Xiao Xiao - 20 | NY, USA

“Life is a grind. Are we our work, or is our work us? Where do we draw the line between man and machine? In just two and a half minutes, Xiao Xiao’s Squelch attempts to answer these questions. Squelch is a film that does more than get under your skin, it courses through your veins like hot lava, cementing itself right in the center of your living, beating flesh.”

Thrills & Chills

Nathan Campbell - 20, Kristýna Cabalková - 23, Gaspard Choquet - 19, Nic Chang - 20 | Czech Republic

“Nathan Campbell confidently encapsulates the overwhelming wrongness of boyhood in a short yet challenging vision that’s reminiscent of 2025’s The Plague; subtle and understated yet unnervingly stomach-churning. Accompanied by some gorgeous 35mm shots and impressive child acting, The Shower will leave a pit in your stomach and a resonant hollowness in your chest. “

Pedal to the Mettle

Adrian Delcan - 23, Kento Komatsu - 24, Isabel Roney - 24, Ben Fiorica - 24 | NY, USA

“Swollen with dread and unease, Early Human Media feels like something you wake up to at 2 AM on the couch after you accidentally left the TV on all night. Mouth dry, vision blurred, you can’t exactly make out what it is you’re seeing… but something between intrigue and fear prevents you from turning it off. After all, what might be awaiting you in the dark?”

Uneasy Street

Eduardo Machado - 23, Ella Braff - 21, João Vera - 22 | NY, USA & Brazil

“Between childhood and adulthood, between your home and your future, between your friends and your family. São Paulo, New York is one of those films that reaffirms the necessity in the push and pull of life, assuring us that even in moments of despair or disquiet, there’s beauty waiting on the other side. Somehow a story that’s unique yet entirely universal, Eduardo Machado’s film has a comforting sonic rhythm that feels like you’re being guided by the hand through a lively party.”

Outside the Lines

Sea Sombar - 17, Alice Chiotti-Lee - 16, Alex Armstrong - 16, Malachite Clute - 16 | PA, USA

“They say that you have to know the filmmaking rules in order to break them, and Sea Sombar and Alice Chiotti-Lee—dual-directors of Nail Polish—have a searingly-original grip on form and function in their short experimental piece. Tenderly capturing the highs and lows of queer adolescence, the film at times makes us feel as though we’re having the secrets of the universe whispered to us, planted delicately in our ear as our fears are assuaged by a guardian angel.”

Breaking the Mold