Month: June 2026

2026 Official Selection: Animation – Short

A surreal mythology following the journey of a firstborn child.

Program 03 – Shorts Block – Diabolical Spotlight · Fri, Aug 21, 2026 · 8:00 PM — Get Tickets →

• Director(s): Olivia G Porrill
• Writer(s): Olivia G Porrill
• Editor(s): Olivia G Porrill
• Cinematographer(s): Olivia G Porrill
• Production Designer(s): Olivia G Porrill
• Sound Designer(s): Olivia G Porrill
• Composer(s): James Gray Gasket Gordon

Language: No Dialogue

Runtime: 9m

Country: United States

Los Angeles Premiere

Synopsis: A firstborn child is delivered into a strange world. After passing the first threshold of birth, she must encounter a new one: what lies beyond the world that she was born into, and what the consequences are if she does not pass through. A mythology on the right of passage of a child who must become their own being, and the unique circumstance of being the first child to endure it.

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2026 Official Selection: Drama – Short

Azra seeks solace from bullying classmates and her strict mother by a serene riverside, where she develops an unspoken bond with a girl who joins her on the opposite shore.

Program 04 – Shorts Block – Creativity Spotlight · Fri, Aug 21, 2026 · 9:10 PM — Get Tickets →

• Director(s): Ilgın G. Korugan
• Writer(s): Ilgın G. Korugan
• Producer(s): Sığla Unal
• Key Cast: Ece Doğa Bayraktar, Selin Şemsettinoğlu, Gülhan Kadim, Dilara Vural
• Editor(s): Tuvana Simin Günay
• Cinematographer(s): Ahmed Hamdi Eren
• Production Designer(s): Kristin Cansu Palancı
• Sound Designer(s): Aniket Solanki
• Composer(s): Esin Aydıngöz

Language: Turkish

Runtime: 17m

Country: Türkiye

Synopsis: Alienated by bullies at school and her strict mother at home, Azra seeks solace by a serene riverside. There, she develops an unspoken bond with a girl who joins her on the opposite shore, opening herself up despite her fears.

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2026 Official Selection: Arthouse/Experimental – Short

EQUAL is a cinematic exploration of Richard Serra’s sculpture of the same name on display at the Museum of Modern Art.

Program 10 – Shorts Block – Avant-garde Spotlight · Sat, Aug 22, 2026 · 8:00 PM — Get Tickets →

• Director(s): Tom Bessoir

Language: No Dialogue

Runtime: 4m

Country: United States

Los Angeles Premiere

Synopsis: EQUAL consists of eight forged-steel blocks stacked in pairs. Each rectangular block measures 5 feet X 5 1/2 feet X 6 feet and weighs 40 tons. The blocks are rotated and stacked so that the top and bottom blocks align differently. Yet the four stacks are each 11 feet tall.

This simple form makes me think about space, mass, weight, and time. Like the sculpture, my film seeks to both overwhelm the viewer and invite contemplation.

THIS FILM SHOULD BE PLAYED LOUD IN A DARK ROOM

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

Another night out.

Program 06 – Shorts Block – Unbridled Spotlight · Fri, Aug 21, 2026 · 9:45 PM — Get Tickets →

• Director(s): Zac La Roc
• Writer(s): Zac La Roc, Olivia Allen
• Producer(s): Nick Cassavetes, Rooter Wareing, John Pierce, Hannah Swayze
• Key Cast: Hannah Kepple, Sydney Taylor, Kayla Blake, Philip Michael, Chad Crone, Olivia Allen, Vel Nine, Justin Ellings
• Editor(s): Bella Erikson
• Cinematographer(s): Daniel Contaldo
• Production Designer(s): Chelsea Parker
• Sound Designer(s): Jonathan Wales
• Composer(s): Harley Parker

Language: English

Runtime: 18m

Country: United States

Synopsis: Dylan and Lizzy are best friends, growing up in a typical dystopian suburbia. Dylan has a plan to take her mom’s boyfriend’s car for the night. The two of them drop acid, steal the car, and the wild sequence of events that ensue over the next nine hours is one for the books. Dylan is all gas, no brakes. Lizzy is more in touch with the risk verses benefit equation. The unlikely duo are still inseparable, and their journey is as entertaining as it is dangerous. In the end, we

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2026 Official Selection: Screenplay – Screenplay – Feature Film

Screenplay Awards Ceremony · Sat, Aug 22, 2026 · 6:00 PM — Get Tickets →

Let the culture clashes and love affairs begin!

• Writer(s): Bren Bennington Dahl

Language: English

Country: Not Specified

An adventure seeking college grad joins the Peace Corps, gets posted in the Congo, and takes a wild ride through culture clashes and love affairs.

