OFFICIAL SELECTIONS
2026
FEATURE FILM
BOB’S BEST FRIENDS (1hr 44m) Los Angeles, CA (USA)
World Premiere
Screens: Fri, Blk 5, 7:30pm
Director: Randy Kent
Synopsis: A lonely man discovers he has an ability to talk to dogs after a sudden illness strikes. Through a series of adventures, mishaps, and conversations with his new “friends”, Bob rediscovers life’s joys. It’s a story of love, loss, and renewal. A drama/comedy for all ages.
GOODY (1hr 35min) Columbia, SC (USA)(SC Premiere)
Screens: Sat, Blk2, 11:00am
Director: Zoe Lubeck
Synopsis: Goody follows twenty-year old Guelia Pedat, raised Catholic by her overbearing mother and unknowingly suffering from OCD that manifests through an irrational adherence to religious rituals. After losing her faith and years after the death of her beloved older brother she still blames herself despite a lack of involvement.
IMBALANCE (1hr 46min) Santa Barbara, CA (USA) (SC Premiere)
Screens: Thu, Blk 5, 7:30pm
Director: Dale Griffiths Stamos
Synopsis: Elizabeth Drewer is a professor of philosophy guided by the principles of rationality. Recently, Title IX lawsuits have caused universities to hand down stricter rules about relations between professors and students—something Elizabeth supports because of the clear power imbalance. But the arrival of her new teaching assistant, Richard Amado, shakes up her world.
MAGIC HOUR (1hr 34min) New York, NY (USA) (SC Premiere)
Screens: Sat, Blk 5, 7:30pm
Director: Jacqueline Christy
Synopsis: Harriet, a once-promising filmmaker, is stuck in the suburbs of New Jersey. Alienated from her cheating husband and spurned by her teenage daughter, she secretly enrolls in film school. She leads a double life and loves the grueling yet exhilarating world of student filmmaking.
DOCUMENTARY FEATURES
STRONGER THAN YOU THINK (1hr 40min) Santa Monica, CA (USA) (SC Premiere)
Screens: Wed, Blk 3, 1:00pm
Director: Janice Molinari and Melissa Forman
Synopsis: Against all odds, Ali Truwit survived. Just days after her college graduation, a snorkeling trip turned into a nightmare when the accomplished collegiate swimmer was attacked by a shark. The brutal encounter would test every ounce of her strength and will to live. Against staggering odds, Ali survived — but her life was forever altered. The loss of her leg marked not just a physical transformation, but an emotional reckoning.
TERRY’S GI DAD (1hr 27min) Kent (UNITED KINGDOM) (SC Premiere)
Screens: Wed, Blk 5, 7:30pm
Director: Jonathan Beamish
Synopsis: Terry from Leicester is on an emotional quest to trace his GI dad and learn about the lives of African American soldiers based in Britain during WW2. This epic journey takes Terry from his home town of Leicester to South Carolina, Washington DC and the Northern Beaches of France.
THE SLAVE IN YOUR BACKYARD (1hr 16min) Lexington, SC (USA)
(SC Premiere)
Screens: Thu, Blk 3, 1:00pm
Director: Daniel Fisher and T. Scott Reeves
Synopsis: The Slave in Your Backyard: The Local Reality of Human Trafficking, reveals the dark reality of human trafficking as it typically exists in average communities across the US. The film features the story of Heather Pagan who was initially trafficked around the age of 14 by a boyfriend who convinced her that they were building something together that would take her away from the brokenness of her own home and family.
DOCUMENTARY SHORTS
SWINE HEART (27min) Lynchburg, VA (USA) (World Premiere)
Screens: Fri, Blk 4, 3:00pm
Director: Brad Bennett
Synopsis: An unprecedented surgery has swept the nation and world at large; this is the story of the man who successfully underwent the first pig heart xenotransplant and changed the course of medical history.
THE BATTLE OF HONEY HILL (11min) Mount Pleasant SC (USA)
(SC Premiere)
Screens: Thu, Blk 1, 9am
Director: Will Weinstein
Synopsis: The Battle of Honey Hill was fought on November 30, 1864 and it was one of South Carolina's largest battles of the American Civil War. Fought near the coast in Jasper County, South Carolina the savage fighting at Honey Hill led to four different soldiers being awarded the Medal of Honor - the nation's highest decoration for military valor.
THE SOUNDS OF NEW YORK (34min) Wrozclaw (POLAND)
(SC Premiere)
Screens: Fri, Blk 3, 1:00pm
Director: Daniel Stanislawski
Synopsis: "The Sounds of New York" shows one day, from sunrise to sunset, in the life of the city. These are images and sounds characteristic of this place. These are also statements of New Yorkers, whom I met on my way and had the pleasure of learning what they hear in their everyday life and work in the Big City.
