Written and directed by twentysomething Antonio Campos, this inventive shoestring indie comprises two 30-minute films, spinning the same tale twice but in different formats: the first half’s shot in faux-documentary style, while the second’s staged as straight-up drama. At the hub is 16-year-old Manhattanite Chelsea (Chelsea Logan). The daughter of divorced parents, she boldly decides to auction her virginity on eBay for $1,500, reckoning, “I can get it over with and make a profit at the same time.” Campos lenses the pivotal bedroom encounter with the middle-aged ‘buyer’ (Chris McCann) discreetly, training his focus (particularly in part two) on the anxieties and agonies of his self-harming protagonist. More than just a storytelling stunt, it’s a fraught, revealing portrait of a brand-crazed and emotionally arrested society.
