A thought-provoking look at the meaning of home and identity."

- Kevin Connor NFFTY 2022 Programmer

"This beautifully crafted film about identity captured by its five crew members all from various cultural backgrounds, transports us on a journey into the film’s core message: What is culture? As each storyteller sits in the foreground, profiled and shadowed to share deeply personal experiences of immigrant life, acclimation and loss, starkly juxtaposed home video images of their playful childhood's gleam in the background. This open and compelling film will return viewers to their own precious memories of culture with pride. Whether celebrating one’s heritage, home or country, we are reminded never to forget where we come from, for risk of sacrificing who we are along the way."

 - Lanettte Ware-Bushfield, WIFT Showcase 2021 Juror

"Simplicity is key to a great short and Paula Ner Dormiendo’s On The Fence has that quality in spades. It shows projections of home movies in the background and in front of that projection are shadows of young adults that those children have turned into. This juxtaposition of images are equally haunting because these young adults are 1.5 generation immigrants. And these immigrants, like myself, have specific yet complex feelings about their identities. The best of the festival’s shorts, especially when it reveals the relationship between crew and subjects." 

- Paolo Kagaoan, In the Seats