FEATURE FILMS
BAROMAS (FOREVER)
India / 2012 / 124mins / directed by Dhiraj Meshram
Based on the Award-winning novel by Sadanand Deshmukh, this film visits rural India and the issues of corruption, unemployment and farmers’ suicides amidst harsh socio-economic conditions. The story of hope and determination as two brothers, both educated and jobless, take on the system in entirely contrasting ways. DC Premiere
BOYS ARE US
Switzerland / 2012 / 73mins / directed by Peter Luisi
After 16-year-old Mia gets hurt in love, she and her sister decide to take revenge on a boy. When other people and unexpected feelings start getting involved, the game of the two girls suddenly begins to take on dangerous proportions. East Coast Premiere
CAMERA SHY
Canada / 2012 / 91mins / directed by Mark Sawers
A dark comedy about a corrupt city councilman (Nicolas Wright) whose life spins out of control after a mysterious cameraman begins terrorizing him. East Coast Premiere
HARD SHOULDER
UK / 2012 / 88mins / directed by Nicholas David Lean
When Carl (Wil Johnson) reluctantly agrees to a strained weekend away with his family, a trip to the remote Welsh moors becomes a HORRIFIC fight for survival as a convoy of carnival travelers violently forces the family off the road. US Premiere
METH HEAD
USA / 2013 / 108mins / directed by Jane Clark
Kyle Peoples (Lukas Haas) sees a chance to escape his mundane reality, but his new friendship with Maia (Necar Zadegan) and Dusty (Blake Berris), and the trio’s love of crystal meth eventually cost Kyle everything – his job, his lover (Wilson Cruz), his family and his home. World Premiere
NORMAL
USA / 2012 / 75 mins / directed by Nicholas Richards
Near Normal, Illinois, but certainly far from normal, this is a strange day in the life of Phin (Geno Rathbone) who, stuck in a gorilla costume, must raise $3000 after his neighbor holds Phin’s car for ransom. World Premiere
OROS (THE COINBEARER)
Philippines & USA / 2012 / 81mins / directed by Paul Sta Ana
A gritty, gripping story unfolds in a Philippine slum, where even death becomes a provider as people exploit the dead in order to survive by holding sakla (illegal gambling) at staged wakes. US Premiere
SHOUTING SECRETS
Switzerland / 2012 / 88mins / directed by Korinna Sehringer
A successful Native American writer whose novel sold out his family finds himself pulled back home to San Carlos Apache reservation. A story about a Native-American family with unique struggles yet universal truths and a film with a stellar Native-American cast; Chaske Spencer, Gil Birmingham, Q’orianka Kilcher, Tyler Christopher, Tantoo Cardinal and Rodney A. Grant. DC Premiere
THE FIRST WINTER
Canada / 2012 / 72mins / directed by Ryan Mc Kenna
Offbeat and deadpan, this is a bitter-sweet tale about a young man in Portugal who, having impregnated a vacationing Canadian, must face the inhospitable Canadian landscape and its hopeless denizens when he emigrates to join her. East Coast Premiere
DOCUMENTARIES
A Man Since Long Time
Egypt / 2013 / directed by Mahmod Yossry
An unflinching look at sexual repression and its consequences among young Egyptian men.
Between Two Rivers
UK/2012/ 98mins / directed by Jacob Cartwright and Nick Jordan
An aesthetically powerful film about Cairo, Illinois, isolated at the confluence of the Ohio & Mississippi rivers, where the North meets the South. Original cinematography and candid interviews with archive footage, unseen for over 40 years, capturing the town at the height of explosive racial tensions in 1969.
Corporate FM
USA/ 2012/ 74mins/ directed by Kevin McKinney and Jill McKeever
The internet didn’t kill radio, commercial radio is killing itself. Corporate FM reveals how buyout firms have changed radio and made handsome profits along the way.
Directing Dissent
Germany/ 2013/ 65mins/ directed by Sophie Hamacher
John Roemer, high school teacher and social activist, takes us through heated battles of the Civil Rights Movement. Set in Baltimore, a city with a turbulent history of charged race relations, the film shows Roemer’s distinctive style of teaching and his ardent call for activism.
Eviction Defenders
USA / 2012 / 9:12mins / directed by Paul Abowd
Washington DC and activists are trying to prevent the authorities from evicting someone from her home.
Let there Be Light
USA / 2012 / 97 mins / Peter Swanson
The film follows Rowan LeCompte and Dieter Goldkuhle as they make their last great window for Washington National Cathedral. These two grand masters of stained glass labor to create a masterpiece in a race against time. Told with stunningly beautiful images, this is a story about the struggle to create great art using glass and light.
