Film Festival Audiences Have Been Eating It Up!
A family confronts a perilous immigration process on the day of their green card interview.
A LIEN, by writer-director brothers Sam and David Cutler-Kreutz, also was recently named to Vimeo’s 2024 Best Breakout Video Creators of the Year. The cinematic verisimilitude and cinematography is stunning. Starring Victoria Ratermanis and William Martinez (GREY’S ANATOMY), the short is produced by Tara Sheffer and Rebecca Eskeris. Adam McKay and his HyperObject Industries serve as executive producers. Ratermanis and Martinez also serve as executive producers.
Sam and David Cutler-Kreutz (Picture right): “A LIEN is a call to action for comprehensive immigration reform urgently needed in the United States. A hard look at the complex bureaucracy and enforcement incentives is desperately needed to build a more compassionate and straightforward immigration process.”
“A LIEN speaks to the tangled structure and unending labyrinth of paperwork, rules, and red tape that defines the immigration experience. At its heart, A LIEN is a story about Americans and their desire for family, unity, and identity; a tender tale of wrinkled shirts, braided hair, and the longing to just feel at home.”
“We’re honored that the film is nominated and that the story found resonance with so many Academy members. Simultaneously, we are deeply troubled by the recent immigration news from the new presidential administration. There is an urgent and grave need for humane immigration reform in the United States – one that recognizes immigrant families as integral threads in the fabric of our nation.”
Producer Adam McKay: “A LIEN is pure cinematic tension. And then it hit me, this is reality for thousands* of people every day.”
A LIEN has played a number of film festivals, including the Austin Film Festival. It has won a number of festival prizes such as the Special Jury Award from Salute Your Shorts 2024 and the Grand Prize Narrative Awards from the Washington Film Festival 2024. It is streaming on Vimeo Staff Picks. Sam & David Cutler-Kreutz’s work includes 2024 SXSW Film and 2024 Palm Springs ShortFest winning short ‘TRAPPED’. They are represented by 42. Salaud Morisset is spearheading the international sales of the film.
*Could be millions by the time this review is published – either today, January 20, or sometime tomorrow.
{Live action short films are short movies that use real people, props, and sets to tell a story. They are made using photographic techniques to capture the actors, props, and location}
Awards / Film Festivals:
Austin Film Festival 2023
Seattle International Film Festival 2023
Vancouver International Film Festival 2023
Rhode Island International Film Festival 2023
Brooklyn Film Festival 2024
Flickerfest 2023
Salute Your Shorts 2024 – Special Jury Award
March on Washington Film Festival 2024 – Grand Prize Narrative Short
Indie Street Film Festival 2024
Ennesimo Film Festival 2023
Postira Seaside Film Festival 2023
Houston Latino Film Festival 2024
Film Review
Riveting, heart pounding. Audiences from the get-go should make sure they have a strong grip wherever they’re seated, and expect to be glued to the edges of their seatings of choice for the full 14 minutes and a few seconds. This film smokes.
I’m changing the regular WORD film review format, allowing me to avoid spoilers as well as nipping and tucking that might interfere with the adrenaline rush generated by this film short. I expect, because this film is freely available on Vimeo, many, many in the audience are going to want to see A LIEN more than once.
Publisher, Editor, Reviewer- Gregg W. Morris