Sweet Dreams, 34min., USA
Directed by Gary Alvarez
Set in the near future when most people can no longer dream, “Sweet Dreams” follows the story of Esperanza, a young woman who’s excited to be a mom for the first time. Weeks before the baby is due, her partner Kiké goes missing. As she searches for him and her savings dwindle, she comes across an opportunity to make some quick money: surrogate dreaming, a new technological advancement which allows her to sell the dreams of her unborn child through a dreamcatcher clinic. After a trial run, Esperanza begins to suspect that the clinic is somehow connected to Kiké’s disappearance.

https://www.instagram.com/sweetdreams_film/

Get to know the filmmaker:

1. What motivated you to make this film?

A conversation I had with my wife when she was about 6 months pregnant with our son, Sol. We discovered that he was dreaming in the womb and that idea blew my mind! I thought it would make a good story and I started writing the script later that night.

2. From the idea to the finished product, how long did it take for you to make this film?

3 years and 5 months.

3. How would you describe your film in two words!?

Must watch!

4. What was the biggest obstacle you faced in completing this film?

Post-production: from false starts on VFX to losing an AE to scheduling sound design and raising funds to pay for all of it!

5. What were your initial reactions when watching the audience talking about your film in the feedback video?

“Wow, they get the story on more than one level” I thought to myself. As the writer/director, it’s interesting to hear what aspects of the film stuck out to them and how they interpreted the meaning of the story. Thank you to the festival for including the bilingual audience member, I appreciate his feedback in Spanish! I’ve been wondering how bilingual/biculutral moviegoers would respond to the film and he picked up on certain elements the others didn’t mention.

6. When did you realize that you wanted to make films?

In my mid-20s, after a coast-to-coast hitchhiking mission across Mexico. During that trip, I started writing a manuscript for a Chicano version of ON THE ROAD. Later, that manuscript evolved into my thesis film at Chapman. I hope to direct the feature film some day…

7. What film have you seen the most in your life?

ETERNAL SUNSHINE OF THE SPOTLESS MIND

8. What other elements of the festival experience can we and other festivals implement to satisfy you and help you further your filmmaking career?

I would love to attend Wildsound in person, meet the organizers and feeback folk to thank them personally, network with other filmmakers, walk the Red Carpet and attend the Awards Show, connect with and pitch to producers/greenlighters/financers who can help me and other filmmakers develop our shorts into features and/or series…

9. You submitted to the festival via FilmFreeway. How has your experiences been working on the festival platform site?

All positive except for one festival which shall remain nameless due to their lack of communication…That aside, I like FilmFreeway for many reasons: their discount for Gold Members; the way they organize festivals into categories like Academy Award Qualifying, Top 100 Best Reviewed, Sci-fi, Latinx, Woman-centered, etc. as well as all the background information FilmFreeway provides for each fest including Audience Attendance and Years Running.

10. What is your favorite meal?

Tacos al pastor, TJ style, sprinkled with sal y limon and topped with salsa verde! Gotta wash it down with homemade horchata on the rocks!

11. What is next for you? A new film?

I’m currently adapting an original pilot I wrote into a graphic novel about a Chicano superhero called BROWN FALCON. He fights government AI Super Agents, killer cops, ICE, corrupt politicians and the president himself! Fingers crossed that the graphic novel leads to a feature film which could then be developed into the series I initially intended…

NADO, 68min., Italy
Directed by Daniele Farina
NADO is an intimate and powerful journey through the life and work of one of the greatest Italian sculptors of the twentieth century. A story of resistance and courage, a human parable of will and joy that spans a whole century.

Get to know the filmmaker:

1. What motivated you to make this film?
The story I came across is one of courage and resilience—something you simply can’t ignore. It’s also a story with a strong cinematic impact.
At the time, I was coming off a few professionally unfulfilling years, and this opportunity came at just the right moment. It was exactly what I needed to challenge myself again and push my vision and skills to the next level.

2. From the idea to the finished product, how long did it take for you to make this film?
We shot the film over 17 days, spread out across six months. Then we spent another six months editing, also on and off, since most of us were juggling other jobs at the same time.

