BLOCK 3 - SHORT DOCUMENTARIES

The Book of Ramadani

Directed by Landon Hogue & Pierce Ryan

Safet Ramadani survived the Bosnian genocide. During which he wrote events believed too significant to forget but too painful to speak of. However, even after coming to the US, the trauma of the war continues to haunt him. In this documentary, Safet must grapple with sharing the book to connect with his family.

Director Statement

“I first met Ohran when he was giving me a tattoo. We spent the whole session talking about everything from movies to politics to religion. He was the most down to earth and honest person I had the pleasure of conversing with. After a couple hours of tattooing, Ohran mentioned that he was born in Germany and his family is from Bosnia. He gave me only a morsel of his family’s story but I could tell they had endured great pain and overcome incredible adversity. As I was leaving the shop, Ohran stopped me and confessed that he felt the need to share his story with the world. ‘I don’t when or if I’ll ever meet a filmmaker again so I want to throw this out there’, and I am blessed to have been able to document this family’s story.-Landon Hogue

“When Landon came to me with this idea, I wasn’t sure what to think. Neither of us knew much about the Bosnian War and had never learned about it in school. However, the more we learned about Ohran and his family’s story, the more I knew I had to help tell it. The tenets that the Ramadani family display in their struggle to find closure are universal. Families across the globe, no matter size, color, or origin, experience these hardships and trauma. It is important for us as humans to empathize with each other and own up to our mistakes, and Landon and I both hope that this film spreads that message far and wide.”--Pierce Ryan

Tshilobo

Directed by Cliff Barrett II

The story follows MMA fighter Impa Kasanganay on the Road.

The Long Haul 100

Directed by Christina Rosetti

What does it mean to push your body to its limits?The Long Haul 100 follows Katie Rozar on her training and race journey to run a 100 mile ultra marathon for the first time. Katie approaches running from a scientific angle, turning her training into an equation to test her mental and physical abilities. As the race begins to weigh on her we see there is no perfect calculation but the drive to finish and a strong support system.

The Hag

Directed by Jaelyn Ellis

A small town community discusses memories of stories told about the mythological Gullah spirit, the Hag, that haunted them for years.

Director Statement

“My mother’s side of my family originated in South Carolina and has resided there for generations. My great grandmother has a Gullah dialect and vernacular. Her expression of speech is a reminder of our rich heritage. My late great grandfather was adopted, but I learned through anecdotes that his adopted family spoke the Gullah language. I have observed over the years that the Gullah dialect and many traditions, such as quilting or basket weaving, were not passed down to subsequent generations. Although the legend of the Hag may not be ubiquitous in Gullah culture, it was one of the few things in my childhood that I associated with Gullah culture, and I have always been fascinated by the vivid experiences my family members have shared with me regarding it. As African Americans, knowledge of our past is inherently limited, and passing culture down is of utmost importance. I am glad I had the opportunity to preserve a small part of my family’s history with this film.”--Jaelyn Ellis, director, “The Hag”

Rolling

Directed by Andrew Neylon

Spend a night with one of Austin's most competitive electric scooter chargers.

Director Biography - Andrew Neylon

Andrew Neylon is a Director & Writer currently pursuing an MFA in Media Production at The University of Texas at Austin. Andrew's work spans narrative & documentary filmmaking, poetry, music criticism, and beyond. Forthcoming works seek to explore & explode notions of multi-media, genre and gender boundaries, and the sound / vision of our collapsible future

Peace Together

Directed by Terah K. Hensley, Michael A. Margio

Forty five years after having left the war behind, two Army veterans return to Vietnam to face the past and find healing.

Director Statement

Terah K. Hensley:

The Peace Together film came about after I spent two years writing down the life stories of our veterans. The book is a narrative nonfiction story about how these two veterans fell in love in the midst of war, working side by side to save lives. During the process of interviewing them and getting to know their love story, it became clear to me that there were some unresolved wounds lingering in their souls about their time in Vietnam. At the conclusion of the book project, I asked them if they would be willing to return to Vietnam, face their pasts, and finally find the healing they'd been longing for. After some initial hesitation from our veterans, they finally agreed to return and were even gracious enough to grant my wishes of filming the entire trip. My husband came along as my camera man, and together, we traveled to Vietnam with our veterans, filming every moment from sun up to sun down, hoping to capture some magic. They were so brave to return, to face their painful pasts openly and authentically, with our camera constantly in their faces. The weeks we spent in Vietnam were life-changing for all four of us and what we ended up capturing sure felt like magic. I hope their story of courage inspires others to face their painful pasts and to finally find the peace they deserve.

Michael A. Margio:

Peace Together was brought to me by Terah and Heath Hensley. They shared with me the story of two Vietnam War veterans who met and fell in love while serving in the Army at the same hospital during the war. It's a fascinating and rare story of young love developing in the midst of daily tragedy. Forty five years after they came home from Vietnam, these two brave veterans ventured back in search of healing, peace, and closure. I had the opportunity to digest the interviews our veterans gave during their trip and even conduct more interviews of my own when they came home. I carefully studied the footage from their time in Vietnam and started to get a clear picture of how this story could be told in a powerful way through film. Over time, the weight of their trauma, the depth of their love, and the hope for some closure rose to the surface as the most important aspects of their trip back. All of this turned into what I think is a beautiful story that I'm proud to share with audiences. It's raw, it's authentic, and it's absolutely worth your time. I hope everyone enjoys getting to know our veterans as much as I did!

Unconverting

Directed by Taylor Ross

Through the personal stories of two LGBT individuals, they reveal the horrors of their experience in conversion therapy and trauma that comes with the aftermath.

Director Statement

I grew up in the Bible belt in a small, southern community. On top of that, I also went to a very conservative, private Christian High School. There are many stories I could tell from my experiences there, but the one that sticks out the most is how much that school and surrounding community were extremely homophobic. Unfortunately, that included supporting the practice of conversion therapy. There were a few individuals that I went to school with that were given the choice: go to conversion therapy or be expelled from school for being gay.

My hope is that this film will show the truth and horrors of what really goes on in conversion therapy and educate those who do not know or are unsure of their opinion on this practice. The United States is making progress in this legislation and I sincerely hope this film helps in the effort on the ban of conversion therapy nationwide.

The Return of the Panther

Directed by Oscar Corral

​Once on the verge of extirpation in the state, Florida's panther population has been steadily increasing since a genetic restoration effort was carried out in the 1990s. The natural systems we depend on do better with top predators, yet living with predators is a complex issue requiring meaningful discussions between people of diverse viewpoint.