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.
Nancy is a housewife in the 1950s. She goes to her town's Siren Salon for the first time, where she gets her hair washed and styled. She meets her hairstylist Camille, who gets to know Nancy, asking her questions about her husband, her home and her hopes and dreams in general.
Nancy also learns about the salon's signature "siren cut." But the haircut is more than it seems -- it could be altogether life-changing. Now she must decide how many inches-and people-she's willing to cut off.
Lydia, dreaming of a "Prince Charming," grapples with adulthood and loneliness, ultimately connecting with Matt, who offers paid hugs. Spooners follows a person's awkward reunion with a high school acquaintance. Unexpected requests and increasingly bizarre situations unfold as they navigate a complex agreement. This comedic short explores the absurdity of modern relationships.
"Light Hearted" explores the unexpected consequences of bringing someone back from the afterlife. Joy, a widow still grappling with her husband's death, receives an unexpected and peculiar delivery that disrupts her quiet routine. As she comes to terms with the strange presence in her life, the past and present collide, leading to moments of both humor and heartbreak. The film offers a touching and quirky exploration of grief, memory, and the complexities of moving on, all with a dose of unexpected warmth. "Light Hearted" is a poignant, darkly comedic reflection on love, loss, and what it means to let go.
Director: Sye Allen
Writer: Sye Allen
Stars: Gillian Wright, Simon Greenall, Dominic Rawson
Sam has been a ghostwriter for most of his career, but what he really wants to do is finish his first detective novel. But he's 75, and he fears time is running out, struggling to finish it before it's too late. With its New York setting, late-night timeframe, jazzy piano-and-sax score and classic sense of storytelling, the visual storytelling evokes old Hollywood film noirs, laying out clues to an unraveling mystery that Sam finds himself mixed up with as the night goes on. We meet him at a classic diner late at night as he tries to work on his book, but things aren't going so well. The proceedings take a nose dive when he leaves: he takes a fall, hits his head and then awakens to someone shaking him down for an unpaid debt. From there, the story unfolds with quirky, strange touches that add an element of the dreamlike to Sam's increasingly unsettling night.
He finds himself in the midst of some real-life mysteries. The lines between his real and fictional lives blur, giving him inspiration for his book.
This Nepali short film tells a deeply emotional and spiritual story inspired by innocence, compassion, and the quiet strength of monkhood set against the majestic Himalayan landscape. It's the journey of an eleven years old monk, who finds his way of applying the Buddha's teachings of compassion and joy in an unconventional way.
Writing Doom is a fiction short film about the dangers of artificial intelligence (AI). A writing team are given the task of making Artificial Superintelligence the ‘bad guy’ for the next season of their TV show. With the help of a newcomer to the team (a Machine Learning PhD), they must figure out how and why an ASI might function as an antagonist – and the threat it might pose to humanity.
Tessa is a young girl whose class is preparing for the holiday season. She's already made an ornament, which she sweetly gifts to her entrepreneur mother, Luna. She also has to complete an assignment to share her family’s traditions with her class. But when her mother becomes the subject of a magazine cover profile, Tessa discovers the gap between the manicured facade of a loving family and the harsh emotional reality. A holiday homework assignment transforms into a heart-wrenching test for 9-year-old Tessa, forcing her to face the ultimate decision: disclose the truth about her abusive mother or continue to perpetuate the lies she's expected to tell.
"Libido," is a 17-minute Iranian drama short film.The film centers on a teenage boy who breaks his silence to reveal a hidden truth about a girl, exploring themes of youth, secrets, and cultural norms in its narrative.
Director: Saeed Dashti
Writer: Saeed Dashti
Stars: Mohammad Rashno, Hanieh Yahyaei-Fard, Negar Nafez, Shamim Yadegari, Roghayeh Lotfi, Saba Ahmadi, Hamid Pazouki Language: Azeri Turkish
Made with a crew of creative senior citizens, this short horror film centres around Edna, a senior aged woman who discovers that a discarded throw rug she has found will, for lack of a better word, digest anything left under it. The more it digests, the more it wants.
Director: Sean Cisterna
Writer: Sean Cisterna
Stars: Jayne Eastwood, Tony Nardi, Zoë Belkin, Jonathan Kim
In a society where kissing is punishable by death, and people pay for things by receiving slaps to the face. Angine, an unhappy woman, shops compulsively in a department store. There, she becomes fascinated by a playful salesgirl. Despite the prohibition of kissing, the two become close, raising the suspicions of a jealous colleague.
Directors: Natalie Musteata, Alexandre Singh
Writers: Natalie Musteata, Alexandre Singh
Stars: Zar Amir Ebrahimi, Luàna Bajrami, Vicky Krieps
