Marco Ricci’s Lucha: A Wrestling Tale kicks off the film lineup for the 13th edition of Brooklyn’s Greenpoint Film Festival taking place August 7-11. GFF will showcase a two-film retrospective of New York City-based Spanish filmmaker Alex Lora’s The Masterpiece and Unicorns as its Centerpiece presentation, and a documentary double feature including the US Premiere of Kelly Moneymaker’s Drum Song: The Rhythm of Life and festival favorite Miwene, directed by Keith Heyward, Jennifer Berglund, Gange Anita Yeti Enomenga, and Obe Beatriz Nenquimo Nihua for Closing Night.

Greenpoint Film Festival Creative Director Ricardo Vilar, said, “Our film festival has grown with leaps and bounds both with the number of films offered and the expansion of our footprint here in Brooklyn. But it all still starts with our mission on behalf of the filmmakers and giving them a platform to tell their stories and connect with audiences and each other. As we continue to build our reputation as a place and event to celebrate cinema here in North Brooklyn, we are thrilled with each step we take to bring recognition to their work and talent.”

Marco Ricci’s documentary Lucha: A Wrestling Tale opens GFF on Wednesday, August 7. The film takes us inside the Bronx’s Taft High School women’s wrestling team on their journey to a championship. Personal challenges abound, from unsupportive families to homelessness, but four young women featured in the film find solace and hope in each other and on the mat. Their empowering story is a testament to the human spirit and true grit.

Saturday’s Centerpiece presentation will feature two films from acclaimed filmmaker Alex Lora. The NYC-based Lora will attend the Greenpoint Film Festival with his feature film Unicorns and his short film, The Masterpiece, which was a Grand Jury Prize winner at this year’s Sundance Film Festival. Unicorns follows a young polyamorous feminist woman as she navigates the breakup of a relationship amid the pressure of social media’s scrutiny on her life. The Masterpiece pits a rich couple against two scrap dealers with an expensive painting as a potential prize following their interaction.

The Closing Night presentation on Sunday, August 11, will feature a documentary double feature of Kelly Moneymaker’s Drum Song: The Rhythm of Life, Miwene, directed by Keith Heyward, Jennifer Berglund, Gange Anita Yeti Enomenga, and Obe Beatriz Nenquimo Nihua. Drum Song: The Rhythm of Life explores climate crisis impacts through the eyes of Alaska’s Indigenous peoples as they utilize their ancestral knowledge and modern science to adapt to the changing rhythms of seasons, cycles, and movements across eroding lands and melting Arctic ice. Steeped in the long oral tradition of Waorani storytelling, Miwene shares the coming-of-age story of a young Waorani woman living deep within the Amazon rainforest — determined to capture her grandmother’s unique experience while she still can.

Highlights among the other features include US Premieres of Marco Amenta’s Anna, an Italian drama about a woman who must take on the development of a mega resort to save her farm. The film was and FEDIC Award winner at the Venice Film Festival. Several Polish films will also make their US Premieres, including Paweł Wyszomirski’s The Green Ink about a rebellious audio engineering student who regrets relying on an artificial intelligence program of unknown origin to help her get out of a bad situation after it becomes apparent that the intervention may lead to even bigger problems. Adrian Apanel’s Horror Story about a recent graduate who settles into a cheap room in a creepy house with bizarre residents while looking for work.

Jan Jakub Kolski’s Loonies is about a pair of ex-parolees who have their attempts to forge a new, law-abiding life foiled by an urgent need to get a lot of money immediately, forcing them to plan a bank robbery. Paweł Maślona’s Scarborn is a period (1700’s) drama focusing on an uprising of the Poles against the Russians. Maciej Adamek’s Unspoken is a portrait of a determined and resilient young man who stutters but refuses to let it hinder his aspirations to become the Polish champion in acrobatics.

Three documentary features will make their US Premieres at the Greenpoint Film Festival. They include Viktor Witkowski’s German film Moje Własne Słowa (In My Words) which follows aspects of the filmmaker’s grandmother’s life from the 1930s, her post-WWII life as a farmer under Communism while raising four daughters, all the way to contemporary Poland. Dominic Allen’s Australian film Planet Wind – The Global Story of Offshore Wind follows Andy Evans, Australian renewable energy pioneer, as he follows the story of Offshore Wind across the globe, exploring our relationship to this immense planetary force. Sonia Zawitkowski and Jenna Kathleen Taylor’s Canadian film Thank You for Sharing documents the bizarre and absurd aspects of our mental health landscape.

Highlights among the short films at GFF include the following favorites from Clermont Ferrand: Laurier Fourniau’s French-Belgium Co-Production Vambora, and Iran-Iraq war exploring “In the Garden of Tulips”, NY premieres of “Krzyk – Losing Control” (SXSW 2024), Bye Bye Bowser (Sundance, 2024), Sojourn to Shang-ri-la (Berlinale, 2024) and The Eight day (Palmsprings Shortsfest, 2024). As well as Ireland’s official submission to the Academy Awards “In The Shadow of Beirut” and Iranian Mehdi Card Ghaderi’s “The Annoyed” (Shanghai Film Festival).

The film festival has more than doubled the number of films screened from last year, now totaling 118 films (20 feature-length, 95 shorts, and 3 XR exhibits). GFF’s footprint has also become larger with additional screens added to The Boiler / ELM Foundation location (191 N. 14th Street), and Film Noir (122 Meserole Avenue) also added to the mix.

