The Cleveland International Film Festival promotes artistically and culturally significant film arts through education and exhibition to enrich the life of the community.
CIFF47 (2023) Call for Entries is now closed. CIFF48 (2024) Call for Entries will open in July 2023. Please check back for details.
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Email UsYour donation helps fulfill our mission to promote artistically and culturally significant film arts through education and exhibition.
Give TodayThe Cleveland International Film Festival promotes artistically and culturally significant film arts through education and exhibition to enrich the life of the community.
Free Screening!
This screening is part of The Taste of the Festival.
Click for more information.
Film Forums
FilmForums are moderated and interactive panel discussions that feature filmmakers, community leaders, and scholars who are knowledgeable about the topic at hand.
Film forums begin after the film ends, and are 45 minutes long.
What is Stand by?
Only a portion of available seats are sold in advance in order to save room for passholders. Once these advanced tickets have sold, a film is considered on Stand By. However, even for crowded films, we can often accommodate additional patrons just before showtime.
Special Location
Akron-Summit County Public Library
60 S. High St
Akron, OH 44326
330.643.9000
Special Location
Beachland Ballroom & Tavern
15711 Waterloo Rd
Cleveland, OH 44110
216.383.1124
Special Location
Cinemark Valley View
6001 Canal Rd
Valley View, OH 44125
216.447.8820
Special Location
Chagrin Cinemas
8200 East Washington Street
Chagrin Falls, OH 44023
Special Location
The Nightlight
30 North High Street
Akron, OH 44308
Special Location
Cleveland State University, MU 107
2001 Euclid Avenue
Cleveland, OH 44115
Special Location
Cleveland Institute of Art Cinematheque
11610 Euclid Avenue
Cleveland, OH 44106
Special Location
Ritz-Carlton Cleveland
1515 West 3rd Street
Cleveland, OH 44113
Special Location
CIFF Chat Room
Second Floor, Skylight Councourse
,
Special Location
Rock and Roll Hall of Fame
1100 E 9th St
Cleveland, OH 44114
216.781-7625
Special Location
Connor Palace
1615 Euclid Avenue
Cleveland, OH 44115
Special Location
Upper Allen
1407 Euclid Avenue
Cleveland, OH 44115
Special Location
KeyBank State Theatre
1519 Euclid Avenue
Cleveland, OH 44115
Special Location
Mimi Ohio Theatre
1511 Euclid Avenue
Cleveland, OH 44115
Special Location
Allen Theatre
1407 Euclid Avenue
Cleveland, OH 44115
Special Location
Westfield Studio Theatre
1375 Euclid Avenue
Cleveland, OH 44115
Special Location
Shaker Square Cinemas
13116 Shaker Square
Cleveland, OH 44120
216.921.9342
Special Location
Plaza Cinemas
140 Cherry Street
Kent, OH 44240
330.968.6335
Special Location
Akron Art Museum
1 S High St
Akron, OH 44308
330.376.9185
Special Location
Apollo Theatre
19 East College St
Oberlin, OH 44074
440.774.3920
Special Location
Cleveland Museum of Art - Gartner Auditorium
11150 East Boulevard
Cleveland, OH 44106
216.421.7350
Special Location
Cleveland Museum of Art - Lecture Hall
11150 East Boulevard
Cleveland, OH 44106
216.421.7350
Special Location
Cleveland Museum of Natural History
1 Wade Oval Drive
Cleveland, OH 44106
216.231.4600
Special Location
Cedar Lee Theatre 2
2163 Lee Rd
Cleveland Heights, OH 44118
216.321.5411
Special Location
Cedar Lee Theatre 1
2163 Lee Rd
Cleveland Hts, OH 44118
216.321.5411
Special Location
Capitol Theatre
1390 W 65th St
Cleveland, OH 44102
216.651.7295
Special Location
Near West Theatre
6702 Detroit Avenue
Cleveland, OH 44102
216.961.6391
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Wednesday, March 30, 2022
CIFF46 will kick off its 11-day run at Playhouse Square on Wednesday, March 30, 2022 at 7:00 PM with our Opening Night Film, PEACE BY CHOCOLATE. The evening includes the screening of the film in the stunning Connor Palace, followed by a post-film conversation with the film's director Jonathan Keijser. Attendees are then invited to a post-film dessert reception, featuring DJ BAM. A cash bar will be available.
Tickets to Opening Night are $100 ($80 for CIFF members).
CANADA
Directed by Jonathan Keijser
Running Time: 96 Minutes
When the Hadhads fled Damascus to escape the war in Syria, they were forced to leave everything behind, including their thriving chocolate business. Now, as refugees new to Antigonish, Nova Scotia, they must adapt to their unfamiliar life in a much smaller, much colder place. Tareq, the eldest son, longs to pursue his goal of returning to medical school. But his personal plans starkly conflict with the plans of his father, Issam, who is intent on rebuilding the family’s chocolate business in Canada. Insisting his father leave the past behind, Tareq is shocked when Issam’s chocolate business begins to take off. As Issam is presented with bigger opportunities to expand his chocolate factory, Tareq must make the difficult decision between fulfilling his own dreams or helping his father achieve his dreams for the family. Based on an incredible true story, PEACE BY CHOCOLATE is an inspiring narrative of working together and overcoming unimaginable hardship. Filled with moments of laughter and joy along the way, this film is sure to leave a sweet taste in your mouth! —G.S.
Saturday, April 09, 2022
CIFF46 will mark its final in-person weekend with its Closing Night Film LINOLEUM on Saturday, April 9, 2022 at 7:00 PM in the Connor Palace. Closing Night will include the screening of the film, as well as a post-film conversation with the film's director Colin West.
Tickets for Closing Night are $16 ($14 for CIFF members). All those in attendance at any of the films showing on Closing Night are invited to the Closing Award Ceremony in the Connor Palace after the screenings.
USA
Directed by Colin West
Running Time: 101 Minutes
In the fictional Fairview Heights, Ohio, Cameron Edwin (Jim Gaffigan), the host of a public access children’s science program, finds himself in what most would call a mid-life crisis. But when cosmic events bring a satellite crash to his backyard, his coming-of-age story really begins. Determined to truly follow his dreams and become an astronaut, he charges ahead. Building a fully operational rocket ship is his only mission, much to the dismay of his family and those around him, who have ambitions and dreams of their own. Among his wife, Erin (Rhea Seehorn), on her own path to fulfillment, his witty daughter, Nora, and a curious neighbor drawn in by the scientific exploration, Cameron navigates what becomes a blend of fantasy and reality as continued bizarre happenings heighten his journey…and there may even be an appearance from a doppelgänger. With Douglas Sirk-esque colors, incredible production design, and strong performances, LINOLEUM is a beautiful meditation on memory, dreams, and acceptance from Ohio-born writer/director Colin West. —B.R.
Tuesday, April 05, 2022
The Festival is pleased to present its Centerpiece Screening, NAVALNY, on Tuesday, April 5, 2022 at 7:00 PM in the Connor Palace. Both timely and educational, the film follows Russian opposition leader Alexei Navalny in his quest to identify the men who poisoned him in August 2020.
NAVALNY director Daniel Roher will be in attendance for his screening and post-film Q&A.
Tickets for the CIFF46 Centerpiece Screening are $16 ($14 for CIFF members).
USA
Directed by Daniel Roher
Running Time: 98 Minutes
In August 2020, a plane traveling from Siberia to Moscow made an emergency landing. One of its passengers, Russian opposition leader Alexei Navalny, was deathly ill. Taken to a local Siberian hospital and eventually evacuated to Berlin, doctors confirmed that he had been poisoned with Novichok, a nerve agent implicated in attacks on other opponents of the Russian government. President Vladimir Putin immediately cast doubt on the findings and denied any involvement. While recovering, Navalny and his team—already with a large social media following in tow—partnered with the data investigative journalism outlet Bellingcat as well as other international news organizations to investigate his attempted assassination and find proof of the Kremlin’s involvement. In NAVALNY, filmmaker Daniel Roher reveals a courageous and controversial would-be president at the precipice of sacrificing everything in order to bring reform to his homeland. —Sundance Film Festival
March 23, 2022
March 25, 2022
March 30, 2022
March 31, 2022
April 01, 2022
April 02, 2022
April 03, 2022
April 04, 2022
April 05, 2022
April 06, 2022
April 10, 2022
Ready for your mind to be blown? Prowl the Festival and feast on these dark, mysterious, thrilling, and bizarre films.
These films elevate stories, topics, and themes that are embedded in both Asian communities and the Asian diaspora.
These films elevate stories, topics, and themes that are embedded in both Black communities and the African diaspora.
Let's be honest, we could all use a good laugh these days. You asked and we answered with our first ever sidebar just for films that will make you smile ;)
You can take a family trip around the world without leaving your home! These family-friendly films are great for kids and young adults.
* Films that are more appropriate for older kids are maerked as so on the film pages. However, CIFF films are not rated by the MPAA, so we advise viewer discretion for all films.
These films elevate stories, topics, and themes that are embedded in Indigenous communities around the world.
These films are centered around Jewish history, culture, and stories.
These films elevate stories, topics, and themes that are embedded in both Latinx and Hispanic communities, including films from Spain and North, Central, and Latin America.
Jam out and find your groove with these music movies!
Sidebar Sponsored by:
Jules and Fran Belkin
This listing of films are those that are not part of CIFF46 Streams and will only have in-person screenings at Playhouse Square.
This enlightening collection of films features stories about people with a wide range of abilities and their lived experiences.
Films focusing on issues, topics, and stories from LGBTQIA+ communities.
These films are friendly for our teen audience, but appeal to adults too!
* CIFF films are not rated by the MPAA, so we advise viewer discretion for all films.
This collection of films celebrates empowered women* of all kinds.
*cis, trans, and non-binary inclusive
Audience at the CIFF love documentaries.
Over the past several years, almost half of the feature films we have presented have been documentaries. Thanks to Tom & Anita Cook, we’re excited to once again present this competition featuring topics, subjects, and stories that go beyond the descriptions of our other competitions.
Based on audience vote, the winner of this competition will be announced at our Closing Awards Ceremony and receive a $7,500 cash prize.
Competition Presented by:
Tom and Anita Cook
Thanks to Mike & Nicki Cancelliere, we're thrilled to once again present this competition featuring films with big dreams and small budgets, and representing the finest in contemporary American cinema.
Based on audience vote, the winner of this competition will be announced at our Closing Awards Ceremony and receive a $7,500 cash prize.
Competition Presented by:
Mike and Nicki Cancelliere
Sponsored by Char and Chuck Fowler
Sponsored by Friends of Patrick McFadden
Sponsored by MP Star Financial
This award winner will quality for consideration in the Shorts Films Animation category of the annual Academy Awards.
Sponsored by Hingetown Browns Backers
Endowed by David K. Ream
Sponsored by Jules and Fran Belkin
This award winner will quality for consideration in the Shorts Films Documentary category of the annual Academy Awards.
Sponsored by University School
Sponsored by La Familia Watilo Blake
Sponsored by Jan and Harold Babbit
This award winner will quality for consideration in the Shorts Films Live-Action category of the annual Academy Awards.
Sponsored by Jules & Fran Belkin and Alan Gordon Lipson & Judy Harris
Sponsored by Bill and Teri Koeth
Sponsored by MP Star Financial
Sponsored by Jinny and John Johnson
Sponsored by Tom Piraino & Barbara McWilliams
Sponsored by Tom Piraino & Barbara McWilliams
Thirty-two years ago at the 14th CIFF, we launched a special focus on films from Central and Eastern Europe, the native lands of many Clevelanders.
This year the CIFF is proud to present its 20th Central and Eastern European Competition. And, for the tenth year, we are deeply honored to showcase this competition in loving memory of George Gund III with the support of an endowment from The George Gund Foundation.
As determined by our jury, the winnner of this competition will be announced at our Closing Awards Ceremony and receive a $10,000 cash prize.
Jurors:
Alan LaFave – Alan LaFave is the Founder/Festival Director/President of the Hell's Half Mile Film & Music Festival (HHM) in Bay City, MI where he was born and raised. HHM is an all-volunteer festival, so in addition to the festival, Alan has a separate career and is on several nonprofit boards in his community. To date, he has produced one feature film, "Skippers" (2018) as well as written and co-directed one short film "Eugene" (2019).
Lela Meadow-Conner – Lela Meadow-Conner is the Founder of mama.film—a village at the crossroads of art and advocacy where storytellers, changemakers, and nurturers come together to champion humanity through a maternal gaze. Lela has 20 years of experience in independent cinema exhibition, serving as Executive Director of Film Festival Alliance from 2017-2021, and in leadership roles at organizations including the Tallgrass Film Association and Geena Davis' Bentonville Film Festival. Lela currently serves on the board of Los Angeles' iconic Vidiots Foundation, soon to relaunch in the historic Eagle Theatre, and Harvester Arts in Wichita, KS. Other roles include Co-Producer for Sav Rodgers' documentary "Chasing Chasing Amy" (2021), Producer for Nitzan Mager's "Strange Love" and "Run Amok" and Executive Producer for Emily Christensen's Feminist Foremothers podcast.
Chris Clark – Chris Clark is the longtime Artistic Director of Cinema St. Louis. Drawing upon his background in film studies, mass media, and public-event coordination, he has been an integral part in many of the organizational and logistical changes that have led to the growth and expanded artistic direction of this nonprofit arts organization. Over the past 25 years, he has been a key player on the front lines of developing, managing, and producing an ever-increasing number of annual film-related events produced by Cinema St. Louis, including the St. Louis International Film Festival (their flagship event), the St. Louis Filmmakers Showcase, Classic French Film Festival, and QFest St. Louis. He has immense hometown pride and a strong desire to add to the quality of life to those living in St. Louis through the arts and in the spirit of what makes us unique. Chris was a member of the Eastern European awards jury during CIFF28 in 2004 and is thrilled to once again proudly serve in this role.
The CIFF has always recognized the power of film to change people’s viewpoints about the world. This competition includes films that delve into human health-related issues (both mental and physical) and films about the health of the environment.
The selections in this competition will encourage viewers to question the true definition of health as it relates to individuals and the planet.
This year the CIFF is proud to present our ninth Global Health Competition, thanks to the generous support of Mark Smith & Janet Rosel Smith.
Based on audience vote, the winner of this competition will be announced at our Closing Awards Ceremony and receive a $7,500 cash prize.
Competition Presented by:
Mark Smith & Janet Rosel Smith
In 2005 The George Gund Foundation granted the CIFF with an endowment to create the Greg Gund Memorial Standing Up Competition as a tribute to Greg Gund. Greg's friends and family described him as "intensely creative and talented, and wholly without pretension."
For five years Greg lived in Playa Negro near Tamarindo, Costa Rica where he immersed himself by becoming part of the local community. As much as he deeply loved his home there, Greg was also an extensive world traveler with an adventurous spirit and an insatiable curiosity about different cultures and people. He lived by this Mahatma Gandhi quote inscribed in his passport: "Live as if you were to die tomorrow. Learn as if you were to live forever." Greg died at the age of 32 in a small plane crash off the Pacific Coast in 2005.
Standing Up started as a sidebar to focus on films with the mission to change the world and grew into a celebration of activism and the fight for social justice. Our Standing Up Competition includes "films with a conscience." Many of these films highlight personal stories featuring individuals who set out to teach lessons on how to live a better life. One of the aspects all these films share is the impact they make on viewers long after the credits roll. Through the films, Standing Up honors Greg Gund - as well as others with a different view of the world - and the continual fight to make it better.
