#john hellberg

I was lucky to catch a screening of Mousse a couple of weeks ago at the Thessaloniki International Short Film Festival, in Greece. Mousse is quite long - for a short film - but it doesn’t feel too long. The cinematography and direction are of great quality but what really stands out is the script and the acting. The writing is awkwardly humorous, brilliantly phrased and with good pace. Each performance is a gem, a fact which was both refreshing and suprising, since we’re talking about a short film and short films, interesting and original as they can be, they sometimes lose a point or two due to amateur acting.

To sum up, director John Hellberg brought to life a fresh story that manages to jump very quickly from funny to serious, from weird to relieving, from light to dark.

But what is Mousse actually about? Well…There is a horse race, quite a big event. There is Maggan (Marienette Dahlin) who goes into Washington’s Tobacco store determined to get the most out of the bet she has placed. And finally there’s a French guy (Stepháne Bertola) who thinks it’s high time he robbed a little store and regained his pride, making a list of demands to the Swedish police. He is not your friend , he is Mousse. From that point and on, it’s all about …jokes. And timing.