This year, the Nine Worlds Film Festival has received short and feature submissions from all over the world and we are proud to be able to show our official selections throughout the weekend.
These films cover everything from the webcam-diaries of eight year olds to some deeply bizarre Japanese body horror, with topics covering everything from the end of the world to, well, the birth of the world, with plenty of board games, aliens, bad hair days and exploding heads in between.
Awards will be announced on the Sunday evening, and here is the full list of in-competition films:
Army Of Frankensteins (Dir. Ryan Bellgardt 108mins)
After being kidnapped by a mad scientist and his boy genius assistant, a young man accidentally ruptures space and time, manifesting multiple Frankensteins from parallel universes. They are all thrust back to the time of the 19th century, directly into the heart of a bloody battle between the North and the South. History will never be the same.
SOS: Save Our Skins (Dir. Kent Soby 84mins)
SOS: Save Our Skins is the story of two men, Ben and Stephen, who wake up one morning to find that the human race has disappeared. As they explore the seemingly empty world before them, Ben (lazy,deceitful,stupid) and Stephen (well-meaning,hardworking, stupid) at first celebrate the freedom of being the only two humans left on Earth. But this joy turns to boredom and bickering, and then outright fear as they begin to find other forms of life wandering about the desolate planet - and not all of it friendly.
‘Aemorraghe (Dir. Patrick Devaney 34min)
Trapped in a world where emotions are all but outlawed, one average citizen tries to find beauty, feeling, and companionship in her daily life. But when the pressure of that cold world weighs too heavy on her, she decides to go to the 'Emotional Decontamination Chamber' to have her unwanted psychic refuse taken out. But is this really the solution she thought it would be? Ultimately, is it too late to find solace on her own terms?
Small Talk (AKA 1-900- KILL-YOU) (Dir. Nicole Witte Solomon 23mins)
A young phone sex operator's more horrible clients begin dying under mysterious circumstances after she becomes upset during their sessions. Is she somehow connected to--or accidentally causing--these deaths?
Unconventional (Dir: Eric Blakeney 22mins)
Failed comic book writer/artist Nate Jacobs and his misfit, wannabe employees try to mount a monthly pop culture, sci-fi, comic book convention called 'Wrath of Con'. If they survive the aggressive fanboys, irate vendors, high maintenance celebrities and their own delusions of grandeur, they just might pull it off.
The Developer (Dir. Robert Odegnal 17mins)
The scene is an alternative Budapest, with a special kind of dictatorship controlled by a corporation called GOLDEN DIMENSION. One day some strictly confidential documents are stolen from the home of the president of the GOLDEN DIMENSION. Lens, a young man who can see the future and the past, is hired to find the person who could ruin the oppressing system by using the stolen incriminating evidence.
Buddy (Dir. Chris Gibbin 17mins)
After years of caring for their invalid son, Stella and Jerry get help in the form of a Robot Caregiver. Stella quickly feels replaced and starts to think the Robot is up to nefarious deeds.
Stories Of Alyx And Anton (Dir. Calum Smith 15mins)
When daydreaming computer nerd Anton meets beautiful, quadriplegic Alyx, the two depart their bleak real worlds for a lively one of fantasy and adventure. But can two people lost in a fairy tale ever make it in reality? A menagerie of charming mythical characters and settings makes a visually imaginative spectacle in this heart-warming romantic comedy.
The Lord Of Catan (Dir. Stuart Paul 13mins)
One evening, a young married couple settle in for a nice, relaxing game of Settlers of Catan. But what begins as friendly competition soon becomes heated, ushering in an epic struggle for dominance. Old grudges and hidden wounds rise to the surface, exposing the reality beneath the veneer of their relationship and pushing them towards a final reckoning from which there is no return--for there can be only one Lord of Catan.
ON/OFF (Dir. Thierry Lorenzi 13mins)
Obsessed by a mysterious voice message, astronaut Meredith will face its paradoxical condition in order to stay connected to her humanity.
7300 Days later (Dir. Luca Bertoluzzi 12mins)
Five childhood friends meet again exactly twenty years later in the same place they used to play when they were children. The meeting doesn't go according to plans...
LIQUID (Dir: Kaichi Sato/Bon Ando 12mins)
The lover of an inoperably ill man hears talk of a cure only found in the garret of a bar deep in the slums. She takes him to that room, where a figure awaits, and a strange rain falls, showering down on sensuality and the poisonous love of the couple.
Pushers (Dir. Nicholas Posthumas 12mins)
Judah is all about rationality and thinking before acting. All of this is challenged when high school student William pushes his button in front of his class and disappears, leaving only a bundle of clothes behind.
Cinderella 3.0 (Dir. Sebastian Harrer 8mins)
In a not too distant future Cinderella3.0 and New Bond met in a chat room. But the bio-technical possibilities for designing a one night stand in the future are endlessly bizarre - a paradise for sexual fantasies and preferences.
The Jigsaw (Dir. Rashad Al-Safar 8mins)
The purchase of a mysterious jigsaw puzzle from a strange and unsettling vendor leads a man to an evening of frightening consequences.
VIV 1.0 or They Must Have Forgotten (Dir. Scarlet Moreno 8mins)
'Viv 1.0 or They Must Have Forgotten' is a conceptual short about a day in the life of a robot named Viv. Created long ago, and perhaps in a galaxy far away, to be the 'perfect' woman, she was deemed dysfunctional and therefore abandoned in a strange place. Viv 1.0 is ultimately a dark comedy and a tale of loneliness.
