Filmmaker Elizabeth Hogenson’s revealing animation Dani shares a personal tale about her former roommate’s phone call with her mother, in which she reveals a life threatening illness. This topical film won the Grand Jury Prize for Best Animated Short at Mammoth Lakes Film Festival 2019 and has screened at the American Documentary Film Festival and Film Fund 2019. Dani is now set to screen at the Oscar Qualifying Film Festival Palm Springs International ShortFest.
A 30-year-old woman, feeling obligated to wear a brave face, delivers her grim breast cancer prognosis to her mother over a simple phone call.
Director and producer Elizabeth Hogenson is a visual artist who was drawn to stop motion animation after taking a class whilst she was pursuing a master’s degree in Cinema and Media Studies at USC. Hogenson’s works explore women’s issues, using touches of whimsy humor. Elizabeth lives in Los Angeles with her partner and pug and is currently developing a new project that will focus on Alzheimer’s disease, which was inspired by her former ballet teacher after she was recently diagnosed. This new project will incorporate both actual footage and stop-motion animation.
Danielle Hernandez was diagnosed with stage 4 Breast Cancer at the age of 30. She recorded her journey and experiences on her podcast Well This Sucks with the support of her two best friends Heather Alacon Higginbotham and Tana Hamilton. Hernandez currently resides in Los Angeles with her cat, Moonie.
The film was executively produced by Kyle McClary and edited by Robert Panico.
Dani will screen at Palm Springs International ShortFest on June 23rd at 2 pm.
