GIFF 2023 Schedule

Join us for 8 days of film – the first 4 days celebrate films in competition and the second 4 days celebrate outstanding films and filmmakers in our local community.

Thursday, September 28, 2023

DAY 1 – OPENING PARTY
at MYA Rooftop at The Glenmark Hotel
6:00 – 7:30pm

Friday, September 29, 2023

DAY 2 – SCREENINGS
All Screenings at the Laemmle (Glendale).

DAY 2 – FESTIVAL LOUNGE at ace/121 Gallery
Open from 1:00 – 10:00pm

PROGRAM 1 – Friday, September 29, 2023, 1:00pm
VIDA (Student, 20 minutes)
Director/Writer: Maria Valdez, Producers: Maria Valdez, Savana Vagueiro da Fonseca
Los Angeles – 2053, After a bloody civil war, women of color are captured and sterilized as a form of population control. Vida and a group of resistance fighters are getting ready to escape, but suddenly one of their own is captured, and they’re forced to decide between saving themselves or saving her.

THE WOMAN IN THE DARKNESS (Student, 9 minutes)
Director: Lan Chi Chien, Writers: Sherry Liu, Lan Chi Chien, Producers: Sherry Liu, Mingzhu Ye
Carmen, a charming dancer, comes into a mysterious dark space. There’s only a dancing floor, a candle, and a picture of her deceased husband. The candle lights up, the music starts to play… With her solo dancing, a secret which had
been deeply buried in her heart begins to unfold. In the midst of the darkest night, how will she break free from the chains of darkness?

BOYS (Student, 56 minutes)
Director: Gihyun Yang
A high-school boy who sells sex for a living finds out about a fraudulent job who used to study in the United States. The boy starts to blackmail and ask the man for money for not reporting him.

PROGRAM 2 – Friday, September 29, 2023, 3:00pm
OUTED (Feature, 1 hour 25 minutes)
Director/Writer/Producer: Blake Arthur (J. Senft)
Oliver, a recent high school graduate, is kicked out of his house after his parents find out he is gay. He struggles to
make it on his own as he tries to find a way to pay for college.

PROGRAM 3 – Friday, September 29, 2023, 3:15pm
FLUTTER (Student, 2 minutes)
Directors: Jackson Paul Roberts, Ruoyu Chen
A confused child, facing a death in the family, is caught between dreams and reality.

THE KIKI HOUSE OF VASE (Student, 8 minutes)
Director: Syrus Sadvandi
The Kiki House of Vase is a ballroom house based in Taipei. This is a group of voguers which attend events called “balls.” However, ballroom is more than a space to dance — it’s where people of an LGBT background can find unconditional support and a family regardless of their orientation or gender identity.

GET THE SCISSORS (Student, 9 minutes)
Director/Writer: Sheila Margaret O’Callaghan, Producer: Sophia Michael Weiland
Bumbling but well meaning girls take their disabled cousin, Patricia, to the movies. Patricia surprises everyone with her reaction.

FRENZY FRIES (Student, 2 minutes)
Director: Jee Suk Kim
A baby wants to eat french fries so badly.

WIENER (Documentary, 16 minutes)
Director/Writer: Natalie Peracchio, Producers: Natalie Peracchio, Lauren Longstreet
A meaty comedy about a college admissions tour gone wrong.

OCCUPIED (Student, 5 minutes)
Director: Liam Fink
A park ranger is closing facilities for the night, only to realize that one of the bathrooms is still in use….

A WOMAN IN DANGER (Student, 4 minutes)
Director: Justin Alexander, Writer: Alycia Houston, Producers: Elisia Song, Zitlalli Robles-Murillo, Dro Davidian
Aura leaves behind her impoverished life to join a traveling circus as a fortuneteller. Initially enamored by the charismatic ringleader Charles, it’s not long before regret and disillusionment seep into her life. Unbeknownst to her, Charles will stop at nothing to hold onto the star of his show.

THEY ARE NOT MEANT TO TELL THIS STORY (Student, 13 minutes)
Director/Writer: Deepanwita Goswami, Producer: National Institute of Design
The Santal, or Santhal, are an ethnic group native to India and Bangladesh in South Asia. Handia, a locally made drink which is considered staple and scared at all the community events and occasions, is made from fermentation of rice. Chullu which is further prepared from the rice’s distillation process occupies a sizable portion of village economy, especially the economy of poor tribal people.

