Title: The Indivisibility of Blood
Runtime: 9 min
Country: USA
Director: Jessie-Ann Kohlman
Placement: Honorable Mention
Competition: June, 2017

Synopsis: The film begins with a hot summer day on Coney Island; a flashback of brothers Jon (12) and Aaron (9) charging into the waves. The brothers are New York City natives, raised by an overworked mother and neglectful father. Thus, Jon has taken on a paternal role and his younger brother clings to him. We cut to: present day, Lower East Side, Manhattan. Jon and Aaron, now 22 and 19, hang out with their neighborhood rivals under the Manhattan Bridge. Jon is selling weed to the boys, their bicycles tossed to the sides; all the boys moonlight as part time bike messengers. Giorgi (22), the ring leader of the pack, walks over to Jon’s bag and grabs a film canister full of weed for himself. Aaron notices the slight, and nudges Jon, who shoves Giorgi in response to his arrogance. Convinced they’d cause a scene, Aaron urges Jon to leave. Irate, the brothers walk away…. but not before Jon snatches Giorgi’s shiny new bike. The film continues on in this fashion, intercutting the present day conflict with past trauma. We see young Jon and Aaron coerced by their father to pickpocket fellow beach goers on Coney Island, aggressively scolding them when they’re caught. The present day action unfolds into a chase scene, with Jon and Aaron weaving through NYC traffic, Giorgi hot on their tails. As the film crescendos, our flashback shows Jon and Aaron’s father screaming violently at their mother, with Aaron listening helplessly in the background. The chase scene leads to a confrontation in the boys childhood home, with Aaron finally standing up for his mother and family again their current bully: Giorgi.