Rampart (2011)

In an all-black community in Louisiana, a young girl learns her father has committed infidelity and turns to hoodoo to seek justice.

It’s hard to capture the emotions and thoughts of a character just from a few shots, but Oscar-nominee composer Micachu's haunting melodies prove otherwise in 'Jackie'.

Remember Caroline from Vampire Diaries? Well, now she’s The Suitcase Killer, allegedly. 

The social issues The Half of it takes on are handled well, between the antagonization brought on to Ellie for her race and the conflict that arises from her being gay. Both aspects of her character are built up over the course of the film and don’t seem abrupt or rushed. The film shows racism towards Ellie and her and father in varying levels, from having her schoolmates specifically address her as "Chinese girl” to the fore mentioned way her Dad is treated due to language barriers. The same can be said about Ellie being a lesbian. While she never truly “comes out” in the narrative, that does not undermine her journey of self-discovery from being meaningful. These ideas aren’t thrust upon the viewer in a preachy manor, the scenarios that occur feel believable given the rural setting. The film presents watchers with problems whom those like Ellie may face, and leaves us to sit with them and reflect.

We chat with Penelope Lawson about her short film, The Dinner Party, her experience founding her own production company, and fun cinema.

The sequel to the first film, A Second Chance: Rivals! talks about Maddy combating cyberbullying and racism.