PICKUP LIE (Student, 10 minutes)
Director/Writer: Robert Sturdevant
After her crush chooses a sorority girl over her, Kris uses time-traveling drugs to rewrite her romantic fate and claim his heart.

PROGRAM 4 – Friday, September 29, 2023, 5:15pm
HIDE (Feature, 1 hour 32 minutes)
Director/Writer: Bixi Li, Producers: Bixi Li, Ruijia Wang
Joey, a 14-year-old boy, disfigured from fire is lying in a hospital bed telling a sheriff about what happened to make his life like this.

PROGRAM 5 – Friday, September 29, 2023, 5:20pm
THE NESTLING MESSENGERS (Student, 6 minutes)
Director/Writer: Julianna Schuldt, Producer: Rocky Huang
A winged woman hides in her nest and cannot raise her wings to fly as she is haunted by the terrifying darkness surrounding her. When an injured stranger crashes onto her nest, she must open up to meet the challenge the stranger poses to her tenuous refuge.

THE DINNER (Student, 12 minutes)
Director/Writer: Lexie Shamir, Producers: Kaytlyn Bunting, Sterling Gates, Ghassan Shamir, Ugliene Shamir
Crystal, a college student in her first relationship, wants to prove her mother wrong; not all men are bad like her father. Uncertain if meeting the parents is too soon, her boyfriend comes along anyway to dinner at her mother’s house. The
dinner never reaches dessert, however, when Crystal’s overprotective mother, set in her ways, decides to see if Crystal’s beau is worthy of her daughter’s affection.

TO: MY FAVORITE CHILD (Student, 7 minutes)
Director/Writer: Raymond Shamiryan, Producer: CandyJoe
Our film tells the story of three children with an ill father hunting for his inheritance through a game of riddles and clues scattered throughout his house. Who will carry his materialistic torch?

FINDING PEACE (Student, 9 minutes)
Director: Jakob Wedel, Writer: Hayden Brown, Producer: Jakob Wedel, Eddie Potvin, Jordan Zarou, Xavier Barrios
In the aftermath of a terrible loss, the deceased’s brother and partner search for closure, only to discover a gift left behind just for them.

LOVE, ANGELICA (Student, 12 minutes)
Director: Joshua Christoph, Writers: Janet Valdovinos, Joshua Christoph, Julian Cudworth, Producers: Joshua Christoph, Janet Valdovinos, Julian Cudworth
After losing her best friend, Angelica must overcome depression and anxiety as she’s looking for pursuit of happiness again.

SERIOUS CONDITION (Student, 11 minutes)
Director: Atticus Lutz, Writers: Atticus Lutz, Will Hays, Producers: Atticus Lutz, Will Hays, Jake Manougian, Jesse Guzik
Ray, an anxious and honest young man fumbles his way through life, when a “friend” of his uses him for money. He decides he will no longer be pushed around.

THE TRIAL (Student, 18 minutes)
Director: Yu(Ray) Zhou, Writer: Thomas D Gamburg, Yu(Ray) Zhou, Producers: Yu(Ray) Zhou, Yi(Andy) Li, Joey Cheng
“The Trial” delves into the poignant journey of a grieving father who tragically lost his son to the ravages of COVID-19 five years ago. Now, in the face of a newly emerged mutated virus, he finds himself confronted with a harrowing dilemma.

CANDLELIGHT (Student, 3 minutes)
Director/Writer/Producer: Soobie; Music video for Candlelight – Soobie.
The story is about a ring stolen from a painting and how it has its own adventure trying to find a way back home.

BLACK WHOLE (Student, 18 minutes)
Director/Writer: Brett Alan Calkins, Producer: Jess Hess
When a haunting black hole appears in their yard, a young pregnant couple must face their fears of miscarriage, to eliminate the phenomenon before it consumes them.

