dir. Robin Boissevain European Film College While Jonas helps his dad to save his fast food joint from almost going bankrupt because of the ruthless competition of the neighboring fast food joint, he falls in love with the daughter of the feared competitor. A modern times Romeo and Juliet.
dir. Kejd Kuqo Humber College Film and Television Program A young girl is forced to the limits of her humanity in order to survive the Bosnian War.
dir. Christoph Rainer Columbia University The hopelessly romantic Lisa takes desperate measures to win her former lover back. But the fact that he already has a new girl at his side and that Lisa needs to bring her alcoholic father to an anti-varicose-campaign photo shooting without letting him know, is not particularly helping. The tragedy takes its course.
dir. Julian Taffa Yale University Our unsuspecting hero, a young cat lover named Harry, stumbles across a magical shoe room that allows him to step into the shoes of other people.
dir. Ya'Shalan Nelson California State University, Sacramento 1992. Two cousins linger around the woods without motive, stumbling upon what seems like a lost bag. They take interest in retrieving it and set out to find the owner. It doesn’t take very long before they find her, cold and alone.
dir. Nathan Glendinning University for the Creative Arts Leon, a newly formed skinhead must make the decision between his sexuality or his current lifestyle. Based on true events such as the New Cross For and the London riots in 1981.
dir. Marga Congreso Eicar International Film School Mx. Pink tackles the phenomenon of gender pluralism. It is a story of two individuals from near extreme ends of the gender spectrum. Gabriel, a 32-year old actor, a sportsman and a huge soccer fan, who happens to have a soft spot for dressing up as a woman. On the other hand we have Jigs, a tomboyish 25-year old woman, who dresses like a man and acts like one. This is a modern adaptation of Cinderella, just without the focus on the shoe
dir. Elizabeth Ku, Marie Raoult, Nicholas Manfredi, Thaddaeus Andreades School of Visual Arts Steven, a young man, plans out a perfect wedding proposal. It is interrupted when he drops his engagement ring into the ocean. He follows the ring into unknown waters, and meets an extremely friendly octopus who helps him on his search.
dir. Robin Boissevain European Film College While Jonas helps his dad to save his fast food joint from almost going bankrupt because of the ruthless competition of the neighboring fast food joint, he falls in love with the daughter of the feared competitor. A modern times Romeo and Juliet.
dir. Kejd Kuqo Humber College Film and Television Program A young girl is forced to the limits of her humanity in order to survive the Bosnian War.
dir. Christoph Rainer Columbia University The hopelessly romantic Lisa takes desperate measures to win her former lover back. But the fact that he already has a new girl at his side and that Lisa needs to bring her alcoholic father to an anti-varicose-campaign photo shooting without letting him know, is not particularly helping. The tragedy takes its course.
dir. Julian Taffa Yale University Our unsuspecting hero, a young cat lover named Harry, stumbles across a magical shoe room that allows him to step into the shoes of other people.
dir. Ya'Shalan Nelson California State University, Sacramento 1992. Two cousins linger around the woods without motive, stumbling upon what seems like a lost bag. They take interest in retrieving it and set out to find the owner. It doesn’t take very long before they find her, cold and alone.
dir. Nathan Glendinning University for the Creative Arts Leon, a newly formed skinhead must make the decision between his sexuality or his current lifestyle. Based on true events such as the New Cross For and the London riots in 1981.
dir. Marga Congreso Eicar International Film School Mx. Pink tackles the phenomenon of gender pluralism. It is a story of two individuals from near extreme ends of the gender spectrum. Gabriel, a 32-year old actor, a sportsman and a huge soccer fan, who happens to have a soft spot for dressing up as a woman. On the other hand we have Jigs, a tomboyish 25-year old woman, who dresses like a man and acts like one. This is a modern adaptation of Cinderella, just without the focus on the shoe
dir. Elizabeth Ku, Marie Raoult, Nicholas Manfredi, Thaddaeus Andreades School of Visual Arts Steven, a young man, plans out a perfect wedding proposal. It is interrupted when he drops his engagement ring into the ocean. He follows the ring into unknown waters, and meets an extremely friendly octopus who helps him on his search.
dir. Margot Reumont ENSAV La Cambre At rush hour, a fruit crowd throng into the metro to the frantic rhythm of the music . The metro stops abruptly and the fruits renounce their eagerness gradually, they begin to fall asleep and dream of a world where they grow on trees. But the metro reboots suddenly and they return to the harsh reality: the terminus.
