box.’
All in all this is a powerful film that is written and directed well, and shot with the immediacy that it deserves. This could have been a longer documentary, with footage from prison officials, prisoners, and survivors, but a longer treatment may not have done the story justice. Burns brings his experience to life in a way that is easy to digest and encourages empathy and understanding with ease. The film is showing today, March 16th at 1 PM CST, and will also be available to ticket holders until Sunday, March 21st at 1 AM CST.
