Films Celebrating Family, Identity, Culture, Humanity and Race to Stream July 11–22 on All PBS Digital Platforms
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ARLINGTON, VA; July 11, 2022 – PBS announced today its Webby Award-winning PBS Short Film Festival will return for its 11th year from July 11-22 to all PBS and station digital platforms, including PBS.org, YouTube and the PBS Video App. This year’s festival will feature over 20 short-form independent films presented in five categories: family, identity, culture, humanity and race.
The PBS Short Film Festival is part of a multiplatform initiative to increase the reach and visibility of independent filmmakers from across the country and amplify the voices of diverse content creators. Since its inception in 2012, hundreds of films celebrating love, acceptance, family, strength, equality, friendship, loyalty and more have been presented under the festival’s banner. The 2022 festival carries the tagline “Stories that Stick” to highlight the impact of powerful storytelling.
“PBS is delighted to highlight these emerging independent filmmakers and help raise their profiles within the filmmaking community,” said Taryn Stewart, Director, Audience Engagement at PBS. “Now in our 11th year, we continue our commitment to showcasing unique and powerful storytelling to a broad and engaging audience.”
Starting at midnight on Monday, July 11, audiences can watch and share all films. In addition, a panel of nine jury members will select their favorite film of the festival for the Juried Prize.
Jury members are respected professionals in independent film and public media and were invited by PBS to participate. This year’s jury members include Eric Gulliver, American Experience Producer; Simon Kilmurry, documentary producer, executive producer and consultant; Judith Vecchione, Executive Producer, WGBH Educational Foundation; Mike Sargent, Producer and Host, Reelworld/Nightshift; Adnaan Wassey, Digital Media Executive, formerly of POV; Antonia Thornton, Artist Programs Coordinator, Firelight Media; Wendy Llinas, Senior Director, PBS National Programming; Jada Leng, Senior Director, PBS National Programming; and Weenta Girmay, Regional Initiatives Coordinator, Firelight Media.
Films featured in the PBS Short Film Festival have been selected and provided by 16 public media partners and PBS member stations. This year’s lineup includes films from Black Public Media, Center for Asian American Media (CAAM), Independent Television Service (ITVS), Latino Public Broadcasting, Pacific Islanders in Communications (PIC), POV, Reel South, Vision Maker Media and World Channel, as well as PBS local member stations, Alabama Public Television (APTV), KLRU-TV Austin PBS, Louisiana Public Broadcasting (LPB), MPT Digital Studios, WKAR (Michigan State University), WMHT (New York) and WSIU (Illinois).
Generating more than 12 million streams over the course of the festival’s history, the PBS Short Film Festival continues to be an engaging annual digital event.
For more information and updates on the PBS Short Film Festival, visit www.pbs.org/filmfestival. Viewers are also encouraged to engage in online conversation by tagging @PBS and using #PBSFilmFest on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.
Below is the full list of short films featured in the 2022 PBS Short Film Festival, separated into the five presenting categories.
FAMILY
“Grilled Queso” (KLRU-TV/AUSTIN PBS)
A night in the life of a couple working in a food truck in the busiest areas in Austin.
“Salvando A Salvador” (KLRU-TV/AUSTIN PBS)
A dark comedy about three sisters who seek to do right by their deceased father.
“Ma’s House” (BLACK PUBLIC MEDIA)
Contemporary fine art photographer Jeremy Dennis of the Shinnecock Indian Nation explores the evolution of Native American art and building Ma’s House & BIPOC Art Studio, an artist retreat and communal art space in New York, in this verité short doc.
“17 Year Locust” (LOUISIANA PUBLIC BROADCASTING)
This film follows the story of Haitian immigrant Rene, who moves to Louisiana with his wife in hopes of raising a child and starting a new life there.
“Chilly and Milly” (LATINO PUBLIC BROADCASTING)
Chilly, William’s father, is a diabetic with kidney failure, whose illness detrimentally affects his and his family’s lives. Milly sees her sole purpose in life as taking care of her loved ones. While watching the documentary, Chilly and Milly discuss their life together, and their successes and setbacks in life. When Chilly passes away during the pandemic, Milly comes to terms with her loss.
IDENTITY
“Wonderfully Made” (KLRU-TV/AUSTIN PBS)
A day in the life of Kash.
“Kantan Hereru” (PACIFIC ISLANDER IN COMMUNICATIONS/PIC)
An aging blacksmith tells stories from his past and shares the importance of his craft to daily life in the past. Historical experts provide testimony on the role the craft and products had played in Guam.
“The Daily Aesthetics of Alexander Martin” (WSIU-TV/ILLINOIS)
A documentary about Alexander, a queer artist and drag queen living in Peoria, Illinois.
“Seahorse” (POV)
Against the backdrop of a community pool, a young Yezidi girl wrestles quietly with her traumatic memories of the Mediterranean Sea.
“When I’m Her” (INDEPENDENT LENS)
Michael, once a ballet prodigy, finds refuge and liberation as his alter ego, Madame Olga.
“The Piñata” (LOUISIANA PUBLIC BROADCASTING)
When Mia’s two school friends join her birthday party, they do not think her piñata is cool, among other things. Mia finds it difficult to keep up appearances for her friends and family.
CULTURE
“The Dig: Bmore Club” (MPT DIGITAL STUDIOS)
Baltimore's unique music and dance genre is poised for a post-pandemic comeback.
“Monograph: Lo Harris” (ALABAMA PUBLIC TELEVISION/APTV)
From Bessemer, Ala., to Brooklyn, N.Y., this self-taught illustrator has transformed her practice into a full-time art career championing confidence, joy, and vibrancy.
