Do we fear death? Are we afraid to know what comes after? What defines a life well-lived? The filmmakers in this program offer fresh perspectives on dying, loss, grief, and all that comes with it, whether it’s dealing with the unexpressed sorrow around a parent’s passing, our futures in an unknowable galaxy, or purchasing cheap reminders of our own mortality, these shorts express the many different forms death takes in our lives.

A HOLE
Molly Murphy | US | 10 minutes
A fable built around the time dilation that occurs in extreme gravity. Advised by esteemed physicist and graphic novelist, Clifford Johnson, A Hole looks at what would happen if the world were to be swallowed by a black hole…

GOODNIGHT, MOON
Michael Patten | US | 18 minutes
Stephen Gailule wants closure. After hijacking his father’s ashes, he makes a suburban pilgrimage, trespassing onto the grounds of his childhood home. Things change when the new tenant takes a particular interest in emotionally-stunted Steve.

NǍI NAI & WÀI PÓ (GRANDMA & GRANDMA)
Sean Wang | US | 17 minutes
Nǎi Nai is my grandma. Wài Pó is also my grandma. Together, they are a grandma super team that dances, stretches, and farts their sorrows away.

PERFECTING THE ART OF LONGING
Kitra Cahana | US | 12 minutes
Using footage from security cameras, video calls and home-video archives, this experimental short film leads us on a journey through memory, family and faith

STYROFOAM HUMAN SKULL WRAPPED IN PLASTIC
Ethan Knecht | US | 3 minutes
Styrofoam Human Skull Wrapped in Plastic is a spontaneous documentary/meditation centered on late stage capitalism.

WEAPONS AND THEIR NAMES
Melina Valdez | US | 16 minutes
Weapons and Their Names is a coming-of-age story about a teenage immigrant named Luciana, who lives in rural Florida. After the death of her American stepfather, she struggles to connect with her grieving mother and is unable to confront her own feelings of grief.