deadCenter 2020: female directors 

After So Many Days

Available to stream in Oklahoma at deadcenterfilm.org.

Director: Jim Hanft, Samantha Yonack
Screenwriter: Jim Hanft, Samantha Yonack, Natalia Anderson, Kyle Weber
Producer: Natalia Anderson, Jim Hanft, Kyle Weber, Samantha Yonack
Executive Producer: Clinton Trucks, Mike Zwahlen
Cast: Jim Hanft, Samantha Yonack
Two recently married musicians embark on a yearlong tour, planning to play a show every day, in an effort to jumpstart their careers.

Visit aftersomanydays.com.

Basic Witch

Available to stream as part of Late Night Shorts at deadcenterfilm.org.

Director: Yoko Okumura
Screenwriter: Lauren Cannon
Producer: Laura Noxon
Cast: Olivia Castanho, Christopher O'Brien
Cinematographer: Bennett Cerf
Editor: Josh Hegard
Production Design: Johnny Flanagan
Music: Tangelene Bolton
After a night gone wrong, a witch teaches her boyfriend a lesson about consent in relationships.

player.vimeo.com/video/358234010

Beep Bop Symphony

Available to stream as part of Kids’ Fest at deadcenterfilm.org.

Director: Hannah Leung
Screenwriter: Christin Smolinski
Animator: Christin Smolinski (LeadAnimator), Hannah Leung (Animation Supervisor), David Barrios, Yuta Higuchi, Melissa Rodarte
Music: Daniel Cooper
Two cherubs with different musical styles get a little out of control while trying to help a plant grow.

vimeo.com/409641186

The Beholder of the Eye

Available to stream as part of Give Me Docs or Give Me Death: Portraits at deadcenterfilm.org.

Director: Karen Sztajnberg
Producer: Karen Sztajnberg, Brenden Hubbard
Cinematographer: Basia Winograd
Editor: Marine G. Brun-Franzetti
Sound Design: Ben LeHouillier
Music: Laura Gibson, Nana Carneiro da Cunha & Adios Ghost
The Beholder of the Eye examines the dichotomy between volunteer male models who are unafraid to pose nude and the female crew who find it difficult to understand their comfort.

player.vimeo.com/video/339266416

BLOCKS - Trailer from Bridget Moloney on Vimeo.

Blocks

Available to stream as part of Adulting Shorts at deadcenterfilm.org.

Director: Bridget Moloney
Screenwriter: Bridget Moloney
Producer: Kate Chamuris, Kristin Slaysman, Valerie Steinberg
Executive Producer: Ben Sinclair, Claire Coffee
Cast: Claire Coffee, Mark Webber, Phoebe Sinclair, George Sinclair, Ruha Taslimi, Kristin Slaysman, Trae Harris, Jessica Coulter, Camille Chen, Tara Copeland, Amy French, Dreama Walker,
Cinematographer: Jake Hossfeld
Editor: Nicholas Weidner
Production Design: Xiyu Lin
Composer: Ariel Marx

A busy mother of young children begins inexplicably puking up blocks.

Breaking Ground

Available to stream as part of Kids’ Fest at deadcenterfilm.org.

Director: Tara Norton, Ellie Morlino, Alex Shaulis
Screenwriter: Tara Norton, Ellie Morlino, Alex Shaulis
Producer: The Ringling College of Art and Design
Cast: Lauren Cox, Glen McCready
Composer: Antonious Nazareth
Sound Design: Mike Forst
A paleontologists’ assistant withstands her boss’s belittling treatment of her and then takes matters into her own hands.

facebook.com/bganimatedshortfilm

Broken Bird - Teaser from Rachel Harrison Gordon on Vimeo.

Broken Bird

Available to stream at deadcenterfilm.org.

Director: Rachel Harrison Gordon
Screenwriter: Rachel Harrison Gordon
Producer: Rachel Harrison Gordon, Alon Gur
Cast: Indigo Hubbard-Salk, Chad L. Coleman, Jari Jones, Mel House, Bill Aiken
Cinematographer: Rashad Frett
Birdie reconnects with her father after spending a day with him before her bat mitzvah.

