FREAK
Directed by R.J. Sanchez
Produced by Kevin Clark
United States | English | 10' | Comedy
“I was looking for something that was simple and universal. Even though freak dancing isn’t necessarily a widely known form of dance (the kids in the short had no idea about it, lol)
when I would pitch the idea to friends they would immediately recount their own dance floor tribulations. The anxiety of the whole thing, the absurdity of adolescent mating rituals. It definitely struck a nerve with people so I knew I had something interesting. On top of that, shooting a film set around 2006 and using actual music from when I was in high school was something that I’ve been wanting to do.” - R.J. Sanchez
Any 30-somethings who grew up in California will be tickled by the throwback to our pubescent years in which hits like Blow the Whistle and Tell Me When to Go topped the charts, and for some reason middle school dances were, like… completely unhinged. (Does the word “freaking” ring a bell?) For Angel, the sweet Latino kid just trying to survive 2003 in this short, the pressure to “freak” is causing deep anxiety about his friends’ dance party this weekend. Maybe you can relate. Directed by RJ Sanchez and lovingly shot on film.
- Kath Tolentino, Programmer