PROGRAM 6 – Friday, September 29, 2023, 7:35pm
DEPTH OF FIELD (Feature, 1 hour 25 minutes)
Director: John F Uranday, Writers: John F Uranday, Bobby Cloud, Producers: Bobby Cloud, Orlin Dobreff, Rafael Petardi, George Stroumboulopoulos, Tristan Salas Terry
Two years ago, Charles lost his his wife and child in a horrific car accident that he believes he could’ve stopped. Now living in his garage, because he can’t bear to step foot into a house that was once filled with love, he hears a voice
from his estranged friend’s house, of their foster child Valerie.

PROGRAM 7 – Friday, September 29, 2023, 7:50pm
WORST DATE, BEST DATE (Comedy, 17 minutes)
Director: Cameron Thrower, Writers/Producers: Cameron Thrower, Heather Turman
Amy and Charlie are set up on a blind date by their grandmothers. From the beginning, the date seems to be going horribly wrong, with both Amy and Charlie trying to find ways to get out of the situation. However, as they continue to
talk, they discover that they share something in common.

FÊTE (Comedy, 24 minutes)
Directors: Krista Hovsepian, Cailleah Scott-Grimes, Writer: Krista Hovsepian, Producer: Krista Hovsepian
Three sisters gather annually, over a period of five years, to celebrate the eldest’s birthday. Each year brings with it new partners, challenges, heartaches, and misgivings in this messy ups and downs dramedy about hugely dysfunctional family dynamics.

SKIPPED (Comedy, 5 minutes)
Director/Writer: Bibo Bergeron, Producer: Lisa Kannakko
One jazzy trumpet, three cappuccinos, one free croissant, easy money, and a well-deserved glass of tap water. Don’t blink, it’s Pam and Cam on their short, first and last, blind date.

DEATH BY KING CAKE (Comedy, 15 minutes)
Director: Janssen Swent, David Luck, Writer: David Luck, Producers: David Luck, Penny LeLeux, Doug Underwood, Janssen Swent, Brandon Masters
Daisy’s dream is to become an actress and her goal is to get into a Performing Arts School. She must present her family background to the admissions director which may be a challenge – considering Daisy’s family history which
includes professional wrestling, blackmail, and a deadly plastic baby.

DINNER FOR SIX (Comedy, 6 minutes)
Director/Writer/Producer: Emily Kranking
A overprotective family spies on their disabled daughter’s first date in absurd ways. Reimagined as the rom-coms and Disney Channel sitcoms she grew up with, Emily Kranking tells an exaggerated version of her first date.

PROGRAM 8 – Friday, September 29, 2023, 9:50pm
HAPPINESS IS AN ILLUSION (Horror/Thriller, 14 minutes)
Director/Writer/Producer: Rebecca Demeter
A woman tries to figure out modern relationships, but realizes she might have missed the most important relationship
she could ever have.

TESTIMONY (Horror/Thriller, 17 minutes)
Director/Writer/Producer: Jason Camp
Murder suspect Michael Raines questions his own truth and reality after battling a peculiar detective determined to get more than a confession during an interrogation.

BROKEN VESSELS (Horror/Thriller, 22 minutes)
Directors/Writers: Larry Ziegelman, Terry Ziegelman, Producers: Carroll Brown, Jonathan Levit, Blake Vaz
Broken Vessels is a psychological thriller about Jane, a woman in a toxic relationship, learning to stand up for herself against her husband, and a deadly disease.

GOOD TIMES/BAD TIMES (Horror/Thriller, 3 minutes)
Director/Writer/Producer: Laura Medeiros
A sweet pixie dream girl decorates her living room wall with pictures of the best moments of her life . . . but what is that strange muffled noise coming from her closet?

…BEST SERVED COLD (Horror/Thriller, 13 minutes)
Director/Writer: Van Allen Cooper, Producer: Dale P Schomer
During the final session between a psychologist and her patient, truth lies between justice and vengeance.

THE NEEDLE (Horror/Thriller, 13 minutes)
Director/Writer: Casey de Fremery, Producer: Megan Williams
While holed up in an abandoned warehouse and fighting off a heroin withdrawal, a drug addict is haunted by a ghost from her past…

THE HANGMAN (Horror/Thriller, 7 minutes)
Director/Writer: Cameron Sun
A woman returning home is stalked by a mysterious upside down figure.