2024 Greenpoint Film Festival Official Selections

OPENING NIGHT SELECTION

Lucha: A Wrestling Tale
Director: Marco Ricci
Country: United States; Running Time: 96 Minutes
Lucha tells the story of the Taft High School Women’s wrestling team, one of the first girls wrestling programs in NYC. In particular, it tells the story of four young women who view wrestling as their ticket to acceptance and progress. Shirley wants a college scholarship, Nyasia wants to get in shape, Mariam is juggling studies and sports, and Alba is a recent immigrant looking for a home.

CENTERPIECE SELECTION

Unicorns
Director: Alex Lora
Country: Spain; Running Time: 94 Minutes
Isa is a Feminist and polyamorous posh girl; she passionately defends her life. When Guillem proposes to be a monogamous couple, Isa is not sure if he wants to change her life and, given her lack of decision, Guillem decides to break the relationship. Living in a world of appearances and comforts, her contradictions come to light and her universe is crumbling at the blow of likes and moral judgments in this web that social networks have become.
Preceded by
The Masterpiece
Director: Alex Lora
Country: Spain; Running Time: 20 Minutes
Leo and Diana, a rich couple, bring a broken TV to a recycle point. They meet Salif and his son, two scrap dealers. Diana asks them to come to their house to get more objects. Once there, Leo looks at them collecting objects with mistrust, until they see the scrap dealers have an expensive painting.

CLOSING NIGHT SELECTIONS

Drum Song: The Rhythm of Life US Premiere
Director: Kelly Moneymaker
Country: United States; Running Time: 49 Minutes
Drum Song: The Rhythm of Life explores the climate crisis through the eyes of Alaska’s Indigenous peoples as they utilize their ancestral knowledge and modern science to adapt to the changing rhythms of seasons, cycles, and movements across eroding lands and melting Arctic ice. The global impact of the story feeds into the current and worldwide surge of politically conscious indigenous peoples demanding human rights, food sovereignty, and self-governance.

Miwene
Directors: Keith Heyward, Jennifer Berglund, Gange Anita Yeti Enomenga, Obe Beatriz Nenquimo Nihua
Country: Ecuador; Running Time: 105 Minutes
Steeped in the long oral tradition of Waorani storytelling, Gange Yeti shares her own coming-of-age story as a young Waorani woman living deep within the Amazon rainforest. Following Gange and her community for over 11 years, the film captures her transition from a quiet teenager into a confident young mother at a critical turning point for her culture and rainforest.

ADDITIONAL NARRATIVE FEATURES

A Time Apart
Director: Courtney Hope Therond
Country: United States; Running Time: 75 Minutes
Synopsis: Alyssa returns to Paris to finalize her divorce but while spending a final week with her soon-to-be ex-husband, she starts to question whether she’s making the right decision.

Anna US Premiere
Director: Marco Amenta
Country: Italy; Running Time: 117 Minutes
Anna manages a farm in an uncontaminated corner of Sardinia. At night she engages in sensual dancing in the village pub and indulges in fleeting adventures. Until one day, the development of a mega resort on her land will force her to engage in the biggest battle of her life…

The Annoyed
Director: Mehdi Fard Ghaderi
Country: Iran; Running Time: 85 Minutes
Three Iranian Directors try to make a film about social problems and abuse against women and executions. The first director wants to emigrate, but learns that his lead actor is being executed, so decides to make a film about the execution. The second director wants to make a film about abused women but is opposed by her husband. The third director is informed by his doctor that he has cancer and wants to make the last film of his life.

The Green Ink US Premiere
Director: Paweł Wyszomirski
Country: Poland; Running Time: 49 Minutes
A rebellious audio engineering student is detained by the police for brandishing a firearm at the university. Her scientific career hangs in the balance, but Kasia gets one last chance from her supervisor. However, the conditions set by her professor for remaining at the university seem absurd. Then, an artificial intelligence program of unknown origin comes to her aid. The language model, ‘Marianna,’ manifests in the digital persona of the trustworthy professor Marianna Sankiewicz—a legendary lecturer at the University of Technology. The virtual professor guides Kasia around the university, offers life advice, and suggests solutions. However, it becomes apparent that this intervention leads to even bigger problems for Kasia.

Horror Story US Premiere
Director: Adrian Apanel
Country: Poland; Running Time: 99 Minutes
The film is the story of a recent graduate Tomek, determined to land a prestigious job for a corporation to get back his ex-girlfriend. While he is looking for work, he moves into a cheap room with strong house-of-horrors vibes. With time, Tomek realizes that the real horror is not the house or its bizarre residents, but the job hunt itself.

In the Shadow of Beirut
Directors: Stephen Gerard Kelly, Garry Keane
Country: Ireland; Running Time: 92 Minutes
In Sabra, one of Beirut’s toughest urban slums, sectarianism and violence is a permanent way of life. Rabia, a 38-year-old hardworking but undocumented Lebanese mother cannot afford to admit her chronically ill daughter to hospital, leaving the life of her innocent child hanging in the balance.

Itzia, Tango & Cacao
Director: Flora Martinez
Country: Colombia; Running Time: 88 Minutes
Itzia, a deaf woman, claims she can listen to a peculiar music that always comes from the same cardinal point: the south. Her family question her sanity, but she is determined to prove them wrong and affirm her sanity. Leaving her cacao farm behind, she embarks on a journey to find the music’s source.

Krzyk – Losing Control
Director: Ewa Wikiel
Country: Germany; Running Time: 81 Minutes
As a bacteriologist drives past a burning car, she hears a scream of a dying woman. She does not tell her boyfriend how much the incident distresses her, just as she does not talk about the stillbirth she recently had. Instead, she throws herself into her work, intrudes into the life of the deceased, begins an affair with the widower and gradually takes on the role of mother to their son while her persistent insomnia causes her to lose control between dreams and reality.

