Our Festival
63rd Festival August 26-28, 2021
Promo
MOAS Promo
Sessions
Thursday, August 26, 8pm
Kapaemahu
Hinaleimoana Wong-Kalu, Dean Hamer, Joe Wilson, Hawaii, USA 8 min
(Animation) Kapaemahu reveals the healing power of of four mysterious stones on Waikiki Beach and the legendary dual male and female spirits within them.
Four
Eduardo Petersen, USA 9 min
(Drama) A father and husband going through the fourth stage of grief confronts his wife in hopes of getting their family back together.
Santa Claus
Jieun Lee, Republic of Korea 26 min
(Drama) On Christmas Eve, Jae-Yul, as Santa Claus, brings gifts to children in a rich village and in a poor village. This year, he faces an unexpected event..
Untitled Earth Sim 64
Jonathan Wilhelmsson, Sweden 7 min
(Sci-fi Comedy) A woman is faced with existential crisis after learning that the universe is an untitled simulation.
Diana
Maysoon Khaled, Jordan 24 min
(Drama/Narrative) Diana, a young farmer from a conservative family, lives in a rural village. Her mother discovers her relationship with a young man, which leads to her whole family finding out..
It’s Look Sunshine
Kim Seunghwan, Republic of Korea 24 min
(Drama) Young-Eun lives with her mother and learns eco-friendly photography. After her mother gets caught in a discarded net submerged in the sea and drowns, Young-Eun moves away.
How to End a Conversation
Gregory JM Kasunich, USA 8 min
(Drama) A heartbroken man, unable to stop calling his Ex, enlists a therapist to help him lift the weight of his past relationship off his shoulders……literally.
Sessions
Friday, August 27, 8pm
The Boy Who Would Become a Knight
Gianmarco D’Agostino, Florence, Italy 7 min
(Drama/Animation) Using live action and stop motion animation, this film tells about a moment of transition in the life of Luigi, a child from Florence at the end of the 14th century.
Sulphur
Lana Vlady, Russian Federation 20 min
(Drama) When a murder happens in Norilsk, Russia, a young policewoman has to deal with strange events.
Stage
Kazuya Ashizawa, Japan 3 min
(Drama/Documentary) Just before his performance, the pianist is trembling. Tension and anxiety mercilessly attack him. Will his recital succeed?
Mercy Table
Taghrid Abdel Maksoud, Egypt 16 min
(Drama) Amira drives a rickshaw for a living. When she receives an offer to deliver food for the “Mercy Table” it becomes a challenge.
Ruby Days
Noah Wong, Massachusetts, USA 16 min
(Drama) Red is a boy who lives in his own imaginary world and shares all his fantasies with his best friend Ruby.
Batyr
Yelena Lissassina, Kazakhstan 21 min
(Drama, Mature) Dina’s son is seriously ill. It is almost impossible to find the large sum of money needed to save his life.
A Righteous Man
Zach Freeman, USA 7 min
(Drama) When a pastor’s sex addiction begins to affect both his marriage and his job, he must finally confront his sins and seek redemption.
Echthaar
Dominic Kubisch, Austria 20 min
(Drama) From her first day on the job as a hairdresser, Paula can’t take her eye off the strange jukebox in the corner.
Sessions
Saturday, August 28, 4pm
Meridiem
Taylor Domico, Rochester, NY USA 3 min
(Animation) As it flies through a forest, a grey butterfly spreads dust on everything it passes. However, the butterfly and its seemingly ominous dust have a hidden beauty.
Thank You
Maria Shulgina, Russian Federation 15 min
(Drama) Fast food worker Vatalik gets an incredible opportunity to get rich by becoming a bone marrow donor.
At Last, the Sea
Ana Karen Alva Medina, Mexico 13 min
(Drama, Mature) A young woman accused of witchcraft is imprisoned in Veracruz in the 1700’s. She gains strength to fight for her freedom after an unexpected visit from her ancestors.
Lion on the Mat
Asali Echols, California, USA 13 min
(Drama, Mature) A Vietnamese American single mother pours herself into martial arts as a way to overcome her past trauma.
Chica (Shorty)
Sara Escudero, Spain 20 min
(Drama) Magdalena, a widower, receives a visit from her grand daughter. Her present and past will be forever altered.
Swelling
Sangkyu Kim, Republic of Korea 24 min
(Drama) Mu Tack, a boxer who defected from N. Korea, makes a living as a coach. He needs money to find his wife who he lost during the escaping journey.
All the Young Dudes
William Stead, Florida, USA 9 min
(Drama) Georgia, USA, 1973. Glam rocker Billy rebels against his conservative high school inspiring admiration from an unlikely ally.
Sessions
Saturday, August 28, 8pm
The Robbery
Nika Belianina, Toronto, Canada 10 min
(Comedy) Two teams of gunmen simultaneously stick up the same convenience store.
Yard
Sangman Kim, Republic of Korea 10 min
(Drama/Narrative) Two men working in a shipyard sense someone’s death when the “daily safety song” stops playing.
Big Touch
Christopher Tenzis, Chicago, Illinois USA 3 min
(Drama) An Afro-Surrealist story about a giant woman and a tiny man who through the power of touch experience an unexpected transformation.
The Car Mechanic
Alexandros Tsadilas, Greece 15 min
(Drama/Narrative) The car mechanic locked in his own world, spends his life repairing cars and communicating with them emotionally….as if they were living.
Demetrius
Fabio Thieme, Germany 15 min
(Drama) Demetrius, a charismatic journalist, is caught having faked all his stories.
Rosa
Suha Araj, Brooklyn, NY, USA 23 min
(Drama) While working at her aunt’s flower shop, Rosa takes her job underground when she begins a side business.
White Eye
Tomer Shushan, Israel 15 min
(Drama) In an attempt to retrieve his stolen bicycle, a man struggles to remain human.
Two Meters Distance
María Díaz Megías, Alfonso Rodríguez Naranjo, Spain 8 min
(Drama) During the 2020 pandemic, two neighbors face loneliness and oblivion by themselves.
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.