The Book of Ruth

Available to stream as part of All the Feels Shorts at deadcenterfilm.org.

Director: Becca Roth
Screenwriter: Chen Drachman
Producer: Chen Drachman, Caitlin Gold
Executive Producer: Chen Drachman
Cast: Tovah Feldshuh, Chen Drachman, Monica Wyche, Scott Klavan, Aleksander Varadian, Housso Semon
Cinematographer: Natalia Bougadelli
Margo, Dan, Jordan and Lizzy discover a secret after a Passover dinner with their grandmother Ruth.

beccaroth.com/ruth-s

Brother, Move On

Available to stream in Oklahoma as part of Give Me Docs or Give Me Death: Portraits at deadcenterfilm.org.

Director: Antshi von Moos
Producer: Antshi von Moos
Cast: Geeta Kumari, Seeta Kumari
Cinematographer: Rangoli Agarwal
Editor: Antshi von Moos
Sound Design: Zentralton
Music: Alice Phoebe Lou
Geeta, a taxi driver, makes traveling around India alone safe for women and hopes to change Indian society for the better.

Code Red

Available to stream as part of Okie Shorts Mix-Tape Vol.1 at deadcenterfilm.org.

Director: Ella Janes
Screenwriter: Ella Janes
Producer: Amy Janes, Harry Wolohon, Jacob Snovel
Cast: Chole Wyatt, John Finlay Kitchen, Philip Redburn, JJ Arends
Cinematographer: Steven Purvis
Kiara navigates life quietly in rural Oklahoma until she gets her first period.

Cool for 5 Seconds

Available to stream as part of Modern Family Shorts at deadcenterfilm.org.

Director: Dani Wieder
Screenwriter: Calamity West
Producer: Katherine Bourne Taylor, Mary Tilden, Dani Wieder
Executive Producer: Michael Druyanoff
Co-Producer: Dani Wieder, Katherine Bourne Taylor, Mary Tilden
Cast: Katherine Bourne Taylor, Mary Tilden
Cinematographer: Jason Chiu
Editor: Lindsay Rynne
Production Design: Dana Macel
Music: Ohmme

Two estranged sisters reunite and it doesn’t go as planned.

The Drive

Director: Adia Ivey, Jewel Ifeguni
Screenwriter: Adia Ivey, Kia Anderson
Producer: Adia Ivey, Jewel Ifeguni
Cast: Keenan Dailey, Adam Berg, Mallory Robertson, Prince Robertson, Sanaa' Archer, Myles Valentine

A VR film that reenacts a police pull-over from the perspective of a black student, his mother, and the officer.

FAR FROM THE CASTLE Teaser from Julia Jansch on Vimeo.

Far From the Castle

Available to stream as part of Late-Night Shorts at deadcenterfilm.org.

Director: Julia Jansch
Screenwriter: Julia Jansch
Producer: Roberta Durrant, Julia Jansch
Cast: Nicole Fortuin, Cody Mountain, Soli Philander, David Dukas, Erica Wessels,
Cinematographer: Adam Bentel
Editor: Tricia Holmes
Production Design: Andree Du Preez
Sound Design: Keith Hodne
Music: Ariel Marx

In Southern Africa, a search for water leads to an unexpected encounter.

Fierce

Available to stream at deadcenterfilm.org.

Director: Imo Rolfe
Screenwriter: Imo Rolfe
Producer: The Ringling College of Art and Design
Cast: Keishen Lloyd, Darryl Johnson
Composer: Daniel Markovich
Sound Design: Bob Pepek

Fierce follows two dinosaurs with very different feelings about their feathers.

imorolfe.com/fierce-film

Forest

Available to stream as part of All the Feels Shorts at deadcenterfilm.org.

Director: Sasha Vinogradova
Screenwriter: Sasha Vinogradova

Forest spirits discover a threat to their world.

Fragile.com

Available to stream as part of Outer Limits Shorts at deadcenterfilm.org.

