Aniello De Angelis has steadily developed a distinctive cinematic voice, crafting stories that balance emotional intimacy with a strong visual and rhythmic sensibility. Throughout his body of work, he demonstrates a sharp sensitivity to character and atmosphere, often focusing on moments of quiet tension and nuanced human connection through a refined, deliberate lens. With his latest short film, The Rhythm, De Angelis extends this artistic trajectory, embracing a more visceral, movement-driven form of storytelling that reflects both his growing confidence as a filmmaker and his fascination with the pulse that animates everyday life.
Among his earlier short films, Phantom Mary and Selfish Son stand as particularly revealing examples of his evolving craft. Phantom Mary unfolds with a subtle, haunting restraint, using absence and memory to shape an inward-looking, emotionally resonant narrative. By contrast, Selfish Son engages more immediate emotional conflict, examining fractured relationships and personal responsibility with raw yet measured intensity. Together, these works underscore De Angelis’s enduring interest in inner struggle and human connection, as well as his increasing command of rhythm and restraint- qualities that naturally culminate in the thematic and stylistic ambitions of The Rhythm.
The Rhythm is Aniello De Angelis’s latest short film, shot discreetly on location in Seattle earlier this year. The film follows a Seattle-based DJ trio who have been active for four years and are now approaching a turning point in their careers as they prepare for their first-ever recorded headlining performance. Lolo (Andrea Rodriguez), Rari (Rachael Comer), and Babz (Lizzie Machabeli) are brought vividly to life by performances that radiate confidence and effortless cool, grounding the film in a strong sense of character and presence.
Visually, the film leans into a warm, golden palette, complemented by carefully chosen details- like the iconic Kuromi backpack- and a bold, self-assured attitude expressed through sharp, memorable lines such as, “If you’ve never made a man cry, then you haven’t tried hard enough.” These elements combine to give The Rhythm a striking, contemporary edge. The soundtrack further reinforces this tone, featuring culturally current tracks like “365” by Charli XCX and “Dumbest Girl Alive” by 100 gecs, solidifying the film as a confident and stylish portrait of modern cool.
Despite the use of a curated soundtrack and subtle colour grading, the film strongly evokes the spirit of Dogme 95 through its naturalistic performances, on-location shooting, and handheld camerawork. Stylistically, it recalls the raw immediacy of Harmony Korine’s films- mainly Spring Breakers– alongside the vibrant realism of Sean Baker’s Tangerine. The result feels like a fusion of both influences, an energetic, character-driven film brimming with main-character confidence and playful, contemporary attitude.
Aneillo was kind enough to answer a few questions on his latest project-
Where did the idea for this film come from?
I wanted to make a project with the DP Stafford. initially we wrote a feature but that got chiselled down into this short/proof of concept (we really want to make a feature of this). Stafford really excels at capturing the underworld — both at night and in the daytime, so I wanted to write something that bonded with that, and these sleepless DJ’s matched the aesthetic. The first scene I thought of was the robbery — obviously it’s inspired by Spring Breakers, but I wanted to add the ripple of: what if they had no weapons and just used their cuteness to rob a guy? The rest of the film then formed itself around that.
“the gals had never met until the day before shooting yet their chemistry really feels like a years long friendship. We were really blessed with such three fiery and authentic individuals.”
Where did you meet the female trio and what was the process like for them to get to be in this film?
First off, the gals are everything. there really is nothing without them so shout out to Rachael, Andrea, and Lizzie for doing this and being so willing to create. I met them all separately in Seattle during the 2010s. I posted on IG that I was looking for actresses for a one-day shoot in Seattle and Lizzie and Andrea both responded while I reached out to Rachael directly because I had always wanted to work with them in some artistic capacity (they’re probably the best sculpture artist in the NW, check out their stuff on IG: @buyhotlunch). After rounding out the trio, we all got together the day before the shoot to introduce everyone. that’s the craziest part to me — the gals had never met until the day before shooting yet their chemistry really feels like a years long friendship. We were really blessed with such three fiery and authentic individuals.
The character you play in the film speaks about another film being premiered- was this true or just part of the story?
So yeah, the script was different than the final version. Initially the gals came to my film premiere, which was the literal premiere for the director’s cut of my first feature, Phantom Mary. Since we had the theatre rented out we decided to just double it up as a shooting location since we were already inside, haha. That got cut out though, most of my character did actually which I think was for the best. I didn’t want anyone else interfering with the gals’ energy and connection, so there was a lot of rewriting on the fly throughout the shooting day. I wouldn’t have had it any other way.
“Having scrolling text with subtitles too, just this creative collision that limits what you’re able to take in, sort of just trying to fuck with the audience the same way the gals would fuck with those around them.”
Was there any inspiration behind the story or look of this film?
There were lots of what I’d call post-digital films: Zola, The Code, Baby Invasion, and Spree. I have really no interest in an industry style look or feel, everything is so cell phone/social media based nowadays that I wanted to embrace that energy and imbue it into the film. So little things like subtitling everything became key because not only is accessibility huge (especially when you have no sound person on-set) but capturing this zillennial style so making it feel like text messages appearing on-screen versus word-by-word grammatically correct translation. Having scrolling text with subtitles too, just this creative collision that limits what you’re able to take in, sort of just trying to fuck with the audience the same way the gals would fuck with those around them. I am looking towards a feature length version now where the first half would be like this short and the second half would be their full entire hour-long DJ set in a single long take. I want audiences to dance in the theatre, I’ve only seen that at like rocky horror midnight screenings and the music isn’t even that danceable so yeah, let’s get a real ripper out there!
Watch Aniello De Angelis’s latest short film, The Rhythm, here.
