Studio 3531

Kaila grapples with her unease over her son growing up Black in America as he faces a monstrous adversary that blurs the line between childhood imagination and terrifying reality.
January 22, 6:30pm CST
(Rwanda)
A pregnant couple plans to rob their landlord, using an old Rwandan urban legend, during Kigali's first COVID lockdown.
January 21, 8:45pm CST
(United Kingdom)
When a Black timid and directionless freshman discovers his love for ballet, he must learn to fight for himself in a locker room full of rowdy boys.
January 21, 6:30pm CST
(United Kingdom)
In the glamorous yet superficial world of a high-end London hair salon, 21-year-old Lydia, the only Black employee, struggles in her role as the salon’s receptionist. As she navigates feeling invisible, her quiet resolve builds toward a covert act of defiance that reveals the cracks beneath the salon’s polished exterior.
January 21, 6:30pm CST
Work. Friends. Travel. Work Again. A young woman grapples with the weight of her overwhelming life, as she navigates the needs of everyone around her…not including herself.
January 22, 6:30pm CST
(Canada)
Trina, disillusioned with online dating, leaves a heartfelt letter in a book box seeking a genuine connection. Jeff finds the letter, responds, and they exchange anonymous letters, revealing their innermost thoughts and fears. When they agree to meet, Jeff fears Trina will recognize him from a bad dating app encounter. Will honesty and vulnerability be enough to bridge the gap and create a true connection? "Dear Friend" is a heartwarming romantic comedy exploring the power of words and the courage to be one's authentic self in the pursuit of love.
January 21, 8:45pm CST
Dennis, a hitman, struggles with an obsession with women, causing him to lose focus on his work. His fixation leads to a botched job and ultimately, his own downfall.
January 22, 6:30pm CST
(Brazil)
Lady is an Environmental Photographer who finds a doll in the forest and delivers it to the nearest house to a strange woman.
Lady wears an Oxumaré cord from an African-derived religion, which forms a link between heaven and earth in a kind of request for ancestral help. While the strange woman feels protected by her belief and whiteness.
January 21, 6:30pm CST
To experience sweet potato pie in the household of private chef Epiphinae McClennon, is to experience a grandmother's love that's truly generational.
January 22, 6:30pm CST
(United Kingdom)
‘George’ is an intimate portrait of George Wyndham, Sierra Leone’s most famous Paralympian. This is the story about one man’s struggle to avoid homelessness that has wider implications for billions of others living in marginal communities worldwide. Will George succeed in finding a new home? Or will he, like millions of others, be left behind?
January 21, 7:30pm CST
(Canada)
For the life of a young lady, Ife Adebayo, it's a repetition of memory and a forceful damage as she narrates to her Therapist.
January 21, 6:30pm CST
Old flames Imani and Alex reconnect after being estranged for over two years. Imani has news that will change Alex’s life forever and together they must come to an acceptance of their new reality.
January 22, 6:30pm CST
Based on "Africa, My Africa" from "Hammer Blows & Other Writings" by Senegalese Poet David Diop (1956), Mon Afrique is an experimental student short film shot on SUPER 8 that explores the experience of diaspora and longing through the journey of a hand-carved traditional African mask.
January 22, 6:30pm CST
Follows the story of Gerald Owens whose world is devastated after the senseless murder of his only child, Jefferson. With no willing witnesses, and police having no clues, Gerald teams up with the surviving father of another murdered child, and together they set out to get "Some Kind of Justice!."
January 22, 7:45pm CST
(Spain)
Today only a third of scientists are women. The masculinization of science, the stereotypes of social governance and an educational system that tends to propagate these ideas lead many women to abandon their careers.
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From the perspective of female research scientists, this documentary takes viewers on an inside look of their experiences that represent the hope of a new generation that thinks creatively.
January 21, 8:45pm CST
