Film Titles

Nacho Mama (8 min)

Tupperware (4:07 min)

A man tries to get his Tupperware back from his ex.

Free Beer (19 min)

One man's quest for his favorite beer turns into a sudden rivalry of psychedelic proportions.

Crosswalk (21 min)

Rosemary returns for her final year of college after a tragic accident last semester, but soon discovers the past is haunting her in more ways than one.

"Crosswalk" is a supernatural horror/drama about trauma, loss, and what happens after.

Daughter (20:30 min)

This is a story of Love, Loss, and Acceptance. Lawyer and single father Michael Strauss is asked by his daughter Rose about her mother who has been deceased her whole life. After years of keeping it bottled in, Michael is now ready to tell her the story.

Film Titles

You Should Have Been Better (16 min)

Two strangers are drawn together after the actions of one have deadly consequences for the other.

KOFE (6 min)

A night out turns into a day that never ends.

Together (21 min)

Toni is stuck in a lackluster marriage to workaholic Robert, and finds refuge in the charm of her younger coworker, Jalen, As tensions rise, one dangerous proposition will push Toni past the point of no return.

Kira vs Everyone (22 min)

After receiving a humanitarian award, Senator Horace Black becomes hunted down by an unknown presence.

Just Take One (4 min)

In a timeless neighborhood, after the leaves have fallen, the winds are stronger, the breezes are colder, and the jack o' lanterns are lit with flame, two Trick or Treaters find one of the most horrifying tricks of all.

The Pro (16 min)

Zach Stillman goes from local arcade hero to pro air hockey star overnight. Will he puck it up?

Token (9 min)

A support group that meets specifically for the plight of the African American living in today's America is about to meet and get introduced to the perspective another African American who's living his "American Dream": new member Tom.

Film Titles

Basri & Salma (15 min)

A husband and wife married for 5 years, own an Odong-Odong at the carnival together, spending their days entertaining and taking care of other people’s children without any of their own.
Between meddling relatives, self-doubt and an explosive confrontation, they uncover why they have not been blessed with a child.

Project Muffin (10 min)

A doofy regular joe tries to stop his roommate, a wiry food scientist obsessed over her world hunger project from moving out but accidentally gets them locked in her lab on Christmas Eve.

St. George (12 min)

In this gripping drama, a family is torn apart by a failed bank heist, and one brother (Ricki) must embark on a heart-wrenching quest for redemption and reconciliation as he navigates a labyrinth of regret and challenges. Hank, a corrupt cop desperate to escape the clutches of a dangerous cartel and secure his financial future, becomes embroiled in a treacherous web of intrigue and danger. After a terrible accident, Ricki must now delve deep into his past to save his brother's wife, Gloria, and himself from the clutches of the ruthless cartel and the relentless pursuit of Hank. In a high-stakes, heart-pounding climax, Ricki must navigate a treacherous path of redemption and danger to reunite his fractured family and secure their future.

Internal Demons of a Monster (7 min)

Written and Directed by Josh Pavlock and filmed by Cinematographer Kaile Kelter, this short gives a glimpse into the conflicted mind of a generational serial killer. This story will be widely expanded upon in the feature “Checked Out,” currently in pre-production. It will be filmed in 2024 as part of the first Virginia's Got Talent project hosted by Osprey Media Studios. Starring Sarah Lemon, Emily Adkisson, and Caitlin Morris.

Myriad (14 min)

MYRIAD is an intricate thriller created by writer/actor Grayson Bane and brought to life by cinematographer Payton Bergkamp. The film follows a woman who has been forced into an interrogation by a man who thinks she holds the key to a young man's disappearance. Soon, both discover that the other are not quite what they seem and chaos ensues.

Super Power (16 min)

A trans teen with the ability to see the past and the future solves the mystery of a missing dog, saves a life, and discovers her own superpower.

StarTime (20 min)

Esther Hayes, on the road fleeing an abusive marriage, stops for the night at the eccentric StarTime motel. She’s told a room will only cost $1 a night, but she has to agree to livestream her visit on the motel’s YouTube channel. Awkward and self-conscious at first, Esther ends up pouring her heart out to her unseen audience, not knowing it will change her life forever.

Film Titles

Presented by UVA Health Office for Diversity and Community Engagement

(Five Time Emmy Award Winning Documentarian, Annette Banks, will be Present for a Q&A)

Maternal Mental Health (29 min)

Depression, anxiety, PTSD, and other psychological difficulties are the most common complications of pregnancy and postpartum - yet 75 percent go untreated. This documentary explores the isolating trauma that too often accompanies child birth. Women of color, women living in rural areas and birthing people within the LGBTQIA+ community are at higher risk. “You’re Not Alone” introduces individuals and families whose lives have been profoundly impacted by maternal mental health conditions while also highlighting the people and programs working for positive change.

