Vortex Sci-Fi, Fantasy & Horror Film Festival

FROM THE LAND BEYOND

Enjoy a a free afternoon screening for your family to enjoy at the Providence Place Library. These films are age-appropriate and showcase a mixture of fantasy and science fiction.

This event is free, but please register for the event using Eventbrite.

Broken Wand | Anne Yang, Michael Altman, Directors | 3 min. | USA, 2014.
'Broken Wand' is the story of a washed-up magician trying reconnect with his preteen grandson who used to love magic.

Dissonance | Till Nowak, Director | 15 min. | Germany, 2015.
A genius musician lives a lonely life in a surreal, floating world. He plays the piano every day in a gigantic concert hall, but there is nobody to listen. One day his animated world collapses and reality breaks out.

Knock Knock | Anthony Lund, Director | 3 min | USA, 2014.
On a dark, stormy night, a brave little boy decides to find out who is knocking on his door... his closet door, that is.

Lapse of Time | Celine Tricart, Director | 15 min. France, 2013.
On a winter afternoon, in the course of a hide and seek game, a kid finds shelter in the most 
unlikely of places : the huge astronomic-tuned clock of the city's cathedral! Sneaking his way through, he accidentally gets his jacket stuck into the mechanism blocking the entire system...and of time itself!

Life on Juniper | Mark Ratzlaff, Director | 15 min. Canada, 2015.
Following reports of a mysterious crash, an aging farmer encounters a visitor determined on 
disrupting his quiet way of life.

Prelude | Mitra Shahidi, Director | 5 min. Australia, 2011.
Prelude is a whimsical story of a creative little girl and her scientist grandfather. A series of happy accidents cause the relationship between these two get stronger.

Raspberry Galaxies | Noah Sterling, Director | 5 min. United Kingdom, 2015.
When a young girl discovers that the center of our galaxy contains the same chemicals that give raspberries their taste, she is inspired to create a universe of her own out of actual raspberries.

Zéro | Tony T. Datis, Director | 10 min. France, 2014.
In the heart of a small suburban park, a young boy is about to reveal his incredible secret to his classmate.

Side Kick | Puja Maewal, Director |10 min. | USA, 2014.
A little girl mistakes a thief for a comic book superhero. 

Using Genre to Tell a Story
This is a free screening event with a lecture from RIIFF Programming Director, Shawn Quirk, about using a film's genre to tell a story. 

The event is free, but register using Eventbrite as seating is limited. 

Dissonance | Till Nowak, Director | 15 min. | Germany, 2015.
A genius musician lives a lonely life in a surreal, floating world. He plays the piano every day in a gigantic concert hall, but there is nobody to listen. One day his animated world collapses and reality breaks out.

YIKES | Michael Fodera, Director | 11 min. | USA, 2015.

A sheltered and struggling young actor, Ian, receives a call from his agent about an upcoming audition. Shortly after, Ian begins to see disturbing visions of the immediate future and he soon realizes that having this ability is not exactly a welcomed gift unless he is ready to do something about it.

Scheherazade | Mehrnoush Aliaghael, Director | 15 min. | Iran/USA, 2014.
In an audition, the unseen man behind the camera is asking the young actresses to share their dark personal stories to prove how well they relate to the anti-hero they are auditioning for. The result is a story tapestry of dark fantasies, secrets, memories, and betrayals. But their stories are not the end, they are only the beginning. What is happening in this audition room?

Whisper  | Jo Lewis, Director | 11 min. | United Kingdom, 2015.
A young woman travels to a remote beach side cabin in an attempt to finally quit her heroin habit. While there she accidentally sets in motion a chain of sinister events. Hauntingly beautiful, Whisper is a modern day ghost story that will keep you gripped from start to spine-chilling finish.

The Bridge Partner 14 min. | Gabriel Olsen, Director | 13 min. | USA, 2014.
Mattie is a timid housewife who has settled into a dull yet comfortable routine. She is confronted with a captivating alternative when she is paired with a new partner at a weekly bridge game. This stranger, Olivia, is everything Mattie is not: foreign, independent and alluring. But as the game ends, Olivia calmly leans across the table and whispers a shocking message.

Or at least that's what Mattie thinks she hears.

Larry Gone Demon | Matt Lawrence, Director | 14 min. | USA, 2014.
When three twenty-somethings must deal with the incorrigible and incredibly demonic Larry, they risk life and limb in an attempt to save the soul of their once-kind-and-unassuming friend while also procuring his five-hundred dollars in back rent.

Tarim the Brave Versus 1000 Special Effects | Guillaume Rieu, Director | 19 min. | France, 2015.
As he is going to save a princess imprisoned in the dungeon of an evil sorcerer, Tarim understands that he is the main character of a movie, and decides to fight against the special effect.

