3:00pm
One Day She’ll Be Gone
The Art of Loss
Smokes
In Between the Lines
Swept Off
Emerald Fields
Just for the Weekend
Noon
Photography
The Squaller
Devil’s Guard: A Long Weekend, Part One
A Thousand Years
6:30pm
Placed: The Journey Through Foster Care
Operation Baby Lift, 50 Years Later
My Name is Robert Ruark
Film Blocks
Take a look at the films we’ll be showing at this year’s festival!
Photography
Directed by Adam N. White
In 1964, Manhattan, Margaret is a renowned world-traveling photographer, working for a popular global magazine. Having fought for every success she’s had, Margaret is now tasked with mentoring a new, younger photographer. Will she help this new threat to her career thrive, or will she protect what was so hard to gain?
The Squaller
Directed by J.W. Cox
When the daughter of a local Bigfoot hunter reports her father missing, the police aren't quick to take his disappearance seriously. Officer Hope Evans takes it upon herself to help young Brooke Garrison find her dad, whom was last seen looking for "The Squaller."
Devil’s Guard: A Long Weekend, Part One
Directed by Braydon Leadbetter
Two men are tasked by a State Senator to frame a political rival during election season.
A Thousand Years
Directed by Bryce Ferendo
When Wilbur and Orville Wright's second summer of glider testing goes horribly wrong, they must decide if risking their livelihood in Dayton is really worth the dream of flight.
One Day She’ll Be Gone
Directed by Zachery Green
A mother and son course their tumultuous relationship as she recovers from an overdose.
Smokes
Directed by Jimmy Lucarz
SSgt Jessie Bailey an Air Force Security Forces Patrolman and her new airman are dispatched to find a missing airman in duress. Bailey will have to use all her training and life experiences to control and de-escalate the situation before things get worse.
In Between the Lines
Directed by Kira L. Wilson
A reclusive writer retreats to a remote cabin to complete her novel, but her solitude is interrupted when two mysterious hikers arrive seeking help. As the days unfold, their presence becomes increasingly unsettling, forcing her to confront the darkest corners of her mind. A haunting and lyrical exploration of grief, isolation, and the blurred line between reality and the beyond.
The Art of Loss
Directed by Kathy Bruner
Laura Stevenson, an artist and professor, processes the grief of miscarriage by making art. She and her husband Eric unpack the pain that is rarely discussed publicly.
Swept Off
Directed by Melonie Gartner
An injured woman with no identity or memory finds herself stranded in a foreign place. As luck would have it, a healer comes to her aid and helps her regain her old self. But the heavy burden that she must face is the one buried deep within, which resurfaces with a vengeance. Reality bites!
Emerald Fields
Directed by Andrew Hopper
A recently released prisoner faces his past.
Just for the Weekend
Directed by Hayden Parsons
Two college kids unite each weekend to fill a void in their lives, but when one of them starts to yearn for more the couple must navigate the blurred lines of their situation-ship, and confront the haunting dilemma of holding on to what's comfortable or taking the leap into the unknown.
Placed: The Journey Through Foster Care
Directed by Megan Sullivan, Joe Sullivan, Sophie DiCosola, Hayden Parsons, Marissa Perkins, Ellis Dunn, Jaqueline Sweet, Meghan Ryan, Claire Owsiany, Kristine Hillstrom, Kristianna Walters
Placed: The Journey Through Foster Care explores the reality of the Foster Care System that is hidden in plain sight. By going into the homes of foster parents, and asking social care workers for answers, this student documentary sheds light on the real voices and untold stories of the Foster System.
Operation Baby Lift, 50 Years Later
Directed by Dirk Braun
Presented by the Pan Am Museum Foundation, the Gerald R. Ford Presidential Foundation, and the Gerald R. Ford Presidential Library & Museum to celebrate the 50th anniversary of Operation Babylift and to preserve this important history for future generations.
The film features President Ford's son, Steven Ford, adoptees (now adults), and Pan Am personnel that were involved with the frantic April 1975 evacuation of Vietnamese war orphans in the final days of South Vietnam just before the fall of Saigon.
My Name is Robert Ruark
Directed by Si Paros
My Name is Robert Ruark is a heart-wrenching documentary that uncovers the true story of Robert J. Ruark, an Ohio man unjustly convicted of murder and imprisoned for nearly half his life. Told through powerful interviews with legal experts, family members, and justice advocates, the film highlights the human cost of inadequate legal representation that has deprived Robert of his freedom since 2008—and the grassroots movement now underway to see him freed. This is a story of mercy, hope, and justice.