Today is Day 1 of the 2026 edition of SXSW Film & TV. The fest has expanded to editions in Sydney and London, but the OG in Austin commands our loyalty. While the festival is a couple of days shorter than it used to be, the line-up is still full of delicious dishes. As usual, the ones cooked by members of the Short of the Week family are those we are the most excited about! 

The sheer abundance of work that catches our eye, especially at this scale of fest, makes SXSW pretty much unmatched, and the announcement of the lineup is a highly anticipated event at S/W HQ. We’ve combed the listings to track names familiar to our shorts-loving audience, so if you’re looking for a starting point to build your watchlist, look no further!

Below is a list of all S/W alums with new films at the festival. An insane 17 directors featured on Short of the Week are bringing a new short to the festival! This includes fresh work from current Oscar® nominee Sam Davis, and from Alyssa Loh, whose prior SXSW short, Let, has been viewed 23M times on YouTube. 13 additional directors from our alum community are presenting a feature, including debuts from prior Short of the Year winner Graham Parkes, as well as Caleb J Phillips, whose short, Other Side of the Box, is a 7M view viral smash on YT. 

Shorts

This year, you will find in the shorts program 16 films that are directed by S/W alums! This record number obviously fills us with joy, with films in the Animation, Documentary, Narrative, and Texas competitions 

• A New Inferno by Nita Blum‑Reddick & Jonathan Pickett
  S/W Films (Jonathan Pickett): Chicken Stories
  Synopsis: Set during a record Phoenix heatwave, paramedics use radical ice immersion therapy to save heatstroke victims, racing against the searing temperatures.
  Section: Documentary Short Competition

• A Wolf in the Suburbs by Amélie Hardy
  S/W Films: Hello Stranger
  Synopsis: In suburban Mississauga, one man’s wildly overgrown lawn becomes a catalyst for chaos, challenging rigid neighborhood norms and expectations.
  Section: Documentary Short Competition

• Copy, Save by Alyssa Loh
  S/W Films: Let
  Synopsis: Two teenage sisters uncover each other’s secret online money‑making schemes and must confront the murky ethics of their digital hustles.
  Section: Narrative Short Competition
  

Copy, Save by Alyssa Loh

• He’s Out There by Kurt Andrew Schneider & Sam Davis
  S/W Films (Kurt Andrew Schneider): Notice Me, Higher Power
  S/W Films (Sam Davis): (SHn(y)o͞of), Are You Still There?, You Know Where to Find Me
  Synopsis: A documentary capturing the journey of an autistic Bigfoot enthusiast as he connects with his heroes and explores his passion for the unknown.
  Section: Documentary Short Competition

• I Saw You In The Flood by Kevin Xian Ming Yu
  S/W Films (as Cinematographer): Nun’s Beach, Breadwinner
  Synopsis: The film follows Kai, a genderqueer Chinese-American, and their mother, Li, as they deal with the effects of a heavy storm on their basement apartment in Queens. Zhou, Kai’s grandfather, is dying in Northeast China. During this sleepless night, a familiar spirit visits Kai and mistakes them for Li. 
  Section: Narrative Short Competition

• Imago by Ariel Zengotita
  S/W Films: Flick
  Synopsis: When Ana’s mother begins transforming into a bug, their codependent relationship reaches a breaking point.
  Section: Narrative Short Competition

Imago by Ariel Zengotita

• Im Auto Tapes und Butterbrot by Kiana Naghshineh
  S/W Films: Augenblicke – a blink of an eye
  Synopsis: As her body begins to fade into stardust, Shari reflects on what truly matters in her life and confronts her own impermanence.
  Section: Animation Short Competition

• In The Beginning by Ala Nunu
  S/W Films: Ahead
  Synopsis: A surreal animated odyssey featuring a space probe, legless birds of paradise, and odd creatures as humanity tries to make sense of the cosmos and its own place in it.
  Section: Animation Short Competition

• Marga en el DF by Gabriela Ortega
  S/W Films: Huella (Footprints)
  Synopsis: A Dominican woman’s life spirals during a surprise visit to Mexico City at 21 weeks pregnant — set against the aftermath of Selena Quintanilla’s murder.
  Section: Narrative Short Competition

In The Beginning by Ala Nunu

• Not Scared, Just Sad by Isabelle Mecattaf
  S/W Films: Beity
  Synopsis: A family in Beirut strives for normalcy as war encroaches on their suburb, balancing everyday life with the looming realities of conflict.
  Section: Documentary Short Competition

