I have had the good fortune of coming across one of the best short films I’ve seen in a long time (I met the filmmaker and ordered a DVD from him). Gretchen and the Night Danger is a 20 minute short, shot on video, created by Steve Collins of Austin, TX (a feature length film is currently in production based on the characters from the short). Gretchen is a high school girl, painfully awkward and repressed. There is nothing physically attractive about her and to hear her speak, at first, is pretty wince inducing. It basically sounds like a set up for the female counterpart to Napoleon Dynamite-which my wife and I watched last night-but they are nothing alike.

For what it is, Napoleon Dynamite is a funny movie. But other than the unusual tone of the film, it still hits all of the same points as a typical teen movie. It’s a film of characters who are caricatures played up for laughs. Each person is an imitation of somebody we vaguely remember (or were) in high school. Gretchen is about the the girl I vaguely remember, but in 20 minutes that film takes me beyond the caricature in my mind to reveal a real flesh and blood human. I found myself really caring about her. Steve Collins hit “puree” on the blender of my emotions. Gretchen had me feeling embarrassed for her, feeling compassion for her, she had me laughing, I was angry at her at times and then I was wanting to rush to her defense. When I laughed, it wasn’t at her, it was at how funny and sad and tense life can be all at the same time. When the credits rolled, and this is a little embarrassing, I found myself alone in my living room clapping. For her.

I said there was nothing physically attractive about Gretchen, but by the end of the film she is beautiful. That sounds super-corny, but if you see it you’ll totally say the same thing. And it’s not because Collins cast a model who walks around in a pony-tail and glasses, then she takes them off in the last scene. It’s much deeper than that.

Man, what a great experience to have with a film. It feels so good to watch something where originality flows from the screen. In 20 minutes I had this incredibly broad range of emotions that I didn’t come near in 90 minutes watching Napoleon Dynamite. Yet another reason why short films need to become a part of our broader film watching experience. I’ll keep tabs on the feature and post any news on how to see it when it’s available.