Work samples

  • OBEX trailer
  • STRAWBERRY MANSION | Official U.S. Trailer | In Theaters February 18, 2022

    trailer for the feature film "Strawberry Mansion" 

  • Sylvio - Official Trailer

    2 minute trailer for 80 minute film, 2017

  • Tux and Fanny - movie trailer

    trailer for the feature film "Tux and Fanny"

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About Albert

Baltimore City  

Albert Birney is a Baltimore based filmmaker. He has directed six feature films, The Beast Pageant (co-directed with Jon Moses), Sylvio and Strawberry Mansion (both co-directed with Kentucker Audley), Tux and Fanny, Eyeballs in the Darkness and OBEX. Sylvio was named one of the ten-best films of 2017 by The New Yorker. His films have premiered at Sundance, SXSW… more

See $10,000 Mary Sawyers Baker Prize Winning Portfolio
View Albert's Resume
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OBEX

OBEX (2025, 90 minutes)

Conor Marsh lives a secluded life with his dog, Sandy, until one day he begins playing OBEX, a new, state-of-the-art computer game. When Sandy goes missing, the line between reality and game blurs and Conor must venture into the strange world of OBEX to bring her home.

Premiered at the 2025 Sundance Film Festival

Reviews:
Variety
The New Yorker
Indiewire
Collider
IGN
Slant
The Moveable Fest
Roger Ebert
Dread Central
Hammer to Nail
Screen Anarchy
The Film Stage
Pajiba
Spliced Personality
Horror Buzz
Pop Heist
Geeks Vibes Nation
Papaya Horror
The Curb
MovieJawn
In Review Online

  • OBEX
    OBEX
  • Conor and Sandy
    Conor and Sandy
  • Conor and Victor
    Conor and Victor
  • Conor and Sandy surrounded by VHS tapes
    Conor and Sandy surrounded by VHS tapes
  • Conor and Victor walk towards the Nightmare Realm
    Conor and Victor walk towards the Nightmare Realm
  • OBEX trailer
  • OBEX film poster
    OBEX film poster
  • OBEX at the Charles Theater, opening night of the 2025 New/Next Film Festival in Baltimore, Maryland
    OBEX at the Charles Theater, opening night of the 2025 New/Next Film Festival in Baltimore, Maryland
    •

    • Gruenfeld

    Gruenfeld (2024, 10 minutes) 

    A knight in an accursed and shattered world tempts fate with a mysterious song.

    A 16mm short horror film
    Starring Albert Birney & Kristin Tata

    Direction & Editing - Albert Birney
    Cinematography & Color - Tyler Davis
    Score & Production Design - Sam Garrett
    Production Assistants - Nick Shamblott, Corey Hughes, Jaynell Aggrey

    Kodak 250D and Tri-X processed by Colorlab

    • Burning Piano
      Burning Piano
    • Sir Gareth
      Sir Gareth
    • His Beloved
      His Beloved
    • Sir Gareth comes home
      Sir Gareth comes home
    • Gruenfeld poster
      Gruenfeld poster
    • Gruenfeld
    •

    • Strawberry Mansion

    Strawberry Mansion (2021, 90 minutes) 

    In a world where the government records and taxes dreams, an unassuming dream auditor gets swept up in a cosmic journey through the life and dreams of an aging eccentric named Bella. Together, they must find a way back home.

    Written and Directed by Albert Birney and Kentucker Audley

    Produced by Taylor Shung, Sarah Winshall, Emma Hannaway and Matisse Rifai

    Starring Kentucker Audley, Penny Fuller, Grace Glowicki, Linas Phillips, and Reed Birney

    Music by Dan Deacon

    Reviews:
    The New Yorker
    The New York Times
    The Hollywood Reporter
    Vanity Fair
    Variety
    The Guardian
    Indiewire
    AV Club
    Los Angeles Times
    Chicago Tribune
    The Moveable Fest
    Film Freak Central
    RogerEbert.com
    Mashable
    The Pitch
    Film Threat
    Hammer To Nail
    Screen Anarchy
    The Playlist
    The Film Stage
    The Sunbreak
    Ion Cinema
    USA Today
    The Daily Utah Chronicle
    Chicago Indie Critics
    The Stranger
    Cineccentic
    Paste Magazine
    In The Seats
    Film Int.
    Elements of Madness
    366 Weird Movies
    Movie Babble
    The Twin Geeks
    Upcoming On Screen
    ars Technica
    Cinepunx
    Cultured Vultures
    Movie Jawn
    Slant Magazine
    Flickering Myth
    Reel Reviews
    Sift Pop
    East Bay Express
    WBUR
    Inverse
    The Wrap
    Geek Vibes Nation
    Horror Buzz
    Dread Central
    Fanbyte
    Mel Magazine
    The Arts Fuse
    Little White Lies
    Letterboxd