3. How would you describe your film in two words?
Resilince-inspiring and a story of courage.

4. What was the biggest obstacle you faced in completing this film?
We made this film with almost no budget, which meant my crew was basically just two or three people. Pulling off the kind of result you saw, with so little, was definitely a big challenge for us.
At the same time though, we were really lucky to have an amazing composer on board for the original score. Morgan—who had also worked on a film directed by Asia Argento—is a well-known artist in Italy. His music is so intense and elegant, and it became a real strength of the film.

5. What were your initial reactions when watching the audience talking about your film in the feedback video?
It’s always a beautiful and emotional experience to see your film through someone else’s eyes!

6. When did you realize that you wanted to make films?
Anyone who gets into videomaking starts off inspired by cinema or music videos—which are really just a condensed form of cinema. But as you go deeper into professional videomaking, you often face frustration because clients are usually only focused on performance and profit. Quality becomes less and less of a priority.
So having personal projects that bring you back to the reasons you started—those early dreams—is essential. It helps you stay connected to your identity and reminds you why you chose this path in the first place.

7. What film have you seen the most in your life?
The first “Rocky”, hands down. It’s a love story, full of poetry and raw humanity. That film has inspired thousands of people to overcome life’s challenges and believe in themselves and their dreams. For me, it was a huge life lesson.

8. What other elements of the festival experience can we and other festivals implement to satisfy you and help you further your filmmaking career?
This is actually my first foray into the world of film festivals. The response has been overwhelming—we’ve won over 30 awards in the first 40 days! Honestly, when we submitted it, we weren’t expecting to win anything. The goal was just to get the film out there.
I really loved the audience feedback video, and I think it would be amazing if festivals also shared a few note explaining why a film was selected or awarded—what stood out to them and what influenced their final decision.

9. You submitted to the festival via FilmFreeway. How has your experience been working on the festival platform site?
It’s been great. FilmFreeway works perfectly and makes it super easy to keep track of how the film is doing across different festivals.

10. What is your favorite meal?
Onion rings, BBQ sauce… and basically anything that’s totally unhealthy!

11. What is next for you? A new film?
Last year I directed a trilogy of investigative music documentaries, featuring many well-known musicians from Italy.
The first film tells the story of Italy through music, from 1960s to today. The second one tackles current issues, and the third looks ahead to the future—with all the concerns and questions that come with the market’s evolution and the growing impact of AI on art. They’ll be released over the next three years.
Besides that, I already have 4 or 5 concepts ready for new documentary films about some very interesting artists like Nado Canuti, but i’d like realize each of them with a different style. I hope the recognition “Nado” is getting will help us find the support to bring those projects to life.

THE CALLBACK, 10min., Canada
ISAAC is one of several actors auditioning for the lead in the globally renowned action franchise: MAX STORM. Every actor has been invited into the audition room, which is empty aside from a table with a black covering. Suddenly, they’re greeted by the voice of director DEAN WEST over the intercom. “Do whatever it takes to secure the role.” The tablecloth comes off, revealing a massive collection of deadly melee weapons. Everyone is skeptical, but distrust is already growing. When one of the actors sets his sights on Isaac, snatches an imposing knife off the table, and begins to close in, Isaac is forced to fight to survive.

Get to know filmmaker Malcolm Jack:

1. What motivated you to make this film?

As someone who’s beginning to look into pursuing a career as an actor, the extremely competitive nature of the industry is becoming increasingly evident. I often find myself wondering what I would do to secure a career in the art form I am so passionate about. What lengths would I go to if given the opportunity? There are many instances of powerful individuals in the entertainment industry exploiting ambitious artists like myself. What would happen if they truly pitted us against each other with the promise of success dangling over our heads?

I was inspired to explore themes of ambition, betrayal, manipulation, desperation, and survival. It strives to be engaging, surprising, and captivating for the audience. Simultaneously, it attempts to comment on how individuals in positions of power, especially in the entertainment industry, take advantage of those with less power and influence who are desperate to improve their situation. The film also explores the extreme actions desperate individuals take in pursuit of personal gain. Finally reflects on the ramifications of sacrificing the well-being of others to achieve personal success.

