“The truth is more important than the facts,” Frank Lloyd Wright once pointed out. In Santa Croce, Gavin Heffernan’s provocative short film, a young woman searches for the truth behind a bleeding statue of the Virgin Mary, and finds some disturbing facts along the way. Abby Eiland’s poignant portrayal of a daughter mourning the recent loss of her dear mother draws us into this well-written drama -- as does the almost magical appeal of Chad Cohlmia's cinematography.

Inhabitants of Santa Croce, a small California town, are stunned when a statue of Mary begins to shed real human blood. Wanting to believe it’s a miracle, crowds of people gather at the church where the statue is located. One woman even brings her sick dog to be blessed in front of the statue. Did Mary heal the pet, or did the canine bark and jump up as a result of being frightened by so many onlookers?

Zoey (Eiland) is quite skeptical. She can’t help having daydreams about happier times as a child when her mother was alive. But now, she doesn’t want Allison (Allisyn Ashley Arm), her younger sister, to be disappointed, so she tells her to stop believing in such things as miracles and Santa Claus. Because it’s the Christmas season, Allison and one of her friends decide to prove there really is a Santa Claus.        

When a tragedy happens, Zoey realizes how much she needs a miracle. However, she knows a secret about her father’s involvement with the now famous statue. What will Zoey do? We’ll just have to wait for the full-length version of Santa Croce to find out!

Heffernan (Expiration) wrote and directed this compelling 20-minute movie as his thesis film while studying at the American Film Institute. Hopefully, the talented filmmaker will obtain enough financing to make Santa Croce into a feature film. Until then, I’ll probably be a nervous wreck worrying about Zoey and Allison. (Capsule review)

(Released by the American Film Institute; not rated by MPAA. Click here to visit the Santa Croce official site.)