Ace and Anxious

The relationship of a couple who meet by chance in New York City is put to the test when they encounter a life or death circumstance.

When a change of circumstances leaves Miriam unable to pay her college tuition, she makes a surprising decision: to start performing in adult films, using the pseudonym Belle Knox. Miriam lies to her family and her friends at school, keeping her double life a secret. But soon rumours spread and Miriam becomes the subject of vicious online attacks and unwanted attention. Miriam fights back: she talks to the media, saying her new line of work empowers her as a feminist. But her confident stand has unintended consequences. Miriam is shunned by her conservative family and her colleagues in the adult film world. One impulsive decision has quickly spiralled out of control - and Miriam's problems are just beginning.

Kate has been absent from high school for a week due to a fractured foot. Upon returning, she discovers that her clique of friends has devised a new, secret plan codenamed "Lick the Star."

A filmmaker talks about his work and love life with an unseen friend behind the camera. We also watch four of his short films.

MMA legend Patton James, now a commercial fisherman, is pulled back into the cage when his brother is in danger. Reuniting with his old coach Sammy, he commits to one final fight in one championship against the brutal champion Xavier Grau.

Fourteen-year-old Mo is a lonely, sensitive boy whose hunger for the rant and banter of buddies makes him prone to tread dangerous territories. He idolizes his handsome older brother, Rashid, a charismatic, well-respected member of a local gang, whose drug dealing enables “Rash” to provide for his family. Aching to be seen as a tough guy himself, Mo takes a job that unlocks a fateful turn of events and forces the brothers to confront their inner demons. It turns out that hate is easy. It is love and understanding that take real courage.

The eldest son of a ruthlessly tough MMA champion must fight his way out of the abusive cycle his father has continued.

A noir thriller set in Miami, the film follows an enforcer who discovers his femme fatale boss has branched out into cyber sex trafficking, putting a young runaway he’s befriended at risk. He sacrifices everything to save the young girl from the deadly organization he’s spent his life building.

Fifteen-year-old Alice has always been a good Catholic, but when an innocent AOL chat turns unexpectedly racy, she finds herself suddenly obsessed with sex.

Evangelist Carlton Pearson is ostracized by his church for preaching that there is no Hell.

A disconnected teenage girl enters a relationship with a man twice her age. She sees him as the solution to all her problems, but his intentions are not what they seem.

The story of a rodent's unrelenting quest for happiness and fulfillment.

Paul, a 20 year old midwesterner, arrives at the central bus station and quickly catches eyes with Wye, a 22 year old girl voguing on the sidewalk. After Paul seeks her out in secret, an intense love between them blossoms. But when Paul discovers Wye is trans, he is forced to confront his own identity and what it means to belong.

A woman's life takes an unexpected turn when she falls for her boss's wife. She must soon defend herself as she becomes entangled in a web of malice.

A woman watches time pass beside the suitcases of her ex-lover (who is supposed to come pick them up but never arrives) and a restless dog who doesn't understand that his master has abandoned him.

Bad girl Amy is given one last chance by her adoptive parents, who think her friendship with local girl Chloe is a step in the right direction. But when Amy discovers that Chloe harbors a dark secret, she finds herself fighting for her life.

94-year-old Eleanor Morgenstein tries to rebuild her life after the death of her best friend. As a result, she moves back to New York City after living in Florida for decades.

A couple's lives are thrown into disarray when their daughter is cast opposite a controversial major star.

When fifteen-year-old Tyson attends public school for the first time, his life is changed forever. While helping his father clean up after the football team, Tyson befriends champion marathon runner Aklilu. Never letting his autism hold him back, Tyson becomes determined to run his first marathon in hopes of winning his father's approval. With the help of an unlikely friend and his parents, Tyson learns that with faith in yourself and the courage to take the first step, anything is possible.

A pair of twin brothers from East L.A. choose to live their lives differently and end up on opposite sides of the law.

In a distant galaxy, Sithner, an alien from a cold, emotion-suppressing planet, grows disillusioned with her society's rigid training of feelings. While her peers view emotions as weaknesses, Sithner yearns for genuine connections and experiences. During a research mission, she becomes fascinated with humans and their rich emotional lives. Intrigued by their ability to express and embrace feelings, she decides to break free from her own constraints. Fueled by curiosity, she steals a state-of-the-art Starship and transforms into a human, adopting the life of a man. Ultimately, "Sithner's D-Zire" is a heartfelt exploration of identity, belonging, and the transformative power of embracing one's feelings.

A boy meets a girl. It could be love. But there is this jacket, too. And the jacket will change everything...

Ieva is facing the day of her grandmother's funeral, but her goal of saying goodbye to her grandmother is complicated by the domestic problems of such processions and the growing distance between Ieva and her mother.

In response to the injustices and social inequalities he suffers, a man praises the beating as an ultimate means of communication ...

Calf Rope is the heartwarming tale of love, legacy, and the special bond between a grandfather and his grandson.

To finally gain her father's acceptance, transsexual Leonie decides to return masqueraded as a man to the world of her childhood: the funfair. Though even the old owner of the ghost train has something to hide.

In this short fiction film, Marie has been living in the midst of a nightmare since the accident of Bernard, her brother. Clinging excessively to this handicapped being, she wants to take charge of it. Étienne, her fiancé, has no taste for sacrifice. He reproaches Marie for languishing in her adolescence. Love will prevail. In a definitive gesture, Marie will free herself from the bonds that still held her back to her childhood.

One winter morning, a father and his son go for a jog. Along the way, we understand that a gap has grown between Marco, a Parisian who has come to spend a few days in the countryside, and Jean-Claude, a retired policeman who doesn't talk much. Their love is present, but barriers and modesty hold them back from expressing it.

Short film by Lily Gao.

A crime film directed by Leslie Howard Gordon...

Kyle's 13. He's a good kid, naive but curious. And on a camping holiday with his family he'll learn what growing up is all about... quickly! Led astray by his older cousins' and convinced to play their version of I spy, he will see things he never dreamed of.

A young professional gets so caught up in her 'life' that she loses perspective on the things that truly matter.

"Two Funerals" is a film that focuses on portraits one individual, how does one's mind and values changes? How does social pressure affect him? Compared with the film about social issues, such a story reflects the intrinsic value of human beings.

The Ambulance Man is a story about a paramedic who faces a difficult time at home, as he lives with an abusive partner.

Creating a universe between two small pieces of Cardboard. When Jack and Jill of Cardboard City are separated by Jill's torrid illness, Jack must think outside the box to assure they will be together again.

Two young people wait nervously outside an authority office, working together to attempt to conform to what is expected of them in their upcoming examination.

Frustrated by a long wait for her tardy boyfriend, a young woman is unsatisfied by the candle he sheepishly offers in retribution, then sulks at the armfuls of roses he snaps up from a deli. Her brooding evaporates at the turn of a corner, when she and her ruefully silent companion are confronted by a wall adorned with flyers depicting people still regarded as missing after the September 11th terrorist attacks.

The extremities of a middle-class being ramble on, reflecting poetically on the wretchedness of moderation.

Shooting on 16mm film in Mozambique, director Ico Costa explores the textures of human behaviour as he follows young men who wonder what lies beyond their immediate surroundings. In the fragments of conversations captured in the Maputo market, a recording studio and on coconut trees, we find daily routines and tedium lead to chit-chat on desire, money and hope. In the interplay between performance and document, poetry emerges from fleeting everyday moments.

Summer dream or like nightmare? Somewhere, we're all on our way ...