Based on audience vote, the winner of this competition will be announced at our Closing Awards Ceremony and receive a $7,500 cash prize.
Greg Gund Memorial Standing Up Films sponsored by:
CIFF is a great way for Clevelanders to experience the different cultures, languages, and customs of the entire world.
We are recognized for our well-rounded international program, and we’re happy to showcase films from around the globe in the fifth year of this competition, thanks to Tom Piraino & Barbara McWilliams.
Based on audience vote, the winner of this competition will be announced at our Closing Awards Ceremony and receive a $7,500 cash prize.
Competition Presented by:
Tom Piraino & Barbara McWilliams
Local Heroes is our annual celebration of films made about Ohio, in Ohio, or by Ohioans.
Thanks to Lauren Rich Fine & Gries Financial Partners, we are honored to once again support these films and filmmakers, hoping to empower the already booming independent film community of Cleveland and Ohio alike.
Based on audience vote, this winner of this competition will be announced at our Closing Awards Ceremony and receive a $7,500 cash prize.
Competition Presented by:Lauren Rich Fine
The Nesnadny + Schwartz Portrait Documentary Competition and the "May the Schwartz Be with You" Director's Award is dedicated to the life and work of our longtime board member and friend, Mark Schwartz (1956–2014).
For 18 years, N+S has sponsored the CIFF Documentary Competition. Six years ago, we focused more exclusively on portrait documentaries. Like Mark himself, the subjects in these documentaries are determined, dedicated, and daring. The same qualities define the best of what art can achieve in all mediums, including graphic design.
The films are artistic and passionate, telling stories with insight, power, and revelation. Never a man to back down from controversy, this genre of filmmaking exemplifies the way Mark led his life and ran his design firm. Since his death, the firm has continued to honor his vision. Their work is big and bold, grounded in logic, and informed by research.
Portrait documentaries in competition that are screening in the Festival will be viewed by our panel of jurors throughout the week.
As determined by our jury, the winner of this competition will be announced at our Closing Awards Ceremony and receive a $10,000 cash prize.
Jurors:
Donna Dabbs – Donna Dabbs currently serves as Executive Director of the Greater Cleveland Urban Film Foundation (GCUFF). In 2012, she spearheaded the idea to launch a film festival—the Greater Cleveland Urban Film Festival—and then served in a volunteer capacity as the festival organizer, film acquisition specialist, and chief programmer until 2019 when she was officially hired as Executive Director. Donna previously served as a Director of the Small Business Administration's SBDC (Small Business Development Center) in Ohio for over eight years, helping entrepreneurs build profitable and sustainable businesses. She has also held management and leadership positions in large corporations for over 25 years. In addition to her professional pursuits, she is vice president of the Society of Urban Professionals (SOUP, Inc.), a networking organization that provides event planning and marketing advice to local professionals. Donna is active in the community and currently serves on the board of the African American Quilt and Doll Guild and has previously served on the boards of Buck Out Cleveland and Karamu House.
Holly Meehl Chapman – Holly Meehl Chapman is a producer based in L.A. who guides films from original inception through distribution. For the past seven years, she's produced award-winning narrative and documentary features and short films through her company, Lunamax Films. Recent credits include the feature documentary, "Jacinta" (2020), which launched to critical acclaim at the Tribeca Film Festival in 2020 and won the Albert Maysles Best New Documentary Director Award. The film was picked up by ABC News and was released as a Hulu Original in fall 2021. Holly's co-producing credits include the upcoming documentary, "Love, Charlie: The Rise and Fall of Chef Charlie Trotter" (2021). Holly is an Impact Partners Producing Fellow and was named one of DOC NYCs "40 under 40" in 2020. She graduated from Vanderbilt University in 2011 with a double major in film studies and creative writing.
Brandon Harrison – Brandon Harrison is a programmer and creative. He is a Feature Programmer at DOC NYC, and he has programmed for a number of festivals, including Tribeca, Brooklyn, and Nashville Film Festivals. He's also produced multimedia content for a variety of media outlets, including Domestika, The Players' Tribune, and Vox. Brandon is a graduate of Morehouse College, and he received his M.A. in Cinema from UCLA. He loves making cool stuff.
At the 39th CIFF we premiered our focus on debut directors whose innovative films transform the traditional notions of cinematic storytelling.
Thanks to the support of Hyland, we are proud to present our seventh New Direction Competition. Screening within this competition are films created by emerging filmmakers who we believe will define the future of filmmaking. Films in competition that are screening in the Festival will be viewed by our panel of jurors throughout the week.
As determined by our jury, the winner of this competition will be announced at our Closing Awards Ceremony and receive a $10,000 cash prize.
Jurors:
Casey Baron – Casey Baron was born and raised in the small island of Dominica, located in the West Indies, and moved to Austin, Texas after graduating from Florida State University (FSU) with a degree in English – Editing, Writing, and Media. While attending FSU, Casey worked for The Torchlight Program. He was the Team Leader and Personal Assistant to film industry veteran Paul Cohen, the program's Executive Director. Beyond that creative venture, Casey has also been an editor on a handful of literary magazines, including FSU's The Kudzu Review and Miami Dade College's AXIS Creative Arts Magazine. Casey has been a part of the Austin Film Festival family for six years, starting off as an intern, then becoming the festival's Shorts Programmer for its 25th anniversary and Senior Film Program Director after that. He jumped into the role of Director of Programming and Industry Relations, and was pivotal in the launch of the Writers Conference's Game Writing Track in 2021. Casey is looking forward to continuing the organizational and personal mission of championing storytellers. When he's not racing to find interesting stories, Casey spends his spare time watching basketball and soccer, listening to music, and playing with his dog Niobe.
Chris Feil – Chris Feil is a freelance film and television critic and co-host of the podcast This Had Oscar Buzz. His work has previously been published in Vanity Fair, Vulture, Polygon, The AV Club, and Gawker, among others. He resides in Columbus, Ohio.
Karen McCullen – Karen McMullen serves as a Features Programmer at Tribeca and DOC NYC Film Festivals, operates as the Director of Programming for the TIDE Film Festival, and screens for the Sundance Film Festival. She has served as a juror for the Pan African, Trinidad + Tobago, and Bentonville Film Festivals and has participated on the review committees for The Gotham Awards, Carey Institute, Black Public Media, and the Cinema Eye Awards. Karen moderates panels for the New York African Film Festival, NYWIFT, Netflix, IFC, Pure Non Fiction, and HBO, and she appears on television and radio as a media expert. She has editing credits on numerous features, documentaries, and short films and is a former professor of film post-production. Karen is a graduate of Brown University.
Sponsored by The Sloop Family
In memory of long-time CIFF shorts programmer, Toni Oliverio.
We are thrilled to once again celebrate female filmmakers at the CIFF, thanks to Deborah Bachman Ratner.
In an industry historically dominated by men, we are honored to showcase these women–who make up 49% of our feature filmmakers–and the empowered female perspectives they provide within their films.
Based on audience vote, the winning director of this award will be announced at our Closing Awards Ceremony and receive a $10,000 cash prize.
Competition Presented by:
Deborah Bachman Ratner
Roxanne T. Mueller served as the film critic at The Plain Dealer from 1983 until 1988 when she lost a six-month battle with cancer at the age of 36. Mueller was a strong supporter of the Festival and, through her writing, helped to raise the general level of film appreciation in Cleveland. She was an exceptionally engaging writer who managed to weave personal insights into her film reviews, whether she was covering popular Hollywood fare or sophisticated foreign cinema. In its 12th year, the CIFF established the Roxanne T. Mueller Audience Choice Award for Best Film to help bring this important Festival friend back into focus a bit each year. Festival patrons rate each film they see and the most popular film is announced at our Closing Awards Ceremony. The Callahan Foundation, started in 1968 by Cleveland nuclear engineer, inventor, and businessman Joe Callahan, joins us in celebrating the 34th year of this renowned award with a $15,000 cash prize to the winner.
Sponsored by Barbara Hawley and David Goodman
Sponsored by Jim Brumbaugh & Carolyn Berg
Sponsored by Marcie Goodman
Sponsored by Marcie Goodman and John C. Williams
Sponsored by Tom and Ginny Knoll and The Knoll Family Fund Promoting Civility and Acts of Kindness of Akron Community Foundation
After Hours Shorts 1
Running Time: 96 Minutes
After Hours Shorts 2
Running Time: 98 Minutes
Comedy Shorts 1
Running Time: 94 Minutes
Comedy Shorts 2
Running Time: 88 Minutes
Family Shorts 1
Running Time: 91 Minutes
Family Shorts 2
Running Time: 97 Minutes
Family Shorts 3
Running Time: 95 Minutes
FilmSlam - Animated Cinema
Running Time: 74 Minutes
FilmSlam - Arabic Language Cinema
Running Time: 70 Minutes
FilmSlam - Black Cinema
Running Time: 74 Minutes
FilmSlam - Chinese Language Cinema
Running Time: 70 Minutes
FilmSlam - Cultural Cinema
Running Time: 75 Minutes
FilmSlam - Cultural Cinema 'Light'
Running Time: 66 Minutes
FilmSlam - French Language Cinema
Running Time: 71 Minutes
FilmSlam - German Language Cinema
Running Time: 74 Minutes
FilmSlam - Spanish Language Cinema
Running Time: 73 Minutes
Groundbreaker Shorts
Running Time: 96 Minutes
Local Heroes Shorts 1
Local Heroes Shorts 2
Running Time: 96 Minutes
Parability Shorts
Running Time: 93 Minutes
Queer Cinema Shorts
Running Time: 94 Minutes
Shorts Program 1
Running Time: 97 Minutes
Shorts Program 2
Running Time: 96 Minutes
Shorts Program 3
Running Time: 97 Minutes
Shorts Program 4
Running Time: 92 Minutes
Shorts Program 5
Shorts Program 6
Running Time: 95 Minutes
Shorts Program 7
Running Time: 93 Minutes
Shorts Program 8
Running Time: 93 Minutes
Shorts Program 9
Running Time: 95 Minutes
Shorts Program 10
Running Time: 88 Minutes
Shorts Program 11
Running Time: 95 Minutes
Shorts Program 12
Running Time: 96 Minutes
United States
Directed By: Yoo Lee
English
Running Time: 7 Minutes
When a young mother moves in on 8th street in Jersey City, NJ, she learns about the value of the community and how her perceptions determine her experiences. {more}
This film is part of the following shorts programs:
USA
Directed By: Dan Mirvish
English
Running Time: 89 Minutes
As she’s wrapping up her workday, transcriber Connie stumbles on the recording the world has been searching for: the 18½-minute gap of conversation missing from the scandalous Nixon tapes. With Watergate flooding the news cycle, Connie understands the powerful weight... {more}
United States
Directed By: Carl Kriss
English
Running Time: 24 Minutes
The story of a Cleveland community health worker who overcame addiction and now gives back to the community that saved her. {more}
This film is part of the following shorts programs:
SLOVAKIA, CZECH REPUBLIC, UKRAINE
Directed By: Peter Kerekes
Russian, Ukrainian
Running Time: 93 Minutes
While monotonous days drag on with tedious chores for inmates at a Ukrainian women’s prison, some find motivation right next door in the children’s ward. 107 MOTHERS dramatizes the remarkable true stories of moms who are allowed to serve their... {more}
USA
Directed By: Abi Damaris Corbin
English
Running Time: 95 Minutes
Living in a cheap motel in Atlanta and separated from his wife and child, former U.S. Marine veteran Brian Easley is desperate. Driven to the brink by forces beyond his control, the soft-spoken, kind man decides to rob a bank... {more}
GUATEMALA
Directed By: Sergio Ramírez
Spanish
Running Time: 78 Minutes
In 1991, Guatemala teenagers coming-of-age were either “breaks” (working-class Indigenous youth who often had an interest in break dancing) or “anti-breaks” (their white, upper-class counterparts who hunted them down in city streets). While daily news reports detail the country’s bloody... {more}
Canada
Directed By: Hao Cheng
Cantonese
Running Time: 5 Minutes
Many of us have held a spot for someone special, waiting for their presence at the table. To Henri, this dinner has him prepared for a long time. {more}
This film is part of the following shorts programs:
USA
Directed By: Dan Chen
English
Running Time: 92 Minutes
In rural Louisiana, where education standards are among the lowest in the country, Michael and Tracey Landry wanted to be part of the solution. Their mission began with just five students in their kitchen, but their ambitious T.M. Landry College... {more}
United States
Directed By: Clare Cooney
English
Running Time: 14 Minutes
A surviving couple works to begin healing the emotional and psychological wounds of a shared trauma. {more}
This film is part of the following shorts programs:
USA
Directed By: Tasha Van Zandt
English
Running Time: 104 Minutes
Whenever Will Steger leaves his home in northern Minnesota to go on an expedition, he looks at his woodshed and wonders if he’ll be back to burn the wood. This has been the mindset of the polar explorer since he... {more}
USA
Directed By: Jon-Sesrie Goff
English
Running Time: 88 Minutes
When the real estate of the southern U.S. coast is eyed by the wealthy, tax hikes and land auctions threaten the homes of the Gullah people who live there and have been stewards of the region for generations. Under the... {more}
ISRAEL
Directed By: Nadav Lapid
Hebrew
Running Time: 109 Minutes
In 2018 17-year-old Ahed Tamimi went to prison for slapping an Israeli soldier. In response, a member of the Israeli parliament suggested that, as punishment, the Palestian girl should be shot in the knee to prevent her from walking again.... {more}
USA
Directed By: Chrystee Pharris
English & ASL
Running Time: 10 Minutes
Two profoundly deaf women of color find their relationship being challenged during a period of unprecedented turmoil. {more}
This film is part of the following shorts programs:
UNITED KINGDOM
Directed By: Clio Barnard
English
Running Time: 95 Minutes
Although Ali and Ava live in the same city of Bradford, England, their lives are unfolding in two entirely different worlds. Ali is a British-Pakistani landlord who is currently navigating the complexities of his failing marriage, and Ava is an... {more}
United States
Directed By: Dale Omori
English
Running Time: 6 Minutes
A Japanese-American realizes the connectivity of food to other cultures but especially to our past. {more}
This film is part of the following shorts programs:
United States
Directed By: Dale Omori, Harlan Spector
English
Running Time: 15 Minutes
Professor Glenn Frank saved hundreds of lives in the aftermath of the Kent State University shootings in 1970 but paid the price when his country broke his heart. {more}
This film is part of the following shorts programs:
USA
Directed By: Iman Zawahry
English
Running Time: 90 Minutes
This charming rom-com follows Pakistani-American sisters and their newly immigrated cousin as they juggle their love lives, careers, and familial expectations in Jackson Heights, Queens, NY. The three young Muslim women must contend with equal pressures of family and career.... {more}
United States
Directed By: Erica Eng
Erica
Running Time: 17 Minutes
