Beyond the Lakes
(Various, 83min)
Experience the powerful storytelling of Minnesota filmmakers in this captivating short film program, where each narrative explores the raw, emotional struggles that define our deepest connections. Through tales of grief and redemption, these films delve into the complexities of family bonds, the courage to break free from cycles of pain, and the search for meaning in the aftermath of loss. Set against the evocative landscapes of Minnesota—from the isolation of a lakeside cabin to the fading venues of the Blues scene—these stories resonate with universal themes of resilience and renewal. Don’t miss this chance to journey through these deeply human experiences, all brought to life by the unique voices of Minnesota’s talented filmmakers.
SCREENING FRIDAY, OCTOBER 4 @ 8:30PM
THE FILMS
Cycles
(Laura Runge-Hunt, USA, 2024, 8min)
A mother and daughter are forced to reevaluate their relationships when their partners become abusive.
Reunion
(M.r. Fitzgerald, 2024, USA, 18min)
Filmmaker Present!
After a viral outbreak ends the world, two surviving family members rescue their infected matriarch from a scientist out for blood-thirsty revenge.
The Happy Place
(Adam Olson, USA 2024, 12min)
Aaron searches for connection after the loss of his mother.
Life At The Lake
(Tessa Torreano, USA 2024, 16min)
Viola, recently divorced and yearning for a fresh start, decides to spend some time at a picturesque cabin by the lake with her son, Anthony. Their idyllic getaway takes a sinister turn when Anthony is involved in an accident. Haunted by guilt and determined to make amends, Viola hopes to find closure and reconnect with her son. She feels ready to begin cleaning up the mess the accident left behind.
Blues for The Blues
(Craig Laurence Rice, USA, 2024, 29min)
A story of two brothers facing their decline in the Blues music performance business due to a younger generation’s fickle taste and the abandonment of a certain section of the traditional black audience.
Boundary Breakers
(Various, 70min)
Immerse yourself in a captivating collection of avant-garde cinema that re-imagines the boundaries of storytelling. This program takes you on a journey through the unexpected, where each film challenges convention and offers a rich tapestry of narratives that invite deeper reflection. From an intense exploration of the collision between virtual violence and real-world repercussions to a nostalgic tribute that juxtaposes modern technology with a beloved classic device, these films provoke thought and stir emotions.
SCREENING SATURDAY, OCTOBER 5 @ 5:00PM
THE FILMS
Lost Season
(Kelly Sears, USA, 2024, 6min)
As Earth experiences its final winter, camera operators hired to document the season for a streaming company reject the project, refusing to commodify the collapse of the climate with their work..
Welcome to the Enclave
(Sarah Lasley, USA, 2024, 12min)
Two Texas sisters who created a metaverse haven during the pandemic now face the collapse of their idealized digital suburb, as their crowdfunding efforts are undermined by internet trolls and the growing realization that their online utopia can't escape real-world problems.
Hemorrhage
(Ruth Hayes, USA, 2023, 4min)
Dynamic animated agit-prop advocating for women's reproductive rights in response to the overturning of Roe.
That Bolex Thing
(Paul Echeverria, USA, 2024, 3min)
Filmmaker Present!
Fleeting occurrence of visual abstraction contextualize the ongoing interplay between innovation and tradition.
Games People Play
(Jim Hall, Xavier Combe, United States, 2024, 3 min)
A passenger on the Paris Metro, disturbed by a teenager's gleeful destruction in a war game on his cellphone, feels compelled to intervene and stop the horror.
If Only You Could See What I've Seen With Your Eyes
(Jack Cronin, USA, 2024, 4min)
Filmmaker Present!
This film recontextualizes a scene from Blade Runner where Rick Deckard uses a zoom-and-analyze machine to reveal hidden details in a photograph, exploring themes of self-discovery and reflection.
A Mile and a Half
(Raymond Rea, USA, 2024, 6min)
The Red River Women's Clinic, North Dakota's last abortion provider, successfully relocated just across the border to Minnesota after the Dobbs decision, ensuring no interruption in services through a determined community effort.
Phantoms
(Scott Northrup, USA, 2024, 4min)
Filmmaker Present!
A modern materialist film about filmmaking and dying trees, edited in-camera and hand-processed in a beer bath.
Go Swiftly Along
(Jason R.A. Foster, USA, 2024, 16min)
When the director and the two lead actors behind a cult film record the audio commentary for a special edition release, old wounds are re-opened.
Ashes of Roses
(Sasha Waters, USA, 2024, 11min)
This essay film reflects on the love for embarrassing things and inappropriate people, exploring 1980s teenage life, football parties, adolescent desire, and the mundane humiliations of growing up, with cameos by filmmakers Roger Beebe and Jason Livingston.
In The Echoes
(Various, 90min)
This program explores the complex terrain of contested histories, where personal journeys intersect with collective memory and unresolved pasts. Through stories that span from intimate family secrets to broader communal legacies, the films examine the tensions between belonging and exclusion, the scars of displacement, and the silent witnesses of history embedded in the land. Whether uncovering forgotten mysteries or grappling with the remnants of colonialism, these narratives invite viewers to reconsider how we connect with our histories and the places we call home.
SCREENING SATURDAY, OCTOBER 5 @ 8:30PM
THE FILMS
Branching Narratives: The Life, Death, and Rebirth of the Tappan Oak
(Jennifer Proctor, USA, 2024, 12min)
A mighty oak's death on a college campus becomes a symbol for individual and collective struggles to find belonging and connection.
Rectangles
(Joshua Carlon, USA, 2024, 17min)
Filmmaker Present!
An old family mystery leads a filmmaker on a discursive journey to discover the past. Featuring true crime, Halloween costumes, microfilm, Scandinavia, the inescapable feeling of doom that creeps in when contemplating lost time, and machetes.
a fence is a fence but the clouds move freely
(Curtis Miller, USA, 2024, 8min)
This brief essay explores the origins of four small towns in rural Kansas and Oklahoma through their water towers, revealing tales of settler-colonialism, imperialism, and identity amidst severe weather and roadside signage.
What goes up
(Samar Al Summary, Saudi Arabia, 2024, 30min)
This short autobiographical nonfiction film dives into a Saudi-American’s poignant quest to return home, blending her contemplation of military enlistment with a dramatic search for Iraqi pilots' crash sites in the Arizona desert, ultimately unraveling the deep, complex connections between identity and place.
Bezuna
(Saif Alsaegh, USA, 2024, 7min)
Bezuna explores the complexities of fleeing a war-zone through the analysis of peripheral details. Through interweaving different narratives, the film presents the raw and broken feelings of a child and a cat whose lives will never be the same.
Used To Be
(Dan Schneidkraut, USA, 2024, 12min)
Capturing the final moments of Boulder’s legendary record store, this film chronicles the sights and sounds of a place that once defined the town’s music scene.
We are all necessary
(Manuel Seijo Domínguez, Spain, 2024, 5min)
This story is scriptless and characterless, unfolding anywhere, anytime, such as during a morning coffee in a building’s inner courtyard when a neighbor from the opposite floor appears.