At what point does one arrive — or are we in a constant cycle of arriving? Do we ever truly come of age? The shorts in EXPERIMENTS ON EXISTENCE may just answer your existential questions and will likely leave you with several more.

A Kafkaesque guide to self-discovery, this innovative program provides a space for lamentation and will inspire exploration of body and soul. Here’s your sign to break loose from your material self and uncover something new.

CYCLE ONE
Dir. Serge Garcia, Sweden, 9 min
A drifter wonders the streets as a current of queries invites the viewer to consider daily existence.

AHU’S JOURNAL
Dir. Weeda Nazim, Canada, 8 min
Safiya moves out to a sublet of an acquaintance, Ahu.

WINTER INSECT, SUMMER FLOWER
Dir. Weeda Nazim, Canada, 8 min
A trans woman’s journey through the changing seasons as she breaks away from her physical shell.

MOONCAKE
Dir. Rraine Hanson, USA, 11 min
An experimental meditation on genderqueerness and the blurred lines between influence, desire and obsession.

THE BIRTH OF A BEAUTIFUL BUTCH
Dir. Gia-Rayne Harris, USA, 3 min
On the day of school pictures, Alex has to choose between standards imposed on her or embracing of her authentic self.

CLAUDIA
Dir. Erin Nene-Lee Ramirez, USA, 17 min
A teen from El Salvador takes pole dancing classes.

RIVER FORK
Dir. Vuk Lungulov-Klotz, USA, 11 min
A transgender man is transported into his past by a photograph in his hotel room.

UP UNTIL NOW
Dir. Brandon Kazen-Maddox, Kevin Newbury, Marcus Shields, USA, 11 min
An experimental music video about trauma, transformation, acceptance and mermaids.

ALL THE WORLD’S A STAGE…and all us queer folks are merely players. Connect with the art of performance as a means of expression in this captivating collection of international shorts.

Allow these empowering films that tell dynamic stories of artists and entertainers to help you access your own inner power through dance, ball, and vibrant displays of self-reflection.

TANK FAIRY
Dir. Erich Rettstadt, Taiwan, 10 min
Tank Fairy delivers tanks of gas (with plenty of sass) to the home of young Jojo.

THE LANGUAGE
Dir. Steph Odu, UK, 9 min
Two members of Barcelona’s ballroom community share what it means to ‘speak the language.’

EZRA
Dir. Joshua Hernandez, USA, 8 min
A chronically ill dancer finds tranquility in nature.

THE ACTRESS
Dir. Andrew Ondrejcak, USA, 8 min
Trans filmmaker and actor Isabel Sandoval shape-shifts through iconic moments in film history.

STARFUCKERS
Dir. Antonio Marziale, USA, 15 min
An intimate evening is disrupted when a familiar face arrives.

BEAST
Dir. Urvashi Pathania, USA, 9 min
A non-binary South Asian teenager uses Bharatanatyam dance to explore their gender identity.

BUILD OR DESTROY
Dir. Rashaad Newsome, USA, 6 min
Black trans femme performance amidst fiery urban wreckage.

WARSHA
Dir. Dania Bdeir, Lebanon/UK, 15 min
A crane operator in Beirut volunteers to cover a dangerous shift & finds his freedom.

Starring: Jonata Vieira, Isabella Pereira , Pedro Ribeiro

Gustavo Vinagre’s new film humorously follows three young queer people in São Paolo as they navigate late-stage capitalism and an odd pandemic that erases your short-term memory. Winner of the Teddy Award at this year’s Berlin International Film Festival, Tres Tigres Tristes follows the trio as they roam through a dystopian yet still vibrant São Paulo, discussing their experiences with HIV, reminiscing on old flames, and sharing survival tips as a means of resistance. Despite the darkness that surrounds them, this stunning film demonstrates the possibilities of finding joy in the margins.

Starring: Maria Breaux, StormMiguel Florez, J Aguilar, Dakota Billops-Breaux, Lydia Tremayne, Sarah Korda

Former lead singer Grrrilda Beausoleil is turning 50 and the best birthday present she can imagine is a reunion with her riot grrrl band. Now all she has to do is convince the bandmates she abandoned 20 years ago that she’s finally ready to rock and it’s time for the group to overcome their collective demons. No sweat.

Set in San Francisco, uproarious mockumentary VULVEETA sees the band adapt to the times and to each other while celebrating the punk music scenes that brought them together in the first place.

This is an incredibly exciting time for emerging queer talent in film and television. Celebrate the four recipients of NewFest’s New Voices Filmmaker Grant, a program launched this year in partnership with Netflix, with a screening of their recent short films and hear what’s to come in their future projects and careers.

We’ll then chat with some of the most exciting new queer voice actors working in Netflix animation, Brandon Kyle Goodman (BIG MOUTH, HUMAN RESOURCES), Sam Zelaya (WENDELL & WILD), and Zach Barack (DEAD END: PARANORMAL PARK).

