USA Tag Archive

Live Action, Premiere

Desire’s Unstoppable Pulse Thrums Through Julia Ponce Díaz & Nico Blanco’s Raucous ‘Cowboy, Choker, Harness & Heart’

Julia Ponce Díaz & Nico Blanco pull back the curtain on their racy queer short, where a bathroom stall takes centre stage at a neon-drenched rave.

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Live Action

Games Night Unravels Into a Brutal Tribunal of Guilt in Alex Sovoda’s ‘Circumstantial Forgiveness’

Alex Sovoda breaks down tension building in a single location, using static wide shots and chaotic close-ups to turn a games night into a pressure cooker.

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Film Festival

Grief, Thrills & Everything In Between: 10 Unforgettable Short Films at HollyShorts 2025

From 427 films at HollyShorts 2025, Directors Notes spotlights 10 essential shorts in this year's dynamic Oscar-qualifying programme.

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Live Action, Premiere

Ira Groza Builds a Fragmented Portal Between Performance, Memory and Truth in Surreal Webcam Short ‘Goosecam’

Ira Groza discusses directing remotely via Zoom to craft her surreal meditation on post-Soviet identity, cultural heritage and a doomed goose.

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Live Action

Danny Jelinek Ships a Gamified Nightmare of Technocapitalism in Saturated Satire ‘Word of Mouth’

From sunny visuals to surreal decay, Danny Jelinek breaks down the dystopian world of his comedy about an AI-driven mobile app that commodifies conversations.

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Live Action, Premiere

Ethan Edwards Crafts a Biting Literary Duel of Confided Secrets Revealed in Razor-Sharp Two-Hander ‘Goose’

Edwards reveals how he discovered the perfect psychologically damning secret and why he avoided traditional rehearsals to craft an authentic battle of wills.

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Live Action, Premiere

Callie Carpinteri Derails Female Sex Shaming in Her Empowering Comedic Drama ‘Dirty Towel’

Callie Carpinteri recounts the motivation that led her and Emma Parks to provide a fresh take on sex, shame and self-worth in their coming-of-age short film.

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Live Action, Premiere

Dexter Demme & Jack Depp Pit Pride Against Absurdity in Their Tense Couples’ Mexican Standoff Comedy ‘Tug of War’

Dexter Demme & Jack Depp unpack the seemingly absurd marital standoff in their comedy short where a beloved forgotten item exposes relationship fragility.

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Live Action, Premiere

tao/s Present a Raw Portrait of Family Turmoil Born of Mental Illness in Personal Short ‘Very Still, Very Quiet’

tao/s explain why the one-shot was the most authentic way to capture the emotional chaos of a family trying to cope with their mom's mental health disorder.

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Live Action

A TV Star Reckons With Her True Sexual Identity in Alyssa Aldaz’s Dreamlike Short ‘Beverly Heights’

Dissecting heteronormativity and queer repression in the film industry, Alyssa Aldaz recounts how her liminal queer drama began with an evocative dream.

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Live Action, Premiere

A Pregnancy Scare Descends Into Cinematic Comedy Chaos in Chad Corhan’s Rapid-Fire Absurd Short ‘Gas Station Sushi’

Chad Corhan explains how intensive same-room writing sessions shaped his breakneck surreal comedy about social anxiety during an existential personal crisis.

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Live Action, Premiere

Max Kane Excavates the Unknowable Complexity of Love and Loss in Visceral Short ‘Ah-Ma Burns’

From static shots to controlled chaos, Max Kane breaks down how he used dynamic cinematography to mirror his protagonist's emotional psychological journey.

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