‘306 Hollywood’ is a creative look at mortality, family, and what we leave behind

“306 Hollywood.”
El
Tigre

• Elan and Jonathan Bogarín’s debut movie “306 Hollywood”
  is part documentary, part art exhibit.
• The two siblings cope with the passing of their grandmother
  by going into her house and using the things she left behind to
  celebrate her life.

Every weekend we pick an indie movie currently playing in
theaters we think is definitely worth your time and money, and
this week’s is “306 Hollywood.”

Annette Ontell lived seven decades in the same house at 306
Hollywood Avenue in Hillside, New Jersey, in which she was
everything from a housewife to a fashion designer. So how do you
celebrate someone who has lived such a full life? You explore
what was left behind. 

Ontell’s grandchildren, Elan and Jonathan Bogarín, use their
directing debut to commemorate their late grandmother with the
beautifully touching and creatively told “306 Hollywood.” The two
take us into Ontell’s home to not just marvel at the knickknacks,
clothes, and keepsakes that are inside but flesh out the memories
they had with her to examine what Ontell’s life meant to them.

But Elan and Jonathan go into the house as if they are on an
archeological dig. They give every item in the house (down to the
paper clips and toothbrushes) a respect that it didn’t have when
Ontell was alive.

However, that’s the beauty of the movie: its almost insane
attention to detail to celebrate Ontell while also understanding
who she was as a person — not just their grandmother. 

“306 Hollywood” is part documentary and part art exhibit that
will make you think about your own mortality, that you really
need to call your grandmother more often, and that you really,
really need to clean your place.

See where “306 Hollywood” is playing near you.

Our indie movie picks from previous weekends: