All Quiet on the HomeFront | 25 min | Directed by Harjus Singh, USA

Based on the true story of Bhagat Singh Thind, one of the first Asian-Americans from India, who fought in the US Army during WW1. He comes back from the war and is discharged because a new law revokes the citizenship of Non-Caucasians. 

The Tyranny of Distance | 9 min | Directed by Gabriel Diamond and Matthew Beighley, Liberia

Fifteen years of civil war in Liberia has resulted in one of the world’s worst doctor shortages and cut off the country’s rural poor from basic healthcare. Community health workers trained and equipped by the non-profit Last Mile Health are working to deliver lifesaving health services to the 1.2 million Liberians living in the most remote reaches of the country.

Little Rebel  | 10 min | Directed by Aimie Vallat, USA

Little Rebel follows the extraordinary story of Isatou Jallow — a remarkable West African woman from The Gambia, and now Seattle resident. Since seeking asylum in the USA (2012), Isatou has pursued graduate degrees at the University Washington/UW Law School while she continuously advocates for women, asylees/refugees and people with disabilities.

Trump's America | 24 min | Directed by Peter Iliff, USA

When Frank, 40, a wise-cracking panhandler, is thrown out of affluent Royal Oaks, and dumped by police on L.A.’s Skid Row, a zealous reporter convinces Frank to return to Royal Oaks, provoke these cops to beat him up again, and this time get it on tape. But the plan goes horribly wrong, making this a provocative look at the growing homeless epidemic in Trump’s America. 

Hotel Room | 11 min | Directed by Calla Videt, USA

A woman arrives at a hotel room contemplating an irreversible act. In the hotel room, the parallel paths of strangers begin to collide.

The Undertaker's Son | 14 min | Directed by The Affolter Bros, USA

Despite his desire to do anything but, Christopher Redding is attending work with his father for the first time to learn the macabre family business. When the duo is faced with a tragic death, Christopher is pushed to his breaking point revealing a deeper conflict that simmers just below the surface.

The Last Interview  | 12 min | Directed by Jamie Wang, USA

A man sits for what he thinks is a normal job interview for a mysterious company he didn't apply for, only to realize the stakes couldn't be any higher.

Lovers  | 10 min | Directed by Nell Teare, USA

LOVERS is a fictional short film which could just as well be fact. It is a dramatic love story and a mystery set in the City of Angels (Los Angeles). Will a serial killer strike again? Will law enforcement arrest the killer in time... ?

Georgia O'Keefe and Me | 6 min | Directed by Robert Belinoff, USA

Love and art in the age of Trump. 
Chaos and order compete as a married man falls for an artist ingenue. Art prevails.

Do No Harm | 8 min | Directed by Marielle Woods, USA

A short film about a combat medic attempting to hold on to humanity in the midst of a war much bigger than himself. A medic's job is to fix people up, but how does that obligation reconcile with someone who is trained to fight and may be asked to kill? 

(Out)caste | 21 min | Directed by Shilpi Shikha Agrawal, USA

When a manual scavenger cannot continue her work, her 11-year-old daughter picks up where the mother left off.

Don't Be Afraid | 20 min | Directed by Lakshmi Devy, India

Daro Mat revolves around the less spoken about Indian Girl. The indian girl who is smart and yet devoid of opinions as ' having an opinion' was never an option. The movie depicts her strength portrayed by simple thoughts.

Light Sight | 8 min |  Directed by Seyed M. Tabatabaei, Iran

M.E., the imprisoned character in a room is attracted to a hanging light and tries to catch it. But the room itself becomes an obstacle on his way. 

The Dunning Man | 90 min | Directed by Michael Clayton, USA (Filmmaker in Attendance)

Connor Ryan, out of a job and dumped by his girlfriend, returns to Atlantic City to try to rebuild his life with the last source of income that he has -- a few apartments in a low-rise condo complex that sits in the shadows of AC's newest and most expensive casino. Unfortunately, Connor's tenants don't want to pay him. 

Award Ceremony/Closing Night Pary

My Irnik | 14 min | Directed by Matthew Hood and Francois Lebeau, Canada

"My Irnik" is a short documentary film about a father and son’s relationship and the passion of shared adventure. Set in Arctic Canada, Conor, a young father and a native of Montreal fell in love with the northern way of life and with a woman from there. 

