The Freaks Go Marching (Horror Comedy Anthology, the Bronx, 74 mins). Written & directed by attending filmmakers Steven Franciosa, Jr, Jerry Landi &TJ McGowan. Get a head start on Halloween!

Green Flag (Horror-Thriller, Buffalo, 56 mins), written & directed by attending filmmaker Mandy Hebblethwaite.  A nailbiting suspenser about two young women in a  dangerous situation.

It's Always  Almost Over (Comedy-Drama, Amsterdam, 105 mins) written & directed by attending filmmaker Jay Leonard. The quintessential upstate New York dramedy and one of the best of the fest.

The Sight Unseen (Docudrama, filmed in Harlem, 40 mins), directed by Shawn Antoine II. A fascinating depiction of the impact the sudden and unexplainable appearance of a glowing cross has on a Harlem neighborhood.

Aqueduct (Queens, Drama, 27 mins, Q&A). Photographed on Kodak VISION3 50D 16mm Color Negative film. Two half-brothers who have never met are brought together by the death of the father they never shared. Set against the charged, unpredictable world of the racetrack, buried truths surface and tensions sharpen, forcing them into a reckoning neither sought. Director: Travis Burgess.

Beast of the Frontier (Buffalo, Horror Western, 17 mins). After fleeing from looters, a group of villagers out wet must decide whether to survive in the woods or return to their overtaken camp. Directors: Josh McMillan & Hope Muehlbauer.  Trailer.

Burn (Brooklyn, Action/Thriller, 15 mins, Q&A). A corrupt detective, questioned for murder by his longtime partner, believes he’s controlling the interrogation until the truth ignites a final act of vengeance. Directors: Z Jadwick &, Ben Bohren.

Cosmos (Buffalo, Romance, 15 mins, Q&A)

Tess, a hopeless romantic, tries to piece together the events of the previous night’s party with nothing to go on but a mixtape left behind by her crush, the elusive Veronica. Directors: Gabrielle Nunzio & Marissa Graves.

DaViD-19 (NYC, Sci-Fi/Dance, 15 mins, Q&A).

A global pandemic causes people to dance to their deaths. Directed by Masa Gibson & David Kossack.

Deadman’s Float (Rochester, Thriller, 9 mins, Q&A). While cleaning a backyard pool, Austin suffers a sudden medical attack and slips beneath the surface. Suspended between life and death, he drifts through fractured memories and buried regret as the water pulls him deeper. Director: Andrew Reardon.

Divided/Disparity (Buffalo, Crime Drama, 30 mins, Q&A). A raw, character-driven family crime drama about fractured relationships, desperate decisions, and the real-life consequences that ignite an unstoppable chain of events. Directed by Daniel Conklin.

Do You Hear What I Hear? (Long Island, Horror, 9 mins, Q&A). On Christmas Eve, a couple is awakened by strangely familiar voices downstairs. Director: Manny Serrano; Writer: Phil Kral.

Manic (Buffalo, Horror, 15 mins). A mentally unstable former police detective plagued by trauma from an encounter with a serial killer is persuaded by her remote psychiatrist to undergo in-person treatment. Director: Amelia Favata.

Me, Steve & the Monster Under My Bed

(Buffalo State University, Comedy, 10 mins, Q&A)

A young woman and her boyfriend tr to have sex, but the monster under her bed keeps cockblocking them. Director: Sam Tocke

Papa Vanaya (NYC, Drama, 22 mins). Vanya clings to an old life of secrets. His secret passion may cost him his family. A sensitive period piece directed by and starring Don Scime. Trailer.

The Pickup (NYC, Drama/Romance, 19 mins, Q&A). A woman about to be married goes for a revelatory walk with a former flame. Directed by Karen Wang. Attending filmmaker: producer Rachel Whelan. 

Rustbelt Butterfly (Buffalo, Experimental, 9 mins, Q&A)

In this experimental narrative a woman is at the brink of a transformation that she never asked for, but like the native butterflies of Western New York, she evolves within the environment she has, finding community and herself. Director: Amanda Besl.

The Save (NYC, Comedy, 13 mins, Q&A). Jason hires two fixers who use extreme and questionable measures to revive his marriage. Director: Chris Harcum. Trailer.

Sky (NYC, Adventure, 15 mins). A 10-year-old (Magnus Newville, Mr. & Mrs. Smith, Saturday Night Live) ventures through chaotic New York City searching for space to dream. Director: Andrew Lucido. Trailer. 

The Hare (Brooklyn, Animated, 10 mins, Q&A).

The film explores the intertwined fates of the hare and the poet being hunted. Director: Yulia Ruditskaya.

Wake Up Takes (NYC, Dark Satire, 10 mins, Q&A). A manosphere podcast's biggest fan would do anything to guest on an episode. Director: Cody Mason.

The Watch (Syracuse, Thiller, 30 mins, Q&A)

A struggling salesman uncovers a watch that changes the trajectory of his life and the lives of the people around him. Directed by Shem Doupe’. Trailer.

