‘My Eyes Are Up Here’ picked for Vimeo’s Staff Pick, Short of the Week, and Director’s Notes
Representation and inclusion matter. Everyone should be able to see themselves reflected in characters in film and TV and not merely in the lip service one-dimensional stories often seen, especially in relation to those with disabilities. My Eyes are Up Here, directed by Nathan Morris, is a perfect example of how to do it the right way. A classic story of waking up, bleary-eyed next to someone who you don’t know very well and the ensuing panic upon discovering a split condom. It’s a widely universal tale and treated exactly that way by Morris. The New Zealand-born director immediately connected with Aminder Virdee’s script whose authenticity and raw character-led narrative he could easily see translated visually. My Eyes Are Up Here is at its very core a familiar tale of girl meets boy, yet goes beyond that simplistic framing to reflect on the way we treat people we deem as different. In our conversation below with Morris for today’s premiere, we discuss the challenges he had finding accessible friendly locations in our very ableist world, working with lead actor Jillian Mercado to cater to her lived experiences and give her ownership of her role and how they ensured that representation and inclusion were central to every part of the production.
Representation and inclusion matter. Everyone should be able to see themselves reflected in characters in film and TV and not merely in the lip service one-dimensional stories often seen, especially in relation to those with disabilities. My Eyes are Up Here, directed by Nathan Morris, is a perfect example of how to do it the right way. A classic story of waking up, bleary-eyed next to someone who you don’t know very well and the ensuing panic upon discovering a split condom. It’s a widely universal tale and treated exactly that way by Morris. The New Zealand-born director immediately connected with Aminder Virdee’s script whose authenticity and raw character-led narrative he could easily see translated visually. My Eyes Are Up Here is at its very core a familiar tale of girl meets boy, yet goes beyond that simplistic framing to reflect on the way we treat people we deem as different. In our conversation below with Morris for today’s premiere, we discuss the challenges he had finding accessible friendly locations in our very ableist world, working with lead actor Jillian Mercado to cater to her lived experiences and give her ownership of her role and how they ensured that representation and inclusion were central to every part of the production.
A word from director Nathan Morris:
We're absolutely thrilled to share some exciting news with you: "My Eyes Are Up Here" is now available for online viewing - After screening to audiences in over 30 festivals across the globe and winning a few awards, we're beyond excited to announce that we’ve been handpicked for a Vimeo's Staff Picks collection. Enjoy and we can't wait to hear what you think! (Unless you think it’s shit).
‘My Eyes Are Up Here’ Jillian Mercado Stars In New Film Premiering At Tribeca Film Festival
My Eyes Are Up Here is a new comedy about a disabled woman who goes in search of the morning-after pill. The short film will premiere at this year’s Tribeca Film Festival in June. It stars Jillian Mercado (The L Word: Generation Q) as Sonya, a successful model who isn’t looking to date, and Ben Cura as Tom, someone she’s met through her current gig, who hopes their evening together might lead to more.
My Eyes Are Up Here is a new comedy about a disabled woman who goes in search of the morning-after pill. The short film will premiere at this year’s Tribeca Film Festival in June. It stars Jillian Mercado (The L Word: Generation Q) as Sonya, a successful model who isn’t looking to date, and Ben Cura as Tom, someone she’s met through her current gig, who hopes their evening together might lead to more.
Sundance Film Festival: explore the London 2023 line-up
Clare Binns, Managing Director, Picturehouse Cinemas added: “We are delighted to host the tenth Sundance Film Festival: London showcasing the finest independent cinema direct from the 2023 Sundance Film Festival held in January. We look forward to celebrating with the London film community in July for an exciting 4 days filled with bold and thrilling UK premieres on the big screen, inspiring talks and special guest appearances, I am personally thrilled that Gregg Araki will be joining us all at the Festival, whose work exemplifies Sundance and independent film.”
‘You Hurt My Feelings’ starring Julia Louis-Dreyfus and Tobias Menzies will close this year's festival, which runs from July 6 to 9.
Clare Binns, Managing Director, Picturehouse Cinemas added: “We are delighted to host the tenth Sundance Film Festival: London showcasing the finest independent cinema direct from the 2023 Sundance Film Festival held in January. We look forward to celebrating with the London film community in July for an exciting 4 days filled with bold and thrilling UK premieres on the big screen, inspiring talks and special guest appearances, I am personally thrilled that Gregg Araki will be joining us all at the Festival, whose work exemplifies Sundance and independent film.”