Loonies US Premiere
Director: Jan Jakub Kolski
Country: Poland; Running Time: 121 Minutes
Eryk and Karolka are a pair of dreamers. Upon their release from prison, they opt to forge a new, law-abiding life in the tranquility of nature to avoid further conflict with the law. However, adjusting to their new, albeit beautiful, surroundings is challenging. Eryk is also determined to secure happiness for his young daughter, Dżesika, whom he retrieves from her grandfather. Together with Karolka, they embark on a daring journey across Poland. Complications arise when Karolka falls seriously ill, and the only hope for her recovery lies in expensive treatment, which they cannot afford. Taking matters into their own hands, Eryk and young Dżesika plan and execute a bank robbery

Next to Nothing
Director: Grzegorz Dębowski
Country: Poland; Running Time: 93 Minutes
A group of farmers organizes a protest outside the house of an MP who, contrary to his earlier promises, voted against their interests. When a human body is discovered in the manure they dump on his front yard, suspicion immediately falls on Jarek, the leader of the protest, even though the deceased was his closest friend.

Scarborn US Premiere
Director: Paweł Maślona
Country: Poland; Running Time: 123 Minutes
Spring of 1794, Poland is in turmoil. General Tadeusz “Kos” Kościuszko returns to Poland and plans to start an uprising against the Russians by mobilizing the Polish nobility and peasants. A young peasant, Ignac, dreams of receiving his coat of arms and property from his illegitimate parent, Duchnowski, who includes him in his will just before his death. A series of dramatic events unfold as Ignac attempts to claim his inheritance and support the uprising.

Unspoken US Premiere
Director: Maciej Adamek
Country: Poland; Running Time: 51 Minutes
A portrait of 26-year-old Mateusz – a determined and resilient young man who stutters but refuses to let it hinder his aspirations. From a young age, Mateusz has harboured a dream: to become the Polish champion in acrobatics. Despite the challenges posed by his speech impediment, he relentlessly pursues his goal, training tirelessly and pushing himself to new heights.

ADDITIONAL DOCUMENTARY FEATURES

Moje Własne Słowa (In My Words) US Premiere
Director: Viktor Witkowski
Country: Germany; Running Time: 80 Minutes
The director’s grandmother Janina lives with her oldest daughter Dana in a village, idyllically nestled between mountains and dense forests in southwestern Poland. In My Words follows aspects of Janina’s life from the 1930s, her post-WWII life as a farmer under Communism while raising four daughters, all the way to contemporary Poland.

Planet Wind – The Global Story of Offshore Wind US Premiere
Director: Dominic Allen
Country: Australia; Running Time: 98 Minutes
Join Andy Evans, Australian renewable energy pioneer, as he follows the story of Offshore Wind across the globe, exploring our relationship to this immense planetary force. Filmed in thirteen countries and featuring over twenty offshore wind experts, Planet Wind delves into humanity’s relationship with the wind throughout history and cultures.

Small Town Universe
Director: Katie Dellamaggiore
Country: United States; Running Time: 90 Minutes
Small Town Universe paints an intimate and captivating portrait of life in Green Bank, West Virginia, home to the world’s most sensitive radio telescope and the only U.S. town where Wi-Fi and cell phones are banned. In this uniquely radio-quiet community, scientists use the telescope to search for signs of extraterrestrial intelligence and advance the field of radio astronomy while its residents navigate through pivotal moments of existence, forming deep connections with the universe, science, and one another.

Thank You for Sharing US Premiere
Directors: Sonia Zawitkowski, Jenna Kathleen Taylor
Country: Canada; Running Time: 101 Minutes
By documenting the bizarre and absurd aspects of our mental health landscape and how it came to be, two intrepid filmmakers seek to answer the question: “If our culture is obsessed with mental health, why do we all feel so bad?”

NARRATIVE SHORTS

A Cappella US Premiere
Director: Marcin Kluczykowski
Country: Poland; Running Time: 28 Minutes
A chorus rehearsal. Karol and Henryk are among the soloists. Like most of the singers, the two men lead the pretty quiet lives of senior citizens. They have been a couple for years, but no one outside their apartment knows about it. One day, they receive an invitation that shakes their meticulously hidden everyday life.

A Cup of Tea
Director: Gabriel Noble
Country: United States; Running Time: 18 Minutes
A Cup of Tea is a heartfelt short film about the challenging aftermath for a Black American family whose son was unjustly murdered by the hands of the police. We are invited to witness Jamal’s parents Shannon and Coleman meeting for the first time, years after this life shattering incident, and their emotionally palpable exploration of grief and forgiveness.

A Few Wonderful Minutes US Premiere
Director: Hubert Patynowski
Country: Poland; Running Time: 30 Minutes
Immigrant Ó finds himself in a world devoid of feelings and emotions, a world of no inhibitions. Shame, joy, trust, and sorrow are unknown. Emotions and feelings may be purchased as drugs. Ó meets Eliza and together they indulge in a novel mixture – Love.

A Shattering
Director: Jan Jalenak
Country: United States; Running Time: 20 Minutes
A carefully constructed marriage implodes when an unexpected call unleashes a fragility and pain that have been simmering for years. Starring Scott Cohen and Kelly Wolf.

Addendum US Premiere
Director: Peter J Harrison
Country: United States; Running Time: 8 Minutes
An experiential piece sharing moments with a young woman as she returns to the cleared-out home of a recently passed family member and though the apartment is all but bare, memories and lives once lived permeate the space.

Apples to Oranges US Premiere
Director: Trisha Pickelhaupt
Country: United States; Running Time: 10 Minutes
Amid a beige backdrop of strip malls, parking lots, and weedless lawns, Apples to Oranges explores contemporary suburbia, playfully juxtaposed with 1950s ideals of the American Dream.

