OFFICIAL SELECTION
2025
IN PROGRESS AND DEVELOPING!
YUCK!
France / Animation / 13 min.
For young Léo and his fellow summer campers, the sight of couples kissing is met with universal disgust. The telltale sign – lips suddenly pink and glistening – is an unavoidable source of childish mockery. Beneath his outward disgust, a secret desire to explore the very act he mocks is beginning to surface.
A CALIFORNIA ORIGINAL
USA / Documentary / 3 min.
There are controversial people and there are controversial trees. The gray pine has often been insulted and persecuted, yet it gives an incredible fruit to its homeland of California. When this tree succeeds through the rough terrain and lack of ideal conditions, it reminds us of what is possible in ourselves. As the Lakota people say Mitakuye Oyasin We are all related.
A GOOD BOY
France / Drama / 19 min.
Maxime, A promising swimmer, is shaken when his team’s coach is accused of sexual abuse by his fellow swimmer. These accusations will shatter the silence Maxime has carefully maintained, exposing the scars of the abuse he endured himself.
SECOND CHANCE
Petaluma, California / Student / 9 min.
14-year-old filmmaker joins the official 2025 selection with her film “Second Chance.” The filmmaker takes us inside juvenile hall and court, offering a better understanding, compassion, and ultimately, hope for juveniles who are some of the most vulnerable in our society, and who are also part of the future.
THE 10 DRAFTS OF THE PLAY
Santa Rosa, California / Student / 10 min.
A writer struggles to write the ending to his play, each draft failing for one reason or another.
DNHMUZIC: MY MUSIC, MY JOURNEY
USA / Documentary / 10 min.
Phoenix Neo-Hop artist, DnhMuzic, shares his music and reflects on the heart spaces that history, human connection and perseverance hold for him as a Black artist.
ALDO'S BUG EXTRAVAGANZA
USA / Documentary-Family / 6 min.
Join 5-year-old Aldo and his dad on a backyard safari filled with tiny wonders and big laughs. Armed with a camera and boundless curiosity, Aldo embarks on a bug-hunting escapade, narrating his discoveries with adorable wit and charm. As the week unfolds, Aldo’s wide-eyed explorations not only capture the audience’s imagination, but also subtly echo the timeless wisdom of Aldo Leopold, making for a delightful and endearing ode to the joy of nature’s smallest marvels.
OF WIND AND WATER
Sebastopol, California / Documentary / 6 min.
Ned Kahn, renowned large form kinetic sculptural artist, tells the story of his creations.,
OASIS
Canada / Documentary / 14 min.
At the dawn of their teenage years, Raphaël and Rémi are twins who see their fusional attachment crumble while one of them, suffering from an increasingly marked disability, remains a prisoner of childhood. During one last summer surrounded by nature, time seems to want to stand still.
MIMINE
Canada / Drama / 13 min.
A disheartened father watches his son bond with his ex-girlfriend’s new boyfriend. Desperate to preserve his special place in his child’s life, he orchestrates a magical moment between them
CALLIE AND BEE : HOOP DREAMS
USA / Animation / 1 min.
A short exploration of 1930’s rubber hose animation in 3D. Callie gets her dog Bee to jump through a hoop with surprising results.
A NEWLYWED STORY
USA / Drama / 14 mins.
Naina celebrates her #quarterversary attempting to restore a wedding-night-gone-wrong… chasing the “happily ever after” she was promised. Will Monty accept her need for social validation? Can they embrace a path forward, or will it be over…forever?
CALF
Ireland / Drama / 14 mins.
In this shocking and stylistically assured drama, a calf is about to be born, when a sinister farm accident leaves Cáit with a terrible decision to make. A gut-wrenching film from way out in the countryside, a place where the worst things are silenced.
THE ADVANCE
France / Drama / 18 mins.
A rising student at the Beaux-Arts in Paris, sells a painting of his deceased mother for 3,000 euros to a renowned collector. The delivery of the painting then becomes a long journey during which he will realize the weight of the money he earned
MEARCSTAPA
UK / Student / 15 mins.
Moving back home with his parents after a major upset in his life, trapped within the contentedness of suburbia, Sean is haunted by visions from his past and finds himself slowly becoming ‘Mearcstapa’.
HOPE IS ON THE WAY
USA/ Documentary / 11 mins.
A documentary that explores the power of hope through the voices of everyday people. As an Uber driver named Hope (a translation of the filmmaker’s Russian name), she asks her passengers one simple question: “What is your hope?” Through candid conversations, the film captures a wide range of responses, from personal dreams to hopes for the world.
FIEGO AND THE MAGICAL FISH
Belgium / Animation / 11 mins.
A happily married Italian fisherman named Fiego catches a magic fish and makes wishes to give his wife the good life. A reimagining of the German fairytale “The Fisherman and his Wife”
MONOCHROME
FRANCE / DRAMA / 14 mins.
After months of a long-distance relationship via a dating site, Thomas asks Marie, who lives on the other side of the country, to finally meet in person. But before that, she will make a shocking revelation for the young man.
EAT SURF LOVE
USA / Romance / 9 mins.
A jaded New York writer and a laid-back California surfer navigate the murky and occasionally painful waters of a first date. Set in San Francisco, it’s also a love-hate letter to that paradoxical place where hearts have been left, lost, and also found. By returning filmmaker, Nada Djordjevich, who delighted the audience with a heartwarming animated film in the 2024 festival!
SHAKESPEARE FOR ALL AGES
Germany / Animation / 3 mins.
Iconic moments from Shakespeare’s greatest plays flow seamlessly into one another, creating a dynamic visual journey through the Bard’s theatrical legacy.
SWEET BOYS
USA / Drama / 15 mins.
A love letter to youth of East Harlem, inspired by a poem and the spirit of the early 2000s, we follow two friends who go down different life paths.