PROGRAM 9 – Friday, September 29, 2023, 9:50pm
THE MISSING BOYS (Documentary, 54 minutes)
Director/Writer: Davide Catinari, Producer: Vox Day Soc. Coop
The Missing Boys attempts a cinematographic reconstruction of a key historical time during which a generational divide engendered changes such as to produce the emergence of new anthropological (social, cultural and aesthetic)
models – which will then go on to transform the
very perception of the contemporary world.

Saturday, September 30, 2023

DAY 3 – SCREENINGS
All Screenings at the Laemmle (Glendale).

DAY 3 – FESTIVAL LOUNGE at ace/121 Gallery
Open from 12:00 – 10:00pm

PROGRAM 10 – Saturday, September 30, 2023, 12:00pm
STAY (Comedy, 9 minutes)
Director: Regina Ainsworth, Writer: Megan McKenzie, Producers: Mary Lou Belli, Charles Dougherty
Two neurodivergent strangers form an unlikely connection when they cross paths in a cemetery.

KEVIN FROM ANOTHER WORLD (Comedy, 3 minutes)
Director/Writer: Diana Lee Woody, Producers: Trey Nichols, Diana Lee Woody
A giant cat arrives in his flying saucer creating panic among the humans.

MEET ME AT THE BARRE (Comedy, 16 minutes)
Directors: Vera Wagman, Dawn Cobalt, Jill Remez, Karen Bankhead, Victoria Hoffman, Writer: Cynthia Gravinese,
Producer: Cynthia Gravinese
When her college sweetheart leaves her for a millennial, a disenchanted recently divorced woman finds solace with a motley group of coordinated and not so coordinated dancers at the local YMCA where they work out at the barre with a former Broadway dancer and drown their sorrows at The Happy Place, the other bar.

RIDE IN PEACE (Comedy, 9 minutes)
Director: Anette Puskas, Writers: Seth Lawrence, Anette Puskas, Producer: Jose Infante
“Live every day as if it’s your last!” This is Tommy Chilton’s mantra, a happy-go-lucky chauffeur who responds to automated text messages alerting randomized people when it’s their time to kick-the-bucket.

THEATRE TUBE (Comedy, 16 minutes)
Director/Writer/Producer: Will Ahrens
The director of a small, fledgling theater company, whose talent may not match his enthusiasm, decides to record the process of mounting Shakespeare’s, Romeo & Juliet and share it online. We follow the intrepid cast as they rehearse and perform the eager, but possibly misguided, director’s vision of Shakespeare’s classic. They strive to overcome the many obstacles as opening night approaches.

THE BRAVE LOCOMOTIVE (Comedy, 17 minutes)
Director/Writer/Producer: Andrew Pierce Chesworth
An Old West musical tale with 1940s flair about a mighty little train facing harrowing disaster.

PROGRAM 11 – Saturday, September 30, 2023, 12:00pm
THE EYE BEGINS IN THE HAND (Documentary, 16 minutes)
Director: Yehuda Sharim, Writer: Lorena Alvarado, Producer: Elizabeth Michelle Lopez
El Ojo Comienza En La Mano is a tribute to campesino histories in rural CA through the artwork of an artist largely absent from critical conversations on Chicanx art, Ruben A. Sanchez, as well as an unsentimental reckoning with the fate of many cultural workers that struggle between paying rent and/or creative endeavors.

PROGRAM 12 – Saturday, September 30, 2023, 1:55pm
BEFORE YOU GO (Drama, 10 minutes)
Director/Writer: Joe Thayer, Producers: David Ginsberg, Joe Thayer
After a house party, two teens contemplate the universe, avoiding the happenings of last night. They agree to have one last cup of coffee before they must face a new reality. A last moment of teenage innocence, ended abruptly.

EVER SO SLIGHTLY (Drama, 21 minutes)
Ever So Slightly explores the behavioural mechanisms and reflexes we develop against the ceaseless flow of irritants
that bombard us in our daily lives. Most of us long for calm and resilience, but how do we get to a zone where noise and aggressivity no longer have a place?

BECAUSE OF THIS (Drama, 21 minutes)
Directors: Geoff Hale, Jonathan Hale, Writer: Shanie Schwartzman, Producers: Geoff Hale, Jonathan Hale, Shanie
Schwartzman, James Pitt, Ana Greenberg
A young woman must reunite with her estranged father after she develops the same super powers he has.

