Film Invasion &#8211; L.A. &amp; Lima

In a small historic river town full of charm and folklore, a haunted debutante gown is plucked out of a quirky antique shop by a community theatre director. Emily returns home to take care of her dying Grandmother, being home ignites past trauma. She searches for a heathy distraction and lands the lead role for The Debutante. When the gown goes on it’s light-out for Emily. The gown uses her like a puppet to carryout gruesome acts of horror.

The Country They Call Life

2026 Official Selection: Featurette – Drama

The Country They Call Life

Some decisions don’t arrive as a single moment – they arrive as a flood of everything you’ve ever been.

Program: Shorts Block 14 · Sun, Aug 23, 2026 · 4:00 PM

Director(s): Grace Sims
Writer(s): Grace Sims
Producer(s): Grace Sims, Don Ohmer, Jonathan Bowles
Key Cast: Sydney Cole Alexander, Bates Wilder, Jerah Milligan, Taylor Rose, Dee Freeman, Jake Ryan, Savannah Rose Wells
Editor(s): Natalie Hill
Cinematographer(s): Riede Dervay
Production Designer(s): Brittany Ingram
Sound Designer(s): Alex Bologna
Composer(s): Lilliana Villines

Runtime: 20m

Country: United States

Synopsis: In a kaleidoscope of memories Maxine (Sydney Cole Alexander; Severance, Mission Impossible: The Final Reckoning) must navigate the surreal and transformative decision of terminating a pregnancy; questioning the very fabric of her identity and future.

The Candle

2026 Official Selection: Short Film – Horror

The Candle

Have your cake…and it eats you.

Program: Shorts Block 2 · Fri, Aug 21, 2026 · 8:00 PM

Director(s): Ren Ariel Sano
Writer(s): Ren Ariel Sano
Producer(s): Ren Ariel Sano, Logan Mack
Key Cast: Daisy Lopez, John-Michael Sedor
Editor(s): Joe Carugati
Cinematographer(s): Logan Mack
Production Designer(s): Grace Alie
Sound Designer(s): Elizabeth McClanahan
Composer(s): Sylvain Kauffman

Runtime: 9m

Country: United States

Synopsis: An unsuspecting young couple bring a cursed candle to a friend’s 30th birthday party and unleash an unlikely evil that comes to collect its just desserts.

The Brutal Alchemy of Water

2026 Official Selection: Thriller – Short

The Brutal Alchemy of Water

The only way out is through.

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

Director(s): Cameron Zayec
Writer(s): Sarah Huston
Producer(s): Sarah Huston
Key Cast: Sarah Huston, Shonee Samia, Allyson Henson, Lucy London, Bryan Probets, Shanay De Marco, Chloe Botha
Editor(s): Cameron Zayec, Sarah Huston
Cinematographer(s): Cameron Zayec, Matthew Davies
Production Designer(s): Genevieve Morrow Ganner
Sound Designer(s): Cameron Zayec
Composer(s): Chloe Botha

Language: English

Runtime: 15m

Country: Australia

Los Angeles Premiere

Synopsis: Refusing to accept the loss of her girlfriend, Quinn spirals through the suffocating confines of prison. In the depths of her grief she must navigate her unraveling mind and confront her inner demons. The only way out is through.

Talented

2026 Official Selection: Drama – Featurette

Talented

Finding her place begins with finding her voice.

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

Director(s): Anastasia Kuplinova
Writer(s): Sarah Jane Coleman
Producer(s): Rhea Damani
Key Cast: Jordan Cathryn, Matthew Sy
Editor(s): Christine Yu
Cinematographer(s): Truman Hatfield
Production Designer(s): Chinmayee Kharche
Sound Designer(s): Annie Okuhara
Composer(s): Keaton Lewis, Scott Tucker

Language: English, Russian

Runtime: 27m

Country: United States

Synopsis: A young musician has spent years silencing her gift out of fear and self-doubt. But when someone finally sees her for who she is, and who she could be, Mira must decide whether to keep running from her past or embrace the music within her.

June 19, 2026July 16, 2026

Stranded

2026 Official Selection: Screenplay – Screenplay – Pilot/Series

Stranded

Ceremony: Screenplay Awards Ceremony · Sat, Aug 22, 2026 · 6:00 PM

After their colony ship explodes above an untamed alien planet, an ex-soldier and xenobiologist join forces to survive the perilous wilds while unraveling an insidious conspiracy.

