FEATURE FILM
BACK TO BRIDGEWOOD (1hr 25min) Nashville, TN (USA) (World Premiere)
Screens: Fri, Blk 3, 2pm
Director: Kelsey Cooke
Synopsis: Back to Bridgewood, is an inspirational comedy centered around entitled television star Liz Johnson, whose life takes a tail spin when an accident leaves her in the hospital unconscious for days. When she wakes, she discovers she has lost everything, and now has to take refuge on (her childhood friend) Anne's coach in the small town of Bridgewood.
LONG DECEMBER (1hr 18min) Rock Hill, SC (USA)
(East Coast Premiere)
Screens: Wed, Blk 5, 7pm
Director: Thomas Torrey
Synopsis: Long December is a character-driven drama that follows a struggling artist pursuing his dream of music during one December month. Channeling the spirit of singer/songwriter musicals like Once and A Star is Born — and embracing the melancholy hue of the holidays in America — Long December is a story about music, dreams and the heavy hopes we carry.
SCRAP (1hr 45min) Los Angeles, CA (USA) (South Carolina Premiere)
Screens: Thu, Blk 5, 7:30pm
Director: Vivian Kerr
Synopsis: After getting laid off, a young single-mom (Vivian Kerr) finds herself living in her car and struggles to hide her homelessness from her estranged brother Ben (Anthony Rapp) and his wife (Lana Parrilla).
THE MARTINI SHOT (1hr 40min) Edson, Alberta (CANADA)
(South Carolina Premiere)
Screens: Sat, Blk 4, 1:45pm
Director: Stephen Wallis
Synopsis: This existential drama follows an ailing movie director as he begins to shoot what he believes to be his final work of art. What starts out as a normal movie, ends up being an exploration of mortality and one's profound effect on the world.
THE FINAL RUN (1hr 30min) Hilton Head Island, SC (USA)
(World Premiere)
Screens: Fri, Blk 5, 7:30pm
Director: Chris Helton
Synopsis: Pierce Butler, a former Marine and long-retired marijuana smuggler, whose wife is suffering from a rare type of cancer, must return to his drug-running ways and make one Final Load in order to save his house, his company, and his wife.
DOCUMENTARY FEATURE
AN OPEN DOOR: TEMPLE GRANDIN (1hr) Fort Collins, CO (USA) (South Carolina Premiere)
Screens: Thu, Blk 3, 1pm
Director: John Alexander Barnhardt
Synopsis: An Open Door reflects on the influential life and work of Dr. Temple Grandin as a champion of the humane treatment of livestock, autism rights, and inclusive neurodiversity by employing her gifted insights from her personal experience with autism and visual thinking.
FILLING IN THE BLANKS (1hr 34min) Decatur, GA (USA)
(South Carolina Premiere)
Screens: Wed, Blk 3, 1:20pm
Director: Jon Baime
Synopsis: Where do I come from? For some, the question has a simple answer - for others, the truth can be much more complicated. With the rise in popularity of at-home DNA tests, it’s now easier than ever for people to uncover their family history and, sometimes, things their parents wish would stay buried.
PRISONER BY CHOICE: THE FRANKIE SAN STORY (1hr 6min) Lexington, SC (USA)
Screens: Fri, Blk 1, 9am
Director: Daniel Fisher
Synopsis: This film tells the story of Frankie San who came to the United States after being saved from the depths of suicidal disillusionment in post WWII Japan by a missionary. He was driven by love to do whatever he could for his fellow man, which meant taking that love to the “least of these,” some of the worst men in prison...men hated and forgotten by the rest of society.
THE SPIRIT OF BEAUFORT: REMEMBERING FORREST GUMP (1hr 30min) Wroclaw (POLAND) (World Premiere) NOT-IN-COMPETITION
Screens: Sat, Blk 5, 4pm
Director: Daniel Stanislawski
Synopsis: This film is a form of observation of the inhabitants of the city of Beaufort in South Carolina who participated in the production of the film "Forrest Gump" in the 90s. In a direct or indirect way this film has influenced, in a positive way, the lives of many in this small seaside town and it has greatly contributed to the filmmaking legacy of the state of South Carolina. Its shows the amazing phenomenon of cultivating a film over the years and what values and message it brings.