To her high school basketball teammates, Eng is just a girl who sits on the bench; but to the Asian kids she's "Americanized." Struggling with her Chinese-American identity, she tries to find a sense of belonging within the two worlds... {more}
This film is part of the following shorts programs:
COLOMBIA, SWEDEN, QATAR
Directed By: Simón Mesa Soto
Spanish
Running Time: 95 Minutes
When Amparo arrives home to an empty house after a long shift, she worries what the streets of Medellín, Colombia have done with her children. She finds eight-year-old Karen still with the babysitter, but 18-year-old Elías, who never came to... {more}
FRANCE
Directed By: Charline Bourgeois-Tacquet
French
Running Time: 98 Minutes
Flighty, impulsive, and carefree to a fault, Anais struggles to pay her rent, hold down a job, and finally finish her thesis that’s months overdue. Her irresistible charm barely keeps her afloat as she flees from one version of love... {more}
USA
Directed By: Jamie Boyle
English
Running Time: 94 Minutes
Just two years apart in age, Jamie and Jordan Boyle were inseparable growing up. Wherever older sister Jordan went, Jamie followed. And when Jordan fell in love with figure skating, Jamie tagged along as well. But what Jamie saw as... {more}
USA
Directed By: Kelcey Edwards
English
Running Time: 94 Minutes
Take a peek behind the curtain of the elite and elusive modern art world, a culture composed of its own hierarchies, languages, and value systems…many of which are no longer serving artists themselves. From museum boards to the unregulated art... {more}
USA
Directed By: Libby Spears
English
Running Time: 79 Minutes
Lydia Emily says fondly that she comes from “a whole bloodline of loudmouths.” Her mother was a civil rights activist in Louisiana, Lydia herself is a socially vocal street-artist based in Los Angeles, and both her daughters speak their minds... {more}
USA
Directed By: Lisa Hurwitz
English
Running Time: 79 Minutes
The acerbic wit and voice of the iconic Mel Brooks welcomes you into the warm arms of THE AUTOMAT. Dripping with panache and pizzazz, this documentary dives deep into these forgotten “centers of paradise.” Automats, known by many through the... {more}
France
Directed By: Daouda Diakhaté
French
Running Time: 28 Minutes
Alassane, a 30-year-old French-Senegalese, lives alone with his nine-year-old son Yanis in a shabby studio in the suburbs of Bordeaux. Unemployed, Alassane does his best to maintain a balance. The day the juvenile court judge decides to place Yanis in... {more}
This film is part of the following shorts programs:
Canada
Directed By: Claude Cloutier
No dialogue
Running Time: 6 Minutes
Bad Seeds takes us to a bizarre world populated by carnivorous plants that can change shapes the way a chameleon changes colors. The veteran director of "Carface" deftly connects growth with rivalry and evolution with competition, crafting an increasingly shocking... {more}
This film is part of the following shorts programs:
FRANCE, SWITZERLAND
Directed By: Bernard Campan, Alexandre Jollien
French
Running Time: 92 Minutes
If “The undertaker is here!” is not something you would ever imagine being shouted excitedly in a club, then this film is ready to broaden your mind. After a slight mishap involving a meditation in the trunk of a hearse,... {more}
Being Michelle (WITH AUDIO DESCRIPTION)
USA
Directed By: Atin Mehra
ASL, English
Running Time: 80 Minutes
THIS IS THE LISTING FOR THE VERSION OF BEING MICHELLE THAT CONTAINS AUDIO DESCRIPTION FOR THE VISUALLY IMPAIRED. TO PURCHASE A TICKET TO THE VERSION WITHOUT AUDIO DESCRIPTION, PLEASE VISIT THE BEING MICHELLE (WITH NO AUDIO DESCRIPTION) PAGE.Besides an occasional... {more}
Being Michelle (WITH NO AUDIO DESCRIPTION)
USA
Directed By: Atin Mehra
ASL, English
Running Time: 80 Minutes
THIS IS THE LISTING FOR THE VERSION OF BEING MICHELLE THAT DOES NOT CONTAIN AUDIO DESCRIPTION FOR THE VISUALLY IMPAIRED. TO PURCHASE A TICKET TO THE VERSION WITH AUDIO DESCRIPTION, PLEASE VISIT THE BEING MICHELLE (WITH AUDIO DESCRIPTION) PAGE. Besides an... {more}
GERMANY, SWEDEN, NETHERLANDS
Directed By: Michael Ekblad
English
Running Time: 75 Minutes
Little Charlie turns five tomorrow! Mom is baking his favorite—chocolate carrot cake—and he knows Dad has already picked out the perfect present. On the morning of Charlie’s birthday, his baby sister Clara is running a temperature and ruins Charlie’s plans... {more}
The Big Comeback: The Choir of Man at Playhouse Square
USA
Directed By: Geoff Yaw, Bob Ruggeri
English
Running Time: 15 Minutes
This film examines the business, personal, and artistic challenges faced and overcome by the performing arts community due to the Covid-19 pandemic. In June 2021, Playhouse Square welcomed audiences to the first live performance on its stages in 15 months.... {more}
This film is part of the following shorts programs:
Canada
Directed By: Nicole Sofia
English
Running Time: 12 Minutes
A wife tries to rekindle her dying marriage with her husband when she learns a life-changing secret. {more}
This film is part of the following shorts programs:
Israel, UK
Directed By: Uri Lotan
Hebrew
Running Time: 11 Minutes
Eviah, a young and timid boy on the brink of puberty, and his best friend sneak into the Black Slide—the most terrifying ride in Aqua Fun. There Eviah will gain insight to prepare him for events about to unfold at... {more}
This film is part of the following shorts programs:
USA
Directed By: Andrew Reid
English
Running Time: 7 Minutes
While on a routine mission, an astronaut soon finds herself battling for command, facing forces known—and unknown—intent on destroying her. {more}
This film is part of the following shorts programs:
USA
Directed By: Camrus Johnson, Stefano Pennisi
English
Running Time: 20 Minutes
A group of vigilantes abduct wrongdoers and coerce them into confessions, forcing them back on the straight and narrow. Tonight their attempt at justice has taken an unexpected turn. {more}
This film is part of the following shorts programs:
USA
Directed By: Jeffrey Schwarz
English
Running Time: 85 Minutes
Picture it. 1950. Old Hollywood is abuzz over leading lady Gloria Swanson, star of the era’s hit “Sunset Boulevard.” The film’s heroine, Norma Desmond, finds herself falling out of Hollywood’s spotlight and desperate to make a comeback. While Gloria’s own... {more}
United States
Directed By: Shal Gerard Ngo, James Burns
English
Running Time: 15 Minutes
This hybrid short film combines documentary, stop-motion animation, and cinematic vignettes to immerse audiences in the world of solitary confinement. We interview three people who have spent a combined nine years in solitary, one of whom is a director of... {more}
This film is part of the following shorts programs:
USA
Directed By: Julia Bacha
English, Hebrew, Arabic
Running Time: 73 Minutes
When a news publisher in Arkansas, an attorney in Arizona, and a speech therapist in Texas are told they must choose between their jobs and their political beliefs, they launch legal battles that expose an attack on freedom of speech... {more}
USA
Directed By: Jesse Roesler
English
Running Time: 30 Minutes
Emily Ford sets out with Diggins, a borrowed Alaskan Husky sled dog, to become the first woman and person of color to thru-hike the 1,200-mile Ice Age Trail in winter. As the 69-day journey through subzero temperatures tests her physical... {more}
This film is part of the following shorts programs:
United States
Directed By: Jake Barcus
English
Running Time: 5 Minutes
Desperate to stay awake, one man goes to great lengths to get a cup of coffee. {more}
This film is part of the following shorts programs:
United States
Directed By: Dava Whisenant
English
Running Time: 3 Minutes
A good-hearted hiker finds himself overcome by nature's majesty, only to be drawn into a cosmic nightmare. {more}
This film is part of the following shorts programs:
GEORGIA, BULGARIA, MONACO, USA
Directed By: Levan Koguashvili
English, Georgian, Russian
Running Time: 95 Minutes
Unassuming Kakhi, with his scruffy white beard and mild-mannered nature, is a legend of sorts around his hometown in the Republic of Georgia, all the way to Brooklyn’s Brighton Beach. An accomplished wrestler in his heyday, Kakhi somehow escaped the... {more}
CZECH REPUBLIC, ITALY
Directed By: Francesco Montagner
Bosnian
Running Time: 97 Minutes
Jabir, Usama, and Usier have a complicated relationship with their Islamist father Ibraham. Torn between the structure of their strict religious upbringing in rural Bosnia and their individual desires for growth and exploration, the boys struggle to find their place... {more}
Greece, Belgium
Directed By: Manolis Mavris
Greek
Running Time: 25 Minutes
Anna observes the universe of her human hive. Not being able to consent to the violence that surrounds her, she will have to make a radical decision. {more}
This film is part of the following shorts programs:
United Kingdom
Directed By: Rory Keenan
English
Running Time: 15 Minutes
Despite her bravado and bluster, it's clear that Pearl is suffering. But an inevitable acceptance is coming. {more}
This film is part of the following shorts programs:
GUATEMALA
Directed By: Justin Lerner
Spanish
Running Time: 125 Minutes
Unlike her rebellious sister Bea, Sarita doesn’t spend much time partying or clubbing. But after being talked into a night out in Guatemala City, Sarita dresses up and joins Bea on the dance floor, letting loose for a rare moment.... {more}
SWEDEN
Directed By: Maria Loohufvud, Love Martinsen
English
Running Time: 84 Minutes
Whether they’re performing at an animal rescue center benefit, a church fundraiser, or a shrimp parade, the Calendar Girls give it all they’ve got. And they have a lot to give—impressive makeup; handmade costumes; elaborate dance routines; and, most notably,... {more}
DOMINICAN REPUBLIC
Directed By: Andrés Farías
Spanish
Running Time: 87 Minutes
Told in three parts, CANDELA reveals the frantic and fatal few days before a hurricane in Santo Domingo and discloses the layered tragedy of life in the Caribbean. Cloaked in neon lights and the weight of a predetermined future, a... {more}
Canada
Directed By: Ryan Marley
Spanish
Running Time: 37 Minutes
This is the story of Peruvian-Canadian Bryan Russell, the first person with Down syndrome anywhere in the world to run for public office. He is also the first person with Down syndrome to graduate from university in Peru. {more}
This film is part of the following shorts programs:
USA
Directed By: Steven Hoffner, AJ Messier
English
Running Time: 90 Minutes
In 1978 Coach Neal Henderson founded the first minority youth hockey program in the country. Today, still coaching at 81 years old, the legendary Coach Neal has 40 years worth of rosters full of alumni players who revere him. Henderson’s... {more}
USA
Directed By: Zahida Pirani
Spanish
Running Time: 15 Minutes
Nelly lives alone with her elderly father. The only way she makes ends meet is by working as a street vendor from dawn to dusk. She has learned not to trust anyone, but one day finds she must take a... {more}
This film is part of the following shorts programs:
USA
Directed By: Mye Hoang
English
Running Time: 89 Minutes
Whoever said a dog was man’s best friend certainly didn’t have the patience for cats and their, at times, aloof capacity for love and companionship. Director Mye Hoang’s documentary CAT DADDIES serves as evidence that the bond between human and... {more}
The Cat Who Saved the Duckling
United States
Directed By: Aaron Benitez
English
Running Time: 15 Minutes
Prince Michael faces his feelings of inadequacy as a parent when the Joneses move in next door. {more}
This film is part of the following shorts programs:
SERBIA
Directed By: Milica Tomović
Serbian
Running Time: 106 Minutes
Although CELTS is centered around a child’s birthday party, it is definitely not suitable for children. While birthday girl Minja and her friends dance around the living room in their ninja turtles-themed outfits, eating cake and drinking soda, the adults... {more}
France
Directed By: Léo Berne, Raphaël Rodriguez
French
Running Time: 18 Minutes
Every night, The Censor and his team moderate Yoko’s dreams. Tonight nothing goes as planned. {more}
This film is part of the following shorts programs:
USA
Directed By: Cooper Raiff
English
Running Time: 107 Minutes
Current CIFF Members at all levels will receive 1 complimentary ticket to the CIFF46 Members-Only screening, Apple Original Films' CHA CHA REAL SMOOTH, via an emailed Order Confirmation sent on April 7, 2022. Tickets are not for sale to this... {more}
USA
Directed By: Cai Thomas
English
Running Time: 19 Minutes
An intimate portrayal of Black youth organizing on the west side of Chicago, this documentary follows a group of fifth graders from Village Leadership Academy as they embark on a campaign to rename Stephen A. Douglas Park after freedom fighters... {more}
This film is part of the following shorts programs:
CANADA, FRANCE, BELGIUM
Directed By: Éric Warin, Tahir Rana
English
Running Time: 92 Minutes
As World War II unfolds in Berlin, so, too, does Charlotte’s passion for art. Loved ones and the city’s Academy of Fine Arts affirm her natural talent, but the Nazi influence grows stronger each day and ultimately upends her ambitious... {more}
USA
Directed By: Drew Leung
English/Cantonese
Running Time: 13 Minutes
This short animated documentary features a Chinese immigrant mother recounting her life growing up during the tumultuous 1950s communist China to her American son during the Covid-19 pandemic. Faded memories of the Chinese Cultural Revolution are brilliantly rendered using groundbreaking... {more}
This film is part of the following shorts programs:
USA
Directed By: Isaac Garza
English
Running Time: 11 Minutes
Based on a true little incident, this film details an intimate night gone wrong. {more}
This film is part of the following shorts programs:
HONG KONG
Directed By: Kargo Chen
Chinese
Running Time: 22 Minutes
Caring for his home-ridden brother, who has cerebral palsy, Chen discovers his brother has certain desires that are not being addressed and decides to take him out for the day to get some real world experience. {more}
This film is part of the following shorts programs:
SWEDEN, DENMARK, QATAR
Directed By: Gorki Glaser-Müller
Swedish, Spanish, English, Arabic
Running Time: 97 Minutes
In 2014 Patricio Galvez’s daughter Amanda married an infamous jihadist and moved from Sweden to Syria to fight for ISIS. After both Amanda and her husband are killed in the collapse of the caliphate, their seven young children, ages one... {more}
United States
Directed By: Salvador Salazar
Spanish/English
Running Time: 4 Minutes
Enamored by the poetic game, six-year-old Martín yearns for nothing but a soccer ball. Though unable to afford one, his sister Xochitl does the next best thing and finds him one from the neighborhood as mischief ensues. {more}
This film is part of the following shorts programs:
United States
Directed By: Arman Taheri
English
Running Time: 4 Minutes
A flat tire makes a couple begin to question their journey. What choice will they make? {more}
This film is part of the following shorts programs:
France
Directed By: Benoit Blanc, Matthias Girbig
French
Running Time: 26 Minutes
A father in search of his missing daughter arrives in the isolated village of Choulequec. His immediate confrontation with the local sheriff and his absurd regulations is a mere foretaste of what lies ahead. {more}
This film is part of the following shorts programs:
Spain
Directed By: Adán Pichardo
Spanish
Running Time: 11 Minutes
Young devotee, Cristiano, wants to be trained in the seminary to become a Catholic priest. But when he is interviewed by the former priest of his hometown, he is forced to make a confession that might derail his plans. {more}
This film is part of the following shorts programs:
USA
Directed By: Nathalie Álvarez Mesén
Spanish
Running Time: 108 Minutes
In rural Costa Rica, Clara longs to be free of her holy obligations. As a vessel of the Virgin Mary, Clara heals the sick, injured, and unfortunate, but her sheltered life as a grown woman cripples her body and withers... {more}
United States
Directed By: Jessica Sanders
English
