Past Film/Video | Series & Festivals

Ohio Shorts 2020

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Join us for a special virtual version of Ohio Shorts—our annual celebration of vibrant filmmaking from the Buckeye State. The event goes live on April 18 at 7 pm and will be available to stream until midnight on May 2.

While we know we can't gather together in person for this year's event, we're hoping to create an equally engaging but expanded experience by bringing Ohio Shorts online. This year's program—now in its 24th year—features incredible works selected by Wexner Center jurors Rachael Barbash (projectionist) and Maria Joranko (community outreach and teen programs coordinator).

The final program of 15 films were selected from 147 entries from all around the state in both the youth (18 and under) and adult (19 and over) divisions. It'll be 95 minutes that prove without a doubt that you don't have to be located on a coast to have a thriving film community!

The Jury Award ($500) will be announced via Facebook and Instagram on April 18 at 9 pm. The Audience Choice Award ($300) will be determined by online voting through a link provided at the end of the program. In order to make sure everyone has a chance to participate, the voting link will be open through 6 pm on April 25. We’ll announce the Audience Choice winner via Facebook and Instagram at 8 pm on April 25.

Program lineup
with artists' descriptions

John Wick
(Kieran Murphy, 2020, 1:28 mins.)
Athens High School | Youth Division
In a challenging situation, John Wick tries to do the right thing.

Gremulon
(Joseph Branderhorst and Devin Lapp, 2020, 2:03 mins.)
Olentangy Liberty High School | Youth Division
An alien is interviewing for an office job while trying to not let the interviewer find out that he's an alien.

Amber
(Ross Jeffers and Sean Russell, 2020, 4:38 mins.)
Rutherford B. Hayes High School | Youth Division
A man witnesses himself stuck in an amber of time.

THE G.O.A.T.
(Keisha Martin, 2018, 7:59 mins.)
Atwater | Adult Division
Stuck in life, a maid named Terry jams through her work shifts (holding her head high and her music even higher) until an unforeseen force stops the music.

blink of an eye
(Maya Sophia Neyman, 2019, 2:01 mins.)
The Ohio State University | Youth Division 
This film explores the idea of growing up too fast; the simplicity of youth goes by in the blink of an eye.

The loop
(Layla Ayoub, 2020, 57 secs.)
Hilliard Davidson High School | Youth Division
This is an animation depicting the thoughts of a girl on a loop.

The Other Border
(Justin Zimmerman, 2019, 8 mins.)
Portland, OR/Norwalk, OH | Adult Division
Student Gerardo Hernandez—raised in the United States since six months of age—was arrested by ICE, spent two months in prison, and is scheduled to be deported.

MUÑE
(Catalina Jordan Alvarez, 2019, 14:28 mins.)
Yellow Springs | Adult Division
Shrink-wrapped baby-doll toes, skillet-fried roaches, salvage-yard showdowns: MUÑE is an unhinged romp through rural Tennessee, the likes of which you’ve never seen before.

Love and Family
(Jolie Chen, 2019, 1:53 mins.)
Olentangy Liberty High School | Youth Division
Asian dramas have become increasingly popular. I've decided to cash in on the trend.

Hou Yi and the Ten Sons
(Yunze “Jet” Ni, 2019, 1:48 mins.)
Fuzhou, China/Columbus, OH | Adult Division
Hou Yi and the Ten Sons reinterprets a classic Chinese tale in the context of modern-day issues such as global warming and capitalism.

Omobinrin Mi (My Daughters)
(Claudia Owusu and Ife Oluwamuyide, 2020, 13:46 mins.
Columbus | Adult Division
Modupe is the glue that holds her family together, but when times get tough, it takes the help of her daughters for her to come to terms with the truth.

Unhinged
(Hayden Milewsky and Simone Massis, 2019, 3:39 mins.)
Rutherford B. Hayes High School | Youth Division
A man slowly becomes unhinged from himself and his reality.

Welcome to Violence!
(Ryan Wise, 2019, 8:52 mins.)
Pataskala | Adult Division
How does the soul react to abjection based on the physical attributes of its vessel? Occupy the subject position of a black male born at the turn of this century. (I made this when I was angry)

Grandma/Obāchan
(Cora K. Hasegawa, 2019, 7:17 mins.)
Oberlin | Adult Division
My whole life I have always wondered who my grandmothers really were. Through conversations with my parents, I explore my grandmother’s lives and the losses that affected my family and shaped my personal and cultural identity.

In Praise of Angela
(Edit Jakab, 2020, 14:54 mins.)
Athens | Adult Division
A satirical ode to the Midwest that addresses existential issues (like the responsibility of parenthood, the pursuit of dreams, and whether we should take ourselves all that seriously) through humorous, ironic vignettes.

Ohio shorts
a young boy in a spiderman suit laying on the grass and smiling into the camera

blink of an eye (2019) by Maya Neyman. Image courtesy of the filmmaker.

a girl with a red top poise with a hand on a door knob looking off to the side

Omobinrin Mi (My Daughters) (2020) by Claudia Owusu & Ife Oluwamuyide. Image courtesy of the filmmakers.

a person in a hoodie with head bowed and hand resting on door

Unhinged (2019) by Hayden Milewsky & Simone Massis. Image courtesy of the filmmakers.

an illustration of a bearded man with a guitar on his shoulder

In Praise of Angela (2020) by Edit Jakab. Image courtesy of the filmmaker.

a short toy on stairs of a man in a black suit

John Wick (2020) by Kieran Murphy. Image courtesy of the filmmaker.

a hand holding a bug

MUÑE (2019) by Catalina Jordan Alvarez. Image courtesy of the filmmaker.

a young girl with pink highlights looking up to the sky

THE G.O.A.T. (2018) by Keisha Martin. Image courtesy of the filmmaker.

silhouette of a man looking up against a window

The Other Border (2019) by Justin Zimmerman. Image courtesy of the filmmaker.

a pink drawing of a headshot

The loop (2020) by Layla Ayoub. Image courtesy of the filmmaker.

paper cutout of a neighborhood with trees and mountains under a starry night

Hou Yi and the Ten Sons (2019) by Yunze “Jet” Ni. Image courtesy of the filmmaker.

drawing of a creature with a green head and antennas

Gremulon (2020) by Joseph Branderhorst & Devin Lapp. Image courtesy of the filmmakers.

a man with glasses looking straight into camera with hands locked over mouth

Amber (2020) by Ross Jeffers & Sean Russell. Image courtesy of the filmmakers.

MADE POSSIBLE BY
Greater Columbus Arts Council
Ohio Arts Council
American Electric Power Foundation
The Columbus Foundation
Nationwide Foundation

ADDITIONAL SUPPORT PROVIDED BY
Huntington
Jeni's Splendid Ice Creams
Kaufman Development
Cardinal Health Foundation

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Past Film/Video

Ohio Shorts 2020