187 Days Until Xmas
Story of two lost souls as they explore the fantasy of romantic love.
The first is a prostitute with the spirit of an eight year old and the second is a Santa Claus who can’t stay away from the egg nog.
Starring: Fiona Noakes, Islam “Solly” Balbaa, Marta Gott
COMMENTS:
Back at Dawson College, where I was studying for a degree in Creative Arts, I saw a short from another student and it was about a wayward Santa Clause and the image struck with me over the years. The appeal was of a character who was mysterious and was a symbol of loneliness. The filmmaking challenge was to express the loneliness through body language and actions rather than verbally since having Santa talk would have totally ruined his mythical qualities. Solly did such an amazing acting job by bring ing the character to life using just body language. Fiona as well was able to bring out the vulnerability of her character as well. I was really happy with how this film turned out and it remains one of my favourites.
A few years ago it was screened at a special Xmas screening put on by IFCO at the Mercury Lounge club here in Ottawa. After the screening I overheard two ladies in the audience talk to Patrice James about what a messed up film it was and how they would love to meet the filmmaker. Patrice said he was right here !
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