Australian short film Intrusion will have its world premiere at Indy Shorts, the latest offering from Indy-based Heartland Film that is emphasizing the incredible world of short film. Clocking in at right around five minutes, Intrusion tells the story of fashion editor Marion (Ming-Zhu Hii), whom we see as she enters a studio to direct a shoot. A traumatic event has occurred the night before, but the details are fragmented and unclear. The end result is a suspenseful psychological thriller in which Marion keeps re-entering the studio, her body and mind slowly processing the trauma and the events quietly revealing themselves. 

Ming-Zhu Hii also writes and directs the film and does so with pristine clarity of artistic vision and an authentic suspense that never feels anything less than honest. The film is unquestionably experimental in presentation, an approach that is sometimes a hard sell for Heartland audiences yet it works beautifully and deserves its place among the fest's finalists. The film is also set to screen at LA Shorts in August. 

Intrusion is an examination of power and violence in the fashion world, a lesson that may fly by the less woke male members of the audience but should intensely resonate with female moviegoers whether or not they've ever stepped foot near the fashion world. It's a challenging, universal message and Ming-Zhu Hii makes it soar quickly and leave a maximum impact. 

Intrusion is screening as part of the Finalist Shorts 2 Collection with screenings on:

• Friday, July 27th at 4:30pm inside The Toby
• Saturday, July 28th at 3:45pm inside The Toby

For ticket information, visit the Indy Shorts website. 

© Written by Richard Propes
The Independent Critic