ANIMATION
CROAKED! (4min) Pooler, GA (USA) (SC Premiere)
Screens: Wed, Blk 1, 9:00am
Director: Rohan Gnaniah
Synopsis: Detective Talon Crowford, bereft of his wife, finds solace in the bottoms of bottles. One night, a concerned frog presents him with a case that sets him on a new quest- to hunt down a twisted criminal known only as “Silly Goose.”
JURASSIC JOYRIDE (5min) Charleston, SC (USA) (SC Premiere)
Screens: Thu, Blk 1, 9:00am
Director: Patrick Daniel Sandoval
Synopsis: "Jurassic Joyride" is a short film about a bored young caveboy whose discovery of a spaceship takes him on an adventure that changes his life and world forever.
THE CRAWFISH DANCE (3min) Ontario (CANADA) (SC Premiere)
Screens: Sat, Blk 1, 9:00am
Director: David Donar
Synopsis: Crawfish dance themselves in and out of trouble.
THE GOBLINS OF SYCAMORE STREET (3min) Alpharetta, GA)
(SC Premiere)
Screens: Fri, Blk 1, 9:00am
Director: Jay Lorenz
Synopsis: It's a tale that blends the fantastical with the everyday, exploring the joys and challenges of adapting to new environments, celebrating the unique qualities of each family member, and proving that even goblins can find happiness in the most unexpected places.
STUDENT FILM
COLLISION THEORY (21min) North Hollywood, CA (USA) (SC Premiere) (NY Film Academy)
Screens: Thu, Blk 2, 11:00am
Director: Vanessa Lavoie
Synopsis: On her way to the opportunity of a lifetime, an overly careful astrophysicist teacher finds herself stuck on a plane in a turbulent debate with a passionate flat-earther.
GOODBYE STRANGER (17min) Rancho Palos Verdes, CA (USA) (SC Premiere) (University of Southern Califormia)
Screens: Wed Blk 1 , 9:00am
Director: Neil Zafar Haeems
Synopsis: After a botched scam, a seasoned con-man faces a moral crossroads: abandon his 10-year-old daughter or risk her following in his footsteps.
HELL IN A CLIMATE HAVEN (17min) Winston-Salem, NC
(SC Premiere) (UNCSA)
Screens: Sat, Blk 1, 9:00am
Director: Thomas Comick and Amelia Waldeck
Synopsis: In the wake of Hurricane Helene, a woman searching for her emu, a man rescuing neighbors in a kayak, and local artists face the myth of safety in the mountains of North Carolina.
THE LIGHTS ABOVE (17min) Valley Village, CA (USA) (SC Premiere)
(University of Southern California)
Screens: Thu, Blk 1, 9:00am
Director: Luke Salewski
Synopsis: Months after the attack on Pearl Harbor, a series of unidentified aircraft sightings over Los Angeles lead a determined journalist to reluctantly pair up with a Japanese American photographer to prevent another attack.
YER SMACKIN (7min) Austin, TX (USA) (SC Premiere)
(Texas State University)
Screens: Sat, Blk 1, 9:00am
Director: John Field Brown
Synopsis: In this nostalgic and heartfelt comedy, an exasperated older brother celebrates his birthday with the person he loves the most—his whiny, obnoxious little sister.
DUTY & HONOR
FORWARD (37min) Elon, NC (USA) (SC Premiere)
Screens: Sat, Blk 1, 9:00am
Director: Alex Luchsinger
Synopsis: Marine Corps Major Ashley Christman is battling stage four cancer—but she refuses to give up. Determined to stay in the Corps, she pushes her body to the limit, competing in elite-level endurance sports to prove she’s still fit to serve. As her wife Melissa and their young son Archer watch in awe as Christman fights not just for her career, but to leave behind a legacy of strength.
MILES, MORALE, AND MEMORIES: BOB HOPE AND WORLD WAR II
(58min) Kingstown, RI (USA) (SC Premiere)
Screens: Thu, Blk 4, 3:00pm
Director: Tim Gray
Synopsis: Narrated by Gary Sinise. Legendary comedian Bob Hope's World War II travels to entertain the American troops were anything but ordinary. From the exhausting travel, to the always shifting front lines, Hope and his troupe of beautiful singers, outlandish comedians and talented musicians travelled over 80 thousand very hard miles, before the jet age, and during the middle of a horrific world war.