HOW NOT TO DATE WHILE TRANS
Dir. Nyala Moon, USA, 13 min
The dating life of a Black trans woman and the problematic men she meets along the way.

MORE HAPPINESS
Dir. Livia Huang, USA, 13 min
During a late night conversation, a young woman asks her mother how to be a person.

MERCURY AFROGRADE
Dir. Blanche Akonchong, USA, 11 min
During mercury retrograde, a family’s deepest secrets are revealed.

TWO HEADED CALF
Dir. Rodney Llaverías, Dominican Republic, 14 min
The birth of a two-headed calf spurs questions about identity in the mind of young Marino.

Starring: Robin Williams, Nathan Lane, Gene Hackman, Diane Wiest

Join us for our second annual Film Feast and enjoy a contemporary classic along with a paired multi-course meal! In this hysterical comedy, Armand (Robin Williams) and Albert (Nathan Lane) have built the perfect life for themselves tending to their gaudy Miami nightclub. But their pastel tranquility is shaken when Armand’s son announces that he’s getting married to the daughter of ultra-conservative Senator Keeley–and they’re all getting together for dinner! Can Armand and Albert transform themselves into Mr. and Mrs. Family Values in time? It’ll take the performance of their lives!

Featuring timeless comic relief from an all-star cast, don’t miss this chance to sip, dine, and laugh along to this outrageous ensemble delight.

Starring: Angela Bassett, James Hong, Ving Rhames, Jordan Peele, Keegan-Michael Key, Sam Zelaya, Lyric Ross

From the delightfully wicked minds of director Henry Selick and producer Jordan Peele comes an animated tale about two scheming demon brothers who enlist the aid of tough teen Kat to summon them to the Land of the Living. But what the guilt-stricken Kat and her classmate Raul demand in return leads to a brilliantly bizarre and comedic adventure like no other.

Featuring vibrant voicework from Peele, Keegan-Michael Key, Lyric Ross, Angela Bassett, Ving Rhames, and Sam Zelaya, Netflix’s WENDELL & WILD is a carnivalesque fantasy told through the handmade artistry of stop motion from the director of THE NIGHTMARE BEFORE CHRISTMAS and CORALINE.

Starring: Vaughan Murrae, Dominic Lippa, Lacey Oake, Matthew Rankin, Shannon Blanchet

It’s 1987 and when new kid Robin shows up for their first day of school, it seems everyone wants to know if they’re a boy or a girl. Robin, however, remains largely unbothered, keeping their attention focused on one person: Carter, the confident, charismatic school bully. As the two forge a complicated bond, Robin finds themselves making increasingly dangerous choices to fit in.

Writer and director Trevor Anderson’s wry narrative feature debut presents retro ‘80s detail, a sensational soundtrack, and a breakthrough lead in non-binary performer Vaughan Murrae. Wholly redefining the conventions of the coming-of-age story, BEFORE I CHANGE MY MIND is a queer cult classic in the making.

Starring: Sarah Hay, Matthew August Jeffers, Roberta Colindrez, Tara Pacheco, Hamish Allan-Headley, Kerry Flanagan

Peter is an introverted New Yorker with dwarfism who prefers to hide from the world in his city apartment. But an unexpected visit from his upbeat, eccentric neighbor Winona forces him out of his shell and onto an impromptu road trip. Their destination? What she believes to be the site of an upcoming alien visitation in the wilderness of rural Canada.

UNIDENTIFIED OBJECTS follows the odd couple’s increasingly surreal odyssey, in which they encounter bickering lesbian cosplayers, shroom-addled survivalists, and even extraterrestrial highway cops. The further they go and the more their trauma comes to light, the clearer it becomes that the only thing scarier than being abducted by aliens is being alone in the universe.

Life is tough right about now. There’s angst. There’s rage. We are all mad as hell and NOT going to take it anymore.

Find solidarity and solace in this furious collection of shorts that confront our torment and attempt to powerfully will a different world into existence — in this life or beyond it.

BLOOD HANA
Dir. M.G. Evangelista, USA, 15 min
A teen begins questioning God and her sexuality.

CHAPERONE
Dir. Sam Max, USA, 16 min
An unnamed figure picks up a young man in his car.

MOM, IF I WERE A VAMPIRE
Dir. Deborah Devyn Chuang, Taiwan, 17 min
Wen, an insecure teenage girl who dislikes her disapproving mother, vows to be nothing like her.

SCARING WOMEN AT NIGHT
Dir. Karimah Zakia Issa, Canada, 11 min
Two strangers are scared on a late walk home.

SOUR MILK
Dir. Mark Keane, Ireland, 5 min
A teen boy does something extreme in order to prove himself to his friend.

LOLLYGAG
Dir. Tij D’oyen, USA, 10 min
A woman recounts a sensual yet macabre story about the boy next door.