dir. Oliver Orr Yale University A wrench is thrown into a young couple's date when Elizabeth's former lover wanders into the restaurant.
dir. Maxime Lahousse Narafi, Luca School of Arts Ambivalence tells the story of Nora, who lives a very eccentric life. She looks at her life as if it’s a rollercoaster that's only going up. But Nora doesn’t realize that her cheerful nature might also have a very dark edge.
dir. Jessica Patterson Institute of Art, Design and Technology - Ireland Archie is different, too different to leave the house, but he wants to spend more time with his daughter. When her school organises a parent-teacher meeting Archie sees his chance to be a normal Dad but risks revealing his secret as some local kids attempt to expose who he really is.
dir. Amy Wagenaar Michigan State University In a world, in a country, on a map, in a wood, lies a town of shadows at the end of a cracked road. At the end of the lane, at the edge of the town there is a house with a boy named Charlie. This is Charlie.
dir. Ronald (Animation Dir), Qingping(Art Dir) Nanyang Technological University - School Of Art, Design And Media Nucai is a dedicated servant to the Emperor who finds himself neglected when the Emperor chances upon a new pet. Sensing something fishy about the pet, Nucai warns the Emperor about his suspicions but his good intentions fell onto deaf ears. It’s now up to Nucai, to stop an assassination plot against the Emperor.
dir. Lorène Yavo École nationale supérieure des arts visuels de La Cambre A traveller reaches the ocean and begins a journey in a dark and dangerous marine setting, then into the lowest point, the Nadir, in order to finally get to the other shore
dir. Marius Krivicius Lithuanian Academy of Music and Theatre Eagle Scout lands in a foreign planet to search for life, but finds something unexpected.
dir. Erika Bizousky Virginia Commonwealth University "John" is a short narrative film with no script, only a soundtrack. A waitress gets hit on by a customer and then she decides to take his car for a spin when he offers her a ride.
dir. Andrea Cristini Vancouver Film School Three ghosts, representing three different generations, keep a portrait of themselves as the unique sign left of their own identity after death. Two of the ghosts have an analog portrait, while the third one has a digital portrait. Soon they will experience the obsolescence of technology, which will challenge the preservation of memories through time.
dir. Fabien Luszezyszyn Ecole de la Cite In a future where contract killings are legal, Leon orders the murder of his wife he can’t stand anymore. On the day, everything seems to go as planned… Until clause 9.7 gets in the way.
dir. Oliver Kurrle Media University Stuttgart, Germany Lucid dreaming is a fantastic skill which gives you 100% control over your dreams. That makes it possible to be conscious in a dream and to shape it. Three lucid dreaming experts tell their most interesting dream stories which are visualized with stunning motion pictures.
dir. Luke Whitworth University for the Creative Arts Jim Sharkey is a 'cigar-box guitar' maker from the UK, he has adapted the traditional style to form unique quality instruments. Jim crafts these guitars from recycled materials, making guitars to order based on his clients needs. You can find out more and contact Jim directly via his website: junksville.co.uk
dir. Felix Robinson Cambridge School of Art, Anglia Ruskin Unfinished business is a film about a man, his family and his obsession with bodybuilding. After placing 18th in the UK's largest bodybuilding competition, Nat Simon has taken a year out to bulk up and understand why he wants to be the most muscular man in Britain.
dir. Aron Horvath Academy of Theatre, Radio, Film and Television (AGRFT) Ljubljana, Slovenia Csillag Jenő is a middle aged man who comes to a small Slovenian town to research the local myth about extraterrestrial beings. He is determined to find proof and after a few failures his path becomes even more lonely and and sees no end in sight. A journey of an eternally lonely man, a so called ˝freak˝ who is after the big question which remains unanswered ˝What is our purpose?"
dir. Hanna Hovitie Metropolia University of Applied Sciences A young Congolese woman shares her story of becoming a victim of child trafficking and being thrown into a whirlwind of drifting between continents.
dir. Rodolfo Pimenta Project Colectivo Fotograma 24 Animated documentary short film made by the youth of the Portuguese city of Montemor-o- Novo. Over a two month period, these youngsters took a trip down memory lane to collect the testimonies of an older generation who witnessed 40 years of dictatorship and another 40 of fable-like democracy only to find out that the struggle for basic human rights has become.