Director: Alison Hammersley
Screenwriter: Brittany Menjivar
Producer: Russell Sanzgiri
Executive Producer: Lena Waithe, Ruth Du
Cast: Carly Stewart, Colin Woodell
Cinematographer: Lauren Guiteras
Editor: April Guangwei Du

A young aspiring actress agrees to cry on a man’s niche website for money.

FREEZE Film Trailer from Maya Albanese on Vimeo.

Freeze

Available to stream as part of Adulting Shorts at deadcenterfilm.org.

Director: Maya Albanese
Screenwriter: Maya Albanese
Producer: Valerie Steinberg, Brock Williams
Cast: Adrian Grenier, Chris Parnell, Mindy Sterling, Rick Overton, Nora Zehetner, Kel Mitchell, John Ennis, Queen Jazzmun
Cinematographer: Laura Merians
Editor: Sari Tracht, Julie Gannon
Composer: Ariel Marx

When Joy’s seemingly perfect life falls to pieces around her 35th birthday, she decides to pay an exorbitant amount of money to freeze her eggs.

Trailer of "Gray Body" from Samaneh on Vimeo.

Gray Body

Available to stream in the United States at deadcenterfilm.org.

Director: Samaneh Shojaei
Screenwriter: Amin Kafashzadeh
Producer: Documentary and Experimental Film Center (DEFC)
Sound Design: Ahmad Afshar

Gray Body is an unsettling look at psychiatric care.

I Am Me

Available to stream at deadcenterfilm.org.

Director: Jazmine Smith
Screenwriter: Jazmine Smith, Quanah Style
Producer: Quanah Style, Emmet Walsh
Cast: Jazmine Smith, Spencer Smith, Rose Stiffarm

Jazmine, a Cree transgender woman, tells her story about finding herself.

Immortal

Available to stream at deadcenterfilm.org.

Director: Natalie Metzger, Robert Allaire
Screenwriter: Natalie Metzger, Robert Allaire
Producer: Matt Miller, Natalie Metzger, Tina Carbone, Robert S. Beadle
Cast: Laura Coover, Meredith Casey, Doug Scroope

A scientific breakthrough by a geneticist could change life as we know it.

In the Garden

Available to stream as part of Voyagers Shorts at deadcenterfilm.org.

Director: India-Inés Levy
Screenwriter: India-Inés Levy
Producer: Zaelo Films
Cast: Isabella Speaight, Samuel Woodhams
Cinematographer: Ola Mesmer
Editor: George Adams
Production Design: Amy Snape
Sound Design: Nick Sounidis

Frederick and Clementine discuss possibilities in seemingly idyllic Berkshire, England in 1783.

Knitcromancer

Available to stream as part of Kids’ Fest at deadcenterfilm.org.

Director: Allison Rossi, Ida Zhu, Becky Seamans
Screenwriter: Allison Rossi, Ida Zhu, Becky Seamans
Producer: The Ringling College of Art and Design
Composer: Kevin Smithers
Sound Design: Bob Pepek
Music: Steve Kempter

Grandma Pearl’s knit cats teach her tech-obsessed grandson a lesson.

Los Otros

Available to stream in the United States at deadcenterfilm.org.

Director: Monica Pendergrass, Eric Baldetti
Producer: Monica Pendergrass, Jonathan Stein - Comotion
Cast: Esmeralda Flores, Fredy Clorio, Aron

Three undocumented Americans rebuild their lives in Mexico City.

Love Stories

Available to stream as part of Give Me Docs or Give Me Death: Portraits at deadcenterfilm.org.

Director: Elizabeth Myles
Producer: Elizabeth Myles
Cast: Tiye Stephens, Peter Forberg, Maurice Myles
Animator: Elizabeth Myles

Animations explore what it means to love in this world.

The Music Video

Available to stream in the United States as part of The Artists Shorts at deadcenterfilm.org.

Director: Camille Poirier
Screenwriter: Camille Poirier
Producer: Camille Poirier
Cast: Marilou Forgues, Olivier Carignan, Jacob Whiteduck-Lavoie

Tomboy Clara changes her looks so she can be in her brother’s music video and notices her brother’s friend treating her differently.

Period. trailer ( A comedy written by Debra Pralle) from dpralle on Vimeo.

