"Deliberate" explores the messy, complex fallout of an inappropriate past relationship between a student and her teacher. Alice returns to her old high school to confront her former teacher, Mr. Benjamin Jacobs. Years prior, when she was 18, their dynamic felt romantic to her. However, in retrospect, the experience feels deeply wrong. Rather than taking a straightforward revenge route, the film navigates painfully human, nuanced motives from both characters.
Adapted from a Jack London story: two fur thieves are captives of Native American tribe. One is brutally executed. The other negociates his life, offering to chief a misterious medicine who creates invulnerability for the zone of body where it was used. The chief accepts, the demands of man are respected and the proof of medicine efficiency will be demonstrated. And it is it, in dramatic manner.
Director: Sean Meehan
Writers: Jack London, Sean Meehan
Stars: Martin Dubreuil, Gerald Auger, Morris Birdyellowhead
Memory Room is a short film written and directed by Raanan Hershberg and Dan McCabe. This film is a thriller about a caretaker who suspects one of her patients with dementia may have committed a murder in the past.
This short comedy-drama film follows a woman who, following the worsening of her cancer diagnosis, chooses a dignified death option and arranges for her body to be picked up; however, a delay in the package containing her suicide pill causes logistical problems.
Jesse Corwood is 31, lives with his mother in Portland, New York, and runs an underground label called with 17 bands on its roster. None of them exist. He records all of them himself in the basement, writes backstories for each one, and only starts losing the thread when Rolling Stone catches wind of the operation and tries to write about it. By the time the magazine takes notice, Jesse is roping in local teenagers for a photoshoot to keep the lie alive. His efforts create tension with his mother and a local school principal, and when the situation spins out of control, Jesse finds himself in a difficult place.
Director: Christopher Scamurra
Writers: Nicholas Reynolds, Christopher Scamurra
Stars: Creed Bratton, Siobhan Fallon Hogan, Matthew Danger Lippman
In the 90s, when Finn can't get a word out in front of his high school crush, his playground pals convince him that watching a porno tape will solve all his problems.
Josh sits alone in a café, happily watching the world go by. Even if that means denying his longing for the waitress, Annie. But when Carrick walks into his life, the scene is set for an opportunity that could change Josh forever.
Director: Max Myers
Writer: Nico Mensinga
Stars: Charlie Cattrall, Susannah Fielding, Ian Hart
(A masterclass in manipulation. Some people obviously need to rewatch the film. Carrick conned him and managed to steal his watch. He came back to a bunch of paper in the envelope. Not money. But in the end Josh learned something. Be an action man. He started to be one by chatting with the waitress.)
Rene is a photographer. She is called by Jade, a young mother, at hospital, for some photos with her new born boy. But the state of Dominic is pretty different by Rene expectations. So, a kind of battle, shot by shot, for discover, after the first reserves of mother, a painfull truth changing her. Two personal journeys intersect: the unfolding photo session, while transient, leaves an indelible mark on both women.
Thea is an aspiring actor who is auditioning for an elite acting conservatory program. Along with many other young hopefuls, she must go through a rigorous audition process.
Initially, the process involves reading dramatic monologues, a common feature of many auditions. But as Thea clears each step, the process becomes odder, more confrontational and unorthodox, as Thea finds her sense of self dissolving and being rebuilt into something unsettling.
Director: Margot Budzyna
Writers: Margot Budzyna, Christian Tasiopoulos
Stars: Jesse LaTourette, Marc Menchaca, Clare Morrissey
Claire (Oscar-winner Melissa Leo) and Leila (Leïla Bekhti) are neighbours. They both live in the same building, they see each other every day but they hardly know each other’s names. Until today’s confrontation, when Claire decides to pay a visit to Leila and to ask for something that will definitely put at risk their peaceful cohabitation.