• Paper Trail by Don Hertzfeldt
  S/W Films: Ah l’amour, Everything Will be OK, The Meaning of Life, World of Tomorrow
  Synopsis: A minimalist yet profound animated portrait of a life, depicted through the simple and evocative medium of paper animation.
  Section: Animation Short Competition

• Praying Mantis by Joe Hsieh
  S/W Films: 夜車 (Night Bus)
  Synopsis: A praying mantis mutant, driven by desperation to save her child, seduces and preys on men — only to uncover hidden pasts and dark revelations along the way.
  Section: Animation Short Competition

• Souvenir by Renée Marie Petropoulos
  S/W Films: Tangles and Knots
  Synopsis: On a family vacation, a closeted teen must face her own anxieties when her girlfriend’s casual photos trigger discomfort and self‑reflection.
  Section: Narrative Short Competition

We Were Here by Pranav Bhasin

• Stalin Boys by Ora DeKornfeld & Bianca Giaever
  S/W Films (Bianca Giaever): Crush
  Synopsis: Four middle-school boys in a Texas border town have developed an unusual obsession: Joseph Stalin. When they hear about the Texas State History Fair, they write a play about the Soviet dictator and his efforts to destroy all who opposed him.
  Section: Texas Short Competition

• We Were Here by Pranav Bhasin
  S/W Films: New Year’s Eve
  Synopsis: In a deteriorating Indian town, three retired men protest machines replacing human jobs by impersonating household appliances themselves.
  Section: Narrative Short Competition

• What We Leave Behind by Jean‑Sébastien Hamel & Alexandra Myotte
  S/W Films: Un trou dans la poitrine (A Crab in the Pool)
  Synopsis: Dan wakes up with a painful memory gap — and a literal hole in his neck. To become whole again, he must return to the haunted arena of his childhood and confront what he once left behind.
  Section: Animation Short Competition

***

Features

Short of the Week celebrates shorts, naturally, but we also want short filmmakers to be able to afford their rent! So we always wish them the best if and when they transition to features and are delighted when they debut full-length films on the festival circuit. Getting a spot on the SXSW lineup is no small feat, so while the entirety of the lineup makes our watchlist, we will first and foremost catch the films of our alums. 13 projects on the feature side of the program were directed by members of the S/W family, across the Narrative Feature Competition, both Narrative and Documentary Spotlights, 24 Beats, Midnighter, and Festival Favorite categories.

• Basic by Chelsea Devantez
  S/W Films: Basic
  Synopsis: After Gloria and Nick break up, Gloria takes us through Nick’s dating history, untangling his web of ex-girlfriends through details she can find online. But when she discovers Kaylinn, the hottest, most basic ex-girlfriend to ever exist, Gloria not only loses herself, she loses control of the story she’s been telling. Basic is a comedy that blends the magical realism of jealous paranoia with the magic of falling in love.
  Section: Narrative Spotlight

• Brian by Will Ropp
  S/W Films: Kodar: The Primordial God of Light and Ether
  Synopsis: An acerbic high school student prone to panic attacks runs for class president to get closer to the teacher he’s hopelessly in love with.
  Section: Narrative Feature Competition
  
  
• Downbeat by Danny Madden
  S/W Films: (Notes on) Biology, Confusion Through Sand, Frolic N’ Mae
  Synopsis: Fleeing mistakes in Atlanta, Mauro crashes on his sister’s couch in Boston. He takes to bucket drumming on the streets for a way out, but can’t stop screwing things up and drawing everyone else into his own feral shortcomings. 
  Section: Narrative Spotlight

Downbeat by Danny Madden

• First They Came for My College by Patrick Bresnan
  S/W Films: The Rabbit Hunt, Skip Day
  Synopsis: When the Governor of Florida transforms a beloved public honors college as part of a political coup, students and professors confront a new reality: their campus is ground zero in a growing nationwide assault on academic freedom.
  Section: Documentary Spotlight
  
  
• Hokum by Damian McCarthy
  S/W Films: He Dies at the End
  Synopsis: When novelist Ohm Bauman retreats to a remote inn to scatter his parents’ ashes, he is consumed by tales of a witch haunting the honeymoon suite. Disturbing visions and a shocking disappearance force him to confront dark corners of his past.
  Section: Midnighter

• Imposters by Caleb J Phillips
  S/W Films: Other Side of the Box, Play Me
  Synopsis: After a couple’s baby boy is taken, the desperate mother learns of a way to bring him back. However, her husband begins to suspect that what she returned with isn’t their son.
  Section: Midnighter
  
  

