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Just Another Bum

A Vietnam Vet returns to a world he doesn't fit in anymore and wanders the country as a homeless man for 50 years looking for redemption and self forgiveness for acts committed in war. Will he find it in a small town - with a special tree?

  • Mark Soltermann
    Director
  • Mark Soltermann
    Writer
  • Mark Soltermann
    Producer
  • Mark Soltermann
    Key Cast
    "Oliver (old)"
    See IMDb for details. Theatre -Lead as Felix Ungar in The ODD Couple
  • Karen Thorn
    Key Cast
    "Amanda"
    Theatre - Jesus Christ Superstar
  • James Robert Jones
    Key Cast
    "Steven"
    Singer/Songwriter. Theatre - The Odd Couple
  • Greg Soltermann
    Key Cast
    "Joshua"
  • Kristine Wild
    Key Cast
    "Susan"
  • Jane Soltermann
    Key Cast
    "Meme"
    Spooktacular
  • Sasha Bjelic
    Key Cast
    "The Punk"
  • Oliver Soltermann
    Key Cast
    "Young Oliver "
  • Emilia Soltermann
    Key Cast
    "Voice of Emmy"
  • RMS FILMS (Muskoka)
    Production Company
  • Project Type:
    Short
  • Runtime:
    31 minutes 10 seconds
  • Completion Date:
    March 15, 2026
  • Production Budget:
    15,000 CAD
  • Country of Origin:
    Canada
  • Country of Filming:
    Canada
  • Language:
    English
  • Shooting Format:
    Digital
  • Aspect Ratio:
    16:9
  • Film Color:
    Color
  • First-time Filmmaker:
    Yes
  • Student Project:
    No
  • Digital Cinema Package:
    Unavailable
  • Toronto Arts and Entertainment International Film Festival
    Toronto
    Canada
    June 27, 2026
    World Premiere
    WIN - Best Drama Short
  • Crown Point International Film Festival March 2026
    Chicago-
    United States
    Best Drama Short
  • Toronto Arts and Entertainment Film Festival 2026
    Toronto
    Canada
    June 27, 2026
    World Premiere
    Nominated and Public Screening
  • Folkstone Film Festival March 2026
    Kent
    United Kingdom
    Honorable Mention
  • Athens International Monthly Art Film Festival
    Athens
    Greece
    April 6, 2026
    Honorable Mention
  • Rome Prisma Film Awards
    Rome
    Italy
    March 31, 2026
    Monthly Pics Prisma Award
  • Rome Prisma Film Awards
    Rome
    Italy
    March 30, 2026
    Finalist - Best Actor - Mark Soltermann
  • Five Continents International Film Festival

    Venezuela
    May 5, 2026
    Award Winner -Special Mention Best Lead Actor
  • East Village New York
    New York
    United States
    Finalist - Best Short Film
Director Biography - Mark Soltermann

Mark grew up on the shores of Lake Ontario between Toronto and Hamilton. In 1969 at the age of 15 Mark bought his first Super 8 camera and projector for $100. He made his first movie for his grade 10 class about Pollution. He went on to produce a short for his Communications Class at University of Toronto in 1975. Unfortunately, there was little film making going on in Toronto then so he put his dream aside and built a career in business.

After retirement in 2021 he began a full time career in film having great success in his first year earning Full ACTRA accreditation. He resigned from ACTRA in 2023 wanting to be able to pursue all opportunities including non union roles and commercials and brought his resume up from 7 projects to over 30 in just the next two years. His IMDb site lists most of his 30 projects including acting in films, TV shows, commercials, podcasts and even a stage production of The ODD Couple playing the lead as Felix Unger.

In June 2025 when considering retirement from acting he realized there was still one aspect of filmmaking he originally loved the most since his youth which he had not attempted - writing, producing, directing and editing a professional meaningful film - Just Another Bum.

In his five years in the industry - an industry he thought he had missed out on in the 1970's...he found that dreams may be put aside....but they never die!

Personal IMDb page: https://www.imdb.com/name/nm12274239

Add Director Biography
Director Statement

Just Another Bum is a film which I grew up "feeling" as a young teenager watching body bags of guys just slightly older than me coming back from Vietnam combined with the current realities of homeless Vietnam Vets today! As my dad served as a Sargeant in the Canadian Army Medical Core in WW2... I had planned on following his lead by joining the US in Vietnam (estimates are that up to 40,000 Canadians served in Vietnam) but the war ended before I was old enough. I never stopped hurting for the young men and woman as I heard more about their tours of duty in the years after and realized how lucky I was NOT to have joined. This is NOT a film about the war in Vietnam...rather this film follows a happy young boy in the late 1950's whose call to arms in 1970 changed him and everything about his life. He has roamed the countryside for 50 years living as a homeless person and is still searching for answers about who he is - will he find out - will he find self forgiveness and any sense of peace in the village he encounters and a park with a very "special" tree.

Just Another Bum IMDb page: https://www.imdb.com/title/tt38795298