PROVIDENCE UNDERGROUND FILM FESTIVAL: Part 1


Lake Nowhere | Christopher Phelps and Maxim Von Scoy, Directors | 51 min. | USA, 2014.
From the vaults of the golden age of slasher films comes LAKE NOWHERE, a raucous, bloody romp which resurrects the thrill of gory midnight movies for an hour-long plunge into the depths of horror. Inspired by the dusty days of VHS, LAKE NOWHERE is preceded by original trailers & commercials, replicating the experience of watching a long lost bootleg tape.

Preceded by:

Selene Hollow | Mathew Provost, Director | 44 min. | USA (Local), 2015.
Selene Hollow follows recently unemployed journalist Byron, as he struggles to reinvent himself while penning his first novel. Lost in the middle of nowhere, Byron's new home of Selene Hollow, soon reveals itself to be much more than a quiet place for him to escape.

They’re Closing In | Jarret Blinkhorn, Director | 6 min. | USA (Local), 2015.
Tension grows as a tired married couple are forced to deal with each others issues because if they leave... The creatures outside will make them regret it.

Special presentation of French Speaking sci-fi and fantasy films at Woonsocket's Museum of Work and Culture.

Eloise Little Dreamer | Myriam Obin, Director | 4 min. | Canada, 2015
This creative animation manages to bring voice to a day of celebration in the streets of the city; everyone is wearing masks and making noise. However, a little girl discovers things are not what they appear to be. What is, in reality, a peaceful protest is soon disrupted by an aggressive police action. 

Zéro | Tony T. Datis, Director | 10 min. France, 2014. In the heart of a small suburban park, a young boy is about to reveal his incredible secret to his classmate.

Josef et Aimée | Ben Shirinian, Director| 15 min. | Canada, 2014. Josef and Aimee were originally from cities in the north of France, but as the Nazi occupation of France drew near, their families sent them into hiding in the south of France. 

Hair Cut | Virginia Mori, Director | 8 min. | France, 2014. A teacher and her pupil linger in an empty classroom. Through their looks and gestures, a strange confrontation begins.

A Vif  | Guillaume Foresti, Director| 23 min. | France, 2014. Beatrice and Laurent are a couple. Laurent mysteriously lost his senses, little by little. Gradually, he lost the taste and smell, and touch. But more worryingly, it only affects his perception of his wife.  He wonders if the problem really comes from him...

Chulyen | Agnès Patron, Director | 20 min. | France, 2015. Up there, so close to the pole, Chulyen is bored. Half man, half crow, with his pitiless eyes he cuts the world into pieces. When Chulyen covets a giant's kayak, he comes down from the air to charm and deceive him.

Tarim le brave contre des Milles et Un Effects (Tarim the Brave Versus 1001 Special Effects) | Guillaume Rieu, Director | 19 min. | France, 2015. As he is going to save a princess imprisoned in the dungeon of an evil sorcerer, Tarim understands that he is the main character of a movie, and decides to fight against the special effect.

NOTE: TICKETS WILL BE SOLD AT THE DOOR! 100 seat max capacity so please get there early.

Back to Earth | Thomas Wilson, Director | 14 min. | Australia, 2015.
The sun is setting. A young man, Lou, is sitting next to a re-opened grave, hurriedly preparing an assortment of objects; a mortar and pestle, salts, flowers and a watch, taking cue from a leather-bound book full of notes and hand-drawn diagrams. He places the items on and around a recently deceased corpse that he has pulled out of the grave.

A Boy’s Life | Howard McCain, Director | 7 min. | USA, 2014.
A Boy's Life is a short narrative told only through visuals. It takes what initially appears to be a portrait of a troubled youth and twists to reveal a world gone awry. Harking back to the classic stories of 'Lord of the Flies' and 'City of God,' it examines the power of youth in an environment of chaos and violence.

The Crop | Will Halas, Director | 15 min. | USA, 2014.
On a road in the middle of nowhere, with the horizon stretching out as far as the eye can see, a Man tries to start the car, but the ignition will not catch. He gets out, grabs his bag, and walks around to the passenger side. Bleeding from a wound in abdomen, he opens the door, grabs a gun from the glove box, and for the first time, we see a second man - a very dead man - in the passenger seat.

Playback | Nathan Crooker, Director | 4 min. | USA, 2014.
A man turns on his TV but can only find static, when suddenly the static cuts out to show security camera footage of a masked killer chasing a scantily-clad woman and 
brutally gutting her in an apartment hallway.

Sebastian & Them | Benjamin Bee, Director | 7 min. | United Kingdom, 2015.
Sebastian has to leave is childhood friends behind. the only problem is they don't want him to leave him...

