USA • 45 minutes Directed by Brian "B+" Cross and Eric Coleman
As a means to reframe outdated half-truths, this vibrant narrative illustrates a new chapter of Birmingham’s legacy. This story aims to linger beyond our stained reputation by highlighting the people and places that embody the essence of what makes this city “Magic.”
Ariel Gary - Screening Committee USA • 46 minutes Directed by Michele Forman Birmingham's Front Lawn explores the creation of Railroad Park in the heart of Downtown Birmingham. Watch as the park, which has become an integral part of life downtown, transforms from unassuming acreage to a lush urban green space and hear from the park's champions who turned their dream into a reality in order to uplift Birmingham.
Films that recognize Black stories on screen are not limited to one genre, identity, or experience.
Capriccio Directed By Kiah Clingman 9:27 • United States • Alabama Premiere NARRATIVE, WOMEN IN FILM Two strangers meet in a cozy bookstore where music and dance form a non-verbal language of expression and ignite an unexpected romance.
Church Hat Directed By Miceál Og O'Donnell 7:04 • United States • Southern U.S. Premiere ANIMATED, SHOUT When his traditional Jamaican mother catches him playing dress-up with her prized church hats (crowns), a young boy expects trouble. Instead, he discovers that love means being seen, accepted, and celebrated exactly as he is.
Lemon Directed By Beth Curry 14:47 • United States • Southern U.S. Premiere WOMEN IN FILM, NARRATIVE When her agoraphobic mother dies suddenly, six-year-old Lemon must overcome her conditioned fear and venture outside for the first time. Her journey from fear to bravery becomes a tender exploration of courage, imagination, and human connection.
A Mystical Ornithology Directed By Jeremy Seifert, Benjamin James Roberts 11:07 • United States DOCUMENTARY In this lyrical portrait, ornithologist, poet, and professor Drew Lanham invites you into his South Carolina farm where birdwatching becomes both refuge and revelation.
God Sleeps On Sundays Directed By Naishe Nyamubaya 16:47 • Zimbabwe • Southern U.S. Premiere INTERNATIONAL, NARRATIVE When a new preacher arrives to build a church, he clashes with a village's traditional healer in an exploration of the current tension between traditional culture and Western religion in Zimbabwe.
Eternal Directed By Joshua Jeffrey Miller 17:15 • United States • Alabama Premiere ALABAMA, STUDENT, NARRATIVE "Eternal" is an allegorical tale about a man who, in his grief, seeks out death and the ability to see his loved one again.
Spilled Milk Directed By Jared Leaf 13:04 • United States NARRATIVE A father's innocent errand leads him to an encounter with an enigmatic figure called The Milk Man in this Jordan Peele produced film.
USA • 1 hour 34 minutes Directed by Kenny Dalsheimer and Rafael Samanez
An endearing look at Jazz musician Yusuf Salim through his voice and the artists he inspired over the years. Salim was the core force behind the development of a beautiful music community in Durham North Carolina. A community built on connection and support which shows the power of music.
WARLA is a crime-drama based on the true story of the Warla Gang, a group of transgender women who kidnap foreigners for ransom money to fund their gender-affirming surgeries. The film examines the struggles and treatment of marginalized individuals searching for acceptance.
Leaving Angola follows Justin Singleton, a man serving life without parole for murder at Louisiana's infamous state penitentiary, and Derek Moss, a young father preparing for early release who he has taken under his wing. When Derek returns home, he must put Justin’s life lessons to the test as both of the men’s lives take unexpected turns. Filmed over seven years with rare access inside America’s largest maximum-security prison, this film is a powerful exploration of family, redemption, and the realities of reentry in America's most incarcerated state.
Jessica Chriesman - Director of Education and Outreach
A sharp take on AI’s dark side—where eugenics fears and human worth clash in a tech-driven world. It dares us to ask: What happens to people’s value when those who build AI decide who matters? The risks of AI go far beyond what most expect.
Learn something new about Alabama the Beautiful in these docs by Alabamians.