dir. Andy Gottschalk Virginia Commonwealth University A tonal poem ruminates on the crippling leisure of summer - and its threatening freedom. Animated with experimental media and narrated poetically, "Nerves Most Spoiled" contradicts its own visuals with a painful reflection of festering sanity. Lingering, exploitative and occasionally uncomfortable, the film asks the viewer to play voyeur, through moments of clarity and abnormality.
dir. Sam Kirchoff THE UNIVERSITY OF WISCONSIN-MILWAUKEE The calm of the cyclist in nature meets the pixilated tactility of Hi8 videotape in this poetically-fragmented travelogue.
dir. June Kim Tufts University/ School of the Museum of Fine Arts in Boston Allergies are irritating. It keeps everything from being done. There are many ways to solve it but none of them is ‘the’ solution. The stress builds up, and the tension grows. Eyes watery, head spinning, but then there is "the perfect solution."
dir. Motahareh Ahmadpour University of art in Tehran you can see wonderful city...with heart and brain!!
dir. Rima Irani Holy Spirit University of Kaslik – Lebanon A patient is attending a session with his hypnotherapist.The purpose is to travel back to childhood through the milestones of the whole past life.We can feel the conflict and the complexity.The theme is waking hypnosis.N*B: All scenes are illustrated in SFX, VFX and surrealistic atmosphere.
dir. Adam Dargan Minneapolis College of Art and Design Dispersion captures the process of 35mm film emulsion being dissolved in three dimensional space. It explores the feeling of nature and visual landscapes that are created from unconventional sources.
dir. Evgenia Gostrer School of Art and Design Kassel A garbage man on his daily routine. A cat on her stray through the streets. A meeting during the lunch break.
dir. Bianca Boragi Yale University (School of Art) Cotton Candy is an experimental short film that incorporates multiple disciplines such as sculpture and performance. I shot this piece in a furniture store in Ridgewood, NY, which reminded me somehow of a purgatory, a space of repeating forms. By placing a character in this space, themes of wealth, narcissism and addiction emerged. The juxtaposition of these elements creates a tension, offering questions of self-representation.
Photo Gallery
Health on Film: Intersecting Medicine and Media
4PM: William L. Harkness Hall, Room 112, Yale University
April 18, 2016
BROADCASTING HEALTH: What happens when health news breaks? In this interactive workshop, produce a mock minute-long segment for the evening news, and learn what you need to create accurate, ethical, and compelling stories about health and medicine. Learn about pitching stories to a network, interviewing sources, and shooting for the news versus film. Storytellers and doctors welcome!
Michael Nedelman is a Digital Producer for ABC News Medical Unit who has directed a number of documentaries about health and medicine. An M.D. candidate at Stanford and their current Global Health Media Fellow, he also recently trained at the World Health Organization in New Delhi and the Stanford Graduate Program in Journalism. He graduated from Yale in 2008, majoring in Film Studies.
The Business of Screenwriting with Vineet Dewan
3:30PM: Whitney Humanities Center, Room B-04, Yale University
April 19, 2016
Come learn about the art and business of writing screenplays that sell and navigating the film industry with seasoned Yale Alumnus (Class of 2002), Vineet Dewan!
Tapped by Filmmaker Magazine as one of 25 New Faces to Watch, Writer-Director Vineet Dewan, was born in Bahrain and grew up in London. He graduated from Westminster School in London; and Yale University (’02) in Film Studies and Psychology, Phi Beta Kappa, with a double distinction and an award for his contribution to the visual arts.
After receiving his MFA in directing from the USC School of Cinema, where he was awarded both the John Huston Directing Award and the Bush Cinematography Award, Vineet was selected for the NBC-Universal director training program where he worked on prime time shows including "Heroes" and "Friday Night Lights". His short film "Clear Cut, Simple" won the Directors Guild of America Award and top prizes at over a dozen film festivals including SXSW; it was recently showcased by the 10th Tribeca Film Festival as part of their ten best shorts of the last decade.
Opening Screening Spotlight
6:30PM: The Loria Center, Room 250, Yale University
April 19, 2016
Join us for the opening screening of the Film Festival with the film that won Best Picture and Best Screenplay at the Academy Awards this year!
The true story of how the Boston Globe uncovered the massive scandal of child molestation and cover-up within the local Catholic Archdiocese, shaking the entire Catholic Church to its core.
