The Reality Bytes film festival came to a formidable end Wednesday. The annual independent student festival, directed by Dr. Laura Vazquez, showcased 20 short films from all over the globe. The 20 short films, chosen from 100 submissions, were shown free to the public over a two day period. 

“The Reality Bytes film festival began in the year 2001 mainly as a university competition… and in about 2009 it became a nationwide festival and after that it became an international festival,” said Matt Swan, an instructor in the department of communication, who filled in for Vazquez. 

The festival aims to share stories, real or fiction, from all over the world. On day two, the fan favorite film was Aleksei Borovikov’s “Brother.” Along with announcing the fan favorite film, there were four other categories that films could win in, and these winners were announced at the end of day two of the festival. 

Best narrative went to the film “Sparks,” best animation went to the film “Level One,” best high school film went to “Eggs” and the documentary winner went to “Lily.” 

The winning films of best narrative and best documentary won a cash prize of $300 while the winning films of best animation and best high school film won a cash prize of $100. 

“Brother” – directed by Aleksei Borovikov

The film “Brother” by American student Aleksei Borovikov closed out the festival. The film is about Tony, an immigrant, who invites his sister Lena to the U.S. for his wedding to his partner Carlos. Lena does not know her brother is gay and has a difficult time accepting this truth. The fictitious story of Tony and Carlos depicts the reality of so many queer couples around the world. 

Borovikov was present at the film festival and shared with the audience that this film was easy to make because it was personal to him.

“I was always taught that the best stories would come out from something that you know either personally or something that you know really, really well,” Borovikov said. “So this one was kind of easy for me because I can personally relate to this story and also I have a lot of friends who struggle to come out to their parents or just decide not to because they just know the family won’t take it well and they won’t be accepted for who they are.”

Borovikov spoke about how his experience with the film was one for the books, as he had help from friends and interviewed roughly 20 queer individuals, mostly from Ukraine, for shared experiences.

“It’s the first time in my filmmaking career where there is a whole community standing behind the film. I never did this before, it was just amazing,” Borovikov said.

“Waiting for Buffalo” – directed by Grace Beutter and Aidan O’Malley

For another documentary style film, University of Notre Dame students Grace Beutter and Aidan O’Malley created a short about the Oglala Sioux Tribe on the South Dakota Pine Ridge Reservation as they await their shipment of bison. 

The film acted as a unique educational tool, aiming to bring awareness to how essential bison have been, and are, to Native American survival. Historical clips about how the U.S. government killed off millions of buffalo in order to get rid of the Native Americans were depicted. Today, 79 tribes hope to relocate buffalo back into their native lands. The film contained natural shots of the South Dakota landscape and featured original music by the Oglala Sioux tribe such as “Wind on Clear Lake.” 

“3 to 3” – directed by Xingyan Guo, Scout Raimondo and Jared Yao

The short documentary film “3 to 3” is directed by Wesleyan University students Xingyan Guo, Scout Raimondo and Jared Yao. The film premiered on day two of the festival and followed Devon Deblois, a sanitation worker in Middleton, Connecticut, whose world at 3 a.m. is very different from ours. Because the film focuses on a real person, viewers were able to connect with Deblois and see the importance sanitation workers bring to society. 

“My favorite one was ‘3 to 3’ because it was interesting. I like garbage men, I think garbage men are cool,” said Natalie Pace, a resident of Poplar Grove, Illinois. 

The documentary follows Deblois building relationships with other sanitation workers and explains why he chose to become a garbage man: to be able to keep his daughter.

“I’ve Been Dreaming” – directed by Kacper Swiderski

Directed by Polish student Kacper Swiderski, “I’ve Been Dreaming” follows a girl who has a big dream of one day becoming an opera singer. The girl lives in a dystopian world that mimics the Hunger Games, making the film’s tone dark, gloomy and somber. 

In her dystopian reality, the girl and her family are shown covered in dirt and white sand, while dream sequences depict the girl as a high-class opera singer— clean and happy. This back-and-forth theme is enhanced by the film’s use of colors, with the dystopian world’s dark and gloomy shades playing in stark contrast to the bright and lively colors of the dream sequences. 

“Black” – directed by Moritz Geraldo Scherzer

“Black” is a short film directed by Polish student Moritz Geraldo Scherzer. The film follows a 34 year-old Black man who is on his way to propose to his girlfriend when a young white girl jumps into his car and threatens him. The film shows the girl harassing the man and forcing him to drive her around. Though the story is fiction, its message is very real, inspiring anger in the viewers by the end of the short. 

As the film takes place in a small car, the camera shots were mostly close-ups of the two actors. This, along with the film’s crisp cinematography, allowed viewers to connect with the characters as they see emotions clearly on each actor’s face.

“Lily” – directed by Chloe Stafford and Suneina Badoni

A stand out film of the night was “Lily,” which was directed by American students Chloe Stafford and Suneina Badoni. The film is a documentary that follows the journey of 8-year-old Lily-Kate Boylan, who has epilepsy. 

For the first seven years of her life, Lily had up to 50 seizures a day, causing her mother Sarah-Kate Boylan to start researching medical mushrooms, desperate for a way to make her daughter feel better. After taking three daily doses of mushrooms for six months, Lily is seizure free and can live a more happy life. Through Lily’s story, the short captures the miraculous healing abilities of medical mushrooms. Ultimately, the film aims to spread awareness about epilepsy— and ends up pulling at heartstrings in the process.

“Seashell” – directed by Dannon Wu

“Seashell” is a grief-stricken film about loss and longing directed by Australian student Dannon Wu. A girl who lives a simple, mundane life wishes to drop out of college and seeks comfort in her seashell collection. 

The girl struggles to live a life with her mom after the passing of her father, and she frequently remembers the times her father spent with her at the beach when she was younger. The film covers themes of loss and of wanting the past back, which together result in a film that is both relatable and honest.

For more information about Reality Bytes and the films that were showcased, visit the festival’s website.