We Like Red (Buffalo, Horror, 22 mins)

A confession. A friendship. A series of fractured memories. In the aftermath of an unthinkable act, two teenagers drift through a landscape where violence lingers beneath the surface and the line between reality and imagination slowly disappears. Director: Christopher D’Addario. Trailer.

Along the Way (NYS, Drama, 6 mins). A farmer tends to his land, which is threatened with closure. Directed by David M. Tan. Trailer.

Cupcake (Buffalo, Horror, 3 mins). When none of her friends show up to her birthday party, Kate decides to take matters into her own (blood-stained) hands. Director: Amanda R. Woomer.

Deadly Tango (Niagara Falls, Action, 4 mins, Q&A)

A hot-shot undercover agent, infiltrating the cartel, finds himself in the claws of a beautiful yet deadly assassin. Will he take down the infamous "Dama de la Muerte" (Lady of Death), or be her next target? Director: Tony Grande.

Oh Shit, Did We Just Kill a Guy? (Brooklyn, Comedy, 3 mins, Q&A). Two people who find a body just want to get back to work. Directed by Oscar Monroy.

Picture Perfect  (Oswego, Horror, 5 mins, Q&A)

A woman finds herself questioning her reality as a picture in her home begins to change whenever she looks at it. Director: Bradley Liverman. 

PiE (Goshen, Horror Comedy, 5 mins)

A lonely man must overcome a demon who ate his pie. Directors: George Pavlidis & Jason Weiss.

Surveillance (NYC, Sci-Fi, 5 mins, Q&A). A detective investigating a possible abduction must decide if a witness is credible enough to testify about a life-altering event. Director: Dan Chen.

Thumbprint Cookies (NYC, Drama, 7 mins, Q&A).

In the tiny moments of everyday life, the presence of timeless love is revealed. A beautiful film! Director: Katy Frame. Writer-Producer: Navida Stein. Trailer

What You Don’t Remember (NYC, Drama, 3 mins). As his mother's memory begins to fade, a devoted son gently challenges her rewritten version of their past. Director: Mia Rroriguez. Trailer.

Evermore (Ithaca College, Drama, 15 mins, Q&A)

When her love isn't returned, a grieving Louise struggles to move on, losing a part of herself.” Director: Madeline Dombrow, Co-writer: Julia Hargreaves. Trailer.

Heartbreaker (Ithaca College, Sci-Fi, 13 mins, Q&A). When humanoid robots can be programmed to fix (or ruin) one's love life, quarrels come to a head amid confusion, distrust, and AI. Director: James Reade Smith. 

Joyce Jarvish is Actually Cool (Ithaca College, Comedy, 17 mins)

After learning that her successful high school peers are returning to her place of work, Joyce, a seemingly talentless college dropout, takes it upon herself to study the ways of being cool. Director: Maya Rosenthal.

Not My Story (Ithaca College, Drama, 23 mins, Q&A). A college student's search for identity spirals into a wrongful detention by ICE. Director: Noah Darling.  Trailer.

Coming Home (NYU Student, Drama, 8 mins)

In the relentless sprawl of New York City, Igor, a Ukrainian war veteran, struggles to survive a life that feels profoundly foreign. Directed by Lena Abraham. 

Dear Satan (SVA, Animated, 4 mins). Satan is attempts to deliver presents to all the children who misspell Santa as Satan in order to show Santa who's boss. Director: Daelan Hontanosas.

A Grieving Heart (NYC/Hunter College, Animated, 12 mins).

An immigrant woman examines her past in the wake of her American ex-boyfriend’s death. The film explores how love and loss impact the ways she confronts her identity, memories, insecurities, and regrets. Director: Wendy Cong Zhao.

Heads or Tails (University at Buffalo, Dark Comedy, 15 mins, Q&A). An obsessed penny collector is faced with the decision of using his collection to pay for his son’s cancer treatment. Director: Joseph Deschamps. Trailer.   

Lady Luck (NYC, Animated, 3 mins). A gambling Divorcee grieves her failed marriage through a new fascination: the slot machine mascot, Lady Luck. Directed by Lang Ratmansunu for School of Visual Arts. Trailer. 

Machina (RIT, Horror/Sci-Fi, 5 mins). AI is here, and it is eating itself. Machina is not a technology movie. It is about the breakdown of a faith and power structure we are already living in. Director: Daniel Noonan. 

Monochromatic (Syracuse University, 5 mins).     

A fashion short film exploring color, identity, and self-knowledge follows one man through a single day in midnight blue, olive green, and burgundy, as two internal voices—Teacher and Student—debate the myth of Narcissus. Director: Mia Hernandez.

Noise Within (RIT, Drama/Suspense, 12 mins, Q&A). When an internal cochlear implant malfunctions twenty years after surgery, a Deaf woman is consumed by tinnitus and forced into a high-stakes decision with no clear way back. Director Joseph Ausenio is Deaf/Disabled. Trailer.

Survival Story (Syracuse University, Thriller, 19 mins, Q&A). A weekend getaway in a secluded cabin is the perfect location for taut suspense. Director: Adam Huffman.  

Dear Satan (SVA, Animated, 4 mins). Satan is attempts to deliver presents to all the children who misspell Santa as Satan in order to show Santa who's boss. Director: Daelan Hontanosas.