Run to Be Visible (19 min)

Lydia Jennings is a member of the Huichol (Wixaritari) and Pascua Yaqui (Yoeme) Nations and holds a doctorate in soil microbiology. Her work is dedicated to environmental science and the essential role of Indigenous communities in these spaces. Her hope is to create more inclusive academic and environmental landscapes.

In place of her graduation, which was canceled as a result of the pandemic, Lydia instead celebrated by running 50 miles in honor of the Indigenous scientists and knowledge keepers who came before her. It’s a run to honor the past and present while looking towards the future.

Figs (12 min)

An 81-year-old Black-American woman talks about her life coming to California from the South as she spends time with her living siblings for the first time in 25 years.

A Crisis in Childbirth (10 min)

Decades of inequity in the healthcare system have led to a crisis in Black maternal health. Mothers and babies are dying in childbirth at an alarming rate, much higher than their White counterparts. In this short documentary, African American women share experiences where their voices were not heard, and the devastating consequences that resulted. 

Beating Batten (11 min)

I have been thrown into the controversial world of stem cell research and medical research by a turn of unfortunate events. My daughter Sara was diagnosed with a rare terminal disease. When I first received this devastating news, my only hope was BDSRA. An organization which, through it’s yearly conferences, connected children and their parents with researchers. However the research was in it’s infancy. I knew, I was relegated to hopelessly watch my daughter slowly regress and die. As the years passed and researchers came up with new results, the atmosphere at the conference shifted. With each new breakthrough came a new hope. Year after year I could feel the change, and that feeling was my inspiration. I needed to show what can be accomplished, even if it takes painfully long time. I hope to let the viewer experience, what I have experienced. Welcome to my world.

Object 817 (22 min)

A poetic journey to the heart of the Ural, where the discovery of an alien creature uncovers a haunting secret.

Film Titles

Sponsored by BEACON a New Hill Project

Radio Silence (20 min)

Tracey has made a career out of her love for music and its connection to the human experience, but when confronted with her mother’s illness, she's forced to reevaluate the soundtrack of her own life.

She’s Mine Now (6 min)

An assassin takes in the dog of a couple she has recently murdered.

Black Fire (28 min)

The Black Fire Record company was founded in 1975 by Jimmy Gray and J. Plunky Branch, two iconic names in the music business, synonymous with creativity and commitment. Black Fire Records was established to amplify and produce culturally relevant jazz and progressive original music for the Washington, DC community. This small, independent label would go on to revolutionize the music business, nationally and internationally.

Afri, The Coming Night (10 min)

When a rare natural occurrence overtakes a mythical desert village, a sister is forced to search for her alienated brother and face the mysterious, ineffable darkness of the coming night.

Essex Girls (15 min)

Flipping the "Essex Girl" trope, this coming-of-age film explores Black British girlhood and magical female friendships in 2009 Essex. Navigating adolescence in Benfleet, Essex hasn't been straightforward for British-Nigerian Bisola. She's done her best to fit in, but even her two best friends Charlie & Saffron, who love her to bits, seem to be understanding her less and less recently. However, after an incident at her high school shunts her into the orbit of the only other Black girl in her year - the gorgeous, irrepressible Ashlee, who is everything Bisola wishes she could be - Bisola is plunged into a journey of discovering a whole new side of herself.

Muna (15 min)

British-Somali teen Muna (Kosar Ali) is desperate to go on the school trip - to have fun with her mates, escape the monotony of her household and, of course, provide the greatest playlist of all time (!!). But her parents aren't so sure.Tragedy strikes when her grandfather dies back in Somalia, and Muna must navigate a confusing mourning period for someone she never really knew - all while still desperately hoping to persuade her mother to change her mind about the trip. As events collide at the wake, Muna reflects on her and her grandfather’s life, discovering there's more that connects the two of them than she ever realised...

Film Titles

Wild Hogs & Saffron (19 min)

Iranian-American filmmaker Andy Sarjahani and his childhood friend Bubba Samuels go on a wild hog hunt in their native Ozarks where unexpected conversations unfold that have a lasting impact on their friendship.

Merman (11 min)

A 58 year-old black queer man speaks about his life as an emergency nurse, leather title holder and civil rights advocate.

Away for a While (12 min)

The descendant of a matron in the Native American Boarding Schools travels to the Southwest attempting to return Native artifacts collected a century earlier. After being away for awhile, will the objects be accepted in their communities?

More Than You Can Know (29 min)

While cleaning out the attic of her family home, Canadian-American writer Naomi Guttman discovers bundles of love letters written during her parents’ transatlantic courtship. With home-movie footage, letters, photographs, and surprisingly candid interviews about love, fidelity, and gender roles, Guttman weaves a poignant tale of a sixty-four-year marriage between two doctors whose love is tested by time and circumstance. Inspired by the films of Alan Berliner, Judith Helfand, and Sarah Polley, Guttman’s first film reveals a rare and intimate glimpse into the arc of a complex relationship.

