20th Annual Sidewalk Film Festival presented by Regions

Documentary
Directed By Natalie Metzger, Michael Rohrbaugh
Run Time 95 Minutes
Shout
Life & Liberty

The LGBTQ community has seen political and social gains in the last few decades, but ALONE IN THE GAME highlights the continuing discrimination, fear, and depression experienced by U.S. LGBTQ professional athletes. The documentary highlights the unique challenges that LGBTQ athletes face from
teammates and the general public in a context where ideals of masculinity and femininity are rigid and heteronormativity reigns supreme. After considering the presented interviews with current and former athletes you won’t experience sports culture the same way again.

- Kate Michel

Trailer

First Church Birmingham is proud to sponsor the Life & Liberty Sidebar at the 20th Annual Sidewalk Film Festival presented by Regions.

Dol
dir. Ava Lowrey
5.5 min
For over 30 years Dolester “Dol” Miles has served as Executive Pastry Chef at Highlands Bar and Grill, Bottega, Bottega Cafe, and Chez Fonfon, creating a legacy of delicious desserts and leaving a lasting mark on the Birmingham, Alabama, dining scene.

Riders: The Stories Behind the Rescues
dir. Rubayet Kamal & Vivek Singh
11 min
Fire Station 2 is an active station in Birmingham’s Southside and the people who work them describe the calls that stay with them

We Are Southtown
dir. John Aiken & Hannah Bae
9 min
Residents in Southtown Public Housing are concerned about what will happen to them as the valuable land they live on is redeveloped

Dear, Inescapable
dir. Sarah Cheshire & Sophie Strohmeier
15 min
The St. James Hotel, located at the foot of the Edmund Pettus Bridge in Selma, Alabama, has born witness to much of the city’s painful history, from the Civil War to the Civil Rights movement, and has remained a resilient community anchor throughout. Just years after an expensive community-driven restoration effort, economic decline and unresolved civic tensions have led this beloved community heirloom into decay. Now, with the windows of the St. James boarded up, Selma residents grapple with the multiple meanings the hotel holds, while reflecting on the ghostly presences, personal memories, and passed-down lore contained within its walls.

The Country Priest
dir. Carlos Estrada
10.5 min
When a chapel along the U.S.-Mexico border is threatened by the potential, impending, wall, a local priest and the surrounding community fight back.

Madeleine Burnett (Rising Above)
dir. Alan Moore
5.5 min
Stars fell on Alabama, but this 11-year-old singer/songwriter is a rising star. As she overcomes bullying, she dreams of attending the prestigious Juilliard School.

Quiet Please
dir. Ingrid Pfau
19 min
Goalball is tough, fierce, and powerful. It's also the first sport designed specifically for athletes with visual impairments. Quiet Please is a story of friendship & sport told through players from Birmingham, Alabama.

Deep South Cancer Fighters
dir. Jenny Mackenzie
27 min
In Eutaw AL, poverty, few medical resources and low education levels contribute to cancer health disparities. Poverty and racism are compounded in the face of a cancer diagnosis.

Rattled (United Arab Emirates)
dir. Jafaar Almadhoon
10 min
Mohammed's traditional search for a bride has resulted in over twelve rejections. As his opportunities seem to be disappearing, Mohammed finds hope in wearing his late father's lucky ring to his next "meeting". Much to his surprise, he finds himself with Laila, a bride he failed to impress before.

Lovely Day (USA)
dir. Veronica Rodriguez
8.5 min
After the death of her mother, a young woman becomes a depressed recluse in her apartment until her two best friends show up to take her on a trip... an acid trip.

Skullcrush (Australia)
dir. Liam Fitzgibbon
5.5 min
The suburban misadventures of a tough-talking, middle-aged drug dealer and her 16-year-old best friend.

Selfie Shtick (USA)
dir. Mohit Jaswal
4 min
Two video bloggers find true love.

Maude (USA)
dir. Anna Margaret Hollyman
10 min
A woman babysits her friend's child and things go awry.

We Summoned a Demon (USA)
dir. Chris McInroy
6 min
They just wanted to be cool. Instead, they got a demon.

