SHORTS: Sound & Scene Showcase (with Concord)

NewFest presents an advance screening of films created by the 2026 Sound & Scene cohort, featuring music by noted artists Cautious Clay, Anna Nalick, Brenton Wood, and Gloria Trevi. Join us to watch this year’s exciting short films and hear from filmmakers Vivian Ip, Kalani Axelrode, Sekiya Dorsett, and Manuel Villarreal.

Presented in partnership with

Me Miras (You See Me)
Dir. Manuel Villarreal, 10 min, USA
A chance encounter at a vaquero bar inspires a man to finally put himself out there.

The Wait
Dir. Sekiya Dorsett, 16 min, USA*
On the morning of their final IVF attempt, a queer Caribbean couple, are transported from a sterile waiting room into ancestral portals of love, lineage, and healing, confronting the weight of history and the resilience of their bond.

Leʻa
Dir. Kalani Axelrode, 14 min, Hawai’i
On Oʻahu, a college student’s suppressed desire for her best friend forces them both on a sugar daddy date with a wealthy ex-military man turned artist, where desire and power unravel each other.

A Story She Told
Dir. Vivian Ip, 15 min, USA
The return of an old love quietly fractures a filmmaker’s celebratory night, as a private past begins to reveal itself in the story she chose to tell.

*Please note that THE WAIT will be screening in-person only

The screening will be followed by a reception at the Museum of Contemporary African Diasporan Art, for ticket-holders invited guests.

Part of the 38th Annual New York LGBTQ+ Film Festival