Bar. Boy.
Director: Bryan Powers
Country: United States; Running Time: 20 Minutes
At his local gay bar, sixty-something Gary encounters twenty-something Julian. What can each learn from the other and is a friendship possible?

Beyond Failure
Director: Marissa Losoya
Country: United States; Running Time: 9 Minutes
In avoidance of the nagging fear that she has spoiled her life’s potential, a woman begins hip thrusting a lot and obsessing over her ass. While reflecting on her childhood dreams unfulfilled and hyper-focusing on what a toned ass would enable her to do, she loses sight of the present and pushes herself too far.

Big George
Director: Jamie Effros
Country: United States; Running Time: 16 Minutes
When a middle-aged actor gains too much pandemic weight to pull off his survival gig as a George Clooney impersonator, he finds himself trying to justify to his nine-year-old daughter—and to himself—why he’s still chasing his dream.

Blubber US Premiere
Director: Chloë Levine
Country: United States; Running Time: 10 Minutes
An uninvited guest at a funeral finds connection with the deceased’s sister, as they test the limits of their grief on each other. Blubber is a visual poem that follows one girl’s journey to make sense of her own pain. It asks the question – how far would you go to feel less alone?

Bridge / Keeper
Director: Sinclair Rankin
Country: United States; Running Time: 8 Minutes
As a bridge keeper makes his rounds, a mysterious sequence of events pushes him into an unexpected reality regarding the bridge in his care.

Burnout
Director: Sabrina McCormick
Country: United States; Running Time: 12 Minutes
When a climate professor burns out, a terrible boss forces her to turn to dance therapy with results that make him regret her new self-care.

Bye Bye, Bowser
Director: Jasmin Baumgartner
Country: Austria; Running Time: 20 Minutes
Punk singer Luna rebels against the indifference of her artsy friends by writing a song about Laugo, the construction worker from across the street. The collision of the worlds of affluent neglect and everyday work leads to a dramatic downfall.

Carving
Director: Laura Shatkus, Russell Leigh Sharman
Country: United States; Running Time: 15 Minutes
Shot in a single unbroken take, a simple lesson on how to cut the Thanksgiving turkey turns darker by degrees as a young woman reveals to her father the real reason she so desperately wants to learn how to carve.

Catherine & Michael
Director: Kathy Fusco
Country: United States; Running Time: 15 Minutes
An unhappily married couple visits their do-everything-right friends for a supposedly fun weekend upstate, but when their fragile relationship crumbles, they discover an unusual method for reigniting their spark.

Choices
Director: Kameishia D Wooten
Country: United States; Running Time: 13 Minutes
Hidden away under the bleachers at school, free-spirited Aisha gives a pregnancy test to Jessica, a cheerleader and prom queen contender, who’s terrified of what the results might mean. They are joined by their childhood friend Portia, who has made her own decisions about motherhood.

Crows
Director: Andrew Saunderson
Country: United States; Running Time: 15 Minutes
An empty nester is haunted by oversized crows practicing rituals at her decorative fountain.

Darkness Upon My Fancy
Director: Molly Loftus
Country: United States; Running Time: 11 Minutes
A monster born of the ashes of a witch’s sister embarks on a sinister quest when she is rejected by her creator.

Definitely Something
Director: Justin Andrew Davis
Country: United States; Running Time: 20 Minutes
Two high school sweethearts reunite in their 30s for an Emo Night in Brooklyn, only to have their evening derailed by lingering passion and hidden scars.

Everyone Loves Candy
Director: Nicholas Gray
Country: United States; Running Time: 14 Minutes
A non-binary teen goes on a quest to take their crush to the school dance… By any means necessary (No matter how dumb).

Faccia Brutta
Director: Alyssa DiMartino
Country: United States; Running Time: 9 Minutes
A 12-year-old girl questions whether or not to conform to the harsh beauty standards that her Italian culture and hypercritical matriarchs place upon her.

Gabriela
Director: Evelyn Lorena
Country: United States; Running Time: 16 Minutes
It’s the summer after high-school graduation and Gabriela, a young undocumented Guatemalan woman, pursues her dream of swimming for an illustrious Country Club swim team. Despite her single-minded determination, Gabriela is continually confronted with her over-protective mother’s fears, limitations on her economic and legal status, and her own self-judgment.

Gone Before Your Eyes
Director: Cara Yeates
Country: United States; Running Time: 12 Minutes
Gone Before Your Eyes follows Angela, an artist with Alzheimer’s disease, as she attempts to paint. Trapped in a surreal loop, Angela struggles to do what was once natural for her.

Grandma Bruce US Premiere
Director: Brooke Stern Sebold
Country: United States; Running Time: 12 Minutes
Grandma Bruce is a magical short comedy about a queerdo (they/them) whose old car comes to life with the spirit of their judgmental Jewish grandmother, a backseat driver from the ever after.

Grieving
Director: Chris Chi
Country: United States; Running Time: 17 Minutes
Diane, an aspiring actress looking for work, finds herself in the office of psychiatrist Dr. Hiller. As part of a ground-breaking if controversial study, Dr. Hiller hires Diane to role play as the deceased partner of one of his clients. Desperate for work, Diane accepts the job and finds herself in a position where she must act out a scenario in which to bring emotional closure to someone else’s pain. However, when Diane realizes the selfishness of her assigned client, she is thrust into a dilemma of continuing her usual behavior of people-pleasing or to finally stand up for herself.

Happy For You US Premiere
Director: Courtney Hope Therond
Country: United States; Running Time: 7 Minutes
At the celebration for a career milestone, Sophie’s former mentor returns, dredging up a past taboo relationship.

