In the finest tradition of MAD Magazine, this film uses found footage to shine a most unflattering light on American political culture. Gonzo director duo Soda Jerk employs film, television, and internet clips to tell the story of the US from 2016 to 2021; cleverly combining the material, they create a fictional neighborhood torn apart by political division, wild rhetoric, and loony conspiracies.
From Police Academy to The ‘Burbs, Wayne’s World to Stranger Things, pop culture classics are fused into wacky, wide-ranging satire. The picture Soda Jerk paints is, of course, dismaying, but the political grotesquerie is leavened with a strong dose of stoner humor. The directors have a sharp sense of the bizarre, and their dark-toned facetiousness is perfect for the years portrayed: from Trump vs. Hillary through the pandemic and on to the triumph of “corporate liberalism,” absurdity is the watchword, and what better approach to recent American history could there be?
September 30 & October 2: Q&A with directors Soda Jerk
Media Partner
Community Partner
Australia
2022
Spectrum
English
Book Tickets
Indigenous & Community Access
Indigenous Access Tickets Community Access Tickets Ticket Donation Requests
Credits
Screenwriter
Soda Jerk
Editor
Soda Jerk
Director
Soda Jerk
Soda Jerk is a filmmaking duo with an interest in articulating film samples into a rogue documentary impulse. Forming in Sydney in 2002, the duo has been New York-based since 2012. They have collaborated on projects with cyberfeminist collective VNS Matrix and electronic music group The Avalanches. Their latest feature, Hello Dankness (2023) was nominated for the Panorama Audience Award at Berlin International. The Guardian named the “dizzyingly ambitious satirical work” one of the best Australian movies of the decade.
Filmography: Hollywood Burn (2006); Terror Nullius (2018)
Missing VIFF? Check out what's playing at the VIFF Centre
Run Terry Run
Through unseen footage from family archives, Run Terry Run explores Terry Fox’s legacy not only as a beloved hero, but as a flesh-and-blood person armed with a fierce determination and an unyielding vision of a better future.
Coward
With the First World War raging, two young Belgian soldiers develop an explosive chemistry while serving in their company’s theatre troupe. Coward is a reminder that transformative moments of tenderness can occur even amid the darkest circumstances.
Rose
Claiming to be the heir to a patch of German farmland, a disfigured soldier ignores the townsfolk’s suspicions, cultivates the land, and takes a wife, all while concealing that they were born a woman. Featuring a mesmerizing Sandra Hüller performance.
The Beloved
When Esteban Martínez, an acclaimed director with violent tendences, invites his estranged daughter to star in his latest project, the stage is set for a familial reconnection. But as tensions flare, questions about his intentions rise to the surface.
The Bryce Lee Story
A 13-year-old immigrant and aspiring filmmaker falsely claims he's related to Bruce Lee in this Vancouver Island-set film. The Bryce Lee Story is a heartfelt coming-of-age tale about identity, family, and the search for belonging.