Plot

Trick of the Old Cat - is an urban fantasy story about a regular working day in the life of guardian angels. This film shows their job is filled with limitations and internal struggles. Angels duty in modern days is far from being easy and calm, the decisions and sacrifices they make are closely intertwined with choices of those mortals, they are trying to guard.

This story starts with two people in a car, who look like an odd couple. Young and innocent Flowie and her senior partner Butch, grumpy and emotionally beaten up by life. They are clearly spying on a young man - Mikki, and at first they look very suspicious as their purpose is to stop Mikki from reaching his goal. As it turns out a bit later - both Flowie and Butch are guardian angels, and they trying to indirectly guide Mikki away from making mistake that will ruin his whole life. Flowie is a rookie, and its her first ever day in a world of mortals - Mikki is her biggest test on becoming a full-time guardian angel. Butch has been in this business for a longtime, and because of his experiences he is become very cynical and pessimistic. Nothing is as simple as it looks, and while Butch being overconfident as usual, can they help Mikki if he is too determined on wrong way? What if both his guardian angels will fail at the same time? Can an angel break rules for the sake of saving a mortal's soul? How crucial is it to save one life in these modern days?

It is a fine sunny day; your first day on the job. You are teamed up with a veteran who does not quite believe in your capabilities. He consents to change his judgment based on the outcome of your first assignment. And then, you fail miserably in the task. This is the scenario a rookie guardian angel faces on her first day on the job. And, when the veteran steps forward to demonstrate how to get the job done, he does not know that even someone as experienced as him, learns new tricks on the job every day. To what lengths will the two be driven to, to get the job done? And in the end, will it be worth the effort? 'Trick of the Old Cat' is a narrative short from Director Eugene Khazin. In this short, Khazin forges an apparitional world, akin to the world we live in, where guardian angels rub shoulders with the souls they are out to protect. The film, on the strength of this very smart setting, tells the story of this metaphysical world, without the use of any graphical gimmickry in a manner that is simple, straightforward and impactful. The primary characters set the stage beautifully for the coming drama in such a manner, that the audience is never in doubt about the rules of the fictional world we are led into. The film reflects on how we make the jobs of our guardian angels arduous by refusing to see the signs and follow simple instructions. Our guardian angels, working within a system that governed by laws of their own, do all they can to get the job done. Sometimes they even have to break a few rules and make some sacrifices because our guardian angels cannot leave a job half-done.—PixelsGARAGE Awards of Excelence