NoBudge is happy to present new work from a group of emerging indie filmmakers, mostly based in New York. We’re screening eight short films, an even split of the dramatic and comedic. In the first half of the program, we’re focusing on edgy character studies that hover around sexual or emotional longing. The second half opens up into a series of dark comedies about good intentions gone wrong, or featuring characters embroiled in desperation. On both sides, the work explores loneliness and isolation, or rocky relationships filled with paranoia and/or manipulation. The program kicks off with a bit of an outlier, a lovely and imaginative stop motion animated film that eases us into the evening. This is the first public screening in New York for each of the films, and in most cases, the first public screening anywhere. All directors will be in attendance for a post-film Q&A and Afterparty.

NoBudge is an online platform spotlighting the best in low-budget indie filmmaking. “One of the best places to sample what’s happening in low-budget cinema worldwide,” says Glenn Kenny of The New York Times. Its mission is to provide a supportive home for emerging indie filmmakers working with limited resources and without major industry connections, and to be a trusted discovery platform.

The movies:
Snow Angel
New York Premiere
Directors Evie Metz & Nicholas Daly present.
A journey through dreams and desires following a young woman making a snow angel and other wintry adventures.
(4 minutes)

Sincerely, Erik
New York Premiere
Director Naz Riahi present.
A lonely bookseller in Brooklyn navigates the post Covid-19 world as best as he can.
(12 minutes)

Journal
New York Premiere
Director Alex Bliss present.
Two best friends retrace their steps in hopes of locating a missing item after a seemingly average night.
(8 minutes)

Nudes
New York Premiere
Director Evan Daves present.
Desperate to be desired in her long-expired relationship, Jen becomes embroiled in a sextual encounter with her co-worker.
(16 minutes)

I’m SO Sorry
New York Premiere
Director Chester Vincent Toye present.
Two roommates struggle to decide which Black Lives Matter sign they should purchase to show their support for the BLM movement.
(5 minutes)

Maggie So Low
New York Premiere
Directors Michael Borowiec and Sam Marine Borowiec present.
Maggie invites friends, acquaintances and total strangers into her home for what they think is a party, but she has other plans in store.
(16 minutes)

The Ultimate (By Lou Fescano)
New York Premiere
Director Daniel Jaffe and co-writer/star Michelle Uranowitz present.
After the death of her high school boyfriend Lou, Nicole returns home to New Jersey where she finds herself directing Lou’s unproduced screenplay.
(17 minutes)

Nicole
New York Premiere
Directors Edy Modica and Ian Faria present.
In a small town outside of New York City, a woman desperately tries to get to Dunkin Donuts for a coffee coolatta.
(18 minutes)

Starring: Steve Carell, Pierre Coffin, Lucy Lawless, Michelle Yeoh, Jean-Claude Van Damme, Julie Andrews, Alan Arkin

In the heart of the 1970s, amid a flurry of feathered hair and flared jeans, Gru (Oscar nominee Steve Carell) is growing up in the suburbs. A fanboy of a supervillain supergroup known as the Vicious 6, Gru hatches a plan to become evil enough to join them. Luckily, he gets some mayhem-making backup from his loyal followers, the Minions. Together, Kevin, Stuart, Bob, and Otto–a new Minion sporting braces and a desperate need to please–deploy their skills as they and Gru build their first lair, experiment with their first weapons and pull off their first missions. When the Vicious 6 oust their leader, legendary fighter Wild Knuckles (Oscar winner Alan Arkin), Gru interviews to become their newest member. It doesn’t go well (to say the least), and only gets worse after Gru outsmarts them and suddenly finds himself the mortal enemy of the apex of evil. On the run, Gru will turn to an unlikely source for guidance, Wild Knuckles himself, and discover that even bad guys need a little help from their friends.

Starring: Sam Rockwell, Marc Maron, Craig Robinson, Anthony Ramos, Awkwafina, Richard Ayoade

In the new action comedy from DreamWorks Animation, based on the New York Times best-selling book series, a crackerjack criminal crew of animal outlaws are about to attempt their most challenging con yet–becoming model citizens. Never have there been five friends as infamous as The Bad Guys–dashing pickpocket Mr. Wolf (Academy Award winner Sam Rockwell, Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri), seen-it-all safecracker Mr. Snake (Marc Maron, Glow), chill master-of-disguise Mr. Shark (Craig Robinson, Hot Tub Time Machine), short-fused “muscle” Mr. Piranha (Anthony Ramos, In the Heights) and sharp-tongued expert hacker Ms. Tarantula (Awkwafina, Crazy Rich Asians), aka “Webs.” But when, after years of countless heists and being the world’s most-wanted villains, the gang is finally caught, Mr. Wolf brokers a deal (that he has no intention of keeping) to save them all from prison: The Bad Guys will go good. Under the tutelage of their mentor Professor Marmalade (Richard Ayoade, Paddington 2), an arrogant (but adorable!) guinea pig, The Bad Guys set out to fool the world that they’ve been transformed. Along the way, though, Mr. Wolf begins to suspect that doing good for real may give him what he’s always secretly longed for: acceptance. So when a new villain threatens the city, can Mr. Wolf persuade the rest of the gang to become… The Good Guys?

