NoBudge is excited to take part in the Nitehawk Shorts Festival to co-present a program of new work from a group of emerging indie filmmakers. These eight short films are an intriguing mix of narrative, documentary, and animation. A series of intimate portraits and darkly funny visions, each film a fresh take on contemporary life and its myriad lifestyles and identities.

Q&A moderated by Kentucker Audley, NoBudge

Organic Matter
Emily Halaka / U.S. / 2022 / 9 min. / English
A group of scavengers navigate a surreal, acid-colored planet in the aftermath of an ecological reckoning.

Foot Trouble
Vanessa Meyer / U.S. / 2021 / 13 min. / English
Foot Trouble takes a walk in 16 yr old Jade’s uncomfortable shoes – through gym class, an awkward encounter with a crush, and her mom’s new boyfriend.

HAPPY ENDING
Ahmad Bakrin / U.S. / 2023 / 9 min. / English
When a young line cook hears the voices of his favorite podcasters beckoning him like sirens, the mundane becomes macabre.

Mush Luv
N’namdi Andersen / U.S. / 2023 / 7 min. / English
“Tony and Ajani, two mushroom foragers based in Minneapolis, spend the day foraging at a local park and musing on the power of nature.”

Side Hustle
Abby Harri / U.S. / 2023 / 15 min. / English
Side Hustle follows a day and night in the life of Eden, a dancer in New York City who pays the bills with financial support from her sugar daddy.

Hive Wedding
Sam Kerns / U.S. / 2023 / 19 min. / English
Mizzy, bride-to-be, chooses an abandoned nightclub to host her wedding. ‘The Hive’ opens for a final soirée, where club-goers come to send her off in style.

Carmen & Moony
Kate Adams, Max Azulay / U.S. / 2022 / 15 min. / English
A romantic comedy about a semi-recovered kleptomaniac who goes home for the holidays and invites an unlikely guest to her family dinner.

Call Me Mommy
Haley Alea Erickson, Taylor Washington / U.S. / 2022 / 13 min. / English
A pedantic mother-to-be hires a stranger to role-play as her unborn daughter.