“Road to Step” (REEL SOUTH)
A fraternity’s step team vies for the annual crown on campus.
“You Can’t Stop Spirit” (REEL SOUTH)
The New Orleans Baby Doll maskers are a pivotal yet overshadowed tradition of Black Mardi Gras that stems from Storyville, the former vice district in New Orleans, in the early 19th century. Baby Dolls of the Mardi Gras tradition paint a full picture of masking culture and how it operates as a vehicle for women to redefine notions of gender, sexual identity and freedom.
“Senior Prom” (Independent Lens)
For Triangle Square retirement home residents, “senior” prom takes on a whole new meaning.
“My Chinatown, With Aloha” (WORLD CHANNEL)
A fourth-generation Chinese American, filmmaker Kimberlee Bassford explores her family’s relationship to Honolulu's Chinatown. She also examines the parallels between the COVID-19 pandemic and the 1899-1900 bubonic plague in Hawai‘i, highlighting the ways the two public health crises transformed the iconic neighborhood then and now.
HUMANITY
“83 and Alone” (CENTER FOR ASIAN AMERICAN MEDIA/CAAM)
Bhutan, despite being one of the world’s two carbon-negative countries, suffers from a changing climate that has led to a disastrous water shortage. After his children leave him, Daw, an elderly Bhutanese villager, must fend for himself. 83 AND ALONE explores a community made empty because of water.
“Ala Moana Boys” (PACIFIC ISLANDER IN COMMUNICATIONS/PIC)
Five young men must consider their futures and their families as they weigh the consequences of inaction versus action. Their dedication to truth and stoicism in the face of violence has a dire cost, but the decision will stoke solidarity among Hawaii’s residents and reverberate through the islands for generations.
“Ka Ho'i (Formerly titled Ho'okahi Po) (PACIFIC ISLANDER IN COMMUNICATIONS/PIC)
In Ho’okahi Pō, a Hawaiian War Veteran grapples with the struggles of growing older, the nightmares of his past, and the even scarier thought of being forgotten as the world around him seems to leave him in the dust.
“Disrupted Borders” (REEL SOUTH)
A coming-of-age story about two best friends living on the US-Mexico border.
“I’m Free, Now You Are Free” (POV)
A story about the reunion and repair between Mike Africa Jr. and his mother Debbie Africa—a formerly incarcerated political prisoner of the MOVE9.
RACE
“Osage Murders” (VISION MAKER MEDIA)
“The Osage Murders” is a historical documentary focusing on the events that occurred on the Osage reservation in the 1920s.
“The First Monument” (BLACK PUBLIC MEDIA)
Until 2021, there was not a single official monument erected for the legendary Black Panther Party. This changed when Fredrika Newton, the widow of former Minister of Defense Huey Newton, worked with the city of Oakland to commission a bust of Mr. Newton that now stands on the block where he was killed. Following sculptor Dana King from conceptualization to the unveiling ceremony over a year-long period, The First Monument offers an exclusive look at the process and significance of this groundbreaking memorial for an iconic Black movement.
“Amplified Voices” (WMHT-TV/New York)
Amplified Voices is a community collaborative public mural project spearheaded by artist Jade Warrick to amplify the voices of local artists of color and provide youth mentoring opportunities.
“Twice as Likely” (WKAR-TV/Michigan State University)
While the White infant mortality rate is 4.6 per 1,000 U.S. births, the Black infant mortality rate is 10.8.
“On All Fronts” (WORLD CHANNEL)
In 2020, anti-Asian hate crimes experienced a rapid and exponential rise amid the COVID-19 pandemic. The same year, the murder of George Floyd sparked a global racial reckoning over police brutality and violence. The Moss family, a biracial Black-Indonesian family living in Minneapolis, open up about how they moved through the chaos. In intimate conversations, each family member reveals personal experiences never shared before with their loved ones and navigate through the difficult issues that have haunted them.
About PBS Short Film Festival
Since its inception in 2012, the PBS Short Film Festival, formerly called the PBS Online Film Festival, has showcased independent films of all genres. The festival, now in its eleventh year, features short films created by PBS member stations, ITVS, POV and a wide variety of public television producers. Each year the films highlight topics like social injustice, religion, addiction, public policy, love and other subjects inspiring to the filmmakers. Throughout the festival, viewers can watch, love and share their favorite films on a variety of platforms. At the close of the festival, a prize is awarded to the film chosen by the hand-picked jury. The 2021 PBS Short Film Festival represents a celebration of independent films and filmmaking, and a love for the craft. For more information, visit www.pbs.org/filmfestival.
About PBS
PBS, with more than 330 member stations, offers all Americans the opportunity to explore new ideas and new worlds through television and digital content. Each month, PBS reaches over 120 million people through television and 26 million people online, inviting them to experience the worlds of science, history, nature and public affairs; to hear diverse viewpoints; and to take front row seats to world-class drama and performances. PBS’ broad array of programs has been consistently honored by the industry’s most coveted award competitions. Teachers of children from pre-K through 12th grade turn to PBS for digital content and services that help bring classroom lessons to life. Decades of research confirms that PBS’ premier children’s media service, PBS KIDS, helps children build critical literacy, math and social-emotional skills, enabling them to find success in school and life. Delivered through member stations, PBS KIDS offers high-quality educational content on TV – including a 24/7 channel, online at pbskids.org, via an array of mobile apps and in communities across America. More information about PBS is available at www.pbs.org, one of the leading dot-org websites on the internet, or by following PBS on Twitter, Facebook or through our apps for mobile and connected devices. Specific program information and updates for press are available at pbs.org/pressroom or by following PBS Communications on Twitter.