Neighbor News
Michelle Danner’s film “The Call of Nishi” to screen at Cleveland International Film Festival April 9-18
"The Call of Nishi," based on an ancient folktale, is a story about a parent's fear of the dangers their child can encounter.
Michelle Danner’s short film “The Call of Nishi” will be screened at the Cleveland International Film Festival being held April 9-April 18.
“The Call of Nishi” is a story about a parent's fear of the dangers their child can encounter, and a child's fear of the dangers they are unequipped to face on their own. The little boy the short film focuses on - Eric - grapples with the trust he places (or thinks he is placing) in his mother, and the horror of not knowing if that trust is misplaced until it's too late. Danner says she always comes back to stories about kids falling through the cracks, and this short taps into that idea with a sense of dread and anxiety. It also taps into how modern technology can fuel those fears. The short is based on an ancient folk tale.
Danner’s other currently streaming films include “Under the Stars,” a romantic comedy starring Toni Collette and Andy Garcia and “The Italians,” a love letter to her late Italian mother. “The Italians” stars Matthew Daddario (Shadowhunters), Rob Estes (Silk Stalkings), Perrey Reeves (Entourage), David DeLuise (Wizards of Waverly Place), Olivia Luccardi (It Follows), Lainie Kazan (My Big Fat Greek Wedding), and Abigail Breslin (Zombieland, Little Miss Sunshine).
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She also directed “Miranda’s Victim,” which starred Abigail Breslin, Luke Wilson, Ryan Phillippe, Emily VanCamp, Mireille Enos, Enrique Murciano, Brent Sexton, Josh Bowman, Sebastian Quinn, Taryn Manning, Nolan Gould, Dan Lauria, Kyle MacLachlan, Andy Garcia and the late Donald Sutherland. The film tells the true story of Trish Weir (Breslin) who was kidnapped and brutally raped by Ernesto Miranda. The subsequent trials went all the way to the Supreme Court and led to creation of the Miranda Rights.
A dedicated mom of two (one is an aspiring filmmaker), Danner still has her “day job” – overseeing the faculty of the Los Angeles Acting Conservatory, and conducting her weekly acting class. Michelle has worked privately with Christian Slater, Salma Hayek, Gerard Butler, Seth MacFarlane, Penelope Cruz, Chris Rock, Gabrielle Union, Zooey Deschanel, Henry Cavill, Isla Fisher and James Franco.