We Know Where You Live (USA)
dir. Honora Talbott
13.5 min
When a Mexican American couple moves into a trendy, gentrifying LA neighborhood, two hipsters invite themselves over to offer a 'warm welcome.' But as the night goes on, it’s clear these neighbors are not what they seem: cold pressed, cold brewed, and cold blooded.

Girl Powder (USA)
dir. Annelise Ogaard
5.5. min
Jessica is the CEO of a hip, millennial drug cartel. Her assistant Louise handles all the little details.

This Is A Short Film We're Submitting To Film Festivals (USA)
dir. Liz Manashil
4.5 min
A self-referential musical about the struggle of film festival life.

The PA Stays in the Picture (USA)
dir. Arielle Apfel & Claire Dub
6 min
On the set of an indie horror film, the cast and crew face the wrath of a nicotine-starved director desperately in search of a cigarette and coffee. A chipper PA is on the way to save the day, but what she finds will definitely make her re-think her career choice, no matter how much that degree from NYU cost.

Unexpected Company (USA)
dir. Kerry Miller
16 min
Dysfunctional sisters Angela and Ellen are forced to endure a dreary reclusive existence, due to the dark secret they share. An unexpected visit from Ellen's handsome co-worker may prove to be their salvation or their undoing.

Kick Tac (France)
dir. Felix Farny
24 min
A watchmaker in his forties, Christophe’s life is as regular – and monotonous – as clockwork. One day, a break in the routine: a brush with death and a new neighbour whose round-the-clock drumming is starting to wind him up.

Still excerpted from "Girl Powder," director Annelise Ogaard.

River Terrace Drive (USA-Alabama)
dir. Jack Serra
5.5 min
A young mobster must carry out an unwanted task.

Catman: The Love Thief (USA)
dir. Austin Coombs-Perez
16.5 min
Antonio's high school romance is threatened when Catman: The Love Thief is on the prowl.

The Evil Bunny (USA-Alabama)
dir. Ben & Jack Deter
3 min
When two characters find themselves trapped in a cabin, they deal with fear, death, and isolation.

There's More Than One Way to Skin a Man (USA)
dir.  Emma Penaz Eisner
7 min
Up is down, and inside turns out in this award-winning experimental work.

Fear No Evil (USA)
dir. Catherine McCord
8 min
After surviving an abduction, a young woman wakes up to find herself inside a wall with no knowledge of who her captor is.

In the Trees (USA)
dir . Will Nordstrom
8 min
Teenagers on a school field trip become lost in the woods and disturbing things start to happen. 

F.L.Y.N.N. (USA-Alabama)
dir. Jackson Ross & Jack Serra
20 min
A malnourished apocalypse survivor’s faith is restored when a mysterious voice rattles through his walkie-talkie.

Soon Enough (USA-Alabama)
dir. Luis Jimenez III
5 min
3 college students are hiding in a dorm room until food runs scarce and one of them must face the danger that lies outside.

Young Blood (USA-Alabama)
dir. Renaldo Flowers & Ben Wedlund
3.5 min
The struggles of a young artist in Birmingham, AL.

#ICANTKEEPQUIET (USA)
dir. Liam Price
4 min
A teen documents the Women’s March in Austin, Texas.

Still excerpted from "Fear No Evil," director Catherine McCord.

Do No Harm (USA)
dir. Marielle Woods
8 min
A short film about a combat medic attempting to hold on to humanity in the midst of a war much bigger than himself.

Pentecost (USA)
dir. Katherine Propper
6 min
Delilah, a snake handler’s daughter, seeks a spiritual gift of her own in her father's rattlesnake.

Latched (USA)
dir.  Justin Harding
17 min
A choreographer pursues creative inspiration at a cottage retreat while attempting to wean her demanding toddler — and unknowingly awakens a vile fairy corpse in the process.

Debris (USA)
dir. Julio Ramos
14 min
After a disastrous event on his construction site, Armando acts quickly to save his crew, but instead stumbles upon an unspeakable truth.

Succulent (USA)
dir. Paul Taylor
15 min
With no place to go, a woman enters the house of a stranger and makes herself a little too comfortable.

Patrice in Search of Love (USA)
dir. Theodore Collatos
4.5 min
Patrice, a philosophical young woman, searches for love at the end of the world.

