A while back I linked to the website for the Lake County Film Festival and made a passing comment about a short film called Lift, starring Jean-Pierre Jeunet regular Dominique Pinon. Well, I've had the chance to see the film now and wow ... just excellent stuff. Beautifully designed and shot this is one of those films that manages to tell its story almost completely without dialogue thanks to the incredibly expressive Pinon, who is fantastic as always. Pinon stars as Otis, an agorophobic elevator operator who never leaves the comforting confines of his elevator. Not ever. Otis is secretly in love with K, a claustrophobic woman who works in the typing pool on the top floor of Otis' building and only ever takes the stairs, finding elevators frightening. Having fallen in love with her from a distance, will Otis find a way to bridge the gap? It's a simple story beautifully told that also happen to feature a level of production design that makes it pretty clear why the American film makers would want to cast Jeunet's regular lead ...
The film has been winning awards all over on the festival circuit and TV airings and DVD release possibilities are being explored. In the meantime check out the trailer on the official site here. And Jeunet / Pinon fans will want to check that link above for a little something special ...