RUG BURN, 7min., Canada
Directed by Devin Gillis
A dramedy short film about Rosemary, a young woman working at a rug store, who begins to question true love when a paranoid and suspicious couple walk into her store in need of a rug - and fast.

http://www.rugburnmovie.com/
https://instagram.com/rugburnmovie

Get to know the filmmaker:

1. What motivated you to make this film?

Following the success and positive feedback from my first short, Oopsy Daisy, which also features the Rosemary character I felt I had more to say with her. Plus, I just found out how "easy" making a film was, so I figured why not make another two!

2. From the idea to the finished product, how long did it take for you to make this film?

I started writing it probably February-ish of 2023 and then we wrapped post in September 2023!

3. How would you describe your film in two words!?

"Watch me!" Everyone please watch my film :)

4. What was the biggest obstacle you faced in completing this film?

Locations for sure! With Oopsy Daisy, I was able to find a very willing and kind flower shop, but with Rug Burn and the other film I completed at the same time (Nothing Mattress), both of the original locations I had cancelled on me. I'm kind of happy it happened though because I way preferred the rug store we ended up using.

5. What were your initial reactions when watching the audience talking about your film in the feedback video?

I was just so pleased that people enjoyed the film! I think it got exactly the reaction I was hoping and also the exact criticisms which is nice because I didn't have to add more self doubt to the list. Except someone said something about the "Main Character" shirt indicating the main character, but it's actually just to show how narcissistic that character is despite not being the main character.

6. When did you realize that you wanted to make films?

As I stated earlier, once I realized how much people enjoyed the first film. I also have a background in photography, so a lot of the time with short films I'll start with the location which I think will be cool to film in first then write the story around that.

7. What film have you seen the most in your life?

There's several movies I've watched over and over again, but my absolute fave is The Brother's Bloom or pretty much any Wes Anderson movie. I also love (500) Days of Summer which I think speaks to the kind of "romance" films I hope to continue making.

8. What other elements of the festival experience can we and other festivals implement to satisfy you and help you further your filmmaking career?

I think it'd be great if I were able to answer questions directly from the audience based on their initial reaction!

9. You submitted to the festival via FilmFreeway. How has your experiences been working on the festival platform site?

No problems at all!

10. What is your favorite meal?

Sushi for sure!

11. What is next for you? A new film?

At the moment, I don't have any short films planned, but in about a week I'm producing a web series pilot with my partners from Fourth Floor Film (www.fourthfloorfilm.com) which we spent all last year writing the whole season! So, I'm very excited to film the pilot soon and see the rest of the season come to life hopefully throughout the rest of this year!