Documentary, Short

A City Fights Back follows Los Angeles schoolteacher Ron Gochez as he leads Unión del Barrio’s grassroots resistance against the escalating wave of ICE raids.

Director: Brandon Tauszik 
Producer: Brandon Tauszik       
Cast: Ron Gochez
Cinematographer: Brandon Tauszik
Editor: Mariana Blanco

Winner: Best Short Film, Teaneck International Film Festival

Website: https://brandontauszik.com/

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/be_dizzle/

Short film
World Premiere

Over the course of 24 hours, an undocumented man’s quiet struggle for dignity collapses into violence, testing how far he’ll go to provide for his family

Director: Kirill Nong
Producer: Chris Ibanez
Writer: Chris Ibanez          
Cast: Edgar Berrun, Yanin Loza, Henry Meza, D. Paul Faulkner, Giovanni Navarro, Gabrial Bautista
Cinematographer: Kirill Nong
Editor: Kirill Nong

IndieX Film Fest, Los Angeles,United States
Outstanding Achievement Award for Best Crime Short, December 2025

Short
West Coast Premiere

Finding Pá is a deeply personal film inspired by true events. It follows Miguel, a Puerto Rican man forced to confront years of resentment when his estranged, dying father returns seeking forgiveness. Through raw conversations and quiet moments of connection, the film explores fathers and sons, breaking cycles, and the tension between hurt and healing. At its core, Finding Pá is also a love letter to Puerto Rican culture, its music, traditions, and resilience, reflecting the balance of pride, struggle, and love shared by many in the community.

Director: Enrique Lebrón 
Producers: Karen Sillas, Olivia Downes, Yolibel Lebrón
Writer: Enrique Lebrón              
Cast: Angel Vazquez, Luis Sebastián Borges, Joshua Isaiah Collings Jr., Yaira LeBrón-Rojas
Cinematographer: Vincent Wrenn
Editor: Enrique Lebrón 

Awards: 
El Encuentro: The Latino Film Festival ( Boston ) - Best Writer/Best Director for Finding Pá, New York Film Legacy IFF ( NYC ) - Best Director Finding Pá 

Website:  https://www.findingpamovie.com
Instagram: @retrospective_films

Narrative Short

After the loss of her husband, Luisa, a painter struggling with grief, retreats to Puerto Rico in search of inspiration but finds herself unable to create. Days pass in quiet repetition—waking, trying, failing—until a fleeting moment of instinct draws her into the path of Don Eugenio, an elderly man burdened by his own grief. Despite his failing sight and hearing, they build a quiet bond that grows in the rhythm of their daily encounters.

Meanwhile, in a place she nearly forgot to look, she finds words from her past—words that reach her exactly when she needs them. A gentle reminder. A quiet push forward.

As Luisa rediscovers the beauty in small moments—the laughter of children, the rhythm of the plaza, the act of helping a stranger—she is drawn back to the canvas. But in the end, it is a final gift from Don Eugenio that reveals an unseen thread connecting their lives in ways she never imagined.

Director: Elise Rodriguez
Executive Producer: Gisela Monclova
Writer: Gisela Monclova
Cast: Isel Rodriguez, Rene Monclova
Cinematographer: Brendaliz Negron
Editor: Jeremie X. McLeod

Awards & Recognition:
Best Indie Short, Touchstone Independent Film Festival (2025)
Best Narrative Short, Miami Women in Film Festival (2025)
Int’l Independent Film Awards (2025)
Best Narrative Short
Best Original Score
Best Short Script
Best Inspirational Short, New Zealand Film Festival (2025)  
Best Hispanic Short, Indie Film Festival Barcelona (2025)
Best Narrative Short, Latitude Film Awards (2025)
Best Short Narrative Film, LA Indies (2025)
Nominated for Best Short– Int’l Indie Film & Screenplay Festival

Instagram: @montorproductions 

Documentary short
USA Premiere, West Coast Premiere, Los Angeles Premiere

As mass deportations of undocumented migrants continue, many who have begun the journey are now trapped in Mexico along the border with the U.S.

One area in Nogales, Sonora, is notorious for its cartel activity. As mothers and children face dangers and homelessness, one man has made it his mission to help those most in need. 

Director: Barbara Benitez
Producer: Barbara Benitez     
Featuring: Pancho Olechea Martin, Kathi Noaker, Rita Danks
Cinematographer: Noorulain Khwaja
Editor: Barbara Benitez

Website: www.BarbaraBenitez.com
Instagram: Barbarazway7
BlueSky: @barbarazway.bsky.social