A Test Through Time 

Directed by Ciara Palmieri (U.S., Student Film, 9 mins).

A period piece about a high school student stressed over the college application process, especially taking her SAT.

Not Proven 

Directed by Ashley Ferreira (U.S., Student Film, 16 mins).

A reluctant juror doubts the defendant's guilt in a murder trial, drawing the ire of her fellow jurors. 

Fallout (Trailer)

Directed by Desiree Zielinski (U.S., Drama, Thriller, 9 mins).

A group of close friends shelter in place from an impending nuclear attack. 

Armata

Directed by Jasone Urgoitia Urrutia (Spain, Drama, 20 mins).

Ane ends up at a fencing event because of her friend, who hopes it will help Ane cope with her traumatic past. 

Gina

Directed by Antonella Lauria (Italy, 10 mins). 

The story of an unconventional woman on the threshold of 40 years who is different, lonely, and lives among dogs and comics. 

Claimant (Trailer)

Directed by Nadera Sadat Serki (Iran, 20 mins). 

A father discovers that his teenage daughter was raped and decides to confront and punish the rapist.

Birds of a Feather (Trailer) 

(Best Animated Student Short)

Directed by Katie Cobos (WNY, Animation, 5 mins).

A talkative parrot attempts to befriend a boy with Tourette's syndrome. 

Q&A  

The Geologic Record of My Heart

Directed by Joanne Burke (U.S., Experimental, 11 mins).

Geologists talk about a “golden spike,” a change in the earth’s layers marking a reckoning. 

Q&A

No Strings Attached (Trailer)

Directed by Ava DeVoe (U.S., Student Film, 5 mins).

In a world where social connections are represented with a physical red string, a young woman struggling with social anxiety forms an unlikely friendship with a wise nine-year-old. 

Q&A

Serpentine (Trailer)

Directed by Amanda Besl (WNY, Experimental, 3 mins).

A pet snake hurled from a moving car inspired this experimental short, which disrupts our human perspective. 

Q&A 

The Tale of Mari (Trailer) 

Directed by Anya Vaughn (U.S., Documentary, Animation, 7 mins).

Mari, an elderly Japanese woman, recounts her experiences growing up in Okinawa, moving to America, and attempting to become a newspaper cartoonist. 

Q&A  

Miss Fury and the Lost Legacy of Tarpé Mills (Trailer)

(Best Documentary Feature)

Directed by Chelsea Stone (U.S., Documentary, 1 hr. 20 mins).

A documentary that explores the rise to success and fall into obscurity of June Tarpé Mills, the first woman to write, draw, and create a female superhero: Miss Fury. 

Q&A  

Passageways (Social Impact Award)

Directed by Geneviève Tremblay and Milla Cummings (Canada, Student Film, Animation, Documentary, 5 mins).

This stop-motion documentary positively portrays menopause. 

Trailer 

Crimson (Best Dramatic Short)

Directed by Sarah Falkiner (U.S., 12 mins).

A woman meets her nightmares as she's caught in a cycle of unmentionable physical and emotional pain. 

Q&A 

The Pit

Directed by Laura Archer (WNY, 5 mins).

A woman must brave her own mind to face the day. 

Commuting Murder 

Directed by Chelsea DeMott Wildey (WNY, Student Film, Horror, Comedy, Animation, 3 mins).

An ax murderer hiding in a woman's car gets more than he bargained for on his victim's commute home.

 Q&A

Midnight Snack 

Directed by Sandra Foisy (Canada, Horror, Comedy, 2 mins).

Hunger always strikes in the dead of night.

Cupcake (Best Micro Short)

Directed by Amanda R. Woomer (WNY, Horror, 3 mins).

When none of her friends show up to her birthday party, Kate takes matters into her own (blood-stained) hands. 

Q&A 

Jane & the Brain (Best WNY Short)

Directed by Hope Muehlbauer (WNY, Horror, Drama, Romance, 16 mins).

Jane copes with the loss of her husband by always keeping his brain with her. 

Q&A

Trailer 

Halloween Party (Trailer)

Directed by Erica Stockwell-Alpert (U.S., Horror, Comedy, 3 mins).

A spooky mom hosts a Halloween party for children. 

Still (Breaking Stigma Award)

Directed by Rakefet Abergel (U.S., Drama, Horror, Psychological Thriller, 12 mins).

A despondent mother’s reality crumbles as she faces the unthinkable. 

Trailer 

Multi-Level Massacre (Trailer)  

(Best Comedy Short)

Directed by Ashes Homon-Rahall (U.S., Horror, Comedy, 9 mins).

A young woman tries to escape an epidemic plaguing American women only to realize that she can’t outrun her destiny. It's a pyramid scream! 

Q&A  

Christmas Presence 

Directed by Amelie Zazik (U.S., Student Film, Horror, 2 mins).

A little girl learns the consequences of leaving her room too early on Christmas morning.

