''Bedhead'' is a 1991 short

family Family (from ) is a Social group, group of people related either by consanguinity (by recognized birth) or Affinity (law), affinity (by marriage or other relationship). It forms the basis for social order. Ideally, families offer predictabili ...

comedy Comedy is a genre of dramatic works intended to be humorous or amusing by inducing laughter, especially in theatre, film, stand-up comedy, television, radio, books, or any other entertainment medium. Origins Comedy originated in ancient Greec ...

fantasy film Fantasy films are films that belong to the fantasy genre with fantastic themes, usually Magic (paranormal), magic, supernatural events, mythology, folklore, or exotic fantasy worlds. The Film genre, genre is considered a form of speculative fic ...

directed and co-written by

Robert Rodriguez Robert Anthony Rodriguez ( ; born June 20, 1968) is an American filmmaker, composer, and visual effects supervisor. He shoots, edits, produces, and scores many of his films in Mexico and in his home state of Texas. Rodriguez directed the 1992 ...

. Made while he was a student at the

University of Texas at Austin The University of Texas at Austin (UT Austin, UT, or Texas) is a public university, public research university in Austin, Texas, United States. Founded in 1883, it is the flagship institution of the University of Texas System. With 53,082 stud ...

, Rodriguez shot the film with his brothers and sisters as actors and with his family and friends as crew. It was entered into several competitive film festivals, where it won cash prizes that Rodriguez then used to help produce his first feature film, ''

El Mariachi ''El Mariachi'' () is a 1992 Spanish-language Mexican independent neo-Western action film and the first part of the saga that came to be known as Robert Rodriguez's '' Mexico Trilogy''. It marked the feature-length debut of Rodriguez as writer ...

''.

Plot

Rebecca, a young girl, is always picked on by her older brother, David, who "has the worst case of bedhead you've ever seen". David is a generally unruly sort. At breakfast, he eats a cockroach and makes a big mess with his cereal. After breakfast, Rebecca goes to play with one of her dolls and discovers it has been defaced by David. Enraged, she attacks David, but then falls and hits her head. When she comes to, she discovers that she has

telekinetic Telekinesis () (alternatively called psychokinesis) is a purported psychic ability allowing an individual to influence a physical system without physical interaction. Experiments to prove the existence of telekinesis have historically been cri ...

powers. At first, she thinks of how her newfound powers could benefit humankind (including making herself the first

Mexican American Mexican Americans are Americans of full or partial Mexico, Mexican descent. In 2022, Mexican Americans comprised 11.2% of the US population and 58.9% of all Hispanic and Latino Americans. In 2019, 71% of Mexican Americans were born in the Unite ...

as well as the first

female president The following is a list of women who have been elected or appointed head of state or government of their respective countries since the interwar period (1918–1939). The first list includes female presidents who are heads of state and may also ...

of the United States). But she first decides that she will take

revenge Revenge is defined as committing a harmful action against a person or group in response to a grievance, be it real or perceived. Vengeful forms of justice, such as primitive justice or retributive justice, are often differentiated from more fo ...

on her brother and tame his bedhead. Overwhelmed by her powers, but still unable to smooth David's unruly hair, she drags the boy behind her bicycle, and in the process hits her head again. She wakes up in a hospital and decides that she will never abuse her powers again, but as far as David knows, she will continue to be a threat.

Production

''Bedhead'' was a student film project by Rodriguez while he was at the

. He served as director, cameraman and editor, and co-wrote the story with his brother, David, and a friend, Bryant Delafosse. Rodriguez also created an animated title sequence. His brothers and sisters starred in the film, with younger sister Rebecca and brother David as the lead actors. Youngest sister Maricarmen Rodriguez portrayed Rebecca's fashion-obsessed little sister, "Fashion Monster", while Elizabeth Rodriguez played a nurse in the hospital. Family and friends served as crew, with co-writer Delafosse and David Rodriguez credited as

dolly grip In cinematography, the dolly grip is a dedicated technician trained to operate the camera dolly. This technician places, levels, and moves the dolly track, then pushes and pulls the dolly and usually a camera operator and camera assistant as ...

, the camera dolly in the case of this film being a

wheelchair A wheelchair is a mobilized form of chair using two or more wheels, a footrest, and an armrest usually cushioned. It is used when walking is difficult or impossible to do due to illnesses, injury, disabilities, or age-related health conditio ...

. The film was shot on black and white 16 mm film. It was then transferred to 3/4" videotape. Because he did not have the equipment to shoot

sync sound Sync sound (synchronized sound recording) refers to sound recorded at the time of the filming of movies. It has been widely used in movies since the birth of sound movies. History Even in the silent film era, films were shown with sounds, often ...

the only dialogue is the voiceover narration, because it does not have to be synched to anyone's lip movements.

Release and reception

Festivals and awards

The short film was entered into several film festivals, where it won cash prizes in competitions. Rodriguez then used that money to partially fund ''

''.

Reviews

''Bedhead'' has been included as a bonus feature on both the VHS tape and the DVD releases of ''

'' as well as the entire ''

Mexico Trilogy The ''Mexico Trilogy'' (also known as the ''Desperado Trilogy'' on some released DVD products) is a series of American/Mexican contemporary western action films written and directed by Robert Rodriguez. The series' plot tells the continuing story ...

'' (including '' Desperado'' and ''

Once Upon a Time in Mexico ''Once Upon a Time in Mexico'' is a 2003 American neo-Western action film written, directed, produced, photographed, scored, and edited by Robert Rodriguez. It is the sequel to '' Desperado'' (1995) and the third and final installment in the ' ...

''), and has therefore attracted a wider audience than most short films usually receive. Jason Adams, in his review of the ''

'' DVD box set, called ''Bedhead'' "a creative little flick."

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Bedhead (Short Film) 1991 short films 1991 films American black-and-white films 1990s fantasy comedy films Fictional telekinetics Films scored by Robert Rodriguez American films about revenge Films directed by Robert Rodriguez Films produced by Robert Rodriguez Films with screenplays by Robert Rodriguez Films about telekinesis Troublemaker Studios films American fantasy comedy films 1991 comedy films Films about Mexican Americans 1990s English-language films 1990s American films English-language comedy short films English-language fantasy comedy films