Archie Banks

directed by Max Swanson
( United States / 2025 / 16 mins )

A delusional real estate agent reinvents himself in order to boost his sales.

Program: Is it Love? Comedy Shorts Program
Saturday, February 14 · 4:30 pm – 6:30 pm, Regal Gallery Place (TICKETS)
Sunday, February 15 · 6:00 pm – 8:00 pm, Regal Gallery Place (TICKETS)

About the Director

Born and raised in Los Angeles, Max is a self-taught writer, director and editor. His films have screened at festivals nationwide, several of which have premiered online on NoBudge. A classically trained actor who lost out on parts in “Spider-Man,” “A Nightmare on Elm Street,” “Jennifer’s Body” and several unaired pilots, Max was most recently seen in an NFL commercial with Deion Sanders and Jake from State Farm that helped pay for a short vacation. He is currently developing his first feature film, “Auxiliary Man” starring Lewis Pullman, Gideon Adlon and Ron Perlman. In his free time, he can be found frantically rearranging his DVD collection and waiting tables to maintain his health insurance.

Back Then

directed by Junhyeok Kim
( United States / 2025 / 13 mins )

Haneul greets his parents and heads to college. While in a taxi to New York, a diminishing past memory is brought up — through one old, crumbled Leche Frita wrapper.

Program: Personal Stories. Intimate Dramas. A Shorts Showcase
Saturday, February 14 · 2:15 pm – 4:30 pm, Regal Gallery Place (TICKETS)

About the Director

Junhyeok [Eric] Kim is a 19-year old Korean filmmaker at New York University Tisch School of the Arts majoring in Film & TV. His first short film “Well-dying,” has won over 20 awards and nominations including Audience Award at the Oscar®-qualifying Indy Shorts Film Festival, Special Presentation at the Oscar®-qualifying 32nd Heartland International Film Festival, Oscar®-qualifying deadCenter Festival, Remi Winner at the 56th WorldFest-Houston International Film Festival, and many more.

Bollard City

directed by Jeffrey N. Johnson
( United States / 2026 / 12 mins )

When our nation’s capital has a problem, we have the solution (whether you like it or not). And we might just rename the city in the process. Welcome to Bollard City!

Program: Is it Love? Comedy Shorts Program
Saturday, February 14 · 4:30 pm – 6:30 pm, Regal Gallery Place (TICKETS)
Sunday, February 15 · 6:00 pm – 8:00 pm, Regal Gallery Place (TICKETS)

About the Director

Jeffrey N. Johnson is a writer, poet, playwright, background actor and film maker. His novel, THE HUNGER ARTIST, was a finalist for the Library of Virginia’s People’s Choice Award for fiction. His short story collection, OTHER FINE GIFTS, won the Ippy Award Silver Medal for Best Regional Fiction: Mid-Atlantic, which included the Andrew Lytle Fiction Prize winning story first published in The Sewanee Review. His fiction and poetry have appeared in over thirty-five literary journals. His play, AFFAIR AT THE HOTEL OPAL, had a full production at the Potomac Players 4th Annual One-Act Festival in Hagerstown, Maryland. He’s acted in three short films in the DC area, and his background acting work includes Silo, Special Ops: Lioness, Messiah, Harriet, and We Own This City. His first two films were accepted to a dozen film festivals. He is a fellow of the Virginia Center for the Creative Arts (VCCA) and a recipient of a Creative Fellow grant from the Mid-Atlantic Arts Foundation.

Domestic Animals

directed by Sandy Siquier, Alex Mendez Giner
( United States / 2025 / 19 mins )

Domestic Animals is a haunting drama that peels back the silence surrounding domestic violence. Through the intimate story of a couple trapped in a cycle of pain, the film explores the emotional complexity and nuances of domestic partner abuse. A silent cat watches from the sidelines—an unsettling metaphor for our collective inaction. Inspired by real survivor testimonies, Domestic Animals is a bold, unflinching call to awareness and empathy.