Checkmate (USA)
dir. Gleb Osatinski
5 min
Father plays chess with his son when the game takes an unexpected turn

Bad Things (USA)
dir. Mira Lippold-Johnson
23 min
When her older sister gets suspended, an eight year old girl on scholarship at an elite private school starts to lose faith in the idea that hard work is all it takes to get ahead.

That Was Awesome (USA)
dir. Arien Konopaski
18 min
When a floor hockey team of adults with special needs gets pushed around one too many times off-the-court, they decide to stand up for themselves on-the-court in the game of a lifetime.

Cool Kids (USA-Alabama)
dir. Michael "Bear" Praytor
artist: MRYGLD
5 min
MRYGLD reflects on their high school personas and who they are now.

HEARD (USA-Alabama)
dir. Hope Leigh
artist: Kaye the Beast
4.5 min
Four vibrant boys, a worldly rapper, and a community of ethereal dancers share a bittersweet connection

Fighter (USA)
dir. Erica Eng
artist: Supa Good D Smoke feat. Jackie Gouché + Davion Farris
6 min
A cinematic portrayal of a WorldStar Hip Hop fight.

In the Pit (USA)
dir. Jorge Abarca
artist: Lil Jon and Skellism ft. Terror Bass
3.5 min
Lil Jon and his crew kidnap a businessman.

Purgatory (USA-Alabama)
dir. Avery Malik Banks
artist: Paco
3.5 min
An artist wanders the streets of Birmingham. 

Ice Teens (France)
dir. Thomas Vernay
artist: Maud Geffray
5 min
A girl integrates a strange training center

Simple Things (USA)
dir. Jorge Abarca
artist: Above Waves
5 min
A man laments the complexities of life.

Technology (USA)
dir. Benjamin Roberds
artist: Don Broco
4 min
The video focuses on the band through the point of view of a social media-scrolling smartphone, as Don Broco play a show during a catastrophic alien invasion, to the oblivious attention of the smartphone owner… until their own untimely demise.

Punk (USA)
dir. Michael Mihail
artist: Yelawolf ft. Travis Barker, Juicy J
4 min
Moshing. Fire. Genre-bending. What more could you want?

Tennessee River Runs Low (USA-Alabama)
dir. Tyler Jones
artist: Secret Sisters
4 min
A young girl in rural Alabama sets out to build a boat and float down the river to a better place.

Modern World (USA-Alabama)
dir. Chris Hilleke & Chris Lawson
artist: Future Elevators
4 min
A thought provoking portrait of everyday people living in the modern world of New Orleans, LA.

Crystalized (USA-Alabama)
dir. E. Luke Chandler & Grayson A. Welch
artist: Halter Kids
5 min.
"Crystalized" is the brutal reality of a break-up portrayed through an outlandish and out-of-touch criminal, Trip Wood, as he struggles to cope, rushing headlong into robberies, vandalism, and eventually into the back of a police cruiser.

The Ark (Belarus)
dir. Dennis Volkov
artist: Voidstock
5.5 min
An abstract view of beautiful Norwegian scenery.

Fade (Spain)
dir. Ainhoa Rodriguez
artist: Chloe Bird
6.5 min
Conchita, a conservative and septuagenarian woman, returns home after cremating her husband. She is fed up with the suffocating social norms that have surrounded her, so she decides to break free. Meanwhile, a menacing shadow roams the house as the only companion of her solitude.

Wild (India)
dir. Tanvi Gandhi
artist: Dhruv Visvanath
4.5 min
The city of Bombay is littered with faces, with infinite stories. Imagine all the things we gloss over, all the faces we ignore, and one starts to wonder what lies beneath the surface?

Wonder Me (USA-Alabama)
dir. Lily Ahree Siegel
artist: Riley Mitchell
3 min
A whimsical, wonderful color trip.

All My Friends (USA)
dir. Lucy Munger
artist: Lens Mozer
4.5 min
A meditative, seven second animation (filmed in stop motion with collage materials) is seamlessly looped and multiplied to hypnotic effect.

Faithful (USA-Alabama)
dir. Benjamin Stark
artist: King Kwofi
4 min
A noir-inspired hip-hop video that explores a man's internal struggle with his dueling identities.

Sleepwalking (USA)
dir. Emily MacKenzie & Sasha Solodukhina
artist: The Tumbling Wheels
5 min
An alligator cannot wake up from a fever dream. 