CRACKS (Drama, 8 minutes)
Directors/Writers: Brian Edward Higgins, Jason Leonard Mildwaters, Anthony John Hicks, Producers: Brian Edward Higgins, Jason Leonard Mildwaters
With breathtaking velocity, the groundbreaking short film Cracks catapults the observer into a myriad of otherworldly
realms and multiple sensory overloads. Experience the wild fusion of vision, sound, music and worlds of enigma.

SLIPPERS (Drama, 13 minutes)
Director: Mark Ryan Walberg
Erratic messages from her dad sends JO deep into the California desert to sort through the remains of a frenzied,
paranoid manic episode. However, along the way she makes two discoveries: the rest of her family wish to no longer support him, and the trunk of his car is filled with hundreds of slippers…

PROGRAM 13  – Saturday, September 30, 2023, 2:15pm
WE THRIVE (Documentary, 1 hour 22 minutes)
Directors/Producers: Lisa Hagopian, Eric Harabadian
The documentary demonstrates that all of us can go beyond the struggles and tragedies of our lives, and the often tragic history of our ancestors, to THRIVE via music. We see how an eclectic mix musicians with a common bond do just that!

PROGRAM 14 – Saturday, September 30, 2023, 4:00pm
27 CHILDREN (Drama, 18 minutes)
Director/Writer/Producer: Daniel Wyland
40-year-old childless kindergarten teacher, Ana Petcu (Dorotheea Petre – Best Actress 2005 Cannes FF), visits her
doctor to discuss lab results – and despite receiving answers to life long questions, she discovers the repercussions of
being raised in Eastern European communist block foster care systems. Based on facts.

THIS AND THAT (Drama, 22 minutes)
Director/Writer/Producer: Katie Garibaldi
In an effort to free herself from writer’s block, an aspiring screenwriter with big dreams decides to share her truth
despite doubts, all while navigating challenging life changes brought on by divorce.

THE EXCHANGE GIRL (Drama, 12 minutes)
Director/Writer: George Larkin, Producers: George Larkin, Elizabeth Amery
The Exchange Girl is a short documentary about women working in dangerous conditions in silent film post-production.
Those positions did provide women with an entry point to film work, but those jobs suddenly disappeared with the
coming of sound. The film also explores how Margaret Booth, one of the great editors, started her legendary career
that way.

LA PIETRA (Drama, 15 minutes)
Director/Writer: Nikita Hattangady, Producers: Nouveau Journey Productions
Rosabella, a yesteryear Italian opera singer, loses the spark in her life when her dear friend, Giuseppe, introduces her
to a wise woman who helps her bring back the magic.

RECOGNITION (Drama, 15 minutes)
Director: Maria Prieto, Writers: Maria Prieto, Sara Eklund, Producer: Lily Darragh Harty
In the near future, a woman stuck on a rose-colored version of her past seeks support from an augmented reality
therapist to unlock the dark truth behind her memories.

IN HER EAR (Drama, 13 minutes)
Director/Writer: Kelsey Siepser, Producer: Ciaran Vejby
Lou and Marce
l are two creative thirty-somethings who have a loving marriage and are newly expectant parents. Although Lou has mixed feelings about her newly changing body, she has already bought every book on pregnancy while Marcel lives in the moment.

PROGRAM 15 – Saturday, September 30, 2023, 4:30pm
THE NANNY (Feature, 1 hour 50 minutes)
Director/Writer: Brian Reynolds, Producers: Morgan A. MacDouglas, Kimberly Connolly
A wealthy couple hire a young girl from Finland to take care of their newborn. These new parents should be in a state
of bliss, so why does it seem like they are trying to kill each other?

PROGRAM 16 – Saturday, September 30, 2023, 6:30pm
FLUORESCENT BEAST (Feature, 1 hour 31 minutes)
Director/Writer: Paul Osborne, Producer: Melanie Starks, Leslie Osborne
A man is sent on a clandestine business trip by a shadowy executive. The details of the trip withheld even from him, the man must follow a series of mysterious clues to uncover true nature of his mission.