Rustburg (19 min)

On the morning of November 18, 2023, film producer Alex Zhort woke to a series of concerning text messages. An hour later he arrived in Rustburg, VA to provide a wellness check on his "friend" and fellow filmmaker, Nick.

Before diving into Nick's mind, it was decided that the conversation should be documented on camera. Captured here is a man coming to terms with his anxieties about modern cinema and his place in the film world - while simultaneously struggling to make a compelling film about it.

Desperate for company, Nick had also placed an earlier call that morning to his landlord reporting a (supposedly) broken clothes dryer in hopes of triggering a house-call. It worked, and the camera continues rolling as the landlord interrupts their talk to work on the dryer.

Seeking a Homeland (10 min)

What does it mean to be a Tibetan, but living in Tibet is no longer an option?

Tenzing Norbu, a Tibetan born and raised in Sikkim, India, where his parents rooted after fleeing with the 14th Dalai Lama in the 1950s. He came to the States to build a family with his wife. Like any other Tibetan parents, they held dear to their culture, language, and religious belief - Tibetan Buddhism - the belief that bonds the dispersed community far away from their homeland. This film explored the Tibetan families in the DC area as they navigate the intersection of Tibetan heritage and the prevailing American cultural milieu.

Film Titles

Sponsored by Pam and Frank Edmonds

Addiction (16 min)

A distressed man visits his deceased ex-wife’s funeral service to rehash his destructive patterns that prove only to be self-defeating.

Tryouts (10 min)

John would absolutely kill to fulfill his lifelong dream of becoming a mascot. Now due to an unfortunate mix-up, he might just have to…

SHÉ (SNAKE) (16 min)

Fei Li is the top violinist in her elite youth orchestra. When another Chinese violinist arrives to challenge her place, Fei’s internalized racism and anxieties grow to take monstrous physical form. They whisper to her, urging her to be the best, no matter the cost.

Jess (15 min)

JESS is about a teenage girl’s mental health struggles and dealing with the many conflicts in her life such as those between her parents, friends, and boyfriend. She loses herself to external and internal pressures as a reaction to her “perfect little girl” label.

How We Met (5 min)

A couple recall how they got together where their version of events don’t quite align with reality.

Boi de Conchas (15 min)

While mourning her missing sister, Rayane balances helping her fisherman father and practicing for the school's music festival – provided she doesn't become an ox first, a misfortune assailing several teenagers in the area.

Bye Bye Bowser (20 min)

Punksinger 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.

Belfry (14 min)

An Afro-Latina family learns about their daughter's mental health after she returns from a trip abroad doing psychedelics.

The Gambit (4 min)

A Crime Boss sees his past catching up to him. He decides to remove himself from consequences in a unique way.

Film Titles

Two Days in the Village (22 min)

Two people meet in Greenwich Village. The right pair at the wrong time.

The Road to Home (26 min)

Introduction: this is one of the few stories in Taiwan where the ecology affects the entire village. Longtan Lake in Jiaoxi is home to Taiwan's only migratory Sharp-jaw barbel ecosystem. Every year around the Dragon Boat Festival, tens of thousands of Sharp-jaw barbel migrate to wild streams to spawn over a distance of just tens of meters. During the process, the Sharp-jaw barbel would be affected by alien species and environment. Residents in the area formed volunteers and began to protect the fish, clean up the environment, and popularize eco-education in nearby schools.
In addition, they also remove the alien species to let the Sharp-jaw barbel migrates smoothly, which has been done for decades.

This is their home. It’s both volunteers’ and the Sharp-jaw barbel’s home.
This is the most beautiful story of environment and the most heartwarming place in Taiwan!

The Last Twilight Candle (23 min)

A woman intends to break up with her first boyfriend but gets interrupted by a time-travelling wizard.

Sights Unseen (30 min)

A student's fascination with extra dimensions will lead to an obsession with the mysteries of what is beyond our comprehension. Is it math or is it magic?

I, Miss Virginia: Ocey’s Death (19 min)

Based on real events. November 29, 1909, a woman calls for a coroner in East Orange, NJ to confirm her 24 year old niece's accidental death. An investigation leads to the arrest of the aunt.

Film Titles

Sponsored by C&F Bank

The Masterpiece (20 min)

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.

Words (15 min)

Two hitmen are told to go to a warehouse by their boss. Then things really change.
Manipulated by the FBI and covert forces both Pepper and Twotone manage to survive as they are placed in the witness protection program. Only they're not! Their boss Carmine Amore has been arrested and sent to jail for stealing 20 million dollars in gold! No one is saying where it is. Who knows the truth? As the game continues Gloria Miller moves in and out of all their lives, is she working for the FBI or the nefarious underworld trying to find the gold?

