A Timely Maneuver

Running Time: 10 minutes
Director: Emmett Loverde

Arrow-stiff Jane Marwood is surprised when her blind date Reggie pulls out an egg timer and sets it for five minutes. Five minutes later, she is appalled when he invites her to bed, pointing out that women supposedly know within five minutes of meeting a man how far they will 'go' with him. Chaos ensues.

Beyond the Dead End

Running Time: 15 minutes
Director: Pouria Heidary Oureh
Country of Origin: Iran

A homeless vagabond doesn’t care about anything except a new pair of shoes. When his shoes get torn in an accident he gets an unexpected life-changing lesson.

Cliches

Running Time: 15 minutes
Director: Evgeny Sinelnikov
Country of Origin: UK

Phil is a pleasant young man of 30, successful at his job in the office of a large international company. One Sunday morning he wakes up to find a strange old man in his flat. This 'vagrant' turns out to be an angel sent to take Phil on a journey of self-discovery. Will he choose to change his life?

Ellie

Running Time: 10 minutes
Director: Ricky Lloyd George

A guy meets the girl of his dreams in a bar one night. But as they get to know each other, she starts to fear that he will find out who—and what—she really is...

Genre

Running Time: 7 minutes
Director: Mark Hampton

A woman fantasizes about a blind date, trying to convince her roommate of all the exciting possibilities.

Heads Up

Running Time: 13 minutes
Director: Alex Merkin

An edgy, comedic story of two long time friends, partners in crime, and somewhat surrogate siblings who love each other to death. When suspicions of trust and loyalty arise at the weekly poker game the situation erupts in an extreme way - because nobody fights like siblings do!

How To Kill Your Clone

Running Time: 5 minutes
Director: Jack McWilliams

Dick wants to kill his out of control clone, but due to their identical physical and mental abilities, he must hire the third party Clone Killer Corporation to do his dirty work.

Libby Girl: Something New

Running Time: 4 minutes
Director: Janet Mayson

Libby Girl is a sweet Jack Russell Terrier who loves to play and explore. She is always looking for something fun and new to do, especially when she can include her little neighborhood friends, Bruno and Rico, both Chihuahuas. This time, Libby learns of a new camera, and she invites Bruno and Rico over to try it out when her owner Janet is away.

Nothing Ventured

Running Time: 10 minutes
Director: Derek Ellingson

A shy, young man attempts to muster up the courage to ask out a beautiful stranger. Will he take a chance or be thwarted by his lack of confidence?

Oysters Rockefeller

Running Time: 12 minutes
Director: Charles Rogers

Gibbon, raised by his overprotective mother and aunt, wants desperately to know what it means to be a man and see the world outside. On the anniversary of his grandfather's death, he meets Lucy, and begins to wonder what lies on the other side of the front door.

Peer to Fear

Running Time: 7 minutes
Director: Duke Jackson

On a company's peer-to-peer recognition board a safe place to post a message has become a battleground. Two employees will square off. Erasable markers are their weapons as they quarrel back and forth until something unexpected happens to them in this unique, quirky comedy.

Pieces

Running Time: 15 minutes
Director: Mateo Vengoechea

Following horrifying news about his daughter's health, Alan Morris decides to call an old friend to help ends meet. After the deal goes wrong and his daughter Jamie is taken hostage, Alan takes drastic measures to get her back.

Safe Room

Running Time: 13 minutes
Director: Matt Carmody

When a man decides to break into a jewelry store, things don't go as planned - and nothing is what it seems.

Shift

Running Time: 15 minutes
Director: Kasim Aslam and Joshua M. Lambeth

Andrea killed herself. Her husband’s best friend knows the secret to why. Will he tell Andrea’s husband the truth?

Sintel

Running Time: 15 minutes
Director: Colin Levy
Country of Origin: Netherlands
(Screening during Seminar 5)

A young woman searches for a baby dragon. “Sintel” is an independently produced short film, initiated by the Blender Foundation as a means to further improve and validate the free/open source 3D creation suite Blender. With initial funding provided by thousands of donations via the internet community, it has again proven to be a viable development model for both open 3D technology and independent animation film.

Souled

Running Time: 10 minutes
Director: Daniel Richard Kovacs

Jake (Oscar Torre) has lost all his money, is stuck in a bar in the middle of nowhere, and doesn't know how to get home. He meets a mysterious stranger, Kingston (Mauricio Mendoza), who offers him an extraordinary business to help him get home—buying Jake's soul. But after the deal something strange happens.

