Shorts Lineup:
Best Eyes
The Black Gig
HAIRDOO
Poshun
Gone Fishin'
Doom Scroll
Abandoned Buildings
Followed by:
Q&A
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BEST EYES
Directed by Kira Powell (USA 2025, 16:35mins).
While commuting between her working class neighborhood and elite private school, a biracial teen forms a friendship that challenges the version of herself her mother believes will keep her safe - leading her toward self-acceptance.
57th NAACP Image Awards Nominee. -
THE BLACK GIG
Directed by Jaden Arcay Blake (USA 2025, 18:35 mins).
Three black students try to navigate a predominantly white school. One looks for identity, another seeks acceptance, and another chooses to conform. Each tries to find their place in an environment where they aren't favored. -
HAIRDOO
Directed by Exodia Demosthene (USA 2026, 11 mins).
The night before school photos, a spirited young girl, desperately attempts to recreate the perfect hairstyle. With the guidance of an otherworldly hairstylist, she embarks on a magical journey of self-acceptance. -
POSHUN
Directed by Meenakshi Garodia (India, USA 2025, 17:25 min).
Poshun (Hindi): fostering, rearing, bringing up; nourishment;
nutriment, nutrition; protection; support.
Poshun, which means nourishment in Sanskrit, is a short narrative film. It is a coming-of-age tale about Khushi, an 18-year-old girl. Khushi (she, hers.) Khushi is a new immigrant to Boston with her mother and father, from a small town in Punjab, India.
Khushi’s family want to hold on to the more traditional ways of their small town, India, while she wants to explore her new country, her new friendships, sexual identity, and a new world, with her friend Amrita (Girl, 18). -
GONE FISHIN'
Directed by Michael Reilly Peraza (USA 2026, 12:12 mins).
John Dixon returns to the old fishing hole to remember his late son, Rodney. But when a stranger named Clay arrives, John is forced to face the truth about his son's identity--and the denial he imposed for all of Rodney's life. -
DOOM SCROLL
Directed by Tamika Lamison (USA 2026, 7:03 mins).
"A doom-scroller abandons her phone and rediscovers the world beyond the screen."
RoxFilm alum. -
ABANDONED BUILDINGS
Directed by Benji Otte (USA 2026, 25:26 mins).
Four estranged friends explore abandoned buildings in hopes to reconnect and not follow the same fate as the forgotten sites.