End Of The Line (Dir. Diego Davila 7mins)
Guy Eckert, a deadbeat who thinks a camera crew is furtively recording his every move and streaming it to the public eye as a web series, seeks help with a psychiatric therapist. However, soon he'll realize that the line between reality and illusion may be much more fragile than he could have ever imagined, and no one can really tell what you'll find at the end of the line...
Prelude (Dir. Mitra Shahidi 6mins)
Prelude is a whimsical, animated story of a creative little girl and her scientist grandfather. A series of happy accidents cause the relationship between these two get stronger.
The Invaders (Dir. Mark Cabory 6mins)
The Invaders is a live action sci fi comedy web-series which chronicles the adventures of eight year old Angie Martinez and her babysitter Beth Adleman as they attempt repel an alien invasion of Earth from all-powerful, unseen, other worldly beings. With the help of her teddy bear, Mr. Snuggles, a cardboard space ship Angie and her home-made laser gun she will wage war against impossible odds with the fate of the world in the balance. This is the pilot episode.
Incognito Witch: Paint My Life (Dir. Mollie Kellogg 5mins)
The Incognito Witch goes to great lengths to hide her true identity. She feels imprisoned by societal pressures and is scared to let her true inner magick shine. Through difficult self-examination, she discovers the key to freedom. The Incognito Witch character is inspired by Artwork by Mollie Kellogg.
SCRIPTS
This year’s short-listed scripts cover the ancient past to the far future, comedy elves to horrifying zombies, political intrigue to insult-comic crows. It has been a pleasure to read them, and a nightmare to judge them.
They are all entered into competition and prizes will be announced on Sunday 10th August.
Belzec: The Made Undead
Writer: Steffan Postaer
Near the end of WWII, gruesome experiments on prisoners of the Belzec concentration camp in Poland create a plague of undead, flesh-eating monsters. A group of captured American soldiers attempt to escape their captors, as well as the undead, in a horrifying story that begs the question: What do you do when you can't tell the living... from the dead?
Elysium Fields
Writer: Jack Goodwin
Elysium was designed to be a haven beneath the waves, an escape from the cut throat politics of the surface world. Yet in this strange underwater utopia, is anyone really what they seem? When a club owner is mysteriously found dead, doubt is cast upon the man who steps into his shoes, Joe Fulbeck. Faced with a mercenary selling to the highest bidder, a sadist spy held prisoner by his own country and an unethical scientist who does not care who gets harmed in her quest for the next big breakthrough; Elysium has become too small for Joe Fulbeck to cope with.
Erebus
Writer: Griffin MacConnell
A love letter to the glory days of Science Fiction Horror, EREBUS tells the harrowing story of one man's loss and redemption in the depths of space. Reeling from a devastating accident of one of their own, a deep space recovery team discovers an unimaginable terror on a routine job, one beyond explanation. As the team falls into chaos it's up to one man, Josh Remmington, to fight through the terrors that face him to save his friends from a fate worse than death.
Generation Oz
Written By: Timajin Ali
Generation Oz is a three part, made- for- TV /Movie about Oz`s second-generation good witches battling Maxim, the original evil and magical wizard of the Land of Oz. Years before Dorothy came to the Land of Oz, there was a threat far greater than the wicked witches. It was the witches` mentor, the evil wizard Maxim, and his quest for the magical gold slippers. The good witches of Oz, and their friends, must stop Maxim at any cost from getting the majestic slippers.
Lady Smoke
Writer: John Celona
The abduction of a media star by an extraterrestrial beauty creates international trouble. It's midnight in San Francisco at the martini bar up on the 19th floor. Vikki lures Max, the social media billionaire, and plans a daring departure. A sequence of flashbacks and mishaps shows Vikki and her two intergalactic companions touchdown their shuttlecraft in the financial district and the wayward adventures in North Beach. An emergency transmission to the rendezvous starship causes a blackout. The US thinks it's a foreign cyberattack and enlists Max's company AURA to retaliate. Max codes the virus Lady Smoke, a sexy gaming avatar that looks like Vikki. The extraterrestrials try to undo the damage yet events keep unfolding: UFO encounters, telepathic interference and a covert operative all intersect.
One To Zero
Writer: Jonathan Hardy
A boy's life is changed when a small group of soldiers enter a village in pursuit of a runaway A.I. unit.
Sardis The Merciful
Writer: Christian Thomas
When a king wakes up to the sound of assassins creeping into his bedchamber, he knows his past has caught up with him. He must escape and make his way through mysterious caves, erotic brothels, and savage battlefields...to get one last chance at redemption, and bloody revenge.
Simulacra
Writer: Aaron Ybarra
Technology teeters on the brink of creating a perfect world. All that stands in its way is one imperfect guy... Orson Gould "Simulacra," a story about identity, consumerism, and robots
The Graffitnik
Writer: Eamonn Deery
A teenage graffiti artist is recruited to join a secret organization, whereupon he discovers that the world is controlled by a powerful corporate entity engaged in an elaborate game.
The Last Iceberg
Writer: Anne Ousby
In this screenplay adaptation of the dystopian novel, 'The Last Iceberg,' a troubled teen crime-operative is on the run from her power-crazed president, after discovering that he is murdering his opponents. The girl is badly injured in the chase but rescued by rebel forces who show her the true extent of the man's cruelty. They must act quickly because the president is raising an army of psychotic troopers to conquer the globe. The girl has personal reasons for wanting him dead but the rebels aim to take him alive to stand trial. Either way he isn't going to make it easy for them.
The Orb Of Life
Writer: Matthew Waters
‘The Orb of Life' is a humorous take on the fantasy genre, loosely based on 'The Lord of the Rings.' It charts the escapades of an elf and a dragon scale-obsessed dwarf, who whilst exploring a subterranean crypt stumble upon The Orb of Life, an ancient relic of untold power.