SUNDANCE FILM FESTIVAL: LONDON 2023 OFFERS PACKED PROGRAMME OF BOLD CINEMATIC VOICES FOR ITS 10TH EDITION
Picturehouse and the non-profit Sundance Institute announced today the lineup of feature fiction and documentary films, a specially curated programme of UK-produced short films and a Gregg Araki retrospective for the 10th edition of Sundance Film Festival: London 2023, taking place from 6 to 9 July at Picturehouse Central.
Picturehouse and the non-profit Sundance Institute announced today the lineup of feature fiction and documentary films, a specially curated programme of UK-produced short films and a Gregg Araki retrospective for the 10th edition of Sundance Film Festival: London 2023, taking place from 6 to 9 July at Picturehouse Central.
The 29th Slamdance Film Festival Unveils Unstoppable Shorts
The 29th Slamdance Film Festival, the premiere film festival and organization “by filmmakers, for filmmakers,” today announced its mind bending lineup for Animated, Experimental, Unstoppable, Narrative, and Documentary Shorts programs as well as the Digital, Interactive and Gaming (DIG) and Episodes lineup.
The 29th Slamdance Film Festival, the premiere film festival and organization “by filmmakers, for filmmakers,” today announced its mind bending lineup for Animated, Experimental, Unstoppable, Narrative, and Documentary Shorts programs as well as the Digital, Interactive and Gaming (DIG) and Episodes lineup.
Dedicated to providing accessible programming both in-person and online, the 2023 hybrid festival will return this year with events in Park City and Salt Lake City, Utah from January 20th to 26th and online on the Slamdance Channel from January 23rd to 29th.
“Our short filmmakers have always been at the forefront of innovation and experimentation in independent film, while simultaneously giving a voice to filmmaking communities that are traditionally under-represented. This year’s shorts, episodic and DIG lineup is no different, filled with fearless filmmakers who are sure to shape the future of independent storytelling on a global scale,” said Festival Producer Michael Morin.
The 2023 festival continues the tradition of pushing the envelope of independent and DIY filmmaking with the addition of 19 Unstoppable Shorts, 11 Animated Shorts, 18 Narrative Shorts, 13 Documentary Shorts, 5 Experimental Shorts, 5 Episodes, and 9 DIG Showcases to the lineup. Exploring themes of grief, religion, cultural roots, memories and more, the films in these programs challenge our current perception of cinema.
“The films in this lineup are wildly unique and they each garnered enthusiastic and unanimous support from our programmers. We formally invite you to have your minds blown,” said programmers Lori Felker, Davy Walker and Cherlyn Hsing-Hsin Liu.
BBC films out in force at London Film Festival
Congratulations to all the filmmakers and their teams, backed by BBC Film, who have been selected for this year’s exceptional programme at BFI London Film Festival.
BBC Film titles include The Damned Don’t Cry in the Official Competition, Blue Jean and Medusa Deluxe in the First Feature Competition, the world premiere of Pretty Red Dress, European premieres of Aisha And Allelujah, UK premieres of The Eternal Daughter and Cannes Palme d’Or winner Triangle of Sadness, as well as Cannes prize winner, Aftersun
Ben Cura, Jillian Mercado
Directed by Nathan Morris, written by Aminder Virdee and Arthur Meek.
A disabled woman sets off on a mission to get the morning after pill. The only thing in her way is... everything.
The short film stars Jillian Mercado and Ben Cura. Producers are Katie Dolan, Vanessa Muir and Naomi Wallwork. Executive Producers are Dionne Farrell, Josic Cadoret and Justin Edgar.
BBC Film and BFI Network present a WIP Media production in association with Contentability and Sweet Punch.
“My Eyes Are Up Here” will premiere at the 66th BFI London Film Festival as part of its Official Selection
66th BFI London Film Festival announces lineup of world premieres.
66th BFI London Film Festival announces lineup of world premieres
The festival will host 22 feature film world premieres, including new films from Guillermo del Toro, Asif Kapadia, Edward Lovelace, Neil Maskell, and Nora Twomey and Irish animation studio Cartoon Saloon.
The 66th BFI London Film Festival in partnership with American Express takes place from Wednesday 5 October to Sunday 16 October 2022. The BFI LFF programme launch will take place on Thursday 1 September 2022