LOS GINGER NINJAS
Mexico / 2012 / 76mins / directed by Sergio Morkin
In 2007, an unknown Northern California rock band called the Ginger Ninjas set out to tour Mexico. With no van and no gigs, they hauled their instruments, camping gear and human-powered sound system on special bicycles: An exploration of youthful freedom, transformation and relationships among these eco-travelers.
Mr. Stokes Mission
USA / 2013 / 30mins / directed by Sam Hampton
In 1951 John Stokes helped organize a walkout by over 400 fellow African American high school students in Farmville, Virginia to protest segregated school conditions.
Passion and Acceptance: a short film about National Geographic Photographer William Albert Allard
USA / 2013 / 15mins / directed by Wayne Thomas
William Albert Allard, a photojournalist for National Geographic, has defined a style of photography through his use of color and composition and a humanistic approach. World Premiere
Skunked
USA / 2012 / 14:16mins / directed by Chris Portal, Merri Lisa Trigilio and Laura Wagner.
Can Jacob Guevara, the reigning champion, defend his title in the fiercest shuffleboard competition west of Austin?
The New Woman: Annie “Londonderry” Kopchovsky
USA /2013 / 27mins / directed by Gillian Willman
Annie “Londonderry” Kopchovsky believed she could do anything any man could do–and set out on her bicycle to prove it.
We Women Warriors
USA / 2012 / 83mins / directed by Nicole Karsin
In Colombia’s indigenous villages, three brave women from distinct tribes guide us through their worlds. Trapped in a protracted predicament that is fueled by the drug war, indigenous women use their resources and tradition to lead in a transforming way imbued with hope.
NARRATIVE SHORTS
A Cure
USA / 2012 / 11:30mins / directed by Matthew Herbertz
Pulled out of school when her mother finds out her sexual interest in other girls, Sarah is forced by her mother to undergo reparative therapy.
A Short Film About Safekeeping
USA /2012 / 17mins / directed by Mark Hitz
A young girl protects herself from the rush of time using an empty film camera.
A Bird In The Hand
UK & Ireland / 2012 / 8mins / directed by David Brown
Alan, blessed with an unusual appearance and walk, and bullied by everyone he meets, find his true self and along the way finds true love.
Blackout
USA / 2012 / 24mins / directed by Francisco Lupini
Pepa, a Spanish spitfire hairdresser and aspiring mystery writer, must put her amateur detective skills to work in order to discover the true father of her unborn baby.
Cabbagemincer
Russian Federation / 2012 / 9mins / directed by Vadim Viner
Cabbagemincer knows a lot about how to shred the cabbage and is a great admirer of women’s feet.
Chance Encounter
USA /2013 / 5mins / Eric Richardson-Hagans
A cop comes across a dangerous criminal during what he thinks will be a routine stop.
Echoes
Italy / 2012 / 16mins / directed by Andrea La Mendola
A personal view of narcissism and madness inspired by the ancient greek myth, Narcissus and Echo: a man’s girlfriend is brutally murdered under mysterious circumstances.
Granny Baby
Canada / 2012 / 9mins / directed by Eva Colmers
Jack is excited to pick up his new baby sister and mother from the hospital where he bumps into an old, confused Granny. Jack wants to help the elderly lady, but how?
Heads Up
USA / 2012 /13mins / directed by Alex Merlin
An edgy, comedic story of two long time friends, partners in crime, and the extreme situation that arises at the weekly poker game.
Hiob
Germany / 2012 /19:30mins / directed by Marco Gadge
Shadows are all Commissioner Stern sees: the darkness he comes from is too powerful to escape.
LIFELESS #BeingKindaDeadSortaSucks
USA / 2012 / 28:46mins / directed by VP Boyle
A musical about eight high school grads who accidentally spill Extra-Strength-Blue-Plummer-Gel into their party punch and wake up undead.
Papa
USA / 2012 / 23mins /directed by Bambadjan Bamba
A young immigrant assimilating to life in America in a home dominated by a stoic and unwavering African father.
Shower
USA / 2012 / 11:08mins / directed by Joe Cecchini
A chance encounter between old friends and an extraordinary story.
Synchrony
UK and Japan / 2012 / 4mins / directed by Kacey Morrow
Two tourists traveling alone and worlds apart, unknowingly hold an inescapable connection.
The Curse of Eleanor Crabtree
Australia /2012 / directed by James Cowen
The twisted tale of a curious, compassionate woman who longs for true love and to escape the oppressive clutches of her bewitching twin sister.
The Gift
UK / 2012 / 15mins / directed by Andrew Griffin
A troubled couple live an isolated life. Childless, the wife appears neurotically consumed with IVF treatment. A stork brings both hope and tragedy.