2. From the idea to the finished product, how long did it take for you to make this film?

I began writing in December 2024. We wrapped in early April 2025. I have been playing with the idea ever since I started auditioning as an actor.

3. How would you describe your film in two words!?

Thriller, Satire.

4. What was the biggest obstacle you faced in completing this film?

This film was an incredible learning experience. The main takeaway was how deeply a director must communicate and collaborate with other humans involved in a film. That is the main goal. The most essential element needed to succeed in this medium. It doesn’t matter how much a director understands the story or structure if I don’t communicate effectively with everyone involved.

5. What were your initial reactions when watching the audience talking about your film in the feedback video?

Gratitude for how generous and detailed the feedback was. Gratitude and relief that the themes and ideas I was attempting to explore were picked up on.

6. When did you realize that you wanted to make films?

My parents have always been extremely supportive of my interest in storytelling in the arts. They put me in community theatre at a young age, and since then I have been interested in every aspect of the film and theatre process. I am eternally grateful for their support.

7. What film have you seen the most in your life?

The empire strikes back. This film moves me like no other. I’m a massive fan of film scores, and John Williams’s score in this film is a masterpiece. On its own, this score is able to articulate the profound themes of human connection, resistance, betrayal, and resilience that ESB deals with. The film only works mainly thanks to John Williams’s brilliance.

8. What other elements of the festival experience can we and others festivals implement to satisfy you and help you further your filmmaking career?

I would love to see more in-person screenings in the city of Toronto!

9. You submitted to the festival via FilmFreeway. How has your experiences working on the festival platform site?

This was my first time submitting to festivals. I’m somewhat technologically challenged, so navigating the site and submitting was definitely a learning process at first, but I overcame the learning curve relatively quickly.

10. What is your favorite meal?

My father makes an incredible avocado omelet.

11. What is next for you? A new film?

My creative partners and I are currently launching our production company: PITMEN PRODUCTIONS. The Callback will soon be premiering on the Pitmen Productions YouTube channel along with new shorts and sketches.

The Line We Crossed, 110min., US
Directed by Liz Smith
A British story of dissent, drawn from the frontlines of climate resistance. Through the experiences of those who stood in defiance, it traces the quiet unraveling of our protest rights. The film challenges audiences to question what makes dissent effective and where the line of acceptability is.

http://www.thelinewecrossed.com/
https://www.instagram.com/p75investigates/

Get to know the filmmaker:

1. What motivated you to make this film?

I was developing a film about polarisation and democratic backsliding, and how that intersects with the climate crisis. Just Stop Oil were a very polarising group in the UK so I went to find out more about them and then I heard about climate activists being sent to prison for contempt of court for saying the words “climate crisis” in front of the jury. I couldn’t believe it. So I started following what was going on with my camera and it all just flowed from there.

2. From the idea to the finished product, how long did it take for you to make this film?
2 years

3. How would you describe your film in two words!?
We’re screwed.

4. What was the biggest obstacle you faced in completing this film?
No distributors would get behind it because the topic was too toxic for them to handle and there was a perception in the industry that “no one wanted to watch films about climate change anymore”. (We’ve already proved them wrong on that last point!)

5. What were your initial reactions when watching the audience talking about your film in the feedback video?
This was the first time we got feedback from viewers outside the UK and it was really encouraging that all of them, with one exception, had “got” the film. It shows it is a universal issue, even though the story is a very British one.

6. When did you realize that you wanted to make films?
2002, or at least that’s when I made the decision to apply to film school

7. What film have you seen the most in your life?
No idea!

8. What other elements of the festival experience can we and other festivals implement to satisfy you and help you further your filmmaking career?
Going to festivals and having your film screened there is mostly a really wonderful experience, but doing the festival circuit is expensive. Entry fees add up, if you attend in person, the travel, accommodation and subsistence costs quickly add up. Festivals present a fantastic opportunity to show your film to audiences you otherwise might not reach, but for indie filmmakers the economics of it rarely add up. I don’t know how we can solve that problem.

