The latest installment of KQED’s new national series Film School Shorts continues tonight with a slate of films that includes Pearl Was Here, directed by CalArts alum Kate Marks (Film/Video MFA 12).
The San Francisco-based public television station has selected a number of top student fiction shorts (” well-crafted films with high production values, strong dialogue and inspired themes”) for broadcast on public television stations throughout the country. Each film was personally chosen by series producer Lisa Landi and executive producer / KQED Public Television program director Scott Dwyer.
Film School Shorts‘ 30-minute episodes are grouped together around a central theme. Tonight’s topic, Fire and Fury (Episode 104), features three films with pint-sized protagonists who deal with very adult themes.
About Pearl Was Here:
In your standard arcade claw machine, there are treasures just out of reach. But not for young Pearl. Answering the call of plush animals and seeing an opportunity to escape a troubled family, the scraggly girl slips away from her mother and climbs into the safe and sealed environment of the claw booth. Mommy doesn’t take this too well.
Later this season, Creature Comforts (Episode 109) features the film Caterwaul by Ian Samuels (Film/Video MFA 11). In his film, an aging fisherman struggling with the loss of his wife, develops an unusual relationship with a lobster.
Check your local PBS listings for Film School Shorts broadcast times.