The Best Indie SFF Short Films & Web Series

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Dazzling Sci-Fi Short 'COGNITION' Explores How A Man's Past Challenges His Allegiance To His Dystopian Civilization

Sci-fi short film COGNITION opens on the planet of Vega, as a nomad and his son stare at the stunning twilight sky over their desert home, ruminating about traveling to the distant stars.

Elias (Andrew Scott, Fleabag) exhorts his young, ten-year-old son Abner (Milo Panni) to never stop striving to realize his dreams. Soon, agents from the advanced, totalitarian government of Vega brutally interrupt the pair’s reverie by abducting Abner to be raised by the state and indoctrinated into its service.

Fourteen years later, a now adult Abner (Jeremy Irvine, War Horse) is an agent of the Vegan Empire, tasked with “harvesting” gifted young children into the service of the state as he was many years before.

While en route to his latest assignment, unexpected events cause him to have a charged reckoning with his own submerged past. This reckoning will challenge his allegiances - as well as force him to come to terms with the memory of his father.

COGNITION is the remarkable film debut of director Ravi Ajit Chopra, who also wrote and produced the project. Chopra uses his lifelong passion for movies to power his captivating story of one man’s journey to self-actualization by means of excavating and reviving his connection to his beloved father.

Chopra’s appreciation for movies is also expressed by COGNITION’s visual signature - which can best be summed up as cinematic.

The short film can compete with many studio-produced, full-length features due to its spectacular visual effects and set designs. The fact this is an independently produced, sci-fi short film that looks like a multi-million dollar feature is a neon testament to the astonishing talents of the production team.

However, COGNITION is not just another shallow exhibition of sleek visual effects. At its heart is a resonant story about the critical role our familial bonds play in shaping who we are and the destinies we choose to pursue.

Watch the official trailer here…

COGNITION is available for viewing now on Amazon Prime Video, Apple iTunes, Google Play, and YouTube Premium.


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