DOCUMENTARY SHORTS
DAVID AGAIN (18min) New York, NY (USA) (South Carolina Premiere)
Screens: Wed, Blk 1, 9am
Director: Adam Elliott
Synopsis: David Again' tells the story of David Dennis, his road to recovery from drug and alcohol addiction, and his lifelong friendship with actor Jon Cryer. It is a story about redemption, the power of friendship, and the promise that it is never too late to ask for help.
EMERALD SANCTUARY (13min) Palm Beach, FL (USA)
(South Carolina Premiere)
Screens: Sat, Blk 2, 11am
Director: Conor MacDonnell
Synopsis: Emerald Sanctuary is a documentary investigating the impacts of seagrasses on the environment and culture of Florida as well as the their necessity to maintaining a healthy biodiversity.
I CAN’T KEEP QUIET (27min) Honolulu, HI (USA)
(South Carolina Premiere)
Screens: Thu, Blk 4, 3pm
Director: Eurie Chung
Synopsis: An intimate portrait of one woman’s quest for healing that reverberated around the globe through her song “Quiet,” an anthem for the women’s movement.
ROSENWALD: TOWARD A MORE PERFECT UNION (10min) Bethesda, MD (USA) (South Carolina Premiere)
Screens: Fri, Blk 4, 4pm
Director: Charles Poe
Synopsis: The extraordinary story of a forgotten philanthropist, a Jewish son of immigrants from Chicago who became a champion for black education in the Jim Crow South.
THE COLLECTOR (14min) Seattle, WA (USA) (South Carolina Premiere)
Screens: Thu, Blk 1, 9am
Director: Carrie Wachob and Jim Picariello
Synopsis: After watching The Wizard of Oz when he was five years old, Willard Carroll started a journey down his own yellow brick road to become a pop culture fanatic and award-winning filmmaker. Owner of the world’s largest private collection of Oz memorabilia, Willard gave up the big city for Maine, and is living proof that one story can change the entire trajectory of your life.
THE VOLUNTEER (35min) Los Angeles, CA (USA)
(South Carolina Premiere)
Screens: Wed, Blk 2, 11am
Director: David Brodie
Synopsis: THE VOLUNTEER tells the story of two soldier’s fifty year search for each other, and one’s struggle to come to grips with his guilt, trauma, and anger about the past. It’s a conversation about American identity and the way the powerful exploit prejudice to gain power. But it’s also a story of an enduring friendship and what it means to belong.
SHORT FILMS
A SHATTERING (20min) New York, NY (USA) (South Carolina Premiere)
Screens: Thu, Blk 3, 1pm
Director: Jan Jalenak
Synopsis: A carefully constructed marriage implodes when an unexpected call unleashes a fragility and pain that have been simmering for years.
BECAUSE I LOVE YOU (14min) New York, NY (USA) (World Premiere)
Screens: Wed Blk 3, 1:20pm
Director: Bob Celli
Synopsis: Marco and Joanna enjoy an electric marriage, until Marco is witness to a series of events that lead him to suspect Joanna is having an affair with a co-worker.
BLOOD IS THICKER (14min) Long Island, NY (USA)
(South Carolina Premiere)
Screens: Fri, Blk 4, 4pm
Director: Melissa Skirboll
Synopsis: Two sisters living in the same city but completely different worlds reconnect over a meal. A mother suffering dementia pulls them back home but before they can return the trauma of their past must be addressed.
CHIPPER (21min) Atlanta, GA (USA) (South Carolina Premiere)
Screens: Sat, Blk 2, 11am
Director: Shaun Maclean
Synopsis: After receiving a mysterious letter, a wayward son returns to his childhood home to wrestle with a dark family secret.