9. You submitted to the festival via FilmFreeway. How has your experiences been working on the festival platform site?
It makes it so much more efficient for us. I wish every festival used it. It also makes it easier to keep track of your entries.

10. What is your favorite meal?
It’s not a meal as such but to most people’s horror, I love 100% dark chocolate. The good thing is, no one ever steals it from you!

11. What is next for you? A new film?
There will always be a next film for me. There are so many films I want to make.

PEELING, 17min,. Japan
Directed by Ryusei Emi
The main character Shiori, who struggles with her own identity, one day visits a women’s sex club. She has a secret that she cannot tell anyone and is afraid of being rejected, so she has a hard time exposing herself. With the help of her therapist, Takeru, she peels away her insecurities and fears.

Get to know producer Mihoko Suzuki:

1. What motivated you to make this film?

I wanted to burn onto the screen “the exact moment we peel back to our true selves.” There is pain in living beneath the weight of family and social expectations, yet an exhilarating catharsis when that shell finally cracks. My starting point was to let viewers experience that contrast through visuals set against near-silence. The dim, cocoon-like hotel room versus the faint stirrings of an unrestful heart—elements noted in the review—grew from that impulse.

2. From the idea to the finished product, how long did it take for you to make this film?

The first idea came in August 2023; post-production finished in January 2025—about 18 months in total.

3. How would you describe your film in two words!?

“Peeling / Silence”

4. What was the biggest obstacle you faced in completing this film?

Designing sound for the almost-silent scenes—capturing heartbeats and even the rustle of fabric.

5. What were your initial reactions when watching the audience talking about your film in the feedback video?

My heart swelled. A tiny idea born in a corner of Tokyo had crossed the ocean and touched so many people—that fact moved me deeply. In Japan, indie short films rarely get screen time, let alone fair evaluation. That’s why the warm feedback and this award instantly compensated for every hardship we endured during production; it was the greatest reward imaginable.

6. When did you realize that you wanted to make films?

Japan’s nightlife has fostered a unique sexual-service culture. Desire may be openly affirmed there, yet in mainstream society a powerful demand for conformity still reigns, leaving almost no space for people to speak their authentic selves. That two-layered reality has always unsettled me. I want to visualize, through image and sound, the odd coexistence of places where desire can be voiced freely and everyday lives where people pretend to be “normal,” along with the loneliness and hope of those who live between them. That is my driving force as a filmmaker.

7. What film have you seen the most in your life?

Spike Jonze’s “Her.”

Its minimalist portrayal of the space between loneliness and connection amazes me every time.

8. What other elements of the festival experience can we and other festivals implement to satisfy you and help you further your filmmaking career?

A multilingual subtitle–data exchange platform: Sharing translation resources among low-budget indies would lower the barrier to overseas screenings.Audience-creator mentoring sessions: Direct storytelling feedback from general viewers would be an invaluable opportunity.

9. What is your favorite meal?

Yes—currently in pre-production. The working title is “COCOON.”

10. What is next for you? A new film?

Its theme is how to embrace the true self left exposed after “PEELING.” A 90-minute feature: from a quiet hotel room the protagonist steps into the wider world—an urban night awash with diverse lights and sounds—on a road-movie-style journey to reclaim their own voice.

Hammerstone Meets Woofstock, 20min., Canada
Directed by Josh Holliday
A film that straddles the line between narrative and documentary, landing squarely on comedy. Steve Hammerstone is a small town radio host and big time buffoon, who’s sent to explore Woofstock: North America’s largest festival for dogs.

Get to know the filmmaker:

1. What motivated you to make this film?
My friend and Lisa and I had done these small town radio host characters “Steve and Tawny” on CBC radio and through podcast for many years. Just before the pandemic, we were judges for Woofstock, and had so much fun doing it. Afterwards I had great regret that we had no record of that live event, so I set my sights on the next Woofstock. Unfortunately, COVID-19 came along and threw a wrench in the plan until 2024. I had stayed in touch with one of the founders and organizers over the years, and as soon as I knew a new version was coming, I made sure I was a part of it. I’ve always loved buffoon comedy. After many years working in radio and audio, I finally got around to fulfilling my high school mantra: “I want to write, act and direct for television and film.”

