Future States
What will become of America in five, 25, or even 50 years? FutureStates is a series of fictional mini-features exploring possible future scenarios through the lens of today's global realities. Immerse yourself in the visions of these independent prognosticators as they project a future of their own imagining.
Ben Rekhi
Greg Pak
Tanuj Chopra
David Kaplan
Ramin Bahrani
Tze Chun
Aldo Velasco
Annie Jennifer Howell
Garret Williams
Hugo Perez
Amyn Kaderali
Also Directed by Ben Rekhi
After receiving a cryptic message, American skeptic Jamie travels to the Indian Himalayas to pick up on the trail of his disappeared girlfriend. There, he discovers a secretive community led by a guru with strange powers who may or may not be involved in her disappearance. As Jamie travels deeper down the rabbit hole, he quickly realizes he may have uncovered more than he bargained for, and that this mysterious mountain may contain the secrets of reincarnation - and a portal to another dimension.
Heera Bhatti, an American-Sikh, runs a corner store in Los Angeles with the help of her son, Vikram, and Gulu. She does not approve of Vikram's Caucasian girlfriend, Lillian, and would prefer that Vikram marry a Punjabi girl, but Vikram has made up his mind. Then the lives of all Californians are turned upside down when one morning eight people are dead after drinking contaminated tap water.
Set against the drug wars in the Philippines, Maria's husband is murdered in mysterious circumstances and is left to fend for her three children in a police state. As she delves into Manila’s dark underworld of cops, criminals, and drugs to find answers, she realizes the truth is never black and white, and that she must explore her own darkness to keep her family safe.
Thirty-one twisted tales made from a collective of genre loving filmmakers, Fun Size Horror: Volume One aims to chill and delight horror fans. From classic slashers and creature features, to horror-comedy and hauntings all made into bite size pieces. Like a bag of Halloween candy after a night of trick or treating, Fun Size Horror: Volume One is filled with the unexpected and not without the threat of the occasional razor blade. Which leaves only one question: Trick or treat?
Also Directed by Greg Pak
Who says experimental films can't have a sense of humour? A pair of artistes confront the impossibility of communication by telling post modern knock knock jokes.
Four stories including: "My Robot Baby," in which a couple must care for a robot baby before adopting a human child; "The Robot Fixer," in which a mother tries to connect with her dying son; "Machine Love," in which an office worker android learns that he, too, needs love; and "Clay," in which an old sculptor must choose between natural death and digital immortality.
A sequel of sorts to Po Mo Knock Knock, which examines the lives of the characters after the fact.
Also Directed by Tanuj Chopra
A modern millennial codependent couple in DTLA have their relationship thrown for a loop when he discovers a photo from an ex on her phone.
A teacher disillusioned with her cutting edge virtual reality classroom struggles to coax her talented and troubled student to excel. "The world has enough disappointed people"
Can an android have feelings? Can true love be resurrected through technology after death? When a family in mourning encounters a mysterious wandering service android, the family is forced to redefine its conceptions of humanity, relationships, and family.
A Comedy about the only two guys left in Silicon Valley who have nothing to do with technology.
This festival favorite from Sundance and Tribeca recalls the aftermath of 9/11 and his brother's murder, a South Asian teen living in Queens struggles to keep his anger in check.
Sundance alum Tanuj Chopra reinvents stoner cinema with this hilarious, "Broad City-esque" female arthouse comedy. Good girl Cam's got a problem: she has to deliver a backpack full of weed for her drug-dealing fiancé. When she seeks help from her best friend, pothead slacker Jinky, the duo find themselves stranded in a park, contemplating love, life, and pizza.
Also Directed by Ramin Bahrani
A plastic bag, thrown out in the trash, attempts to find his way back to his owner and along the way discovers the world.
Reflections from Red Oak, Texas where a teenage son murdered his father.
