I had the great pleasure of being part of the Student World Impact Film festival 2022 (SWIFF) recently, both as a member of the virtual audience as well as a student filmmaker. My own work “Airbrushed Beyond Recognition” (2021) was selected, screened, and nominated at this year’s edition.
The festival that is organized by student filmmaker and head of The Lighthouse Initiative, Mark Leschinsky ran from November 13-17, 2022 and threw its doors open to ambitious and budding student short filmmakers. It connected them with a wide network of like-minded independent creatives and guest speakers from all walks of life. I was especially enamored by the treasure trove of talent as well as the various filmmaking and brilliant animation techniques on display. Below is just a brief selection of the shorts that piqued my fancy at SWIFF 2022,  not only due to their timely messages, but also with their exemplary visual storytelling.
‘Mauju E Sukhan’
Ahmednagar native and budding filmmaker Nehal Ghodke borrows from literature in order to create a riveting and bittersweet short film centred around the censorship of press in India, and its after effects on the protagonist in this movie. He is an ambitious journalist who worries that the sociopolitical news stories  he wishes to cover could ultimately have fatal consequences and thus, sheds light his journey to overcome the same. Ghodke utilises silences to his benefit here. However, even the audio from real-life news broadcasts he incorporates into this short further complements the visuals and helps to convey a strong, powerful, and timely message. (Read our interview with Nehal Ghodke here).
‘A Fleeting Moment’
The forecast is rainy and two raindrops make their way to Earth. However one of them suffers from cold feet at the last minute. This short, feel-good film by Allyanna Demafeliz masterfully conveys the need for compassion, understanding, and eventually companionship when the going gets tough. This is all told through the medium of animated visuals that hardly require words or dialogue—all set to music that fills one with wonderment.
‘Aspects’
The mainstay of Connor Kujawinski’s short film “Aspects” is the manner in which the arresting and claustrophobia-inducing shots and snappy editing work together. They combine with other visual techniques to instantly put viewers on edge as they watch a friendship literally burn to cinders on-screen. We feel the helplessness and hopelessness of the protagonist in being unable to stop said relationship from falling apart. Or at least that was my interpretation of the message behind this short film.
‘Aspasht’
Directed by Neel Champaneri, an alumnus of the prestigious Parul University, the visually intriguing “Aspasht” (literal translation: impure) tackles themes such as disrespectful attitudes of men towards the women in their household (such as husbands taking the hard work that housewives put in for granted) as well as the double standards that exist for both. It also touches upon prevalent gender biases and norms imposed by society that become too difficult to break from. This is all while set against the backdrop of an indecisive family of four and their superstitious domestic help arguing over the most effective and ‘pure’ manner of disposing off a dead lizard.
‘A Potion for Your Problems’
This energetic and lively animated short created by Bear (a pseudonym for Bea Alexa Rondon) is centred around a character taking inspiration from “Alice in Wonderland” in her efforts to remain attentive, productive, and speed up her daily routine by ingesting a potion for her problems. The visuals in this film are not only cute, zany, fast-paced and clever. They also utilise a blend of vibrant colour and black and white animation to tell a story. However, at times, it even felt like a contemporary takedown of themes such as burnout and the demanding nature of one’s daily routine. This short is also available on YouTube.
‘Hall of Doors’
Yet another animated venture that feels directly influenced by the world of Lewis Carroll, the animation in Wendel Berckman’s “Hall of Doors” may feel slightly amateurish. But nevertheless, I was in with awe over how the film utilises visuals in order to tell a story of a child undergoing growth—both physically and emotionally at an unrealistically fast rate—as she explores the titular hall of doors. The ending and the character’s actions (as well as the choices that she makes throughout this short film) are also left open to the viewers’ interpretation.
*Find out more about the Student World Impact Film Festival and its parent organisation, The Lighthouse Initiative here: https://www.lightfilmfest.org/
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