Bushwick Beats

What do a single mother with ALS, a vampire, and two lovers stuck in separate timelines have in common? What about an aspiring young graffiti artist, a middle-aged widow, and a teenage poet? Though their paths don’t always cross, their lives unfold in Brooklyn's vibrantly multicultural neighborhood of Bushwick, which becomes a distinctive character that ties these six diverse shorts together. The street art, cramped apartment quarters, and sprawling rooftop views characteristic of Bushwick help give these otherwise stylistically disparate stories a sense of visual continuity, as the characters take on challenges that may otherwise be insurmountable if it weren’t for the power of unconditional love. At times poignant and at others absurd and comical, Bushwick Beats speaks to the resilience of the human spirit. (Mill Valley Film Festival)