Shorts Program 09: Human Connection
Films are listed here in screening order.
Top Shot
Directed by Alexander Hagani. United States. 2023. 15 min. Fiction Short.
11-year-old Alexander adjusts to life with his new Step-Dad, Ian, while navigating the aftermath of his parent's divorce and escaping into basketball daydreams.
The Albatross Cafe
Directed by Amrita Vijayaraghavan & Andrew Stephens. United States. 2023. 10 min. Fiction Short.
Sonali, a happily single woman in her thirties, shares an uncommonly close bond with her other half and platonic life partner, Jake. Together, the two are making extraordinary plans for the future.
The Girls at the Painted Bird
Directed by Lisa Channer. United States. 2024. 13 min. Fiction Short. MN Made.
A group of “fallen women” in the Old West get rich quick when they discover the true gold rush – charging men for their emotional labor.
Not for Us
Directed by Praneet Akilla. Canada. 13 min. Fiction Short.
Three Somali sisters go against their parent’s wishes, and embark on their first camping trip in the middle of nowhere. Unprepared and ill-equipped, they have no idea what awaits them deep in the forest.
Orange Vests and Cigarettes
Directed by Kyle Ensrude. United States. 2023. 13 min. Fiction Short. MN Made.
After a failed suicide attempt injures an innocent bystander, Josiah, a socially-awkward teen from a strict religious home is sentenced to community service where he crosses paths with Teresa, a trans girl convicted of shoplifting gender-affirming clothing.
Layaway
Directed by Kaitlyn T. Busbee. United States. 2023. 13 min. Fiction Short.
Left by their mother to fend for themselves, two siblings in Iowa learn to live by their own code, until a choice becomes a secret that tests their trust in each other.
The K-Town Killer
Directed by Vahan Bedelian & Healin Kweon. United States. 2022. Fiction Short.
Grace "The K-Town Killer" Cho is a professional kickboxer who fights in stadiums before sold-out crowds, but her mother, Sally, doesn’t even know she trains martial arts.