Don't You Go Nowhere Directed by Bryan Poyser 8 minutes • USA Black Lens, Narrative A jazz dynamo belts his way through his weekly set until he makes an unexpected connection with an audience member in this short film about the power of music over memory.
Half-Day Directed by Morgan Mathews 17 minutes • USA Black Lens, Narrative A half-day of middle school is meant to be a day where kids have a few hours of innocent freedom in the moments before their parents get home, but this occasion is met with a different type of anticipation.
Blackout Directed by Andrew Reid 7 minutes • USA Black Lens, Narrative While on a routine mission, an astronaut soon finds herself battling for command, facing forces known -- and unknown -- intent on destroying her.
Desmond's Not Here Anymore Directed by Mmabatho Montsho 16 minutes • USA Black Lens, Narrative Abigail battles moving her elderly mother with dementia out from the family home. When her mother unconsciously haunts her by continually questioning Desmond's whereabouts it forces her to finally face the question.
little trumpet Directed by Megan Trufant Tillman 26 minutes • USA Black Lens, Narrative A nine-year-old loner wants his brother to teach him how to play the trumpet. In the 7th Ward of New Orleans, that’s not so simple.
The Devil Will Run Directed by Noah Glenn 11 minutes • USA Black Lens, Narrative A young boy is convinced that the Devil lives in a hole in his backyard. Can he find the courage to face down his fear?
Spin Directed by Brandi Nicole, Jen West 10 minutes • USA A happy-go-lucky baker is thrown for a loop after an unexpected run-in at work.
The short film OUR LEAGUE Directed By Sam Cullman Documentary, Shout USA RunTime 36:38 A community of bowlers just outside of Cleveland cope with fundamental change when new owners take over at a landmark alley and a longtime league member comes out as a trans woman. Screens with the short film JUST BENJAMIN Directed By Documentary, Shout USA RunTime 23:47 Benjamin “Benji” Davis, a 29-year-old transgender man from Arkansas, has wanted to move to Colorado for years. Since coming out as trans in his 20s, Benji has found acceptance in unexpected places, both in the military and with his traditional, small-town Arkansan father. But Benji hopes that moving to Colorado will be a fresh start for him.
LOST/FOUND, Season 1, Episode 1 Directed by Brian Christopher White 10 minutes • USA Episodic, Alabama Film After a storm wreaks havoc over a small town in Georgia, a writer on a deadline makes an ominous discovery in the backyard of his rural vacation rental.
NIGHT Directed by John D'Aquino 34 minutes • USA Episodic With their parents away on a reunion cruise, a group of friends must survive the new reality of an endless night.
Wipe Me Away Directed by Eric Piccoli 11 minutes • Canada Episodic Montreal, Quebec. An apartment building. Three rough childhoods collide. Mélissa, Eddy and Karine live in the same building and from a young age, they have to deal with an environment that crushes grown-ups. The hooker's corner, the violent neighbourhood, parents' debauchery parties, bad company, stealing to survive : for them, all this is quite normal, it's their life. Are their parents to blame? Or do they love the best they can? Are we all condemned to reproduce what we have known?
Monograph: Adrienne Darnell Directed by Kelsey Harrison Ianuzzi 7 minutes • USA Documentary, Alabama Film Starting first as an analog photographer producing dreamy and ethereal images, Adrienne Darnell now integrates her unique vision with all kinds of advertising projects in New York and beyond.
Broken News Directed by Adam Schwartz, Luke Porter 32 minutes • USA Episodic, Alabama Film Tucker Hayes, a hotshot New York City reporter who was fired after an on-air meltdown went viral, takes a job at WTTM Channel 12, a struggling local news station in the small Southern town of Burndale, AL. Things go cattywampus quickly when Tucker attempts to bring his big-city sensibilities to the sleepy station and gain the approval of Hannah Walker, WTTM's producer, who opposed his hiring.
That Picnic Show with Nancy Directed by Nancy Tran 10 minutes • USA Narrative, Alabama Film Nancy interviews local people of interest and celebrities asking them what their favorite hobbies are then takes them on a picnic.