THE HEROISM AND RESILIENCY OF 9/11: FROM TRAGEDY TO TRIUMPH
(1hr 59min) Los Angeles, CA (USA) (SC Premiere)
Screens: Sat, Blk 4, 3:00pm
Director: Michael Gier
Synopsis: Narrated by Gary Sinise, the film tells the inspiring true stories of courage, unity, and perseverance that emerged from one of the darkest days in American history. Through the eyes of first responders, survivors, and ordinary citizens who became extraordinary heroes, this film honors the selflessness and bravery that defined a generation.
SHORT FILMS
8 AM (17min) Greensboro, NC (USA) (SC Premiere)
Screens: Wed, Blk 2, 11:00pm
Director: Thomas Mendolia
Synopsis: What happens when the dreams you cultivate come into conflict with the real responsibility of life? Many people find their greatest talent cast aside in the face of life’s daily pressures and discover there's rarely an easy answer forward. 8 AM explores life's choices, dreams, and sacrifices.
BARK (17min) Los Angeles, CA (USA) (SC Premiere)
Screens: Wed, Blk 4, 3:15pm
Director: Searit Kahsay Huluf
Synopsis: He stole her heart. She stole his dog. After a breakup, an obsessive woman steals her ex’s dog in a desperate attempt to reconnect. Bark twists love, revenge, and grief into a visually striking exploration of emotional chaos.
HEADBANG (15min) Los Angeles, CA (USA) (SC Premiere)
Screens: Fri, Blk 3, 1:00pm
Director: Anna Khaja
Synopsis: An American perspective on the hijab and female empowerment that resonates with universal questions of selfhood and freedom. Through the lens of two different young women, Leila, from secular background, and Amara, from a religious one, HEADBANG explores the complex power of the hijab, and how a seemingly simple piece of cloth embodies both what the wearer imbues it with and what society project onto to it.
LINE DANCE (22min) Denver, CO (USA) (SC Premiere)
Screens: Fri, Blk 4, 3:00pm
Director: Timothy McCracken and Robert Kelly McAlister
Synopsis: A woman in recovery finds a new community and maybe something more in a surprising place: Line Dancing at a community dance hall.
LONELY (19min) (CROATIA) (SC Premiere)
Screens: Wed, Blk 4, 3:15pm
Director: Bobby Bosko Grubic
Synopsis: In the twilight of a life marked by disappointment and regret, an old man discovers a flicker of hope through an unexpected friendship.
MAGAN’S FARE (26min) Willoughby Hills, OH (USA) (SC Premiere)
Screens: Fri, Blk 1, 9:00am
Director: Dana White and Chris Knoblock
Synopsis: Magan's Fare is a story about Magan, a ride-share driver, who takes a woman back to her nursing home on a cold December day, to discover that the facility has given up her bed. Magan must now figure out what to do and decide how far he will go to help her.
NEVER TOO LATE (18min) West New York, NJ (USA)
(World Premiere)
Screens: Thu, Blk 5, 7:30pm
Director: Colleen Davie Janes
Synopsis: When Cliff’s only companion— a virtual assistant—shuts down in a future where the air itself is becoming unbreathable, an asthmatic 70-year-old man’s cry for help to a faraway support desk becomes a haunting search for meaning and human connection.
OBIT (23min) Santa Monica, CA (USA) (SC Premiere)
Screens: Thu, Blk 2, 11am
Director: Ben Tedesco
Synopsis: An introverted, lonely, obituary writer deals with mortality in her own way, while navigating her own unfulfilled life.
O & O (20min) Winston-Salem, NC (USA) (SC Premiere)
Screens: Wed, Blk 5 , 7:30pm
Director: Jack Lafferty and Griffin Davis
Synopsis: A combat veteran struggles with PTSD and re-adjustment to civilian life finding himself on the edge of control. A young first generation American to Middle Eastern immigrant parents wrestles with accepting the inheritance of her father's 'American Dream'.
POSTMAN (25min) Mumbai (INDIA) (SC Premiere)
Screens: Wed, Blk 2, 11;00am
Director: Faizan Anees Bazmee
Synopsis: The film follows the journey of a Postman living in Pakistan-Occupied Kashmir (POK), trapped in a life shaped by political unrest and personal struggles. One fateful day, he receives a mysterious letter destined for him. Which changed his life in ways he could have not imagined.
SAVERIO (14min) Pasadena, CA (USA) (SC Premiere)
Screens: Fri, Blk 2, 11:00am
Director: Ellen Ancui
Synopsis: In this “coming of aging” dramedy, Mae, an ambitious, Korean American influencer, finds an elderly, Mexican man abandoned in her car, and must choose between her own ambition and an unsupportive healthcare system, and unwittingly journeys toward a new destination.
