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shareNarrative Shorts 6 brings together stories of endurance and transformation, where characters face literal and emotional fires on their journey toward freedom, identity, and redemption.
In FIRE DRILL, a young Ukrainian’s dream job aboard a cargo ship becomes a test of survival as the war back home and the perils at sea blur together. Hatch follows a young Afghan boy’s desperate flight across borders, holding onto the fading memory of his mother. Mercenaire explores the struggle for dignity as an ex-con tries to rebuild his life working in a slaughterhouse while battling his own buried rage.
In Firewall, myth and memory merge when a girl in Texas is haunted by her father’s absence behind Iran’s digital wall. Fireline honors incarcerated firefighters risking everything on the frontlines of climate catastrophe, exposing a system that exploits their courage but denies them opportunity. And Shades of Someone Else offers a powerful portrait of an injured athlete rebuilding his sense of self after losing the game that defined him.
Narrativce Shorts 6 captures people in transition who are facing danger, loss, and the burning need to define who they are when the world shifts beneath them.
In this program
FIRE DRILL
Directed by Maximilian Villwock
A young Ukrainian fulfils his dream of working on board a container ship, but the war at home and the dangers on board turn his coming of age into a crucial test.
Hatch
Directed by Alireza Kazemipour, Panta Mosleh
NAAJI, an Afghan refugee boy hides with his mother inside a moving water tanker trying to cross the border to safety. Losing his mother in the process, NAAJI forever tries to find a way to relive his last memory of her.
Mercenaire
Directed by Pier-Philippe Chevigny
Hired in a pig slaughterhouse through a social reintegration program, an ex-convict desperately tries to find another job while repressing his inner violence.
Firewall
Directed by Bita Ghassemi
Ani, an Iranian-American girl in Texas longs for her father, lost and unreachable due to an internet firewall in politically turbulent Iran. When her father mysteriously returns, ancient Persian mythology intertwines with her reality, forcing her to confront the demons that have kept her from finding peace.
Fireline
Directed by Robin Takao D'Oench
In the backdrop of a historic fire season, an inmate firefighter is denied parole and desperately tries to call home while his crew combats a wildfire. Today, 30% of CalFire Fire Dept. is supplemented by prison labor despite no clear pathway to employment upon release. FIRELINE is a tribute to the unsung heroes on the frontlines in the battle against climate change.
Shades of Someone Else
Directed by Holland States & Christian Zarrick
After a career-altering injury and relentless mental health struggles, basketball star Kayden must confront an existential crisis and redefine his purpose beyond the court. This film is based on a true story.
Dates & Times
Greenfinch Theater & Dive
November 9, 2025
5:30 pm
