James Alton Films
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Selected Work ·

Watch Midlife Shuffle

Midlife Shuffle turns a self-help session into a surreal encounter with its participants' younger selves. Matt Che'z Forster directed the 2026 short for Northern Monkey Productions; James Alton served as producer, B-camera operator and assistant DP.

A woman faces her reflection in a bathroom lit with magenta and cyan colour in Midlife Shuffle.
A woman faces her reflection in a bathroom lit with magenta and cyan colour in Midlife Shuffle.

Awards and recognition

A self-help session turns strange.

Dr. River Tallahassee invites a group of emotionally vulnerable adults into an unconventional therapy session. A deck-of-cards ritual disorients the room until younger versions of the participants begin appearing beside them.

The 14-minute short was made for the Snakebite 5-Day Film Challenge, which gave teams five days to write, film and edit around a required character, prop and line of dialogue.

Watch the complete 2026 Snakebite short. Watch on YouTube
Dr. River Tallahassee stands beside an empty chair during the group session in Midlife Shuffle.
Midlife Shuffle Dr. River Tallahassee begins the session beside the empty chair.

The camera credits are specific.

Matt Che'z Forster wrote and directed Midlife Shuffle and served as executive producer. Levi Price led the cinematography and colour. James Alton worked as producer, B-camera operator and assistant DP.

The finished film moves between group coverage, close performance beats and saturated practical colour across the gym-turned-clinic, bathroom and hallway.

A RED KOMODO camera faces a performer in a basement location lit with green and red colour during Midlife Shuffle production.
Midlife Shuffle A camera and colour-lighting setup during the five-day production.

Recognition in the 2026 festival run.

Midlife Shuffle placed second in the 2026 Snakebite 5-Day Film Challenge. It also received Best Story, Best Editing, Best Acting, Best Acting Ensemble and Best Use of Secret Prop recognition.

The film later appeared in the 2026 Okanagan Screen Awards program and the second Kelowna Independent Film Festival film guide.

Selected work