Our Festival
51st Festival April 23-25, 2009
Sessions
Thursday, April 23, 8pm
Room in New York
John Kaiser Los Angeles, CA 5 minutes
A visual interpretation of Edward Hopper’s 1932 painting.
Revolutionary Wall
Carl Paoli Chicago, IL 24 minutes
The filmmaker sets out to document an elusive and controversial graffiti artist. Will the artwork lead him to the artist?
Purge
Brad Kammlah Long Beach, CA 16 minutes
Struggling to mask the pain from years of abuse, Joy finds herself trapped in a secret addiction.
Worth
Kathi Carey Sherman Oaks, CA 7 minutes
When an undescript violin shows up at an upscale auction, it seems out of place until…..
Karklesbarn (Love Child)
Daniel Wirtberg Sweden 7 minutes
What happens to a young child when a new addition comes into the family?
Sick
Michael Rymer UK 15 minutes
As Brian’s story slides backwards through 15 years of therapy, his daughter’s crashes forward after one devastating night.
Skylight
David Baas Toronto, CA 5 minutes
A mock animated documentary about the ecological plight of penguins.
Pigeonhole
Nicole Tanzabel Australia 6 minutes
An old man living in a high-rise council flat, manages self sufficiency.
Mr. Vending Machine
CGI Lab, Hae Jung S. Korea 22 minutes
Mr. Ven-ma, who makes coffee in a vending machine, befriends a girl who misses her father.
Sessions
Friday, April 24, 8pm
Alternative
Andrew Swan Valencia, CA 4 minutes
Revenge or forgiveness? One man’s choice will forever change his life.
Old Days
Matthew Shapiro Brooklyn, NY 23 minutes
Lillian, 74 years old, enters a retirement community and struggles to find her niche.
Harold Please
Lindsay Berkebile Rochester, NY 15 minutes
Harold, a recluse, has become so consumed with his relational fantasies outside his window, that he fails to see the relationship inside his apartment.
Sam and Zoe
Catherine Rehwinkel Florida 9 minutes
When Zoe’s father suddenly dies, a dark secret threatens to ruin her relationship with Sam, her boyfriend and best friend since childhood.
Thanks to the Whistleblowers
Dave Puls/Animatus Studio Rochester, NY 5 minutes
An expression of appreciation to a special group of people who risk so much to disclose what is hidden from us.
On the Road to Tel Aviv
Khen Shalem FSU/Florida 19 minutes
A young Israeli makes a quick decision when he sees a suspicious-looking Arab woman enter the same bus as his fiancee.
Interpretation
Lin Oeding Los Angeles 7 minutes
A romantic couple’s brief encounter with a few philosophical thugs unfolds in an unusual way.
Arranged
Suraj Das New York, NY 27 minutes
Ashok’s parents are pressuring him into an arranged marriage, but he has met the beautiful Maya whom he wants to marry.
Sessions
Saturday, April 25, 4pm
Before It’s Gone
Paulo Leierer, Luiz Otavio Pupo Brazil 15 minutes
A dark-humored story about Almeida, a 30 year old man, who discovers he has only one week left to live.
A Matter of Degrees
The Wild Center Tupper Lake, NY 24 minutes
See a time when mastodon’s roamed the valleys of the Adirondack Mountains, tapirs swam its rivers and whales slid above places where towns stand today. Produced for The Wild Center and narrated by Sigourney Weaver, it takes you on an epic trip to witness how much climate shapes our lives.
Open Your Eyes
Susan Cohen Pasadena, CA 14 minutes
Struggling to come to terms with her life after breast cancer, Julia gets more than she bargained for when she attends a bridal shower.
Profile
Sharon Katz Ottawa, CA 4 minutes
An experimental film about profiling by an airport detection device.
Written Off
Cameron Berner, Com 414C Oxford, OH 5 minutes
Follow a day in the life of a pencil and meet the people who interact with this inanimate object.
The Best Man
Justin Lazernik FSU/Florida 7 minutes
The wedding is ready to begin. Why is the groom still missing?
Dry Rain
Matthew J. Clark Seattle, WA 23 minutes
Joey is traveling cross country with his father who continues to stop along the way to call Joey’s mother for money.
Sessions
Saturday, April 25, 8pm
Firecracker Flower
Frank Hall Green New York, NY 17 minutes
In this yellow & yellow satire, we meet B who is an outcast at school. When she finds out that the other girls have stalkers, she pines for one of her own.
In the Dark
Alex Fazeli Pasadena, CA 17 minutes
A double agent, hunted by the revolutionary government, agrees to exchange crucial information with the CIA in return for safe passage out of the country.
Animated American
James Baker/Joe Haidar Burbank, CA 15 minutes
A toon hating executive has a ‘hare’ raising experience when he meets an out of work toon rabbit.
Open Air
Shira-Lee Shalit/David Peterson Manhasset, NY 12 minutes
Under the watchful eye of a hidden sniper, two women attempt some form of normality in their everyday lives knowing that one misstep will mean immediate death.
Butterflies Die in Snow
Karim Azimi Iran 15 minutes
A director and writer are driving through the mountainous countryside looking for a subject for their film. On this journey they encounter many strange experiences.
A Voice from the Lantern
Anton Zane Rochester, NY 17 minutes
A young Japanese woman, working in a peep show parlor in California desperately wants to go home. She devises a plan to make contact with her Grandfather in the afterlife so he can guide her spirit home.
My Four Inch Precious
Sou Yun Sim FSU/Florida 11 minutes
A scruffy and lonely garbageman discovers dreamy romance when a beautiful woman blossoms out of a magical flower.
Rochester
International
Film Festival
about Us
The Rochester International Film Festival is produced and presented by Movies On A Shoestring, Inc., offering four distinct screenings each year at George Eastman Museum’s famed Dryden Theatre in Rochester NY.
Films
3 Days. Dozens of Films. 1,000s of Film Lovers. See short films of ALL genres from filmmakers worldwide! Join us! All (4) distinct screenings are FREE to attend.