More Than I Remember Directed by Amy Bench 14 minutes • USA Documentary, Black Lens One night at her home in southeastern Congo, 14-year-old Mugeni awakes to the sounds of bombs. As her family scatters to the surrounding forests to save themselves, Mugeni finds herself completely alone. From there, she sets out on a remarkable solo journey across the globe, determined to reunite with her lost loved ones and lift up the Banyamulenge people.
Betsy & Irv Directed by Nicole Noren 16 minutes • USA Documentary, Life and Liberty Using extensive archival video and photography, Betsy & Irv opens in the fall of 1978, as the Penn State football team seeks its first-ever number one national ranking. Senior Betsy Sailor is sexually assaulted the week after school begins by a member of the football team. As the undefeated season rolls on, so does Betsy’s resolve and quest for justice. In a tense courtroom moment, she recounts intimate details of her assault with her rapist and many of his teammates in attendance. Irv Pankey, a star and future NFL player on that team, decides to break ranks and take a bold step that alters Betsy's life as she takes on a predator, a program, and a justice system. Betsy & Irv is a story of courage, survival, and the power of being believed, and of the enduring difference it makes to speak up, for yourself, and for another.
What We'll Never Know Directed by Lauren Ready 16 minutes • USA Documentary We'll never know what happened inside the interrogation room where a teen confessed to a crime he did not commit.
Valentine Directed by Sinead Keirans 7 minutes • USA Documentary Valentine is a short, animated documentary that explores an OnlyFans creator's first year on the platform, in the midst of the COVID-19 pandemic.
Stranger at the Gate Directed by Joshua Seftel 29 minutes • USA Documentary U.S. Marine Richard “Mac” McKinney had planned to return home to Muncie, Indiana as a hero – in an American flag-draped coffin. But that didn’t happen. Instead, after 25 years of service, he returns alive and filled with an all-consuming rage. Still fueled by his desire to die for his country, he plans to bomb the local mosque. But when he comes face to face with the community of Afghan refugees and others of Muslim faith that he seeks to kill, his plan takes an unexpected turn.
Aftermath Directed by Hailey Millar 39 minutes • USA Documentary On October 1, 2017, 58 innocent concert-goers were killed in the deadliest mass shooting in US history. But more than 20,000 people survived. Enduring a mass shooting, whether it be directly or indirectly, changes your life forever. Aftermath focuses on the untold stories of these survivors. The healing lasts a lifetime but with the support of those around you, anything can be achieved. We are so much stronger when we stand together.
Fearing the apocalypse, an insurance salesman sets off into the woods on a solo hunting experiment. Shot in Alabama and featuring Alabama native and resident, Clayne Crawford, THE INTEGRITY OF JOSEPH CHAMBERS recently premiered at the Tribeca Film Festival.
In this mixed-media animated film, two hapless drifters, Frank and Bruno, team up with Linde to recover her land and trek across 1870s Southern Arizona to find an elusive frontier musician. Complex quantum time theory is blended with philosophical musings about art as the way we understand our history and memories, with gunfights, horses, dance halls, cacti, and saloons.
A snippet of 16mm film offers an emotionally charged, meditative glimpse into the lives of the unsuspecting Jewish citizens of a small Polish village at the precipice of World War II.
Tin Sandwich Blues: A Musical Journey Directed by Erik Jambor 10 minutes • USA Documentary, Alabama A 78-year-old blues harmonica player in Birmingham, Alabama reminisces about his lifelong musical journey in preparation for his return to public performance after a 13-month hiatus caused by the COVID-19 pandemic.
The Space Between You and Me Directed by Lily Ahree Spiegel 23 minutes • United Kingdom Documentary, Alabama, Life + Liberty How do you find belonging when you are between two cultures? Two American women, adopted from Korea as babies, navigate their transracial identity while learning about their past, future, and birth moms.
Smile Little Ladybug Directed by Laura Asherman 17 minutes • USA Documentary, Life + Liberty This short documentary centers a Holocaust survivor who unintentionally inspires his daughter and granddaughter to become clowns. The film follows three generations of this wacky and inspiring family from Nazi Germany, to Jim Crow Alabama, to modern-day Atlanta.
