Emergency
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“How Do We Make This Feel Like It Needs to be Longer?” Carey Williams on Expanding Emergency From Short to Feature
They admit it looks bad: with plans to indulge in a legendary night of partying, college buddies Sean and Kunle (RJ Cyler and Donald Elise Watkins) briefly stop in at their apartment and come across an unconscious white girl passed out on their living room floor. Either extremely drunk or maliciously roofied, the girl suddenly regains semi-consciousness, only to vomit everywhere and pass out again. Along with their other roommate, video-game obsessed stoner Carlos (Sebastian Chacon), Sean and Kunle panic as they weigh the pros and cons of helping a person they do not know in such a compromised position. […]
by Erik Luers on Jan 29, 2022 -
Sundance 2022 Critic’s Notebook: Mija, Mars One, Emergency
When does a virtual film festival start? The types of film screenings, audience accommodations, parties, panels, social spaces, diversity and development programs, residencies, labs, medical procedures and contingency plans film festival organizers are responsible for keep spiraling. The International Film Festival Rotterdam warned all attendees in late December that its 2022 edition would be entirely virtual, while the Berlinale recently confirmed the festival’s focus on in-person screenings would proceed as planned next month, without exception for press, but with a slightly expanded, all-virtual European Film Market. In this climate, Sundance announced a scant two weeks before the festival’s opening night that […]
by Abby Sun on Jan 22, 2022 -
“Comedy Helps People Understand in a Less Aggressive Way”: Editor Lam T. Nguyen on Emergency
In Emergency, a dark comedy by Carey Williams, a pair of Black college students finds a white woman unconscious on their living room floor. Wary of calling the police because of the optics of the situation, they instead recruit the help of a Latino friend to help resolve the situation, unmasking the absurd racial dynamics of contemporary America in the process. Below, editor Lam T. Nguyen discusses finding comedy in the gravely serious and the difference even a few frames can make in helping a punchline land. Filmmaker: How and why did you wind up being the editor of your film? What […]
by Filmmaker Staff on Jan 22, 2022
