A forlorn, middle-aged woman with pain in her eyes steps to the edge of a platform in a dark, lonely subway station, her feet dangerously close to the edge. A train approaches and she tenses, then stares blankly down at the track as it whizzes by.
She stands still, awaiting the next train, when a bubbly, chatty, sweet natured girl draws her out of her solitude by asking for directions and rambling about anything that comes into her mind.
“Do you want to know something?” the woman asks. “I’ve been traveling this line for must have been three years now. You’re the first person that’s talked to me.”
In a single gesture, the girl reaches out, touching the woman and filling her eyes with the slightest hope.
“When you first came up and talked to me, do you know what I was thinking about?” the woman asks. “I was thinking I wonder if I’ll have the courage when the next train comes in to jump in front of it.”
“You won’t, will you?” the girl asks.
And so begins “Touch,” one of 10 short films that will be featured next Thursday at Lunafest, a traveling festival showcasing award-winning films about women and by women filmmakers who competed to get into the event. The festival will be held at the Hermosa Beach Community Theatre and, for the fifth year, hosted by Soroptimist International Manhattan Beach (SIMB).
This year’s films range from “quirky animation to touching documentaries…incredibly diverse in both style and subject matter, united by a common thread of exceptional storytelling by, for, about women,” according to the festival’s website.
“Every year, we’ve gained more of a following,” said SIMB Board Member Monica Frey who chaired this year’s festival. “And it’s not just for women. We welcome men too.”
Lunafest is put on by Lunabar, a nutritional bar for women, who partnered with SIMB to raise money toward breast cancer research and SIMB’s core projects, such as offering student scholarships, sponsoring the Mira Costa High School S Club, raising awareness to stop the sex trafficking of girls, and providing cancer “comfort bags” to women undergoing chemotherapy in hospitals such as Harbor-UCLA Medical Center in Torrance.
“We work to improve the lives of women and girls in local communities and around the world,” Frey said of SIMB, which was founded in 1953.
“Touch,” directed by Jen McGowan of Venice Beach, premiered last year at the Florida Film Festival, where it won the award for Best Narrative Short Film, qualifying it for an Academy Award nomination. The film also won awards for Best Short Film at the San Diego Film Festival and the Best of the Fest at the Palm Springs International Shortfest.
“It’s a very simple film about the deep, human connection between two strangers,” said McGowan, who will be a guest speaker at the festival. “The message is about how much of an effect you can have on someone’s life in a passing manner.”
Lunafest will be held 5:30 to 9 p.m. Thursday, April 7 at the Hermosa Beach Community Theatre, 710 Pier Ave. Wine and appetizers will be served. Tickets cost $25 pre-sale or $30 cash at the door.
“It’s a lovely evening for $25,” Frey said. “You can’t beat that.”
For more information and a list of films that will be featured at the festival, see www.lunafest.org or the Soroptimist Manhattan Beach Facebook page. ER