Alejandro, a tough and ambitious Latino street orphan on the verge of adolescence, lives and works in an auto-body repair shop in a sprawling junkyard on the outskirts of Queens, New York. In this chaotic world of adults, young Alejandro struggles to make a better life for himself and his 16-year-old sister, Isamar.
An exploration of the rise and fall of Richard Davis, the charming and brash inventor of the modern-day bullet-proof vest who shot himself 192 times to prove his product worked.
A man planning to commit suicide hires a taxi driver to take him to his jumping-off point.
Backgammon tells the tale of a young Iranian American girl who desperately wants to play backgammon with her stubborn grandfather who has recently arrived from Iran. Within the circle of a family gathering, the film brings together a subtle yet compelling story of generational conflicts and cultural identity.
In an idyllic suburban neighborhood, Jerry runs his big business lemonade stand and has the market cornered, until ten-year-old Addie opens her own stand across the street. Competition equals war, and both sides use (and abuse) a government regulator to try and win. In the end, one special customer will decide their fate.
An ambitious Indian driver uses his wit and cunning to escape from poverty and rise to the top. An epic journey based on the New York Times bestseller.
Set in the competitive world of modern agriculture, ambitious Henry Whipple wants his rebellious son Dean to help expand his family’s farming empire. However, Dean has his sights set on becoming a professional race car driver. When a high-stakes investigation into their business is exposed, father and son are pushed into an unexpected situation that threatens the family's entire livelihood.
Every night while the city sleeps, Ahmad, a former Pakistani rock star turned immigrant, drags his heavy cart along the streets of New York. And every morning, he sells coffee and donuts to a city he cannot call his own. One day, however,the pattern of this harsh existence is broken by a glimmer of hope for a better life.
Also Directed by Tze Chun
A string of break-ins create a wave of paranoia in small-town suburbia.
Two young children living illegally in a model apartment outside Boston are left to fend for themselves when their hardworking mother disappears
A struggling motel owner and her daughter are taken hostage by a nearly blind career criminal to be his eyes as he attempts to retrieve his cash package from a crooked cop.
Also Directed by Hugo Perez
A science-fiction drama set in farm country, where—after a decade of famine and food riots—the Mendelian Corporation feeds (and controls) the world through its genetically modified seeds, pitting family members against one another.
A portrait of 100-year-old Gregorio Fuentes, Ernest Hemingway’s boat captain in Cuba.
Betty La Flaca follows the character of ‘skinny’ Betty, who decides she needs to enhance her figure through homegrown plastic surgery.
In the slums of Kampala, two men from opposite sides of the world come together over a shared love for America’s greatest hero: Rambo. Against all odds, the two make their own action movies with no money — and bring joy to millions of people on the internet. Welcome to “Wakaliwood.” Through comedy and kung-fu, "Once Upon a Time in Uganda" chronicles the unlikely friendship between Isaac Nabwana, a director hailed as “Africa’s Tarantino,” and Alan Hofmanis, a film programmer from New York. While Isaac tirelessly makes feature after feature, Alan brings his films to international audiences. But tensions flare as Isaac’s star rises — threatening their partnership and all of Wakaliwood.
An uplifting, entertaining profile of the grande dame of Cuban music, Omara Portuondo, the internationally beloved chanteuse best known in the States as a member of the famed Buena Vista Social Club. The filmmakers follow octogenarian Omara—feisty, charming, with a naughty sense of humor, and still in possession of her fantastic voice—on her third “final” world tour as she sings to and with those she’s inspired around the globe, demonstrating her impressive range and continued relevance as an artist.
Also Directed by Amyn Kaderali
When a winter storm hits Cleveland and grounds flights, the nearby hotels quickly fill up with stranded travelers. Nina, a pilot, reluctantly agrees to let her arrogant but charming fellow pilot, Brady, stay at her nearby parents' home. But when they discover her family is hosting a tree trimming party that night and that her ex will be there, Brady pretends to be her boyfriend to help her out.