Visual artist/muralist, Sydney G. James, addresses the status of Black women in society, police brutality, family and community through bold brushstrokes and hues that evoke the complexities of Black reality, joy, pain, and resilience. Inspired by personal experiences, current events and her hometown of Detroit, she invites conversations with family members and fellow artists as she creates a new work on canvas and transforms vacant walls into creative spaces.

Encore Screening - Winner Best Documentary 2023 When a bronze-skin bombshell rocks the world of Sunday Morning Football, millions tune in... but few know the tumultuous story of Jayne Kennedy, the first Black woman to boldly tackle the racial lines of American sportscasting.

Special Screening - Honorable Mention NEGRITA is a feature documentary about diverse Afro Latinas who explore and confront culture and racism while defining their own identity in the United States. NEGRITA explores the ideology of Blackness, and how both American and Latino cultures perpetuate the belief that Blackness is to be destroyed. Through personal accounts, family pictures, old videos, and interactions with family and friends, NEGRITA will follow the director's own struggle with identity, her journey to embrace her African history, and her conversations with her family about their disapproval of her journey, while interweaving the stories/experiences shared by other Afro Latinas. Hailing from different countries: Dominican Republic, Puerto Rico, Honduras, and Panama NEGRITA follows these Afro Latinas as they confront the notion that Black is negative or bad, and watch as they grow to empower themselves.

As the first female Maasai filmmaker, Laissa Malih initially set out to document the land-based practices of her forefathers and ways in which climate change is reshaping Maasai communities. In returning to the IL-Laikipiak Maasai village that her parents left when she was a child, Malih experiences an epiphany: her own life is a reflection of the myriad challenges between Maasai youth and elders, women and men, ancestral ways of passing down essential knowledge and modern methods of education. In Enchukunoto, Malih’s singular perspective also challenges ways in which the Maasai peoples have long been seen and documented by tourists and other outsiders. “Many tourists come to our Maa lands to film the lions, the gazelles,” she observes. “The camera takes and takes. I wonder what my camera can give my people in return?” Interweaving verite with Malih’s epiphanies, Malih offers a heretofore unseen perspective as an insider and an outsider, a woman among men, a filmmaker carrying on sacred Maasai traditions of storytelling in an era defined by uncertainty.

Logline: A young man and his stroke-afflicted father try to find common ground in a store parking lot. Starring: Patrick Agada, Sean Blake, RjW Mays, Shawn Roundtree Jr., Danyelle Monson, Isaiah Sewell, Omig Flojo, Huy Nguyen, T.J. Harris, Achilles Morris & Tanner Munson. Cast by O'Connor Casting. David O'Connor, Virginia Anello & Jess Lyons, CSA This film partially fulfills the requirements for an MFA Directing degree at DePaul University. Funded in part by the DePaul 2023 Winter/Spring MFA Grant. © George Ellzey Jr. 2023

In this arthouse fantasy, a non-binary queer wakes up to the surreal forces that are controlling their life. Should Wei fulfill their mother’s dying wish, even if they don’t agree with it?

Bageecha | Short Film Trailer | Shilpa Johar | Apoorv Arora Films Bageecha (meaning 'garden' in Hindi) is the story of an aged gardener who has made a humble life for himself and his family growing exotic plants in rich, suburban homes in LA. His world is turned upside down when his son is killed for stealing from a local drug lord. Check out the details of our Crowd Funding Campaign here: https://gogetfunding.com/bageecha/ Starring: Nirvan Patnaik, Asit Vyas, Anjali Kirloskar, Zorawar Shukla & Lecia Papadopoulos Director: Shilpa Johar Producer: Apoorv Arora | Shilpa Johar Executive Producers: Vandana & Sanjay Johar, Reetu & Arvind Johar, Gaurav Premchand, Vijay N. Associate Producers: Ryan Payne, Pramila & Naresh Kochhar, Suma & Sanjeev Kochhar , Divya Dorothy Mithra & Aashish Joshua, Rani & Sham Khanna, Swati & Rohn Khanna. Unit Production Manager: Siddhant Vig Assistant Director: Fernando Broce Director of Photography: Pranav Mulay First AC: Teo Lourens Second AC: Darlene Darma Gaffer: Christian Villareal Key Grip: Patrick Cicero Grips: Torey Thompson, Jhelab Bell & Raghav Reddy BTS: Pranav Mehta Script Supervisor: Mushkan Arora Production Design: Andrea Chavez PDA: Omer Shaier Makeup and Hair: Sophia Frazia Sound Mixer: Nikita Suldin Covid Officer/PA: Yashvi Mulchandani Prod Assistant: Isabel Garcia Editor (Film): Hugo Arvizu | Shilpa Johar Editor (Trailer): Apoorv Arora Colorist (Film): Janak Panchal Colorist (Trailer): Roy Sun [Reason Studios] VFX: Bryan LaSof Original Music: Ramesh Kumar Kannan Trailer Music: Tejas Shankar (Lagori) Stunt Coordinator: Lorenzo Carreon Production Company: Apoorv Arora Films LLC © All Rights Reserved 2024

Hag: A Queer Southern Gothic. A Howard MFA Thesis Film & Proof of Concept Follow us at @haintblue.prod @hag.film

Synopsis: Hannah ends a three-year on-again, off-again "situationship" with Roman due to irreconcilable world views that have potentially serious ramifications. But it wasn’t “all a wash.” WINNER: Best Micro Short, 2022 Diversity in Cannes Short Film Showcase; Best Cast, 2022 NYWIFT Online Shorts Festival; Best Narrative & Best Actor (Stephen Cofield, Jr.), 2021 Mott Haven Film Festival Trailer for "grist," written, produced, directed by, and starring TCP Founder / Producer Shannon Harris with Stephen Cofield, Jr. Trailer edited by Mark Ezovski.