Youth Filmmaker Show 2023!

Youth Filmmaker Show – 10th annual filmmaker showcase! Only filmmakers 17 or younger could apply. We are honored that these filmmakers did not shy away from serious issues which may impress, surprise and/or inspire you. (Multi-national, 2021-22 / English or w/English subtitles  / 93 mins / All Ages*  Films with more serious content will be placed at the end.)

Films and film line-up are subject to change without notice.

BE GOOD PEOPLE – Kim Jong Un signs a contract to launch a nuclear missile into the ocean. In the end, the plan fails and the missile hits back to North Korea. (2022 / 1 min / California, USA / dir. Henry Seunghoon Chung 14yrs old / no dialogue)

BEE THE SOLUTION – Leading bee experts explain the causes for declining bee populations around the world and offer approachable solutions individuals can take to support their local pollinators. (2022 / 9 mins / California / dir. Charlotte Quintanar / 17 yrs old / in English)

CARD OF LUCK – Flip card animation inspired by Pokemon. (2022 / 1.5 mins / Fullerton, CA / dir. Hyunbin Moon – 11yrs old / no dialogue)

DANGUN – The mythical foundation of the first kingdom of Korea, animated and retold by the 4th and 5th grade students of Crestwood Elementary school in Madison, WI.  (2022 / 8 mins / Madison, WI / 9 & 10yr old students /  in English)

FITTING IN – “Fitting In” is a symbolic social-impact film that draws a parallel between fitting into shoes and fitting into society, and, in doing so, it inspires us to embrace our unique personalities. (2022 / 3.5 mins / Mahwah, NJ / dir. Mark Leschinsky – 16yrs old / in English)

HARDCORE – Sarah, a young photographer with many tattoos and piercings, falls in love with August, the reckless drummer in a band. Before their love story can play out, she finds herself suspended between, life, death, and motherhood and is forced to make life altering choices.  (2022 / 10 mins / Calabasas, CA / dir. Madeleine Case – 17yrs old / in English)

IMPERFECT – A young woman struggling with mental illness is held captive by a dark ominous shadow figure in a dull colorless bedroom where she discovers mysterious yellow sticky notes left on the walls encouraging her to escape her captor.  (2022 / 6.5 mins / Woonsocket, RI / dir. Sam Robinson 17yrs old / no dialogue) **WARNING: narrative contains scenes of self harm.

MAGIC EIGHT BALL – A teenager who uses a magic 8 ball to make life decisions struggles to overcome anxiety and ask out her someone she has a crush on.  (2022 / 5 mins / Boston, MA / dir. AJ James Tuck 14yrs old / in English)

MINA – Mina is a Korean-American teenager who wants to be more Korean than American. But between her estranged father and her new friends, nothing goes as she planned.
A thought-provoking story about overcoming identity crisis as a Third Culture Kid. (2022 / 13.5 mins / Seoul, Korea / dir. Garvin Kim 16yrs old / Korean w/English subtitles)

MOVING IN – Global warming is real!  (2022 / 1 min / Fullerton, CA / dir. Alicia Yoon 15 yrs old / no dialogue)

SUPER PUP – A young girl breaks down misconceptions about Pit Bulls as she shares her experience living with Cocoa, an adopted Staffordshire Bull Terrier. (2022 / 2.5 mins / Utah / dir. Nathaly Orrego 14yrs old / in English)

WE WISH THE WORLD WOULD NOT END TOMORROW – Tomorrow is the last day on Earth. What will the high school students think and how will they spend their last day?
“Will you marry me?” The day before the end of the world, he proposed….. (2022 / 7.5 mins / Japan / Taiyo Hayashi, Miyabi Noto, Naoki Wakabayashi, Ayaka Kawada 17-18yrs old / in Japanese w/English subtitles)

THE LOCKWOOD HOUSE – Two sisters must try to survive the night in the mysterious Lockwood House. The only thing stranger than the house itself is the brother and sister who live there. (2022 / 12 mins / Roanoke, VA / dir. Emmerson Perdue 17yrs old / in English)

REACH FOR YOUR STAR – A teenage girl in a rural town anxiously attempts a societal norm of catching a star, but soon learns with a little help that everyone’s journey and goals are uniquely different.  (2022 / 4 mins / Woonsocket, RI / dir. Kattie Quinn 17yrs old)

BUTTERFLY PLAYGROUND – “Butterfly Playground” is a whimsical take on the tragedy of losing a friend. Based on a true story, this short film explores the joys and sorrow of three children who had a friend who was a little different… and truly special. (2022 / 2 mins / Carlsbad, CA / dir. Bryn Wright 11yrs old / in English)

NANCY THE GIRL – Nancy the Girl is about a store in White River Junction, Vermont that promotes body positivity, gender fluidity and having fun while dressing up.  (2022 / 5 mins / Norwich, VT / dirs. Soren Taylor Stettenheim, Finn Duncan 17yrs old/ in English) 

DOUBT THE STARS ARE FIRE – When 16-year-old Alex learns an unsettling truth about her late mother, she begins to question the nature of her own existence. (2022 / 14 mins / Cambridge, MA / dir. Jaemin Feldman 17yrs old / in English)