Two chefs drive through the desert discussing invasive thoughts. “Fake Jazz,” directed by Kevin Luna, is a darkly funny conversation about uncomfortable (even gruesome) patterns of the mind. Wearing tall chefs’ hats (Luna wanted the hats to be taller even, but they couldn’t fit in the car), two c...

Bonus footage from "The 15"

A young waste incinerator employee meets with his show business mentor. “On Showbiz,” directed by Ryan McGlade, is a comedic glimpse at two unlikely acquaintances and their stylistic differences — one, Jeremy, a contemplative poet, the other, Murray, a showbiz veteran who’s always on, clock alway...

A lonely weed dealer spirals when she tries to make conversation with an uninterested client. “Sativa,” directed by Kelly Cooper and Johnny Frohman, is an absurd sketch film built around a loopy performance from Cooper and a pointless query. Tynan DeLong plays a musician working on a dog food com...

An anxious woman navigates an archipelago of isolation. Matthew Ericson directs “Pink Elephant,” a disconcerting slow-burn drama that toils in the domestic household with issues of mental illness and caretaking. Within the walls of a quaint suburban home lives Mandy, her husband Bruce, and Bruce’...

High-powered executive meets high-rise window-washer for an erotic rendezvous on opposite sides of her skyscraper window. “Squeegee,” directed by Morgan Krantz, is a sexy comedy that explores an unlikely connection nine stories up. Lori blows off her work responsibilities to prepare for a run-in ...

A grandson relieves himself of guilt. “Discharge,” directed by Aidan Macaluso, is a brisk dark comedy showing the phone call between a grandson and his grandmother, and the action that follows. With his grandma suffering from dementia, the young man lies about sending her gifts. It feels good in ...

Vincent, a neurotic millennial with a middling credit score, needs work bad. A life of crime could certainly pay if he ever gets a chance, and one night he does. “Auxiliary Man,” directed by and starring Max Roux, infuses its 90’s style crime tale with bumbling humor and energetic soul tunes. The...

Director Jason Giampietro sets 'em up & knocks 'em down in this hilariously straightforward story of an anxious New Yorker's ruined summer. The neurotic man, perpetually wearing a ratty aqua short-sleeve, lets a friend store a bike in his hallway for what he promises is only a couple days. Three ...

A visual comedy album following two drifters across the American landscape lost in a state of reverie. “Reveries” is an admirably extended gag on the myth of the artist, the nomad, the philosopher. A series of musings and strange memories layered on top of abstract video montages and hypnotic sou...

A brother and sister in the San Fernando Valley reunite after the sister is forced from her home and daughter. “Purity,” by director Max Roux, is an emotionally raw drama about a broken family trying to keep it together in an ugly world. Riley shows up at the apartment of her brother, Karl, with ...

A poetic essay film portraying Baltimore in a moment of reckoning, shown uniquely through humble observations and personal recollections. “Diary,” directed by Gillian Waldo, tracks the summer of 2020 with its nationwide cataclysms revolving around Covid-19 and police brutality. The film is presen...

Despite having Universal Love duct-taped and tied-up in the back seat of her car, "The Girl" begrudgingly decides to hear out the being.

An archival biography film about the early career of Deborah Harry told entirely through press interviews where she endures superficial, tedious, and demeaning questions from journalists. Meghan Fredrich directs and edits “Deborah Harry Does Not Like Interviews,” a video essay collage of sorts, w...

A dinner party with friends turns into a two-way battle of ego and one-upmanship. Directed by Andrew DeYoung. Starring John Early and Kate Berlant.

Two alien sisters journey for the first time to their favorite planet Earth with hopes to go viral on the internet, but their father has other plans for them and their beloved humans. Director: Sophia de Baun. Cast: Miriam Gabriel and Zora Schiltz Rouse. Producers: Sophia de Baun, Miriam Gabriel ...

A mechanic in a small midwestern town would do anything to leave her boring life but she can’t seem to break free. Tipper Newton directs and stars in “The Dangerous Type,” an entertaining throwback to 80’s (and before) tropes that renders its snappy banter and B-movie characterizations with style...

Pressured into giving away his clothes, an emasculated young man obsessively attempts to reclaim a cherished sweater. Directed by and starring Maziyar Khatam, “The Sweater,” utilizes lo-fi, handi-cam filmmaking for an off-the-cuff search for a lost item. Khatam plays a man living with his frustra...