Starring: Renate Reinsve, Anders Danielsen Lie, Maria Grazia Di Meo

The Worst Person in the World is a modern dramedy about the quest for love and meaning in contemporary Oslo. It chronicles four years in the life of Julie (Renate Reinsve), a young woman who navigates the troubled waters of her love life and struggles to find her career path, leading her to take a realistic look at who she really is.

Starring: Kylie McNeill, Manny Jacinto, Brandon Engman, Hunter Schafer, Jessica DiCicco, Barbara Goodson

Suzu is a shy, everyday high school student living in a rural village. For years, she has only been a shadow of herself. But when she enters “U”, a massive virtual world, she escapes into her online persona as Belle, a gorgeous and globally-beloved singer. One day, her concert is interrupted by a monstrous creature chased by vigilantes. As their hunt escalates, Suzu embarks on an emotional and epic quest to uncover the identity of this mysterious “beast” and to discover her true self in a world where you can be anyone.

Starring: Denzel Washington, Frances McDormand, Bertie Carvel, Alex Hassell, Corey Hawkins, Harry Melling

Power-hungry Macbeth sets his sights on the Scottish throne after receiving a prophecy from three witches.

Starring: Jessica Chastain, Penélope Cruz, Fan Bingbing, Diane Kruger, Lupita Nyong’o

When a top-secret weapon falls into mercenary hands, wild card CIA agent Mason “Mace” Brown (Oscar-nominated actress Jessica Chastain) will need to join forces with rival badass German agent Marie (Diane Kruger, In the Fade), former MI6 ally and cutting-edge computer specialist Khadijah (Oscar winner Lupita Nyong’o), and skilled Colombian psychologist Graciela (Oscar winner Penélope Cruz) on a lethal, breakneck mission to retrieve it, while also staying one-step ahead of a mysterious woman, Lin Mi Sheng (Bingbing Fan, X-Men: Days of Future Past), who is tracking their every move. As the action rockets around the globe from the cafes of Paris to the markets of Morocco to the opulent auction houses of Shanghai, the quartet of women will forge a tenuous loyalty that could protect the world–or get them killed.

Starring: Alicia Witt, Renée Humphrey, William R. Moses, Leslie Hope

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When boisterous ginger-locked Bonnie (Alicia Witt) and sullen, black-lipstick-wearing Hillary (Renée Humphrey) meet at a bus stop, they quickly catch fire, feeding off of each other until the antics escalate from throwing rocks at cars to spontaneously murdering an old woman in her home. At a juvenile detention center after being convicted of the crime, Bonnie and Hillary are interviewed by a journalist, much to the consternation of Jane, a chain-smoking, long over-it counselor who is reliably blunt with her charges. Shot on black-and-white 16mm, with flashbacks in color, the film moves between their present-day reckoning and the pivotal day that brought them there.

Fun was a festival darling that eventually had a theatrical run at Film Forum, with Sundance awards recognizing the actresses who embody these girls with visceral naturalness. They are not depicted as glamorous, nor as broken victims, but as two impulsive figures who get caught up in a moment.

Starring: Catherine Zeta-Jones, Renée Zellweger, Richard Gere, Queen Latifah, John C. Reilly, Christine Baranski

Nightclub sensation Velma (Catherine Zeta-Jones) murders her philandering husband, and Chicago’s slickest lawyer, Billy Flynn (Richard Gere), is set to defend her. But when Roxie (Renée Zellweger) also winds up in prison, Billy takes on her case as well — turning her into a media circus of headlines. Neither woman will be outdone in their fight against each other and the public for fame and celebrity.

Starring: Bridget Fonda, Jennifer Jason Leigh, Steven Weber, Peter Friedman, Stephen Tobolowsky, Frances Bay

Co-hosted by filmmaker/programmer Caroline Golum

Ally has a lot going for her – an enormous Manhattan apartment that is rent stabilized, a burgeoning career in fashion design, and a doting fiance. But when she kicks him out for cheating and seeks a roommate to help offset the costs, she finds herself in a nightmare scenario with Heddy, a shy and dowdy stranger who wins her over with her plumbing skills. Soon enough Heddy’s bad roommate behavior escalates from closet infiltration to a full-on Ally replicating makeover to much, much worse. Bridget Fonda and Jennifer Jason Leigh are so iconic in this, you may find yourself bringing a screen grab of their ginger bob to your hair stylist.

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