Director: Tom McCarthy (YSD'95)
Writers: Josh Singer(YC'94), Tom McCarthy
Stars: Mark Ruffalo, Michael Keaton, Rachel McAdams, Liev Schreiber (YSD'92)
Your First Indie Feature: A Conversation With Jay Dockendorf
4PM: William L. Harkness Hall, Room 112, Yale University
April 21, 2016
Come learn about the exprience of making your first indie feature with Yalie Jay Dockendorf, the writer and director of Naz & Maalik, which premiered at the 2015 SXSW Film Festival.
JAY DOCKENDORF (writer, director) is a writer, director and composer. Naz & Maalik is his first narrative feature. His short documentary “Vigilante Copy Editor” (2013) was a featured Op-Doc of The New York Times. He co-composed the music for Naz & Maalik with Adam Gunther. Winner of Tribeca Film Institute's IWC Filmmaker Award for Naz & Maalik, Jay has two more features in development with producers Margaret Katcher and Jacob Albert.
YSFF16 Alumni Screening: Naz & Maalik
7PM: The Loria Center, Room 250, Yale University
April 21, 2016
Join us for a screening of a Yale alumnus film, followed by a Q+A with the director!
One of “12 Breakouts of the 2015 SXSW Film Festival”
- IndieWire
“Original stories about underrepresented characters are hard to come by these days, and Naz & Maalik succeeds at not just finding a niche, but rising above the clever concept and delivering a powerful treatise on what it is to be young and disenfranchised in New York City.”
- Austin Chronicle
Over the course of one meditative Friday afternoon, two closeted Muslim teens have their secretive lives rattled by lingering FBI surveillance. Naz & Maalik examines the mysterious forces that animate teenage minds.
Check out the trailer here:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pCuUqTeZIoY
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JAY DOCKENDORF (writer, director) is a writer, director and composer. Naz & Maalik is his first narrative feature. His short documentary “Vigilante Copy Editor” (2013) was a featured Op-Doc of The New York Times. He co-composed the music for Naz & Maalik with Adam Gunther. Winner of Tribeca Film Institute's IWC Filmmaker Award for Naz & Maalik, Jay has two more features in development with producers Margaret Katcher and Jacob Albert.
MARGARET KATCHER (producer) is an LA-based writer and film producer. She began her career in film after spending two years in New Orleans as a Teach for America corps member, and hopes to produce material that presents beautiful writing and complex, diverse characters. She currently works for screenwriter Eric Roth.
JACOB ALBERT (producer) is a writer and producer. Currently a Fellow at the Michener Center for Writers in Austin, Texas, he is at work on several film projects and a collection of short stories.
Student Block #1: The Super Shorts
1PM: The Whitney Humanities Center Auditorium, Yale University
April 22, 2016
Short and (sometimes) sweet.
Followed by a Q+A with directors!
Free and open to the public.
1. Hurry Up (Belgium)
2. Precipice (USA) - Yale College
3. Ambivalence (Belgium)
4. Did You Hear About Her Dad? (UK)
5. The World is Beautiful (USA)
6. You Ci Ke (Singapore)
7. Nadir (Belgium)
8. Mission 5065 (Lithuania)
9. John (USA)
10. Obsolescence (Canada)
11. Until Death Do You Part (France)
YSFF16: Works-In-Progress
3:30PM: The Yale Film Study Center, Room B20, Yale University
April 22, 2016
Filmmaking is a long process. Interested in seeing what some Yalie filmmakers are up to? Consider coming by to see works-in-progress of a documentary and narrative film made by two teams of Yalies!
Because the screening is a works-in-progress, your feedback is requested, and may even effect the final look of the film!
SUNKEN ROADS (2016) — dir. Charlotte Juergens
A feature-length documentary about WWII vets returning to Normandy for D-Day's 70th anniversary.
In June 2014, I traveled with a group of American veterans from the 29th Infantry Division, as they retraced their route from D-Day.
My great grandfather, also a D-Day vet, belonged to this same division, and this family connection fostered a unique closeness between the veterans and myself. These men have permanently shaped my life. They saw me as their granddaughter and shared stories with me unlike any I’ve ever heard.
SUNKEN ROADS is an exploration of memory, inter-generational relationships and the human need to commemorate.
