The 44th Bi-Annual New Jersey Film Festival will be taking place The Festival will be a hybrid as we will be presenting it online as well as doing select in-person screenings at Rutgers University. All the films will be available virtually via Video on Demand for 24 hours on their show date. VoD start times are at 12 Midnight Eastern USA. Each General Admission Ticket or Festival Pass purchased is good for both the virtual and the in-person screenings.

Schedule of Events:

Online for 24 Hours and In-Person at 5PM!

Shorts Program

Prayer of the Sea – Martin Gerigk (Germany)

A composer recounts a dream from his youth that inspired the slow movement of his first string quartet, Prayer of the Sea. The dream, depicting a peaceful dissolution into the sea and wind, symbolized his future death. Decades later, rediscovering a drawing from the quartet's premiere - perfectly capturing the dream’s essence - revived its emotions. Now older, he reflects on the dream’s message: a serene acceptance of life’s inevitable end. 2025; 7 min. 

What a Surprise - Alexander Vorobyev (Galloway, New Jersey)

In What A Surprise, three co-workers ponder their luck in relationships, exchanging stories of past lovers. When an unexpected customer shows up at their truck, Monica is sent into a tailspin. Is this man a failed entanglement from her past? Or is he someone Monica could imagine a future with? 2024; 8 min.

The Proposal – Vaneeza Shah (Freehold, New Jersey)

26-year-old Nadia is the definition of success: good degree, great job, very accomplished in her field, and most importantly, got there without any help from a man. She is fiercely protective of her matriarchal family and friend group. When her best friend’s boyfriend asks her for help with his upcoming proposal, Nadia can’t help but feel conflicted: can she get past her predisposition against men for the sake of her friend’s relationship? Or will she sabotage the proposal in the name of protecting her from more suffering when he eventually leaves? 2025; 10 min.

Anima Magia – Albert Gabriel Nigrin (Somerset, New Jersey)

Shot on Super 8mm film and digital video, Anima Magia is an experimental dream film which was inspired by PJ Harvey’s recent I Inside the Old Year Dying tour and Sylvia Plath's poem "Witch Burning." 2025; 10 min. *Not in competition.

Jackie's Guide to Nature - Morgan Kalmbach (New Brunswick, New Jersey)

An exploration and conversation with Jackie: a free-spirited college student that immerses herself so deeply in nature and its many facets and inhabitants. Jackie's Guide to Nature explores Jackie as a person and how her relationship with the outdoors shapes her life in her classwork, relationships with those around her, and day to day life. 2025; 11 min. *Not in competition.

Hearts of Stone – Tom Van Avermaet (Boechout, Belgium)

In the heart of a bustling metropolis, Paula, a lonely street artist, entertains people as a living statue. She longs with an impossible love for Agatha, a stone sculpture next to which she can be found every day. One day, when reaching her familiar spot, she finds her stone companion replaced by an abstract, modern sculpture. After a frantic search, she discovers Agatha cast aside amidst a group of discarded, classical statues who have lost their place in the modernizing sculpture park. As the sun sets, Paula finds herself trying to wake the lonely statue from her stone slumber. Staring Noomi Rapace and Jessica Berden. 2025; 30 min.

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