Ryan (Canada) (Review re-printed from JFF post) was actually the Oscar winner for Best Animated Short earlier this year. The technical achievement is amazing as the narrator leads us through a mirror and we see characters in terms of their mental states. In the case of the narrator and an older animator he goes to interview, their creative output has been troubled and this is represented, among other things, by thickets of colorful wire that explode from their heads. It's a very surreal piece where the young animator takes audio recordings of his interviews and then reinterprets the interviews with his own visual style. Nine out of Ten

7:35 in the Morning (Spain) is one of those films where you immediately want to watch it again to pick up what you might have missed the first time round. The story starts off simple as a woman enters a cafe for some a pastry and coffee, then she starts to notice everyone there acting stiff and rather odd. As the film progresses, and gets progressively weirder, she and we figure out what's going on. All this mystery and nice choreography, too. Eight out of Ten

Rex Steele: Nazi Smasher (USA) is the animated tale of all American hero Rex Steele who, along with his trusty sidekick Penny, ventures across the globe to foil the Nazis in all their nefarious plans. This short has it's tongue practically firmly in cheek as we watch this interpretation of classic Saturday morning serials. I love how these particular Nazis choose to emblazon the swastika one every conceivable item they use (including blowdarts). Funny and over the top. Eight out of Ten

Wasp (UK) is one of those uncomfortable, close to the bone personal portraits that British director Mike Leigh is fond of. In this case, we have a single mom named Zoe who lives a rather destitute existence with her four kids in Dartford. We learn real quick that she's far from a good mother, and she proceeds to justify this snap judgment by bringing her kids along to a bar where she meets an old high school friend. The kids, dirty and malnourished, sit outside for hours while she drinks beer and plays pool. It's a very moving family portrait, and the director successfully makes the mother, if not sympathetic, at least pitiable. Nine out of Ten

To Apollo Cinema, who organized this little release, more of this please. We thank you.