Roxie First Looks: Shorts Program #5

First Looks, the Roxie’s Oscar-Qualifying Theatrical Release program, supports filmmakers in their Academy Award quest. We put together a unique lineup of shorts (with running times of 40 minutes and under) from any genre (documentary, narrative, and animation) to serve as the film’s Academy qualifying run. 

Filmmakers interested in participating can check out more info here.

Sardinia
Director: Paul Kowalski
Synopsis: A serious man tries to avoid catching a deadly laughing plague in a growingly polarized and dystopian society.
Running Time: 19m 41s

Business Trip (Viaje de Negocios)
Director:Gerardo Coello Escalan
Synopsis: Daniel arrives at school wearing brand new sneakers from America, gifted to him by his father. When he sees another boy wearing the same sneakers, he begins to suspect that their shoes are the key to a terrible secret.
Runtime: 13m 11s

Gabriela
Director: Evelyn Lorena
Synopsis: It’s the summer after high-school graduation and Gabriela, a young undocumented Guatemalan woman, pursues her dream of swimming for an illustrious Country Club swim team. Despite her single-minded determination, Gabriela is continually confronted with her over- protective mother’s fears, limitations on her economic and legal status, and her own self-judgment. As she questions her self-worth against the structures of contemporary American Southern life, Gabriela embarks on a quest towards personal freedom and self-acceptance. Gabriela is a visually captivating coming-of-age story, with a poetic reflection on identity and class divisions in the US – and the liberating power of water. The short was the recipient of the Netflix and Latino Film Institute’s Indigenous Latino Fellowship.
Running Time: 16m

The Good Dads
Director: Simona Calo
Synopsis: A single mother of an autistic child, abandoned by her husband, embarks on a quest
to find a good father for her son, facing rejection and disappointment until a chance encounter at
a café renews her hope.
Running Time: 3m 26s

Me, Raani
Director: Shivani Mehra
Synopsis: Me, Raani is a single mother’s desperation for societal status reflected in her desire to buy a birthda present for her daughter that she can’t afford.
Running Time: 18m 35s