26th Annual deadCenter Film Festival

Virtual Shorts Program 5

Expired June 28, 2025 4:59 AM
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10 films in package
Kill the Horse - 杀了这匹马
A murder is growing wildly in the grass.
Amplified (Sukoun)
After a violating incident at the Karate center, a young hearing-impaired Karate athlete must find a new way to reclaim her power.
Talk Shit
Ella wants to move out. Taylor does not take this well. TALK SHIT is a queer campy dark comedy thriller about the worst friendship breakup ever.
Closed captions available
Before You
Looking back on her first pregnancy, a woman navigates the echoes of a life-changing loss. (In Solidarity with Planned Parenthood Federation of America, Inc.)
Play Date
Two estranged mothers reunite to make sense of their daughter's last play date.
How The World Is Going to End
A short documentary film captures the public's fleeting feelings about the world's future and potential ending.
Wafaa From Gaza ( وفاء من غزة )
We follow the journey of a girl who started singing out her window in Gaza out of despair, to a woman living in Germany, scared to sing out of fear of deportation.
Chokin’ – Kai Straw
Pulled backward through time and made witness to their own death along with all it caused, someone who gave up everything is forced to confront the hate they feel for themselves and the love they feel for their family.
The Bridges We Cross
The story follows Henry and Bertie, two elderly gentlemen who are going into town to go to a concert. Bertie has middle to late Alzheimer's disease with Henry serving as his caretaker. As the couple walk through the town, they suddenly come across a bridge that evokes some unexpected memories.
Does She Know? – T-Pain
DOES SHE KNOW captures the perspective of a stalker seeking revenge on another woman, but the stalker's plan is quickly hampered when the woman catches on to being marked.

A mysterious figure pulls time backward and a suicide is undone. What was broken is made whole, what was wounded is healed, and lives are restored. Having been pulled backward through time and made a witness to their own death along with all it caused, this person who gave up their life is forced to confront the hate they feel for themselves and the love they feel for their family. A fantasy story about depression, addiction, and the fragile hope of redemption.


It’s a symbolic tour of how our darkness, like a parasite, moves from host to host. It’s a puzzle box with crumbs of detail and meaning that the observant viewer can sew together to deduce what more story there is outside of the frame. It’s an ambigram that unfolds both forward and backward—a fractured dream that, in the end, the viewer pieces together alongside the witness.


The song – written, performed, and produced by Kai Straw – and the video – written, edited, and shot by him – comes together as a uniquely singular vision. It is a sketch drawn visually and musically with one voice.

  • Year
    2024
  • Runtime
    5 minutes
  • Language
    English
  • Country
    United States
  • Genre
    Music Video, Horror, Sci-Fi
  • Awards
    Another Hole in the Head Film Festival San Francisco United States Winner | Best Music Video, Dallas International Film Festival Audience Selection | Best Music Video
  • Note
    Website: https://www.kaistraw.com
  • Social Media
  • Director
    Kai Straw
  • Screenwriter
    Kai Straw
  • Producer
    Kai Straw
  • Co-Producer
    Luke Cho
  • Filmmaker
    Kai Straw
  • Cast
    Serra Naiman, Kyle McCarthy, Spencer Schultz
  • Cinematographer
    Kai Straw
  • Editor
    Kai Straw
  • Composer
    Kai Straw
  • Music
    Kai Straw
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