Press Release: The Journal of Short Film Releases Volume 16

The Journal of Short Film released Volume 16 on September 15, 2009. The JSF is celebrating its fourth year of publication and continues to be one of film’s best repositories of short work. To date, the JSF has published over 160 filmmakers from over a dozen countries.

Volume 16 includes eleven films from a diverse group of American filmmakers. Whether through humor, seriousness, or trickery, these artists tackle linguistics, parenthood, romance, kinetics, street performance, the challenge of capturing the ephemeral, and much more.

The complete list:

1. HOW TO DRAW CLOUDS – Salise Hughes (2006, 2:10) A poetic meditation on the desire to make permanent what is ephemeral. 2. SANS SUPERVISION – Andrew T. Betzer (2006, 11:00) Over three outings with her parents, a little girl suspects she may be the only adult left in the family. 3. COLOR FILM – Meghan O’Hara (2008, 6:50) A short film exploring the gap between language and perception. 4. ARCHIVE: THE CHANGING WORLD OF FILM – Charlie Cline (2004, 6:00) A series of clips in the style of early actualities, demonstrating the consequences of breaking the rules of film language. 5. IT’S HARD TO WRECK A NICE BEACH/IT’S HARD TO RECOGNIZE SPEECH – Adebukola Bodunrin (2007, 15:00) A quirky tale of language, society, adaptation, and what makes us who we are. 6. PEEKS – Jo Dery (2009, 2:20) Momentary glimpses of construction and destruction in our man-made and natural world. Made with collaged images from National Geographic. 7. PLEDGE – Ann Steuernagel (2006, 6:00) Using a mounting crescendo of music and images of masculinity, PLEDGE is a meditation on violence, innocence, and the everyday. 8. CALIFORNIA KING – Eli Akira Kaufman (2008, 21:00) A mattress salesman, who employs faux science to sell beds, falls for an insomniac who knows her science better than her heart. 9. PATRON SAINT OF COLLAPSING ART MARKETS – David Kagan (2009, 2:30) Episode two of the series, My Dead Gay Son. Newly deceased, Bunny Boy must find a vocation in the afterlife. 10. WATCH ME BREAK IT DOWN. – Julie Perini (2006, 00:39) Julie Perini proves that any space can become a temporary disco with this series of improvised dances in public locations. 11. COUP DE FOUDRE – Stacie Sells & Cassandra Troyan (2008, 15:00) Initial intentions aim at using more personally aggressive actions as a way to subjectification, by acknowledging, then conquering, stereotypes of femininity.

Press Release: The Journal of Short Film Releases Volume 15

for immediate release

The Journal of Short Film releases Volume 15

(June 30, 2009) The Journal of Short Film released Volume 15 today. The JSF is a quarterly DVD that, to date, has published over 150 filmmakers from over a dozen countries.

Volume 15 includes a head-spinning variety of experimental, documentary, narrative, and animated work. The collection traverses territory from Guyana to Hiroshima and from young romance to gritty survival.

Here is the complete list:

1. CHIQUITITA AND THE SOFT ESCAPE – Michael Robinson (2003, 10:00) Twin attempts at structuring images of home and loved ones suffer a gentle breakdown in the face of the romantic. 2. HYACINTHE – Lydia Moyer (2008, 7:48) A poetic investigation into the invisibility of loss as it plays out on the landscape of an infamous tragedy. 3. BULB IN THE HEAD – Melika Bass (2006, 5:00) An earthen fairy tale. A feast for the living. 4. A PASTRY SHOP AND A RAINY STREET – Bruce McKaig (2006, 3:00) An investigational film silently observing a woman and a city as they morph in and out of each other. 5. DIGITAL UNDERPANTS – Matt Meindl (2008, 1:30) A manic collage of teenage love notes and exploding hearts. 6. RECYCLE – Vasco Lucas Nunes and Ondi Timoner (2006, 6:00) Media That Matters presents: A portrait of a day in the life of Miguel Diaz in the hilly Los Angeles neighborhood of Echo Park. 7. 200,000 PHANTOMS – Jean-Gabriel Périot (2007, 10:00) Hiroshima’s 20th century history is charted through 600 photographs of the Genbaku Dome.

The Journal continues to have a free and open submissions process. Submissions should be sent to The JSF, PO Box 8217, Columbus, OH 43201, USA. The Journal remains ad-free and committed to independent and underrepresented work.