Imposters by Caleb J Phillips

• Manhood by Daniel Lombroso
  S/W Films: American Scar
  Synopsis: Manhood follows Dallas businessman Bill Moore as he sets out to make penis enlargement as commonplace as Botox. Along the way, an OnlyFans star and a father of five put their bodies – and their insecurities – on the line.
  Section: Documentary Spotlight

• Mile End Kicks by Chandler Levack
  S/W Films: We Forgot to Break Up
  Synopsis: Grace Pine, a driven though easily distracted 23-year-old. She leaves her quirky parents’ home for a shared apartment found on Craigslist to devote herself to writing the next great book in the 33 1/3 album exploration series. Hers will be on the iconic Alanis Morissette opus Jagged Little Pill. Loft parties introduce Grace to two paramours. Unfortunately, they are members of the same rock band, Bone Patrol. And instead of sequestering herself away to complete her draft, she uses her music industry know-how to get in with the band as their publicist. Through wine-fuelled poetry readings and other ill-advised choices, Grace is in the trenches of self-discovery.
  Section: 24 Beats

• One Another by Amber Love
  S/W Films: Strikers
  Synopsis: Sometimes it takes the end of something to know what is really at stake. Joe, Giorgia, and Lorri are all grappling with the possible end of an intimate friendship at vastly different stages of life: a cross-country move, a mental health crisis, and a shift into empty-nesting have forced them each to reevaluate the support they need from those closest to them. Chronicling three different friendships over the course of three years, “One Another” brings together verite with a wealth of personal archives to intertwine their journeys as they search for what it really means for us to care for each other. The result is a story of change, heartache, and connection in this ode to platonic love.
  Section: Documentary Spotlight

Wishful Thinking by Graham Parkes

• Stages by Ryan Booth
  S/W Films: Five Star, The Heights
  Synopsis: It’s make-or-break time for Ben Garza as he embarks on his solo first tour after the collapse of his band. By his side are Rita, his former tour manager, stepping away from her stable life to help him, and Parker, a remaining bandmate who joins Ben as a utility player. However, Rita also secures Jessie Ramos as the opening act, a rising star whose sudden surge in popularity will completely destabilize Ben. Throughout this musical odyssey, Ben will face characters on the road who challenge his ideas of success, relevance, and purpose. Some encounters offer hope; others deepen his doubt. By the tour’s end, Ben must decide whether to keep chasing the life he once had—or chart a new path forward.
  Section: 24 Beats

• The AI Doc: Or How I Became an Apocaloptimist by Daniel Roher, Charlie Tyrell
  S/W Films (Charlie Tyrell): My Dead Dad’s Porno Tapes, I Thought I Told You to Shut Up
  Synopsis: A father-to-be tries to figure out what is happening with the AI insanity, exploring the existential dangers and stunning promise of this technology that humanity has created.
  Section: Festival Favorite
  
  
• The Saviors by Kevin Hamedani
  S/W Films: In Her Place
  Synopsis: Sean and Kim Harrison are a suburban couple about to divorce. By renting their guest house to a quiet Middle Eastern brother and sister, Amir and Jahan Razi, they find a perfect solution: raise money to fix and sell their house, then separate. But when bizarre occurrences begin to add up – mysterious lights, missing animals, glimpses of unexplainable tech – in the days before the President’s upcoming visit to town, their guests’ strange behavior starts to seem suspicious and potentially dangerous. As Sean and Kim investigate their new tenants, they rediscover the emotional connection they once shared. But reconciliation may come at a significant cost in this timely and provocative thriller.
  Section: Narrative Spotlight

• Wishful Thinking by Graham Parkes
  S/W Films: Where You Are, Craig’s Pathetic Freakout, The Voice in Your Head
  Synopsis: When a volatile couple discovers their emotional state has supernatural consequences on the world around them, they must decide whether to fight for their relationship or accept that their powerful connection might be doing more harm than good. 
  Section: Narrative Feature Competition

Whether you believe in aliens or not, the idea of communicating with another species remains a compelling prospect for many. For storytellers in particular, narratives about alien contact continue to hold enduring appeal for a range of reasons – whether as a way to explore humanity’s place in the universe or as a mirror reflecting contemporary society. The challenge, as always with such well-trodden territory, is finding a way to tell the story without it feeling stale or derivative. It’s a challenge taken on by filmmaker Adebukola Bodunrin, whose background in experimental animation helped shape her SXSW short We Are Not Alone.

