TIFF 2020 review: Music can still bring us together in the dystopian short The Archivists

In Igor Drljaca’s dystopian short, The Archivists, art from the past has been outlawed and is illegal to own. Despite the ban, a trio of traveling musicians come across an abandoned home with a secret room filled with physical art relics, including a vinyl record and some instruments, that spurs them on to perform their own version of a song from the record, an act of protest and spontaneous creation in the midst of their dire surroundings.

Starring Noah Reid (Schitt’s Creek), Bahia Watson (The Handmaid’s Tale) and Maxwell McCabe-Lokos (The Husband), The Archivists is a moving reminder of the power of music and the healing nature of artistic expression, notions that take on a deeper meaning in the isolating COVID era.

Beautifully shot on 16mm, Drljaca (The Waiting Room, The Stone Speakers) captures a timeless and ethereal look to the hidden music room, creating a dreamlike atmosphere as the trio enthusiastically attempts to learn the synth-rock track that has struck such a chord with them. It may be a momentary diversion for the group, but it’s clear the encounter will have a lasting effect on their morale, which is just the sort of emotional boost we could all use right now.

The Archivists is screening at the Toronto International Film Festival as part of the Short Cuts Programme 3 lineup.