DESERT RATS

  • Director

    Shaz Bennett

  • Country, Year, Length

    United States, 2018, 9 min

  • Category

    Short Narrative

  • Format

    Digital (screening) – Alexa (shooting)

  • Festival Year

    2020

Cast: Lily Noyes, Atsuko Okatsuko, Ryan Harper Gray
Crew: Producers: Shaz Bennett, Theresa Snider – Screenwriters: Shaz Bennett
Email: shaz@shazbennett.com

Synopsis
People think nothing survives in the Salt Flats, but Lily did.

Director
Shaz Bennett I – Writer, director, storyteller. Before being a full time filmmaker (ALASKA IS A DRAG) and writer of television (THE GLADES, UnREAL, BOSCH) -­ Shaz worked in a fish cannery; bartended at a mafia bar; was a film programmer at Sundance, LA Film Festival and AFI FEST; peddled liquor undercover; developed films for actor Giancarlo Esposito; and was Cher’s stand-in for a day. Her films and performance pieces have been seen in festivals, theatres, museums and abandoned warehouses all over the United States, Mexico, Canada, South Africa and Europe. One of 8 women selected to the prestigious AFI Directing Workshop for Women, nominated as one of Fox’s Top 20, Sundance Screenwriting Labs 2017, and Fox’s inaugural Franchise Directing program. The Feature ALASKA IS A DRAG, is based on the award winning short film by the same name. It’s a black comedy lovechild of HEDWIG and ROCKY. The short screened in over 150 festivals including: AFI FEST, Nashville, Sarasota, Torino, Melbourne, Palm Springs, Frameline, Provincetown and Los Angeles. It sold in the US, UK and France to Vimeo, iTunes, and several VOD platforms. Shaz’s performance pieces and other acclaimed short films (TOP OF THE CIRCLE, MARTINI and TUNNELS) have been viewed in numerous festivals and museums across the United States, Mexico, Canada, South Africa and Europe including: AFI FEST, Cinevegas, The Los Angeles Film Festival, True West Festival, Silverdocs, Nashville, Philadelphia, Lunafest, the Berkley Photographic Museum and the International Women’s Museum. Shaz’s comedy and storytelling often reference her true life. Shaz is a mutt – she was raised Mormon in Salt Lake City, Utah. She spent her summers in camping and hiking in Zion, Arches, Canyonlands and learned to drive in the Salt Flats on the Utah/Nevada border. Shaz relocated from Utah to New York to study with Spaulding Grey, where she wrote and performed four award-winning shows: “The Shaz Show,” “Abrasive Fairy Tales,” “Eyes, Lips, Legs,” and “Hungover Angel.” These shows were performed extensively around the world, including spoken word festivals sponsored by MTV, Comedy Central, Hennessey and NOW. Shaz still performs regularly with Sit n Spin at the Comedy Central Stage, The Moth and Third Saturdays; she is a regular contributor to KCRW’s UnFictional.

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