    Features/Interviews:
    Talkhouse
    Movie Maker Magazine, part 1
    Movie Maker Magazine, part 2
    IndieWire
    Filmmaker Magazine
    Filmmaker Magazine
    No Film School
    Baltimore Magazine
    Anthem Magazine
    Mubi
    RogerEbert.com
    The Moveable Fest
    RogerEbert.com

    Sundance Film Festival
    San Francisco Film Festival
    Seattle International Film Festival
    Atlanta Film Festival
    Sarasota Film Festival
    Maryland Film Festival
    Wisconsin Film Festival
    W&M Global Film Festival
    Jim Thorpe Independent Film Festival
    Independent Film Festival Boston
    Oak Cliff Film Festival
    Fantasia Film Festival
    Champs-Élysées Film Festival
    Filmfort
    Calgary International Film Festival
    Sitges Film Festival
    Gangneung International Film Festival
    New Horizons Film Festival
    Trieste Science+Fiction Festival
    AMFest- Moscow
    Sci-Fi London Film Festival
    Denver Film Festival
    Los Cabos Film Festival

    • Strawberry Mansion - still 7
      Strawberry Mansion - still 7
    • Strawberry Mansion - still 6
      Strawberry Mansion - still 6
    • Strawberry Mansion - still 5
      Strawberry Mansion - still 5
    • Strawberry Mansion - still 4
      Strawberry Mansion - still 4
    • Strawberry Mansion - still 3
      Strawberry Mansion - still 3
    • Strawberry Mansion - still 2
      Strawberry Mansion - still 2
    • Strawberry Mansion - still 1
      Strawberry Mansion - still 1
    •

    • Melody Electronics

    Melody Electronics (2024, 30 minutes) 

    An imaginary video game from 1988 about a woman who loves electronics. 

    "Charmingly and convincingly imagines a primitive ’80s computer game showcasing the consumer electronics in the apartment of a sweet single middle-aged woman named Melody, who can’t wait to introduce you to them. A darling dirge for the delightful days of the pre-digital!" -Artforum

    or listen on bandcamp

    Official Selection 2025 International Film Festival Rotterdam  

    • Melody Electronics
      Melody Electronics
    • Melody is excited
      Melody is excited
    • A cat watching dust
      A cat watching dust
    • Here's looking at you kid
      "Here's looking at you kid"
    • Melody is respectful of her neighbors.
      Melody is respectful of her neighbors.
    • Digital seconds ticking away
      Digital seconds ticking away
    • Melody Electronics
    •

    • Tux and Fanny

    Tux and Fanny (2019, 82 min)

    Tux and Fanny are two friends living together in the forest and these are their adventures!

    2019:
    Ottawa International Animation Festival
    Animage Festival

    The New Yorker Best Movies of 2019

    Reviews:
    The New Yorker
    Dan E. Smith
    Bmore Art
    Letterboxd
     

    • Tux and Fanny
      Tux and Fanny
    • Tux and Fanny meet a stray cat
      Tux and Fanny meet a stray cat
    • Tux can't play the piano with his bone fingers
      Tux can't play the piano with his bone fingers
    • Tux goes missing so Fanny makes a new Tux out of clay
      Tux goes missing so Fanny makes a new Tux out of clay
    • Turkey
      Turkey
    • password: home
      All of the episodes compiled into one video
    •

    • Sylvio

    Sylvio (2017, 80 minutes)

    SYLVIO is a feature film about a small town gorilla who is stuck in his job at a debt collection agency. Deep down he just wants to express himself with his hand puppet, Herbert Herpels, and his puppet show that highlights the quiet moments of life. He accidentally joins a local TV program and a series of on-air mishaps threaten to shatter his identity, sending him on a journey of self-discovery.

    SYLVIO was filmed entirely in Baltimore and funded from a Kickstarter campaign. The film premiered at the 2017 SXSW Film Festival and went on to play over 20 festivals worldwide. 


    “This charming lo-fi indie is attuned to its own eccentric wavelength, equal parts absurd and poignant. A cult following for this bizarro effort seems quite possible." -Variety

    "Exquisite yet uproarious. Sylvio is, at heart, a tale of independent artistry and its snares. The result is a generous, achingly tender comedy. -New Yorker

    The New Yorker Best Movies of 2017

    Reviews:
    The New Yorker
    Variety
    Village Voice
    Indiewire
    Hollywood Reporter
    Screen Anarchy
    Film Threat
    Hammer to Nail
    Austin Chronicle
    Ars Technica
    CinemaThread
    Assholes Watching Movies
    Austin 360
    Isthmus
    The Baltimore Sun
    Paste Magazine
    WBUR
    Filmofile
    Crooked Marquee
    Letterboxd