Running Time: 4 Minutes
A young waitress unexpectedly turns a cocktail party into a martial arts action film about empowerment. {more}
This film is part of the following shorts programs:
Coming Out With the Help of a Time Machine
USA
Directed By: NAMAN GUPTA
ENGLISH
Running Time: 20 Minutes
When coming out to his traditional Indian parents, Sid uses his time machine to reset the day trying to make sure everything goes perfect. {more}
This film is part of the following shorts programs:
USA
Directed By: Diane Moore
English
Running Time: 31 Minutes
The remarkable journey of Roderick Cox is detailed as he tirelessly pursues his dream—to secure a top position with a major orchestra. {more}
This film is part of the following shorts programs:
China
Directed By: Shelby Zhang
Chinese/English
Running Time: 18 Minutes
Chinese middle schooler Liang Yu Xiao refuses her father's help of bribing the theater director to get the leading role of Cordelia in a production of King Lear. {more}
This film is part of the following shorts programs:
Covid Crusader: The Carla Brown Story
USA
Directed By: Randy Scott Slavin
Endlish
Running Time: 4 Minutes
Motivated by the death of her husband due to Covid-19, Carla Brown is on a mission to vaccinate the African American population of Baton Rouge, Louisiana. {more}
This film is part of the following shorts programs:
The Cow Who Sang A Song Into the Future
CHILE
Directed By: Francisca Alegría
Spanish
Running Time: 93 Minutes
Years ago, Tomas’ grandmother Magdalena committed suicide under mysterious circumstances in a river near her family’s dairy farm. No one understood why she did it, and her body was never found. Decades later, Magdalena emerges from the same river, fully... {more}
United Kingdom
Directed By: Glenn Marshall
No Dialogue
Running Time: 3 Minutes
A mesmerising animated film using AI to infuse a dance with the ancient personality of the crow. {more}
This film is part of the following shorts programs:
Taiwan
Directed By: C.Y. Victor Shao
Mandarin
Running Time: 8 Minutes
A nervous man and reserved woman seem uneasy about their dinner rendezvous. However, they try to extend this awkward occasion by ordering dishes that will take forever to prepare. {more}
This film is part of the following shorts programs:
USA
Directed By: Brooke Pepion Swaney
English
Running Time: 66 Minutes
Kendra always knew she was adopted, and she loved her parents and childhood growing up in her predominantly white Oregon community. When encouraged to seek out her birth family, Kendra discovers her Lummi heritage from the Lummi Nation in Northwest... {more}
USA, Germany
Directed By: Timon Birkhofer
English
Running Time: 5 Minutes
Five unique individuals take us on a journey where their achievements shine beyond preconceived ideas of what is possible. {more}
This film is part of the following shorts programs:
Israel
Directed By: Nahd bashir
Hebrew + Arabic + English
Running Time: 15 Minutes
Kamel, a Palestinian man in his 50s, suffers from autism and travels with his paralyzed sister to the Dead Sea to receive medical treatment in seawater in the hopes it will treat the psoriasis that has spread through his body.... {more}
This film is part of the following shorts programs:
USA
Directed By: Tom Huang
English
Running Time: 106 Minutes
The Chang siblings live vastly different lives: Margaret is a perfectionist, Roy is sad about his divorce, and Larry has no interest in leaving his parents’ house. When Margaret gets word that their dad isn’t acting like himself and has... {more}
USA
Directed By: Winter Dunn
English
Running Time: 14 Minutes
The death of Tupac draws different reactions from a father and his artistic daughter, forcing them to confront the emotional aftermath of their own tragedy. {more}
This film is part of the following shorts programs:
United States
Directed By: Geoff Bailey, Lucy Struever
French
Running Time: 8 Minutes
On a dark and stormy night, Death pays a visit to a very old lady and her dog. {more}
This film is part of the following shorts programs:
FilmSlam - Animated Cinema
FilmSlam - Cultural Cinema
Shorts Program 12
Switzerland
Directed By: Victor Jaquier
French
Running Time: 19 Minutes
A young winemaker devotes himself to creating the best wine in the world, to win the hand of his beloved Mathilde—the daughter of his rich neighbour. He creates a wine so exquisite, that even Death demands to taste it. As... {more}
This film is part of the following shorts programs:
United States
Directed By: Colton Eschief Mastro , Eric Jackowitz
English
Running Time: 26 Minutes
Food delivery driver, Charlie, uses his job to fuel his uncommon hobby. But his next delivery might not go as planned. {more}
This film is part of the following shorts programs:
GERMANY
Directed By: Daniel Carsenty, Mohammed Abugeth
Arabic, Hebrew, English
Running Time: 90 Minutes
Palestinian Bedouins have lived on their ancestral land for centuries. Defined by their nomadic and agricultural traditions, they have worked hard to keep their way of life alive—something that has become increasingly difficult. With the creation of Israel in 1948,... {more}
USA
Directed By: Anna Baumgarten
English
Running Time: 96 Minutes
Jane had a bright and promising future until a traumatic event derailed her senior year of college. So much so that instead of finishing her last semester of college as planned, she now must return home to her family’s lake... {more}
USA
Directed By: Fredgy Noël
English
Running Time: 13 Minutes
Struck by the supreme loneliness of her circumstances, a young woman wishes for her dog to become her boyfriend and is then forced to endure a myriad of consequences when her wish comes true. {more}
This film is part of the following shorts programs:
UNITED KINGDOM, FRANCE
Directed By: Lucile Hadžihalilović
English
Running Time: 114 Minutes
Abandoned by her family, young Mia has been left in the care of Albert, a solemn middle-aged man who takes his daily tasks very seriously. Albert has been given specific instructions in caring for Mia, including replacing her teeth over... {more}
Hungary
Directed By: Attila Szász
Hungarian
Running Time: 17 Minutes
Two sixth graders lose their way on a school trip and find themselves in the middle of the siege of Eger in 1552, on the exact day the Turks unleash their final attack on the iconic Hungarian castle. {more}
This film is part of the following shorts programs:
Spain
Directed By: Albert Carbó
Catalan
Running Time: 12 Minutes
Six-year-old Elsa just wants to live happy and free as the queen of the kingdom. {more}
This film is part of the following shorts programs:
France
Directed By: Judith Chemla
French
Running Time: 22 Minutes
Idi and Rita live with their grandmother, Manie. Idi tries to keep the memories they have of their mother by drawing on his school notebook. By the force of their desire, the children keep the link they have to their... {more}
This film is part of the following shorts programs:
Israel
Directed By: Tatiana Fedorovskaya
English, German
Running Time: 16 Minutes
Three elephants must entertain superhumans today, so they might live tomorrow. Josef, an artist of the Jewish "Cabaret-Terezin," performs each week with his dog, Kasper, for an audience of Nazis and their wives. It's an absurd performance in pink elephant... {more}
This film is part of the following shorts programs:
USA
Directed By: David J. Ruck
English
Running Time: 71 Minutes
Is the lake supposed to be…green? THE ERIE SITUATION wades through the troubled waters of Lake Erie, whose highly toxic algae blooms are keeping boaters, fishermen, and water lovers at bay. In 2014 these toxins meandered their way into Toledo’s... {more}
USA
Directed By: Dan Watt
English
Running Time: 85 Minutes
It is essential that we learn what everyday life is like from a variety of viewpoints. Empathy is an important skill and one we should all possess. EVERYBODY DANCE is a documentary that gives us a glimpse into the lives... {more}
USA
Directed By: Ben Klein, Violet Columbus
English
Running Time: 96 Minutes
In THE EXILES, Ben Klein and Violet Columbus work with filmmaker and Academy Award® nominee Christine Choy in completing her documentary about Tiananmen Square. After an introduction of Choy, a character in every sense of the word, we get taken... {more}
United States
Directed By: Aaron Sims
English
Running Time: 9 Minutes
An intergalactic maintenance worker travels to a distant planet to fix a fallen drone, only to discover a hostile force that won't let her leave. {more}
This film is part of the following shorts programs:
CANADA
Directed By: Bobbi Jo Hart
English
Running Time: 96 Minutes
In the 1960s, an all-female rock band was making a name for themselves in the music scene…and their name was Fanny. With their long hair, rocking stage presence, and incredible instrumentation skills, Fanny was unlike any other girl group before... {more}
JORDAN, SWEDEN, SAUDI ARABIA
Directed By: Darin J. Sallam
Arabic, Hebrew, English
Running Time: 92 Minutes
It’s 1948 in Palestine, and British rule is coming to an end. Laughing children tauntingly chase the departing military vehicles with rocks and slingshots…but whispers of a different war are spreading through the countryside. Not particularly concerned with the looming... {more}
The Farmer and the Lightning Storm
USA
Directed By: Danielle Browne
English
Running Time: 5 Minutes
Burdened by frustration and fear, the Goddess of Lightning cannot find meaning in what she does and suppresses her abilities. Can a nearby farmer help Lightning regain confidence in her powers, and by extension, in herself? {more}
This film is part of the following shorts programs:
USA
Directed By: Rayna Buxton
English
Running Time: 2 Minutes
Ori, the eternally vexed keeper of a living lighthouse, struggles through his daily chores and finds comfort in his cat, Clam. {more}
This film is part of the following shorts programs:
Taiwan
Directed By: Chieh-Huei HSU
Mandarin Chinese
Running Time: 19 Minutes
A boy has helped his father all summer long with only one request. Will his father deliver? {more}
This film is part of the following shorts programs:
New Zealand
Directed By: Sam Gill
English
Running Time: 18 Minutes
Fetch sets out to prove that even in space a dog remains man's best friend. {more}
This film is part of the following shorts programs:
USA
Directed By: Marika Tamura
English
Running Time: 2 Minutes
A suicidal man encounters Death who tries to help him find the best place in the world to die. {more}
This film is part of the following shorts programs:
USA, CANADA
Directed By: Sara Dosa
French, English
Running Time: 93 Minutes
Enamored by the humbling experience of witnessing volcanic eruptions, legendary volcanologists and husband-and-wife forces of nature, Katia and Maurice Krafft, were fearless in the face of death. Their shared obsession with volcanoes sparked a lifelong romance with one another and... {more}
CHINA
Directed By: Zhang Ji
Chinese
Running Time: 113 Minutes
If you are looking for your next favorite film noir, look no further than FIRE ON THE PLAIN. The film starts on a cold winter’s night in China in 1997, where we meet Li Fei and Shu. Li Fei desperately... {more}
ESTONIA
Directed By: Peeter Rebane
English
Running Time: 107 Minutes
As a private on a Soviet Air Force base during the Cold War, Sergey is counting the days until his service is up. While there’s an unspoken assumption that he and fellow comrade Luisa are in love, both have instead... {more}
USA
Directed By: Brandon Kramer
English
Running Time: 89 Minutes
Depending where you fall on the political spectrum, political commentator Van Jones may evoke an array of different emotions. To some, he is seen as a truth teller and a changemaker. To others, he is a talking head for the... {more}
USA
Directed By: Oscar Rene Lozoya
English
Running Time: 12 Minutes
All Eric ever wanted was a friend. He just never knew how to find one. (Adapted from the short play, The Forgotten Place.) {more}
This film is part of the following shorts programs:
CANADA, USA
Directed By: Chase Joynt
English
Running Time: 75 Minutes
In the 1950s, far before the word transgender was used in the mainstream, Agnes Torres approached the UCLA Medical Center seeking sex reassignment surgery. Born male, Torres always felt she was meant to be in a woman’s body, and she... {more}
United States
Directed By: Conrad Miles
English
Running Time: 3 Minutes
A young woman navigates a world where everything is paid for by credits. {more}
This film is part of the following shorts programs:
USA
Directed By: David Grubin
English
Running Time: 95 Minutes
Who owns the rights to the violence of the past? Is it the victim or the perpetrator? No one wants to know the answer to this question more than Tamara Lanier. In FREE RENTY: LANIER V. HARVARD, Lanier is desperately... {more}
Canada
Directed By: Joe Bluhm, Michael Joseph McDonald, Nicholas Herd (Creative Director)
English
Running Time: 6 Minutes
This FreeBird coming-of-age story is about a boy with Down Syndrome who learns to navigate the world with a loving mother, an absent father, a classroom bully, and a life-long crush. {more}
This film is part of the following shorts programs:
France
Directed By: Olivia Martin McGuire
Chinese
Running Time: 15 Minutes
The story of a grandfather’s perilous swim from China to Hong Kong that parallels his granddaughter’s own quest for a new freedom. {more}
This film is part of the following shorts programs:
Canada
Directed By: Marianne Farley
French
Running Time: 19 Minutes
In the near future, following the adoption of an anti-abortion law, 35-year-old, Kara has no other choice but to end her pregnancy, using an illegal abortion clinic. {more}
This film is part of the following shorts programs:
USA
Directed By: Pat McGee
English
Running Time: 102 Minutes
For Kentucky, 2020 was an especially difficult year. The Covid-19 crisis compounded with the aftermath of Breonna Taylor’s murder highlighted systemic racial issues in a state that has suffered from stark inequality for decades. As one of the poorest states... {more}
Full Out: Inside Ohio Show Choir
USA
Directed By: Audrey Leach
English
Running Time: 88 Minutes
If the story of Glee was told by someone who had actually been to Ohio, you’d get FULL OUT: INSIDE OHIO SHOW CHOIR. Bursting with energy, humor, and sparkling personalities, the film follows the journeys of four high school show... {more}
USA
Directed By: Jacob Reed
English
Running Time: 12 Minutes
With meetings, hangouts, and classes happening virtually due to the Covid-19 quarantine, Santina is experiencing something new. But who will and will not be surprised when they learn what exactly that is? {more}
This film is part of the following shorts programs:
HUNGARY
Directed By: László Csuja, Anna Nemes
Hungarian
Running Time: 92 Minutes
As a female bodybuilder, Edina leads a life that revolves around one thing: pursuing the title of Miss Olympia. Day and night, Edina and her partner/trainer Adam obsessively plan for her success. With all of their time and resources going... {more}
South Korea
Directed By: Jayil Pak
Korean
Running Time: 30 Minutes
Based on the Miryang case in South Korea which shocked the nation in 2004, two computer-illiterate parents decide to design a protest banner when the police refuse to investigate their daughter's alleged suicide. {more}
This film is part of the following shorts programs:
FINLAND
Directed By: Alli Haapasalo
Finnish, French
Running Time: 100 Minutes
Mimmi is a surly teenager with an unworn sequin dress in her closet and a job at a local smoothie stand. Luckily, she works with her best friend, Rönkkö, whom she loves fiercely even when Rönkkö drags her to house... {more}
USA
Directed By: Nicole Rodenburg
English
Running Time: 104 Minutes
He’s an anxious, “mostly closeted” wannabe actor who’s wound a little too tight. She’s a directionless free spirit with a dry sense of humor and a drinking problem. Both are late bloomers with a fear of vulnerability. As the two... {more}
SOUTH AFRICA
Directed By: Jenna Cato Bass
Xhosa, English
Running Time: 92 Minutes
Reeling from her beloved grandmother’s death, Tsidi and her daughter Winnie have nowhere to turn. In reluctant desperation, Tsidi heads to Constantia, a white, well-to-do suburb of South Africa’s Cape Town, where her mother lives and works as an in-home... {more}