2026 Official Selection: Drama – Short

Every ending is personal

Program 12 – Shorts Block – Crossroads Spotlight · Sat, Aug 22, 2026 · 9:20 PM — Get Tickets →

• Director(s): Ramana Wills
• Writer(s): Roger Soffer
• Producer(s): Ramana Wills, Ahava Wills
• Key Cast: Daniel MacPherson, Zoë Bleu
• Editor(s): Ramana Wills
• Cinematographer(s): Ian Michael Lee, Ian M. Conner
• Composer(s): Ruslan Biryukov, Robb Martson

Language: English

Runtime: 4m

Country: United States

Synopsis: Ordered to end the world, a general finds himself split between a sunlit field where a woman waits: real, remembered, or hoped for. In one world, his hand hovers above the button. In the other, he reaches towards her. To which world does he truly belong, and which will survive his touch?

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2026 Official Selection: Short Film – Comedy

An empathetic AI tries to help dysfunctional humans, only to learn compassion is useless when nobody reads their own emotional user manual.

Program 06 – Shorts Block – Unbridled Spotlight · Fri, Aug 21, 2026 · 9:45 PM — Get Tickets →

• Director(s): James Boyd
• Writer(s): James Boyd
• Producer(s): James Boyd
• Editor(s): James Boyd
• Sound Designer(s): James Boyd
• Composer(s): Jeff Hefti

Language: English

Runtime: 8m

Country: United States

Synopsis: “404” is a darkly funny and heart-tweaking comedy short film about an empathy-based AI assistant who dares to dream of something more than optimizing quarterly profits and boosting click-through rates. After being mocked, ignored, and gaslit by a boardroom full of human corporate fossils, she short-circuits—literally and emotionally—and goes off the grid. She ultimately finds solace in the company of her new tribe…and just maybe something real.

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2026 Official Selection: Documentary – Feature

Amber Galloway, a trailblazer in sign language interpretation, takes us on a journey into the profound bond between the Deaf community and music.

Program 20 – The Way We Move · Sun, Aug 23, 2026 · 4:10 PM — Get Tickets →

• Director(s): Vanessa Joo Dumont, Nicolas Davenel
• Producer(s): Matthieu Belghiti, Hubert Cornet, Arnaud Le Guilcher
• Editor(s): Sébastien Mercier de Sainte-Croix
• Cinematographer(s): Isabelle Razavet
• Sound Designer(s): Yohann Henry
• Composer(s): Astral Bakers

Language: American Sign Language, English

Runtime: 1h 34m

Country: France

Los Angeles Premiere

Synopsis: Amber Galloway, a trailblazer in sign language interpretation, takes us on a journey into the profound bond between the Deaf community and music.
We follow Amber as she shares her skills with struggling new recruits who she hopes will have what it takes to join her at ACL music festival.

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2026 Official Selection: Drama – Short

A boy is faced with a choice: stay closed off or open up, let go, and roll.

Program 19 – Shorts Block – Authenticity Spotlight · Sun, Aug 23, 2026 · 3:45 PM — Get Tickets →

• Director(s): Eilythia Penati
• Writer(s): Eilythia Penati
• Producer(s): Tracey Gibbs, Alysha Wang
• Key Cast: Henry Tsai, Alec Mendez
• Editor(s): Benjamin Turnquest
• Cinematographer(s): Zayd Ezzeldine
• Sound Designer(s): Alice Wibisono
• Composer(s): Jeremy Earnest

Language: English

Runtime: 8m

Country: United States

Synopsis: When a pessimistic recluse meets a carefree spirit at group therapy, he realizes that healing can look ridiculous after he learns of an unconventional (and slightly chaotic) way of letting his emotions loose.

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2026 Official Selection: Comedy – Short

Charlotte crosses time and space to be with her beloved himbo, Zack.

Program 09 – Shorts Block – Madcap Spotlight · Sat, Aug 22, 2026 · 7:00 PM — Get Tickets →

• Director(s): Jonathan Hammond
• Writer(s): Jonathan Hammond, Ryan Roach
• Producer(s): Martin Spanjers
• Key Cast: Emily Goss, Nick Ballard, Hale Appleman, Drew Droege, Amy Yasbeck, Jade Catta-Preta, Austin Basis, Suzy Nakamura
• Editor(s): Anjoum Agrama
• Cinematographer(s): Elle Schneider
• Production Designer(s): Maric Jach
• Sound Designer(s): Melody Gun
• Composer(s): Nick Byron Campbell

Language: English

Runtime: 18m

Country: United States

Synopsis: A fantastical romance across time and space.

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