This intriguing and thought provoking experimental documentary crawls over, under and inside the leftover 'dead zones' of the California road and freeway system, finding an eclectic mix of people who inhabit, explore, and re-purpose these liminal spaces, sometimes uncovering a world to call their own.  Urban planners, artists and engineers reflect on the sociological considerations about the built environment, including interviews with KALW'S Roman Mars (host of the popular architecture and design podcast "99 Percent Invisible") and John Law (co-founder of Burning Man and the Cacophony Society). -CM

Plays wth: Broken City Poets, Ariane Wu, 29 min

“This creepily atmospheric animated film boasts haunting, gorgeously hand-crafted imagery.” –Hollywood Reporter

A convict escapes from jail and travels to a remote village to recover loot that was hidden years earlier. He gets more than he bargained for when he runs into sinister elderly people and spirits. Featuring the voices of Geraldine Chaplin, Paul Naschy (Spanish horror film star), Carlos Blanco (Almodóvar’s Volver), and Xosé Manuel Olveira 'Pico' (The Sea Inside). -JMG

“It’s Napoleon Dynamite by way of Taxi Driver” - Scream Horror Magazine

Stuart Simpson’s Chocolate Strawberry Vanilla is a strange character study, flaunting wicked humor and mounting unease. Warren (Glenn Maynard) is an ice cream man; he lives alone with his cat and tunes in daily to his favorite soap opera. However, after an awful accident, Warren’s life begins to spiral out of control. He becomes dangerously obsessed with his favorite soap star, a local drug dealer starts muscling in on his patch, and his sanity begins to disintegrate alarmingly. (Nerdly) – Programmed by Kier-la Janisse

Academy Award-nominated filmmaker David Collier and co-director Suzanne LaFetra have crafted a stirring, up-close documentary that follows a group of Oakland teens who find personal liberation and mutual support through dance. These dynamic young people face the very real challenges of poverty, alienation, HIV, sexual abuse, and gang violence but are dedicated to telling the truth--- even if it hurts. Because the truth will, to some degree, set them free. FREE captures their struggles as they turn the courage, determination, and stamina required in their daily lives into a contagious joy. - Chris Metzler

Co-presented by the San Francisco Dance Film Festival

Plays with

STAND Melanie D'Andrea, 21 min

Hits is the first feature film written and directed by comedy legend David Cross (Mr. Show with Bob and David, Arrested Development). When a video of a humble municipal worker’s city council rant goes viral, a small town in upstate New York becomes an incubator for widespread delusions of grandeur. Soon, opportunistic news crews, clueless urban bohemians, and downwardly mobile hillbillies swarm this once idyllic hamlet, competing head-to-head for a shot at the real American dream: monetized web content. This trenchant satire features a killer’s row of comic actors, including Matt Walsh, James Adomian, Wyatt Cenac, and Michael Cera. ?Mike Keegan

Stick around after the film for our Opening Night Party featuring Conspiracy of Beards (Leonard Cohen tribute choir) and The Jerk Church Tabernacle Choir.