Period.

Available to stream as part of Modern Family Shorts at deadcenterfilm.org.

Director: Debra Pralle
Screenwriter: Debra Pralle
Producer: Debra Pralle
Cast: Tea Watson, Brandon Felker, Jules Florian, Kent Loomer

Vivian is preparing for her period with only her male friend and single dad to provide her information.

Pineapple

Available to stream at deadcenterfilm.org.

Director: Jane Chow
Screenwriter: Peter Rafe
Producer: Peter Rafe
Cinematographer: Andy Fronczak
Editor: Jane Chow, Clark Zhu, Yimin Gu, Sam Solino,Mazahery, Ryan Harpole
Production Design: Angela Chiu
Composer: Tav Bartlett
Sound Design: Emily Chan

Students at an international school in Hong Kong navigate the cultural divides between them and try to fit in.

Rainbow Ruthie

Available to stream at deadcenterfilm.org.

Director: Ruth Marantz
Cast: Parker Kit Hill, Ayumi Patterson, Abraham Makany, Alexis Bronkovic

Thirty-five-year-old Ruthie discovers her old nemesis is a social media star and returns to making videos to knock her down a peg.

"Rehearsal" Music Trailer from Valentina Gordeeva on Vimeo.

Rehearsal

Available to stream at deadcenterfilm.org.

Director: Valentina Gordeeva
Screenwriter: Valentina Gordeeva
Producer: Kristina Asafeva, Valentina Gordeeva
Cast: Violet Verigo, Boo Miller, Maria Alexandrova
Cinematographer: Norbert Varjasi
Editor: Valentina Gordeeva
Sound Design: Eric Rasmusson
Music: Marčin Koška

Anna must tell her conservative mother that she’s marrying Emma so she can stay in London instead of returning to Russia after school.

Revival

Available to stream at deadcenterfilm.org.

Director: Josefina Rotman Lyons
Producer: Josefina Rotman Lyons
Cinematographer: William Kitchings

Four older adults choreograph dances for a diverse group of New Yorkers.

Shattered

Available to stream as part of Visions Shorts at deadcenterfilm.org.

Director: Suyoung Jang
Screenwriter: Suyoung Jang
Producer: The Ringling College of Art and Design
Composer: Yechan Nam
Sound Design: Nick Ainsworth

A humanoid woman comes to life and has to figure out how to break through a glass wall to reach the outside world.

She’s the Eldest

Available to stream at deadcenterfilm.org.

Director: Cate Jones
Screenwriter: Cate Jones
Producer: Mickey Reece
Cast: Mary Buss, Cate Jones, Mickey Reece

Three siblings reconvene at their childhood home and explore their parents’ disappearances.

Shooting Crows

Available to stream as part of Give Me Docs or Give Me Death: Portraits at deadcenterfilm.org.

Director: Christine Hürzeler
Screenwriter: Christine Hürzeler
Producer: Christine Hürzeler
Cast: Phillippe Graff
Cinematographer: Tom Gibbons
Editor: Jann Anderegg, Christine Hürzeler
Sound Design: Jonathan Schorr
Music: John Gürtler

Reality and the imagination blur in this film featuring a murder of crows and a mystery.

The Square Root of Rick

Director: Misti Boland, Jeremy Osbern
Screenwriter: Misti Boland, Jeremy Osbern

The Square Root of Rick is a VR 360 film that examines the end of a relationship.

Step Into My Office

Available to stream at deadcenterfilm.org.

Director: Misha Calvert, Taylor Coriell
Screenwriter: Misha Calvert
Producer: Robin Rose Singer, Kimberly DiPersia
Cast: Misha Calvert, Robin Rose Singer, Lisann Valentin, Kimberly DiPersia, Josh Bonzie, Cronin Cullen, Connor Bond, Taylor Cowan, Ashley Monique Menard, Patrick James Walsh
Cinematographer: Blaine Dunkley
Editor: Alex Boskovich
Production Design: Daniel Ornitz
Composer: Roman Molino Dunn

Inspired by real events, this short flips the script on uncomfortable sexist conversations between male bosses and female employees.

