• Saturday, October 20, 2018, 11am-6:30pm @ Smitty's Cinema (1327 Main St., Sanford)
• Tommy Awards Ceremony 6:30pm-9:30pm @ Sanford High School (100 Alumni Blvd., Sanford)
• After party Glow-Bowl until midnight @ Bowl-a-Rama (1217 Main St., Sanford)

Sanford International Film Festival

NOTE: Our rating system is only a suggestion made by SIFF staff to help families make the best decision about which films they should watch. All films are officially unrated. Please familiarize yourself with the programming before sending your children to the theater for SIFF2018.

11:00 AM
Joy (15 minutes)
Germany (ages 16+)

For weeks, teenaged Joy has been on her own since her self-destructive, narcissistic mother ran off with a man. Now returned home, her mother provokes Joy's anger as familiar behavior patterns reemerge.

Directed by Abini Gold.

Nominated for Best Actress (Sarah Marita) and Best Acting Duo (Sarah Marita and ​Anne von Keller).

11:15 AM
Secret (4 minutes)
Chile (ages 13+)

A man stops a suicide on a bridge, only to have a secret whispered into his ear...

Directed by Roberto Lopez Saavedra.

​Nominated for Best Animated Film.

11:20 AM
Hands Free (8 minutes)
United Kingdom (ages 13+)

Dr. Morris interviews for a new position and it doesn't go as planned. On his way home to his wife, his attempts to conceal the truth and fix the situation become increasingly awkward.

Directed by John Addis & Matt Bowron.

11:30 AM
Maneki Neko (19 minutes)
Greece (ages 13+)

The unexpected encounter of two strangers in a shared taxi becomes a dream-like exploration of their potential relationship. Do they actually know each other? Have they shared a past? The surreal ride provides more questions than answers.

Directed by Manolis Mavris.

11:50 AM
Coffee Shop (9 minutes)
Turkey (ages 13+)

Selim works as an extra on a film set. As the crew works to film multiple takes, boredom and drudgery sets in, and real life and film intertwine in surprising ways.

Directed by Ekrem Canak.

​Nominated for Best Sound (Baran Cem Yigit and Ibrahim Kahraman).

12:00 PM
Rembrandt's Etching (2 minutes)
France (all ages)

After losing his eyesight, a collector decides to give his daughter visiting the family home his most precious possession.

Directed by Thomas Grascoeur.

​12:05 PM
Maelstrøm (3 minutes)
Spain (all ages)

As Karl spins his coffee spoon, the tension rises, and something spins even faster inside Tony's head.​

Directed by Carlos Gómez-Trigo​.

Nominated for Best Editing (David Castro Gonzalez) and Best Sound (Emilio Pascual).

12:10 PM
The All Seeing Blind (17 minutes)
Turkey (ages 13+)

Saddam's gold is smuggled into Turkey during the Iraqi War, hidden in cotton. To eliminate possible theft, the smugglers use blind workers to separate the gold from the cotton, telling them they're removing rocks. But are all the workers unable to see?

Directed by Nuri Cihan Ozdogan.

Nominated for Best Actor (Kemal Burak Alper).

12:30 PM
For Luck (7 minutes)
United States (ages 13+)

An undercover drug bust is interrupted by a chance encounter with an old high school classmate - and forces a man to find the hero within himself.  

Directed by TL Westgate.

Nominated for SIFF Audience Choice Award.

12:40PM
Ashes (9 minutes)
Sweden (all ages)

A young woman experiences the complexity and bittersweet melancholy of loss and fulfilling a final wish.

Directed by Adam Starsmark.

12:50 PM
Our Little Secret (11 minute)
Italy (ages 13+)

An 8-year-old girl is found dead in a park where she was playing with her classmates. When the authorities question her best friend Serena, suspicion begins to fall on Serena's father.

Directed by Letizia Lamartire.

1:05 PM
Condemned (14 minutes)
United States (ages 13+)

From San Quentin's death row, a convicted killer tells the gripping, tragic story of his life and crimes. When the day of his execution arrives, something extraordinary happens and the space between life and death isn't so clear.

Directed by Steven Biver.

Nominated for Best Actor (Daniel Wyland) and Best Screenplay (Legrand McMullen).

