2026 Official Selection: Short Film – SciFi

A young mother’s fleeting wish to abandon her family comes true in an instant that ends up being the rest of her life.

Screening date & tickets — to be announced

• Director(s): AJ Lambert
• Writer(s): AJ Lambert
• Producer(s): Rebekah Sherman-Myntti, Briana Bursten
• Key Cast: Serena Mello, Michael Neeson, Hilary Dennis
• Editor(s): Katherine Horak
• Cinematographer(s): Matt P Jones
• Production Designer(s): Grace Lees
• Sound Designer(s): Andrew Smetek

Language: English

Runtime: 16m

Country: United States

Synopsis: Cerulea is a science fiction micro-epic about the traumas that get passed down to us, the guilt around having complicated feelings about motherhood, and the bonds of love that we as mothers are nonetheless so desperate to forge with our children – even when we feel at our most incapable and unworthy.

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Source: SOFF

2026 Official Selection: Short Film – Drama

In 1924 Ireland, a 17-year-old illustrator risks everything to expose abuse inside a convent for unmarried girls through her drawings before authorities silence her.

Screening date & tickets — to be announced

• Director(s): Lusha Li
• Writer(s): Lusha Li
• Producer(s): Valentina Chang
• Key Cast: Mackenna Shults, IX Mendoza, Patrick Sprague, Coco Blignaut, Shey Bogumil, Alistair David Herz, Caleb Noel
• Editor(s): Ailin Huang
• Cinematographer(s): Yucong Li, Lusha Li,
• Production Designer(s): Nya Patrinos
• Sound Designer(s): Shannon O’Shea
• Composer(s): Lusha Li

Language: English

Runtime: 11m

Country: China

Synopsis: In 1924 Ireland, as the Church moves to confine unmarried girls, 17-year-old Margaret’s father secretly plans the family’s escape. But Margaret’s growing awareness of the hidden suffering around her—and an unexpected encounter that reveals the system’s true brutality—pulls her into a world far more dangerous than she realizes. The forces tightening around the family challenge their bonds, their freedom, and Margaret’s understanding of her own place in a collapsing world.

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Source: SOFF

2026 Official Selection: Short Film – Drama

Only the curtain stands between them.

Screening date & tickets — to be announced

• Director(s): Jet Harris
• Writer(s): Antonio L. Rodriguez
• Producer(s): Jet Harris
• Key Cast: Antonio L. Rodriguez, Matthew Martinez Hannon
• Editor(s): Jet Harris
• Cinematographer(s): Emma Pillsbury
• Production Designer(s): Saskia Bakker
• Sound Designer(s): Yiran Chen
• Composer(s): Eliya Gwetta

Language: English

Runtime: 10m

Country: United States

Synopsis: THE GUY frequents THE HOLE’S apartment for anonymous sex.
THE GUY wouldn’t mind losing the curtain. THE HOLE would. Is he running away from a connection worth pursuing?

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Source: SOFF