HILLBILLY ROBOT (dir. Todd Rohal, Alexandria, VA) 23 minutes, BetaSP
A robot family is tormented and ridiculed by small-minded townsfolk, but it only brings the family closer together. Featuring Baltimore's own Kelly Conway (AKA Stella Gambino) playing a corpse.

LEARN TO SPEAK BODY - TAPE 5 (dir. Mitchell Rose, Hollywood, CA) 6.5 minutes, BetaSP,
WORLD PREMIERE
An instructional videotape on how to understand body language. One of two new shorts from Mitchell Rose, who in the past brought us Elevator World and Modern Daydreams.

CASE STUDIES FROM THE GROAT CENTER FOR SLEEP DISORDERS (dir. Mitchell Rose, Hollywood, CA) 6.5 minutes, BetaSP,
WORLD PREMIERE
A scientific investigation of ASDICT (Adult Sleep Disorder Induced by Childhood Trauma). We're privileged to glimpse rare archival footage from the renowned (but fictitious) Groat Center. Not a yawner.

MEDIA WHORE (dir. Karl Hirsch, LA, CA) 9 minutes, BetaSP
This is the demo reel of aspiring VeeJay, Astrid -- the most idiotic VeeJay of them all. She interviews former X member John Doe, on the set of "the Roswell Files;" asks Taye Diggs what it's like to have an action figure (like a Yoda); and "chills" with Coolio over onion rings, where she asks whether a three-headed monster (or "a monster with one huge head") would win in a fight against a dragon.

ZEN & THE ART OF LANDSCAPING (dir. David Kartch, SF, CA) 17 minutes, BetaSP
When a suburban landscaper accepts the advances of one of his clients, he gets caught up her family's twisted web of lies and deception.

ZILCH (dir. Mickey Strider, Richmond, VA) 7 minutes, BetaSP,
MARYLAND PREMIERE
Bob bought the Screenwriter 4.0 software three years ago. Now he's finally ready to put it to work, but the program has ideas of it's own. Screenwriter 4.0's animated icon, the Screenwriter's Assistant, has a nasty attitude that doesn't make it any easier for Bob to start writing.

HISTORY OF CHOKING (WITH ERICK ESTRADA) (dir. Abel Klainbaum, Miami Beach, FL) 30 minutes, BetaSP,
MARYLAND PREMIERE
A mockumentary on the history of the Heimlich Maneuver, from conception, to development, to marketing and globalization; punctuating the story with history lessons and practical advice on how to avoid becoming a choking statistic yourself. Crammed with testimonials of rescues, close calls, and fatalities; as well as archival footage, animation, reenactments of famous chokings, dramatizations, and anecdotes. If you eat or you know someone who eats, this film is a must.

(films are not necessarily listed in the order they will shown)