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 • English
Saturday, May 2
10:30 AM
Salem Access Television | Shorts Block #2
East Coast Premiere
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 • English
Sunday, May 3
1:45 PM
Salem Access Television | Shorts Block #5
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 • English
Saturday, May 2
12:30 PM
Salem Access Television | Shorts Block #3
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 • Arabic & Hebrew
Saturday, May 2
10:30 AM
Salem Access Television | Shorts Block #2
Darkroom
Directed by Matt 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 • English
Friday, May 1
12:00 Noon
Salem Access Television | Shorts Block #1
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 • English
Saturday, May 2
10:30 AM
Salem Access Television | Shorts Block #2
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 • English
Saturday, May 2
12:30 PM
Salem Access Television | Shorts Block #3
US Premiere
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 • English
Friday, May 1
12:00 Noon
Salem Access Television | Shorts Block #1
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
Friday, May 1
12:00 Noon
Salem Access Television | Shorts Block #1
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 • English
Sunday, May 3
1:45 PM
Salem Access Television | Shorts Block #5
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 • English
Sunday, May 3
1:45 PM
Salem Access Television | Shorts Block #5
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 • English
Saturday, May 2
2:30 PM
Salem Access Television | Shorts Block #4
New England Premiere
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 • English
Sunday, May 3
1:45 PM
Salem Access Television | Shorts Block #5
East Coast Premiere
Lok
Directed by Mahmuda Sultana Rima
In a very rural village of Bangladesh, men suddenly start to disappear. The villagers start blaming the recluse 'witch' of the village who is known to practice black magic. But why is she making these men disappear? How is she doing it? • 4 minutes • Bangladesh • Bengali
Saturday, May 2
10:30 AM
Salem Access Television | Shorts Block #2
Massachusetts Premiere
Mangittatuarjuk (The Gnawer of Rocks)
Directed by Louise Flaherty
Two young women out for a walk follow a trail of coloured stones left on the ground, which leads them to danger. They are trapped in the lair of the Mangittatuarjuk, the Gnawer of Rocks. The women are terrified when they realize what the monster has been doing. The young women and their village must use the teachings of the elders to defeat the monster. • 14 minutes • Canada • Inuktitut
Thursday, April 30
Included in Opening Night programming, 6:30 PM
Peabody Essex Museum
New England Premiere
Mardazma
Directed by Amir Masoud Soheili
Two armed men, escorting arrested voters to their punishment, take an alternative route to evade the army. Their journey descends into chaos when they encounter Mardazma, a mythical Afghan jinn who tests their courage and morality in a battle between superstition, power, and fear. • 15 minutes • Afghanistan, Iran • Pashto & Persian
Saturday, May 2
12:30 PM
Salem Access Television | Shorts Block #3
US Premiere
Meat Crayon
Directed by Richard Rotter
Kimberly‘s favorite teacher always brings her the best crayons. He just won’t say where he gets them. • 6 minutes • Canada • English
Saturday, May 2
12:30 PM
Salem Access Television | Shorts Block #3
New England Premiere
Pelacaras
Directed by Ricardo Albarrán
After her husband’s mysterious disappearance, a mother hides the truth from her daughter, and silence itself becomes the horror consuming them both. • 10 minutes • United States • English & Spanish
Saturday, May 2
12:30 PM
Salem Access Television | Shorts Block #3
Massachusetts Premiere
Prey
Directed by Pax Nelson
After an unfortunate car accident, Devin finds himself face to face with a vengeful moose who will not stop at any lengths to hunt him down. • 3 minutes • United States • English
Sunday, May 3
1:45 PM
Salem Access Television | Shorts Block #5
New England Premiere
Prey For Us
Directed by Zoe Kerr
After a house party, a woman leaves with a charming stranger, only to share unsettling truths that shatter their perceptions of each other. • 6 minutes • United States • English
Saturday, May 2
2:30 PM
Salem Access Television | Shorts Block #4
East Coast Premiere
Time Eater
Directed by Ryan Couldrey
SHF Alum
A grandmother suffering from undiagnosed dementia has her home invaded while she's babysitting her granddaughter. • 13 minutes • Canada • English
Saturday, May 2
10:30 AM
Salem Access Television | Shorts Block #2
East Coast Premiere
Trad
Directed by Dave Bekerman
A struggling influencer reluctantly pivots to tradwife content to dig her husband out of a financial hole and soon becomes trapped by the increasingly disturbing demands of her viral persona. • 12 minutes • United States • English
Saturday, May 2
12:30 PM
Salem Access Television | Shorts Block #3
New England Premiere
The Bound Prince
Directed by Christian Gridelli, Hunter Norris
A road-weary comedian falls down a hole of paranoia as she begins to suspect her hotel room's bible is part of a demonic cult's grand design. • 12 minutes • United States • English
Saturday, May 2
2:30 PM
Salem Access Television | Shorts Block #4
East Coast Premiere
The Chosen
Directed by Brady Richards
SHF Alum
Reed is troubled by a vision forcing him to do bad things, but nobody believes him. Maybe this new therapist will understand? • 8 minutes • United States • English
Saturday, May 2
2:30 PM
Salem Access Television | Shorts Block #4
East Coast Premiere
The Lone Piper
Directed by Matthew Kravchuk
In 1759 during the Seven Years' War, a Scottish bagpipe player and an Indigenous girl struggle to cope with the horrors of war. Using folklore as a medium, this period project discusses the ever-present themes of colonialism and xenophobia. • 10 minutes • United States • English & Niitsíʼpowahsin (Blackfoot)
Saturday, May 2
2:30 PM
Salem Access Television | Shorts Block #4
Massachusetts Premiere
The Me in the TV
Directed by Gordon Phillips
After moving into a new apartment, a young woman discovers an old television broadcasting a live feed of her from an impossible angle. As the image begins to behave strangely, she realizes it may be more than just a broadcast—and far more than just her. • 7 minutes • Indonesia, United States • English
Saturday, May 2
10:30 AM
Salem Access Television | Shorts Block #2
East Coast Premiere
The Safety Games
Directed by Jeremiah Kipp
Fear is good. • 10 minutes • United States • English
Friday, May 1
12:00 Noon
Salem Access Television | Shorts Block #1
Massachusetts Premiere
Undertone
Directed by Shaun Munro
A sound recordist captures strange sonic phenomena underneath their house and things... escalate from there. • 12 minutes • United Kingdom • English
Friday, May 1
12:00 Noon
Salem Access Television | Shorts Block #1
Massachusetts Premiere
Vowels
Directed by Rafael De Leon
Ava needs to record a self-tape but her speech impediment keeps getting in the way. • 5 minutes • United States • English
Saturday, May 2
2:30 PM
Salem Access Television | Shorts Block #4
New England Premiere