Australia
Directed By: Brian Patto
Assyrian
Running Time: 11 Minutes
A father living in war-torn Iraq protects his daughter from violent fanatics using the innocent game of hide-and-seek. {more}
This film is part of the following shorts programs:
USA, ITALY, SPAIN, SWITZERLAND
Directed By: Tommaso Sacconi, Alex Contell
English
Running Time: 81 Minutes
Digital photography, with its sharper edges, higher definition, and instant gratification, dramatically changed the way we capture and consume the imagery in front of us. But these “perfect” shots we see on our phones—in a world more distorted than ever—may... {more}
U.S.A
Directed By: John Maslowski
English
Running Time: 3 Minutes
A girl's visit to the aquarium takes a fateful turn. {more}
This film is part of the following shorts programs:
USA
Directed By: Lisa Maeda
English
Running Time: 4 Minutes
A young girl trapped within Japanese-American internment finds solace in painting flowers. Her colorful creations come to life and light up her world for a fleeting moment. {more}
This film is part of the following shorts programs:
Family Shorts 1
FilmSlam - Animated Cinema
FilmSlam - Cultural Cinema 'Light'
FRANCE
Directed By: Audrey Diwan
French
Running Time: 100 Minutes
In 1963 France, Anne, a promising young university student, is devastated to learn she’s pregnant. She immediately insists on termination, but her physician warns of the unsparing laws against either seeking or aiding abortions, and her tentative attempts to reach... {more}
FINLAND
Directed By: Hanna Bergholm
Finnish
Running Time: 87 Minutes
Tinja’s mother showcases their family’s existence on her popular blog “Lovely Everyday Life” as a brightly hued domestic idyll set amid manicured suburban perfection. Beneath the impeccable veneer, though, friendless tween gymnast Tinja is struggling, spending most of her time... {more}
USA
Directed By: John Gigrich
English
Running Time: 6 Minutes
The crew of a haunted house tries to find a teenaged trouble-making ghost, even though they're not sure if she'll talk their ears off or rip off their limbs. {more}
This film is part of the following shorts programs:
United States
Directed By: Rafael Jimenez, Alejandro Álvarez
English
Running Time: 9 Minutes
Friends Rashaun and Damon are talented basketball players from the same inner-city neighborhood. Both are NBA hopefuls, but Rashaun is the more coveted pick among college recruitment scouts. However, Rashaun’s passion isn't basketball and he instead desires to be a... {more}
This film is part of the following shorts programs:
IRAN
Directed By: Panah Panahi
Farsi
Running Time: 93 Minutes
Much like any road trip, no matter who is in the car, the temperament of those inside shifts. One moment everyone is laughing, and the next someone is yelling, while another person may be crying. However, HIT THE ROAD is... {more}
Belgium, France
Directed By: Leoluna Robert-Tourneur
no dialogue
Running Time: 6 Minutes
In the heart of a dark forest, two silhouettes meet, attract, and repel each other in an explosive bridal parade. {more}
This film is part of the following shorts programs:
USA
Directed By: Joseph Sackett
English
Running Time: 75 Minutes
If you're looking for a body swap film in a chaotic “Freaky Friday” style…look elsewhere. Joseph Sackett’s HOMEBODY approaches the trope with a more gentle and steady hand, though chaos does still ensue…Nine-year-old Johnny is attached to his babysitter, Melanie.... {more}
USA, South Korea
Directed By: Sea Jin Park
English
Running Time: 3 Minutes
Created to draw awareness to the danger posed to manatees by boaters, especially in Florida, this is a bittersweet animated film in which jellyfish attempt to create an illuminating barrier between manatees and the boats that threaten them. {more}
This film is part of the following shorts programs:
UNITED KINGDOM
Directed By: Sophie Robinson, Dunstan Bruce
English
Running Time: 88 Minutes
For anyone who lived through the 1990s, one-hit-wonder Chumbawamba’s Tubthumping was undeniably part of the decade’s nostalgic soundtrack. The band’s unexpected success and leap into the mainstream, however, was a stark contrast to the group’s foundational anti-establishment roots. As self-proclaimed... {more}
United States
Directed By: Cheray O'Neal
English
Running Time: 2 Minutes
What happens when quarantine, a poet, police brutality, and 25 kids collide? Mediate on this fearless spoken word protest that can only be summed up in four words, and witness this powerful testimony of love and loss from our greatest... {more}
This film is part of the following shorts programs:
USA
Directed By: Brian Olliver
English
Running Time: 3 Minutes
Desperate to find the perfect new employee during a job interview, a weary office manager discovers that his new recruit is not what he seems. {more}
This film is part of the following shorts programs:
imperfect (WITH AUDIO DESCRIPTION)
USA
Directed By: Brian Malone, Regan Linton
English
Running Time: 78 Minutes
THIS IS THE LISTING FOR THE VERSION OF IMPERFECT THAT CONTAINS AUDIO DESCRIPTION FOR THE VISUALLY IMPAIRED. TO PURCHASE A TICKET TO THE VERSION WITHOUT AUDIO DESCRIPTION, PLEASE VISIT THE IMPERFECT (WITH NO AUDIO DESCRIPTION) PAGE. For many artists and performers... {more}
imperfect (WITH NO AUDIO DESCRIPTION)
USA
Directed By: Brian Malone, Regan Linton
English
Running Time: 78 Minutes
THIS IS THE LISTING FOR THE VERSION OF IMPERFECT THAT DOES NOT CONTAIN AUDIO DESCRIPTION FOR THE VISUALLY IMPAIRED. TO PURCHASE A TICKET TO THE VERSION WITH AUDIO DESCRIPTION, PLEASE VISIT THE IMPERFECT (WITH AUDIO DESCRIPTION) PAGE. For many artists and... {more}
United States
Directed By: Brian Scott Steele
English
Running Time: 20 Minutes
Jeremy. Just. DIED. So, in the event of his death, he leaves behind a series of clever clues and witty video messages for his best friend and bandmate Sam, and his brash sister Mandy, which sends them on an adventure... {more}
This film is part of the following shorts programs:
USA
Directed By: Annalise Lockhart
English
Running Time: 13 Minutes
A Black family in rural Vermont attempts to live a life of solitude and cope with the ghosts living on their property. {more}
This film is part of the following shorts programs:
USA
Directed By: Sandra Alvarez
English
Running Time: 102 Minutes
What happens when your city’s largest nonprofit health provider becomes a monopoly? When the multi-billion-dollar nonprofit hospital system University of Pittsburgh Medical Center decided they would no longer accept Highmark Insurance after June 2019, Pittsburgh patients faced a lose-lose decision:... {more}
NORWAY
Directed By: Eskil Vogt
Norwegian
Running Time: 117 Minutes
There’s an unsettling side to Ida, who dabbles in harming animals, and her autistic sister Anna. Often tasked with watching Anna while their parents settle into the family’s new apartment, Ida soon befriends loner Ben, while she leaves Anna to... {more}
United States of America
Directed By: Philip Musey
English
Running Time: 15 Minutes
In July 1916, Garrett Morgan and his brother Frank risked their lives to save miners trapped in an underground inferno using an invention of Morgan's own making. But the morning newspapers left their heroic efforts out of the story entirely. {more}
This film is part of the following shorts programs:
Kuwait
Directed By: Maysaa Almumin
Arabic
Running Time: 14 Minutes
A woman in a downhearted mood struggles to keep up appearances in front of her chirpy and driven office colleagues. An encounter with a dying cockroach in the office toilet develops into an absurd friendship, becoming the comforting companionship she... {more}
This film is part of the following shorts programs:
USA
Directed By: Emma Pildes, Tia Lessin
English
Running Time: 101 Minutes
In the spring of 1972, police raided an apartment on the South Side of Chicago. Seven women were arrested and charged. The accused were part of a clandestine network. Using code names, blindfolds, and safe houses to protect their identities... {more}
USA
Directed By: Brian Sacca
English
Running Time: 7 Minutes
Myrtle has gone off the rails today, spouting all types of nonsense about her past. None of it can be true, right? RIGHT?! {more}
This film is part of the following shorts programs:
United Kingdom
Directed By: Kirsty Robinson-Ward
English
Running Time: 14 Minutes
Within the ambiguous safety of a service station, a concerned father and his scared daughter take refuge. Rachel lives with bipolar disorder and the invisibility of her condition has become all too real for both herself and her father. {more}
This film is part of the following shorts programs:
CAMBODIA, USA
Directed By: Jake Wachtel
Central Khmer, English
Running Time: 102 Minutes
When Leng Heng dreams, vivid imagery emerges from his former lives, which all lead to the same mysterious treasure: a solitary gold figurine. When he wakes, Leng Heng fervently sketches scenes from these windows into the past, tracing clues to... {more}
USA
Directed By: Nick Cavalier
English
Running Time: 17 Minutes
A documentary portrait of husband and wife culinary duo, Genie Kwon and Tim Flores, as they open their first Chicago restaurant, Kasama, during the Covid-19 pandemic. {more}
This film is part of the following shorts programs:
ITALY
Directed By: Mario Martone
Italian
Running Time: 133 Minutes
Performing for a full house night after night in 19th century Naples, Eduardo Scarpetta adores the spotlight. Known for his hilarious stage plays, he lives for opulence and his pompous, self-absorbed self. A man of many roles—father, uncle, and rumored... {more}
UKRAINE
Directed By: Maryna Er Gorbach
Ukrainian, Russian, German
Running Time: 100 Minutes
Russian forces are moving in, but Irka refuses to leave her home teetering on the rural Ukraine/Russia border. Her husband, Tolik, caves to the demands of the armed men whose visits grow more frequent, and he urges Irka that they... {more}
Luxembourg
Directed By: Émile V. Schlesser
Luxembourgish, German, English
Running Time: 14 Minutes
Once a wealthy family, the Kowalsky’s fortune is gradually falling apart. When the only son comes begging his widowed mother for help, an ugly row escalates between the two that forces them to bitter choices and cruel deeds. A dark... {more}
This film is part of the following shorts programs:
Comedy Shorts 1
FilmSlam - German Language Cinema
Shorts Program 10
USA
Directed By: Alysa Nahmias
English
Running Time: 85 Minutes
Growing up, Jesse Krimes knew his life was different from the rest of his friends’ lives. Raised by his teenage mother, Jesse and his family struggled financially for most of his childhood. Despite the ups and downs, Jesse was always... {more}
Germany
Directed By: Jan Gadermann (director), Sebastian Gadow (co-director)
no dialogue
Running Time: 15 Minutes
Nemo looks different. Nobody else wears a diving suit and such a huge helmet. But then he meets Laika, an astronaut. {more}
This film is part of the following shorts programs:
FilmSlam - Animated Cinema
FilmSlam - Cultural Cinema 'Light'
United States
Directed By: Jordan Matthew Horowitz
Spanish
Running Time: 17 Minutes
When Covid-19 forced his school to close and remote learning proved impossible, a teacher in Guatemala built a classroom on wheels to bring education directly to his students. {more}
This film is part of the following shorts programs:
FilmSlam - Cultural Cinema
FilmSlam - Spanish Language Cinema
INDIA
Directed By: Pan Nalin
Gujarati
Running Time: 110 Minutes
Nine-year-old Samay is obsessed with film. Unfortunately, because he is from the intellectual Brahmin caste in India, his father believes that cinema is against their values and forbids Samay from watching. But just like the romance in the movies, no... {more}
United Kingdom
Directed By: REMY BAZERQUE
ENGLISH
Running Time: 10 Minutes
Things get wild at visa and immigration services' when Karim, a young Iranian father living in the United Kingdom, is mistakenly threatened with deportation. {more}
This film is part of the following shorts programs:
Canada
Directed By: Annie St-Pierre
French
Running Time: 18 Minutes
It's Christmas Eve, 1983 and Denis, alone in his car, is anxious at the idea of setting foot in his ex-in-law's house to pick up his children. {more}
This film is part of the following shorts programs:
USA
Directed By: Colin West
English
Running Time: 101 Minutes
In the fictional Fairview Heights, Ohio, Cameron Edwin (Jim Gaffigan), the host of a public access children’s science program, finds himself in what most would call a mid-life crisis. But when cosmic events bring a satellite crash to his backyard,... {more}
FRANCE
Directed By: Julien Rappeneau
French
Running Time: 103 Minutes
The world of young Nicholas is harmonious and consistent: he has a mom, a dad, a kind schoolteacher, and the best group of friends a young boy could ask for. However, his peaceful world is shattered when his father gets... {more}
USA
Directed By: Max Walker-Silverman
English
Running Time: 81 Minutes
After unhitching her camper at a lakeside in the mountains, Faye finds her rhythm cooking meals, retrieving crawfish from a trap, and scanning her old box radio for a station. She looks expectantly at the approach of a car or... {more}
FRANCE, BELGIUM, SWITZERLAND
Directed By: Antoine Barraud
French
Running Time: 102 Minutes
Judith adores her life in Switzerland with Abdel and daughter Ninon. But work takes her away for days at a time to Spain, Poland, and other countries that come to mind when she spins her alibi. In reality she’s commuting... {more}
United States
Directed By: Ellie Gravitte
English
Running Time: 20 Minutes
A chance encounter between a young musician (Alexis Floyd, Inventing Anna) and a street busker leads to an enchanted journey of song and self-discovery one midnight in New York City. {more}
This film is part of the following shorts programs:
United States
Directed By: Judah Ray
English
Running Time: 23 Minutes
Sometimes what you're afraid of, is what will set you free. It's 1969, and Janis is stranded on the side of a desolate, desert road, where she's picked up by a stranger, Dennis, who helps her come to terms with... {more}
This film is part of the following shorts programs:
USA
Directed By: Daresha Kyi
English
Running Time: 91 Minutes
Like many other devout Christians, Kimberly Shappley grew up believing sexual and gender orientation was a choice—and deviating from the cisgendered heterosexual norm was not only the wrong choice, but also a deadly sin. But everything changed after her son... {more}
United States
Directed By: Brian Lachowski
English
Running Time: 5 Minutes
The story of an aspiring mime who struggles to entertain people in a world where everybody hates mimes. {more}
This film is part of the following shorts programs:
Argentina
Directed By: Gastón Calivari
Spanish
Running Time: 18 Minutes
Gastón meets the clown that animated his three-year-old birthday party, who now has new life as Marcel—a trans woman who attends his flower shop next to the cemetery of Nogoyá, Argentina. {more}
This film is part of the following shorts programs:
BRAZIL
Directed By: Gabriel Martins
Portuguese
Running Time: 115 Minutes
In the aftermath of the election of Brazilian president Jair Bolsonaro, the Martins family struggles to navigate the complexities of their working class lives. Balancing their financial realities with their individual aspirations, each family member is chasing down their own... {more}
CZECH REPUBLIC, SLOVAKIA, GERMANY
Directed By: Petr Oukropec
Czech
Running Time: 80 Minutes
Martin’s not much for the outdoors, so he’s less than enthused when his mom sends him off to an eco-friendly summer camp: no cell phones allowed. Secluded in a wilderness paradise, campers build campfires, learn survival skills, and explore the... {more}
USA
Directed By: Kate Tsang
English
Running Time: 81 Minutes
After the death of her mother and the quick introduction of her father’s new girlfriend into their family, 13-year-old Sammy is angry. Lashing out, Sammy repeatedly finds herself getting into trouble in school and at home. Faced with the threat... {more}
U.S.A.
