This year’s fest takes place Saturday, September 27th at the Saugatuck Women’s Club & American Legion from 12pm-10pm.
Paint
Directed by Angeline Ameloot
Run Time – 1:02
Venue – The Women’s Club
Two paintings in a museum argue about the visitors.
The Pantone Guy
Directed by Patrick Creadon
Run Time – 1:22:00
Venue – The American Legion
At 96 years old, Larry Herbert, known as “The Pantone Guy,” is a visionary whose revolutionary idea to standardize color remains largely unrecognized. Growing up in Depression-era Brooklyn, Larry entered the print and manufacturing trade during a time when color was a chaotic and subjective experience. He channeled his unique vision into creating the Pantone Matching System—a groundbreaking invention that established a universal language for color, profoundly enhancing artistic expression and commercial production across all industries. Directed by Patrick Creadon (Wordplay, Hesburgh), this compelling documentary features an exclusive interview with Larry himself, offering an intimate glimpse into the mind behind Pantone and his enduring impact on how we perceive and use color today.
Wronged: The Maurice Carter Story
Directed by Nate Roels
Run Time – 43:00
Venue – The American Legion
Maurice Carter is wrongfully convicted of a crime he did not commit in Benton Harbor, Michigan, and finds himself ensnared in a unjust legal system. As he spends years behind bars, his hope dwindles, until his case catches the attention of Doug Tjapkes, a former radio newsman who believes he can help. Doug, along with a dedicated group of supporters, embarks on a relentless fight to prove Maurice’s innocence, uncovering buried evidence and exposing the deep flaws within the justice system. Their battle against the odds reveals not only the systemic racism and corruption that led to Maurice’s conviction but also the power of determination, faith, and the human spirit in the quest for justice.
Ring Ring
Directed by Lucas Xavier Simes
Run Time – 11:58
Venue – The Women’s Club
The simple mistake of tossing wedding rings into a trash compactor spirals into a fight for survival when the best man dives in after the rings and finds himself about to be crushed.
Neches
Directed by Katy McCarthy
Run Time – 8:37
Venue – The Women’s Club
In ‘Neches’ we join an older woman who experiences a quiet telepathy with the Neches River. She is our guide, although she can’t promise us answers. The river offers us the woman’s memories, as she recalls being a young girl warmly introduced to the spirit of the landscape by her mother. The film conflates time, slowly assembling a puzzle that is missing a final piece. The missing piece of Neches may be a decimated forest adjacent to the banks, or perhaps it’s the resolution we all crave about the past.
C-NOTE
Directed by Jack Horrigan
Run Time 7:49
Venue – The Women’s Club
Two indie musicians go to a bank to film a music video, and the lines between a staged robbery and a real one become blurred.
Drive More
Directed by Matthew Thompson
Run Time – 32:25
Venue – The American Legion
In DRIVE MORE, three friends with a shared love for vintage European sports cars set out on a journey far beyond the open road. With the iconic Round Headlamp Rally 1000—a 1,000-mile, two-day rally across Michigan—on the horizon, each friend has a personal goal for this year’s adventure. But as they prepare their quirky, character-filled classics for the challenge, they discover that the road ahead is about more than just miles.
From late nights in the garage and last-minute fixes to the roar of engines and the beauty of Michigan’s backroads, DRIVE MORE captures the raw passion, dedication, and camaraderie that define the vintage car community. It’s a story of friendship, perseverance, and the joy of the drive.
Join them for a journey where the cars are more than machines, and the miles are more than just numbers.
Ana Sees Her Dad
Directed by Mark Broe
Run Time – 5:37
Venue – The Women’s Club
A young girl has a realization about her dad during an inspection of her household chores.
Snooze
Directed by Jenny Hogan
Run Time 7:13
Venue – The Women’s Club
A lonely woman’s attempt to rekindle an old flame unravels into a disturbing discovery that sends her spiraling into fear for her health—and her sanity
The Long Run
Directed by Melissa Fitzsimmons
Run Time – 1:30:00
Venue – The Women’s Club
When two oddball strangers leave their lives behind to chase their Hollywood dreams, they discover that what they lack in talent, they make up for with determination and a shared delusion, leading to an unexpected friendship that will make them question the realities of chasing a dream.
The Ballad
Christofer Nilsson
Run Time – 13:13
Venue – The Women’s Club
A fed up delivery worker chooses a split second act of rebellion – one that results in an awkward, spiraling dance between the classes of the 21st century.
DIY
Directed by Heather Turman
Run Time – 11:17
Venue – The Women’s Club
A loving couple’s deeper issues are brought to the surface when they team up to build a piece of do-it-yourself furniture.
Infinity Girls
Directors – Molly Ehrenberg-Peters, Alexandra Nedved
Run Time – 14:00
Venue – The Women’s Club
After completing another round of rehab, Jess is eager to reconnect with her best friend, Andi, on their annual weekend camping trip. Armed with a stash of Capri Sun and a determination to prove she’s on the path to redemption, Jess arrives with hopes of rekindling their friendship – and perhaps something deeper. As old wounds resurface, the complexities of their love and loyalty are exposed. Amid heartache and joy, the trip pushes them to confront their fractured relationship and decide: will they choose to hold on, or will they choose to let go?
WHAT THE HEAVEN!
Directed by Richard Yan
Run Time – 12:59
Venue – The Women’s Club
When his recently deceased father returns as a ghost, a Chinese American student must help him resolve unfinished business — bridging generations, cultures, and their strained relationship — before he can pass on to the afterlife.
Stronghold
Directed by Meghann Artes
Run Time – 15:12
When a group home for boys closes and a single mother who has regained custody of her son does not show up on the final day, the house mother must go in search of the boy’s mom before heading off to her new life where she hopes to reconcile with her own estranged daughter.
Down Safe
Directed by Fédor Benton
Run Time – 7:54
When 10-year-old Fédor discovers a locked safe buried in his backyard, his world transforms into a thrilling quest to uncover its secrets.
The Inner Sea
Directed by Kate Stapleton
Run Time – 52:00
The Inner Sea is a documentary about adoption, music, a bright blue 40 foot long school bus, and the journey of a lifetime.
Is That All There Is?
Directed by Kelli Miller
Run Time – 30:00
Venue – The Women’s Club
Set inside Detroit’s early-2000s indie rock explosion, Is That All There Is follows filmmaker Kelli Miller’s band through a city’s fleeting musical boom—where some rocketed to fame, others vanished into obscurity, and the real win was the beauty of trying when the world calls it failure.
Me, My Dad, and the Thing in the Shed
Tanner Hamilton
Run Time – 16:55
Venue – The Women’s Club
An estranged son attempts to reconnect with his aging father while competing for his affection with an otherworldly guest.
1969: Killers, Freaks, and Radicals
Directed by Andrew Templeton
Run Time – 1:52:00
Venue – The American Legion
Amid the radical politics and cultural upheaval of the late 1960s, a series of brutal murders targeting young women gripped the twin university towns of Ann Arbor and Ypsilanti, Michigan. Home to the University of Michigan and Eastern Michigan University, the communities grew increasingly anxious as police seemed unable to stop the killer—or killers—responsible.
Through interviews with law enforcement, political figures, and women who lived through the fear, this independent documentary examines not just a series of crimes, but the social and political tensions that enabled them—many of which still resonate today.