A young man is pressed to help his older brother rob a rural farmhouse. David Call’s “Coach” is a dramatic thriller following the tense moments leading to a point of no return. Parked at the bottom of the hill, Sean sits in the driver’s seat and hands his little brother a ski mask. The younger br...

A renowned novelist is stuck in a rut when he runs into an old flame at a bookstore. “The Flavor of Cassava Leaf Over Rice,” directed by Tracey Todd, is an animated drama about a rainy weekend in L.A. where a trio of characters reflect on their lives as they begin to move into middle age. Married...

What begins as a documentary about surfing evolves into a tale of a guy trying to get rid of a surfboard. Jack Galvin’s lengthily-titled “NADIR: A documentary about surfing in Newport, Rhode Island in the summer and most of the other times as well” is a comedic look at a New England town and a ma...

On a first date, two people hit it off but struggle to conceal unsettling habits. Alex Sovoda’s “Recreational Social Interaction” is a dark comedy that builds tension and shifts perspective during a dinner date and beyond. Jazz plays, chemistry occurs, and “death or sex” are foreshadowed. The you...

A busker on Hollywood Boulevard with an affinity for classic horror films reflects on his life and troubles. Jonah Bergman’s “Conversations with a Monster” is a docu-fictional portrait of a nostalgic L.A. persona captured on the textures of Super 8mm film. The middle-aged man touches up his green...

The chronicles of a man and his response to three harrowing voicemails. Jack McLennan and Judd Crud’s “Glove Life” is a fast-moving comedy following a man-child on the brink of self-detonation. Still wearing his finger-lit LED gloves as he wakes up, Trent gets a voicemail from his girlfriend—he’s...

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 ...

Ruby has what seems like a sex dream about her best friend but can't tell if it actually happened. Allison Bunce’s “Ladies” is a 16mm drama observing female friendship and the intimate moments of a low-key bachelorette party weekend. Cheese boards and glasses of white wine spread across the kitch...

Two buds take a weekend getaway to address one of their major personal problems; meanwhile, four girls have double-booked the same Airbnb. In Michael Rees’ “His Parents Never Taught Him,” we watch a misunderstanding unfold between hyperactive personalities of colliding friend groups. Kyle and Lia...

A guy minding his business strikes a daring deal with a mysterious man he meets in the park. Graham Mason’s “Traveling Man” is a modern-day fable where an everyday man, played by Eric Rahill, is enchanted, possibly to his own demise. Through black-and-white grain while a liturgical melody plays, ...

Mourning her grandmother, a young woman takes a job that requires her to lure a mysterious entity from a hole. Casey Friedman’s “Pentatarmex Rabitular” is a quiet piece of sci-fi observed through its character’s mundane life and the bizarre occurrences that come with a strange job. Accompanied by...

After getting on the "dance cam" at a professional sporting event, a man loses his mind and sense of reality. Jack Solomon’s “Jumbotron” is an absurd comedy about the unexpected havoc sparked by a simple moment of crowd participation. Drew watches a hockey game with his co-worker Michelle. He’s s...

A pair of long lost friends re-discover the power of friendship, the quaint traditions of a small town, and the importance of coffee. Graeme Achurch and Nathan Hare write and perform in “Coffee is Important,” an extreme satire on the tropes of a sitcom, specifically poking fun at an archetypical ...

Two tortured men spend the day taking care of one another. Michael Rees’ “Guzzle Buddies” features a charismatic Lewis Pullman and Kyle Chase in a darkly comedic examination of male friendship and deep-seated crisis. Lewis comes home to find his roommate, Kyle, in the middle of an existential pan...

Two old-timey fellas meet up by the pond to do some fishing and determine what’s normal. Alex Goldberg directs “A Joyful Process,” a Steinbeck-esque dark comedy encompassed by melodies of nature and absurd conversation. Bruce (Anthony Oberbeck) and Joe (Ikechukwu Ufomadu) cast their lines out to ...

In Corona, Queens, two Ecuadorian siblings are placed at odds when one reveals an urge to leave their home. Emilio Subia’s “Naños” drops us into the bumbling lives of two brothers and the high-stakes drama that allures them. Fleeing a petty heist, Diego sprints through the subway alongside his pa...

A couple endures an emotional rollercoaster ride navigating the challenges of love and being separated by miles. Chris Fanelli directs “Long Distance” (written by and starring Jay Weingarten), a brief comedy putting the language of long distance under an immensely awkward microscope. Both comedia...

A man traverses a series of pastoral landscapes to his childhood home where he finds his sister packing their parents' belongings. Brothers Dakota Mina Fox and Dylan Pailes-Friedman co-direct “Afternoon of Dying Trees,” a grainy meditation on delusional and dwindling memories. As Calvin moves thr...

On the precipice of a breakup, a couple briefly reunites to euthanize the cat they fostered together. “Cathy Doesn’t Know,” directed by Gregg Kearns, is a naturalistic drama where the hurt of saying goodbye to a pet meets with a fraught relationship. As another friend hovers in the kitchen for mo...

A girl living in a half-physical, half-digital world, starts to hear her new neighbor through the wall. Jan Grabowski’s “Half-Dream” begins as a monochrome observation of a young woman in isolation but quickly escalates to a surreal out of body encounter. The character referred to as ‘The Girl’ l...

A man finds out that his lover's ex-boyfriend resembles his personal hero. Free Man Agyapong’s “Malcom Ex” is a darkly humorous look at navigating insecurities in a new relationship. A group of friends kick it on the beach. Guy and Nairobi have been seeing each other recently. With the rest of th...

A young woman teeters on the brink of adulthood while trying to grapple with the heartbreak that comes from a drifting friendship. In “It’s All Happening,” Sammy Grand contends with the realities of adult friendship, observing shifts in emotions and perspective. Their current form of friendship i...

Two deranged young men gather a group of like-minded individuals to greet extraterrestrial visitors coming to the James River. Comedian Brian Fiddyment directs “Grey Day,” an energetic and eerie piece of sketch featuring a crazed Will Duncan and Pierce Campion. While on their way to an LSD pick-u...

A glimpse at the goings-on of a 21-year-old in Brooklyn interrupted by a sojourn to North Carolina. Liam Barton directs “Blatant Interest,” a 16mm hangout film comprising a series of brief vignettes and electronica interludes. Beer cans litter Lyle’s rooftop. Instead of beginning the day with a c...