Vail Film Festival

Reclamation: The Rise at Standing Rock (USA, 2018, 23 minutes)
Director: Michele Noble
In 2016 from the summer through the harsh winter at Standing Rock, North Dakota, the youth of many tribes unite the Native Nations for the first time in 150 years and rise up in spiritual solidarity to non-violently fight for Unci Maka (Mother Earth) against the 3.8 billion dollar Dakota Access Oil Pipeline (DAPL).

Adult Night (USA, 2019, 11 minutes)
Director: Leslie Alejandro, Kevin Alejandro
In an attempt to “live colorfully,” the strength of a couple’s relationship is tested by a situation where it might be more important to get out rather than get off.
Starring: Kevin Alejandro, Lesley Ann-Brandt, Tom Degnan, Alyshia Ochse, Laura Hine, Nikko Reyes, Donovan Soria

We Are Forbidden (USA, 2019, 8 minutes)
Director: Cheryl Strayed, Brian Lindstrom
In Nepal, menstruating girls and women are considered impure. This stigma permeates every aspect of their lives. In this participant-driven documentary, nine girls who range in age from 12 to 18 tell their menstruation stories and offer their hopes for an end to menstrual stigma in Nepal.

A Woman (Azerbaijan, 2019, 12 minutes)
Director: Tahmina Rafaella
A young, modern mother struggles to find her place in Baku, Azerbaijan, a culture simultaneously Muslim and secular, progressive as it is traditional, and like her at a crossroads of seeming contradictions.
Starring: Tahmina Rafaella, Zaur Shafiyev

A Handful of Rust (USA, 2020, 10 minutes)
Director: Conor Chandler Simpson
Inheriting the family junkyard when her father dies unexpectedly, 18 year old Simone makes eccentric punk music with her troubled savant brother and battles their short-fused mother intent on sending him away.
Starring: Katie Chang, Camille Chen, Mystic Inscho

Odd Bird (USA, 2019, 8 minutes)
Director: Katy Dore
As a boy, Clark always felt like the odd bird in his conservative ranch family. To cope, he created a comic book, “The Adventures of Odd Bird,” making himself the hero of his own story.
Starring: Michael Varde, Betsy Moore, Jacob Peacock
Under Cover (USA, 2019, 4 minutes)
Director: Shereen Lani Younes
A young woman walks home.

Rehearsal (USA, 2019, 8 minutes)
Director: Courtney Hope Thérond
A film crew for an upcoming feature film pushes the boundaries of consent during a courtesy rehearsal for its female lead. Written & Directed by Courtney Hope Thérond
Starring: Jessica Mendez Siqueiros, Clinton Lowe, Alexander Chard, Alex Portenko