COMMON AS RED HAIR (15min) Columbia, SC (USA)
Screens: Thu, Blk 2, 11am
Director: Robbie Robertson
Synopsis: The aftermath of an emotional funeral causes a grieving father and mother to reexamine their early life decision to have gender normalization surgery performed on their intersex infant.
DEAR OWNER (9min) New York, NY (USA) (South Carolina Premiere)
Screens: Wed, Blk 2, 11am
Director: Jonathan Thomas Coleman
Synopsis: When a young married couple meet the owner of the home they hope to buy, they soon learn the meaning of the phrase “Buyer Beware.”
ESTELA, IS IT YOU? (22min) Culver City, CA (USA)
(South Carolina Premiere)
Screens: Thu, Blk 1, 9am
Director: Fabian Martin and Victor Martin
Synopsis: A grieving woman communicates with her dead husband through her car radio.
FINAL SCORE (13min) Charleston, SC (USA)
Screens: Wed, Blk 4, 3:50pm
Director: Stephen Massar
Synopsis: A music producer struggles with a horror film score as the fictitious world of his art bleeds into his own reality.
FUNDAMENTAL SHAPES (15min) New York, NY (USA)
(South Carolina Premiere)
Screens: Wed, Blk 2, 11am
Director: Colin Alistair Campbell
Synopsis: Jacob, an unemployed actor, stumbles into an unusual gig: nude figure model for a fine arts class. When his next-door neighbor turns up, he must find a way to keep his identity hidden, and their budding romance intact. A gentle romantic comedy about vulnerability, surprising coincidences, and the unexpected ways we find love.
HEDGEHOG (18min) Albany, NY (USA) (South Carolina Premiere)
Screens: Thu, Blk 4, 3pm
Director: D. Mitry
Synopsis: As the war starts in Ukraine, six years old Nina is sent to her grandma’s remote village. In the shack outside, Nina discovers a badly wounded Russian soldier.
HIT MAN: SECRETS OF LIES ( 19min) New York, NY (USA)
(South Carolina Premiere)
Screens: Wed, Blk 2, 11am
Director: Elias Plagianos
Synopsis: A reflective hitman from New York City travels to a small town where he is confronted with an artifact from his past that forces him to re-examine his profession and his personal history.
IN SEARCH OF (13min) Los Angeles, CA (USA)
(South Carolina Premiere)
Screens: Wed, Blk 1, 9am
Director: Leanne Melissa Bishop, Leigh Rachel Faith
Synopsis: Detective Angelica Lang questions Tina Burnett, a suburban Mom, after her daughter goes missing only to discover she has become a victim of one of the largest child trafficking rings.
INFRACTION (22min) Philadelphia, PA (USA) (South Carolina Premiere)
Screens: Fri, Blk 2, 11:30am
Director: Timothy Blackwood
Synopsis: When a prison guard is murdered on the job, his replacement and an inmate form an unlikely relationship with life-altering ramifications. This film is based on the real life story of Philadelphia native Terrance Lewis who served 21 years in prison for a murder he did not commit.
IVY’S DREAM ( 18min) Brooklyn, NY (USA) (South Carolina Premiere)
Screens: Fri, Blk 5, 7:30pm
Director: Louis Leuci
Synopsis: After a tragedy that she struggles to understand, a wife and mother falls into alcoholism, unable to cope. Her confused husband, fed up with her dangerous behavior in front of their children, is torn between hopefully waiting for her to recover, or breaking up their family. Their home becomes the scene for a confrontation long overdue.
NISEI (22min) Studio City, CA (USA) (South Carolina Premiere)
Screens: Thu, Blk 2, 11am
Director: Darren Haruo Rae
Synopsis: Nisei follows the journey of two Japanese-American brothers during World War II. Stripped of their citizenship and placed in internment camps, they volunteer for the 442nd Regimental Combat Team, an all Japanese-American unit that sacrificed everything, to prove their loyalty to a country that doesn’t want them.
