The Lower East Side on Film: The Fortune Writer

The Lower East Side has been inspiring artists, writers and filmmakers for years, so it should come as no surprise that there's an annual Lower East Side Film Festival located right here in the neighborhood. 

In 2011, The Fortune Writer won the festival's prize for Best Dramatic Short Film Selection. This film answers a question that often lingers after a meal at Chinese restaurant— who is the author of those concise but eternally wise thoughts inside our fortune cookies? Kirby, the film's protagonist, takes his responsibility as a fortune writer seriously, and observes diners during their meal in order to craft fortunes specific to their character.

Standing behind the swing door that separates the busy kitchen from the dining area of the restaurant, he quietly watches people as they interact with one another, in order to speak to them (and their individual situations) through the small piece of paper. The plot thickens when Kirby has the opportunity of his life to write a fortune for a woman he becomes transfixed by… Suspense!

A still from The Fortune Writer

In just eight minutes, we’re exposed to what lies behind those fortunes, and how Kirby reaches out to strangers through those brief messages that come with their checks. Maybe not all Chinese restaurants have a writer-in-residence exclusively for their fortune cookies, but it’s a sweet idea!

Click here to watch The Fortune Writer on Vimeo.

-- Posted by Ana Colon