Pieces of Us
(Various, 94min)
Experience a powerful collection of short films that speak to the heart of human resilience, crafted to resonate with a wide audience. This program brings together a diverse array of stories, each exploring personal and societal challenges that reflect the complexities of everyday life. From moments of quiet introspection to intense struggles, these films delve into the intersections of human experience—capturing fleeting connections and profound impacts. With narratives ranging from eerie suspense to poignant realities, this selection offers something for everyone, appealing to those drawn to tales of creative ambition, social justice, and the universal search for meaning. This program promises to engage, inspire, and leave a lasting impression.
SCREENING THURSDAY, OCTOBER 3 @ 7PM
THE FILMS
Blue Hour
(J.D Shields, USA, 2024, 16min)
Two personal journeys intersect when a struggling young photographer is hired for a cheap last minute portrait gig. The unfolding photo session, while transient, leaves an indelible mark on both women.
Ten
(Beah Travis, USA, 2024, 10min)
The anxiety of growing up threatens a young girl's world.
Tin Hill No.9
(Nick Early, USA, 2024, 9min)
Filmmaker Present!
After a tunnel collapses, trapped miners are haunted by strange knocks in the darkness. As one miner investigates, the knocks echo miles away to his family above ground.
The Shakespeare Mash-up
(Ethan Montgomery, Luke Montgomery, USA, 2024, 13min)
Filmmaker Present!
Clarence Henderson, a high school playwright, tries to stop his new play production from falling apart minutes before the show starts.
My Last Song
(Dylan Audrey, Ireland, 2024, 20 min)
Filmmaker Present!
Inspired by true events, My Last Song follows a homeless musician in Dublin whose music, initially ignored by the city, eventually resonates with a young aspiring songwriter named Orí.
Safety State
(Jeanette L. Buck, USA, 2024, 15min)
In a dystopian near future, a gay and a lesbian couple form an unexpected friendship while fleeing the midwest for New England to escape restrictive laws, facing threats and navigating their journey together.
Gillyfish
(Sarah Sellman, USA, 2024, 11min)
When Gillian assumes her partner’s identity to confront their father, she discovers an unexpected connection through the unusual exchange, in a short film about healing through new identities.
Ruins & Reveries
(Various, 91min)
This program takes you on a journey through evolving landscapes, where past dreams and modern realities intersect. It explores the complex dynamics of identity and architecture both within and beyond American borders. From an abandoned resort in the Catskills that invites reflection on history, culture, and healing, to a 1968 urban renewal project where concrete utopias clash with grassroots resistance, the films offer a diverse perspective. In a small Virginia town, the passage of time is captured through super-8 film, documenting subtle yet profound changes in a community’s built environment. Together, these films provide a poetic and provocative meditation on aspirations, ruins, and the continuing impact of dreams on our world.
SCREENING SUNDAY, OCTOBER 6 @ 4:30PM
THE FILMS
All-American Ruins: Nevele Grand Hotel
(Angel Gates, USA, 2024, 15min)
Filmmaker Present!
The abandoned Nevele Grand Resort in Ellenville, NY, now a crumbling relic, serves as both a dreamscape for artist Blake Pfeil to explore American history, culture, and mental health, and an invitation for viewers to use their imagination as a tool for healing.
Brutal Utopias
(Morgan Adamson, USA, 2023, 34min)
Filmmaker Present!
Brutal Utopias explores the clash between architect Ralph Rapson's 1968 urban renewal project and the neighborhood's countercultural resistance, using archival material, interviews, and motion graphics to reflect on the evolving dreams of modernity and their impact on current residents.
Of Time and the Town
(David Ellsworth, USA, 2024, 28min)
Of Time, and the Town poetically captures twenty years of change in Farmville, Virginia, using Super-8 film to document the evolution of its built environment, from a young couple renovating a 19th-century school to the transformation of a former Black high school into a civil rights museum, with evocative soundscapes and radio excerpts enriching the narrative.
Eighteen Mill Street
(Josh Weissbach, USA, 2024, 14min)
This film follows Ukrainian artists Marianna Tarish and Nikita Gryshko after their relocation to Sweden due to the Russian invasion, exploring how their experiences in Kherson and their new environment have reshaped their relationships with intimate and domestic spaces.
Shadows in the Ordinary
(Various, 81min)
This collection of short films immerses viewers in a world where the boundaries between reality and the supernatural blur, revealing the profound impact of personal struggles on our external environment. Each film explores the tension between the familiar and the unsettling, as characters confront their fears, grief, and inner demons. From a chilling family dynamic threatened by dark forces to the surreal manifestations of heartbreak in a new home, and the hauntingly poignant attempts to reclaim lost love through unconventional means, these narratives delve into the eerie and often unsettling ways our emotional landscapes shape and distort the world around us. Through a blend of horror, dark comedy, and poignant drama, this program offers a compelling examination of how deeply personal experiences can become both a source of terror and a catalyst for profound self-discovery.
SCREENING FRIDAY, OCTOBER 4 @ 8:30PM
THE FILMS
The Shed
(Nathan Block, USA, 2024, 10min)
Filmmaker Present!
A young girl must protect her two younger brothers from her father who has been possessed.
FLUSH
(Nick Larner, USA, 2024, 19min)
Filmmaker Present!
A man's mental anguish is manifested in the form of malfunctioning plumbing in his new house.
Black Apple
(Dominique Martinez, David Anderson, USA, 2024, 15min)
As Hoover High honors the late Mr. Wilder's life, teacher Jess Adams, burdened by guilt over his mysterious death, is drawn into a dizzying psychological journey with bizarre celebrity greetings, like those from Vanilla Ice and Tommy Chong, exposing the intense pressures faced by today’s public school teachers.
Pear
(Joel Potrykus, USA, 2024, 36 min)
A grieving widow turns to her garden to bring her husband back to life, only to realize that not much has changed.