PROGRAM 17 – Saturday, September 30, 2023, 7:10pm
BRAND NEW DAY (Documentary, 1 hour 32 minutes)
Directors: Paul Mabon, Renee Chatman, Writer: Paul Mabon, Producer: Andre Buchanan
Brand New Day tells the story of professional poets during the height of the pandemic. This diverse collective of artists includes a Poet Laureate, a member of the Def Poetry Jam national tour, an academic professor, the international poetry touring circuit and an 8-time Grammy award winner.

PROGRAM 18 – Saturday, September 30, 2023, 8:55pm
STICKY FINGERS (Action/Suspense, 27 minutes)
Director: Nicolai Joseph, Producers: Arun Fryer, Ana Carrizles
Facing debts and violent consequences with a local mob enforcer, two lowlife criminal brothers scheme with their
partners to steal an expensive watch. But after their plan is shot to hell, the brothers find a surprise waiting for them in their escape.

THE ASSASSIN’S APPRENTICE 2: SILBADORES OF THE CANARY ISLANDS (Action/Suspense, 25 minutes)
Director: Russ Emanuel, Writer: Paul Hickman, Producers: Paul Hickman, Ryan T. Husk, Howard Nash
Kaylee, an apprentice assassin for TAA Corp., is taking a long-deserved vacation in the Canary Islands, when her
Freerunner drone arrives to project a holographic image of Rick, her handler. Rick explains to Kaylee that her vacation
has been cut short, and that she is being urgently summoned for a new mission.

VAX (Action/Suspense, 13 minutes)
Director/Writer: Barak Shpiez
Deep in the research laboratory of Triple Hills Pharma, an accidental discovery could save the lives of millions, unless
it kills profits.

LIVESTREAM (Action/Suspense, 30 minutes)
Directors: Tanxuan Shi, Ziyuan Wang, Writer: Tanxuan Shi, Producer: Ziyuan Wang
Isabella, an out-of-date girl group idol who is experiencing a double crisis of career and age, decides to make a comeback with live-streaming; she plans to become a Chinese head influencer by selling an emerging medical bio-
sector fund in North America. But her live stream spiraled out of control with the intrusion of a hacker who threatens to release a deadly biochemical virus…

PROGRAM 19 – Saturday, September 30, 2023, 9:35pm
SMILE AS YOU KILL (Feature, 1 hour 27 minutes)
Director/Writer: Michael Sarrow, Producer: Jon Carlo
With only a few months to live, a desperate man kidnaps a successful advertising director and makes one demand: Create an online campaign to pay for treatment . . . or share his fate.

Sunday, October 1, 2023

DAY 4 – SCREENINGS
All Screenings at the Laemmle (Glendale).

PROGRAM 20 – Sunday, October 1, 2023, 12:00pm
BIENVENIDOS A LOS ANGELES (Drama, 17 minutes)
Director/Writer: Lisa Cole, Producers: Vivian Johnson, Lisa Cole, Cindy Lu, Jolene Mendes, Benjamin O’Keefe, Lolia Etomi
Inspired by true events and shot on location at LAX airport, “Bienvenidos a Los Angeles” tells the timely story of Imani, a Nigerian single-mother living in Los Angeles, who offers to help a perfect stranger reunite with her son. In doing so, Imani learns this simple act of kindness threatens to jeopardize her own path to citizenship.

BROKEN (Drama, 13 minutes)
Director/Writer: Andrew Yi, Producer: Sophia Chang
Derek comes home for spring break to some terrible news that could break up his whole family.

MY LITTLE CAREGIVER (Drama, 15 minutes)
Directors: Sam Solomon, Goldmond Fong, Writer: Sam Solomon, Producers: Benjamin Bradley Gilbert, Sam Solomon, Goldmond Fong
When the regularly scheduled nurse from a local caregiving agency doesn’t show up for work, imaginative 10 year old Elijah acts on the chance to spend a day alone with his mother who is a wheelchair user. After a brief argument in the afternoon, Elijah wakes up to find his mom’s demeanor different, excited to play games with her son. But is it too good to be true?

NOT MY CIRCUS (Drama, 5 minutes)
Director/Writer/Producer: Mila Brener
A young girl named Charlie dresses up as a clown everyday in honor of her deceased mom who was in the circus.
Charlie gets bullied for the way she looks until she unexpectedly meets a new friend.

