Crazy8’s has been organizing 8-day filmmaking challenges since 1999. Those filmmakers selected after a successful pitch are given 8 days to produce a short. On 20April2024 all 6 selected finalists present their short in Vancouver followed by a gala evening.
“Astronaut” is a 12-minute film directed by Kevin Cheng. Tom (Tobi Wong) is a young Chinese lad recently having moved to British Columbia. His teachers at school note he has difficulty connecting with his peers perhaps worsened by the fact he is still learning English. Gordon (Victor Young) his father arrives from abroad for a two week stay. Gordon at first blush presents as a cold disciplinarian. The long-distance spousal relationship between Gordon and his spouse (Xiaoquing Ye) is unharmonious. Poor Tom appears to be falling by the wayside.
Be prepared for a wild emotional ride watching Tom take off in his spaceship and connecting with what have appeared to be so impossibly far away they are aliens. And who is the engineer on home base? And if you have ever heard David Bowie’s “Space Oddity” I guarantee it has never sounded or felt so splendid. “Astronaut” is a highwater mark for a “feel-good” short!
If you can’t make it to Vancouver for Crazy8’s I suspect this short will be blasting off to screens throughout the world.
RKS 2024 Film Rating 94/100.
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