    Interviews:
    No Film School

    2017:
    SXSW Film Festival
    Atlanta Film Festival
    Wisconsin Film Festival
    Capital City Film Fest
    IFF Boston
    Maryland Film Festival
    Greenwich Intl FF
    What the Film Festival
    Revelation Perth IFF
    Indy Film Fest
    Funcinema
    Charlotte Film Festival
    AmFest
    New Hampshire Film Festival
    Eastern Oregon Film Festival
    Syracuse International Film Festival
    American Film Festival
    Indie Memphis
    Loft Film Festival

    2018:
    Unknown Pleasures Film Festival
    Mammoth Film Festival
    Flatpack Film Festival

    • Sylvio waves
      Sylvio waves
    • Sylvio and the horses
      Sylvio and the horses
    • Sylvio in jail
      Sylvio in jail
    • Sylvio and Al Reynolds
      Sylvio and Al Reynolds
    • Sylvio trailer
    •

    • Eyeballs in the Darkness

    EYEBALLS IN THE DARKNESS (TUX AND FANNY PART 2)
    (2022, 106 min)

    A feature film sequel to my 2019 animated feature Tux and Fanny. I made this film using pixel animation, stop motion, puppets, and handmade recycled materials. It took 3 years to make.

    • Eyeballs in the Darkness
      Eyeballs in the Darkness
    • Eyeballs in the Darkness
      Eyeballs in the Darkness
    •

    • Trillium

    Peals (William of Future Islands + Bruce of Double Dagger) and director Albert Birney played “Trillium” for students at the Baltimore Montessori Public Charter School and asked them to write stories while listening to the song.


    There was only one constraint: each story begins with “The woman in the room…”


    Trillium brings the kids’ stories to life. The woman in the room transforms into a dinosaur and chats with a wise talking pelican. Leather-jacket-wearing bad boys, “weird alien cat-things,” peaceful apples, and money-shooting water guns all make noteworthy appearances. The video includes scenes from 17 stories written by the students, along with footage of them writing in the classroom.

    To capture the 5th graders’ imaginative worlds, director Albert Birney took a purposefully lo-fi approach to the props and sets. Some costumes and props were modeled on students’ drawings, including the paper maché head of Moophette, the “weird alien cat thing.” Similarly, the visual effects were created mainly in-camera, using a mix of silent-movie-style jumpcuts and multi-layered projections. The interplay between multiple projections, minimal set design, and a black and white color palette sets a dreamlike stage for the video.

    • The students write
      The students write
    • Moophette, the weird alien cat thing
      Moophette, the "weird alien cat thing"
    • The prompt
      The prompt
    • Writing
      Writing
    • Peals - Trillium
      We played the song for 5th-graders. They wrote while listening. We filmed their stories. Director: Albert Birney Produced and conceived by Peals Camera: Dave Cooper Cast: Cricket Arrison, Valerie Orr, Students of Baltimore Montessori Public Charter School
    •

    • I Can Hear The Trains Coming

    I Can Hear The Trains Coming (2011, 3 min) For this video I covered myself in tape and danced around, imagining I was a planet. All of the animals are animated from the Animal Locomotion series by Muybridge from 1877. 
    • I Can Hear The Trains Coming
      I Can Hear The Trains Coming
    • I Can Hear The Trains Coming
      I Can Hear The Trains Coming
      Inspired by Muybridge's Animal Locomotion series frmo 1877
    • I Can Hear The Trains Coming
      I Can Hear The Trains Coming
    • I Can Hear The Trains Coming
      I Can Hear The Trains Coming
    • I Can Hear The Trains Coming
    •

    • The Beast Pageant

    The Beast Pageant (2010, 74 minutes)

    A feature film about Abraham. Abraham lives deep in the heart of an idustrial wasteland. His only companion is a giant machine. Inside the machine is a man and a woman who take care of Abraham's every need. Abraham drifts through life until a tiny singing cowboy bursts from his stomach and leads him into the wild. 

    Filmed on a 16mm Bolex camera rescued from a dumpster behind Johns Hopkins Hospital. All sets made from paper mache and cardboard. 


    Official selection 2011:
    Slamdance Film Festival
    Maryland Film Festival
    San Francisco Independent Film Festival
    Detroit Independent Film Festival
    Boston Underground Film Festival
    Byron Bay Film Festival
    Buffalo Niagara Film Festival
    Plastic Paper Film Festival
    Santa Cruz Film Festival
    Sonoma International Film Festival
    Lund International Fantastic Film Festival
    Arizona Underground Film Festival
    • The Beast Pageant
      The Beast Pageant
    • Zeke, the singing cowboy that bursts from Abraham's stomach
      Zeke, the singing cowboy that bursts from Abraham's stomach
    • The Watermelon Man
      The Watermelon Man
    • The Beast King
      The Beast King
    • Directing the Trees
      Directing the Trees
    • password: nobudge
    •