1:20 PM
The Departure (14 minutes)
Germany (ages 13+)

A woman prepares to leave her apartment. She methodically cleans and packs, and looks to her neighbor to borrow money for the train – all the time unaware of where her trip will ultimately lead.

Directed by Milan Bath.

Nominated for Best Sound (Lukas Reichert), Best Actress (Beate Malkus), and Best International Film.

1:35 PM
Finché c'è il Mare (As Long as There Is the Sea) (24 minutes)
Italy (ages 13+)

​Returning home for the first time since the tragedy that changed both of their lives, Antonio attempts to reconnect with his best friend Sandro. 

Directed by Francesco De Giorgi.

Nominated for Best Acting Duo (Giorgio Consul and Fabio Zullino) and Best International Film.

2:00 PM
An Autobiography (35 minutes)
Finland (ages 13+)

Two days before retirement from her rental car job, Anja makes a decision: She will not leave her work of 45 years, where she has been tending to the cars and mechanics around her. But when a young trainee is sent down to replace her, Anja is forced to reevaluate her life and future.

Directed by Mari Mantela​​.

Nominated for Best Actress (Cris Af Enehielm) and Best Acting Ensemble.

2:40 PM
Ainhoa (19 minutes)
Spain (ages 13+)

During the financial crisis in 2009, thousands in Spain were unable to keep up with their mortgages. Banks evicted families from their homes. Nine-year-old Ainhoa has left home with her school bag, her Playmobil figures, and a plan.

Directed by Ivan Sainz-Pardo.

Nominated for Best Short Film, Best Actress (Aurelia Schikarsky), Best Acting Ensemble, Best Screenplay (Ivan Sainz-Pardo), and Best Director (Ivan Sainz-Pardo).

3:00 PM
For a Good Time (20 minutes)
United States (ages 13+)

Grieving over the loss of her mother, Jane has a meltdown in a garden store. Out of options, and a bit out of her mind, she calls a number written on the bathroom stall. The person who answers is unexpected, but it turns out to be exactly who she needs.

Directed by Aemilia Scott.

3:20 PM
Swimming Pool (10 minutes)
Spain (ages 16+)

Two friends living in the outskirts of Madrid are spending their days drinking beer in the park and talking about the hottest girls in the neighborhood. But a combination of the summer heat, a plan to access a swimming pool, and a personality test reveals a hidden truth.

Directed by Carlos Ruano.

​Nominated for Best Acting Duo (Ferrán Vilajosana and Álex Villazán).

3:30 PM
Cast Beyond the Moon (30 minutes)
Armenia (ages 13+)

A small military detachment is in a blockade, with little water and food, and help is days away. In between enemy attacks, they spend time copying and adapting one of their fallen friend's letters to leave to their own loved ones.
​
Directed by Aram Shahbazyan​.

Nominated for Best Sound (Arman Avestisya and Tigran Kuzikyan), Best Cinematography (Arthur Gharayan), and Best Visual Effects.

4:00 PM
Imposter (10 minutes)
United States (ages 13+)

​"Sometimes the worst place that you can be is in your own head." A visual representation of the inner struggles of those suffering from anxiety, told as a drama with little dialog.
​
Directed by Chris Esper​.

​*Filmmakers plan to be in attendance.

Nominated for Best Music (Steven Lanning-Cafaro), Best Acting Ensemble, Best Director (Chris Esper), and Best Short Film.

4:20 PM
Bearkittens (71 minutes)
Germany (ages 16+)

US Premiere! Three delinquent girls in a group sentenced to community service accidentally kill their supervisor and force the entire group to take responsibility. Or was someone else behind the killing the whole time?

Directed by Lars Henriks.

​*Filmmakers plan to be in attendance.

Nominated for Best Music (Lars Henriks), Best Acting Ensemble, Best Feature Film.

5:45 PM
Filmmaker Discussion Forum

Join us before the Awards Ceremony for a fascinating Q&A discussion with filmmakers about the joys of making independent films and the challenges in current environment.

Head to the Agora Performance Space at the Sanford High School & Regional Technical Center (100 Alumni Blvd., Sanford)
for our annual Tommy Awards Ceremony from 6:30-9:30 PM! Catered by Third Alarm Diner.

Don't miss our Glow-Bowl after party with music, games, and fun
after the awards ceremony until midnight (1217 Main St., Sanford)

Best-in-Fest Sunday Oct. 21 ->