Machine Maker (USA-Alabama)
dir. Chris Hilleke
artist: Future Elevators
2.5 min
An android laments his life as a working class maker of other androids.

There Goes the Neighborhood
dir. Dan Evans
3.5 min
Shot over the course of a year in rapidly changing Northeast Portland, Oregon, 'There goes the neighborhood' distills the visual experience of gentrification into a 3-minute time-lapse film. It is a vivid, photographic ride. Starting with the demolition of a century-old home, the film offers evidence of some of what is lost and gained through redevelopment. It burns rubber through the construction of new luxury condominiums, and culminates in a satirical dig at the end result of gentrification.

Second Assault
dir. Jillian Corsey and Amy Rosner
18.5 min
When Jillian was 18 years old, she was raped in her college dorm room. Twelve years later Second Assault follows her on the journey to confront this incident and in particular, her anger toward the police officer who deemed the assault consensual. This film explores the trauma of reporting sexual violence, and the “second assault” that survivors often experience when they are not believed.

An Accidental Drowning
dir. Matteo Servente
7 min
On April 28, 1939 Jesse Lee Bond was brutally lynched in Arlington, TN. His official death certificate read: accidentally drowned.

Come & Take It
dir. PJ Raval and Ellen Spiro
25.5 min
This short documentary film captures the transformation of a young woman to leadership of America’s most irreverent anti-gun violence movement called #CocksNotGlocks. After concealed carry of handguns is legalized on the University of Texas campus, Jessica Jin posts clever humor on social media, and with the help of a tight-knit group of young female students, a movement is born: The Great Texas Dildo Revolt.

The Girl and the Picture
dir. Vanessa Roth
39 min
The Girl and The Picture is a story of loss, legacy, and the power to change the future. It’s about family and the memories we leave behind, a story that began 80 years ago in 1937, when eight-year-old Xia Shuqin witnessed the murder of her family in the horror known as the Nanjing Massacre.

Trailer

First Church Birmingham is proud to sponsor the Life & Liberty Sidebar at the 20th Annual Sidewalk Film Festival presented by Regions.

Dakota (USA)
dir. Brian McNeel
16.5 min
Jace’s cousin, Dakota, visits for the weekend, should his group of roughhousing friends discover that Dakota is transgender, the damage to Jace's reputation would be irreparable.

Candle Magic (USA)
dir. Alix Bannon
10.5 min
Four girls go to celebrate Sofia's sixteenth birthday with a little magic.

Angel of Anywhere (USA)
dir. James Kicklighter
16 min
An empathetic stripper plays therapist to the many damaged clientele and co-workers who frequent the popular Anywhere Bar.

Ablution (USA)
dir. Omar Al Dakheel
15 min
The bond between a disabled Muslim father and his son is tested when love is pitted against religion.

Yogurt (USA)
dir. Mark Lammerding
19.5 min
Two girls discover memory is as subjective and ever-changing as love and friendship.

First Bloom (USA)
dir. Tingting Liu
4.5 min
First Bloom tells the story of the budding love between a eunuch servant and a princess in ancient China.

Clean Slate
dir. David Opdyke (USA)
2 min
Antique postcards tell a haunting tale of claustrophobia.

Hybrids (France)
dir. Florian Brauch, Matthieu Pujol, Kim Tailhades, Yohan Thireau, Romain Thirion
6.5 min
When marine wildlife has to adapt to the pollution surrounding it, the rules of survival change…

End Credits (USA - AL)
dir. Ian Bondurant
2.5 min
Two filmmakers argue over who had the most creative input on their film over the end credits.

Trailer

Beebox (USA)
dir. Cable Hardin
2.5 min
A tale of agriculture and ecoculture.

Dr. Mantis (USA)
dir. Brandon Mikolaski
3 min
Dr. Mantis is a practicing psychotherapist but a full time praying mantis. Often, she doesn't know where one ends and the other begins.

Ontario, Quebec & Me (USA)
dir. Richard O'Connor
3.5 min
Flying in the rainy season, a romance.

The Secret Life of Art (USA)
dir. Catherine Mosier-Mills
4 min
What if art came to life at night?

Down Escalation (Japan)
dir. Shunsaku Hayashi
7.5 min
Falling down, it feels ecdysone is filling up its body. Delving into the deeper layers of itself, the flesh is melted down in the shell until the form is no longer.

