New Jersey Film Festival Fall 2024 - Shorts Program

Red Snow – Susana Olmedo Alvarez, Aurelia Gil Junco (Madrid, Spain)

In this lovely animated film, a little girl and a vampire live in a village by the forest where they pass time together. An incident and a memory from the girl’s past will challenge their relationship and the course of their lives forever. 2024; 5 min.

Jacob Grows 6 More Years in 1 Second – Elijah Reiss, Jacob Paul (East Brunswick, New Jersey)

A 12-year-old boy named Jacob gets stuck in a basement freezer and only comes to consciousness every 6 years to meet his captor, the zany and mysterious Elijah. Follow him over the course of 18 years as he navigates trying to understand his predicament and the time he has lost. 2024; 7 min.

These Years – Kiana Rosa Fischer (New Brunswick, New Jersey)

These Years is an experimental dance film exploring the conflicts in motherhood— desires for freedom and the reality of others’ needs. Topics on inclusion of children in life and society, dependence and independence, choice and alternative freedoms are interwoven in the images seen and words heard. 2024; 8 min.

Dog Days – Ryan Kurt Whiting (Oakland, California)

Summer in the suburbs. Loveless marriage, a gilded cage. Joyful innocence, unbridled potential. Slow surrender to middle-age, retreat and regret. Tails wag, sharp tongues devastate. Wonderful, terrible, disastrous life leaves no heart intact. Through it all, ball keeps turning, we keep chasing. 2024; 17 min.

Spirit of Place – Jack Cooper Stimpson (London, England)

Athel and Edward enjoy visiting the wetlands. Edward likes watching the birds, whilst Athel seems to have a much deeper connection to the landscape. When Athel makes a discovery, she is forced to re-examine what the wetlands mean to her. Starring Mark Rylance. 2024; 30 min.

Mitti (Discovering Ikigai) – Sangita Iyer (Canada)

Mitti (Discovering Ikigai) is a story of young woman in Canada who chose organic farming as her career choice. Through her story the film highlights the Japanese concept of Ikigai to inspire others, especially youth, to find their passion and purpose in life. The film also highlights environmental and sustainability challenges the world is facing and how ancient cultures considered Mother Earth with gratitude instead of a commodity. The film also attempts to break stereotypes we have about how/what a farmer looks like. The film poster has been conceived and created by at 12-year art enthusiast who seems to have discovered her Ikigai. 2024; 30 min.