Catharsis, the avant-garde, neo-noir short film starring Deborah Harry (Blondie), Harrison Ball (NYC Ballet), Marc Geller (Severance), Jemima Kirke (Girls), Supermodel Sasha Pivovarova, Zumi Rosow and Cole Alexander (The Black Lips) will get its World Premiere at Tribeca Festival 2024.
In this short film, Alex (Harrison Ball) a gifted but troubled dancer savant grieving his mother’s death with serious anger issues is about to sabotage his life when a strange psychotherapist brings him to face the shadows of his subconscious mind in Catharsis, a 17-minute short film. Weaving surrealism, performance art and horror, this psychological story is a lifelong passion project for Brian Logvinsky, drawing from his own Soviet-American heritage.
Alex, a once in a generation talent, who is spiraling out of control after the tragic loss now lives with his aunt Anya (Deborah Harry), who was born in the Soviet Union and maintains several superstitions from her upbringing. With that, she believes her family is cursed, hence, it is Alex’s inner demons that are causing the impulsive outbursts of anger and destruction that threaten to destroy his promising future.
At Anya’s urging, Alex attends a late night appointment with the mysterious psychotherapist Dr. Leechny (Marc Geller). Using his own brand of pseudo–scientific hypnosis, Dr. Leechny and his enigmatic assistants, Chakra & Harmony (Jemima Kirke), guide Alex into hypnosis.
Within the void of hypnosis, Alex faces his worst fears and darkest truths. However, strengthened by a vision of his dead mother he is finally able to face the beast within himself. Leaving his appointment the following morning, Alex experiences catharsis while dancing through the streets of NYC as the sun finally rises.
Speaking about the upcoming world premiere, Brian Logvinsky says: “as I began the arduous journey of making Catharsis, doors began to open; Harrison Jaffee, one of my oldest friends, agreed to produce the film and connected me with principal dancer of New York City ballet, Harrison Ball, who was at the time leaving the ballet to pursue acting. The universe aligned when Harrison Ball agreed to star in the film, and he became instrumental in shaping the film. His dedication, creativity, and deep understanding of the character brought a new dimension to the project. Through Harrison Ball, we brought Debbie Harry, of Blondie, on board. Debbie is a real star, a legend of culture, and an incredibly beautiful human being. The energy of the film continued to snowball, gathering an extraordinary cast and crew – Sasha Pivovarova, Marc Gellar and Jemima Kirke – as well as Zac Posen and our talented director of photography, Jo Jo Lam. Life felt like a dream as these pieces fell into place, and now our team is honored to be premiering Catharsis at Tribeca Festival.”
Watch the trailer for Catharsis below.
Watch a clip from Catharsis