Directed By: Omar S. Kamara
English
Running Time: 21 Minutes
Over a day of landscaping work, a first generation African American and his immigrant father have their tense relationship and different outlooks on life transformed irreversibly when they are racially profiled by police. {more}
This film is part of the following shorts programs:
USA
Directed By: Matt MacDonald
English
Running Time: 15 Minutes
A jolly grocery store manager learns to stand up for himself after a misunderstanding brands him as public enemy #1. {more}
This film is part of the following shorts programs:
United States
Directed By: Ian Kelly
English
Running Time: 9 Minutes
On Memorial Day 1937, police opened fire on a crowd of striking steelworkers in Southeast Chicago, killing ten. How do we remember this history? {more}
This film is part of the following shorts programs:
United Kingdom
Directed By: Neeraja Raj
English
Running Time: 10 Minutes
In a madcap musical, a catstronaut travels the galaxy looking for the meaning of life when she encounters a space pup eager to help, but only gets them into trouble at every turn! {more}
This film is part of the following shorts programs:
USA
Directed By: Emily Kuester, Brad Lichtenstein
English
Running Time: 94 Minutes
Football players were dwindling for teams at Milwaukee’s Messmer (urban and predominately Black) and Shorewood (affluent and largely white) high schools. To give boys the opportunity to play under the famous Friday night lights, the communities decided to merge their... {more}
MYANMAR, CANADA, GERMANY
Directed By: Snow Hnin Ei Hlaing
Rohingya, Rakhine, Burmese
Running Time: 91 Minutes
In 2016 Myanmar, a predominantly Buddhist country, began an ethnic cleansing campaign began against Rohingya Muslims, blaming them for all of the problems in their communities. Over the last few years, tens of thousands of Muslims have been killed in... {more}
USA, MEXICO
Directed By: Isabel Castro
English, Spanish
Running Time: 88 Minutes
Doris Muñoz desperately longed for better representation in the indie music she listened to as a teenager. At 23, she took matters into her own hands and began a career in music talent management, passionately advocating for rising Latinx artists.... {more}
NEW ZEALAND
Directed By: Michelle Savill
English
Running Time: 100 Minutes
Millie’s life is on track; she is a promising young architect in New Zealand who has just landed her dream internship in New York City. But when a panic attack derails her travel plans, the finely woven web of lies... {more}
ROMANIA, CZECH REPUBLIC, LATVIA
Directed By: Bogdan George Apetri
Romanian
Running Time: 118 Minutes
Cristina sneaks in a tearful prayer before she secretly slips off the grounds of her rural Romanian convent. Church bells usher her to a cab discreetly parked just out of view, and soon she’s on her way to the hospital.... {more}
USA
Directed By: Kelly Walker
English
Running Time: 10 Minutes
Cat is pregnant and doesn’t want to be. Since support is scarce and options are limited, she decides to take a non-traditional approach by enlisting the help of Sophie—a local doula who aids women as they take matters into their... {more}
This film is part of the following shorts programs:
Miss Alma Thomas: A Life in Color
USA
Directed By: Cheri Gaulke
English
Running Time: 20 Minutes
Alma W. Thomas lived a life of firsts: the first Fine Arts graduate of Howard University (1924), the first Black woman to mount a retrospective at the Whitney Museum of American Art (1972), and the first Black woman to have... {more}
This film is part of the following shorts programs:
FINLAND, GERMANY
Directed By: Tania Anderson
English, Finnish
Running Time: 95 Minutes
Missionary work is one of the most important tenets to the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (LDS). Each year over 60,000 young LDS members are sent all over the world to preach their gospel and to convert as... {more}
Mission: Joy - Finding Happiness in Troubled Times
USA
Directed By: Louie Psihoyos
English, Tibetan
Running Time: 90 Minutes
A room has never heard more laughter than when His Holiness the Dalai Lama and the late Archbishop Desmond Tutu sit down in easy chairs to shoot the breeze in the spring of 2015. The delightful documentary MISSION: JOY –... {more}
Mixtape Trilogy: Stories of the Power of Music
USA
Directed By: Kathleen Ermitage
English
Running Time: 94 Minutes
Music is more than a collection of sounds traveling from an instrument to our ears; the collective experience of listening to music promotes unification and formation of community. Former Akronite Dylan Yellowlees found her community in the audiences of the... {more}
France
Directed By: Suki
No Dialogue
Running Time: 6 Minutes
In a deafening noise of chainsaws, loggers happily hum as they cut down trees to be used as decor for a fashion show. This contemporary cartoon satire, in the form of a burlesque action musical tragi-comedy, leads us into a... {more}
This film is part of the following shorts programs:
Germany
Directed By: Ulf Grenzer
German
Running Time: 4 Minutes
An ape at the zoo is reminiscing about his life in the jungle. The encounter with a manager and his daughter changes his cage life forever. {more}
This film is part of the following shorts programs:
Family Shorts 3
FilmSlam - Cultural Cinema 'Light'
FilmSlam - German Language Cinema
USA
Directed By: David Siegel, Scott McGehee
English
Running Time: 113 Minutes
Mountains, unmovable, frame every shot in this soft, steady drama about a pair of estranged siblings who are brought together when their father falls into a coma. Cal is calm and solid, even with a hurricane of emotions happening within... {more}
USA
Directed By: Amy Bench
English
Running Time: 14 Minutes
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... {more}
This film is part of the following shorts programs:
UK
Directed By: William Joyce
English
Running Time: 13 Minutes
A man with a head full of dreams is beaten down by the foremen in the factory where he works. Then he meets the Woman in the Polka Dot Dress who brings meaning, love, and dreams back to his life. {more}
This film is part of the following shorts programs:
France
Directed By: Hugo de Faucompret
French
Running Time: 29 Minutes
Jane is looking forward to spending Christmas with her mom but she is sent unknowingly to her grandma’s instead. The holidays turn out to be quite an adventure as Jane meets new friends: Cloclo, the gigantic hobo who lives in... {more}
This film is part of the following shorts programs:
United States
Directed By: Eli Manos
English
Running Time: 9 Minutes
A crazed man wants to turn his house plants into salads. The house plants have other ideas. {more}
This film is part of the following shorts programs:
CROATIA, USA, BRAZIL, SLOVENIA
Directed By: Antoneta Alamat Kusijanović
Croatian, English
Running Time: 92 Minutes
Sun-kissed hillsides and waves lapping the shore of an island floating in the Adriatic Sea is paradise for most, but not for Julija. Even though it’s home, it may as well be a prison. It’s no secret Julija despises her... {more}
SPAIN
Directed By: Adrián Silvestre
English, French, Spanish
Running Time: 98 Minutes
Raphi, young and naive, enjoys writing love poems and dreams about falling in love. She decided to leave her native France and moved to Barcelona, where she works in a call center. Her many attempts to maintain relationships with other... {more}
United States
Directed By: Bill McGarvey
English
Running Time: 3 Minutes
This film follows “Mugsy,” an animated coffee cup as he wakes up after a night of revelry on top of a bar strewn with the remnants of an epic celebration. As he recounts his troubles, the world of the bar... {more}
This film is part of the following shorts programs:
UNITED KINGDOM
Directed By: Jono McLeod
English
Running Time: 104 Minutes
When 16-year-old Brandon Lee (not that Brandon Lee) first enrolled as a new student at Scotland’s Bearsden Academy, his classmates immediately felt there was something off about him…but they couldn’t quite put their finger on it. After learning he had... {more}
Germany
Directed By: Andreas Kessler
German, Russian, Ukrainian, Yiddish
Running Time: 33 Minutes
12-year-old violin player Mitka is supposed to execute an attack on several SS officers in the name of a partisan movement. But this attempt will also put his only friend in danger. {more}
This film is part of the following shorts programs:
United States
Directed By: Jacob McSharma
English / Hindi
Running Time: 11 Minutes
A new mom contends with her traditional Indian father while trying to sleep train her infant. {more}
This film is part of the following shorts programs:
USA
Directed By: Daniel Roher
English, Russian
Running Time: 98 Minutes
In August 2020, a plane traveling from Siberia to Moscow made an emergency landing. One of its passengers, Russian opposition leader Alexei Navalny, was deathly ill. Taken to a local Siberian hospital and eventually evacuated to Berlin, doctors confirmed that... {more}
United States of America
Directed By: Franco Machado-Pesce
Spanish
Running Time: 12 Minutes
After getting beat up by the local racist bullies, Nacho only feels hate in his heart. However, when he finds a mysterious creature hiding within a magical bus, he learns that hate is caused by fear, and on the other... {more}
This film is part of the following shorts programs:
United States
Directed By: Afton Quast Saler
English
Running Time: 25 Minutes
When a 35-year-old film student is diagnosed with ADHD, she turns the camera on herself. {more}
This film is part of the following shorts programs:
USA
Directed By: Laki Karavias
English
Running Time: 14 Minutes
While anxiously awaiting the results of his mother’s visa renewal request, a teenage boy living in Texas is confronted with buried memories he left behind in Uganda. {more}
This film is part of the following shorts programs:
France
Directed By: Céline PRIMARD
French
Running Time: 21 Minutes
Zohra leads a double life—she hides the existence of her husband and their daughter from her mother. Caught between two worlds and in the grip of her older sister, Zohra maintains a lie that has become too heavy to bear.... {more}
This film is part of the following shorts programs:
FilmSlam - Arabic Language Cinema
FilmSlam - French Language Cinema
No Straight Lines: The Rise of Queer Comics
USA
Directed By: Vivian Kleiman
English
Running Time: 78 Minutes
When Rupert Kinnard‘s comic strip character the Brown Bomber (inspired by the boxer, Joe Louis) came out as gay in 1977, he became the first ever Black, queer comic character to be serialized. And he was a superhero to boot!... {more}
Germany
Directed By: Alexandra Mauritz
german
Running Time: 23 Minutes
A lonely seamstress receives a strange request: to sew a cloak made only from the wings of moths. A work of delicate beauty is painstakingly crafted, and with it a fragile bond between two lost souls. But as soon as... {more}
This film is part of the following shorts programs:
USA
Directed By: P.J. Palmer
English
Running Time: 30 Minutes
A rural rancher and his ailing husband, struggling against poverty and isolation, make a heartbreaking decision in order to preserve the dignity of their marriage in the face of mounting pressures from relatives. {more}
This film is part of the following shorts programs:
United Kingdom
Directed By: Thiago Maia
English
Running Time: 2 Minutes
This film looks at the impacts humanity is having on the animal kingdom in the hopes of inspiring change. {more}
This film is part of the following shorts programs:
Canada
Directed By: Lou Rigoudy
French
Running Time: 3 Minutes
A baby girl stumbles across a box. In it, she discovers a new friend, a teddy bear. Like a dream, we are transported through moments in their relationship, flashes in time, as the girl begins to run, play, and learn... {more}
This film is part of the following shorts programs:
NETHERLANDS, BELGIUM
Directed By: Alex van Warmerdam
Dutch, German, English
Running Time: 100 Minutes
What starts as an exceptionally human, voyeuristic drama steadily expands into an introspective reflection on family, fact, and colonialism. Günter, who was found abandoned in the woods as a child, is now a talented stage actor living a relatively normal... {more}
MEXICO
Directed By: Ángeles Cruz
Spanish
Running Time: 91 Minutes
Set against the backdrop of the fictional village San Mateo’s annual festival, three people return to their hometown in the Mexican state of Oaxaca. While all three left San Mateo to find work and opportunity in the city as economic... {more}
United Kingdom
Directed By: Natasha Jatania
English
Running Time: 11 Minutes
A father and son take the time to spread the ashes of the mother. After the unemotional experience they begin to talk about spontaneity and the father's missed opportunities. Thus begins their shared journey. {more}
This film is part of the following shorts programs:
USA
Directed By: Maya Cueva, Leah Galant
English, Spanish
Running Time: 79 Minutes
The Whole Women’s Health Clinic in McAllen, Texas is the only remaining facility that provides abortions along the U.S./Mexico border. Just down the street, the Women’s Health Clinic (purposely named to create confusion) boasts free pregnancy tests and sonograms, encouraging... {more}
USA
Directed By: Aaron Hosé
English
Running Time: 89 Minutes
To Shaun Harris, co-owner and brewmaster of Harris Family Brewery, the first Black-owned brewery in Pennsylvania, sharing a beer with someone is a way to establish common ground and start conversations that matter; brewing beer is his contribution to the... {more}
USA
Directed By: Ryan Maxey
English
Running Time: 89 Minutes
Each winter hundreds of thousands of snow birds flock to Quartzsite, Arizona, an offbeat camping and RV haven sitting comfortably between L.A. and Phoenix. Known as the “Desert Phenomenon,” this little-known pocket of sand serves as a temporary home to... {more}
Thailand
Directed By: Abhichoke Chandrasen
English, Thai
Running Time: 19 Minutes
A scoring assistant working on a horror feature film finds her debilitating perfectionism has manifested as the film's malevolent spirit who will not let her live past the night unless she delivers a perfect score. {more}
This film is part of the following shorts programs:
Our (Almost Completely True) Story
USA
Directed By: Don Scardino
English
Running Time: 92 Minutes
Life in Hollywood has lost its luster for timeless actress, Mariette Hartley. Although her reputation precedes her from the peak of her acting career decades prior, meaningful work these days—and a decent date—are hard to find. When Mariette meets Jerry... {more}
USA
Directed By: Beth Murphy
English
Running Time: 22 Minutes
Jonah Gottlieb, a Bay Area teen moved to action because of wildfires raging in his backyard, investigates the connection between climate change and fire and how the Indigenous practice of cultural burns can offer solutions. {more}
This film is part of the following shorts programs:
United States
Directed By: Sarah Klein, Tom Mason
English
Running Time: 9 Minutes
Olympic shot putter Raven Saunders shares her childhood trauma, the intensity of her 2016 Olympic experience, and the pitfalls of celebrity that challenged her mental health. {more}
This film is part of the following shorts programs:
USA
Directed By: Brandon Jackson, Emil Benjamin
English
Running Time: 91 Minutes
Since colonizers set foot on this soil, violent massacres, forced assimilation tactics, and unjust legislation have been used to eradicate Indigenous People from their sacred lands. Since the 1800s, the U.S. government has broken countless peace treaties with Native tribes... {more}
China
Directed By: Yifei Song
Chinese
Running Time: 11 Minutes
When ten-year-old Feifei wants to enroll for a painting class but is refused by her parents, she steals the money from her brother. {more}
This film is part of the following shorts programs:
France
Directed By: Coline Béal
French
Running Time: 16 Minutes
Parents find themselves questioning their past as they try to understand what led to the day that changed their lives and their daughter's forever. {more}
This film is part of the following shorts programs:
FRANCE
Directed By: Jacques Audiard
French
Running Time: 106 Minutes
In the sprawling city of Paris, strangers, friends, and lovers wander for companionship. Confident of what they want, but not yet knowing what they need, they struggle to find just the right fit to fill their respective voids. Young Émilie,... {more}
United States
Directed By: Rob Edwards
English
Running Time: 4 Minutes
As Bella struggles to cope with her father's Sickle Cell diagnosis, she is befriended by an unlikely ally who lends a helping hand (or wing). {more}
This film is part of the following shorts programs:
USA
Directed By: David M. Massey
English
