Film Invasion – L.A. & Lima

2026 Official Selection: Drama – Short (under 20 mins), Thriller – Short

Program: Shorts Block 15 · Sun, Aug 23, 2026 · 6:00 PM

• Director(s): Calvin Ghaznavi
• Writer(s): Amanda Ross
• Producer(s): Neela Gerayli, Devyn Wong
• Key Cast: Lara Hunter, Timothy V. Murphy, Ashley Alva

Language: English

Runtime: 8m

Country: United States

Synopsis: In the dead of night, fifteen-year-old Salem waits in her mother’s run down El Camino. She’s told again and again to “stay in the car” while her mom and her violent partner disappear into empty buildings and dark parking lots. Hours drag on and in the backseat, Salem twists and turns, her small movements filling the silence. The night continues and the car feels less like a place of safety and more like a cage. As the hours stretch on and sirens echo in the distance, Salem

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2026 Official Selection: Horror – Short

Alice, grieving the loss of her father, tumbles into a macabre Wonderland where reality blurs with fiction and familiar characters force her to confront her intrusive thoughts.

Program: Shorts Block 3 · Fri, Aug 21, 2026 · 9:10 PM

• Director(s): Laura Malatos
• Writer(s): Helen Sun, Laura Malatos
• Producer(s): Helen Sun, Laura Malatos, Yulia Arispe
• Key Cast: Lulu Wilson, Jeff Lorch, Kevin Dulude, Kouamy Davis Brown, Helen Day
• Editor(s): Laura Malatos
• Cinematographer(s): Yves Arispe
• Production Designer(s): Danielle Light
• Sound Designer(s): Creighton Yanchar
• Composer(s): Alexander Arntzen

Language: English

Runtime: 13m

Country: United States

Synopsis: “Wonderland” is a grim reimagining of the Hatter’s tea party from Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland. The film stars a 19-year-old horror veteran Lulu Wilson (The Haunting of the Hill House, Sharp Objects, Ouija: The Origin of Evil, Star Trek: Picard) in the iconic role of Alice.

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2026 Official Selection: Drama – Feature

A passionate swim coach and dedicated father navigates the turbulent reality of invisible homelessness when he is forced to live out of his van.

Program: What We Dreamed of Then · Sun, Aug 23, 2026 · 5:40 PM

• Director(s): Taylor Olson
• Writer(s): Taylor Olson
• Producer(s): Sandy Hunter, Steve Foster, Britt Kerr
• Key Cast: Taylor Olson, Christie Burke, Parveen Kaur, River Price-Maenpaa, Hugh Thompson
• Editor(s): Shawn Beckwith
• Cinematographer(s): Kevin A. Fraser
• Production Designer(s): Dom Fegan
• Sound Designer(s): Matt Dawson
• Composer(s): Zachary Greer

Language: English

Runtime: 1h 44m

Country: Canada

Los Angeles Premiere

Synopsis: Then, Gideon was a vibrant young father and husband. Now, he is invisibly houseless, trying to hold onto his relationship with his estranged daughter. Told through a non-linear narrative, What We Dreamed of Then weaves between past and present, revealing the fragility of hope and the resilience needed to survive isolation.

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2026 Official Selection: Series Episode – TV/Streaming/Web Series

A surreal, offbeat, sketch-infused anti-talk show hosted by two local nobodies with massive delusions of grandeur.

Program: Shorts Block 13 · Sun, Aug 23, 2026 · 2:15 PM

• Director(s): Taylor Olson, Adam DeViller
• Writer(s): Taylor Olson, Adam DeViller, Bob Mann
• Producer(s): Taylor Olson
• Key Cast: Taylor Olson, Bob Mann

Language: English

Runtime: 11m

Country: Canada

Los Angeles Premiere

Synopsis: Hey Halifax, Hello Today! is a surreal, offbeat, sketch-infused anti-talk show hosted by two local nobodies with massive delusions of grandeur. Mick McDonald (Taylor Olson) and Robbie Buck (Bob Mann) helm their own chaotic Halifax cable access show, awkwardly interviewing "Halifamous" guests and spiraling into wild, absurdist green screen sketches.

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2026 Official Selection: Documentary – Featurette

Part documentary and part cinematicart, this beautiful film searches for Americathrough real story, music and spoken word.

Program: Where Is America The Beautiful? · Sun, Aug 23, 2026 · 2:00 PM

• Director(s): Fr3deR1cK
• Writer(s): Frederick Taylor
• Producer(s): Ellen Barnard
• Key Cast: Victoria Fahimmanesh
• Editor(s): Zayan Said / Lola Jett
• Cinematographer(s): Freddie Taylor
• Production Designer(s): Fr3deR1cK
• Sound Designer(s): Zayan Said
• Composer(s): Billy Livsey

Language: English

Runtime: 30m

Country: United States

Synopsis: “It is the past that tells
us who we are, without it we have no identity,”
Stephen Hawkins.
America has lost the identity that once made it great. Greatness has passed America by because history is repeating itself. This film is in search of what America was.
The interviews traffic through cultural groups from liberal to conservative. The focus is
diverse from Asian, Latin, Black and LGBTQ.
Everyone is given equal time from a Trump rally to Black Lives Matter marches.