Circus City, USA | 30 min | Directed by Adam Michael Wright, USA

Since the early 1940s, more than 20 circus companies have made their home in Hugo, Oklahoma. It's unique history has earned the town the nickname Circus City, USA, and this film spends time with both the eccentric circus characters of the road and the people back in Hugo who keep it all going.

Dog Power | 33 min | Directed by Kale Casey, USA

An introduction to the world's fastest sprint sled dogs, their human teammates, and the incredible variety of dog-powered sports they are involved in.

Time is the Longest Distance | 15 min | Directed by Bryan Powers, USA (Filmmaker in Attendance)

A bittersweet tale of an estranged son's journey to reconnect with his Alzheimer's-stricken father, and an unexpected meeting with a teenaged boy along the way.

The Autumn Waltz | 14 min | Directed by David Golden, USA (Filmmaker in Attendance)

It was fifty years ago that Woody and Carol Ann went on their first date. They fell in love on the dance floor that night, the beginning of a lifetime of memories that they’ve shared together. But all that changes when Woody realizes that the woman he’s loved for all these years doesn’t remember him anymore...

The Lavender Scare | 78 min | Directed by Josh Howard, USA

With the United States gripped in the panic of the Cold War, President Dwight D. Eisenhower deems homosexuals to be “security risks” and orders the immediate firing of any government employee discovered to be gay or lesbian. It triggers a vicious witch hunt that lasts for forty years and ruins thousands of lives, while thrusting an unlikely hero into the forefront of what would become the modern LGBT rights movement.

I'm in Here | 12 min | Directed by Willy Berliner, USA

When a man finds a family of strangers in his house who claim to have bought the place, he agrees to let them stay until they can get to the bottom of the mix-up. They never leave.

One Penny | 90 min | Directed by Michael Devita, USA

A young boy - tragically abandoned - gets taken in and raised by a homeless man known as 'Professor.' Dylan, now a street-smart maverick yearns for a better future, but a dark secret could shatter his world forever.

Puget Sound | 10 min | Directed by Jack Nordstrom, USA

Teenagers find inspiration to make a super 8 movie in the summer of 1980.

Pedalo | 73 min | Directed by Juan Palacios, Spain

A Spanish filmmaker living in Denmark travels back home to Basque Country to follow three friends on a surreal nautical voyage. Riding a second­-hand paddle boat, they pedal over 150km along the entire Basque coast from Hendaia (French­ Basque), to Bilbao (Spanish Basque), in an attempt to rediscover their country’s shoreline. The journey becomes a delirium with unforeseen accidents, folkloric parties, hangovers, a shaman, a funeral... 

Wintery Spring | 16 min | Directed by Mohamed Kamel, Egypt

Every change in our reality has its own impact on our lives, can we understand it and accept it or collide with it ?

The Tent Village | 27 min | Directed by Nilima Abrams, India

The Tent Village is, on its surface, a film about the lives of road-side dwellers in S. India, who sell hair or pick through garbage to survive. The teen-aged filmmakers provide rare, nuanced, and unflinchingly honest perspectives on child marriage, alcoholism and caste stigma.

Nineteen teams of students from the Eatonville, Morton and Bethel school districts signed up and submitted films. During this time slot, we will screen the top ten films and announce the top three films and the top film which will receive $1,441.10 in production services.

The top ten student films for the Student Movie RIFF at the Rainier Independent Film Festival have been chosen!

After receiving the following prompt:
For ages, people have argued nature vs. nurture, however this is not our riddle. Instead, we ask a question that YOU may address in whatever manner you choose. Given the Rainier Independent Film Festival’s incomparable backdrop and its history of bringing Art to the region, we ask you, trusted student filmmakers, to RIFF on this: nature OR culture?

THESE ARE THE TOP TEN TEAMS:

Eatonville High School              
cameraMAN Prod                           
EHS Films                                     
Milly and Kayla Prod
Team Aer Space

 Eatonville Middle School
 The Misfits

Morton Jr/Sr High School          
We Are The Bestest                      
Moon Sugar

Morton Home School
Three Girls Grove

Spanaway Lake High School     
Weaming Screasels  

Frontier Middle School
Schyuler Sisters