WBFF, Brainstorm Edition
May 1 - 6 (New York)

The WBFF's selection criteria were created to promote the exploration of cutting-edge filmmaking and to uphold the high standards of traditional cinema.

The films are screened in four categories: Feature Film, Documentary, Short Subject, and Experimental Film. A panel of journalists, film festival directors, and film related professionals grade each film to select the best in its category.

What follows are synopses of one example from each category of films that will be included in the festival program.

Feature Length Narrative

US Premier showing at the WBFF. This cinematic masterpiece featured in International Hofer Filmtage will be Die Einsamkeit Der Krokodile (The Loneliness of the Crocodiles) by Jobst Oetzmann of Germany.

The mysterious death of Gunther, a passionate and brilliant butcher's son who is considered an outcast in his rural German community, initiates an investigation by a distant relative. As we follow the investigation, we discover Gunther's many attempts to gain freedom from his restrictive parents and a judgmental society through music, intellectual curiosity, and love. His disastrous violin recital, quirky school essays, and voluptuous American girlfriend all pale in comparison to his decision to "free" the pigs from the town slaughterhouse in order to show them what exists outside their cells. Gunther fleetingly glimpses freedom from his stifling situation, but, like the pigs, is ultimately doomed.

Documentary

A depiction of Down syndrome with a focus on humanity, but not on the disability. Receiving a nomination for the 2001 Grand Jury Prize Slamdance, and the Best Documentary Award at the 2000 Fort Worth Film Festival. Up Syndrome by Duane Graves.

University of Texas student filmmaker Duane Graves chronicles 18 months in the life of his longtime friend Rene Moreno, a 24-year-old San Antonio native with Down Syndrome. Up Syndrome paints an intimate portrait of a young man dealing with everyday challenges and triumphs with an inspiring sense of unfailing positivity. After meeting Rene, it is easy to see that people with Down Syndrome, though they may look "different", experience life as fully as those of us who look "normal." Sensitive, yet truthful, alternately biting and humorous, Up Syndrome is a unique look at a unique individual.

Short Subject

Artistic temperament taken to the extreme: Winner at the British Academy Awards for Best Short Film. Please! by
Paul Black

This 15-minute film tells the story of a disillusioned novelist at the end of his tether, frenetically weaving through his existence brandishing a Smith & Wesson. His wife and daughter, weary from 8 years of waiting for his literary success, have moved out of his life. This tale of hopelessness, despair, guilt, and irrational behavior is an important exploration of the struggle between art and love. Pull the trigger.

Experimental

This wildly imaginative stop motion animation film leaves its audience amazed. A comedic triumph: A Donf ...
by Lolo Zazar (France)

A Donf ... is a frenzied romp down a country road by two unique motorists, a hapless hitchhiker, two policemen, and a coveted blow-up doll. Set to a hyper-appropriate soundtrack and filmed in a stop-motion style, the comic encounters between the characters redefine the mundane into the surreal, creating a familiar yet absurd filmic experience.