Running Time: 17 Minutes
In 1600, Gamba, leader of a West African Village, faces a new challenge that could endanger his family and village. {more}
This film is part of the following shorts programs:
GERMANY
Directed By: Tobias Wiemann
German
Running Time: 99 Minutes
The year is 1940, and Rolf, his father Ludwig, and his dog Adi (named Adolf only so they can watch him play dead) are trapped in Marseilles and being persecuted by Nazis. They are desperate to escape to America, where... {more}
CANADA
Directed By: Jonathan Keijser
English, Arabic
Running Time: 96 Minutes
When the Hadhads fled Damascus to escape the war in Syria, they were forced to leave everything behind, including their thriving chocolate business. Now, as refugees new to Antigonish, Nova Scotia, they must adapt to their unfamiliar life in a... {more}
United States
Directed By: Cinque Northern
English
Running Time: 26 Minutes
This film tells the story of playwright Liza Jessie Peterson's shutdown 2020 performance of her acclaimed play The Peculiar Patriot at Angola, the Louisiana State Penitentiary, America’s largest prison-plantation. The documentary examines what led to the shutdown of the performance,... {more}
This film is part of the following shorts programs:
Australia
Directed By: Sophie Somerville
English
Running Time: 18 Minutes
Peek into the inner world of a turbulent teenage friendship group on their after-school shopping trip. {more}
This film is part of the following shorts programs:
PUERTO RICO
Directed By: Macha Colón
Spanish
Running Time: 97 Minutes
Isabel spends her days in the same repetitive routine: cooking, scrubbing dishes, hanging laundry, and caring for her dying husband, Mario. When he finally passes, loved ones fill the funeral home, including a gossipy circle of elderly women praising Isabel’s... {more}
USA
Directed By: Amy Bandlien Storkel, Bryan Storkel
English
Running Time: 84 Minutes
For years Steve was miserable in his job as a machinist. Each day Steve would clock into his factory job and dream of a more adventurous life. Little did Steve know, the adventure of a lifetime would find him soon... {more}
United States
Directed By: Dava Whisenant
English
Running Time: 3 Minutes
A humorous cautionary tale about the perils of trusting a stranger with your phone. {more}
This film is part of the following shorts programs:
SPAIN
Directed By: Carlota Pereda
Spanish
Running Time: 90 Minutes
It’s hard to be a teen. The girls who relentlessly torment Sara make the infamous bullies in “Carrie” seem tame. Online and in person, they heckle her with jeers of “Piggy.” While it’s an unimaginative and cruel nickname about Sara’s... {more}
United States
Directed By: Carmen LoBue
English
Running Time: 13 Minutes
After a surprise first-time pregnancy, a trans couple of color wrestles with how the new baby will affect their relationship and how to raise a child in a binary world. {more}
This film is part of the following shorts programs:
USA
Directed By: Ori Segev, Noah Dixon
English
Running Time: 87 Minutes
An outsider, Lennon longs to be a part of the thriving underground music scene in Columbus, Ohio. But the only way the quiet and self-conscious Lennon can position herself next to the artists she admires is by interviewing them for... {more}
USA
Directed By: Paige Morrow Kimball
English
Running Time: 24 Minutes
A budding artist in her 60s spreads joy in her urban community by hanging sculptures on telephone poles with messages of positivity. Afraid to get caught, she disguises herself as a man, hanging them anonymously. Through her random acts of... {more}
This film is part of the following shorts programs:
CHILE
Directed By: Vee Bravo
Spanish
Running Time: 96 Minutes
“What you don’t share will be lost.” This call to solidarity is the heartbeat of PRIMERA. When a student revolt against inflated metro prices sparks a national revolution in Chile, the Primera (“First Line”) is established by the people. Armed... {more}
BRAZIL
Directed By: Aly Muritiba
Portuguese
Running Time: 120 Minutes
Sara boldly stares Daniel in the eyes before turning around and unzipping the dress he bought for her. She shimmies out of the garment and holds it out to him, but lets the dress fall before he can grab it.... {more}
United States
Directed By: Jaren Leiken
English
Running Time: 23 Minutes
A student documentary about homelessness by 17-year-old Jaren Leiken (a high school senior in Cleveland, Ohio) that asks three questions: what is homelessness; what are people and organizations doing to prevent and cure homelessness; and how can young people help?... {more}
This film is part of the following shorts programs:
ICELAND
Directed By: Tinna Hrafnsdóttir
Icelandic
Running Time: 104 Minutes
While walking through a park with her six-year-old son, Ívar, Saga experiences an epileptic fit, terrifying her son and causing partial memory loss. Fearful she will be labeled an unfit mother, Saga endeavors to hide the extent of her condition... {more}
CANADA
Directed By: Haya Waseem
English, Urdu
Running Time: 89 Minutes
As the oldest daughter of Pakistani immigrants, Sheila finds herself in a delicate balance between two very different worlds. While studying performing arts at her university, Sheila longs to fit in with her peers, socializing and partying. But she is... {more}
FRANCE
Directed By: Sandrine Kiberlain
French
Running Time: 98 Minutes
It's summer in Paris in 1942 and Irene is in love—in love with her studies as a young budding actress, in love with her life as a young woman in the city, and in love with her doctor’s handsome assistant.... {more}
USA
Directed By: Kevin Ung
English
Running Time: 6 Minutes
A man who is down on his luck gets a second shot at life when he finds a magical refrigerator. {more}
This film is part of the following shorts programs:
USA
Directed By: Erin Bernhardt, Din Blankenship
English
Running Time: 80 Minutes
In LaFayette, Georgia, where roadside farm stands of peaches are as commonplace as the Confederate flag, Chris is full of rage. After enlisting in the U.S. Army in response to 9/11, Chris spent 13 years defending his country and learning... {more}
UK, France
Directed By: Pierre B
English
Running Time: 7 Minutes
A young girl in her age of innocence discovers a magical drawing hidden behind her bedroom wall. {more}
This film is part of the following shorts programs:
United States
Directed By: Elle Mills
English
Running Time: 14 Minutes
15-year-old Sam Trottier decides to make a film after he finds a box of his mom's videotapes hidden in their attic from the summer of 2006. The tapes show Sam's mom Casey documenting herself working on one last project before... {more}
This film is part of the following shorts programs:
United States
Directed By: Michael Pawlusik
English
Running Time: 8 Minutes
During the conquest of a hostile controlled city, a team of soldiers are dispatched to rescue a wounded tank crew only to discover it’s an ambush. {more}
This film is part of the following shorts programs:
RESIST: The Resistance Revival Chorus
United States
Directed By: Susan O'Brien
English
Running Time: 20 Minutes
In the midst of a country divided, a diverse group of women and non-binary individuals unite through the historic power of music to create a movement ignited by song. {more}
This film is part of the following shorts programs:
USA
Directed By: Andrew Semans
English
Running Time: 103 Minutes
Margaret (Rebecca Hall) leads a successful and orderly life, perfectly balancing the demands of her busy career and single parenthood to her fiercely independent daughter Abbie. But that careful balance is upended when she glimpses a man she instantly recognizes,... {more}
The Return of Tanya Tucker—featuring Brandi Carlile
USA
Directed By: Kathlyn Horan
English
Running Time: 104 Minutes
You don’t have to be the loudest voice, embrace the biggest personality, or have the most number one hits to make an indelible impact, and Tanya Tucker is proof. Tucker’s 1972 hit single, Delta Dawn, catapulted her to recognition at... {more}
USA
Directed By: Mark Kunerth
English
Running Time: 21 Minutes
While many people are aware of the world of professional competitive eating, this short film mockumentary, narrated by Minnie Driver, follows the journey of three of America's up-and-coming amateur competitive eaters, eager to break into the big leagues and join... {more}
This film is part of the following shorts programs:
France
Directed By: Geoffrey Fighiera
French
Running Time: 18 Minutes
Laurent's weekend getaway with his mistress takes an unexpected turn. {more}
This film is part of the following shorts programs:
United States
Directed By: Andrew E. Rudd
English
Running Time: 13 Minutes
22 improv actors perform a character based on regrets submitted by anonymous confessions. All of them are vying for a promotional opportunity for a new time travel company. Three contestants are chosen and sent back to the moments of their... {more}
This film is part of the following shorts programs:
Running Home - The Run4Water Story
United States
Directed By: Scott Leighton
English
Running Time: 26 Minutes
Over the course of 11 days, clean water activist and adventurer Katie Spotz (best known for breaking a world record as the youngest person to complete a solo row across the Atlantic Ocean) ran 341 miles across the state of... {more}
This film is part of the following shorts programs:
USA
Directed By: Michelle Uranowitz, Daniel Jaffe
ENGLISH
Running Time: 7 Minutes
A young woman faces a moral dilemma when she witnesses a sexual encounter in a dressing room at the clothing store where she works. {more}
This film is part of the following shorts programs:
SENEGAL, FRANCE
Directed By: Jean Luc Herbulot
Wolof, French
Running Time: 80 Minutes
It’s 2003 in Guinea-Bissau, and the military has declared a coup. Amidst the violent chaos, a trio of infamous mercenaries called Bangui’s Hyenas are on a mission to smuggle a notorious drug dealer out of the country. When their trip... {more}
LATVIA
Directed By: Aik Karapetian
Latvian, English
Running Time: 85 Minutes
While traveling through Eastern Europe in search of his long lost father, Samuel takes a massive and unexpected detour. After hitting a pig on a back country road, Samuel pulls the animal into his car and looks for a spot... {more}
Brazil
Directed By: Chris Tex
Portuguese
Running Time: 20 Minutes
After suffering a trauma, a girl plots her revenge in this slick Brazilian thriller. {more}
This film is part of the following shorts programs:
CANADA
Directed By: Shasha Nakhai, Rich Williamson
English
Running Time: 136 Minutes
Three children forge a bond, pure and strong in the face of adversity. Bing is a kid with a big imagination, a kind heart, and a father who refuses to address his mental health struggles. Sylvie has a younger brother... {more}
Norway
Directed By: Solveig Melkeraaen
Norwegian
Running Time: 29 Minutes
A depiction of centralization as seen through the eyes of children that documents a group of first graders whose school will be closing soon, forcing them to move to a larger school. {more}
This film is part of the following shorts programs:
USA
Directed By: Brooke Purdy
English
Running Time: 14 Minutes
When the seeds you plant grow into more than you imagined. {more}
This film is part of the following shorts programs:
France
Directed By: Yanis Belaid, Eliott Benard, Nicolas Mayeur, Etienne Moulin, Hadrien Pinot, Lisa Vicente, Philippine Singer, Alice Letailleur
French, Arabic
Running Time: 9 Minutes
Algerian workers take to the streets in October of 1961 to protest the mandatory curfew imposed by the Police prefecture. {more}
This film is part of the following shorts programs:
USA
Directed By: Sarah Jones
English
Running Time: 97 Minutes
When Sarah Jones wrote and performed her one-woman off-Broadway production Sell/Buy/Date, she aimed to tackle the age-old question, “Is sex work empowering or exploitative?” For her work, Jones received a plethora of praise for tackling the complexities and nuanced viewpoints... {more}
United States
Directed By: Cornell Calhoun III
English
Running Time: 31 Minutes
A fictional journey of women on the 1965 Selma March. {more}
This film is part of the following shorts programs:
USA
Directed By: Camrus Johnson
English
Running Time: 11 Minutes
In this heartwarming animated film, an elderly woman escapes her mundane reality through her dreams while her great-nephew helps reconnect her to what she's really missing. {more}
This film is part of the following shorts programs:
United States
Directed By: Cam Swartz
English
Running Time: 6 Minutes
When a simple boulder's peaceful existence is interrupted by the presence of a rowdy bird, he finds himself forced to make a choice between his own stability and the lives of others. {more}
This film is part of the following shorts programs:
Shorts Audience Choice Awards Program
International
Running Time: 90 Minutes
These shorts awards each come with a $1,000 cash prize and are determined by audience vote, so make sure to cast your ballots! Winners will be announced during this live program and then available on CIFF Streams April 10-17, 2022... {more}
International
Running Time: 90 Minutes
Three jurors select winners of the Best Animated, Best Documentary, and Best Live Action categories. Winners of these awards will qualify for consideration in the Short Films categories of the annual Academy Awards®. The Programmers’ Choice Award is determined by... {more}
USA
Directed By: Titus Kaphar, Alex Mallis
English
Running Time: 20 Minutes
African-American painter Titus Kaphar looks to film as a medium in the face of an insatiable art market seeking to silence his activism. {more}
This film is part of the following shorts programs:
United States
Directed By: Aristotle Torres
English
Running Time: 16 Minutes
Silas Jones is an accomplished Black trial attorney on the cusp of making partner at a white-shoe law firm. Upon successfully defending a white woman charged with murdering a Black teen, Silas comes to a crossroads with his wife Kosi,... {more}
This film is part of the following shorts programs:
United States
Directed By: Cory Williamson
English
Running Time: 13 Minutes
Our story follows Linda, an up-and-coming actress who steps into a key role on the hit TV show: Silly Human. We soon find out the production is run by an artificial intelligence who demands perfection, and if a cast member... {more}
This film is part of the following shorts programs:
USA, LEBANON
Directed By: Rita Baghdadi
Arabic
Running Time: 78 Minutes
Amidst the ongoing political and civil unrest in Lebanon, Lilas and Shery find a much needed outlet for their fury and frustration in their band “Slaves to Sirens.” As members of the Middle East’s first all-female thrash metal band, these... {more}
Italy
Directed By: Eitan Pitigliani
Italian
Running Time: 20 Minutes
After his mother's death, Luca finds he has hit rock bottom. Living on the streets among the homeless, to somehow feel closer to her, he finally decides to go back home for his father's birthday where something magical just might... {more}
This film is part of the following shorts programs:
USA
Directed By: Justin Jeffers
English
Running Time: 15 Minutes
On the corner of Main Street in Stephenville, Texas, sits SlimPickins Outfitters, the first Black-owned outdoor outfitter shop in the country. Owned by Jahmicah Dawes and his wife, Heather, the shop has become a staple in the community that represents... {more}
This film is part of the following shorts programs:
India
Directed By: Bakul Matiyani
Hindi
Running Time: 21 Minutes
The story of young Ali, who is afflicted by Moebius Syndrome. To make matters worse his condition is yet undiagnosed. As Ali and his family prepare to leave their small town home, Ali worries about acceptance in the new unknown... {more}
This film is part of the following shorts programs:
United States
Directed By: Rick Page
English
Running Time: 10 Minutes
'Twas the day after Christmas, when all through the house, ex-wife Lydia returns to get her revenge on Frank. Poor bastard. {more}
This film is part of the following shorts programs:
United States
Directed By: Cornell Calhoun III
English
Running Time: 5 Minutes
Pre-teens find interesting ways to cool off during the hottest day of the summer. {more}
This film is part of the following shorts programs:
SWITZERLAND
Directed By: Lorenz Merz
French, Swiss-German, Japanese
Running Time: 110 Minutes
As a young single father, Gabriel isn’t the best caretaker. Although he loves his son Jamie, Gabriel spends much of his time partying or wandering the city with his best friend Joel, often leaving Jamie alone. Reckless and carefree, Gabriel... {more}
Netherlands
Directed By: Matthew Luhn, Hjalti Hjalmarsson
English
Running Time: 10 Minutes