Harlem Fragments
Director: Cameron Tyler Carr
Country: United States; Running Time: 17 Minutes
An Afro-futurist scrapbook storytelling of a Harlem Black family’s beautiful destruction during the 2008 recession. A natural disaster so mesmerizing you can’t look away from the tragedy. Based on true events.

Hold US Premiere
Director: Josiah Junqueira Spencer
Country: United States; Running Time: 13 Minutes
An early morning phone call propels a mother and daughter on a path toward connection and the mysteries held in the act of letting go.

How To Fill the Unfillable Hole Inside You
Director: Dave Canning
Country: United States; Running Time: 9 Minutes
Four strangers explore the complexity of their deepest emotions through the lens of comfort foods.

I Don’t Want to Have to Be Loud US Premiere
Director: Eva Matz
Country: Germany; Running Time: 6 Minutes
The patriarchy must resign. ‘She’ is defined, from birth on. The role she must play, who she is and what she is made of is not determined by her. If one’s own body and gender are a political issue, it is about time that one’s own voice is heard.

In the Garden of Tulips
Director: Julia Elihu
Country: United States; Running Time: 13 Minutes
In the height of the Iran-Iraq war, Caroline takes the final car ride with her father through the Iranian countryside.

In Waves
Director: Meredith Dobbs
Country: United States; Running Time: 9 Minutes
A woman explores uncertainty in a new romance and reflects with her therapist, set against a metaphor of floating in the ocean.

Into the Thicket
Director: Devany Greenwood
Country: United States; Running Time: 12 Minutes
A young woman struggles with her fractured home life, failing to find common ground with her volatile yet emotionally repressed mother. Longing for a maternal figure, she continues to be haunted by visions of a mystical woman, and soon, dream intertwines with reality as she discovers a deeper connection to the mysterious lady of the woods.

Jesa
Director: Jee Hoon Seo
Country: United States; Running Time: 13 Minutes
A young boy takes part in a traditional ancestral rite and discovers the sacrifices his mother has made to protect his sense of innocence.

Koi
Director: Justine Kaneda
Country: United States; Running Time: 8 Minutes
Together, they’re whole. A pair of koi pins reflects the unbreakable bond between two sisters and how they are connected even when one is gone.

Lie With Me US Premiere
Director: Melvin Mak
Country: Singapore; Running Time: 12 Minutes
As three guests arrive separately in a young woman’s desolate apartment, we watch her life slowly unfold. Tantalizing fragments, seemingly disconnected at first, begin to fall into place as we try to piece together her mysterious story.

Love Bites
Director: Tyler Trautman
Country: United States; Running Time: 10 Minutes
A young romantic discovers just how far he’s willing to go to fit in on a first date.

My Mom’s Best Friend US Premiere
Director: Xueqing Yin
Country: China; Running Time: 16 Minutes
My Mom’s Best Friend tells the story of a young dancer, Liya, who, worried that pregnancy might impact her dance career, comes to the hospital considering abortion. During the wait for the procedure, she encounters a little girl named Lili, who comes to find her mom.

My Partner’s Partner US Premiere
Director: Christian Del Rio Solorzano
Country: United States; Running Time: 9 Minutes
Two metamours meet on their mutual partner’s birthday, but as drinks flow, miscommunications unravel in awkward confrontations.

Naked Eye US Premiere
Director: Helena Oborska
Country: Poland; Running Time: 28 Minutes
Trying to fill her inner void, a lonely maid is spying at hotel guests. Her desires are fueled by a soap opera she is obsessed with. One day, when the star of the episode she has just seen appears at the hotel, the dreams of the emotion-starved woman start crawling out of her imagination. She is ready to do anything to fulfill her wild fantasy and make the TV romance come true.

New Things
Director: Deniz Arora
Country: Germany; Running Time: 5 Minutes
Life is full of surprises as our young protagonist also learns when she gets unexpected support in fulfilling her greatest wish.

On A Scale US Premiere
Director: Shan Jiang
Country: United States; Running Time: 7 Minutes
On a Scale tells the story of a seemingly privileged, determined, biracial woman who attempts to bring up a sexual harassment incident in a very delicate situation. She has no choice but to approach her two white male bosses, Paul and Michael, at a corporate gathering in order to make them acknowledge inappropriate behaviors conducted by Paul’s son, who is also Zoe’s colleague.

One Take US Premiere
Director: Elizabeth Cappuccino
Country: United States; Running Time: 13 Minutes
One take follows our protagonist Lily, an actor in New York City, through a run-of-the-mill callback experience — never breaking from a single take. This short is a love letter to actors and their resilience in the face of self-flagellation against impossible odds.

Pen, Again
Director: Julian J. Delacruz
Country: United States; Running Time: 13 Minutes
Mourning the unexpected loss of his wife, Leo embraces a new technology that promises to bring her back. We discover Leo just before he’s about to receive his “new” wife, Penelope. Not knowing what to expect, Leo discovers what he’s willing to accept in order to cope with the grief.

Please Send Help
Director: Danny Corey
Country: United States; Running Time: 19 Minutes
Two brothers process a recent break-up.

Power
Director: Emma Grosklos
Country: United States; Running Time: 16 Minutes
9 months after her assault, Jane attends a therapy session. By opening up about the long-term mental and emotional repercussions this event has had on her, she learns to face her trauma in order to heal.

Queen of Magic
Director: Stacey Maltin
Country: United States; Running Time: 14 Minutes
Victorian aristocrat, Addison Ellery, pursues a career in the male-dominated world of magic in the ragged streets of New York City.

Receding US Premiere
Director: Justin Lai
Country: United States; Running Time: 3 Minutes
A young man must confront his receding hairline at a party.

Rose V. Wade US Premiere
Director: Paulina Knaak
Country: United States; Running Time: 11 Minutes
This short film follows one young woman’s quest to find contraception…and everything goes wrong.

