Jason B. Kohl

If short film critics did yearly top ten lists, Dustin Guy Defa’s Person to Person would be my number one. I certainly wouldn’t be alone: after a miraculous festival run that included Sundance, SXSW, Berlin, New Directors/New Films, AFI and more, the film was acquired by The New Yorker, which recently began a series called The New Yorker Shorts. It’s a perfect fit for Person to Person, which TNY critic Richard Brody described back in March as having the “ingenious construction and the relaxed discursiveness of a major literary short story.”

It’s rare that a short film garners major press attention, but with this one, it couldn’t be more deserved. Person to Person is a subtle, moving, and expertly crafted story about Benny, a record store owner who, the morning after hosting a party, finds a pretty young woman sleeping on his floor. The woman, whom he’s never met, then refuses to leave.

From a writing standpoint, this short film achieves something extremely rare; dramatically, it is the audience who changes, not the main character. We begin the film thinking Benny’s actions are comic, but we soon begin to feel a deeper wound behind them. Sometimes, getting what we want can be the worst thing for us. As one of his customers says, “Man that’s sad Benny.”

Supporting this simple narrative is an astounding level of craft, including lush, elegant cinematography, expert casting and performances, and what is easily the best soundtrack of the year. If it’s not already clear, this is one of those rare gifts that only the short form can provide.

Writer/Director Dustin Guy Defa is no novice; this is but one entry in a highly accomplished series of shorts that include Sundance entries Lydia Hoffman Lydia Hoffman and the utterly haunting Family Nightmare. Aside from his notable acting career, Defa’s first feature film Bad Fever is also highly worth a watch.

But start with this short; it’s a pillar of the form, and, in my humble opinion, possibly the best 18 minutes you’ll spend this year.