Two college freshmen say goodbye to their summer internship. “Farside,” written by and starring Matt Barats and Anthony Oberbeck (and directed by, you guessed it, Doron Max Hagay) is a short comedy about awkward farewells, the location of regional colleges, and who gets to keep the Farside calend...

Trying to get ahead in Hollywood, a struggling actor claims to be the illegitimate son of a celebrity. Ariel Gardner directs “Let’s Keep the Party Going,” a comedic glimpse at a man’s desperate attempts to become a working actor. Stuck in a loop of preparation and unsuccessful auditions, Hunter m...

In New York City, a man named Lenny looks after his mother who is experiencing memory loss and hallucinations. “I’ll Be Here For Awhile,” directed by Dylan and Dakota Pailes-Friedman, is an elliptical drama told with quietly evocative visuals about identity loss and the burdens shouldered by love...

Rachel feels lost in a new city. She takes on the role of both interviewer and interviewee to hopefully
discover authentic friendships.

A lonesome woman with strong moral fiber meets a new man for a late night drink. “Bar Snakes,” directed by Alex Warren, is a boozy vignette that perfectly captures the flirtatious maneuverings of two tipsy souls. The woman (played by Kate Adams) is already drunk when the date starts; the man (pla...

A chronically online, socially inept teenager takes a leap of faith to meet up with her virtual bestie for the first time. “Thru the Wire,” directed by Bocau, is a modern coming-of-age film set in Vietnam with an honest account of where online and IRL conflict. “Fried_fish_ball” (we never get her...

"I recently had the pleasure of watching Claire Denis’ “Trouble Every Day” for the first time. I love her movies. I love how you have to work for them in order to figure out what’s going on. Afterwards, I realized I hadn’t read the synopsis on the back of the DVD, so I gave it a look. It went int...

Another lazy day in Los Angeles is undermined by strange occurrences. Eric Colonna directs “Ratking,” an enigmatic drama that observes a young couple in North East L.A. as they deal with an odd visitor. Under a greenish tungsten hue, we meet the woman as she recalls a disturbing dream. Later, a d...

A young woman travels to a remote Victorian home to be a caregiver for someone who may or may not be there. “Madame Upstairs,” directed by Evan Korycki, is an ominous drama filled with striking visuals and eerie atmosphere. When Georgia arrives to take care of Madame Bouchard, she’s unsettled to ...

An artist works toward his future during a transitional period in his life. Kelly Turner directs “Bubblegum,” a vérité documentary following an aspiring fashion designer over the course of a couple days, dealing with work, friendships, and personal dramas. It’s an effortlessly authentic look at a...

Two Midwesterners take a panoramic tour of the gas stations, strip malls and fast food restaurants of their lives. An experimental documentary that turns ordinary, prepackaged American suburbia into a surreal haze, “Going to the Store,” directed by Andrew Lewis, approaches the familiar with such ...

An office assistant at a culture website comes down with a mysterious illness. “Thread,” directed by Max Rosen, is both a satire on millennial workplaces (SUP “We’ve Got Content”), and a paranoia-doused descent into mental breakdown. River L. Ramirez plays Joni, who, along with several other youn...

Wally’s surprise birthday party turns weird after an existential reaction. Jordan Michael Blake directs “Birthday Boy,” an unsettling portrait of emotional whiplash shot with a family camcorder, which contains years of unrelated home videos that occasionally bleed through. Everything seems rather...

Rachel seeks comfort in her partner while dealing with uncertainty and a death in the family.

A band of ravers who reside and dance under the L.A River have their lives turned upside down when one of their own is chopped in half with a glow stick. “A Ballet,” directed by Zoe Katz, is a bonkers 5-minute no-fi extravaganza where everyone wears JNCOS (this is a sequel to Katz’ “A Very JNCOS ...

Two friends start a t-shirt company as a ruse to engage their friends into joining their club. Hannah Marianetti and James Yu direct “Asian Cinema Club,” a docu-fictional reflection on Asian identity and making/appreciating art. Through an alternating GoPro-forehead POV, we casually follow Hannah...

An inept pig-man sets out to make the movie of a lifetime, but not without a few small setbacks. “Life Movie,” created by Nick Lane, follows a neurotic digital creator in an energetic tag-along through a highly surveilled New York. "Moe R. Paine" aka "Moe" is a mutant pig-man. With surveillance d...

Inspired by the photo book format, this short documentary focuses on the seasonal workers of a small island. Charlie Weber directs “Small Hours,” a collection of summer snippets captured with evocative visuals and an ambling spirit. Kids do backflips off a pier, walk along the beach, work jobs at...

Feeling ignored on an important day, a 12-year-old girl seeks attention from an unexpected source. Written and directed by Julia Kennelly, “Chandler,” is a tender yet frank coming-of-age drama about the awkwardness and swirling expectations of young girlhood. At gymnastics practice one day, Chand...

A girl sends a sexually explicit DM to her celebrity crush. In Jessica Ryan’s “I Swear to God I’m not Crazy,” a young woman from Worcester, Massachusetts attempts to craft a raunchy video through a series of peculiar role-played performances and an amusing narration. Piper Conley stands in front ...