The Mayor of Rasslin' Directed By Layla Khan-Hickman 05:32 • United States ALABAMA, STUDENT, WOMEN IN FILM In a small Alabama town, "The Mayor of Rasslin'" follows the life of a beloved mayor and pro-wrestler who fights for his community -- both in the ring and out of it.
Are You Listening? Poetry in the Magic City Directed By Juliana Eberhardt, Sophie Estrada, Amelia Velaski 11:33 • United States STUDENT, WOMEN IN FILM Poets Ashley M. Jones and Halley Cotton spark a poetry renaissance in Birmingham, Alabama. Now, poets of all ages and levels of experience are writing, reciting, and inspiring with their artful use of language.
HYPERSCALED Directed By Maya Estrera 19:28 • United States ENVIRONMENTAL, STUDENT, WOMEN IN FILM Focused on Alabama's "Project Marvel," this documentary unearths the real world cost of AI as residents fight to get answers about the costly impacts of proposed datacenters.
Final Press Directed By John Haley 10:45 • United States • Alabama Premiere Workers at The Minnesota Star Tribune complete the last run of the newspaper's Heritage printing plant bringing an end to 150 years of printing the paper in Minnesota.
Monograph: David Brower Directed By Christopher E. Holmes 06:50 • United States Artist David Brower reflects on his career from photographer to award-winning filmmaker and the transition from commercial work to multi-disciplinary art that feeds the soul.
Memory Work Directed By Jada Brielle Ceaser 03:21 • United States BLACK LENS, STUDENT, WOMEN IN FILM VHS collector Justin Cottingham doesn't just preserve media; he keeps memories alive through his one-of-a-kind hobby.
Ādi Directed By Sukanya Subramaniyan 11:06 • India • U.S. Premiere WOMEN IN FILM "Ādi" (Sanskrit for "beginning" or "origin) captures the origin of the cross-cultural musical group Vishnu, Davis, & Haleigh as they discover new friendships and new sounds together.
The Chukker: Nation of Misfits Directed By Nate Billings, Charlotte Gale 08:35 • United States STUDENT, WOMEN IN FILM The Chukker: Nation of Misfits is a short documentary that tells the story of the famed Tuscaloosa establishment, The Chukker, from its conception in 1956 to the building's condemnation in 2007.
Wall of Sound Directed By Anissa Latham-Brown 11:02 • United States BLACK LENS, WOMEN IN FILM Watch the electrifying and intense journey of the nationally recognized Purple Marching Machine from Miles College—an HBCU in Fairfield, Alabama—as the band prepares for the 2025-2026 season.
USA • 1 hour 7 minutes Directed by Amy Scott and Dena Fisher
Carpenter Shelley Halstead trains a group of three young, Black women in construction skills by rehabbing vacant and abandoned houses in West Baltimore, challenging generations of racism and sexism in housing. When tensions arise within the diverse group of young women she's teaching to build and a suspicious fire destroys one of her buildings, Shelley is forced to rethink her vision of community.
Jessica Chriesman - Director of Education and Outreach
PRT • 1 hour 20 minutes Directed by Vicente Alves do Ó
The prismatic colors of Portugal in 1982 contrast the tensions that are the pulse of this film. 10-year-old Vasco is caught between childhood's wonders and adulthood's miseries. His mother is struggling to stay afloat, social pressures keep him from knowing his father, and he simply wants to understand it all.
USA • 1 hour 39 minutes Directed by Daniel Christian
Through the lens of prolific photographer O. N. Pruitt, Possum Town introduces us to Columbus, MS during the Jim Crow era. Nearly a century later, the citizens of Columbus' lives are juxtaposed against the images of the past and the perspectives of today as we are guided through Pruitt’s photographic archive. This film invites us to engage with history, its preservation and its influence on the present.
Jessica Chriesman - Director of Education and Outreach
Embie, an aspiring concert photographer, embarks on a tour with an intergalactic band that challenges his own perceptions of success and responsibility. An animated micro-feature five years in the making, Trevor Mastro has independently crafted and produced a personal, one-of-a-kind psychedelic experience (with an excellent soundtrack) that you are unlikely to forget.