Seule | Didier Philippe, Director | 10 min. | France, 2014.
Claire, a young woman, lives alone in a large apartment. Her fear of the outside world stops her from going out and letting people in. One day, she discovers evidence revealing that a man lives in her home. The presence of that man becomes more and more apparent and eventually threatening...

A Way Out | Jason Tostevin, Director | 14 min. | USA,  2015.
Aging gangster Vic has made a deadly decision of the heart: he's going to risk quitting the life to have one last chance at redemption, saving his grandson before he follows in his Vic's footsteps. But when he reveals his plan to his protege Reggie, whom he's groomed for years to take his place, he discovers he's not the only one who's been harboring a killer secret.

YIKES | Michael Fodera, Director | 11 min. | USA, 2015. 
A sheltered and struggling young actor, Ian, receives a call from his agent about an upcoming audition. Shortly after, Ian begins to see disturbing visions of the immediate future and he soon realizes that having this ability is not exactly a welcomed gift unless he is ready to do something about it.

PROVIDENCE UNDERGROUND FILM FESTIVAL: Part 2

Catch a special screening of films produced by local filmmakers and a RIIFF alum!

Fury: The Tales of Ronin Pierce | Kevin McCarthy, Director | 91 min. | USA (Local), 2014.
Our film revolves around Ronan Pierce, a vigilante cop with a dark past in the fictional Harbor City. Harbor city is full of psychopaths, rapists, gangs,serial killers & corrupt cops/politicians. However, none are worse than The Luna Cartel, a large global human trafficking network enslaves thousands of young beautiful women from around the world, and harvests organs from all of it's other victims 

Preceded By:

Peeved | Rhonda Marie, Director | 17 min. | USA (Local), 2015.
A family becomes unhinged due to their pet “peeves.”  An unstable son takes matters into his own hands while being taunted by the mystery of his deceased sister.

A Tricky Treat | Patricia Chica, Director | 3 min. | Canada, 2015.
A man is kidnapped by a very strange family, and his fate is held in the hands of two kids.

Things are never what you think they are…

Hair Cut | Virginia Mori, Director | 8 min. | France, 2014.
A teacher and her pupil linger in an empty classroom. Through their looks and gestures, a 
strange confrontation begins.

Pale Blue Eyes | Joe Henderson, Director | 10 min. | Australia, 2014.
Nothing is what it seems.

Chulyen | Agnès Patron, Director | 20 min. | France, 2015.
Up there, so close to the pole, Chulyen is bored. Half man, half crow, with his pitiless eyes he cuts the world into pieces. When Chulyen covets a giant's kayak, he comes down from the air to charm and deceive him.

One Night in Hell | James Hall, Jason Jameson, Directors | 7 min. | USA, 2014.
A devilish and spectacular animation short that tells the story of a skeleton's journey into a 
stereoscopic hell.

Under the Bed | Tamar Ben-Baruch, Director | 3 min. | USA, 2014.
Under the Bed is the story of a little boy trying to escape a horrific nightmare as his furniture and belongings come to life.

The Cure | Xavier Mesme, Director | 14 min. | France, 2015. 
One evening, a mysterious visitor pays a visit to a drug addict, bringing her a miracle cure for her addiction. But the woman realizes that the visitor came with other intentions in mind.

The Cart | Patrik Erikson, Director | 6 min. | Poland, 2015.
A girl is pushing a fish in a water filled cart across a dark plain. 
The cart is leaking, and mysterious beings are attracted to the struggle. What awaits in the 
abyss?

Teeth | Tom Brown, Daniel Gray, Directors | 6 min. | USA/United Kingdom, 2015.
That which is neglected, is lost.

The Morrigan | Colum Eastwood, Director | 16 min. | Ireland/United Kingdom, 2014. 
A young couple's remote holiday cottage comes under attack from malevolent forces when they give refuge to a mysterious young girl.

CAT BIRD COYOTE | Amy Raasch, Director | 3 min. | USA, 2015.
In a stark laboratory, a ruthless bird scientist's experiments cause a freak explosion, freeing one of his subjects. An abused cat escapes from her captor as a coyote digs through trash. Once free, the animals must not only fend for themselves, but face each other in the wild.

Sick To My Bones | Matthew Bailey, Director | 14 min. | United Kingdom, 2015.
A winged warrior wakes up to find herself close to death and bound by chains to her demonic prisoner. It is her duty to walk the wasteland and bring her prisoner to a place where he can be assimilated and become just like her. But as her body starts to shut down, will she be able to complete her task?

Day 40 | Sol Friedman, Director | 6 min. | USA, 2014.
In this animated retelling of the Noah's Ark story, various unholy activities fill the great ship, as the animals discover the darker side of their nature.
 

Get ready for an international short film showcase filled with horror and science fiction.

Havva | Guclu Aydogdu, Director | 8 min. | Turkey, 2015.
The tragic miracle of a father in an alternate post-apocalyptic world.