It is often said that the internet is a weird place, but truthfully, it’s only as weird as we, the people on it, are, and so there is always potential to bring that weirdness away with us. In Homemade Gatorade, writer/director Carter Amelia Davis chronicles a weird online interaction between two individuals and how it turns into an adventure in real life. Transcending simple weirdness, though, Davis’ unique style mixes humor with sharp social commentary, taking us on a wild and surprising adventure, too.
Director: Carter Amelia Davis
Writer: Carter Amelia Davis
Stars: Lauren Davis, Carter Amelia Davis, Connett Croghan
The premise is self-evidently absurd… a woman develops her own “creamy” version of Gatorade and, via forums and social media, desperately tries to find buyers for it online. Upon reflection, though, I was forced to question that absurdity—if there is one thing millennials have embraced with the internet, it’s the concept of unorthodox work. “There are so many people with side hustles and entrepreneurial aspirations right now”, Davis explained, describing some of her inspiration for the premise before adding, “…we hear a lot about the people who succeed, but what about those who fail?” Ultimately, we are meant to laugh, as the absurdity is fully embraced in both the writing and the visual aesthetic of the film, but there is something undeniably touching in the narrative, dare I say relatable, in the protagonist’s state of mind. “I wanted to make a film that could make people laugh but also reflect the horrifying reality of American life right now”, Davis confessed.
Alienated by her overzealous optimism, Helen struggles to navigate an increasingly volatile relationship, forcing her to confront the darkness we dismiss by only looking on the bright side. Helen is a good person, so when she meets the seemingly perfect Mark, the thought that he might be too good to be true is the furthest thing from her mind. With his charming smile, deep voice, and undeniable confidence, one could argue that it is easy to overlook everything else. A satirical exploration of love, language, and what makes a person 'good'.
Director: Tamsin Topolski
Writer: Ross O'Donnellan
Stars: Anna Burnett, Susan Gilmore, Ross O'Donnellan
TAOS is a short film about a young couple, Samantha and Ethan, that are planning to take a romantic weekend getaway to Samantha's family cabin. Samantha is an outdoorsy, extrovert, and Ethan is an introverted bookworm who prefers to stay indoors. Ethan, wanting to propose to his girlfriend agrees to the trip, but after arriving strange things start to unfold to the young couple.
'Don't Forget Me' follows Isobel as she struggles alone to care for her mother Mary, who is suffering from dementia. This is the story of being a family carer, and the emotional strain it can take as a loved one is lost piece-by-piece. Realism of situations, reactions and beautiful performances. Few virtues of this honest, delicate portrait, not ignoring the downs, the tears and the angry.
Sometimes I Imagine Your Funeral is based on the lived experiences of writer/director Vince Dixon, who lost his sister Lauren to an overdose in 2021. Prior to Lauren's death, Vince wrote – but never sent – a letter to Lauren titled "Sometimes I Imagine Your Funeral", about the helplessness and frustration he felt as Lauren's substance abuse progressed. Scenes from the film were based directly on memories of Vince and Lauren's childhood growing up in Fishers, Indiana, and certain shots in the film were crafted to replicate real home videos Vince found during the scripting phase.
Director: Vince Dixon
Writer: Vince Dixon
Stars: Angus Caldwell, Cassie Cook, Gabriel Donnelly
Greta is washing her clothes at a laundromat when she gets a call from her sister. Her sister reminds her it's Father's Day, which brings sadness to her and Greta since the passing of their father.
Greta does her best to comfort her sister while struggling with her own emotions and folding a large fitted sheet. But she finds unexpected comfort in the kindness of the laundromat owner.
Director: Chinwe Okorie
Writers: Alex E. Chew, Chinwe Okorie
Stars: Kendra L. Franklin, Marc Pouhé, Masood Javed
Moments before hitching a ride with Dodge, the man she believes murdered her sister, Mitzi begins a tense journey down a desolate desert highway. As she pushes Dodge’s buttons, his reactions feel all too familiar, and Mitzi faces the truth she’s been chasing: kill Dodge or be killed.