NIGHT VOICES (24min) Landisville, PA (USA)
(South Carolina Premiere)
Screens: Thu, Blk 2, 11am
Director: Bradley Hawkins
Synopsis: A jaded talk radio host in a cycle of hopeless and demoralizing monotony makes a life-altering decision while on-air.
NOT THE SAME CLARENCE (15min) Fairfield, CT (USA)
(South Carolina Premiere)
Screens: Fri, Blk 2, 11:30am
Director: Brian Russell and Samuel B. Russell
Synopsis: A man must come to terms with his father’s Alzheimer's disease.
OUR MALES AND FEMALES (11min) (JORDAN)
(South Carolina Premiere)
Screens: Wed, Blk 4, 3:50pm
Director: Ahmad Alyaseer
Synopsis: A father and mother are faced with the painful task of washing and shrouding their deceased transgender daughter. Shrouding is an Islamic religious practice that is deemed obligatory to carry out upon death. But when no one agrees to wash her and shame falls onto the family, how far is the father willing to go to make sure his "son" is washed?
PURGY’S (17min) Tinton Falls, NJ (USA) (South Carolina Premiere)
Screens: Thu, Blk 5, 7:30pm
Director: Robbie Bryan
Synopsis: At a magical bar, spirits from the other side are able to take the form of another human and interact with those in their past who need closure and re-connection.
ROUGH DRAFT (4min) Sherman Oaks, CA (USA)
(South Carolina Premiere)
Screens: Thu, Blk 4, 3pm
Director: Kaitlin Moose
Synopsis: A writer struggles to write a scene, but some progress just can't be deleted.
SAFE (10min) Lugo (SPAIN) (South Carolina Premiere)
Screens: Thu, Blk 1, 9am
Director: Josema Roig
Synopsis: Somewhere in the US a family hears an unsettling bump in the night.
SISTER (16min) Rock Hill, SC ( USA)
Screens: Wed, Blk4, 3:50pm
Director: Shane Andries
Synopsis: On the day of her older sister's burial, a bereaved woman meets an amicable bartender who helps her find the courage to continue on. A story about sisterly love and the bonds that will always remain.
SPLIT TICKET (20min) Dover, NH (USA) (South Carolina Premiere)
Screens: Fri, Blk 2, 11:30am
Director: Alfred Thomas Catalfo
Synopsis: In 1947, newly minted congressmen/future presidents John F. Kennedy, age 29, and Richard Nixon, age 34, travel to Pennsylvania where they must make a fateful decision. A supernatural drama based on true events.
SPRAY AWAY (20min) Miami, FL (USA) (South Carolina Premiere)
Screens: Fri, Blk 2, 11:30am
Director: Pete Capo
Synopsis: An unlucky man’s problems immediately dissolve when he gets a bottle of “Spray Away” – that is, until he becomes a lead suspect in multiple disappearances.
STALKING THE BOGEYMAN (10min) New York, NY (USA)
(South Carolina Premiere)
Screens: Sat, Blk 1, 9am
Director: Markus Potter and Jack Dorfman
Synopsis: The true story of investigative journalist David Holthouse who plots to kill the man who sexually abused him when he was seven years old. A reconstruction of the intended murder and outcome, blending live-action, animation, and documentary elements.
TALIA (11min) Los Angeles, CA (USA) (South Carolina Premiere)
Screens: Sat, Blk 1, 9am
Director: Lindsay Harbert
Synopsis: Amy works through the loss of her best friend with the help of an unexpected visitor.
THAT’S NOT MY MOTHER (16min) Hawthorne, CA (USA)
(South Carolina Premiere)
Screens: Thu, Blk 4, 3pm
Director: Amanda Sweikow
Synopsis: Sarah, a precise and measured art gallery director, struggles with the duality of her emotional response over the death of her estranged mother.