Contact: Karl Mechem, publisher, The Journal of Short Film, contact (at) theJSF.org.

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The JSF and Terrence Malick Now Have Something in Common

This blog has reached a truly Malickian frequency, huh? But Malick is awesome, right? Cool? Cool.

VOLUME 15 To Be Released June 30!

Mark your calendars. The next great collection will be reaching mailboxes by the end of the month. We’ll keep you in suspense for a little while inre the roster of great films on Vol.15. Plus, more news coming soon. Perhaps even some back office news; yes, we’ve been busy, we just haven’t been sharing. Will fill you in soon.

Press Release: The Journal of Short Film Releases Volume 14

for immediate release

The Journal of Short Film releases Volume 14

(April 7, 2009) The Journal of Short Film released Volume 14 today. This volume—subtitled “Selections from the Art & Tech Residency Program at the Wexner Center for the Arts”—is a stunning collection of work by some of our leading filmmakers.

Since 1989, the Art & Technology residency program, part of the Media Arts department at the Wexner Center for the Arts, has provided in-kind, post-production support for over 250 artists working in film and video. Volume 14 represents some of the highlights from the program’s past 10 years. Art & Tech has been a sanctuary for artists who are looking for creative support (sometimes technical, sometimes creative, and often both) and an environment that encourages experimentation and welcomes the technical challenges that so often result.

Volume 14 takes you from Bolivia to Oz, from 1969 to an anxious timelessness, from tragedy to comedy, and from Iraq to a famous men’s bathroom in Mansfield, OH. The collection is a smashup of forms and aesthetics that bends the mind with its eclecticism yet reveals hints of cross-pollination and connections between artistic processes.

Here is the complete list:

1. Jem Cohen - Blessed are the Dreams of Men (2005, 9:17)
2. Andrés Denegri - Uyuni (2005, 8:08)
3. Natasha Spencer - The House She Flew In On: The Video (2002, 2:48)
4. Joe Sola and Will Eno - Watercolor (2006, 4:13)
5. William E. Jones - Mansfield 1962 (2005, 9:29)
6. Vanalyne Green - Saddle Sores (1998, 19:45)
7. Kelly Reichardt - Travis (2004, 11:46)
8. Deborah Stratman - The Magician’s House (2007, 5:45)
9. Leah Gilliam - Apeshit (1999, 6:23)
10. Sam Green - lot 63 grave c (2005, 9:47)
11. K8 Hardy and Wynne Greenwood - New Report, Artist Unknown (2006, 16:26)

The Journal continues to have a free and open submissions process. Submissions should be sent to The JSF, PO Box 8217, Columbus, OH, 43201, USA. The Journal remains ad-free and committed to independent and underrepresented work.

Contact: Karl Mechem, publisher, The Journal of Short Film, contact (at) theJSF.org.

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VOLUME 14 To Be Released April 4!

The long-awaited and much-murmured-about Volume 14 is a swelling wave that will break upon your shores on April 4th. The wave has gotten higher and higher with every rumor and with every name leaked. Okay, now the metaphor is starting to sound threatening; anyway, just know that Vol.14 will seriously sweep you away.

We were going to withhold the list of artists included on Vol.14 until the 4th, but someone in the office got overheated and went ahead and posted them on the website. So we’ll let you navigate over there if you want a sneak peak.

Volume 14 is subtitled “Selections from the Art & Tech Residency Program at the Wexner Center for the Arts.” Curated by Jennifer Lange and Paul Hill at the Wexner Center, the collection is a stunning body of work from some of our leading filmmakers.

More news to come.

Volume 14 Coming Soon!

Volume 14 has gesticulated a bit longer than most of our volumes, but it will be released soon! We will save the big reveal for later, but be forewarned: you will be impressed. The lineup on Vol.14 is spectacular.

Obviously this blog went a little dormant this winter. But a thaw is on the horizon, and we foresee a lot more action in the next few months. We’ll have plenty of news to report, screenings to promote, ideas to share, and all the rest. While winter and recession are bad for getting out of the house, they’re often good for art, and we’ve been talking to a lot of filmmakers who’ve been busy all winter. It’s gonna be a good spring!

Speaking of keeping track of people, we now have a JSF group on Facebook, if you’re interested. Find it HERE.