Short Film Showcase

Debut Performances In his directorial debut, American Untitled, Rob Lowe displays a refreshing interest in non-linear storytelling, and he gets subtly nuanced performances from a winning cast, including Matt Frewer, Poppy Montgomery and Jay Thomas. The film is a portrait of a photographer and of a model he exploits - to tragic consequences. But the film also critiques our preoccupation with tabloid sensationalism, even as it indulges it. American Untitled is a cat-and-mouse game of desire and deduction that keeps you guessing until the final moments. Jeff Goldblum's 1996 Academy Award-nominated short, Little Surprises, has seldom been screened since it was produced, but it's a mature work that compares favorably with almost any other film in the Festival. A wicked comedy about family idiosyncrasies, moral dilemmas and wedding eve traumas, Jeff Goldblum's directorial debut stars Kelly Preston, Rod Steiger, Julie Harris, Sam Whipple, Mark Pellegrino, Christine Cavanaugh and Kenny Moskow. Actor Anne DeSalvo's producing/writing/directing debut, Women Without Implants combines a strong ensemble cast - including Cathy Moriarty, lulie Hagerty, Kathy Najimy, Robert Picardo, Lee Garlington, Beth Broderick and Anne DeSalvo - with a story that explores the vanity and vulnerabilities of women in the go. Linda's thinking about having her breasts augmented, Her friends protest that no doctor's scalpel can give a woman self esteem. But the men they meet seem to think otherwise. American Untitled directed by Robert Lowe (World Premiere) Little Surprises directed by Jeff Goldblum (United States) Women Without Implants directed by Anne DeSalvo (US Premiere)