S.P.I.C.
Director: Heidi Miami Marshall
Country: United States; Running Time: 17 Minutes
Inspired by true events, this narrative unfolds as a 12-year-old Latino boy, and his dad navigate a day of desperate decisions after Johnny’s mom, an undocumented immigrant, is arrested by I.C.E. With the clock ticking, Johnny decides to undertake dangerous work for a drug dealer to afford an immigration lawyer, compelling Emilio to intervene and protect his son.

Seoul Switch
Director: Liann Kaye
Country: United States; Running Time: 12 Minutes
When an insecure, Korean American boy meets an International K-Pop Star who looks just like him, they decide to switch identities for a day, leading to unexpected complications.

Shrike
Director: Rebecca Lynne Loftin US Premiere
Country: United States; Running Time: 12 Minutes
After a one-night stand, Carolyn, numb and unhappily engaged, will do almost anything to break the monotony of her life and connect with her new companion, including pushing him to his breaking point.

Shut Up & Fish
Directors: Raul Sanchez, Pasqual Gutierrez
Country: United States; Running Time: 13 Minutes
Shut Up & Fish crafts evocative and bold coming-of-age vignettes on the trending Los Angeles Latino youth culture. The themes of the film’s immersion orbit social identity, belonging, and the emergence of authentic character. The film has garnered several awards, celebrating its impactful storytelling and visual execution.

Singing in the Lifeboat
Director: Grace Wijaya
Country: United States; Running Time: 14 Minutes
Jin seeks solace in the woods of Pennsylvania amidst the Covid pandemic. Surrounded only by trees, her thoughts become increasingly fraught with desperation and danger.

Skin to Skin US Premiere
Directors: Adrian Mikulak, Allamaprabhu Pattanashetty
Country: United States; Running Time: 12 Minutes
Carla struggles with the fear of losing herself in her relationships, but when she finally lets herself fall for Nadia she is forever changed.

Sojourn to Shangri-la US Premiere
Director: Yihan Lin
Country: China; Running Time: 19 Minutes
A fashion commercial crew goes to shoot on the beach, only to discover that the installation built in advance has vanished due to the rising tide. Through the efforts of an art assistant, a drone flies out to search for the installation over the sea, while taking her into the unknown.

Spirit of Place US Premiere
Director: Jack Cooper Stimpson
Country: United Kingdom; Running Time: 25 Minutes
Athel and Edward enjoy visiting the wetlands. Edward likes watching the birds, whilst Athel seems to have a much deeper connection to the landscape. When Athel makes a discovery, she is forced to re-examine what the wetlands mean to her. Starring Oscar winner Mark Rylance.

Springs US Premiere
Director: Morgan Healani Mein
Country: United States; Running Time: 14 Minutes
20-somethings Margo and Dan take a trip out east to the Hamptons. Their picturesque vacation is soon interrupted by the arrival of a strange and unexpected neighbor, The Clammer.

Stolen Dreams
Director: Justin Ferrato
Country: United States, Running Time: 12 Minutes
A migrant escapes a detention center and tries to survive on the run. A fever dream into the psyche of a migrant teenager traumatized by his journey away from home.

Suspicious Minds
Director: Imelda O’Reilly
Country: Ireland; Running Time: 15 Minutes
A romance at a trippy Halloween rave goes wrong… Lola’s public breakup is disrupted when an Elvis impersonator comes to the rescue. Sharing confidences and ghosts from their past, they reminisce about their homeland and discover meaning in their newly shared bond.

The Damp Season
Director: Olivia Huilin Gao
Country: United States; Running Time: 14 Minutes
The appearance of the mother’s alter personality, a girl the same age as the daughter, stirs up ripples in their long-estranged relationship.

The Eighth Day
Director: Jonah Weinstein
Country: United States; Running Time: 11 Minutes
Noah and Jonah are gay Jewish husbands and new parents to a baby boy. When Noah and Jonah’s parents arrive at their home expecting a traditional bris for their grandson, Noah and Jonah are forced to reveal that they had something very different in mind for their son: no circumcision.

The Joy of Living US Premiere
Director: Szymon Wackowski
Country: Poland; Running Time: 29 Minutes
A young married couple with two pre-teen kids takes a weekend trip to a large amusement park. In the hotel room, the woman discovers that her husband had a suicide attempt. He convinces her to hide the truth from the kids and to carry on with their holidays. Though she agrees, she spends the whole day trying to secretly investigate why her husband opted for such a dramatic step.

The Only Way Out Is Through
Director: Nicole Catania
Country: United States; Running Time: 18 Minutes
Estranged siblings come together for the first time at their abusive mother’s funeral. A story about family, trauma and how it stays with us through adulthood – even when we think we’ve found our way through.

The Stairs
Director: Jessica Aquila Cymerman
Country: United States; Running Time: 14 Minutes
Rose, a child of Irish and Italian immigrants in 1968 Brooklyn, attempts to fit in with the boys by joining the game her brother plays with his friend. Their tenement building super and local Deacon starts preying on Rose, until Mrs. Teruli, an old-world Italian healer breaks his hold.

The Suit US Premiere
Director: Carol McCann
Country: United States, Running Time: 19 Minutes
Inspired by a song of the same name written by the legendary songwriter Hugh Prestwood, the film follows a salt of the earth older woman and her granddaughter who go in search of the perfect suit for Grandpa, a man who has spent his life “scratchin’ the earth.” Together they travel the Nebraska countryside, making stops at a General Store, a fine haberdashery, and ultimately, a Thrift store where we ultimately learn it is the suit Grandpa will be buried in.