Spicy Nose

Running Time: 8 minutes
Director: David Zorn

Monty and Simone are a nice looking couple on a first date at a French restaurant—a very special establishment featuring the 'best wine list in the city.' Monty turns out to be quite the wine enthusiast, and Simone finds herself on a date she will never forget!

Status

Running Time: 15 minutes
Director: Marc Hampson

Bud has been in a relationship for so long that he no longer knows how to date. After his girlfriend dumps him on his birthday, Bud's best friend signs him up on a dating website, but his love life doesn't get much easier.

Success Driven

Running Time: 9 minutes
Director: Yancey Arias

Meddi Milan arrives in Hollywood, maneuvering his way through the sticky web of show business and intrigue to become the most successful multi-platinum recording artist on the planet.

Surreal Estate

Running Time: 12 minutes
Director: Lori Romero

A dark comedy. When Mr. Smith attempts to rent a house, everything that can go wrong…does. This story is for anyone who has ever been to the DMV, changed checkout lines in a supermarket, or tried to navigate an automated telephone menu. It's the absurd chaos that develops in our minds as fantasy, but for Mr. Smith, it's all too real.

Sybling Rivalry

Running Time: 7 minutes
Director: Tara-Nicole Azarian

Twins Sybelle and Kobe are as dysfunctional as two can get. Mommy Dearest favors the do-nothing Kobe and ignores the responsible hard working Sybelle. Find out what happens when family relations move to an interesting and disturbing level. You'll love this little film to pieces...so to speak.

Tears of Steel

Running Time: 12 minutes
Director: Ian Hubert
Country of Origin: Netherlands
(Screening during Seminar 5)

Set in the future when robots take over the world, one man holds the key to a woman's heart. The world's fourth open movie is a quality science fiction short movie released to the public domain. Meant to showcase Blender’s Special Effects and Composition abilities, this open source software was used to create all assets, models, textures, animation and composition node trees, and of course, the final comp. All of those assets are freely available to anyone to use in making their own movie.

The Cheater

Running Time: 6 minutes
Director: Will Wallace
(This film is not in competition)

A tradition at the Idyllwild CinemaFest is the ever popular interactive short film "The Cheater" about a young man who just can't seem to get out the big secret. If you've heard about the hysterical short film "Where live actors in the theater interact with the actors on the screen," this is that film.

The Luckiest Man Alive

Running Time: 14 minutes
Director: Matthew Temple

Jon loses everything in a game of poker – and it’s all downhill from there. But for every misfortune he encounters, an even worse peril is averted…until he is met with an unexpected salvation.

There/Not There

Running Time: 14 minutes
Director: Robert Fernandez

Two brothers, both Iraq War Veterans, hatch a plot to get their hands on some quick cash, but when the plan goes wrong, they face off - and force each other to face the past that haunts them.

The Soliloquy

Running Time: 8 minutes
Director: Josh Murray

A contemporary short film adaptation of Macbeth. Overlaying the elevated prose of Shakespeare's story of murder and betrayal onto the protagonist's vivid layers of stream of conscious thought, this 8-minute film creates an immersive experience. Impressionistic cinematography explores the unfolding events in a highly personal and subjective way, all the while supported by a thrilling score.

To Live and Try in LA

Running Time: 14 minutes
Director: Christianna Carmine

A dry comical look at the wacky world of auditioning in Los Angeles through the eyes of an actress who is one audition away from her big break...down.

Freelancers: The Series

Running Time: included within a 60-minute presentation by Featured Filmmaker, Ignatius Fischer
Director: Ignatius Fischer

Freelancers is set in a timeless realm full of magic and monsters, wizards and warriors, dungeons and ... dragons. Inspired by classic literature, modern games and a wide array of cinematic influences, the show features fast-paced, action-packed storytelling, surreal visual effects, exciting combat sequences, romance, adventure and comedy. There are no prophecies, no sagas and no one is saving the world - just flawed characters with extraordinary skill sets trying to make a living. Even the powerful can be comedic while the lowest-level rogue can be as evil as the day is long. Welcome to Freelancers, where every day is legendary!

Revelations: The Series

Running Time: 2 episodes, 9 minutes each
Director: Robert Michael Ryan

The end of the world is just the beginning. After the Biblical Rapture has taken place, those left behind must learn to survive in the new apocalyptic hellscape as the city crumbles around them.