SIENNA AND THE SIT (17min) Manhattan, NY (USA) (SC Premiere)
Screens: Thu Blk 2, 11:00am
Director: Scottie Thompson
Synopsis: SIENNA AND THE SIT is a story about the lengths to which we go to avoid our pain, the community that helps us through to the other side, and ultimately our own inner strength. Sienna, a heartbroken LA seeker ready to try any spiritual remedy, has tried everything to get past her ex, to no avail.
SIT WITH ME WHILE I DIE (20min) Fairfield, CT(USA) (SC Premiere)
Screens: Fri, Blk 5, 7:30pm
Director: Brian Russell
Synopsis: A priest must reconcile his lifelong dogmatic views on suffering with real life pain, examining how we will die, the intersection of faith and death, and specifically with how we may, or may not, be called to suffer at the inevitable end. Set against the backdrop of medical aid in dying, and death with dignity.
SHOOT SHOVEL AND SHUTUP (15min) New York, NY (USA)
(SC Premiere)
Screens: Wed, Blk 1, 9:00am
Director: Tran Hoang Calvin
Synopsis: The Clifford family hopes to start a new life by selling their dilapidated, impoverished farm. But when the discovery of an endangered bird on the property threatens to collapse the sale, the son Andy must decide whether to make the bird's presence known or to shoot, shovel, and shut up.
SNIPPED (14min) Charlottenlund (DENMARK) (SC Premiere)
Screens: Wed, Blk 4, 3:15pm
Director: Alexander Saul
Synopsis: A Jewish convert. A Muslim doctor. One holy snip - and a whole lot of tension.
SUMMERVILLE 70 (15min) Charleston, SC (USA) (World Premiere)
Screens: Wed, Blk 2, 11:00am
Director: David Boatright
Synopsis: A day in the life of small South Carolina town in 1970. Our characters get an eye opening view of what coming of age really is in 1970.
THE ARTIS RESIDENCE (11min) Charlotte, NC (USA) (SC Premiere)
Screens: Fri, Blk 2, 11am
Director: Sarah Dresser
Synopsis: When Vera, the matriarch of the quirky Artis family, decides to make a break with her old life, she finds she has to resort to unique measures.
THE DRIVE (13min) New York, NY (USA) (SC Premiere)
Screens: Thu, Blk 1, 9:00am
Director: David Arrow
Synopsis: It’s a warm November day in the early 1960s and Liz has just picked up the kids for her weekly carpool. Little does she know that this will be a drive she’ll never forget.
THE DUMBLETONS (14min) Larchmont, NY (USA) (World Premiere)
Screens: Fri, Blk 2, 11:00am
Director: Wendell Laurent
Synopsis: When his mother receives grave medical news, Walter Dumbleton is forced to reconcile with his reclusive brother Stan in order to carry out a harebrained scheme to pay for their mother's life saving operation.
THE LIARS OF BLACK MOUNTAIN ROAD (13min) Los Angeles, CA (USA) (SC Premiere)
Screens: Fri, Blk 3, 1:00pm
Director: Parker Croft
Synopsis: When a couple runs over a stranger's dog, they compete for the moral high ground at any cost.
THE LONG-REIGNING KING OF ROLLERCASTLE SKATELAND (13min) Brooklyn, NY (USA) (SC Premiere)
Screens: Fri, Blk 1, 9:00am
Director: David Hull
Synopsis: The long-tenured manager of an aging, castle-themed roller rink faces the final three days of business for his beloved little empire. A quirky, neon-dripping exploration of loneliness, nostalgia and generational obsolescence amidst changing times.
THE SPANISH LESSON (12min) New York, NY (USA) (SC Premiere)
Screens: Wed, Blk 1, 9:00am
Director: Simone Stadler
Synopsis: Marisol is already having a rough day (or week. or year.) when a tutoring session with an important client is interrupted by a strange man accusing her of salacious goings-on with his wife.
TOGETHER FOREVER (9min) Gulfport, FL (USA (SC Premiere)
Screens: Fri, Blk 1, 9:00am
Director: Lauren Butterfield
Synopsis: A musical dark comedy about a newly married couple who learn how far you must go to stay together forever.
WALTER (12min) Claremont, CA (USA) (SC Premiere)
Screens: Thu, Blk 4, 3:00pm
Director: Julie Restivo
Synopsis: After his parents’ messy divorce, a ten-year-old boy clings to a bucket of water that he insists is his “pet wave,” Walter. But as the boy’s attachment to Walter deepens, his father must confront his own struggle with letting go.