Program: Personal Stories. Intimate Dramas. A Shorts Showcase
Saturday, February 14 · 2:15 pm – 4:30 pm, Regal Gallery Place (TICKETS)

About the Director

Sandy Siquier is an actor, screenwriter, director, and mother with over 20 years of experience. Her work has been showcased in various countries in galleries, museums, and international film festivals of the caliber of Berlin, Clermont-Ferrand, Milan, Durban, Shanghai, Vancouver, Sapporo, Guadalajara, Viña del Mar, Miami, among others. As an artist, she is driven by the exploration of the everyday, delving into characters in their daily lives, in the decadence of intimacy when observed by another. Alex Mendez Giner is a filmmaker who pushes the boundaries of storytelling, exploring complex narratives that blend subjective experience, reality, and the marvelous real. His carefully crafted images present a fragmented world, challenging our perception of reality.

Goin’ The Distance

directed by Bailey Oliver, Nathan Henry
( United States / 2025 / 7 mins )

A disgruntled office worker struggles to avoid the nightmarish hellscape of social interaction on his quest for serenity and solitude while vacationing in the great outdoors.

Program: Friday the 13th: Unlucky for Some Shorts Program
Friday, February 13 · 8:30 pm – 11:00 pm, Regal Gallery Place (TICKETS)

About the Director

Bailey is an award-winning independent filmmaker, striving to entertain by making films that tell authentic stories, whether it be about giant monsters in the suburbs or demonic whiteboards. Bailey prides himself on connecting with talented creatives to work with and encouraging a collaborative process that brings out the best work in everyone, as well as stroking his ego by devising unique ideas for films. Nate Henry is a cinematographer and director based in Jersey City after moving from the DMV. He received his Bachelor of Arts from George Mason University in Film and Visual Studies. Nate is a full time freelancer filmmaker and has worked professionally as a cinematographer, camera operator, 1st and 2nd assistant camera, gaffer, grip, and videographer. Nate is also an award winning director and has had several short films go on to have success in their respective festival circuits. He loves directing action/comedy films and his most recent film, “In Your Dreams” is currently screening in festivals across the globe.

MAGAS (Fly)

directed by Ashkan Nasseri
( United States / 2025 / 12 37 mins )

In a surreal and satirical world, a refugee family from Absurdistan accidentally sets their new home in the United States of Fabrica on fire, only to discover that Fabrica’s firefighters are utterly useless and don’t know how to turn off fire caused by a spice from Absurdistan. As chaos unfolds, three bumbling firefighters from Absurdistan embark on a bureaucratic and comically impossible journey to reach Fabrica and put out the flames—if they can ever get past the red tape.

Program: Is it Love? Comedy Shorts Program
Saturday, February 14 · 4:30 pm – 6:30 pm, Regal Gallery Place (TICKETS)
Sunday, February 15 · 6:00 pm – 8:00 pm, Regal Gallery Place (TICKETS)

About the Director

Born in Tehran, Iran, and now based in New York, Ashkan is an emerging director and writer who came to filmmaking through a nontraditional path. Influenced by Elia Suleiman, MAGAS explores immigration, distance, and the quiet tensions of modern life. It is Ashkan’s first professionally produced short film.

Opting In

directed by Susan Dynner
( United States / 2026 / 13 mins )

Burned out on dating apps, a hopeful romantic woman gives love one last shot—only to find her latest match might be perfect in all the wrong ways. A darkly comedic tale of modern love and digital obsession

Program: Is it Love? Comedy Shorts Program
Saturday, February 14 · 4:30 pm – 6:30 pm, Regal Gallery Place (TICKETS)
Sunday, February 15 · 6:00 pm – 8:00 pm, Regal Gallery Place (TICKETS)

About the Director

Susan Dynner is an award-winning Director, Producer, and Writer whose storytelling ignites where grit and beauty collide. A Sundance Stories of Change Directing Fellow, Blackmagic Studio Feature Directing Fellow, Sony TV Directing Fellow, Film Independent Producing Fellow, Trans-Atlantic Producing Fellow, Stowe Story Labs Fellow, and Producers Guild Power of Diversity Mentor, Dynner’s films have premiered at Cannes, Sundance, AFI, and beyond.

Shedding

directed by Ethan Chu
( United States / 2025 / 10 mins )

Over a long winter stay at his reclusive uncle’s remote home, a 17-year-old boy begins to uncover chilling secrets about the man and his intentions.

