A Boy and His Kite

The Scary Movie

Martina and Sonja, cross-dress in vampire capes and werewolf claws, re-enacting familiar horror tropes. A corresponding soundtrack of stock screams and "scary" music suggests that the girls' toying with gender roles and power dynamics may have dire consequences.

Smash Cuts! Super Sci-Fi Shorts Fest

Host Scott Forrest presents a curated compilation of eight independent short films in this rapid-fire science-fiction feature. Genres collide, narratives twist, aesthetics clash, and even humor, both campy and dystopian, showcase the vast creative possibilities of each story's individual world, offering the viewer a brief glimpse into the lives of every character's attempt to survive the otherworldly chaos around them. Released in 2001, the selected shorts span original creation dates of 1997 to 2001; most of the featured filmmakers also appear as themselves in short video interviews to talk about their inspirations, creative process and motivations while working on their individual shorts.

Normal Porn for Normal People

"Normal Porn for Normal People" is an appropriated media piece that explores our societal need to consume violence for entertainment. The film offers a satirical commentary on the romanticizing and normalization of violent imagery, while observing the link to commercial consumerism that exploits human sexuality, while simultaneously demonizing it. Interview segments echo our endless need to devour salacious content by venerating both real and fictional violence. Sexuality and sexual images remain a convenient scapegoat that facilitate a continued avoidance regarding the impact that the glorification of violence has within American culture.

Subsurface

Trapped and alone, a young man must confront the pain he's ignored when he finds himself face-to-face with consequence.

Citric Acid

A young artist is stalked via the internet by a mysterious online celebrity who harshly criticizes their artwork.

Inland Empire

When actress Nikki Grace gets the lead role in a cursed film, her world becomes more and more surreal, blending realities and ideas of infidelity, reincarnation, and supernatural forces.

Begotten

Begotten is the creation myth brought to life, the story of no less than the violent death of God and the (re)birth of nature on a barren earth.

Toxoplasma

In the aftermath of his father's death, a young man navigates a developing relationship with a brain-eating parasite.

The Long Walk

An animated short based on a scene from "The Long Walk" by Stephen King

Billy Boy

A former football star turned real estate broker meets with rich, spoiled young Billy to close a deal on a mansion, and nothing goes according to plan.

The Dog of Sarandi Alley

In this 57-second short film, a dog-like doll faces another doll. It begins with an innocent, playful tone, but quickly turns dark and unsettling. Bach’s classical music adds a heavy, melancholic mood to the scene. The Dog of Sarandi Alley is a strange and brief story about violence, loneliness, and the secrets hidden behind the simple faces of toys.

House

Hoping to find a sense of connection to her late mother, Gorgeous takes a trip with her friends to visit her aunt's ancestral house in the countryside. The girls soon discover that there is more to the old house than meets the eye.

Fine

After a period of time where her hearing begins to overtake her sight, Casandra searches for the cause of her problem, isolating herself from society. She starts having visions that remind her of the past and promise an apocalyptic future.

The Paralysis

After waking up with amnesia on the beach, the protagonist is pursued by the police to face the consequences of an unknown past. This soundscape uses tension as a tool to explore how uncertainty, anguish and urgency mobilize a body that would otherwise remain paralyzed in time.

Toxic Mango

Guima and Aras are star-crossed lovers in this sardonic tale of fruit and global genocide. One day, a black mango suddenly appears in Guima and Aras's tree. To eat or not to eat: that was their question. Toxic Mango is a silent, black-and-white film that ruminates on a dystopian future where the effects of the oil spill tragedy have reached nightmarish proportions.

Deaf to Happiness

A writer is trapped in a world where time is broken, memories do not exist, and nothing feels real. His hand moves against his will, endlessly writing something unseen while his mind fights for meaning. Desperate, he begins writing a story—one that must not end in tragedy.

A Love Letter to Cinema

An experimental sampled film which shows the pleasurable art of movies about movies through scenes inside of theaters.

Bei Ewald

A man sits at the table and eats his meal...with rather unusual effects.

Voyeur

Omen

“Omen, a dark and timeless traveler, emerges from the belly of a gutted sheep and finds himself in an unknown void. In this tormented space, a disturbing encounter awaits him: an Enchantress. Through silent revelations and hidden omens, a haunting and supernatural journey begins, in search of meaning beyond appearances.”