Directors Kerry Furrh and Olivia Mitchell, known by the name Tusk, make us long for the summer months while watching their frisky, sunkissed short film, Ripe! Remember when you realized that you liked someone, and you didn’t know if you were just succumbing to the heat? Let’s face it–the humidity never helps cool down any potential summertime fling. Ripe! amusingly taps into those awkward feelings of whether pursuing a new crush will be worth it while it seduces us with a nostalgic, gorgeous haze.
If you are a young student and you spend time away from your college beau or girlfriend, you might feel a tether unhook itself as you find yourself exploring a new environment or meet new people. For Sophie, who is alone abroad in Spain, the messages from her boyfriend, Henry, back home seem to to lose volume after each voicemail is listened to. There is the sparkly sun, the beautiful people, and endless possibility just outside Sophie’s doorstep. You don’t have to get lost in the paradise of your friends kicking it on the beach when you can feel the sand between your toes yourself.
One person catches Sophie’s eye and that person is Gloria, an alluring, short-haired daydream whose flirtation clearly makes Sophie’s knees weak, a feeling that is, admittedly, confusing for Sophie. They play soccer together, and it doesn’t help that a collision between these young people causes a break in Gloria’s arm. This might be the first time that breaking a bone could lead to coquettish dinners and palpable flirtations. Gloria’s “fuck racism” choker alone could make anyone’s heart race.
Ripe! pulsates with romantic possibility but never pokes fun of its characters’ desires or potential burgeoning self-discovery. We are sometimes drawn to those who can yank us out of our own heads, and perhaps Gloria’s boldness and confidence could help Sophie realize what she truly wants and needs. A text exchange between them towards the end of the film is soaked with so much playful tension that it puts feature length romances to shame. The shades of orange and blue glimmer like the unexpected beat of your own heart.
When you head to the beach, remember a few things: sunblock, water (hydration is sexy), and a Sharpie. You might need to sign your crush’s cast.