Sticks and Stones

Available to stream as part of Kids’ Fest at deadcenterfilm.org.

Director: Anna Conde, Mark Lim, Andrea Walker
Screenwriter: Anna Conde, Mark Lim, Andrea Walker
Producer: The Ringling College of Art and Design
Cast: Nick Ainsworth, Ben Tuller, Peyton Varney
Composer: Daniel Markovich

Two cavemen hunt down dinner using sticks and stones.

“Street Light” by Branjae

Available to stream in the United States at deadcenterfilm.org.

Director: Branjae Jackson, Basil Childers
Producer: Basil Childers
Executive Producer: Powersource Productions, Kimberly Macleod, Valerie Lawson,
Cast: Branjae, Lola Clour, Adrion Robbins, Kevin Childs, Nico James, Ana Berry, Jeana Acosta, Maria Tate Reed, Prancing Pearls of Excellence
Cinematographer: Charles Elmore
Editor: Brian Hicks

“Street Light” is a music video featuring a survivor leaving a relationship filed with domestic violence.

The Summer and Winter Show

Available to stream as part of Kids’ Fest at deadcenterfilm.org.

Director: Meg Oswalt
Screenwriter: Meg Oswalt
Producer: The Ringling College of Art and Design
Cast: Ileana Baumann, Sogie Ekhosuehi

Winter and Summer compete in a battle of wills after becoming roommates.

Test Pattern

Available to stream through June 21 in Oklahoma at deadcenterfilm.org.

Director: Shatara Michelle Ford
Screenwriter: Shatara Michelle Ford
Producer: Pin-Chun Liu, Shatara Michelle Ford, Yu-Hao Su, Lee Stobby
Cast: Brittany S. Hall, Will Brill, Gail Bean, Drew Fuller
Cinematographer: Ludovica Isidori
Editor: Matt Tassone, Katy Miller
Production Design: Eloise Ayala
Sound Design: Thomas Ouziel
Music: Robert Ouyang Rusli

After Renesha is raped, she and her white boyfriend visit multiple hospitals in search of a rape kit.

testpatternmovie.com/trailer

They Won’t Last

Available to stream as part of Adulting Shorts at deadcenterfilm.org.

Director: Portlynn Tagavi
Screenwriter: Portlynn Tagavi, Brandon Gale
Producer: Richard Bailey
Cast: Jack De Sena, Brittany Renee Finamore, Ryan Lee, Gary Curtis
Cinematographer: Delaney O'Brien
Editor: Farzad Kiyafar

Christine and Alex have a massive fight after their friends’ perfect wedding.

Unfinished Business | Teaser from Mary Dauterman on Vimeo.

Unfinished Business

Available to stream as part of Late Night Shorts at deadcenterfilm.org.

Director: Mary Dauterman
Screenwriter: Mary Dauterman, Jenny Donheiser
Producer: Leah Donnenberg, Sarah Donnenberg, Kirstin VanSkiver
Cast: Sam Taggart, Jenny Donheiser, Nicole Spiezio, Meagan Kensil, Arielle Siegel
Cinematographer: Kenny Suleimanagich
Editor: Lindsey Nadolski
Production Design: Pili Weeber
Sound Design: Dan Bricker

A male stripper has an unusual night at work.

“Water Me Down” by Vagabond

Available to stream at deadcenterfilm.org.

Director: Maegan Houang
Producer: Jason Liang
Cast: Vagabon, Chloe Valtairo, Sarah Zamani
Cinematographer: Joanna Nguyen
Editor: Henry Kaplan
Production Design: Terry Watson
Music: Vagabon

The music video for “Water Me Down” is an exploration of self-empowerment.

You Know the Drill

Available to stream in Oklahoma at deadcenterfilm.org.

Director: McKinleigh Lair
Producer: Josh Jacobius, Olivia Forker
Cinematographer: McKinleigh Lair
Editor: McKinleigh Lair, Josh Jacobius
Composer: Nicholas Poss

Wyoming students participate in an active-shooter drill and a child psychologist in California wonders what the drills will do to students’ psyches and what the long-term effects will be.