Decisions Directed by Donte Johnson, Katherine Nguyen 12 minutes • USA Documentary, Alabama, Life + Liberty What might a Post-Roe v. Wade Alabama look like? Pro-Life and Pro-Choice activists describe the landscape in the AL Legislature.
Monograph: Amari Ansari Directed by Kelsey Harrison Ianuzzi 7 minutes • USA Documentary, Alabama, Black Lens New Orleans-based, Birmingham-raised multi-instrumentalist Amari Ansari uses music to commune with his ancestors, ride the waves of collective creativity, and make sure we all have a good time.
The JLB: 100 Years of Service and Impact Directed by Jenna M. Bedsole 32 minutes • USA Documentary, Alabama, Family For one hundred years, the Junior League of Birmingham has served the city and its residents. This film documents the JLB's beginnings, its growth and its hope for the future.
Who Am I Called To Be Directed by Aniya Kinnion 10 minutes • USA Documentary, Alabama, Black Lens A leader, a father, a husband, a son, and a brother. The life of Carl Frederick Hill Jr. is many things, but one thing it is not is easy. As we take a look into his life, we will discover the influence he has on the lives of people around him, the challenges of being a young leader, his accomplishments, and his hopes for the future.
A Central Part of Who I Am Directed by Gabriel Kalil Talley 8 minutes • USA Documentary, Alabama, Life + Liberty A mixed media documentary of a Japanese woman born in California just before the attack on Pearl Harbor.
Bird Lady Directed by Carter Rostron 17 minutes • USA Teen Filmmaker, Family In this short documentary, Kansas City filmmaker Carter Rostron explores the mystery surrounding a statue that has become known as the “Bird Lady.” For years, an assortment of small ceramic birds and other figures have appeared around the base of the statue. The documentary explores what’s been happening, what it means, and how it has become a beloved part of neighborhood folklore.
Numb Directed by Chris Chaei 2 minutes • USA Teen Filmmaker, Alabama, Black Lens A teenager reflects upon his darkest days.
Wuhan Driver Directed by Tiger Li 14 minutes • USA Narrative, Teen Filmmaker, Life + Liberty At the beginning of the pandemic, a Chinese driver in New York struggles to make ends meet as he picks up passengers on a long and dreary night.
Uncommon Application Directed by Ris Igrec 17 minutes • USA Teen Filmmaker A high school senior discouraged by college applications explores alternative and morally questionable methods to the process.
On the Second Floor Directed by Marco Araujo 19 minutes • Spain Teen Filmmaker, Life + Liberty Aurora is an old woman, and like many people her age, she lives alone in a small apartment in Madrid. She lives a simple, monotonous life, so any change in her routine is something eventful. Her husband passed away several years ago so she has no family. Consequently, her only visitor is a little sparrow that comes to her window every morning.
Why Wouldn't I Be Directed by Ella Greenwood 17 minutes • United Kingdom Teen Filmmaker A 17-year-old hits breaking point and questions why he wasn't able to reach out for help.
Letters from an Avalanche Directed by Palavi Ahuja Teen Filmmaker, Alabama Film Letters from an Avalanche is an artistic short-film exploring selfhood/sense of self. It is a documentation of my journey as a writer and filmmaker through the lens of an entity much larger than ourselves—avalanches. This film slowly unravels in short segments of letters being read to the audience as the link between avalanches and selfhood becomes more and more evident.
REFUGE is a film about love and fear in the American South. Chris Buckley is a husband, father, veteran, and until recently, a leader in the KKK. He began hating Muslims when the planes hit the twin towers on 9/11, but is forced to confront his hate when he receives a text message from Muslim refugee, Dr. Heval Kelli. Heval lives in Clarkston, Georgia, a town that has welcomed refugees from around the world for over 40 years and is known as the most ethnically diverse square mile in America. Clarkston residents have survived persecution in their home countries, and now they find themselves threatened by a new kind of hate - American white nationalism. Will Chris overcome his hate or become a violent extremist like those he fought overseas? Can Heval and his town of refugees heal the hate they once survived in their home countries? REFUGE illustrates the roots of hate, its devastating impacts, and ultimately how it can be overcome.
