Avem
Directed by Luis Quijano
Struggling with a deep loss and being away from his home country, a young man begins to have a body transforma as he longs for a life of freedom. • 17 minutes • Mexico, United States
Massachusetts Premiere
Baby Bird
Directed by Aris Liang
Helen, a Chinese-American nanny, begins to lose sight of reality after her mother’s death and clings to the relationship she has with her young ward in the face of it. • 21 minutes • Canada, United States
Blood & Guts
Directed by Carlye Rubin, Katie Green, Tina Grapenthin
The lines between real life and reel life are muddied in the story of the Adams, an unconventional family who makes independent horror films. While they may vomit blood onto one another, lack boundaries, and make frequent use of the f-word, they also face what every family must: change. • 80 minutes (presented with This is Book Club, 20 minutes) • United States • English
Saturday, May 2
3:30 PM
Hawthorne Hotel Library
Co-Presented With
Bloody Larry
Directed by Jillian Cantwell
On Halloween, Max and Benny stumble across the strange dataing app profile on a dating app of Lawrence “Bloody Larry” Meadows, a gay serial killer turned urban legend said to appear when summoned through a ritual mirror chant. Bloody Larry modernizes the slasher mythos through the lens of queer fear, digital intimacy, and the monsters we invite in. • 8 minutes • United States
East Coast Premiere
Blood Shine
Directed by Emily Bennett, Justin Brooks
SHF Alum
In her remote country home, a religious zealot takes a young filmmaker captive, claiming her sadistic rituals will change him into a god. • 100 minutes • United States
SHF Showcase
Breeder
Directed by Sapphire Sandalo
A woman on the fence about having kids becomes hunted in her home by a demonic horse-man. • 7 minutes • United States
East Coast Premiere
Brian Won't Wear Condoms
Directed by Genna Edwards
An alternative contraceptive procedure tests the relationship between a wellness influencer and her skeptical best friend. • 11 minutes • United States
Dance!
Directed by Poorya Dehghan
A military officer escapes a patrol by going into an abandoned house in Gaza. However, the spirits of those killed in the house are waiting for him. • 8 minutes • Iran
Darkroom
Directed by Matthew Black
In his home darkroom, a crime scene photographer develops pictures of a gruesome murder. Disturbing blurs on the images distort the victim's face. Each new print comes out more unsettling than the last. • 8 minutes • United States
World Premiere
Deep Hallows
Directed by Beto Marquez
The small town of Furnas Fundas hides a secret far older than its pastures, forests, or inhabitants. During a heated election marred by scandals, the town drunk Bartira must face a dark force that has returned to turn the town into a true bloodbath. • 116 minutes • Brazil
World Premiere
dont.4get2smile
Directed by Stefano Alessandro Pennisi
After receiving a chilling call about a classmate’s unexpected death, a social media–obsessed teen is followed by a mysterious account. Worried that it's all connected, she fears that the account’s reach extends far beyond the limits of her phone screen. • 10 minutes • United States
Massachusetts Premiere
Flickers
Directed by Alexa Jane Jerrett
SHF Alum
An elderly woman battles horrifying circumstances designed by her deteriorating mind —and in her darkest hours, flickers of her true self shine through. • 6 minutes • Canada
US Premiere
Frankie, Maniac Woman
Directed by Pierre Tsigaridis
SHF Alum
After years of wanting to look like those who grace the covers of magazines, Frances Ramirez ends up making headlines in a different way. She is soon to be known as the Maniac Woman. • 96 minutes • United States • English
East Coast Premiere
Co-Presented With
Full Term
Directed by Lizz Marshall
When a carefree couple visits Texas for a spicy weekend away, one woman’s sudden entanglement with the state laws turns her trip into a waking nightmare. • 10 minutes • United States
New England Premiere
Furry-Anxi
Directed by Ming-Jen Yu
A doll explores its surroundings, gradually becoming drawn to external objects, and eventually grows dissatisfied with itself, leading to a transformation. • 5 minutes • Taiwan
World Premiere
Gimme
Directed by Steven Schloss
On the first night of Hanukkah, a grandfather and his estranged granddaughter are pulled into a sinister game of dreidel. • 14 minutes • United States
Has Anyone Else Lost Their Body?
Directed by Randall Snare
The comments on a reluctant influencer’s first viral dance video overflow with people claiming to lose their bodies after watching it. • 15 minutes • United States
World Premiere
HVAC
Directed by Jackson McKeehan
In a blue-collar Missouri town, a 13-year-old HVAC apprentice grappling with confusing desires becomes entangled in a surreal, dangerous encounter at the local theatre—where longing and innocence bleed together in one irreversible night. • 11 minutes • United States
New England Premiere
Hide
Directed by Brenden Hubbard
Still reeling from an incredible loss, a father and daughter cling to a bedtime routine keeping them safe in a town where an unfathomable horror visits its inhabitants night after night. • 16 minutes • United States
Into the Stand
Directed by Mackenzie Hamilton, Taylor Fuchs
Tree planters Quinn and newly sober Rosa return to camp for another summer in the wilderness. Tempted to drink, Rosa heads into the forest to clear her head. Quinn goes after her and as the forest closes in, she questions if there is something else out there. • 15 minutes • Canada
East Coast Premiere
Jump Scare
Directed by Donnie Hobbie
The all-woman metal band JUMP SCARE retreats to a remote cabin to write their next album, only to be terrorized by the family of cannibals next door. • 102 minutes (presented with Kandie, 15 minutes) • United States • English
Co-Presented With