11:00 AM – 12:30 PM | Cinema #8 | Documentary and Experimental Stories | 🟢 All Ages
Where the Rain Stops
Dojin Kim (South Korea)
In an endless green plain, two young robot siblings live under the care of their guardian robot. One day, the guardian breaks down from severe rust and stops functioning. Left alone, the siblings must learn to survive on their own. Soon, dark rain clouds begin to cover their world. Hoping to find a place where the rain might stop, the two embark on a journey across the vast plain.
09:04
Carbono
Alberto Arvizu and Yael Gonzalez (Mexico)
Reflections on the carbon cycle and its journey across the world, connecting life and death, love and conflict, and the constant of transformation.
06:02
City of Smoke
Nadia Akbar and Alicia Chiang (USA)
California Premiere
Lahore, a sprawling city of 14 million, stands as a stark example of the devastating impact of unchecked air pollution. City of Smoke explores life under a constant haze of toxic PM2.5—microscopic particles from fuels, industry, and crop burning that silently erode health and cut life expectancy by up to seven years. Through interwoven personal stories, the film reveals both the human toll of this crisis and the global inequalities behind access to clean air and energy.
23:22
First Light
Kristopher Roller and Alex Broadstock (USA)
California Premiere
Residents of the world’s northernmost town, which is steeped in darkness four months per year, grapple with why they inhabit such a hostile place—and how their unique relationship to the sun changes the meaning of light and darkness within their own lives.
32:50
Chuño y Mote
Isabella Mancioli (Italy)
North America Premiere
Chuño y Mote is a multimedia project that explores the contrasts of contemporary Bolivia through body, memory, and a plural gaze that intertwines female voices and eccentric visions. It’s a journey between the wrestling rings of the cholitas luchadoras and the streets of La Paz — between strength and tenderness, rituals and silent revolutions.
08:40
Lamento
Diego Contreras and Ernesto Abrego (USA)
Lamento is a poetic and metaphorical reflection on time, memory, the immigrant journey, and the looming impact of climate change. Set against the surreal, haunting backdrop of an abandoned Guatemalan beach resort slowly reclaimed by the sea and teetering on the edge of disappearance, the film follows Grammy-winning artist Gaby Moreno on a poignant journey to rediscover a place from her childhood, now on the brink of destruction.
11:42
Total runtime: 1h 32m
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