This fall, ShortHaus Cinema is focusing on heritage, personal empowerment and the weird. First stop, Brazil, with André Hayato Saito and his picturesque ruminations on life and death. For October, we’re going spooky with the late David Lynch. Though he wasn’t an outright horror director, his surrealistic takes on the thriller and noir genres leave you with a haunting feeling in your gut. In November, we’re visiting Canada and the Indigenous Inuit population in the work of Miranda de Pencier. She might not call herself a director (being much more focused on her work as a producer), but de Pencier’s sensitive depictions of often-overlooked Inuit life made her my choice for Native American History Month.
Are you working on any shorts yourself? Need some guidance on your latest project? Feel free to join our Fountaindale filmmaking community on the first Tuesday of every month to learn, receive feedback and appreciate the work of notable directors.
September: André Hayato Saito
Tuesday, September 2, 7–8 p.m. (Drop in)
André Hayato Saito has worked in film for more than two decades creating short films and commercials. His commercial work is co-directed with a creative partner, Cesar Nery, making up the directing duo Kid Burro. Kid Burro are known for their carefully crafted aesthetic and have worked for major brands like Volkswagen, Jeep and PepsiCo.
In 2019, Saito began creating more personal work, drawing from his Japanese-Brazilian heritage. The three shorts he’s made since have created an unofficial trilogy about identity, grief and ancestral ties. That trilogy is soon to be adapted into one feature-length film encompassing the same subject matter.
The latest of these shorts is Amarela (2024). The film explores the complex push and pull between the desire to assimilate and appreciating one’s own culture. The film centers on Erika Oguihara, a Japanese-Brazilian teenager. Although she initially rejects her Japanese family’s traditions, she seeks refuge in them after experiencing casual bigotry during a Brazilian soccer match. It’s brief, beautiful and subtle, building out the world and life of this transplanted family.
Amarela is available to watch on Kanopy with your library card, and you can explore the rest of his work on his website.
Amarela (2024)
October: David Lynch
Tuesday, October 7, 7–8 p.m. (Drop in)
David Lynch is a director who certainly needs no introduction. His passing earlier this year was a devastating loss for the medium of film. He was the king of surrealism, the uncanny and the weird. Although he got his start as a painter, his paintings soon became the subject of his own visceral short films. After working on several shorts, he created Eraserhead (1977), cementing himself as the strangest of filmmakers.
Lynch was not nearly as prolific as his name recognition would usually dictate. But it was the quality and uniqueness of his craft that kept him top of mind for a specific genre of film lovers. His surrealist takes on the neo-noir genre have been consistently beloved, including Blue Velvet (1986), Mulholland Drive (1997) and Lost Highway (2001).
My personal favorite of Lynch’s work is his co-creation with Mark Frost: Twin Peaks. Its blending of intense police procedural, small-town soap opera antics and dream-logic mythology offers a truly unique viewing experience. Network interference led to an early cancellation of the original series, but its enigmatic story has continued in the feature film sequel, Fire Walk with Me (1992) and the 2017 limited series.
Join us to celebrate the life and work of David Lynch. His films are available in our physical DVD and Blu-ray collections. Kanopy has also created a “Remembering David Lynch” collection to showcase works that feature the late and great director.
Lynch’s hybrid biography and memoir, Room to Dream, is available in print, digital and audiobook. His insights into transcendental meditation are also available to watch on Hoopla.
The Art Life (2016)
Eraserhead (1977)
Blue Velvet (1986) Twin Peaks (1990-1991) In 2010, de Pencier began working to produce the film The Grizzlies (2018), a story inspired by real events in the north of her home country. The story focused on a small Inuit community in Kugluktuk, Nunavut, whose youth population was suffering a suicide epidemic. After witnessing the devastation, one teacher introduced a lacrosse program to give the kids something to strive for, and thus the inspirational sports drama began. Miranda de Pencier only ever meant to produce the film. But when the writer and director, Graham Yost, stepped down to work on other projects, he recommended de Pencier take the director’s chair. She had already established relationships with the local community and was working closely with Inuit co-producers. Though apprehensive, she eventually took the lead. Miranda de Pencier took care to decenter herself. Not only did the production hire locally, but they also created workshops and job training programs so the participants could go on to create their own films. Ultimately, 91 percent of the cast and 33 percent of the crew were Inuit or Indigenous. A feature-length film for a first-time director can be a monumental task. During the workshops, de Pencier met Ippiksaut Friesen, an aspiring actor, and was inspired to create the short film Throat Song (2011). With Friesen as its lead, the short acted as a proving ground for the first-time director and first-time actor. Throat Song tells the story of personal empowerment in the face of trauma and is well-deserving of its many rewards. You can watch Throat Song on Kanopy with a Fountaindale Library Card. Throat Song (2011) The Grizzlies (2018)
November: Miranda de Pencier
Tuesday, November 4, 7–8 p.m. (Drop in)
Canadian Miranda de Pencier first stepped into the filmmaking world as an actress. After more than a decade of being in front of the camera in roles like Josie Pie from Anne of Green Gables, de Pencier stepped out of the spotlight to work as a producer for theater and film. Her production credits include Pu-239 (2006), Adam (2009) and Beginners (2010).
