As a small independent entertainment website, we welcome requests from small filmmakers via our contact form here. Today we delve into Vasco Alexandre’s “Ten with a Flag.”

The short film (runtime: about 15 minutes) depicts an unspecified society in which the government rates the intelligence of every unborn child on a scale of one to 10, with 10 being considered perfect. As such, our main characters are parents-to-be Jack (Bryan Moriarty) and Gemma (Julie Martis), who are both sixes who are to give birth to a “10” — with a caveat. It has a red flag, meaning they will have to sacrifice something to raise it.

The baby will raise their rating to an eight, though they do have the option to end the pregnancy. However, if they keep it, it seems like they’ll get preferential treatment from the government, and have their standard of living raised.

Still, the flag eats away at Jack, who spirals. This culminates in a chilling penultimate scene in which we see exactly what the government meant by “sacrifice” (sorry, no spoilers!), which Gemma can only look on at in horror. In fact, it’s the film’s most effective scene, as it holds on Martis’ face and let her facial reactions do all the talking. Alexandre keenly understands that sometimes it’s best to show, not tell.

Julia Winwood also has a great performance as a cheery but unempathetic officer of the state that breaks the news to the couple, and later visits Gemma again to inform her of what happens next. Adam Barnett also has a small appearance as a doctor who is also in on this dystopia.

My only substantial criticism of this film is that it’s simply too short to tell this story effectively. We barely get to know Gemma or Jack. Had they been given some time to develop depth and chemistry, this tragedy could have been heartbreaking, though it remains chilling.

The film’s dystopia is also almost too vague to follow, with Windwood’s agent speaking in coded language that I was barely able to unravel by the film’s end.

Apart from that, Winwood and Martis’ performances make this film stand out, particularly the aforementioned penultimate scene, which makes the film worth watching on its own.

While there are clear flaws in the film stemming from its short runtime and at times awkward blocking and cinematography, there’s also a lot to like here. It shows promise — hopefully Alexandre will be able to further develop that potential in future projects.

“Ten with a Flag” gets an 8/10