Narrative Shorts 12 – Arkadin Shorts

Sight of Fish

Directed by: Wanqing Xu | 7 mins

At a remote mountain stream, streamer Yin Lu rehearses a cruel fishing livestream—until a mysterious boy emerges from the water, frees their catch, and vanishes without a trace. Chasing him, Yin Lu feels an uncanny transformation taking hold of his body. Soon the law of the jungle turns on him, and the hunter becomes the hunted…

After What Happened at the Library

Directed by: Syra McCarthy | 15 mins

Akita the drag queen hasn’t left her apartment in days. Her inboxes overflow with messages of praise, concern, and… death threats? She lets in a film crew and recounts to a reporter about how far-right extremists stormed her Drag Story Hour in 2022, inciting a wave of similar incidents across the country. Inspired by the writer/actor’s viral true story.

Flodni

21 mins

Scary Lullaby

Directed by: Daria Lebedeva | 25 mins

Yura has an unusual diagnosis: the number of heartbeats he has left is limited. To survive, he avoids even the slightest stress — until a girl enters his life who, in order not to die, needs constant emotional highs, adrenaline, and electric shocks.

The Expiration of Darius Campbell

Directed by: Charlie Roth | 8 mins

In a retro-futuristic “revitalization suite” widow Bethany Campbell pays to have her dead husband Darius revived so that she can confront him about his final misdeeds.

profession: activist

Directed by: Saber Tatarcheh | 20 mins

A director wants to make films about human rights, animals, and the environment, but he is prevented from doing so.

State of Nebraska v. Crotchy the Clown

Directed by: Benjamin Radford | 27 mins

State of Nebraska V. Crotchy the Clown is a short documentary about a clown named Crotchy who took to the Public Access airwaves to do standup comedy and review pornographic films.