Trailer

Black Dog (USA)
dir. Joshua Tuthill
15 min
Two brothers must deal with the sudden loss of their parents during the space race of the 1960's.

Trailer

Unexpected Discoveries (USA)
dir. James Mabery
3 min
A young fellow stumbles upon an ordinary flashlight that allows him to explore other places.

After All (Australia)
dir. Michael Cusack
13.5 min
A man cleans out his childhood home remembering past conversations.

Everything Changes (USA)
dir. Geoff Marslett
6 min
The film is a stream of 1089 individual connected consciousnesses. This doodle spans 15 years and includes more than 33,000 individual drawings of ink on paper.

A Drawing (USA)
dir. Brad Condie
5.5 min
A young boy misses the chance to say goodbye to his dying Mother. Through a deep desire he wills himself to try to see her again.

What's That In The Ground? (USA)
dir. Wally Chung
2.5 min
When you want one thing, sometimes you get the complete opposite or something worse.

Infestation (USA)
dir. Cable Hardin
1 min
They are everywhere and often hard to get rid of.

I Had Too Much to Think Last Night (USA)
dir. Kevin Webb
1 min
A visual stream of unconsciousness flows from the bottles of last night's revelry into the mind's eye.

Halbo's Hat (USA - AL)
dir. Julia Fleisig
1 min
After receiving her grandfather's hat, a young girl embarks on a memorable journey.

Dull Hope (USA - AL)
dir. Brian Ratigan
3 min
Suppressed memories reach a boiling point. An animated tale of longing.

SHAHKBOY (USA)
dir. Jake Peckar
5 min
Shahkboy is a typical New England high school kid, doing drugs and getting busted for graffiti. Oh, and Dad’s a Great White.

A Lost Waltz (USA - AL)
dir. Ian Bondurant
.5 min
A short animation visually representing the loss of a significant other.

Undiscovered (USA)
dir. Sara Litzenberger
3 min 
“Undiscovered” explores the real reason there are no good photos of Sasquatch--not because he's secretive, but because he's un-photogenic.

A shorts block of political films, dark comedies, and other films where everything appears normal on the surface but you soon realize that everything is seriously not fine.

Ride or Die
dir. Zeke Farrow
14 min
USA
Zeke made a Doomsday escape plan and it was pretty lousy.

R.V
dir. Melissa Center and Will Hawkes
10.5 min
USA
Stripped of her rights, a woman’s life changes when she ventures with her husband to remedy an impossible situation.

Trailer

Allen Anders: Live at the Comedy Castle (circa 1987)
dir. Laura Moss
7.5 min
USA
Allen Anders is either having a nervous breakdown or the best set of his life.

everything's gonna be ok
dir. Matthew Soson
13.75 min
USA
Two hikers in the southern California desert are forced to come to grips with a dire situation.

Mother Mother
dir. Robert Machoian and Rodrigo Ojeda-Beck
16 min
USA
A mother sneaks off in the middle of the night.

End Times
dir. Bobby Miller
9 min
USA
A man finds a dying squirrel in a park.

Ready For Love
dir. Lauren McCune and Dylan Pasture
15 min
USA
Amber Lynn Weatherbee knows that the right man is out there. Maybe he's on The Bachelor?

Relax
dir. Matthew Herbertz
7 min
USA
Soon after the 2016 U.S. election, an anti-Trump activist waits outside a supporter’s home considering something that could result in deadly consequences.

Funeral
dir. Leah Shore
9.5 min
USA
A bereaved woman delivers a convoluted speech to a gathering of family and close friends. She then retreats to a waiting room where the surreal meets the real by a water cooler in FUNERAL, a heavy, fertile, mourning comedy.

Documentary
Directed By Sarah Kerruish and Matt Maude
Run Time 90 Minutes
USA

Sometimes the engineers of the future don’t always get the glory. Such was the case of the visionaries at General Magic, in which former Apple technicians imagined a future filled with pocket-sized personal computers accessing a network via cellular data. Mired in development delays, their initial device was a catastrophic failure. But this documentary lovingly profiles the talented minds whose imaginations changed the world, and details the path from General Magic to the smartphones in all our pockets.

- Corey Craft