Author: Jan Hamilton

The shooting death of a student last year still affects those close to him and those who witnessed it. Now, well into the new school year, poetry teacher Mr. K cannot enter his old classroom and instead teaches through an open window. The school urges him to return, but he cannot bring himself to go… Continue reading SXSW 2026: DEAD DEER HIGH

Jamie is a real mess. She’s in love with a loser who lives in his van, and she frequently gets arrested on disturbance charges when she’s drunk, which is often. At forty, she lives in her deceased grandmother’s cottage, a cute pink bungalow. As she wakes up on the street one morning, after another bender,… Continue reading SXSW 2026: THE SNAKE

Isaac Wright was poor growing up, the first son of a white and African American couple. He and his four siblings were sometimes hungry, especially the year his dad went to jail. At eighteen, he enlisted in the military and served honorably, sometimes with suicidal comrades. He returned to the States but was so depressed… Continue reading SXSW 2026: DRIFT

Two sisters sit in a car outside a remote luxurious house late one night. The older sister, played by Lizzy Caplan, is there to rob the place because she claims the owner owes her money; the younger sister, played by Lucy DeVito, is a regular good citizen with a business and family; she’s there only… Continue reading SXSW 2026: DRAG

Born and raised in Alaska, Richard “Beebo” Russell was the middle child of five whose mom ended a second marriage to an alcoholic, but things remained chaotic at home. Richard, or Beebo as his whole family referred to him, was the glue that held the family together. He was funny, kind, and optimistic; his mother… Continue reading SXSW 2026: #SKYKING

Sean and Kim are at the end of their marriage; the only thing left is to file for divorce. He’s been out of work for a while; younger, better-trained IT professionals are replacing him. Along with the loss of his job is a loss of confidence, fun, and optimism, all things that Kim fell in… Continue reading SXSW 2026: THE SAVIORS

This is not a review, it’s just a few impressions of the wide-ranging shorts: Man Eating Pussy- It’s not what you think, but it can’t be unseen. A Stable Marriage- Counseling is not the only solution to discord. The Seeing Eye Dog Who Saw Too Much- Hilarious spoof on the eighties Italian pot-boilers- Notable for… Continue reading SXSW 2026: MIDNIGHT SHORTS

We start in a beautiful mountain area that looks like Washington state, and find a couple in a river making love. Later, there is some disagreement about what’s going to happen; the wife’s not happy with the whole setup. As they hike up a mountain, they argue. It sounds like an old thing, something they… Continue reading SXSW 2026: AND HER BODY WAS NEVER FOUND

I knew Steven Fromholz was a singer, but I wanted to see his biography because of a late-eighties film called Positive ID. His performance left such an impression that, even now, I remember him while forgetting countless other films. There was something special about him. This film covers his entire life, from his small-town upbringing… Continue reading SXSW 2026: THE MAN WITH THE BIG HAT

If you’re on Threads (It’s like Twitter, or X, I should say), you’re familiar with the term Alpine divorce. It applies when an experienced woodsman takes his inexperienced wife or girlfriend on a remote outdoor hike or camping trip and leaves her to possibly die. This movie is sort of like that, but it’s much… Continue reading SXSW 2026: A SAFE DISTANCE