The Visit US Premiere
Director: Haruka Horiuchi
Country: United States; Running Time: 12 Minutes
When Daniel is hanging out with his group of friends, he notices – there are eight persons in the group, even though they usually hang out in a group of seven. Everyone should in the group, know each other for a long time, and there is no one new. While everyone is confused as to what is happening, this reminds Daniel of a folk tale about mischievous monsters.

Thirstygirl
Director: Alexandra Qin
Country: United States; Running Time: 10 Minutes
On a road trip with her younger sister, Charlie struggles to hide a secret addiction.

Two Shores US Premiere
Directors: Matt Subieta, Ewa Rodart
Country: Poland; Running Time: 25 Minutes
“Anna Maria has a sad face, Anna Maria is still looking into the distance”. – the words of the Polish ballad accompany the film’s protagonist, who comes from Poland to New York to face the ghosts of the past. New facts force her to verify her own memories.

Vambora US Premiere
Director: Laurier Fourniau
Country: France; Running Time: 21 Minutes
Brazil, September 2022. As the presidential elections approach, the population is split into two camps. In an apartment in a wealthy neighborhood of Rio, Amanda meets Cauã.

Vincent
Director: Tristan Cohen
Country: United States; Running Time: 25 Minutes
An exploration of friendship, grief, life, and loss. What does it mean to be human, to be alive? What connects us to reality, to each other? We all have every right to go insane; just come back.

When We Were Old US Premiere
Director: Elizabeth Giamatti
Country: United States; Running Time: 8 Minutes
Kate and Lily, seventeen, struggle to talk about things they don’t yet have language for as they make breakfast on the morning after a long night out.

Women and Elephants
Director: Barbara Stepansky
Country: United States; Running Time: 15 Minutes
Gwen and Paul are life-loggers and life partners locked inside during a global shutdown until Gwen discovers a blip in her life and must leave. Trouble ensues when she doesn’t make it out the door but instead ends up right where she started as the days bleed together and reality crosses wires with dreams. Is Gwen simply forgetting? Or is there something more sinister happening?

Your Silent Face
Director: Anna Capunay
Country: United States; Running Time: 19 Minutes
Two romantically linked Latines sneak out to catch their favorite post-punk band, Bootblacks, perform in Brooklyn. Guada is risking not only being grounded if caught but may find them-self back at the psych ward if they don’t comply with their mother’s terms.

DOCUMENTARY SHORTS

Artemis US Premiere
Director: Martijn Veldhoen
Country: Netherlands; Running Time: 17 Minutes
Artemis is a poetic pamphlet about our supposed superiority over nature. The film reverses the prevailing narrative on the passivity and pity for nature and for once lets the animals do the talking. Wild foxes, herons, cormorants, gulls, and bison tell us how they are doing. They show us their lives in the 4th most densely populated area in the world: the industrial and urban agglomeration of Amsterdam, the Netherlands.

Between Earth & Sky
Director: Andrew Nadkarni
Country: United States; Running Time: 25 Minutes
Renowned ecologist Nalini Nadkarni studies “what grows back” after a disturbance in the rainforest canopy. After surviving a life-threatening fall from a tree, she must turn her research question onto herself to explore the effects of disturbance and recovery throughout her own life.

Commuters US Premiere
Director: Evan Perazzo
Country: United States; Running Time: 6 Minutes
With dreams of making it big, thousands of 8th graders audition each year for a chance to attend New York City’s Fiorello H. LaGuardia High School for Music & Art and Performing Arts. The only thing harder than getting in… is getting there.

DelMar
Director: Lucy Morales Carlisle
Country: United States; Running Time: 19 Minutes
A young surfer on the cusp of adulthood navigates life between two worlds. Brenda spent the majority of her life in El Zonte, El Salvador, a rural beach town famous for its surf. Brenda began competing at the age of 15 and quickly rose through the ranks locally, making her dreams of traveling and surfing around the world seemingly more attainable. In 2017, however, Brenda moved to Maryland, a state not known for its beaches nor its perfect waves, to reunite with her mother, whom she had never met.

Dicks That I Like
Director: Johanna Gustin
Country: Germany; Running Time: 13 Minutes
Visual artist Daniela Torres creates colorful ceramic dick sculptures inspired by the men who have been dicks to her. In this intimate artist portrait, Daniela shares her struggles, anger and catharsis as she creates a sculpture modeled after a series of unsolicited dick pics.

Far West US Premiere
Director: Stephen Michael Simon
Country: United States; Running Time: 17 Minutes
Drained by the fast-paced urban lifestyle, New York City artist Lala makes a bold decision to uproot herself and seek solace in the untamed landscapes somewhere far west. Stripped of the familiar comforts of running water, electricity, and constant connectivity, she faces the daunting challenge of building a life from scratch. Amidst the solitude of her surroundings, Lala’s journey becomes a quest of self-discovery. Devoid of noise and distractions that once clouded her perception, she delves into the depths of her being, unraveling layers of introspection and vulnerability.

Greetings From Summerland: “Birthplace of Offshore Wells”
Directors: Harry Rabin, Joey Szalkiewicz
Country: United States; Running Time: 21 Minutes
A coastal community grapples with the haunting legacy of humanity’s environmental impact. Greetings from Summerland reveals the little-known history and environmental aftermath of the world’s first offshore oil wells in Summerland, California, from their origins in the 1800s to contemporary capping efforts. This investigative documentary delves into these early oil ventures’ significant local and global repercussions.

I Don’t Need Adult Conversation US Premiere
Director: Vika Evdokimenko
Country: United Kingdom; Running Time: 12 Minutes
A new mother dotes on her baby by day but discovers dark feelings stirring up inside her at night. This hybrid doc explores the shadow side of motherhood which remains taboo in our culture.