“We Are Not Alone is a lo-fi sci-fi parable about connection and expectation, but underneath it’s about the false promise of the American Dream”

“Post-Covid, I found myself thinking about isolation and the quiet humiliation of feeling left behind”, Bodunrin reveals as we discuss why she wanted to bring Ezra Claytan Daniels’ short comic (of the same name) to the screen. Adapting that original story into what the director describes as a “lo-fi sci-fi parable about connection and expectation”, We Are Not Alone stands out as one of the more original pieces of recent science-fiction filmmaking we’ve encountered, taking a somewhat familiar premise and transforming it into something unexpected and memorable.

That sense of distinctiveness is largely rooted in Bodunrin’s aesthetic approach. Shooting on Kodak Ektachrome 16mm, the filmmaker incorporated the short’s animated elements directly onto the film stock – painting, scratching, printing, and etching onto its surface. Yet this visual strategy is far from a gimmick; it serves a clear expressive purpose. The 16mm format lends the film a timeless quality, reinforcing the mysterious tone of the narrative (the alien presence is never explained). Meanwhile, the animation gives that presence a tangible dimension, almost as if the extraterrestrials are communicating through the screen itself. As Bodunrin explains:

“I wasn’t interested in abandoning my animation practice. I wanted to contaminate the live-action world with it. The goal was to create a hybrid form where the handmade marks felt like an emotional undercurrent, almost like the characters’ inner language bleeding onto the film itself . . . I was interested in creating a parallel visual language, something like hieroglyphics running beside the narrative. The marks aren’t decorative. They function as a second voice, one that feels ancient, mechanical, and slightly alien.”

“I wanted to challenge myself to direct a live-action narrative while still working through an analog, tactile process. I wasn’t interested in abandoning my animation practice,” Bodunrin discussing her production

As a science-fiction fan, I was especially taken with Bodunrin’s spin on the first-contact narrative. The film’s use of language – both the imagined language of the aliens and the visual language of cinema itself – felt inventive, playful, and genuinely engaging. In that sense, We Are Not Alone brought to mind Arrival by Denis Villeneuve. The two films are, of course, very (VERY) different in scale and approach, but honestly I can’t think of higher praise to give this short or its director.

Looking ahead, Bodunrin has more exciting projects ahead. Next on the horizon is a new experimental short that will continue her exploration of “direct intervention on film as both image and object,” pushing the technique toward “more intricate, layered mark-making and abstraction”. She’s also developing another short alongside writer Ezra Claytan Daniels, which the filmmakers describe as focusing on “the psychology and performance of online email scams.” If We Are Not Alone is any indication of what to expect, both projects are definitely ones to keep on the radar.

Muscogee artist Dana Tiger shares her life story – the ups and downs, her career, her family and their iconic apparel company – with exceptional honesty and inspiring resilience. In Tiger, director Loren Waters paints an incredibly compelling portrait of this remarkable artist, poignantly immersing us in Dana’s perspective of the world around her, and revealing how art has served as a healing practice in her family.

“The biggest inspiration behind Tiger was Dana Tiger herself”, Waters candidly confessed. While that is true for most artist portrait documentaries, Waters explained that the film was “really rooted in speaking to her character and really trying to create a painterly image with her, but also a portrait”. Dana’s voice feels present throughout all the directorial choices in the film. From her unwavering positivity to the artistic legacy of her family, the film feels incredibly personal and invites the audience into her world with a rare sense of intimacy.

“This film is a tribute to Dana’s life and her family’s incredible journey”

Waters gives Dana a voice, allowing her to share her own story in her own words. Her resilience and energy is infused in the visuals and pacing of the film, with DP Robert L. Hunter framing her in a way that makes Tiger feel like a homage to her and her work. This approach also creates a space for Dana to share her challenges and successes with agency, making the film all the more empowering. Eva Dubovoy’s editing and Amanda Moy’s sound design further enhance the empowering feeling of the film, adding to a rhythm that creates an effective emotional journey. 

“This film is a tribute to Dana’s life and her family’s incredible journey. It seeks to honor not only their legacy of artistic innovation but also their resilience in the face of adversity”, Waters shared. Despite the grief and adversity captured, Tiger also show the hope radiating from Dana in every second of the short. Her presence is not only inspiring but drives the film in a deeply engaging and captivating way. Waters crafts a work that feels celebratory while carrying an undeniable emotional depth that takes the audience by surprise and makes the watching experience so powerful.

After its World Premiere at the 2025 edition of Sundance, Tiger made its way around the festival circuit with notable stops at SXSW, deadCenter, Seattle, Aspen and the Palm Springs ShortFest. It also picked up multiple awards along the way, and was eligible for consideration at the 2026 Oscars. Waters is currently working on a short narrative film called A Map to the Next World.