Underbelly (Best Horror Short)

Directed by Taylor Martin (WNY, Neo-Noir, Mafia, Horror, 8 mins).

Hitman Carlo DiLorenzo finds that his latest target isn't what he expects. 

Q&A

Will Roger 

Directed by Taylor Martin (WNY, Drama, Romance, LGBTQ, 9 mins).

A closeted gay man recounts his story of lost love and regret, as one night in the 70’s could’ve led to a different outcome for his life.

 Q&A

Le Monstro (Trailer)

Directed by Gabrielle Rosson (U.S., 9 mins).

This story about unrequited love, beauty, and acceptance is inspired by the “Victorian Ape Woman,” Julia Pastrana, and her husband, Theodor Lent. 

Q&A  

Torn (Best WNY Student Short)

Directed by Molly Lonigan (U.S., Fantasy, Mythology, Romance, Psychological Drama, Student Film, Animation, 3 mins).

Persephone is torn as a daughter when with her husband, Hades, and torn as a wife when with her mother, Demeter. 

More Than Half 

(Best Documentary Short)

Directed by Ashley Czerniewski (U.S., Documentary, 23 mins).

Struggling with questions of identity and the weight of societal expectations, Ashley explores her family's history and her own multi-racial background. 

Q&A 

My More Beautiful Ghost 

Directed by Kristine Trever (U.S., Documentary, 19 mins).

A short auto-documentary about living with chronic illness and disability.

Teacup (Best Fantasy Short)

Directed by Katie Killourhy (U.S., Romance, Drama, Fantasy, 25 mins).

When Holly loses her husband, the only way she can survive the heartache is by reading to escape reality and calming her dark, late-night thoughts with tea. 

Pages of Protest 

(Best Student Documentary Short)

Directed by Devon Jezek (U.S., Student Film, Documentary, 18 mins).

This critically examines the history of book banning in the U.S., exploring how politics, religion, and shifting cultural battles shape information control and ideas. 

Q&A 

Mourning Glory

(Best Experimental Short)

Directed by Livi DarConte (U.S., Experimental, 13 mins).

A woman visiting her loved one in the hospital is hit with heartbreaking news, triggering a surreal journey through the five stages of grief. 

Q&A 

Year 10 

Directed by V. Leigh (U.S., Drama, 6 mins).

Every year, Ruth & Ciera reunite outside their old elementary school, sharing memories of what happened on that fateful day. 

Q&A

Build me a Home in the Meadow 

Directed by Rae Ann Owczarzak (U.S., Student Film Experimental, 2 mins).

A daughter recounts her traumatic home life and her escape from it. 

Q&A

The Loving Couple 

Directed by Mhairi Kerr (Canada, Animation, 6 mins).

A long-term relationship can seem picture-perfect on the outside, but as this couple celebrates their fortieth anniversary, we see that life isn’t always as rosy as it appears. 

The Cardinal 

Directed by Kylie Kuty (U.S., Student Film, 11 mins).

In this slow cinema short, a man seeks solace and refuge from his troubled past in a remote cabin.

Q&A

Where is earth mother? 

Directed by Amanda Woomer (WNY, Experimental, 3 mins).

This film is inspired by a poem written by the filmmaker's grandmother in the 1970s. Mother Nature (earth mother) is found in everyone--no matter their age, gender, or walk of life. 

Q&A

Siren Tale 

Directed by Eva Rose Young (WNY, Student Film, Animation, Experimental, Music Video, 2 mins).

A decaying bride seeks revenge on her ex-lover. 

Q&A

The Soul Within (Trailer)

Directed by Sabrina Peña Young (WNY, Animation, Experimental, Music Video, 3 mins).

A young girl's final dream takes her to an underwater mystical realm, where she rejoins her former self. 

Q&A   

Women in Red (Trailer)

Directed by Yiran Wang (U.S., Student Film, 9 mins).

In a state where abortion is forbidden, a young college student discovers she is pregnant. 

Buried 

Directed by Ashleigh Becker (U.S., Romance, Queer, LGBTQIA+, Horror, Drama, 12 mins).

Looking back on a failed love, a woman tries to prevent irreparable heartbreak. 

Q&A

Sundays are for Winners 

Directed by Ryan Elizabeth Brady (WNY, Student Film, 14 mins).

A father at his wits end must persevere against the elements of his house to watch golf in peace on a Sunday. 

Q&A

On The Brink 

Directed by Ashley Ferreira (U.S., Student Film, Drama, Psychological Thriller, 17 mins).

A college student takes matters into her own hands when her roommate decides to room with other girls.

Medication (Trailer) 

Directed by Missy Bell (U.S., 14 mins).

Former cross-country champion and current physics PhD candidate Leah is visited by a young girl’s apparition. 

Under the Water (Trailer)

Directed by Isabella Andronos (Australia, Drama, 10 mins).

When an eleven-year-old girl is confronted with misogynistic taunts and violence from the boys in her town, a series of strange happenings lead to her revisit a storybook about the sirens of the sea.