Isle Wild
Directors: Anna Moot-Levin, Daniel Schloss
Country: United States; Running Time: 21 Minutes
An animal rehabilitator on Roosevelt Island fights to save one of the last remaining wild areas in New York.

Living By the Lake
Director: Jonathan E Jackson
Country: United States; Running Time: 31 Minutes
Beverly Shores, Indiana, a small waterfront community is hit hard by the rising water of Lake Michigan. As its sandy shoreline erodes into the Lake, the homes along the lakeshore become endangered, and after a series of storms the dunes eventually collapse into the Lake and with-it part of the main road.

Mirasol, Looking at the Sun
Director: Ben Knight
Country: United States; Running Time: 36 Minutes
Water is a finite resource — and an essential one. For farmers, it’s everything. The film explores a national issue around water through an intimate portrait of a small community in Pueblo, Colorado, that’s fighting to protect their water, land, and livelihood. Mirasol, Looking at the Sun, follows a multi-generational Italian and Hispanic immigrant farming community, from the 92-year-old farmer who has worked the land for generations to the young people who are ready and willing to take the reins.

Ride to Endure: A Journey for ALS to Set the Baja Divide FKT
Director: Reece Robinson
Country: United States; Running Time: 29 Minutes
Driven by a mission to honor his Uncle Bruce’s battle against ALS and contribute to the cause, ultra-endurance cyclist Miron Golfman attempts to establish a new self-supported Fastest Known Time (FKT) across the formidable 1600-mile Baja Divide bikepacking route in Mexico. Miron’s journey transcends physical endurance, delving into the emotional strength required to confront life’s profound challenges.

Sheep, Marriage and Smuggling US Premiere
Director: Andrés Salaberri Pueyo
Country: Spain; Running Time: 15 Minutes
The Marisco family are the last habitants of a Navarrese valley near the border with France. Once the bosses of smuggling, they’re now ranchers. This year Juan and Carmen celebrate their diamond wedding anniversary.

The Walking Forest
Directors: Rose Casella, Floris Leeuwenberg
Country: Netherlands; Running Time: 25 Minutes
The Walking Forest tells the story of Bosk, an extraordinary project that brought a thousand trees into Leeuwarden, forever changing the lives of its citizens. For 100 days, the city transformed into a magical moving forest, and the residents witnessed the beauty and power of nature in their own backyard. It took a lot of cooperation from many people to realize such an impossible project.

Threads of Nature: The Art & Advocacy of Alicia Evans
Directors: Kevin Lopez, Annmarie Ragucci
Country: United States; Running Time: 6 Minutes
Through the intricate dance of fiber and artistry, Long Island based fiber artist Alicia Evans weaves a compelling narrative, merging her passion for trees and the environment, revealing the delicate threads that connect nature, art, and humanity.

ANIMATION SHORTS

A Walk in the Park
Director: Jay Marks
Country: United States; Running Time: 14 Minutes
A late-night dog walk becomes a desperate escape from a neighborhood being warped and distorted by an unfamiliar presence in this speechless animated horror story set in Manhattan’s Inwood Hill Park.

Booked A Room
Director: Kris Lefcoe
Country: United States; Running Time: 3 Minutes
A surreal stop-motion fantasy about a woman who checks into a motel room to have a scheduled nervous breakdown.

Musica Quarantena
Director: Lilian T. Mehrel
Country: United States; Running Time: 3 Minutes
A little girl’s love for her bedridden Papa inspires a town in lockdown to make music out their windows.

The Ekspats – We’re Going to Africa
Director: Ron Myrick
Country: United States; Running Time: 20 Minutes
An animated clash of cultures comedy TV series of an all-American family that relocates to Nigeria. Bill Diamond, an earnest, unappreciated, down in the dumps business consultant is given a career-saving opportunity that forces him and his sheltered, all-American family to relocate to Nigeria. We join them on their journey as their minds and hearts open to the people, the culture, and the privileged family of the tycoon, Solomon Babatunde, who hired Bill’s firm.

UnFamiliar
Director: Sophia Jean Marshall
Country: United States; Running Time: 4 Minutes
A young witch looking for a familiar finds an unlikely ally in a trash-loving possum in this lighthearted romp about growth, love, and garbage.

XR EXHIBIT

Antipsychotic
Director: Matt McCorckle
Country: United States; Running Time: 15 Minutes
Embark on an immersive exploration in a psychotropic cyberpunk universe, where each element – from spatial audio to tactile haptic systems – is meticulously crafted to represent the emotional spectrum of a lived bipolar disorder experience. Lotus flower speakers resonate with personal stories, while striking visuals tell a journey from turmoil to tranquility. This experience, deeply personal yet universally resonant, offers a window into the life of an individual navigating the complexities of bipolar disorder, pre- and post-treatment. It’s a shared exploration that invites understanding, empathy, and a collective reimagining of mental health narratives.

Nirwana Gold
Director: Andreas Waldenmaier
Country: Germany; Running Time: 13 Minutes
Nirwana.Gold is a multi-sensory virtual reality trilogy that offers the viewer three different spiritual experiences. An individual film, soundtrack, perfume and ice cream flavor was created for each VR experience. Chapter I: Shanti – The viewer enters the atrium of a temple and is immediately drawn into a multi-sensory, meditative experience which culminates in a feeling of complete loss of consciousness.

Oh, Charles US Premiere
Director: Jake Adams
Country: United States; Running Time: 15 Minutes
Oh, Charles is an interactive XR installation embodying an experimental theater between four AI within a diagonal representation of human evolution via holographic displays. Each visual component addresses the ebb and flow disjunction of humanity abutting an eternal representation for the rate of the universe expanding.