Program

Three generations of Venezuelans exiled inside their own country - trapped and submerged at the whim of the barbarians who govern it. Isabel, Jesús, Darwin and Juan Pablo's parents survive by resisting, desperate and cornered between flight, hunger for justice, and resilience.

In Ciudad Peronia, Guatemala, sisters Lesli and Lupe use art and performance to inspire local youth and heal deep wounds. After 41 girls are killed in a State-run ''Safe Home'' and the government refuses to act, they respond with a community comparsa — towering puppets, fire-breathing stilt walkers, and thundering drums. With brave vulnerability, they expose a system that permits violence against women while confronting their own survival. Their youth movement takes to the streets, reclaiming public space through joy and community care.

What do we carry, what do we protect, and what do we pass on? This year's Documentary Shorts Competition spans the Americas in search of answers. Four films explore tradition, survival, memory, and the transformative power of art across Chile, Argentina, Cuba, and the United States.

This year's Hecho en Tejas Competition celebrates Texas filmmakers capturing lives rarely seen on screen. Intimate, urgent, and rooted in real communities, these films ask what it means to survive, remember, and resist. The films in this showcase are eligible for both an Audience Award and a Jury Award, presented in partnership with the Texas Archive of the Moving Image (TAMI). Meet the directors, cast your vote, and stay for the party!

An auteur emerges from America’s underclass: from migrant farmworker to revolutionary artist, Luis Valdez changed American culture. In the 1960s, his El Teatro Campesino performed on flatbed trucks and helped mobilize workers to win the first farmworker union contract. His production Zoot Suit was the first Chicano play on Broadway. Despite critical rejection that killed the show, he persevered, creating La Bamba—a breakout blockbuster that authentically depicted Mexican-American life to the world. Now in its 60th year, El Teatro continues to be a beacon for Latino/a creators. This is the story of an artist who gave voice to the overlooked and opened pathways for generations.

After being separated from their sacred stone for nearly a century, the Kaw (Kanza) Nation reunites with In ́zhújé waxóbe, a 28 ton quartzite boulder, marking a new era of accountability for the city of Lawrence, Kansas and healing for the Kaw people. This film documents the honorable cooperation between community and governmental stakeholders in Lawrence, Kansas and the Kaw people in rematriating In ́zhújé waxóbe. The film follows the events leading up to and culmination of the Red Rock’s relocation to Allegawaho Memorial Heritage Park in Council Grove, Kansas.

After 30 years denying her pain, Angela is confronted by her past when her father appears to her in a dream, asking her to find him. With her sister Juliana, she embarks on a trip across Colombia to the Indigenous lands where their father, a farmer of Afro-descent, became a victim of forced disappearance. The journey from Medellin to Caloto, in the challenging Cauca’s province, confronts the sisters with paradoxes of the land, family emotions, and the Indigenous spirituality that will connect Ángela with her father's activism.

STREET SMART: Lessons from a TV Icon is a feature documentary about Sonia Manzano — known to millions as ''Maria'' from Sesame Street. The film follows Sonia’s remarkable journey, from a young girl in the South Bronx finding refuge in television, to becoming the first Latina on American TV in a regular role, through 44 years on screen on Sesame Street, and now as the creator of Alma’s Way. Featuring interviews with luminaries, original animation, and scripted scenes that blend humor and heart, this inspirational documentary invites viewers to learn once again from this beloved icon.

On January 9, 2023, Peruvian police opened fire on Indigenous Quechua and Aymara protesters in Juliaca, killing at least 18 civilians. Uyariy responds to this massacre through the music and song of Andean artists, taking us on a journey through the Puno region and its long history of repression and Indigenous uprising. Weaving in testimonies from victims' families, the film becomes a meditation on memory, identity, and justice.

Twenty years after Mi vida dentro (2007), filmmaker Lucía Gajá revisits Rosa Estela Olvera's story. Vidas en la orilla portrays the flaws of the criminal justice system in the United States and the tragic consequences of a wrongful conviction. Two interconnected narratives revealed what Rosa Estela Olvera (My life inside, 2007) had to endure in prison for 18 years: a psychoemotional exploration of the loneliness of confinement; and the long and arduous legal battle to clear her name.