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2026 Official Selection: Thriller – Short

A Bonnie & Clyde story but Bonnie don’t give a fuck about him.

Program: Shorts Block 12 · Sun, Aug 23, 2026 · 2:00 PM

• Director(s): Rickey Larke
• Writer(s): Rickey Larked
• Producer(s): Rickey Larke, Preston Purchase, Lyandre Pierre, Julian Park, Lo Howard, Lorelle Lynch, Charles Taylor Goubeaud
• Key Cast: Jasmine Mathews, Christopher Dietrick, Derrick A King
• Editor(s): Charles G Geabeaud
• Cinematographer(s): Erin G Wesley
• Production Designer(s): Carla Sendino
• Sound Designer(s): Jared Fellows
• Composer(s): Jocelyn Chambers

Language: English

Runtime: 11m

Country: United States

Synopsis: A suave criminal searches for a new partner at a dive bar and finds the perfect Bonnie to his Clyde. He takes her to dinner to put her to the test, yet she has all the answers… and more.

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2026 Official Selection: Comedy – Short

A family where everyone has a special secret.

Program: Shorts Block 11 · Sat, Aug 22, 2026 · 10:00 PM

• Director(s): Samip Raval
• Writer(s): Samip Raval
• Producer(s): Sonali Sundararaj
• Key Cast: Behzad Dabu, Fred Sanders, Gabriel Brown, JoNell Kennedy, K.T. Thangavelu, Nikita Chaudhry, Titi Lee
• Editor(s): Samip Raval
• Cinematographer(s): Tamas Harangi
• Production Designer(s): Sean Harvas
• Sound Designer(s): Kunal Rajan
• Composer(s): Adrian Disch, Joshua Flores

Language: English

Runtime: 15m

Country: United States

Los Angeles Premiere

Synopsis: A family gathers to celebrate an anniversary. Over the course of the afternoon, a series of revelations take place that change their lives and relationships forever.

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2026 Official Selection: Documentary – Feature

What is masculinity? And what is it doing to us?

Program: MASC · Fri, Aug 21, 2026 · 7:15 PM

• Director(s): Andy Motz
• Producer(s): Brandon Morrissey, Taylor Rae
• Editor(s): Cecilio Escobar
• Cinematographer(s): Giselle Gonzalez, Hank Groat
• Sound Designer(s): Polar Sound
• Composer(s): Eric Phillips

Language: English

Runtime: 1h 14m

Country: United States

Los Angeles Premiere

Synopsis: In a world of pundits and politicians seeking to “reclaim manhood,” a young queer filmmaker journeys to discover non-toxic masculinity across class, race, and gender in America today, leading him to confront his own religious upbringing, pastor father, and what he was taught it means to be a man.

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2026 Official Selection: Short Film – Horror

An insomniac, hired gun begins to question her sanity when she runs into one of her previous victims alive and well.

Program: Shorts Block 13 · Sun, Aug 23, 2026 · 2:15 PM

• Director(s): Matt Van Tine
• Writer(s): Rich Van Tine
• Producer(s): Matt Van Tine, Rich Van Tine, Tim Simek, AnaElise Beckman, Ryan Kuna
• Key Cast: Aly Trasher, Tim Simek, William Gabriel Grier
• Editor(s): Matt Van Tine, Ed Morales
• Cinematographer(s): Ryan Kuna
• Production Designer(s): Rick Quitoriano
• Sound Designer(s): Eric Romero
• Composer(s): Royce Stubbs

Language: English

Runtime: 15m

Country: United States

Synopsis: An insomniac, hired gun begins to question her sanity when she runs into one of her previous victims alive and well.

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2026 Official Selection: Feature Film – Documentary

Understanding the world of Psilocybin assisted psychedelic therapy and those that are turning to the treatment.

Program: Journeys · Sun, Aug 23, 2026 · 5:30 PM

• Director(s): Christopher James Cramer
• Producer(s): Christopher James Cramer, James Dunovan, Devin Brooke, Ariel Barber
• Key Cast: Dr. Lida Fatemi, Dr. Douglas Wingate, Dr. Luepker
• Editor(s): Christopher James Cramer
• Cinematographer(s): James Dunovan
• Sound Designer(s): Andrew Pitts
• Composer(s): Production had 8 composers

Language: English

Runtime: 1h 57m

Country: United States

Synopsis: Understanding the world of Psilocybin assisted psychedelic therapy and those that are turning to the treatment. Providing a look into micro-dose and full "Heroic" dose treatment with key topics including Veterans, PTSD, depression, end-of-life care, childhood trauma, ethics, costs of treatment, indigenous history and the science of psychedelic therapy.

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