HollyShorts Film Festival 2026 Short Film Review “Call Me Crazy” Enduring chronic pain serves as a foundation for an unanticipated dalliance that’s both provoking and placating
WATCH THE TRAILER BELOW:
First, the Recap:
What remains veiled underneath a facade of contentment and stability? Do we not find ourselves thinking that we can know someone, even when first meeting, based only on the surface? Those initial interactions that, yes, reveal something about them, yet doesn’t remotely equal the whole? Then, when we end up discovering that there’s FAR more to their story than meets the eye, do we react with understanding? Or judge, even if unintentionally, and invalidate another’s struggles?
Emi (Olivia Ormond) is a woman with inner battles to face. Really, it’s one thing in particular that plagues her daily existence. Through efforts to heal, or at minimum find relief and anyone who actually believes what she’s going through, the challenges and hurt remain. When she meets a total stranger, Ben (David Kopriva), at a random motel, the night yields results that will test them both, and perhaps bring some kind of needed support for Emi’s pain.
Next, my Mind:
When you see a tree, especially one tall, majestic, and full, it can be an awe-inspiring sight. However, there is so much MORE to it than what our eyes are taking in above the ground. Underneath, there is a root system that expands out, FAR out, well beyond that which we discern. The same can be illustrated when it comes to inward strife we face as people, when all others around us wish to take in is our outside persona, thinking THAT is the sum of who we are, the state of being we exist within. But, what is residing underneath it all, hidden from plain sight, simmering within, THIS can actually define where someone is at, and that we often miss when not taking the time to really KNOW someone. Therefore, with this 19-minute short film from writer/director/producer Olivia Ormond, producers Lina Kraftsoff, Darshan Patel, and Austin Tate, plus executive producer Jackson Lee Sargent, this HITS home with emphatic, compelling, stirring resonance.
Recently screened as part of the 2026 HollyShorts Film Festival, the magical, grounded, relatable, deeply HUMAN impact of the indie film arena’s story and character-driven nature, as well as short film’s deftly executed, abbreviated format, shines forth with a potency that should strike people to the core here, no exaggeration. Through both subtlety and palpable emotional velocity, the narrative follows a young woman whose veiled but wholly present chronic pain hampers every effort to just live, even as a casual encounter with a man at a local motel ushers in both a harrowing and cathartic journey in a single evening that will alter them both, though wether only in the moment or forever will remain enigmatic. Alone, the portrait the film paints of the arduous and debilitating reality encompassing both physical and mental pain is a tangible force to be reckoned with throughout the entire runtime, again with understated and expressively harsh instances.
I think that is why films addressing conditions like this are so consistently genuine and necessary for us to watch and then contemplate. The actuality of individuals having to cope with this type of bodily and internal tension is REAL, folks, and to be provided the means through the medium of film to see it portrayed, then ideally allowing it to be the awareness-raising, persuasively conclusive reminder of how we need to BE THERE for those afflicted, that intentionality could not be more clear, at least for me. It is IMPORTANT messaging. Period. Conveying playful infatuation, duly noted reluctance to trust, the confusion when someone isn’t truly “seeing” us, the words that trigger reaction, the dissociative, self-critical, unsettled manner we fight when dealing with this kind of pain, the yearning to be acknowledged and accepted while not feeling “lessened” by others, how we judge the surface, and the wonder of knowing someone DOES care all get explored here.
It manifests into a finale that unequivocally leaves a mark on your conscious and soul, one that is both heartbreaking and heartening at the same time, leaving you to entertain thoughts about whether validation and satisfaction experienced by the lead character was only a quick fix, or something that will allow her to know some modicum of solace even as her battle itself is ongoing. Once more, there is so much power in what is depicted, and it takes us as the viewer to be open to, just like the narrative delivers, looking outside what is evident to the thematic ventures occurring below them. And the fact we so often, quite literally, speak the phrase “Oh, you’re crazy!”, with mainly humorous or “I can’t believe it” vibes granted, I feel like this film puts an entirely different, purposefully cautionary viewpoint on this, because you should NOT take for granted what saying that might actually MEAN for someone, even if not showing conspicuously or immediately.
Stepping out from behind the camera, Ormond makes a both beautifully spirited and quietly subdued performance come to vibrant life, adeptly embodying Emi, a woman in desperation to simply discover recognition of the physical distress she endures, yet seems to try and hide, even as all she really wishes is to be loved, accepted, and affirmed. The initial flirtatious moments she shares with a stranger at the roadside motel she’s at seems to be leading to this, until things begin to head the other direction and words he says become catalysts for her struggles to rear up and explode. Yet, will she then be able to see his concern amidst understandable confusion about her behavior and open up in a way that can bring healing? It’s such a refined and nuanced performance from Ormond, who allows understated strength and poise as well as vividly affecting instances of high emotional volatility to come forth, an effective rendition of pain and release.
Kopriva exudes an aura of innocently exhibited self-assuredness, undeniable charm, and yet an “everyman” demeanor as well that is smartly imbued into the role he plays here of Ben, a man whose chance meeting with Emi and the subsequent attraction to her will unexpectedly paves a twisting road for an evening filled with frolicsome romance and jarring pathos which could change them both while teaching him a lesson in what lies below the outward beauty and calm sassiness he’s captivated by. Whether things will go the way he felt they were between them in spite of the initially shaky ride is what remains to be seen, and I can very much appreciate Kopriva’s choice to make this character of Ben ooze the necessary charisma and allure while then helping us realize he has a sincere and caring heart that Emi might be in the most need of. A wonderful performance for Kopriva here.
So, in total, “Call Me Crazy” offers these words as a representation of both a dare and an entry point to the deeper seated issues that can cripple our sense of worth, personally and to others, when only wanting to find the way forward, to be liberated from what haunts us, and to know we ARE valued and cherished, even if what aching boils inside and, in this case, outside too, might be able to have that escape just for a fleeting time, serving as a balm to give us hope.
STAR RATING (out of 5):
As always, this is all for your consideration and comment. Until next time, thank you for reading!