2. From the idea to the finished product, how long did it take for you to make this film?
Well, outside of the ideation and desire to do this project, pre-pandemic, the time started ticking as soon as I knew there was going to be a new Woodstock event. So that was probably in February or March of 2024. That set a very specific deadline for the actual shoot day. Woofstock generally happens over 2 days of a weekend. The day I was selected to judge was the Sunday. After the shoot, I worked with an editor to chop it down to under 20. Once that was done did some titles, post audio, and some audio cleanup. Had a friends and family screening on August 28th, so about 7 months in total from pre-production to final cut.

3. How would you describe your film in two words!?
Buffoon comedy.

4. What was the biggest obstacle you faced in completing this film?
Ha! This is a tough one, there are a few. The old wig I’d been using for this character for years had gotten really unruly, so I ordered a new one from this company in BC and what they sent was nothing like what was pictured on their website. They did not answer any emails, or calls, and eventually I had to initiate a chargeback process with my credit card company. I had to make do with the old wig, and put a baseball hat on. I have really bad eyesight, and the glasses I’d used in the past for the character were a pair of my dad’s from the 80s with no lenses. When I did the Woofstock years ago I remember spending most of the day in character in a literal blur. I hunted online for a pair of glasses that were similar that I could get real lenses put in. I did that – and because of my prescription it took awhile. Well, the joke was on me, because the optometrist screwed up, and the lenses were essentially reading glass lenses – super-blurry except reading. It also detracted from the character, because so much of comedy is in the eyes, and the lenses had a real distorting effect. It was too late to get them changed before the event. The new glasses also just didn’t have the same look as my Dad’s old pair. (I’ve since put real lenses in my Dad’s vintage frames.)This was all before the shoot!
Shoot day was a whole new challenge.

The day of the shoot, they were calling for stormy weather. We got a little rain, but it was very windy. You can definitely see some of the wind effects in the stage portion of the short. The plan was to film the stage stuff when it happened, about 11AM to 3PM, and then roam around doing vendor interviews until end of fest at 5. During the stage stuff, there was no real break for crew, as we were at mercy of live stage schedule. After the live event, we took a lunch break, assuming we’d have lots of time to do vendors. The problem was, the wind was so bad, vendors tents were affected, so most of them started packing up early. This meant we were racing around the vendor area at lightning speed, often leaving the 2nd camera behind for some B-roll. Some of the vendors I had targeted were already shut down. It was chaos! If you look closely you can notice it in the background of some shots. And of course, when shooting this way – where people aren’t in on the joke – there are never second takes.

5. What were your initial reactions when watching the audience talking about your film in the feedback video?
I thought it was interesting to see how different people interpreted the film in different ways and saw the character and comedy.

6. When did you realize that you wanted to make films?
I started playing around with a video camera in my teens, and was always interested in film. I mentioned my high school mantra. I went to radio and television at Ryerson for college. After university I spent half a year working as a studio guide at Universal Studios in Los Angeles. A unique and amazing experience.

7. What film have you seen the most in your life?
Hmm. I know I’ve watched Planes, Trains and Automobiles a lot, but it’s hard to choose one. This particular short owes a bit to Borat, Ali G, Best In Show and The Party.

8. What other elements of the festival experience can we and other festivals implement to satisfy you and help you further your filmmaking career?
I like the in-person screenings and networking.

9. You submitted to the festival via FilmFreeway. How has your experiences been working on the festival platform site?
I found FF a great one-stop site for taking out a lot of the legwork for submitting to fests.

10. What is your favorite meal?
Gnocchi

11. What is next for you? A new film?
I’d like to make a feature with the Hammerstone character and more of a narrative. Other thought is episodic with every episode a Hammerstone Meets ____________.