The Wound
USA / 2012 / 18mins / David Garrett
A woman tries to recuperate from abdominal surgery at an idyllic coastal home when one morning her surgical wound comes to life…
This is Caroline
USA / 2012 / 16mins / directed by Danny Abel
The story of how an accident, misinterpreted as a suicide attempt, forces a girl to acknowledge real feelings of loneliness.
Titans of Newark
USA / 2012 / 24mins / directed by Mike Marino
Bored with their retirement, the Greek gods of ancient lore decide to toy with the destiny of an out of work accountant in New Jersey.
Towing
USA / 2012 / 14mins / directed by Wenhwa Ts’ao
As a veteran struggles to adjust to civilian life, her experiences in the war come back to challenge her on one fateful night.
Trained
Switzerland / 2012 / 14:38mins / directed by Anthony Jerjen
To avoid bankruptcy, a magician named Leonard decides to perform the biggest and most dangerous trick of his career, despite the advice of his manager.
Volti
Italy / 2012 / 30mins / directed by Antonio De Palo
A child with Down Syndrome sneaks into the small-town theater to witness rehearsals for a show inspired by Marcel Marceau.
What’s Eating Pee Wee Wong?
USA / 2012 / 27mins / directed by Phree Swearingen
A trip to the wild west where Pee Pee Wong (Andreas Beckett), the world’s ex-top gunslinger abruptly meets his past.
ANIMATION (+)/EXPERIMENTAL
Arcane
France/ 2012 / 5:24mins / directed by Bastien Belvaux
Constantly running away in a world that doesn’t accept him, a man looks for a way to turn his difference into a strength. Then he can stop hiding.
Beatrice Coron’s Daily Battles
Canada / 2012 / 6:30mins / directed by James Stewart
An art film about a work of art: the papercut masterwork by New York Artist Beatrice Coron.
Beyond Reach
USA / 2012 / 2mins / directed by Ilana Morgan Schwartz
An old man must overcome his lazy habits in order to obtain the breakfast of his dreams.
Catch and Release
USA / 2012 / 6:27mins / directed by Barbara Mones
When a recently hired fish thrower meets the girl of his dreams, circumstances force him to make a very difficult choice.
Ceux D’en Haut (The Inn)
Belgium, France, Switzerland / 2012 / 25mins / directed by Izu Troin
It is 1862 and snow isolates an inn at the foot of a glacier in the Swiss Alps rendering it totally inaccessible and impossible to leave (based on the story L’auberge” by Guy de Maupassant).
Crow Feathers
UK / 2012 / 8mins / directed by Peter Bunzl
A boy and his mother live on an isolated farm, but one day a Crow man crashes into their world (Mask characters with animation).
Doktor Fang
Canada / 17:45 mins / directed by Owen Coughlan
Brilliant Scientist Fang overhears Freud and Jung arguing about the nature of dreams: When Fang suggests a third possibility they beat him up and steal his wallet. And then… (Mask characters with animation).
FATAL VITTLES
USA / 2012 / 3:45mins / directed by Devin Bell
An alphabetical musical piece about 26 things you should absolutely never eat.
L’ESPRIT DE L’ESCALIER
USA / 2012 / 8mins / directed by Ivan Orkeny
The second animation in a trilogy about a miniature 18th century spiral staircase wandering and evolving through an ever-growing landscape.
MIND THE CAT
Switzerland / 2013 / 5mins / directed by Elena Schoenfeld and Martine Ulmer
Divided and falling, entwined with tongues, a cat runs from noses to ears. Here’s a mouse, there’s a djembé. To the elephant’s leg and back: Mind the Cat!!
MAKE A WISH
USA / 2012 / 3:26mins / directed by Hee Jin Kim
What should she chose? Voluptuous breasts or her pet hamster?
Return to the World of Dance
USA / 2012 / 7mins / directed by Dan Boord, Marilyn Marloff and Luis Valdovino
An instructional guide for those perplexed by the post modern condition.
THE COLD HEART
Germany / 2012 / 29mins / directed by Hannes Rall
An adaptation of the German tale ‘The Cold Heart’ by Wilhelm Hauff, the story of a young man who trades his warm heart for a cold stone in order to become rich (with color design by renowned animation-designer Hans Bacher).
TRID AN STOIRM (THROUGH THE STORM)
Ireland / 2012 / 7:35mins / directed by Fred Burdy
A woman forces a banshee to guide her to the Celtic realm of Death in order to bring back her husband.
LUMINARIS
2011 /Argentina / 6mins / directed by Juan Pablo Zaramello.
In a world controlled and timed by the light, a common man has a plan that could change the destiny. Oscar-nominated stop motion animation (not in competition).
