SXSW Film Preview: The Immaculate Conception of Little Dizzle

After data entry drone Dory is fired for freaking out on an annoying cubemate, he finds work as a nighttime janitor in a boring Seattle office building. In the midst of a deepening spiritual crisis, Dory quickly befriends the misfit band of toilet-scrubbers who inhabit the building after the suits and ties have gone home for the day.

Alone in this low-pile carpet universe, the crew drinks, smokes, plays loud music and otherwise parties down. But what they don't realize is that they've become the subject of an off-the-record corporate experiment involving a bio-engineered food additive that produces some, er, bizarre side-affects, including hallucinations, stomach cramps, and asexual reproduction. Sort of.

Throw in a bit of sex, a dash of violence, and several fantastically odd animated sequences, and you've got The Immaculate Conception of Little Dizzle, an impressively original debut feature by director David Russo (who has spent years making a name for himself with a series of animated short films). Funny, smart, and a little bit sad, this unfortunately titled film is not at all what we expected--but in a good way. Russo is clearly an Alex Cox fan, and that surrealist sensibility serves him well here. Dizzle is a satisfyingly strange existential sci-fi comedy, and if nothing else, it's a sign of good things to come from Russo. We liked it.

The Immaculate Conception of Little Dizzle had its premiere at the Sundance film festival. It will screen as part of the Emerging Visions program at SXSW on Sunday March 15th, Thursday March 19th and Saturday March 21st. For more information, check out the SXSW Film Festival schedule.