Guts (11 min)

Desperate for help, a woman in recovery asks an unlikely stranger on a dinner date.

Five Questions (11 min)

In Five Questions, Jill, a young woman played by Amber Paul, comes to terms with an early trauma in her life. In each of the film's five scenes, a question is asked that propels Jill forward and toward an answer that opens a path to resolution.
Written and directed by David Arrow, the film stars Amber Paul as Jill and features a diverse supporting cast that includes Donna Lynne Champlin, Kiera Allen, Joyia D. Bradley and Elijah Guo. The film was produced by Leon Derriey.

Worth Guitars (10 min)

Tony Whitford, Luthier and owner of Worth Guitars, talks about working with wood and how building guitars saved his life and gave him purpose. Tony shows the building of a custom guitar and many of the steps it takes to complete.

Know to Run: Yatika (10 min)

When representation is everything, it can make a difference and have a profound impact when community is included in spaces that lack inclusion and diversity. This short film, Know to Run, featuring Yatika Starr Fields, an Indigenous runner, artist and advocate, is the recipient of GU Energy Labs + Rising Hearts - 2022 Western States Endurance Run (WSER) Race Entry.

Voice Ever (13 min)

Over the course of an evening, Romane, Sarah, Emmanuel and Boris connect on Voice Ever, a new dating app where you choose your date based on their voice. Their weaknesses and vulnerabilities will surface in their desire to meet.

Raise the Bar (5 min)

A businessman is rushing to leave his corporate parking garage late at night. A sentient pleasure-seeking ticket machine stands in his way.

Film Titles

Formative Years (30 min)

After a high school student finds himself unwillingly involved in his classmate's fatal accident, he is forced to confront the lingering emotions from his troubled past.

The Strangle of Ivy (15 min)

Adapted from Sara Crocoll Smith’s story of the same name, this short film is a claustrophobic, dread-inducing work of horror that will chill your soul. "The Strangle of Ivy" evokes "Relic" while giving off "The Woman in Black" vibes.

A demanding mother... creeping ivy… and a dark secret…

Samantha’s been the perfect daughter her entire life. As she uncovers what lies at the heart of her childhood home, she’ll never be the same again.

Higher Lows (20 min)

An estate mover with a compulsive gambling problem discovers one of his seedy investments has ties to a corporation and a missing artist.

Sunset (12 min)

As Lily and Mia get ready to go off to different colleges, their relationship becomes strained and they must face their final sunset in this sapphic coming of age short.

Not Everyone’s So Lucky (15 min)

A thief accepts a woman's offer to rob her husband the night of her party. Plans change and alliances shift when the husband interrupts the robbery. Adapted from the short story "Round the Fire or the Story of B24" by Arthur Conan Doyle.

Kissing Frogs (5 min)

Your worst kiss. Ever.

Wisteria (15 min)

When three estranged siblings agree to sell their childhood home, an ancient family curse emerges to restore the balance.

My Own Worst Enemy (13 min)

Malia is an ex-drug addict who suffers from crippling hypochondria. In an attempt to curb the symptoms of her mental illness for a night, she makes the impulsive decision to contact her old drug dealer. When her two friends Julian and Kayla find out she wants to party, one is overjoyed and the other, extremely suspicious. Malia lies about her reason of wanting to go, and about her mental state. When they go to the party, Malia’s true intentions are brought to light, and with the
determination of her friend, her dark secret is eventually revealed.

Film Titles

Stargazing. A dialogue on creation between serial silence-killers (7 min)

Lying in total darkness, two young immortals discuss whether it is time to create the World once again. A cosmogonic screwball comedy.

Wildman (10 min)

Amy, a trans woman, must reconnect with her estranged father when he claims to have shot a Bigfoot dead in his backyard.

The Funnel Web (11 min)

In an attempt to be seen as a hero, former child star and embattled real-estate mogul, Eddie Wander, plans the kidnapping and rescue of his own nephew. His lawyer attempts to discourage him, even as the cops and criminals he's hired begin putting the nonsensical plan into motion.

Three Miles (14 min)

A lone backpacker stumbles upon a cabin in the Appalachian Mountains; unknowingly to him, haunted by demonic children.

Dream Creep (13 min)

A couple awakens in the night to sounds emanating from an unlikely orifice.

No Ordinary Blue (24 min)

A recent college graduate attempts to hide the emotional consequences from a Master's program rejection as his friends move onto their next steps.

The Gentleman’s Guide (to Courtship in the Modern Era) (13 min)
A comedy short film that gives audiences a surprisingly historically accurate peek into the dating habits of Edwardian couples

Well Played (12 min)

A man questions his judgment after verbally abusing a homeless couple when they attempt to take his belongings.