Silly Spooky Watchlist
Are you someone who loves Halloween festivities but on the sillier side of spooky season? This watchlist features short films that might just be for you.
When Spooky Season comes to town, it can be overwhelming for those of us who value the sillier things in life. Monsters, ghouls, and goblins take over screens everywhere. Movie nights are no longer welcoming if you’re afraid of the dark- popcorn is only for the brave. Clowns are even scarier than usual! There is only one thing that can save the faint-of-heart: comedic relief. To put it plainly, a horror flick is nothing without a good bit. There is a beautiful intersection between Silly and Scary.
List of Selected Films
Switch Seats with Me: The Fourth One - directed by Sophie Larin, Karis Bongiorno, Si Si Boudoin
Switch Seats With Me started as a collaboration between roommates and has blossomed into a production team of writers, directors, musicians, cinematographers, artists, journalists and some silly little comedians— a group of radical collaborators. This Halloween our sketch comedy group, premieres its fourth episode, shot entirely on an iPhone. This installment takes a hilariously ridiculous turn, delving into the spookiest scenarios you can imagine. From zombification to an offbeat possum autopsy and an obsession with sticky notes that goes too far— we all know that guy. This wacky Halloween episode promises non-stop laughter. But that's not all - we've got some incredible guest stars to add to the fun! Look out for Maleek Rae from HBO's 'Random Acts of Flyness' in 'Monsters in the Closet' and Kiaya Scott, fresh from Broadway's 'Harry Potter: The Cursed Child,' in 'I’m Gonna Kill my Boyfriend.' Don't miss this comedy extravaganza - it's a Halloween laugh-fest coming out on the Switch Seats with Me youtube channel this October 31st! In the meantime catch up on episode three!
Tooth Fairy - directed by Abigail Marshall
Marshall secured her film’s spot in our Silly and Scary Soirée of sketches with the opening wide shot of her protagonist eating a bowl of cereal. The usually mundane activity evokes immediate discomfort in the viewer. The sound of the actor’s chewing and swallowing feels intense and endless. Finally, she bites down on the spoon, dislodging a tooth. We learn that fallen teeth bring good fortune, but how far will she go to keep up her coin? Marshall showcases the way to make an audience squirm in their seats, completely engaged. Silliness is required to make something truly scary, and the sprinkle of absurdity that Marshall adds to this short is expert. Watch it here:
Bowling 4 Eva - directed and written by Aelfie Oudghiri
This genre-bending dark comedy took the East Coast film festival circuit by storm. The piece plunges you into a chat room with teen “Christina”, portrayed brilliantly by Olivia Claire Liang. Recently put on suicide watch, Christina wanders through the film. She out-creeps a pedofile, has a meaningful visit with her grandpa, and survives a medication-induced multimedia dream ballet. The animation, starring a bowling ball and its graphically slaughtered pins, is exceptionally unnerving and undeniably hysterical. Oudghiri’s vision and execution are deeply original and truly innovative.
Jewelle: Just A Vision - directed by Madeline Lim with the help of the Lesbian Herstory Archives
Documentarian Madeline Lim unearths the fascinating and sultry history of author, activist, playwright and queer icon Jewelle Gomez. Lim’s telling gently outlines Gomez’s childhood, advocacy during the AIDS crisis, and sensual Black lesbian vampire novels which launched her narrative writing career. The most beautiful scene in the film is about Gomez’s relationship with her partner. She and her wife tell the story of their fated romance. Over the audio from their interview, we see the two of them laying side by side in bed. The camera follows Gomez’s fingertips as they trace along her lover's arms. When I attended the NewFest screening of the documentary, an audience member was brought to tears reflecting: “...it’s important that they see us hold each other and love each other. Especially at our age”. Gomez is now 75, still happily married, and consistently creating stories and spaces in which queer folks can thrive.
Chlorine - directed by Cameron Kit
Brooklyn-based sci-fi enthusiast, Cameron Kit, takes a simple concept and spins a high-anxiety romp about a girl harnessing her power for the first time. Chlorine begins with a young girl in a pool with her friend. They joyously share their “sick pool tricks” with each other, nailing handstands, flips and somersaults. When our ingenue comes up for air, she suddenly finds herself in a new backyard. Her friend has vanished. She has mysteriously teleported into a completely different pool and its owners do NOT appreciate the “sickness” of her tricks. Realizing her accidental abilities, she frantically flips herself from pool to pool, trying to find her way home. In her director’s statement Kit explains: Chlorine dissects body and self acceptance issues, which are exacerbated at the pool for many young women (...). In the final scene, she is calm and serene, at peace with herself and in control of her surroundings.”
Si Si is an actor, director and filmmaker based in NYC. Their most recent projects include leading in "I'M SO SORRY BABY" a film by Friday Anderson. Writing, directing, and producing a radical sketch comedy web series; Switch Seats With Me directing developmental staged readings in collaboration with theater companies such as MCC, Sanguine Theater Company, and Those Who Wander NYC, dramaturging a new space opera: Ellipses, directing Camille Thomas's pAreNt pLus lOan, and director of JJ Maley's I'm (Also) Not that girl. They have also worked with The LGBTQ Center in coalition building and The Next Generation Project for the advocacy of TGNC folks across the state of New York. They hope to use storytelling as not only a medium for creating change, by facilitating joy and belonging.
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