Program: Friday the 13th: Unlucky for Some Shorts Program
Friday, February 13 · 8:30 pm – 11:00 pm, Regal Gallery Place (TICKETS)

About the Director

Ethan Chu is a Chinese-Vietnamese-American film director and cinematographer from Orange County, California. With a deep passion for exploring new places, he dreams of traveling around the world to create films that inspire and connect people. His narrative short film, “Pho”, was a YoungArts finalist, won nine awards, and was an official selection at over twenty film festivals around the world including Indy Shorts and the American Pavilion Emerging Filmmakers Showcase at the Cannes Film Festival. Ethan strives to expand his understanding of the world to create meaningful work that positively impacts his community.

Something Else Tonight

directed by Tyler Brooks
( United States / 2025 / 14 mins )

It’s a typical night of work for lonesome, by-the-book triggerman, Cade. Until he meets the lovely Billie. Then it’s not.

Program: Friday the 13th: Unlucky for Some Shorts Program
Friday, February 13 · 8:30 pm – 11:00 pm, Regal Gallery Place (TICKETS)

About the Director

Tyler Brooks is an actor, writer, and director from Paterson, New Jersey. Since graduating with a degree in Creative Writing from American University, he has acted in numerous films and television shows, including CBS’s Blue Bloods, the STARZ crime drama Power Book II: Ghost, Peacock’s Poker Face, and the new FOX medical drama Best Medicine. He recently completed his debut narrative directorial project, Something Else Tonight. Tyler is represented by KEY Talent Management; Amsel, Eisenstadt, Frazier & Hinojosa Talent Agency; and BookEnds Literary Agency.

STAY IN

directed by Michael Buran
( United States / 2025 / 11 mins )

A recluse is forced to confront a dark secret from years past that has kept him from going outside after midnight.

Program: Friday the 13th: Unlucky for Some Shorts Program
Friday, February 13 · 8:30 pm – 11:00 pm, Regal Gallery Place (TICKETS)

About the Director

Michael Buran is a writer and director based in NYC. A film school graduate, Michael got his start editing commercials and independent films. After two decades of working with some of the top creative agencies in the world, Michael was inspired to make his first short film in years after becoming a father during the COVID-19 lockdown.

Stop Taking Pictures

directed by Arlin Godwin
( United States / 2025 / 14 mins )

Inspired by the surreal works of Lynch, Cronenberg, Lanthimos, and others, Arlin Godwin’s 5th short film, STOP TAKING PICTURES, follows a photographer who becomes increasingly alarmed when his dead wife begins showing up in photos shot at the subway station where she died.

Program: Friday the 13th: Unlucky for Some Shorts Program
Friday, February 13 · 8:30 pm – 11:00 pm, Regal Gallery Place (TICKETS)

About the Director

Arlin Godwin works as a designer for the ABC TV affiliate in Washington, DC. He lives about 5 blocks from the big white mansion but does not attempt to borrow sugar. In his spare time, he composes a great deal of music and makes movies and television shows.

The Celebration

directed by Jacek Wladyslaw Kudas
( United States / 2025 / 20 mins )

When a college babysitter takes a last-minute job in a quiet Maine town, she discovers the house is haunted not by dolls but by two masked killers an unholy pair bound by blood, ritualistic games, and relentless pursuit. Maya must fight for her life and the baby’s survival as innocence collides with cruelty, while the masked killers never intend to harm the child, they use him as leverage to force Maya the babysitter into their sick ritualistic game.

Program: Friday the 13th: Unlucky for Some Shorts Program
Friday, February 13 · 8:30 pm – 11:00 pm, Regal Gallery Place (TICKETS)

About the Director

Jack Kudas is an award-winning filmmaker and author from Kennebunkport, Maine. Trained at Maine Media Workshops + College and mentored by industry giants including Steven Spielberg’s lighting designer and a director from Game of Thrones, Jack has quickly emerged as a bold new creative voice.

The Companions

directed by José María Flores
( Spain / 2024 / 12 mins )

A young couple walks down the street, they have left the children at home and are going out to dinner. A crowd gathers around something.

Program: Personal Stories. Intimate Dramas. A Shorts Showcase
Saturday, February 14 · 2:15 pm – 4:30 pm, Regal Gallery Place (TICKETS)

About the Director

José María thrives alongside renowned figures in the film and creative industry. His work, “La Fièvre,” gathers numerous national and international accolades, earning him a spot among Forbes’ 2022 list of the 50 most talented Spaniards globally, alongside luminaries like Almodóvar and Trueba. His direction captivates not just for the narrative but for its ability to touch the subconscious. Flores has proven to be part of the new generation of creators making Spanish cinema more visible internationally.