When a group of rowdy teenagers trek into an isolated forest, they discover peaceful mushroom creatures that turn out to be an unexpected force of nature. {more}
This film is part of the following shorts programs:
US
Directed By: Nayt Cochran
English
Running Time: 6 Minutes
A kind-hearted gardener nurtures a botanical child’s individuality when a prize-winning plant causes self-doubt. {more}
This film is part of the following shorts programs:
United States
Directed By: Jill Morley
English
Running Time: 8 Minutes
A New York artist's obsession makes her the leader of a squirrel war on Facebook. The pressure cooker of quarantining mixed with the polarization of politics intensifies the ire of squirrel lovers everywhere. {more}
This film is part of the following shorts programs:
Belgium
Directed By: Xavier Seron
French
Running Time: 20 Minutes
It's Tom's turn to take care of Sam, his five-year-old son. What could go wrong? {more}
This film is part of the following shorts programs:
Mongolia
Directed By: Zoljargal Purevdash
Mongolian
Running Time: 12 Minutes
A young man's dream to make a living in Ulaanbaatar is put to the test when he must navigate the social and physical obstacles in his path. {more}
This film is part of the following shorts programs:
USA
Directed By: John Klein, Kate Black-Spence
English
Running Time: 28 Minutes
Jamie is a young woman living in rural Indiana struggling to figure out her place and identity. When she inadvertently stumbles across a frequency on her ham radio and makes contact with astronaut Noa currently orbiting Earth, the two women... {more}
This film is part of the following shorts programs:
United States
Directed By: PJ Raval
English
Running Time: 10 Minutes
Featuring a diverse collection of stories from the Asian American & Pacific Islander (AAPI) experience, this film delves into a diverse cross section of 14 individuals from the AAPI community in Austin, Texas. Each participant is given the opportunity to... {more}
This film is part of the following shorts programs:
ARGENTINA
Directed By: Mariano Biasin
Spanish
Running Time: 100 Minutes
Best friends since childhood, Manuel and Felipe spend their teenage days playing soccer on the beach, trading boyish “Would you rather?” ultimatums, and practicing in their rock band. When Felipe helps Manuel set the perfect backdrop for Manuel’s first romantic... {more}
USA
Directed By: James Ponsoldt
English
Running Time: 85 Minutes
"Every step you take, you're moving forward a moment in time. But what if the opposite were true?" Faced with the looming start of middle school, four young girls go on one last childhood adventure at the tail end of... {more}
Australia
Directed By: Martha Goddard
English
Running Time: 9 Minutes
A distraught woman has a chance encounter at a cafe that changes her life. {more}
This film is part of the following shorts programs:
United Kingdom
Directed By: Jac Hamman, Sarah Scrimgeour
English
Running Time: 25 Minutes
Superworm is super-long and super-strong and is always saving the day. But who can save him when he gets too full of himself and is captured by the evil Wizard Lizard? {more}
This film is part of the following shorts programs:
GERMANY
Directed By: Laura Lehmus
German, Finnish, English
Running Time: 90 Minutes
Fun-loving and 40, Frida meets wallowing Felix over glasses of sparkling wine at the airport bar. A pilot at the end of his shift, Felix is drinking his feelings and mourning the loss of his eight-year relationship with Natalie when... {more}
UNITED KINGDOM
Directed By: Marley Morrison
English
Running Time: 103 Minutes
At the wise old age of 17, AJ has the world figured out: it’s all going to hell, and there’s nothing anyone can do about it. Perpetually apathetic, AJ is dreading the annual family vacation, where the pool, beach, and... {more}
Canada
Directed By: Nathalie Therriault
English
Running Time: 16 Minutes
A gender non-conforming person struggling to assert their identity unexpectedly finds courage in an aging master tailor. {more}
This film is part of the following shorts programs:
FRANCE
Directed By: Leila Bouzid
French
Running Time: 103 Minutes
The title really does say it all. A TALE OF LOVE AND DESIRE follows Ahmed and Farah, who meet at the Sorbonne. Ahmed is immediately attracted to Farah, but he is hindered by his culture and lack of experience. Farah... {more}
ISRAEL
Directed By: Alon Schwarz
Hebrew
Running Time: 95 Minutes
When the state of Israel was established in 1948, war broke out and Palestinian villages saw their populations decimated. The true nature of these events still prompts heated debate: for Israelis, it’s the “War of Independence;” but to Palestinians, it’s... {more}
UK / USA
Directed By: James Everett
English
Running Time: 23 Minutes
An overly honest man must help his wife hide a dead body from the government inspector that can make their dream of adopting a baby come true. {more}
This film is part of the following shorts programs:
United States
Directed By: Lynn Tomlinson
English
Running Time: 5 Minutes
This music video—based on a song by Robert Macfarlane and Johnny Flynn, from the album Lost in the Cedar Wood—takes inspiration from The Epic of Gilgamesh, an ancient story written on clay tablets. This story of loss and hope in... {more}
This film is part of the following shorts programs:
USA
Directed By: Shanti Thakur
English, French, Danish
Running Time: 57 Minutes
In TERRIBLE CHILDREN, director Shanti Thakur shares a deeply personal account. Her father, Hari, gives her a letter written by his dad that he didn’t open for 20 years. When he hands it to her, he says, “maybe you can... {more}
BRAZIL, DENMARK, USA
Directed By: Alex Pritz
Portuguese, Tupi-Kawahiva
Running Time: 86 Minutes
It’s devastating to witness Brazil’s Amazon rainforest attacked by malicious chainsaws and deliberately set brush fires. Within the depths of these lush natural resources live the country’s Indigenous Uru-Eu-Wau-Wau people, a shrinking community that has been thriving off the land... {more}
USA
Directed By: Allison Otto
English
Running Time: 93 Minutes
The day after Thanksgiving in 1985, a quiet day at the University of Arizona Museum of Art in Tucson, Willem de Kooning’s beloved Woman-Ochre oil painting vanished. But no fingerprints and no proof left the case cold. When the coveted... {more}
United States of America
Directed By: Jonathan T. Coleman
English
Running Time: 8 Minutes
A bickering couple gets lost on a dead-end road when they stumble into a horrifying time loop that will change their lives forever. {more}
This film is part of the following shorts programs:
Three Meetings of the Extraordinary Committee
United Kingdom
Directed By: Jones
Bulgarian
Running Time: 18 Minutes
When the citizens of the small farming village of Dobre vote for a mythical creature, democracy comes face to face with reality. {more}
This film is part of the following shorts programs:
NETHERLANDS, UNITED KINGDOM
Directed By: Bianca Stigter
English
Running Time: 69 Minutes
What can be captured in three minutes time? Unknown faces? Unmarked buildings? Look harder, and you may find a priceless snapshot of an unsuspecting Jewish town mere months before being devastated by the Holocaust. In 1938, David Kurtz and his... {more}
USA, INDIA
Directed By: Warren Pereira
English, Hindi
Running Time: 90 Minutes
Riveting from start to finish, TIGER 24 takes a deep dive into who is responsible when animals kill humans in the Ranthambhore Tiger Reserve in India. The answer is a lot more complex than meets the eye. Filmmaker Warren Pereira... {more}
USA
Directed By: Rachel Lears
English
Running Time: 104 Minutes
The world is in crisis as it misses target after target to stop climate change. The Green New Deal has captured the imagination of millions with its visionary promise for systemic economic and environmental change that will build a better... {more}
United States
Directed By: Kevin Leal
English
Running Time: 7 Minutes
After a lifetime of putting away books, an old librarian must face the challenge of placing the very last book at the top of a 10,000-foot tall shelf. {more}
This film is part of the following shorts programs:
CANADA
Directed By: Kevin Hegge
English
Running Time: 104 Minutes
With the vibrancy and pop of the movement it covers, TRAMPS! is a colorful deep dive into the New Romantics. A group of 1980s London artists and creators of film, fashion, music, and visual art, at times they have had... {more}
Spain
Directed By: Álvaro Carmona
Spanish
Running Time: 9 Minutes
A clinic offers what you’ve always wanted…as long as you're okay with one controversial side effect. {more}
This film is part of the following shorts programs:
USA
Directed By: Tara Westwood
English
Running Time: 18 Minutes
A US Senator faces her greatest challenge when a home invasion takes a shocking turn. {more}
This film is part of the following shorts programs:
USA
Directed By: Raven Johnson
English
Running Time: 13 Minutes
An immigrant truck driver makes his way home across the American Midwest. {more}
This film is part of the following shorts programs:
United States / Canada
Directed By: Nicole Teeny
English
Running Time: 7 Minutes
After having to hide their relationship while making the Hajj, El-Farouk—a gay Imam—and his husband Troy co-founded Unity Mosque in Toronto, one of the world's first queer-affirming and gender-equal mosques. Though the mosque receives death threats, it forges on, playing... {more}
This film is part of the following shorts programs:
Denmark
Directed By: William Armstrong
English
Running Time: 7 Minutes
A film centered around world-class contemporary choreographer Paul Lightfoot (Artistic Director of the Netherlands Dance Theatre) who lost his father during the Covid-19 pandemic. Not permitted into the hospital to say goodbye, he began working remotely with a Danish dancer... {more}
This film is part of the following shorts programs:
KOSOVO, NORTH MACEDONIA, ALBANIA
Directed By: Kaltrina Krasniqi
Albanian
Running Time: 87 Minutes
As a sign language interpreter, Vera often speaks for others, but less so for herself. This time will be different. When her husband Fatmir takes his own life, the Kosovo community mourns the loss of its well-respected judge. Condolences flood... {more}
Puerto Rico, Canada
Directed By: Luis Gerard
English
Running Time: 23 Minutes
A restless 15-year-old has spent his life surrounded by death, raised in his parents' funeral business in a small town. Viewing his alcoholic father as profiting from the dead, our hero does him one better leading to some unexpected consequences. {more}
This film is part of the following shorts programs:
USA
Directed By: Andy Billman
English
Running Time: 75 Minutes
Plenty of baseball fans around the country love to hate the New York Yankees, but Cleveland’s contempt for the team runs deep. Directed by Ohio native and “Believeland” (CIFF40) director Andy Billman, WAR ON THE DIAMOND examines the lethal pitch... {more}
USA
Directed By: Chloe Okuno
English, Romanian
Running Time: 91 Minutes
Julia joins her husband when he relocates to his family’s native Romania for a new job. Having recently abandoned her acting career, she finds herself frequently alone and unoccupied. One night, people-watching from her picture window, she spots a vague... {more}
United States
Directed By: Doménica Castro, Constanza Castro
English
Running Time: 9 Minutes
Accompanied by animation and music, this audio-visual portrait shows what it's like to walk this land in the shoes of an immigrant under 30. It's a moment of reflection that reminds us of the people who immigrated to this country... {more}
This film is part of the following shorts programs:
USA
Directed By: Ron Howard
English
Running Time: 90 Minutes
As Mister Rogers famously said about coping with the aftermath of tragedy, “Look for the helpers. You will always find people who are helping.” With his boisterous personality and quick temper, Chef José Andrés is no Mister Rogers…but he is... {more}
USA
Directed By: Greg Barker
English
Running Time: 83 Minutes
“Do no harm.” The simple, ethical commitment doctors have been making for generations can fade with time—or heavy-handed persuasion. But thanks to a handful of seasoned doctors and a current wave of young medical professionals who have witnessed the damaging... {more}
USA
Directed By: Ira (Irina) Storozhenko
English
Running Time: 20 Minutes
A rideshare driver's five-star rating starts to suddenly go down. {more}
This film is part of the following shorts programs:
DENMARK
Directed By: Thomas Daneskov
Danish
Running Time: 105 Minutes
Modern society’s luxuries would sicken traditional Vikings of centuries past, and Martin won’t stand for it. Cloaked with animal pelts and a bow and arrows slung across his back, burly Martin retreats to the forest to restore his masculine connection... {more}
CANADA
Directed By: Bretten Hannam
English
Running Time: 107 Minutes
In Indigenous communities, the term “two-spirit” is used to describe individuals who have both a masculine and a feminine spirit within one body. Lincoln, a two-spirit teenager of Mi’kmaw heritage, has grown up estranged from both his Native community and... {more}
United States
Directed By: Kristoffer Polaha
English
Running Time: 17 Minutes
While her uncle works on his greatest masterpiece, a young girl battles depression - both unaware their unlikely family of two is running out of time. {more}
This film is part of the following shorts programs:
United States
Directed By: Garland Scott
English
Running Time: 7 Minutes
An out of town family member is in danger, and all one man has available to assist is his voice, love, and humanity. Will it be enough? {more}
This film is part of the following shorts programs:
USA
Directed By: Callie Bloem, Christopher Ewing
English
Running Time: 15 Minutes
Kenzie, a 20-something Angeleno, discovers during a totally boring and routine general checkup that she is fictional. And, even worse, that she was written by a dude. {more}
This film is part of the following shorts programs:
Japan
Directed By: Shiori iIto
Japanese
Running Time: 11 Minutes
Hiroe Ohashi, deaf since birth, is an actor and dancer who initially faced discrimination by “normal” people who could hear. Through an examination of Ohashi's experience and struggles in becoming an expressive artist, we are able to reconsider the definition... {more}
This film is part of the following shorts programs:
USA
Directed By: Shariffa Ali
English
Running Time: 13 Minutes
Audrey, a New York City comedian who can make a joke of any situation, faces a staggering challenge in the beautiful mountains of Oregon. Can this city woman overcome her fears and rise? {more}
This film is part of the following shorts programs:
IRELAND, NORTHERN IRELAND, FRANCE, BELGIUM
Directed By: Neasa Ní Chianáin, Declan McGrath
English
Running Time: 102 Minutes
Civil and political unrest from the late 1960s still permeates the working-class streets of Belfast. Deep-seated, generational anger continues to boil, and the community suffers from an ongoing cycle of violence, drug addiction, and poverty. The mission for Principal Kevin... {more}
Switzerland
Directed By: Güzin Kar
German
Running Time: 7 Minutes
A street in the industrial area of Bonn, faceless, unobtrusive, unfinished where arehouses, construction sites, and car washes dominate. But little by little, the grey present of the street is being charged with its past, which is linked to one... {more}
This film is part of the following shorts programs:
USA
Directed By: Matthew Halmy, Jaron Halmy
English
Running Time: 86 Minutes
Here’s a thought: Why not consider the actual future to lead us into the future? Youth & Government, a national program of the YMCA, provides the training grounds for impassioned middle and high school students to do just that. The... {more}
USA
Directed By: Seth Kramer, Daniel A. Miller, Jeremy Newberger
English
Running Time: 63 Minutes
Color Killer—comprised of frontman Lincoln, guitarist Dylan, bassist Nate, and drummer Matt—is defining a new punk rock era. These young, talented musicians sport classic band tees and long hair dyed neon—a rite of passage for official initiation—while playing edgy tracks... {more}
INDONESIA, SINGAPORE, FRANCE, AUSTRALIA
Directed By: Kamila Andini
Serang-Javanese
Running Time: 95 Minutes
In her last year before graduation, life for Yuni should be full of time spent with her girlfriends, harmless crushes on teachers, and thinking about the possibilities of attending college. And it is, to be sure. If only the prospect... {more}
USA
Directed By: Thomas Verrette
English
Running Time: 75 Minutes
While it’s true today’s 11-year-olds will one day run the world, middle schoolers in San Jose, California are taking their summer break to get a head start. Immersed in their own space race, a group of ambitious students enter the... {more}
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