2026 FESTIVALApril 8-18, 2026Lansing, MI

‘Otherworldly’ Shorts

*FILMMAKER IN ATTENDANCE*

Explore a twisted cosmic gumbo of sci-fi, thriller, horror, and experimental shorts that defy labels.

This program will take place concurrently with our Red Carpet Party
Doors: 8:15 PM

  • Mantis Stream! Like & Subscribe
  • The Story of The Cricket Queen
  • Mr. Mittens
  • God forgive me
  • Missing Rhythms

Anino

A teen girl comes into a dark inheritance kept alive by her grandmothers. This film was made as part of the American Film Institute’s 2025 Directing Workshop for Women Program.

  • DIRECTOR
    MG Evangelista
  • YEAR
    2025
  • RUNTIME
    15 Minutes
  • LANGUAGE
    English
  • COUNTRY
    United States

Aptitude

In a near-future society where a high-stakes virtual exam dictates one’s future, a disadvantaged student must decide whether to risk everything by cheating or accept a system designed for her to fail. This film was made as part of the American Film Institute’s 2025 Directing Workshop for Women Program.

  • DIRECTOR
    Natasha Mynhier
  • YEAR
    2025
  • RUNTIME
    20 Minutes
  • LANGUAGE
    English
  • COUNTRY
    United States

Mantis Stream! Like & Subscribe

Craig gets engaged and chokes to death on an egg, live on the internet.

  • DIRECTOR
    Lincoln Robisch, Sarah Maerten
  • YEAR
    2025
  • RUNTIME
    10 Minutes
  • LANGUAGE
    English
  • COUNTRY
    United States

The Story of The Cricket Queen

The “Story of The Cricket Queen” recreates digital media tropes, trends, and aesthetics with analog film techniques.

  • DIRECTOR
    Natalie Peracchio
  • YEAR
    2025
  • RUNTIME
    4 Minutes
  • LANGUAGE
    English
  • COUNTRY
    United States

Mr. Mittens

Mr. Mittens lived with a loving family until one day they decided to neuter him, leaving him with no choice but to get revenge on every person involved in the removal of his testicles.

  • DIRECTOR
    Glenn Maxwell
  • YEAR
    2025
  • RUNTIME
    10 Minutes
  • LANGUAGE
    English
  • COUNTRY
    United States

God forgive me

Irida, a queer Greek woman living in London, is summoned back to her ancestral home in Greece after the sudden death of her father. Inheriting a crumbling estate and overwhelming debts, she faces an impossible choice: sell the home and sever ties with her past or risk everything to keep it. As grief and the weight of tradition consume her, the house itself begins to turn against her, haunted by a presence she can’t escape.

  • DIRECTOR
    Kat Sigalas
  • YEAR
    2025
  • RUNTIME
    17 Minutes
  • LANGUAGE
    Greek (Modern)
  • COUNTRY
    Greece

Missing Rhythms

In a mysterious insane asylum full of missing Black women from all over the country, a woman must use rhythm to remember her true identity and fight being lost forever behind the ominous Blue Door.

  • DIRECTOR
    Regina Hoyles
  • YEAR
    2025
  • RUNTIME
    15 Minutes
  • LANGUAGE
    English
  • COUNTRY
    United States
Check out other upcoming events
  • Thu, April 9 6:00 PM
  • Central United Methodist Church
More Info