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DOWN THE RABBIT HOLE (2016) — dir. Jackie Ferro
When a young freshman shows up late to his first discussion section in college, he is asked by a member of the class if he is the TA, to which the flustered student replies, "Yeah… yeah I'm TJ." This misunderstanding causes our young hero to accidentally lead a section and later embrace his new identity as TJ the TA. A series of misadventures, including awkward interactions with the class's real TAs, a crush on the smartest girl in section, and many, many papers to grade, catches TJ in a web of lies that he has to unravel if he wants to avoid expulsion and - hopefully - have a successful freshman year.
Student Block #2: The Narrative Shorts
6PM: The Whitney Humanities Center Auditorium, Yale University
April 22, 2016
Free and Open to the Public.
1. The Shoe Room (USA) - Yale College
2. Parnassus (Netherlands)
3. Bosniak (Canada)
4. Pitter Patter Goes My Heart (USA)
5. The Fifth (USA)
6. Leon (UK)
7. Mx. Pink (France)
8. Taking the Plunge (USA) - PLUS Q+A with the directors
Student Block #3: The Documentary Shorts
10AM: The Whitney Humanities Center Auditorium, Yale University
April 23, 2016
Join us for the documentary component of the 2016 Yale Student Film Festival followed by a Q+A with directors!
Free and open to the public.
The screening will include:
1. Painting Doors (Germany)
2. Junksville (UK)
3. Unfinished Business (UK)
4. Csillag (Slovenia)
5. Miles to Go (Finland)
6. What Day is Today (Portugal)
Be sure to check out the other screenings for YSFF16 this April 18-23!
Student Block #4: The Experimental Films
1PM: The Whitney Humanities Center Auditorium, Yale University
April 23, 2016
Free and Open to the Public.
The screening will include:
1. Nerves Most Spoiled (USA)
2. Bike Trip (USA)
3. Hootchu (Korea)
4. Redpoint (Iran)
5. Forgiveness (Lebanon)
6. Dispersion (USA)
7. Frankfurter (Germany)
8. Cotton Candy (USA) & Q+A***
Be sure to check out the other screenings for YSFF16 this April 18-23!
The 2016 Yale Senior Thesis Films
4PM: The Whitney Humanities Center Auditorium, Yale University
April 23, 2016
Free and Open to the Public.
Join us for a screening of the five narrative short films from the Class of 2016's Film and Media Studies Majors! Followed by a Q+A with the directors!
ALL NIGHT BLUES — writted/directed by Nick Henriquez
OVER DINNER —written/directed by Travis Gonzalez
THE PERFECT FOURTH — written/directed by Henry Wolf
THE CAMEL'S BACK —written/directed by Michelle Mboya
LAVENDER — written/directed by Eric Nelson
The 2016 Lineup
YSFF 2016
April 18th-23rd | Yale University
Official Selection
Narrative Shorts
Super Shorts
Documentary Shorts
Documentary Shorts
Experimental Shorts
dir. Nick Henriquez An introverted radio DJ, Aldo, is followed out of a bar one night by a strange woman, Jen, who seems to have a concussion. Jen convinces Aldo to help her stay awake all night so she doesn’t fall into a coma; Aldo hesitantly agrees. Over the course of the night, Jen forces Aldo to reluctantly open up to her, but when she disappears, he realizes how isolated he’s become.
dir. Travis Gonzalez Frustrated by her eccentric mother's care-free role as grandmother, her adult daughter unravels their complicated past over dinner.
dir. Eric Nelson Wall Street fuccboi movies (American Psycho, Wolf of Wall Street) are awesome, but the protagonists have way too much fun for our taste. Don't get us wrong; we're all for the drugs, sex & alcohol. But what if, rather than fueling the douchebag lifestyle, there was a substance that hit these bastards where it hurts most.
dir. Henry Wolf When 17-year-old Jack goes to purchase an electric guitar from someone on Craigslist, he hopes for an easy transaction. Instead, he learns that the guitar’s previous owner was the seller’s son, who passed away a year ago. As emotions surrounding the prized guitar get a hold of the family and their wills diverge, we follow Jack as he navigates the role he's assumed in this family's grieving process.
dir. Michelle Mboya This film is about a 13 year old girl living with a mental illness. She lives in a desert land that has no beginning and no end. She believes that she has only one day left to live and wants nothing more than to find 'Diani Beach' before sunset.