Next came FFS stalwart Sean Clayton, again teaming with his ravenous carnivore buddy Bill Binder. As you might guess from the title, “Bill and the Bacon Explosion,” Bill cooks up a massive bacon log thing that also includes other meats and generates so much grease in the cooking that it could lube a battleship. Bill eats most of it. More disgusting than the first film Clayton made with Bill (a multi-patty burger chow-down), Bill’s earnest and relentless enthusiasm for hot meat keeps it engaging even as the imagery made me queasy.

No, the fun did not stop there. Tyler Holmes and Devon Schiff brought the next flick, “Call of Honor 5: Galaxy at War,” a greenscreen vintage Star Trek spoof that was actually funny. It had some bumps, but as Max told the filmmakers, “don’t stop making films, you’ve got talent!” Provoked by I’m not sure what, Max then rolled the animated frog short again, and the giggles competing with the groans belied an audience divided on the merits of such dark comic fare.

A whacked-out music video, “The Doggy: 21 Pump Street,” followed. Directed by Dan “Dannible” Singleton, the video jumbled a mix of greenscreen and cheap special effects into a techno-rap blizzard. I really liked it. I don’t think everyone shared my appreciation. And to close out the films in competition before intermission, Matt Cole screened “Jehovah’s Witness Encounter” about two Jehovah’s Witness teens who pursue and kill another teen they are trying to convert. Boys need action, dontcha know.

After the audience replenished their drinks at intermission, Max kicked it off with a ringer, a human resources training film called, “Sexual Harassment? You Decide,” which served up a series of flagrant and hilarious office scenarios. Back to the films in competition, Joe Carmonica from the Art Center Design College brought “You Look Taller,” in which a giant animated bird follows a live action guy around. Concertedly odd, funny, and charming.

Then FFS Jedi Master Phillip Lybrand brought the long-awaited third and final installment of his superhero showdown trilogy “Batman Versus Superman: A Duel to the Death.” The series traces the trash-talking rivalry between the two iconic superheroes. Superman and Batman fight to the death in this one, but I don’t want to give away the twist so you’ll have to watch it yourself at Phil’s site, www.Greenless.com. Suffice to say, Lybrand rocked the house.

Max followed the superhero smackdown with another ringer, an ingenious stop-motion animation about two well-stuffed easy chairs having an acrobatic sex romp on the roof of a big city apartment building. I’ve seen it somewhere before, and it is worth clicking around to find. Guidance from the Loft crew?

Then Barney Martinez screened “Big Black Demon,” a heavy metal music video, and Aaron Steelstraw followed with “A Man Named Henry” which he introduced as a suspense film about nutrition, but which was in fact a funk song video about character actor Henry Silva eating, and it was funny. Loft regular Tim LaVoie lit up the screen with “Three Guys Watching A Porno,” a clever idea in which we watch the three guys gasp in shock when their porno is interrupted by 30 seconds of the Super Bowl – just like last month, somebody hijacked the feed. The Wonderful Stories team closed out the night with another of their oddball entries, this time accomplished without their fearless leader Brett – team members Ben and Jeremy screened “Cola Pop” about a dog named Cola Pop who drugs his master so his master won’t leave for work, but alas the master dies.

Then it was time for the applause-o-meter, and since this was not a big gong night, many films received scattered applause. But two films, “Condoms” and “Batman vs Superman: A Duel to the Death” received full ovations. It was time for a mano-a-mano clap-off. The thunderous applause was so evenly matched that it came down to an onstage rock-scissors-paper death match between “Condoms” director Lopez and “Batman Versus Superman” director Lybrand. Lybrand won, although I could not make out what he threw from my vantage point. And, as an all around mensch, Lybrand convinced the Loft to include Lopez’s film in the year-end showdown of monthly winners – truly a man of honor. The night included so many great films. Thanks to all the filmmakers, keep shooting, and see you this Friday for April’s First Friday Shorts contest!

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