THE BIRTHDAY BUTTERFLY (25min) Greenville, SC (USA)
Screens: Sat, Blk 1, 9am
Director: Collins Abbott White and Corey Maher
Synopsis: Michael’s childhood friend is the black sheep of the group with good reason. When he shows up unannounced to the birthday party of Michael’s 10 year old daughter, everything that could go wrong does go wrong in this hilarious adult comedy.
THE MAGIC TICKET (16min) Los Angeles, CA (USA)
(South Carolina Premiere)
Screens: Sat, Blk 2, 11am
Director: Yelena Krivosheyeva
Synopsis: A homeless female veteran, Penny, is camping outside of a fancy restaurant on Christmas eve when a kind stranger donates her a gift card to go inside and get a hot meal. After struggling to get a seat, she is finally able to order dinner when an angry patron calls the police.
When the cops try to escort Penny out, it triggers her trauma.
US. TOGETHER. ALONE (12min) Bayville, NY (USA)
(South Carolina Premiere)
Screens: Fri, Blk 4, 4pm
Director: Gregg Prosser
Synopsis: Milo and Ollie, half brothers, realize that loyalty and devotion can have horrendous results.
STUDENT FILMS
AUGUST (12min) Savannah, GA (USA) (South Carolina Premiere) (SCAD)
Screens: Fri, Blk 1, 9am
Director: Eli McGowan
Synopsis: Henry is shocked by the appearance of German P.O.W.s in his rural farming community, and makes a decision that will impact his family for a generation.
CASH ONLY (17min) Arcadia, CA (USA) (South Carolina Premiere) (Chapman University)
Screens: Wed, Blk 1, 9am
Director: Yuxi Xing
Synopsis: Smuggled into the United States, Jack works at a Chinese restaurant trying to pay off his debts. When he is desperate for money, the restaurant comes to closure due to the pandemic. Jack struggles between stealing money and his conscience. He eventually holds his moral principle and unexpectedly wins the appreciation of the restaurant owner.
HOG-TIED (15min) Los Angeles, CA (USA) (South Carolina Premiere) (Chapman University
Screens: Fri, Blk 1, 9am
Director: Jack Hisatomi
Synopsis: Before he can marry the love of his life, a young man searching for approval must go on a boar hunt with his soon-to-be father-in-law.
IRIS (18min) Los Angeles, CA (USA) (South Carolina Premiere)
(USC Cinematic Arts)
Screens: Thu, Blk 1, 9am
Director: Aida Gevorgyan
Synopsis: When a dancer wins an audition to an elite conservatory, she must balance
caring for her dying mother and her own growing pill addiction in order to
change her life.
REAGAN/QUIGLEY ‘85 (12min) Orange, CA (USA)
(South Carolina Premiere) (Chapman University)
Screens: Sat, Blk 1, 9am
Director: Elijah Kimmel
Synopsis: Nancy Reagan has a secret weapon to keep the President safe, an astrologer from San Francisco named Joan Quigley. The President’s every move is mapped out by her star charts, but is she actually an astrologer, or does she have ulterior motives.
SLOBOPOLY (9min) Orange, CA (USA) (South Carolina Premiere) (Chapman University)
Screens: Wed, Blk 1, 9am
Director: Yinghui Li
Synopsis: When a grumpy hermit is bribed to run for mayor of a rural town, she comes out of her shell to protect her trailer park from impending destruction.
ANIMATION
DANDELION (4min) Sarasota, FL (USA) (South Carolina Premiere)
(Ringling College of Art & Design)
Screens: Thu, Blk 1, 9am
Director: Ling Zhao and Zhengwu Gu
Synopsis: In a dystopian world, a coal-burning robot working on a mine one day finds something that he has never seen before - a dandelion.
KNIGHTTIME STORY (3min) Clemson, SC (USA)
(South Carolina Premiere) (Clemson University)
Screens: Fri, Blk 1, 9am
Director: Julie Huang, Kayla Rose, Christine Wendell
Synopsis: A tiny toy knight yearns to be like the stallion-riding hero of his favorite storybook.