REAR (Drama, 20 minutes)
Director/Writer: Edward Worthy, Producers: Edward Worthy, Telon Weathington, Danielle Worthy
When a teacher leaves bruises on a child, an objecting mother unintentionally starts a debate on the use of school corporal punishment in her southern black community.

PROGRAM 21 – Sunday, October 1, 2023, 12:00pm
NOTRE VILLAGE (Documentary, 1 hour 7 minutes)
Director/Writer: Comes Chahbazian, Producer: Julien Contreau, Pauline Piris-Nury
In the early 90s, in Artsakh (Nagorno-Karabakh), civilian volunteers all from the same village choose to take up arms in resistance, to liberate their land. Each in turn, they weave the fabric of their joint story. In this village life, everyday gestures are still charged with the silent presence of the war. And then, three decades later, History repeats itself. War flares up again.

PROGRAM 22 – Sunday, October 1, 2023, 2:00pm
THE CAN (Drama, 22 minutes)
Directors: Shadow C. LaValley, Danielle Purdy, Writer/Producer: Shadow C. LaValley. A broken-spirited Tim struggles to navigate love and loss, only to find the extraordinary beauty of life from an ordinary can.

WITH JOYFUL RING (Drama, 12 minutes)
Director/Writer/Producer: Gary Karapetyan
A man struggling with depression longs for a joyful connection during the holiday season.

BACK HOME (Drama, 15 minutes)
Director: Bailey Castle, Writers: David Cameli, Jeremy Schaye, Producers: David Cameli, Bailey Castle, Jules Quaas
After the unexpected death of their father, two estranged brothers must decide who bears the responsibility of caring for their sick mother.

CREATION (Drama, 19 minutes)
Director: Angel E. Vera, Producer: Georges N. Chamchoum
When a sculptor from an unknown realm is given consciousness, he is called upon by the sounds of a ticking
Grandfather Clock to create life.

LUCY’S LAST SONG (Drama, 21 minutes)
Director/Writer: Raul Rosco Guerrero, Producer: Robert Craighead
Lucy’s Last Song is the story of a woman reconnecting with her estranged father after many years apart. As the night unfolds their wounds are exposed and dirty laundry aired.

SWEETEST VACATION (Drama, 6 minutes)
Director: Ryan Stevens Harris, Writers: John Michael Elfers, Ryan Stephens Harris, Phillip E. Walker, Alberto Anaya LÃ3pez, Hope D. Williams, Katherine Phillips, Margaret Newborn, Daniela Lugo, Franklin Whitlatch, Jacuetta Green,
Producer: John Michael Elfers
95th Academy Award televised ceremony appearing Phillip E. Walker Stars in this much celebrated Serlingesque mini short film which leads viewers on a dark comedy fantasy romp through the mind. There an elder is thrusted into a different world . . . via some assistance.

PROGRAM 23 – Sunday, October 1, 2023, 2:00pm
THE WAY (Feature, 1 hour 17 minutes)
Directors/Writers: Tata Feodoridi, Konstantin Frolov, Producer: Tata Feodoridi

AWARDS NIGHT
at Glen Arden Club
6:00 – 9:00pm

Monday, October 2, 2023 – Thursday, October 5, 2023

The festival continues through October 5, 2023 with special programming, networking, screenings, and Q&As. All screenings are at the Laemmle Theater (Glendale) and represent a variety of genres and topics designed to bring audiences together and create dialog around shared passions.

A Decent Home  – Tuesday, October 3, 2023, 7:00pm
(Feature, 1 hour 26 minutes)
Director/Producer/Writer/Cinematographer: Sara Terry

GenXX: Taking Positive Action in your Directing Career – Wednesday, October 4, 2023, 7:00 – 9:00pm
at the ace/121 Gallery

Only in Theatres  – Thursday, October 5, 2023, 7:30pm
(Feature, 1 hour 33 minutes)
Director: Raphael Sbarge, Editor: Rick Pratt, Sound Design: Thomas Cassetta, Director of Photography: Matthew Kubas, Producers: Raphael Sbarge, Rick Pratt, Thomas Cassetta, and Freida Orange .