This year marks the 22nd HollyShorts Film Festival – known as the festival to premiere your short film to get one step closer to qualifying for the Academy Awards. Starting out as a two-day festival in Los Angeles showcasing 23 films, it has now expanded to an 11-day event with an international counterpart, HollyShorts London. Notable directors like David Lynch and the Russo Brothers (Joe Russo and Anthony Russo) have had work featured at the festival whilst also platforming emerging directors’ early work.
From the special Alliance of Women Directors category to appearances in categories like Locals Only and Kids / Family Animation, female voices have been strongly represented. Here are my thoughts on six of the many films directed by women at HollyShorts 2026:
They, dir. Renée Zellweger
Zellweger’s directorial debut is a 2D-animated feature about a purple person and their blue dog going about the world whilst everyone around them emanates red clouds of smoke. Whether it is from a newspaper stand owner, someone driving in their car, or the television, the clouds percolate as the hatred towards people grows. Our main character decides that enough is enough and devises a plan to suck up all of the smoke using a machine he invents.
The animators do an incredible job at mirroring our planet in a way that is palatable and engaging to children with the vivid colors and simple, friendly character designs. However, the writing is where this short falls short. Zellweger tries to highlight an elevated concept metaphor of how spewing hate pollutes the environment, but the messaging is both idealistic and too “grown-up” for a young audience, as well as the execution being rudimentary. A disappointing muddle that a child would easily forget the next day.
AMERICA, dir. Laura New
When you sit and read the statistics relating to school shootings in the US within even the last year, you cannot help but be paralyzed in shock by just how often it occurs and how many children’s lives are lost as a result. New’s AMERICA powerfully humanizes the terror of this experience through the eyes of Valerie (Kim Berrios Lin) and her teenage children Daniel (Jacob Wade) and Georgia (Camila Cuevas).
Berrios Lin brilliantly balances each of the heavy aspects of her character – the responsibilities of being a single mother and wanting a safer life for her kids, as well as dealing with getting that dreaded phone call whilst they are at school and wondering if your child was responsible or is alive. Especially in the last sequence of the short, her harrowing performance moves you to tears and urges you to rethink your stance on gun laws in America.
Woman Reclining on Grass, dir. Claudia Doumit
One location pressure cooker features are an audacious task to pull off, but when done right, makes the entire narrative sing. Doumit attempts this style of filmmaking in Woman Reclining on Grass. Centered around the authentication of an alleged famous impressionist’s artwork, Gwen (Alex Aves) alongside her family are forced to convince dinner guest and art blogger Santiago (Salim Aliaga) of the painting’s legitimacy.
Although we were off to a promising start with an enticing opening and striking color grading, the tension built up early on and tapered throughout the narrative, falling victim to poor pacing and dull sequences. On top of this, the performances were nothing to write home about – no one really given the opportunity to stand out. Composer Michael Teoli produced an original score that was utterly obscure, artistic, and unnerving, making him the only one who completely understood the grating atmosphere that the short needed to lean into.
It’s Complicated, dir. Darine Hotait
Hotait’s cleverly titled It’s Complicated follows Yara (Iman Karram) connecting with her Palestinian roots by learning Arabic and cooking sumaghiyyeh with the help of Hana (Dina Shuhaiber) over Zoom. What starts out as a profound outlook on identity and how to stay in touch with your culture when you feel far removed from it transforms into an important rumination of the apoliticality that society has taken towards the Israeli occupation of Gaza.
Executive produced by Zoe Saldaña, there is clear backing behind the feature and for good reason. The short presents a very modern concept that was well directed and even more well written. Writer Karram understands the need to tell the stories of those who can’t tell them themselves, a message that echoes in viewers’ minds as the credits roll.
Homebodies, dir. Rachel Oslon
Homebodies does what some shorts only hope to achieve – create the desire for a full-length feature. In a concept taken straight out of a Black Mirror (TV Series 2011–) episode, Jackie (Alyssa Limperis) lets her partner Greg (Andre Hyland) use her account for the “outside toll” to gain some much-needed alone time at home. On paper, Jackie is in for a relaxing time but instead gets hassled by a toll compliance administrator for fraudulent activity on her account.
The witty dialogue written by Jorja Hudson and Ethan David adds a light-hearted spin to the dystopian dread that we are so used to seeing on our screens. Aided by Limperis’ impeccable comedic timing and realistic portrayal of a tired working woman who just wants time to herself, you could not help but want to see more of this world.
For Niko, dir. Alexandra Shipp
Renowned actress Shipp stands on both sides of the camera in her directorial debut short, For Niko, where she plays an aspiring singer-songwriter and single mother, Rose, to her son Niko (Nik Sanchez), who has autism. We watch as Rose tries to juggle the pursuit of her dreams in the music industry whilst also giving her son the best quality of life that she possibly can.
While the ending felt rushed and parts were not executed as effectively as others, the story was beaming with warmth, kindness and love. Tom Van’s cinematography conveys a softness that Shipp reinforces in her writing of the relationship between Rose and Niko. It is a story that feels so authentic to the day-to-day lives of families of children with special needs.
List Courtesy of Nandita Joshi
Feature image credit to Bianca “Blush” Atterberry, Beth Bryant, J. Mehr Kaur, Lauren Lukow, Joshua Otis Miller, Amy Miller & Jenna Rossman
Nandita Joshi
Nandita (like everyone here) loves films! Growing up, her parents would take her to the cinema every weekend and she would joke that it was her second home. She began her film love by watching Marvel and Bollywood films but…
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