See the Full Lineup of Films:

STRANGE FRUIT: The Hip-Hopera Short Film "Hear the Cry", 8min., USA
Directed by Marlon Jones, Dyneesha Moore
Imagine a powerful Black woman in the 21st century being thrust back into the 1800s Antebellum South as a slave with only one chance to escape back to her reality. This is the story of LaShelle Robinson, a spit-fire Wall Street executive, who travels back in time to rescue her enslaved ancestor, Inka, from a violent lynching — all to lift the generational curse off her white fiancé, Todd Decatur, the love of her life. After all, it is his ancestors that killed hers — a curse which now blocks their marriage. Her spirit guide, June, a magical Underground Railroad conductor, guides LaShelle back on her extraordinary journey of discovery. A thrilling hip-hop musical told through rap, song and dance, Strange Fruit is like 12 Years a Slave meets Hamilton. The story navigates the precarious road to discovering your roots, racial reconciliation, romance and ultimately redemption.

http://www.strangefruithiphopera.com/
https://www.facebook.com/strangefruithiphopera
https://www.instagram.com/strangefruit_hiphopera

QUARCE UPON A TIME, 14min., Italy
Directed by Tommy Pascal
She never cries. She never smiles. She never dies. After centuries buried under the ground, Christina lives again. And what if she would tell her story herself this time ?

http://www.tommypascal.com/
https://www.instagram.com/tommypascal

TAKE YOUR ZEN, 1min., USA
Directed by Travon Trammell
A talented ballerina uses her headphones to escape and find her voice as a performer.

FR:AGILITY, 8min., Singapore
Directed by Amanda Tan
The film lenses the body and its form as sculpture; its undulating curves and slopes as landscape; and the skin we live in and shed as texture.

REFLECTION, 9min., Canada
Directed by Zav Jenabian
On competition day, a tireless ballet dancer grappling with the recent loss of her father, runs into her love interest. To her, love is a mere escapist fantasy so when her feelings are exposed, the continuation of her fantasy is put into question.

STILL, 6min., Peru
Directed by Elías Mujica Checa, Verónica Garrido Lecca, Maria Angela Talavera Tejeda
Six women attempt to move forward as a collective, but their journey seems to bring them back to their starting point. They face a challenge to break free from this state of stagnation, which leads them into a cycle of chaos and harmony. This dance film is a call to reflect on society's standards of beauty and how much we relate to them.

SUNLIGHT DANCE, 4min,. USA
Directed by Kendra Moore
An estranged couple in their 50s rekindle their love through dance.

BUTTERFLY'S BAQA, 6min., USA
Directed by Abby London, Mariam-Saba Ahmad
This heart-opening dance film Butterfly’s Baqa invites the viewer to drop into their heart and open to an experience of meaningful beauty. Dancers Mariam-Saba Ahmad and Antonio Samayoa move through a European traditional dance, the waltz, to modern American Pop music, expressing ancient Eastern spiritual concepts. The art and music are created and sung by Mariam-Saba Ahmad specifically for this film, to create a cohesive message, a reminder that there is a purpose to the difficulty we all experience, and that freedom and connection we all search for is within our grasp.

SEEDS, 4min., USA
Directed by Ariyan Johnson
The climate conference in Dubai that took place on December 1, 2023, revealed the U.S. as the second biggest contributor to global emissions of greenhouse gas pollution. Although China is the number one culprit of pollution, per capita individuals in the U.S. have twice as much of a carbon footprint than anyone on the planet. According to the World Meteorological Organization, 2023 marks the hottest year on record with a 2.5-degree global average temperature increase. As the temperature rises on the earth, humankind may be threatened for survival. The most important thing for the future is the seeds we sow today to continue to survive for tomorrow.

https://www.facebook.com/ariyanjohnosn
https://www.instagram.com/ariyanjohnson

GODDESS OF SPRING & DEATH, 8min., USA
Directed by Jessa M. Wright
A retelling of the Hades and Persephone myth, focusing on Persephone's personal freedom told through the medium of ballet.

https://www.instagram.com/goddessofspringdeath/