Freddie Gluck - 23
CO, USA

“Tucked away in the forest amid a field of rock slabs and marble dust lives a sculptor carving elaborate headstones through which he connects the living to the dead. His unique curiosity and musings on mortality shine through director Freddie Gluck’s contemplative Stone Dead as his carvings themselves honor bygone strangers by sharing unique glimpses into how those passed have chosen to be commemorated. This immersive, invigorating profile will leave you ruminating on some of life’s big questions.”

Centerpiece

Cyrus Gainer - 22
NY, USA

“New York’s hottest club is the 140 degree heat wasteland of Cyrus Gainer’s SKIN wherein a lonely roommate searches another messy hot wasteland, online dating apps, for simple human physical contact. The difficulty of prioritizing human connection during a disaster pairs compellingly with SKIN’s grungy world-building and visceral vulnerability for a high energy look at urban isolation that’s never before run up the monthly phone bill this high.”

Futurescapes

Rebecca Lynne Loftin - 24
CA, USA

“Rebecca Lynne Loftin’s mesmerizing SHRIKE feels like something you can’t quite put your finger on but not because you haven’t felt it before in some form. Its story— a one-night stand prompting a startlingly open conversation complete with personal epiphanies—coyly operates below the surface, lingering in your mind for a while to process. It’s a mysterious, cathartic, and alluring watch in the best ways.”

Friday Night Spotlight

Jacob Staudenmaier - 23 & Chris Pickering - 23
CA, USA

“Sometimes when it feels too hard to laugh, finding something unabashedly goofy like Jacob Staudenmaier and Chris Pickering’s pair of films GROCERIES and RELEASE can set you right. The small glimpses of absurd moments when life can unexpectedly turn, like when letting loose or taking an unanticipated falter, empoweringly remind us that finding the silly in the mundane is just a matter of perspective.”

Happy Hour Shorts
Passionate Pursuits