Writer(s): Amy Kay DuBoff

Language: English

Country: Not Specified

Visit this Official Selection’s X / Twitter →

After their colony ship mysteriously explodes above an untamed alien planet, ex-soldier Evan and inquisitive xenobiologist Anya join forces to survive the world’s wondrous yet perilous wilds. While investigating the crash, they unravel the first threads of an insidious interstellar conspiracy—a revelation that will spark a desperate hunt for ancient alien technology capable of reshaping human civilization forever. Adapted from the internationally bestselling novel.

Starfisher

2026 Official Selection: Sci-Fi – Short

Starfisher

Find a way or die trying.

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

Director(s): Anthony Ferraro
Writer(s): Anthony Ferraro
Producer(s): Clint Carney, Anthony Ferraro, Nate Lipp, Eric Michael Kochmer. William McHugh, David Yohe, John Dunnigan
Key Cast: Don Scribner
Editor(s): Anthony Ferraro
Cinematographer(s): Jon Schweigart
Composer(s): Matthew Patterson Curry

Language: English

Runtime: 19m

Country: United States

Los Angeles Premiere

Synopsis: Aging and adrift, a spacefisher gets one final shot at greatness when a long-lost comrade tips him off to a mythical catch — a moment that would rewrite the meaning of his entire life.

Visit this Official Selection’s X / Twitter →

Visit this Official Selection’s BlueSky →

Something Borrowed

2026 Official Selection: Comedy – Short

Something Borrowed

On the morning of her wedding, a bleeding bride and her maid of honor scramble to hide a crime, a gun, and a secret plan to prove her love.

Program: Shorts Block 10 · Sat, Aug 22, 2026 · 9:20 PM

Director(s): Sean Dube
Writer(s): Patrick Quinlan, Sean Dube
Producer(s): Patrick Quinlan, Sean Dube
Key Cast: Candice Bennett, Carrie Poyer, Patrick Quinlan
Editor(s): Sean Dube
Cinematographer(s): Sevag Chahinian
Composer(s): Adam Finne & Mallory Finne

Language: English

Runtime: 10m

Country: United States

Synopsis: On the morning of her wedding, a bleeding bride and her maid of honor scramble to hide a crime, a gun, and a secret plan to prove her love.

Sell Your House

2026 Official Selection: Feature Film – Documentary

Sell Your House

A first-time director convinces his best friend to sell his house to fund their first film “The Last Stop In Yuma County.” Everything goes GREAT!

Program: Sell Your House · Sun, Aug 23, 2026 · 5:45 PM

Director(s): Eric Alexander Foss, Brandon Pickering
Producer(s): Eric Foss, Brandon Pickering, Deborah Lee Smith, Sam Chortek, Will Bakke, Clay Wolflick, Brad Blondheim
Key Cast: Francis Galluppi, James Claeys, Jim Cummings, Faizon Love, Jocelyn Donahue, Mac Fisken, Rachel Galluppi
Editor(s): Eric Foss, Brandon Pickering, Will Bakke
Cinematographer(s): Eric Foss
Sound Designer(s): Juan Campos
Composer(s): Alex Pfender

Language: English

Runtime: 1h 35m

Country: United States

Synopsis: You have to be really rich or really stupid to make a movie. James and Francis aren’t rich, so they opt for stupidity when James sells his house to finance their debut feature. This kicks off a years-long journey through the wonderful, lucrative, glamorous world of indie filmmaking, where absolutely nothing bad happens never ever ever. A comedic documentary following the making of The Last Stop in Yuma County and the complications that come with indie film distribution.

Visit this Official Selection’s X / Twitter →

June 19, 2026July 16, 2026

Retribution

2026 Official Selection: Screenplay – Screenplay – Short Film

Retribution

Ceremony: Screenplay Awards Ceremony · Sat, Aug 22, 2026 · 6:00 PM

In 1860s America, the head house slave, a mixed love-child of the master, makes a secret plan to free all of the slaves from Bonchomont Plantation, but their exodus happens in a wa

Writer(s): Brandon J. Somerville

Language: English

Country: Not Specified