Women's Shorts: Women Rule the World

Noor & Layla

Noor and Layla are breaking up. Is it the end of the road for these two Muslim women… or is it the beginning? Noor & Layla is about reclaiming ritual through the love story of two queer, Muslim women, told at five different moments in their relationship, marked by the five calls to prayer (fajr, dhur, asr, maghrib, isha). The film opens at fajr, the dawn prayer, at the end of their relationship and follows a reverse chronology to the evening prayer, isha, the moment they first meet.

Directed by Fawzia Mirza 13 m English Canada Drama

CC Dances the Go-Go

A little love story + go-go dancing.

Directed by Erin C. Buckley 11 m English United States Comedy

Static Space

Jamie is a young woman living in rural Indiana struggling to figure out her place and identity. When she inadvertently stumbles across a frequency on her ham radio and makes contact with astronaut Noa currently orbiting Earth, the two women are presented with the opportunity to find meaningful connection, even while worlds apart.

Directed by John Klein, Kate Black-Spence 29 m English USA Drama

This Is Katharine

At a young age, Katharine starts thinking that she might be gay. To find her sexual identity, she turns to movies and tv, and from the representations she creates an image of how she should be. An image that is far from the shy and scared girl she really is. Through an all-knowing voice over we hear her story, her thoughts, and feelings, and we take part in her journey to find and to free herself.

Directed by Ida H. Eldøen 15 m Comedy

Play

Syd, a non-binary sex worker, is contracted to be a live-in dom for their newest client, Natalie. Over the course of their week together, the two engage in increasingly elaborate role playing, gradually blurring the boundaries between work and play.

Directed by Alexander Hacker 23 m English United States Drama

Abby and Emily Go To Palm Springs

Two women try not to kill each other on their first vacation together aka a modern queer love story.

Abby is an artist, Emily is an army officer; they come from opposite worlds yet have fallen hard and fast for each other and must navigate their completely different love languages on the way to what could be forever or the end of the road.

In the tradition of John Cassavetes, Wong Kar Wai and Jane Campion, this short film takes a brief glimpse into the lives of two people in love trying to understand each other

Directed by Hellin Kay 14 m English USA Drama