The Gun Machine

directed by Ryan McDowell
( United States / 2025 / 6 mins )

A young man cruises the desert in search of a place to purchase a gun. When he comes across an odd gas station he encounters a vending machine full of guns but in order to purchase one he has to wait his turn in a line full of children.

Program: Is it Love? Comedy Shorts Program
Saturday, February 14 · 4:30 pm – 6:30 pm, Regal Gallery Place (TICKETS)
Sunday, February 15 · 6:00 pm – 8:00 pm, Regal Gallery Place (TICKETS)

About the Director

Ryan is a Writer/Director from Northern California. His work can be found via movies on the big screen, commercials on the small screen and viral videos on the screen in your pocket. He draws inspiration from seemingly insignificant personal experiences and conversations that stick in his conscience longer than they should. He loves to combining elements that don’t go together, e.g. a vending machine that sells guns. Ryan currently resides in San Francisco California where he runs a commercial production company while working on his next film.

Way Back Home

directed by Chad Hamilton
( United States / 2024 / 20 mins )

Jared and Van inherit their grandmother’s dilapidated brownstone. The siblings have opposing views on what to do with the house until a surprise offer forces one to make arrangements behind the other’s back.

Program: Personal Stories. Intimate Dramas. A Shorts Showcase
Saturday, February 14 · 2:15 pm – 4:30 pm, Regal Gallery Place (TICKETS)

About the Director

Chad B. Hamilton is a filmmaker based in Philadelphia, PA. His films Not Yet (2016) and On Our Own (2018), have screened at festivals all over the world and have earned him Best Director honors at the Freedom Shorts Film Festival and Rough Cut Film Festival respectively. In 2019, Chad was selected to participate in the Philadelphia Film Society Filmmaker Spotlight series. In 2024 he graduated with honors from Columbia University’s Film MFA program.

Yummy Cuisine

directed by Wenhwa Tsao
( United States / 2025 / 15 mins )

As an undocumented immigrant, Wei’s livelihood depends on delivering food, his car being his most crucial possession. When carjacked, he fights to retain his job, driven by the urgent need to fund his toddler son’s heart surgery.

Program: Personal Stories. Intimate Dramas. A Shorts Showcase
Saturday, February 14 · 2:15 pm – 4:30 pm, Regal Gallery Place (TICKETS)

About the Director

Born and raised in Taiwan, Wenhwa Tsao is an award-winning filmmaker, educator, and industry leader whose work delves into immigration, identity, and social justice. Her films have screened at over 100 international festivals across six continents, reaching audiences in North America (Canada, Mexico), Asia (China, Taiwan, South Korea, India, Iran, Turkey, Japan), Europe (France, Germany, Italy, Spain, the Netherlands, Romania, Sweden, Ireland, the UK), South America (Argentina, Ecuador, Venezuela), Africa (Nigeria, South Africa), and Oceania (Australia, New Zealand), as well as the Caribbean (Bermuda). With a global presence, her storytelling continues to engage and inspire diverse audiences.

Seeing Each Other, Seeing Things

directed by Ben Taman
( United States / 2025 / 11 mins )

BILLY, an anxious and dedicated late twenty-something, awakens to just another day with his not-so-trusty companion–a bird chained to his shoulder. Thrown for a loop by a diner server, he begins to wonder what’s real and what’s not. What does it even mean to have a crush? Using his own strange methods, he tries to see what’s really there. Maybe it’s love, maybe it’s nothing.

Program: Personal Stories. Intimate Dramas. A Shorts Showcase
Saturday, February 14 · 2:15 pm – 4:30 pm, Regal Gallery Place (TICKETS)

About the Director

BEN TAMAN (He/Him) is a trans film director originally from Eau Claire, WI. At present he lives and works in Los Angeles. As a trans man with schizophrenia, it’s easier for him to embrace the weirdness in life rather than fight against it. With a keen eye for the beauty in the unconventional and a heart firmly rooted in authenticity, Ben’s work challenges audiences to reconsider their perceptions of normalcy and weirdness. His approach to filmmaking is a testament to the power of cinema as a medium for empathy, understanding, and change.