WATCHING WALTER (18min) Panorama City, CA (USA) (SC Premiere)
Screens: Wed, Blk 4, 3:15pm
Director: Mitch Yapko
Synopsis: Based on the true story of Holocaust survivor-turned watchmaker Wladyslaw "Walter" Wojnas (played by Stephen Tobolowsky), Watching Walter is a proof of concept short touching on several poignant moments in Wojnas' life. Set in both 1995 Philadelphia and World War II Nazi occupied Poland, it's a story of one man's triumph over tragedy.
WANNA BE A STAR! (6min) Fairfield, CT (USA) (World Premiere)
Screens: Fri, Blk 2, 11:00am
Director: Brian Russell
Synopsis: A frustrated actress loses her temper with an indie film director.
WATERFRONT (19min) Montclair, NJ (USA) (SC Premiere)
Screens: Sat, Blk 5, 7:30pm
Director Rob Figueroa
Synopsis: Jonah struggles to see the beauty in life as he attempts to end his life.
SCREENPLAYS
FREEDOM CLAN, Lady Lake, FL (USA)
Writer: Richard Levine
Synopsis: A previously enslaved girl grows from traumatized child into wise matriarch while participating in America's costliest Indian war and largest slave revolt.
PANOPTICON, Sante Fe, NM (USA)
Writer: Sophia Peaslee
Synopsis: After dying in his latest escape attempt, an innocent man wakes up in the prison infirmary realizing he's serving more than just a life sentence.
THE TRAIL, Stamford, CT (USA)
Writer: Yvonne Paulin
Synopsis: While gathering samples in the Oregon wilderness, a scientist with a tragic past discovers the dead body of a young girl. Alone and without working communication, she must fight for survival against the elements as well as the killer who is looking to destroy any evidence of his crime.
TWO FINGERS, Abbeville, SC, (USA)
Writer: Shelley Reid
Synopsis: A maven of intrigue and her team of Shadow Rangers orchestrate an intricate sting operation to ensnare the mastermind of a cattle-rustling syndicate.
WINGS, Zagreb (CROATIA)
Writer: Maja Pavic
Synopsis: In a picturesque village where storks live in harmony with humans, young Clapper and Malena are inseparable. But tragedy strikes—on her first migration to Africa, Malena is wounded by poachers and left behind, while Clapper, unaware of her fate and assuming her dead, must continue the journey with his flock.
BEST COMEDY NOMINATIONS
Bark (Short)
Bob's Best Friends (Feature)
Collision Theory (Student)
Magic Hour (Feature)
Saverio (Short)
Sienna and the Sit (Short)
The Artis Residence (Short)
The Dumbletons (Short)
The Long-Reigning King of Rollercastle Skateland (Short)
Together Forever (Short)
Walter (Short)
Wanna Be A Star (Short)
Yer Smackin (Student)
BEST ACTOR NOMINATIONS
Barkhad Abdi, Magan's Fare (Short)
Jack Lafferty, O & O (Short)
Xavier Mills, O & O (Short)
James Naughton, Sit With Me While I Die (Short)
Michael Tourek, 8 AM (Short)
BEST ACTRESS NOMINATIONS
Piper Collins, Goody (Feature)
Quincy Cho, Saverio (Short)
Sarah Dresser, The Artis Residence (Short)
Sharon Lawrence, Imbalance (Feature)
Miriam Shor, Magic Hour (Feature)
BEST DIRECTOR NOMINATIONS
Faizan Anees Bazmee, Postman (Short)
Jacqueline Christy, Magic Hour (Feature)
Michael Gier, The Heroism and Resiliency of 9/11: From Tragedy to Triumph (Doc Feature)
Randy Kent, Bob's Best Friends (Feature)
Jack Lafferty and Griffin Davis, O & O (Short)
Julie Restivo, Walter (Short)
Brian Russell, Sit With Me While I Die (Short)
BEST ENSEMBLE NOMINATIONS
Magic Hour (Feature)
O & O (Short)
Sienna and the Sit (Short)
Sit With Me While I Die (Short)
The Artis Residence (Short)
Walter (Short)
BEST SCORE/SOUNDTRACK NOMINATIONS
Goody, Michael Hilger, Maci Stewart, Quinn Tsan (Feature)
Imbalance, David Arkenstone (Feature)
Postman, Parth Saraf (Short)
The Artis Residence, Seth Dresser (Short)
The Slave In Your Backyard, Gray Haven (Doc Feature)
Together Forever, Lauren Butterfield (Short)