Anna (Amanda Colianni) is tired of being dull and mistreated.

Today, she changes everything.

The latest short film from the team that created Between the Blinds and Emily in the A.M., Anna is an eight-minute short about a young woman who seems like she's had a heck of a lot more than eight minutes of worth of B.S. in her life. While we aren't witness to the events that have brought her to this cathartic moment in her life, it's apparent from the very beginning that Anna's frustrations have been building up and this is the day she's going to let it all hang out.

Anna's life, it would seem, has settled into a stifled mediocrity where she doesn't look the way she wants to look, doesn't say what she wants to say and, perhaps most profoundly, doesn't let herself feel what she wants to feel. Over the course of the film's eight minutes, director Daniel Brown and Amanda Colianni weave their magic into a simple yet winning story of a young woman who takes back her voice no matter what the costs.

Filmed in 21 days for ProjectTwenty1, Anna picked up prizes in the competition for best cinematography and for Best Actress (Colianni). The film was also nominated in the categories of "Best Acting" and "Most Baffling Ad Campaign." D.P. Matt Duffy does lens the film quite nicely, giving the film an authentic feeling and wisely allowing the camera to linger on faces. It helps, of course, to have expressive faces upon which to focus and Amanda Colianni and supporting player Mindy Hixson play out their characters perfectly.

Tech credits across the board are also quite solid, a noteworthy achievement on the ultra-indie scene. James Farbo's sound is crystal clear with only a couple minor hints of the inherent challenges of working on a lower budget and within a limited time frame. The film also features excellent music from En Tallrik Med Mat featuring Maria Solheim, Sharp Hall and InContext featuring Jessica Poole.

Anna will soon be out and available on DVD. For more information, visit the film's website listed above in the credits.

© Written by Richard Propes
The Independent Critic