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. The lineup features seven narrative short films characterized by their unique, self-assured vision in genres ranging from naturalistic character study, coming-of-age portrait, psychological drama, and dark comedy.

Q&A moderated by Kentucker Audley, NoBudge

I’M REALLY SCARED I’M DYING TBH
Lindsay Calleran / U.S. / 2024 / 15 min. / English
An anxious young man convinces himself he is dying after experiencing mysterious symptoms of panic.

Hustle Mode
Jeffrey Liu / U.S. / 2024 / 13 min. / English
A young and idealistic single mother collects recyclable bottles from the streets of NYC, as she tries to wrangle her 2-year-old daughter and 90-year-old dog.

Robotica
Isabella Ivos / U.S. / 2024 / 14 min. / English
When a young woman begins to lose her work-life balance, she undergoes a physical transformation, jeopardizing her humanity in the relentless pursuit of productivity.

Personal Assistant
Tynan DeLong / U.S. / 2025 / 13 min. / English
A struggling artist desperate for a day job takes a suspicious personal assistant gig she finds on Craigslist.

Belay On
Johnny Frohman / U.S. / 2024 / 12 min. / English
A climbing couple navigates feelings of insecurity.

Buried
Nat Gee / U.S. / 2024 / 17 min. / English
Stalked by a sinister presence, a winemaker is suspicious her vineyard is being poisoned.

Wire & Cloth
Swetha Regunathan / U.S. / 2023 / 16 min. / English, Tamil
When opportunity comes knocking for mercurial Indian immigrant Hema, she fantasizes about becoming a sophisticated career woman.