Directions (2006)

Marching Bands of Manhattan- A man sits in an isolated room, breathing through a paper bag then wearing a bag on his head. The room begins to gradually seem like the beach. He lies down on the beach next to a woman with a bag over her head. He then wakes up in the room, opens the door and sees the woman that was sitting on the beach with him, who is similarly wet and coming out of her own isolated room. Soul Meets Body- Home video, indescribable. Summer Skin- Children are working in an office that is outside instead of going to the playground. They lament the time they're losing, and seem to be fraught with depression. One child removes a starfish from his briefcase and runs away. The other children follow him. Different Names for the Same Thing- A middle school band is playing Different Names for the Same Thing. Some seem tired, some are very excited. I Will Follow You into the Dark- A series of sketches loosely unified by bunnies and an old man and a child are shown in a notebook on a table. Your Heart Is an Empty Room- A boy is at (probably) his girlfriend's apartment. She has guests over and is angry that he did not socialize with them. The boy goes home and plays video games. The next morning, he goes to a garage sale and finds finger puppets similar to his video game characters (a triceratops and a robot). He dreams of having fun with his girlfriend with these finger puppets, and buys them. Later, the boy asks his girlfriend to lie down with him and look at the clouds. When he looks up, she is gone. So, he leaves a finger puppet at her doorstep and goes home to play video games. Someday You Will Be Loved- A clay heart endures horrible torment to eventually bloom into a beautiful flower. Crooked Teeth- Three band members (a pirate bassist, a robot guitarist/singer, and a dragon drummer) are playing a song, and relate their personal histories. The pirate traveled a very long time to find treasure only to realize there was no treasure at all. The dragon battled hard for a princess only to realize that she was only a cardboard cutout. The robot was flying in space only to be shot down before reaching his destination. All of the characters share a bond knowing that "You can't find nothing at all if there was nothing there all along" What Sarah Said- A man sits smoking a cigarette in an artist's apartment. A woman in the bathroom does her makeup and writes on the mirror "Il m'aime." She then goes out to the apartment and writes on her hand "Un peu?" The man does nothing in response. She takes brushes and writes "Beaucoup!" in large letters on the wall. Still the man does nothing. She drops the paint on the bed. She reveals "passionement" tattooed on her arm. He still does nothing, and she pleads with him. The man simply relights his cigarette. The woman takes an exacto knife and carves "à la folie" into her leg. The man cringes. The woman goes back into the bathroom and writes "pas du tout" then wipes it off and writes again "Il m'aime" Stable Song- Children are underground in a semicircular house. They go downstairs and find, to their delight, sugar cereal. Then, the sister teaches her brothers geography. The sister and a brother fix an air filter. The sister tends to the garden, then thinks of her parents, whose faces she cannot seem to recall. She begins throwing the dirt as her brother scribbles all over a white wall with crayon. The children then huddle around a television, which gets no signal on any channel. The sister thinks about her parents and remembering them. Jealousy Rides With Me- Couples are watching sunrises and moonrises, and playing with the sun and moon by doing things to make them appear human. Then all of the couples go outside to watch a full solar eclipse. Talking Like Turnstiles- A man trying to document the only live playing of Talking Like Turnstiles runs on stage and is chased by security.