By Dennis Tavernetti
“Small, Beautiful Moving Parts” from The Indie Series presented by Emerging Pictures in HD at USCB Center For the Arts on Monday, July 30, at 2 p.m.
Synopsis: When technophile Sarah Sparks becomes pregnant, despite her boyfriend’s pure enthusiasm, her uncertainties about motherhood trigger an impulsive road trip to the source of her anxiety: her long-estranged mother living remotely, far away and off line. A committed tech-geek, she begins to fear that she is more interested in ultrasound technology than her baby. Is this normal? Where are her more normal emotional feelings and interests? Did technology chew them up? Is she better off without them?
Ratings &amp; Reviews: Internet rating sites, IMDb: 4.0; Rotten Tomatoes: Critics: 50/Audience: 33. Not average marks, but it was a winner of one film festival top award. Critics: New York Daily News: “ ‘Small, Beautifully Moving Parts’ is a tiny, sweet gem.” Film Journal International: “Highly agreeable, funny and bright study of a pregnant woman all at sea in a world where wireless options seem to outweigh human ones in her life.”
Previewer Comments: As you can see from the ratings, this film is not going to appeal to everyone, but it does have merit as it questions today’s society reliance on technology, rather than actual face to face human interaction, unencumbered by techie stuff. I say hurray for the end of the iPhone searching while having dinner out with friends! The best thing about this film is that it raises the issue that today’s techie generation has a difficult time communicating one on one, and need to start talking and feeling emotionally face to face, without the interference of overly available technology interfaces that they can hide behind. Most times it is better to relate without devices.
Rated: Not rated, but likely can be considered to be PG 13.
Tickets for adults are $7, seniors $6, students $5. Call USCB Center for the Arts box office at 843-521-4145 or purchase day of performance. Box office opens one hour prior to show time.
Dennis Tavernetti is a resident of St. Helena Island and retired to the Lowcountry having a lifelong interest in the arts. He encouraged USCB’s Center for the Arts to investigate the possibility of utilizing new technology to bring  Indie, World and Documentary HD films to Beaufort, which are normally only screened in major metropolitan cities.