THE STAR AND THE SCRIBE (5min) Los Angeles, CA (USA) (South Carolina Premiere) (Univ of Southern California)
Screens: Wed, Blk 1, 9am
Director: Mariel Jones
Synopsis: Once upon a time, there was a rabbit scribe who lived on the moon. When a falling star crashes in, he must decide whether to stay in his cave or go with his new friend.
RETURN (3min) Orange, CA (USA) (South Carolina Premiere)
(Chapman University)
Screens: Wed, Blk2, 11am
Director: Jingzhi Pan
Synopsis: A nun who got bored of chanting followed a butterfly and met a cute guy. Soon the two fell in love and they broke the vow of abstinence. As a result of being attracted by secular happiness, she decided to run away from the nunnery.
SCREENPLAYS
CONVICTION, Regina, SK (CANADA)
Writer: Lee Chambers
Synopsis: Cassie, a bored housewife gets more than she bargained for when a devious murderer she has been writing to in prison manages to make way his way to her doorstep after escaping incarceration.
JUST IN TIME, Columbia, SC, (USA)
Writer: Robbie Robertson
Synopsis: In order to save his magazine and restore his image, an egotistical journalist struggling with his age goes undercover as an elderly man at a retirement home in order to write his next story.
SUFFER THE ACT, Westchester, IL (USA)
Writer: Tony Bustamante
Synopsis: A wistful teenage performer abandons her adoptive circus family to meet her dying birth mother at the outbreak of the American Civil War.
THE PICKLEBALL KILLER, Frisco, TX (USA)
Writer: Jim Carrol
Synopsis: Brigg, an aging pickleball sensation, with supernatural speed, and dark mysterious origin, becomes the target of the Cartel after he inadvertently rescues a young trafficked girl from their clutches.
WITHOUT ROOTS, Paducah, KY (USA)
Writer: Melanie Hope Lang
Synopsis: When a dedicated teacher's traumatic past resurfaces through a reopened cold case, she must confront the demons of her abusive childhood, unravel a family's dark secrets, and find the strength to break the cycle of abuse, all while guiding a struggling student towards a brighter future. A true story of resilience, redemption, and the transformative power of compassion.
BEST COMEDY NOMINATIONS
Back to Bridgewood ( Feature)
Dear Owner (Short)
Fundamental Shapes (Short)
Hog-Tied (Student)
Rough Draft (Short)
Slobopoly (Student)
Spray Away (Short)
The Birthday Butterfly (Short)
The Martini Shot (Feature)
BEST ACTOR NOMINATIONS
Scott Cohen, A Shattering (Short)
Richard Kind, Hit Man: Secret of Lies (Short)
Matthew Modine, The Martini Shot (Feature)
Kevin Oestenstad, Infraction (Short)
Anthony Rapp, Scrap (Feature)
BEST ACTRESS NOMINATIONS
Nakia Burrise, Back to Bridgewood (Feature)
Britni Camacho, Blood Star (Feature)
Vivian Kerr, Scrap (Feature)
Laura Patalano, Estela, Is It You (Short)
Kelly Wolf, A Shattering (Short)
BEST DIRECTOR NOMINATIONS
Kelsey Cooke, Back to Bridgewood (Feature)
Jan Jalenak, A Shattering (Short)
Vivian Kerr, Scrap (Feature)
Thomas Torrey, Long December (Feature)
Stephen Wallis, The Martini Shot (Feature)
BEST ENSEMBLE NOMINATIONS
Because I Love You (Short)
Common As Red Hair (Short)
Long December (Feature)
The Birthday Butterfly (Short)
The Martini Shot (Feature)
BEST MUSIC SCORE NOMINATIONS
Adrianne Gonzalez, I Can’t Keep Quiet (Documentary Short)
Dave Fox, Because I Love You (Short)
Kevin Dailey, Long December (Feature)
Brooke Wentz, Scrap (Feature)
Alain Mayrand, The Martini Shot (Feature)