Ghosts Before Breakfast

A lucid dream turned nightmarish reality. A ship sinking into a world of fear. A short film that’s mostly puppetry by one of America's most prolific twentieth century artists.

Shot on 16mm celluloid across parts of New Zealand and Samoa, interdisciplinary artist Sam Hamilton’s ten-part experimental magnum opus makes thought-provoking connections between life on Earth and the cosmos, and, ultimately, art and science. Structured around the ten most significant celestial bodies of the Milky Way, Apple Pie’s inquiry begins with the furthest point in our solar system, Pluto, as a lens back towards our home planet and the ‘mechanisms by which certain aspects of scientific knowledge are digested, appropriated and subsequently manifest within the general human complex’. Christopher Francis Schiel’s dry, functional narration brings a network of ideas about our existence into focus, while Hamilton’s visual tableaux, as an extension of his multifaceted practice, veer imaginatively between psychedelic imagery and performance art.

A painting of a couple talk to the viewers for a bit.

A woman sees the ceiling of her apartment begin to inexorably close in. She tries to escape, but her front door locks and her window is too high to jump. Panic ensues.

A man's car somehow becomes completely autonomous and takes the powerless driver, to a scrap yard, or a 'cemetery for cars', where several more vehicles are waiting to be crushed by powerful reducing machines, their passengers still inside.

Suppressed memories reach a boiling point. An animated tale of longing. “The Experimental section saw Non Films’ Dull Hope scoop the premier place as category winner. Half animation and half movie footage, this hybrid resonated very much with the judging panel who deemed it to be a sad dirge on personal memories and heartbreak.” – The Guardian Directed & Animated by Brian Ratigan Music & Sound Design by Nick Punch (R.I.P.) Produced by Non Films

When timid bank clerk Stanley Ipkiss discovers a magical mask containing the spirit of the Norse god Loki, his entire life changes. While wearing the mask, Ipkiss becomes a supernatural playboy exuding charm and confidence which allows him to catch the eye of local nightclub singer Tina Carlyle. Unfortunately, under the mask's influence, Ipkiss also robs a bank, which angers junior crime lord Dorian Tyrell, whose goons get blamed for the heist.

Raoul Duke and his attorney Dr. Gonzo drive a red convertible across the Mojave desert to Las Vegas with a suitcase full of drugs to cover a motorcycle race. As their consumption of drugs increases at an alarming rate, the stoned duo trash their hotel room and fear legal repercussions. Duke begins to drive back to L.A., but after an odd run-in with a cop, he returns to Sin City and continues his wild drug binge.

In Los Angeles, a colorful assortment of bohemians try to make sense of their intersecting lives. The moody Dark Smith, his bisexual girlfriend, her lesbian lover and their shy gay friend plan on attending the wildest party of the year. But they'll only make it if they can survive the drug trips, suicides, trysts, mutilations and alien abductions that occur as one surreal day unfolds.

Short film by Mary Ellen Bute

Villagers are afraid of Samurai Rauni Reposaarelainen, who keeps them on their toes every day. When someone places a bounty on Rauni's head, he goes after this mysterious person.

In a city inhabited by drawn beings, an indigenous boy witnesses a holographic appearance. It is the arrival of an entity of unknown materiality. With a mysterious presence and exotic allegories, it starts to enchant the residents, awakening their most insane senses.

When Stan, Kyle, Cartman and Kenny sneak into an R-rated movie featuring Canadians Terrance and Philip, they are pronounced 'corrupted', and their parents pressure the United States to wage war against Canada.

On planet Sigma, enormous creatures are trapped inside the ice. And then, all of a sudden explosions erupt from subterranean volcanoes. The ice begins to melt; a global warming concludes the giants’ deep slumber and new life begins. The creatures crawl forth, out of the ice.

A meek office worker finds himself flung into a fantasy world as a naked muscleman. An early version of the Den character, known from the comic magazine Heavy Metal and the movie by the same name.

"After chasing sunsets, one of life's simple joys is playing with the boys." - Kenneth Clark Loggins

Sink is set in Tomioka’s brightly coloured yet worn and grubby surreal world, where on this occasion we see commuter trains packed with deep sea divers reading pornography. Sealed off behind their protective shells from any real human contact, the commuters are clearly inspired by Tomioka’s experiences on Tokyo’s underground but perhaps represent everyone who shuts themselves away behind iPods, computers and books, afraid of real face-to-face human interaction.

When the young orphan boy James spills a magic bag of crocodile tongues, he finds himself in possession of a giant peach that flies him away to strange lands.

During a rainy day, and while their mother is out, Conrad and Sally, and their pet fish, are visited by the mischievous Cat in the Hat. Fun soon turns to mayhem, and the siblings must figure out how to rid themselves of the maniacal Cat.

A group of Staten Island radicals lead by ex-philosophy student Marie and her boozy filmmaker boyfriend Nick attempt to kidnap the CEO of the Leo Corporation but instead accidentally capture Daniel, a nutty small time accountant. With Daniel in custody at their commune, several of the radicals attempt to 'revolutionize the bedroom', an endeavor further complicated by a surprise visit from Marie's tough boy ex-lover Junior.