A Vif | Guillaume Foresti, Director| 23 min. | France, 2014.
Beatrice and Laurent are a couple. Laurent mysteriously lost his senses, little by little. Gradually, he lost the taste and smell, and touch. But more worryingly, it only affects his perception of his wife. He wonders if the problem really comes from him...

Drink | Emily Moss Wilson, Director | 23 min. | USA, 2014.
DRINK is a sci-fi cautionary tale that follows Alice and her two sons, Clint and Billy, as they flee their home in the middle of the night. They arrive at an old desert motel, and it doesn't take long before Alice realizes she has a strange connection to this place. A tragedy of the past begins to reveal secret desires that could send Alice down a path of freedom or insanity.

Mrs. K | Dongneok Seo, Director |15 min. | South Korea, 2015.
Mrs. K, a 9 months pregnant thirty-something housewife, starts to suspect her wealthy husband of something sinister.

La Ropavejra | Nacho Ruipérez | 28 min. | Spain, 2014.
Young Teresita finds herself suddenly being forced to live in a house with a group of 9 forgotten children. Without the slightest hope for escape they spend their days obeying orders and being abused by the Huckster.

Larry Gone Demon | Matt Lawrence, Director | 14 min. | USA, 2014.
When three twenty-somethings must deal with the incorrigible and incredibly demonic Larry, they risk life and limb in an attempt to save the soul of their once-kind-and-unassuming friend while also procuring his five-hundred dollars in back rent.

An international mix of short fantasy films from around the globe.

Tarim le Brave | Guillaume Rieu, Director | 19 min. | France, 2015.
As he is going to save a princess imprisoned in the dungeon of an evil sorcerer, Tarim understands that he is the main character of a movie, and decides to fight against the special effects.

Dust | Mike Grier, Director | 27 min. | USA, 2015.
In a harsh and unpredictable natural environment where people have isolated them selves behind massive walled cities, a socially marginalized Tracker teams up with a black-market merchant to save the industrial society that has rejected his way of life.

Trellis | Jackson Miller, Director | 11 min. | Canada, 2015.
Trellis tells the story of Billy, a young boy suffering through a violent family life. To escape the domestic drama, he develops a green thumb and turns to his greenhouse: a magical safe-haven where his imagination is free to run wild. After his drunken father destroys his refuge, Billy takes matters into his own hands. 

Edit/Undo | Daniel Clements, Director | 17 min. | Canada, 2015.
What if you could undo your mistakes in life, like you can undo your mistakes on a computer, with just the click of a button?

Dive | Matthew Saville, Director | 14 min. | New Zealand, 2014.
What if your reflection had a mind of it's own?

In Extremis | Gregory Crosbie, Director | 14 min. | United Kingdom, 2014.
A night watchman is sent to guard the cellar of a museum by its mysterious curator, who tells him that his “usual man” is unavailable that night. He instructs the watchman to set off an alarm bell if anyone tries to gain access to the cellar during the night and warns him to mind his own business whilst there – before leaving him alone to his shift. 

Theme Song Rebel | Luke Patton, Director | 20 min. | USA (Local), 2013.
In a dystopia where a person's social class is determined by their theme song, Louise wants to change her tune.

Special showcase of international science fiction showcase that include tales of space, the supernatural and the end of civilization.

Enfilade | David Coyle, Director | 10 min. | Australia, 2014.
You can't escape the loop.

Sumer | Alvaro Garcia, Director | 10 min. | United Kingdom, 2014.
For unknown reasons, the Earth's ionosphere has weakened dramatically during the course of the last century.  All animal and plant species perished decades ago. All that remains is one small group of humans who attempt to resist the hostility and hardness of the external environment from SUMER, the last hive city in the world.

The Last Man | Galvin Rothery, Director | 20 min. | United Kingdom, 2014.
A Deep Reserve soldier is awoken from stasis and finds the world ruined by war.

Intersection | Brendan Beachman | 19 min. | USA, 2015.
Two road construction workers flag for non-existent vehicles on a remote desert intersection. The monotony of their day is smashed by the violent arrival of an object from the sky.

Future Perfect | Nick Citton | 11 min. | USA, 2014.
A time travel movie that take place in the space between then and now. One man is hired to do a job that makes him question every impulse in his body, until he sees a future he cannot unlearn. A sparse, minimalist sci-fi story about the endless nature of grief.

Rose | Tom Stoddart, Director | 11 min. | United Kingdom, 2014.
A widowed mother struggling to cope with her daughter's dark secret is offered help by a 
mysterious doctor, leading to devastating consequences.

Squeezebox | Sam Lerma, Director | 21 min. | USA, 2015.
A musician's ominous dreams intersect with reality after he buys a mysterious box with an 
appetite.