Ghost flick top Obelisk pick

A heartwarming short film about a ghost did more than touch the audience’s hearts and give them a few good laughs on Monday evening. It also took home the top prize of the fifth annual Obelisk Film Festival.

This gives Dave Edwards all the hope he needs that there is indeed a future for creative cinema, stating that filmmaking is an extension of English and Art.

“It's about expression and communication and students finding a voice that is uniquely theirs. It would seem to me that filmmaking allows kids an outlet for their creativity and a way to express themselves in a style that is unique to them,” the Bellerose High film studies teacher and festival founder said.

“It's not an easy process by any means, but it is always a worthwhile one – as are all creative outlets.”

He added that he was really happy with the competition, noting that there were more entrants this year than ever, from more communities than ever, and with a greater audience in the Arden than in the previous four years.

“It was the biggest one we’ve had,” he enthused. “It seems like the net is getting cast out wider and more and more are getting involved.”

All in all, there were 16 submissions from four cities with 10 shortlisted for the competition. There was one bonus screening at the Arden Theatre, Midnight's Embrace, the much anticipated sequel to last year's Midnight's Kiss, both directed by Matthew Thomas. The sequel ended up with a longer runtime than was permitted according to the rules, and Thomas, the true auteur, balked at the notion of cutting apart his masterpiece to satisfy the judges.

Best film winner The Invisible Life of Criselda is a faux documentary that takes a look at a woman who adopts a young ghost but there are clearly some difficulties in the relationship. The mom complains that the girl just doesn’t play well with others and feeding her is a real mess.

For her part, Criselda (through subtitles) remarks that her mom just doesn’t understand her. She feels invisible, she says.

The clever tale had a huge response with the audience, leading many to laugh openly before showing them a tender twist to the filial yarn, even if it had a touch of the macabre to it. For six minutes or less and a bare bones budget, it was a brilliant display of the artistic ingenuity that can be harnessed when a Grade 11 student sees a kernel of an idea that needs a theatre audience.

McGuire admits that her inspiration came partly through pop culture. She was discussing the project with her friend Rachel Jones (who eventually played Criselda) but time was short.

“We were bouncing ideas off of one another. For some reason, I just thought of X-Men! I don’t know why. I thought, ‘what if a mythical creature was adopted into a human family?’”

Perhaps being short on time to craft a script and not having a blockbuster producer on board meant that there were more creative liberties that she could take as a director. The finished product is partly improvised, McGuire said. Filming it was a lot of fun and she plans on continuing on with it in her graduating year.

“I’m so glad I took film studies. I’m glad that I stuck with it because it’s been great. It’s really cool.”