Pop-Culturalist.com

Another exciting Tribeca Film Festival is underway, and that means storytellers from around the world are sharing their narratives and documentaries in the Big Apple. A staple of the event is, without question, its shorts program. This year’s competition features 55 diverse and engaging titles, but the stand-out is Travis Bible’s sci-fi thriller, Exit Strategy.

Featured in the Shorts: Into the Void program, Exit Strategy is a smartly crafted, thought-provoking adventure that will touch audiences at their cores. The film’s central characters are two brothers, Matt (Richard Kohnke) and Shane (Christopher O’Shea), who have grown distant since their father’s passing. Matt is a charismatic firefighter and family man, and Shane is an awkward but brilliant scientist. Together, they’re caught in a time loop and must traverse a series of maze-like events in order to prevent a catastrophic fire from occurring. Despite their best efforts, the result remains the same. But will one brother’s shocking reveal be the missing piece to solving this puzzle?

Ambitious, powerful, and emotionally poignant, Exit Strategy is a masterpiece in storytelling. Bible not only conjures an intriguing plotline, but he also creates likable characters that you fall in love with and root for, all within the film’s 15-minute runtime. His work is supported by the inspired performances from his lead actors, Christopher O’Shea and Richard Kohnke, who are commanding, yet vulnerable. A must-see.