Best of CHICAGO Festival Shorts
          
            Today's Film Festival
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          2h 16m
        
      
    Emma, 11min., Canada
Directed by Robert Bockstael
Two women, associated through addiction are spiraling downwards. In a rare moment of clarity, nearing the end of their salvageable lives, Emma remembers a long-forgotten ‘secret stash’ of money she and her grandmother kept for an emergency. Embarking on a quest for this treasure – this perceived salvation – they find instead an offer of redemption.
https://carusoproductions.com/emma/
https://www.wildsound.ca/videos/audience-feedback-emma
 
Timeless : A Symphony in Motion, 5min., UK
Directed by Susan Mey Lee Lim, Christina Teenz Tan, Samudra Kajal Saikia
"Timeless : A Symphony in Motion"" is a captivating music video that seamlessly blends a live recording of the titular song with poignant animated overlays, creating a visual and auditory experience that resonates deeply with audiences. Filmed at the legendary Abbey Road Studios in April 2025, the video features the 82-member Royal Philharmonic Orchestra, and the extraordinary vocals of Tom Ball, a star from America’s Got Talent.
https://www.instagram.com/fantasyofcompanionship/
https://www.wildsound.ca/videos/audience-feedback-timeless
 
NEXT UP, 30min., UK
Directed by Marion H von Loewenstern
Juliette Mandeville and Tilly Anders, two actresses follow a call for an audition to London. Juliette is already a successful and well-known actress who, however, due to her age, is no longer offered good film roles. Tilly Anders on the other hand, is at the beginning of her career, she is very young, inexperienced and full of self-doubt. The director is a shady character driven by selfishness. Juliettes audition doesn't go well . Tilly is overcome nervousness and flees from the theatre before it's her turn. How will the two women deal with it and will their lives take a turn? In the style of a surreal dramedy, the story gives a socially critical insight into the entertainment industry, with its possible obstacles and difficulties.
https://www.wildsound.ca/videos/audience-feedback-next-up
Night Shift at Ned's, 25min., USA
Directed by Hagen Mattingly
A seasoned waitress starts a new job at an overnight diner in the deep south, and learns new meaning to the term "customers from Hell."
https://www.instagram.com/night_shift_at_neds
https://www.wildsound.ca/videos/audience-feedback-night-shift-at-neds
Chicago Crime, 19min., USA
Directed by Marcus DiPaola
Marcus DiPaola and Jermaine Kelly chase crime across Chicago, finding shocking differences between how police act in minority neighborhoods versus wealthy neighborhoods.
https://www.wildsound.ca/videos/audience-feedback-chicago-crimes
 
Pesticide, 7min,. USA
Directed by Justin Graham
An exterminator duels both late night insects and an overbearing car salesman.
https://www.wildsound.ca/videos/audience-feedback-pesticide
Invincibles, 25min., France
Directed by Shane Rosilio
This film is a dinner party behind closed doors. Hannah is hosting a dinner party at her house with her grandmother, her old school teacher, one of her classmates, and her brother, who lives with her. The classmate seems unaware of what he's doing there, the school teacher tries to be as discreet as possible, and the brother keeps coughing. The atmosphere at dinner is heavy, as if everyone is superfluous, and the room is increasingly filled with unease...
https://www.wildsound.ca/videos/audience-feedback-invincibles
 
THE TENDER ONES WILL TRIUMPH, 15min., Poland
Directed by Francisco Bassignana
A young Ukrainian girl live in Poland as immigrant. she received several calls from her mother but she doesn't want to answer because she think that something bad is going on.
https://wildsound.vhx.tv/videos/audience-feedback-the-tender-ones