''South of 8'' is a 2016 American crime drama heist film written and directed by

Tony Olmos Tony Olmos is a Mexican-American filmmaker and musician who directed the films ''Hemet, or the Landlady Don't Drink Tea'' (2023), ''South of 8'' (2016), ''Fletcher and Jenks'' (2016) and Pulp Friction (film), ''Pulp Friction'' (2021). He was awa ...

in his directorial debut. The film stars Brian Patrick Butler, George Jac, Jennifer Paredes,

Kathryn Schott ''Friend of the World'' is a 2020 American independent black-and-white film written and directed by Brian Patrick Butler in his feature film debut, starring Nick Young and Alexandra Slade. The surreal experimental film takes place post-apoca ...

, Raye Richards and won Best Dramatic Screenplay at the

Downtown Los Angeles Film Festival The Downtown Los Angeles Film Festival (DTLAFF) is an annual film festival based in Downtown Los Angeles. History The festival was founded in 2008 and the venue used is the Regal Cinemas at L.A. Live. The Grammy Museum helped sponsor the fes ...

in 2016.

Plot

San Diego in the 2040s has unemployment and crime at an all time high. Government surveillance, mass poverty and drought has decimated much of the population. Economic divide has caused society to be on the brink of another

Great Depression in the United States In the United States, the Great Depression began with the Wall Street Crash of October 1929 and then spread worldwide. The nadir came in 1931–1933, and recovery came in 1940. The stock market crash marked the beginning of a decade of high un ...

. Victor Vasquez (George Jac) is released from prison and subsequently forms a group called "The Vanishers" with Ryan Bertrand ( Brian Patrick Butler) and Lori Randolph (

). In disguise, Bertrand is a

bank robber Bank robbery is the criminal act of stealing from a bank, specifically while bank employees and customers are subjected to force, violence, or a threat of violence. This refers to robbery of a bank Branch (banking), branch or Bank teller, tell ...

, Vasquez is the

getaway driver A crime scene getaway is the act of :wikt:flee, fleeing the location where one has broken the law. It is an act that the offender(s) may or may not have planned in detail, resulting in a variety of outcomes. A :crime scene is the "location of ...

and Randolph is a hacker who disrupts surveillance drones scouting the area. After conducting several heists, the group lays low for a while. Vasquez meets Emma ( Jennifer Paredes) who wants him to leave the life of crime, but "The Vanishers" are in too deep with Lt. Armando Harris (Shane P. Allen), a detective closing in on them. After a case of mistaken identity, Bertrand hires a mercenary named Benji (Luke Pensabene) and a thief named Lola 5 ( Raye Richards), the last surviving member of a group of women vigilantes known as "The Lolas." They take on more banks, and come across Johannes Koppel (

Michael C. Burgess Michael Clifton Burgess (born December 23, 1950) is an American physician and politician representing in the United States House of Representatives. The district is anchored in Denton County, a suburban county north of Dallas and Fort Worth. I ...

), a diamond

merchant A merchant is a person who trades in commodities produced by other people, especially one who trades with foreign countries. Historically, a merchant is anyone who is involved in business or trade. Merchants have operated for as long as indust ...

who seeks to exact revenge on the group. The group retreats to a safe house with Emma.

Cast

* Brian Patrick Butler as Ryan Bertrand * George Jac as Victor Vasquez * Jennifer Paredes as Emma *

as Lori Randolph * Raye Richards as Lola 5 * Luke Anthony Pensabene as Benji * Shane P. Allen as Lt. Armando Harris *

as Johannes Koppel

Production

Originally intended to be a short film,

said the idea of the story was if past gangsters had existed in the future. Principal photography occurred in San Diego County, including Ramona, with a local cast and crew and a $9,000 budget. Filming and editing was completed in a span of 18 months and the film is Olmos' directorial debut. Ryan Binse, George Jac and Luke Pensabene produced the film and Sergio Corona composed the score with Olmos. Musical artists that contributed to the soundtrack include Freedom Fries, Mother Mary Mood, Somerset Barnard and Spero.

Release

''South of 8'' premiered on September 26, 2016 at the

and later screened at San Diego Film Week before being distributed by MultiVisionnaire Pictures.

Reception

Critical response

Emilie Black of ''Cinema Crazed'' said the film has potential citing "the story, directing, acting, and music are good" but also noted it had "framing, lighting, and focus issues". Meeta Borah at Sportskeeda said it is an "action-packed dystopian movie like ''

Badland Hunters ''Badland Hunters'' () is an upcoming South Korean dystopian action film directed by Heo Myung-haeng in his directorial debut. Starring Ma Dong-seok, Lee Hee-joon, Lee Jun-young and Roh Jeong-eui, the film is a sequel of 2023 film ''Concrete ...

''."

Accolades

Crossover

Olmos expanded this universe in his follow up film; the

comedy horror Comedy horror, also known as horror comedy, is a literary genre, literary, television genre, television, and film genre that combines elements of comedy and horror fiction. Comedy horror has been described as able to be categorized under three ty ...

''Continuance'' premiered at Shockfest on December 10, 2021.

References

External links

''South of 8''
at

American Film Institute The American Film Institute (AFI) is an American nonprofit film organization that educates filmmakers and honors the heritage of the motion picture arts in the United States. AFI is supported by private funding and public membership fees. Leade ...

* * * {{Ryan Binse, state=expanded 2010s vigilante films 2016 action drama films 2016 crime drama films 2016 directorial debut films 2016 films 2016 independent films American action drama films American crime drama films American heist films American independent films American police detective films American vigilante films Films about bank robbery Films set in San Diego Films set in the future Films shot in San Diego Great Depression films Fictional portrayals of the San Diego Police Department American crime thriller films 2010s English-language films 2016 crime thriller films 2010s heist films Films about criminals Films about mass surveillance Films about organized crime in the United States Films about poverty in the United States American dystopian films 2010s dystopian films 2010s American films Mumblecore films Films produced by Ryan Binse Films set in the 2040s Films directed by Tony Olmos American gangster films English-language action drama films English-language independent films