Deflated

The first short film I ever saw was a French classic, "Le Ballon Rouge", a tear-jerker about individuality, perseverance and the preciousness of life.

Dustin Schroff's "Deflated", which screened at NewFilmmakers LA, reminded me of that film from childhood, and that's a very good thing. Almost a silent film itself, "Deflated" give viewers permission to follow their joy.

It was recently suggested to me to live my life as if my father were dead, meaning to venture out from beneath the shadows of the expectations of the previous generation.

Dustin Schroff's five-minute marvel asserts that when staring down the Rorschach test known as life, an impulse the size of a fleeting thought can make the difference between living the plan someone else designed for you, or chasing the ball that bounces the highest.