Okay, so last night at the Garden Cinema where I dragged myself after an exhausting day, and later  from a rather large martini at Meigas restaurant on Wall Street in Norwalk (always great food!), I had an artist's epiphany. The art of short film-making is highly specific, and I am not a fan of that genre.

Meanwhile, I am happy to say "take  heart" at how others were completely involved in each of what I thought were agenda-driven films. The short film series is presented by the dazzlingly successful lunchtime producers of "Play with Your Food." The gold dust twins, Nancy Diamond and Carole Schweid, who run the series in several venues and are sold out, must be onto something with their  migration to night time shows and into another medium. While  not my cup of tea, these shorts are definitely thought provoking, entertaining momentarily, and valuable for others.

The five movies, each produced by a different country, were all nominated for Academy Awards and that kind of banner advertising regarding quality is enough to interest movie-goers. After-all, with YouTube, any one of us can make a movie, (Oh, no!) and with film programs installed in every worthwhile school, and not for profit arts orgs., there is an abundance of choices to put up on the silver screen. These were the creme de la creme.

After the third short  film (We are talking 6 minutes, 18 minutes etc. ), I ducked out to the ladies room, running into neighbors who were leaving because they had already seen this series at the Avon theater. It  was raining hard, so they wanted to get home. They were totally rhapsodic about the presentation, and especially about the  film that to me seemed as if it were two hours long,  but two-hours tiring.  There, in front of the Ladies Room on Isaac Street in Norwalk, I got it! I understood what they were saying and how they felt about the entry from India, 18 minutes of "Kavi."

This was the ideal audience for the series. Most of the them grew up in another era, and not in the continuous news bombardment generation from the internet era, and they react deeply—from afar—to human rights violations. They were the original activists. They mourn any political ennui surrounding us.  "Kavi" deals with slavery from a child's point of view, which is not so tortuous in Kavi's bright, hopeful desire  to please his masters. Small consolation for what we know will be a terrible life in the class system, there. The film is affecting as the camera follows the naive and joyous little kid living in squalor. It's vaguely akin to the kids' lives in Slumdog Millionaire.

I wanted more. I wanted an arc where I can get into the drama first—be thrust into a situation, and then watch the character (s) struggle against their fates and environments. Will they win, will they lose? For me that takes time to develop, and perfect timing. Short films don't allow me to travel that arc. I think I'm slow.

However, if you are moved by sensitive cinematic work, original metaphor, zippy and winkingly-smart irony, a hint of muckraking for certain kinds of political statements, but indeed enough animation with good humor, and art too, then take a short break from a long day next month. November 11, 2010. Check out Play with Your Food's website for the next showings.