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"An emotionally vivid and delicately rendered short... offering an alternative world that prizes softness and sensitivity over brute strength."

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UPCOMING SCREENINGS

  • Feb 14, 2022, 12:00 AM EST – Feb 17, 2022, 11:59 PM EST
    Eventive
    Virtual screening of the "Coming of Age" block.
  • Feb 11, 2022, 9:00 PM
    New Ohio Theatre, 154 Christopher St #1E, New York, NY 10014, USA
    Part of the "Coming of Age" screening block.
  • Jan 11, 2022, 7:00 PM GMT+2
    Târgu Mureș, Strada Plopilor 12, Târgu Mureș 540282, Romania
  • Sat 08 Jan
    Jan 08, 2022, 7:00 PM GMT+2
    Rezervelor 54, Str. Rezervelor 54, Dudu 077042, Romania
  • Dec 08, 2019, 5:10 PM
    Galaxy Highland Theatre, 6700 Middle Fiskville Rd, Austin, TX 78752, USA
    Screening as part of Other Worlds Film Festival // Requires purchased tickets through the official festival website.
  • Dec 07, 2019, 4:25 PM
    Galaxy Highland Theatre, 6700 Middle Fiskville Rd, Austin, TX 78752, USA
    Screening as part of Other Worlds Film Festival // Requires purchased tickets through the official festival website.
  • Dec 07, 2019, 2:00 PM
    Mary Pickford is D'Place, 36850 Pickfair St, Cathedral City, CA 92234, USA
    Screening as part of the Queen Palm International Film festival // Requires purchased tickets through the official festival website.
  • Nov 30, 2019, 12:00 PM – 3:00 PM PST
    AMC Broadway 4, 1441 3rd Street Promenade, Santa Monica, CA 90401, USA
    Screening as part of the Santa Monica Film Festival // Requires purchased tickets through the official festival website.
  • Nov 17, 2019, 9:00 AM PST
    Archer Hotel Napa, 1230 1st St, Napa, CA 94559, USA
    Screening as part of the Napa Valley Film Festival // Requires purchased tickets through the official festival website.
  • Nov 15, 2019, 8:30 PM PST
    Native Sons Theater, 1141 Oak Ave, St Helena, CA 94574, USA
    Screening as part of the Napa Valley Film Festival // Requires purchased tickets through the official festival website.
  • Nov 14, 2019, 12:30 PM CST
    Central Library, 500 W 3rd St, Fort Worth, TX 76102, USA
    Screening as part of the Lone Star Film Festival. // Requires purchased tickets through the official festival website.
  • Nov 13, 2019, 3:00 PM PST
    Archer Hotel Napa, 1230 1st St, Napa, CA 94559, USA
    Screening as part of the Napa Valley Film Festival // Requires purchased tickets through the official festival website.
  • Nov 09, 2019, 11:45 AM HST
    Regal Dole Cannery IMAX & RPX, 735 B Iwilei Rd, Honolulu, HI 96817, USA
    Screening as part of the Hawaii International Film Festival // Requires purchased tickets through the official festival website.
  • Nov 06, 2019, 6:00 PM EST
    SouthSide Works Town Square, Pittsburgh, PA 15203, USA
    Screening as part of the Pittsburgh Shorts Film Festival // Requires purchased tickets through the official festival website.
  • Fri 01 Nov
    Nov 01, 2019, 9:00 PM CDT
    Theatre Works @ The Square, 2085 Monroe Ave, Memphis, TN 38104, USA
    Screening as part of Indie Memphis Film Festival // Requires purchased tickets through the official festival website.
  • Oct 28, 2019, 11:00 AM EDT
    Trustees Theater, 216 E Broughton St, Savannah, GA 31401, USA
    Screening as part of SCAD Savannah Film Festival. // Requires purchased tickets through the official festival website.
  • Oct 26, 2019, 11:00 AM CDT
    Silverspot Cinema, 9118 Strada Pl #8205, Naples, FL 34108, USA
    Screening as part of Shorts Package 4: A World Imagined // // Requires purchased tickets through the official festival website.
  • Oct 25, 2019, 7:00 PM CDT
    Silverspot Cinema, 9118 Strada Pl #8205, Naples, FL 34108, USA
    Screening as part of Shorts Package 4: A World Imagined // Requires purchased tickets through the official festival website.
UPCOMING SCREENINGS

THE STORY

In the brutal battlefield of junior high...

Fourteen-year-old Sam Wheeler knows the only way to survive Roosevelt Junior High School is to stay below radar. But that's impossible after Jason Kingsley picks a fight with him. When a video of Sam crying after losing the brawl goes viral, he can’t escape the humiliation. His parents seem oblivious and his only friend, Adam, pressures him to hit back or it’ll only get worse.

But Sam would rather just disappear. That's when he starts to realize he is developing superpowers—at least, he seems to be able to fly, even destroy things with barely the flex of his scrawny muscles. With increased bullying at school and alienation from his only friend, Sam is pushed to the edge: will he use his powers to “hit back” and if he does, who will he become in the process?

Story
A modern fairytale exploring gender
through the lens of the superhero myth.

DIRECTOR STATEMENT

Our boys are in crisis. The age-old model of manhood—to be a warrior, a leader, the breadwinner—is disappearing. But nothing is emerging in its place—leaving a void of purpose. From the moment they’re born, our boys are trapped by this outdated construct of masculinity. And, what’s worse, they don’t know how to communicate that they’re trapped because the language they would use has been classified as off-limits because it's too “girly” or “gay.” I made BALLOON for my nephew—who at twelve I see already trying to reconcile who he is with what our culture expects of the masculine.

 

I made it for my brothers who I watched growing up, constrained by the same prison I found myself in. I also made it for the women in my life—some of whom collaborated on this project with me. They have too long had to stomach the toxicity of our culture’s dated concept of masculinity. But it’s also for me—for the boy I was who felt so isolated, unwelcome, and unloved. With BALLOON I give him the superpower he always wanted, and hopefully hint at the kind of hero he still can become.
 

Read more about Jeremy here.

FOLLOW US @BALLOONFILM

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