Cinema Femme Short Film Festival

2025 Films, Berlinale, Cinematographer, Comedy, Coming of Age, Directing, Drama, Film Editing, Film Festivals, Indie Films, Interviews, Now Playing, producer, Sexual Assault Awareness, Short Films

24 min read

Transcend the Trauma: Giovanna Molina on “Quaker,” “Hickey,” and Her Upcoming Film, “Kismet”

by Matt Fagerholm

April 29, 2026

It’s a special kind of thrill when the greatness of an emerging filmmaker’s work hits you like a thunderbolt. That’s precisely what happened to me upon discovering the sublimely nuanced

Cinema Femme Short Film Festival, Film Festivals, Profile, Short Films

4 min read

Cinema Femme Short Film Festival Announces 2026 Dates, Opens Film Submissions, and Welcomes New Festival Director

by cinemafemme

April 6, 2026

Submissions Link: filmfreeway.com/CinemaFemme 🎬 Cinema Femme Short Film Festival Returns to the Music Box Theatre and New Festival Director Announced Cinema Femme Short Film Festival Announces 2026 Dates, Opens Film

2026 Films, Cinematographer, Directing, Drama, Film Festivals, Indie Films, Interviews, Now Playing, Slamdance, Uncategorized

17 min read

Slamdance 2026: Jessica Barr and Ryan Simpkins on Their Stunning Single-Take Film, “The Plan”

by Matt Fagerholm

February 19, 2026

The sun is just beginning to set as the twenty-something characters in Jessica’s Barr’s mesmerizing new film, “The Plan,” start to congregate in an East LA apartment. The calmness of

Cinema Femme Short Film Festival, Film Festivals, Profile

16 min read

Cinema Femme Short Film Festival Returns to the Music Box Theatre, July 17–21, 2025

by cinemafemme

June 21, 2025

🎬 Cinema Femme Short Film Festival Returns to the Music Box Theatre, July 17–21, 2025 Opening Night Reception, Dynamic Panels, Celebrated Shorts, and Awards Presentation Among the Highlights CHICAGO, IL

Awards, Chicago, Cinema Femme Short Film Festival, Interviews, Short Films

3 min read

Interview with 2024 Chicago Spotlight Award Recipient Jewells Santos on her vulnerable short “Fatfish”

by Rebecca Martin

June 20, 2024

On the eve of her graduation from DePaul’s MFA Film and Directing program, I had the pleasure of speaking with emerging filmmaker Jewells Santos about her short film “Fatfish.” Jewells

Cinema Femme Short Film Festival, Interviews, LGBTQ+, Queer Stories, Short Films

33 min read

Uniquely Euphoric: Bridget Frances Harris and Virginia Alonso-Luis on “Places of Worship”

by Matt Fagerholm

June 3, 2024

Every once in a while, I come across a film that feels as if it has been made especially for me. That happened most recently at this year’s joyous in-person

Awards, Cinema Femme Short Film Festival, Film Festivals, Profile, Short Films

8 min read

2024 Cinema Femme Short Film Festival Awards

by cinemafemme

May 7, 2024

On Thursday, May 2nd, at 2:00 PM Central, Festival Director Rebecca Martin Fagerholm and festival collaborators announced the award winners for the 2024 Cinema Femme Short Film Festival, starting with

Cinema Femme Short Film Festival, Film Festivals, Profile

15 min read

Cinema Femme Short Film Festival Announces Full Program: April 25 – May 2, 2024

by cinemafemme

April 23, 2024

Chicago, Illinois, (April 2, 2024) – Today, the Cinema Femme Short Film Festival announced the full lineup of films and programs included in its 6th edition, running April 25 – May 2, 2024. Cinema Femme Magazine,

Interviews, Television

23 min read

Attracted to the Darkness: Sophia Adler on Her Pivotal Role in “Harlan Coben’s Shelter”

by Matt Fagerholm

November 22, 2023

If there were any justice in the realm of film distribution, every member of the #MeToo movement would currently be the proud owner of a boxed set featuring four movies

2022 Awards, Film Festivals, Interviews, LGBTQ+

7 min read

Interview: “Mijo” director Mazdey Snob, 2022 recipient of the Cinema Femme Short Film Fest Phenomenal Woman in Film award

by Rebecca Martin

May 20, 2022

As I watched the films for Short Block 3 at our virtual film festival a few weeks ago, we just finished Heidi Neff’s “The Long Goodbye”, an animated short film

Profile, Short Films, Tribeca

2 min read

Watch “Huella” part of Indeed’s Rising Voices, short by 2020 Cinema Femme mentorship recipient Gabriela Ortega

by cinemafemme

June 25, 2021

For our Inaugural Short Film Festival in August 2020 we were blown away by Gabriela Ortega’s short documentary “Papi”, based on a day out and at the beach with her

Film Festivals, LIVE Events, Womxn supporting Womxn

0 min read

Cinema Femme 2020 Short Film Festival Highlights

by cinemafemme

August 19, 2020