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UCLAxFilmFest

Lobby and grand staircase of the Los Angeles Theatre
10th Annual UCLAxFilmFest ~ May 3 - 9

Join us as we celebrates the talent & ingenuity of UCLA Extension's student and alumni filmmakers. Industry panels and networking events will be held throughout the week at UCLA Downtown (and virtually), culminating in a screening, awards ceremony, and party at the historic Los Angeles Theatre.

RSVP for UCLAxFilmFest 2026!

You must RSVP to each event separately. Additional events will be announced soon! 

Announcing the UCLAxFilmFest 2026 Official Selections!

UCLAxFilmFest 2026 Official Selections!

 

Baggage
Directed by Tim Hendrix*
Written by Mae Catt, Dom Fera & Tim Hendrix*
Produced by Malcom Duncan & Zoe Rosenberg

Debbie Walks Her Duck
Written & Directed by Nikki Braendlin*
Produced by Melissa Balint
Cinematography by Paloma Ronquillo

Dreamer
Written & Directed by Juan Javier "Javo" Aguirre*
Produced by Vince Garcia
Cinematography by Paul Black

Fender
Written, Directed & Produced by
Jy Prishkulnik & Sophie Anne Miller
Cinematography by Amber Buchanan
Film Scoring by Lauryn Vania Kurniawan

Mean Goals
Written & Directed by Ahuatl Amaro*
Produced by Barbara Lettieri & Fanfan Zhou
Co-Produced by Brian Bonilla, Guillermo Douglass-Jaimes & David Douglass-Jaimes
Cinematography by Aakash Raj
Music by Sean Segal

Mi-Mi Shu-Shu
Written by Marissa Lichwick*
Directed by Andrew Littlefield

My Only Friend is a Robot Named Beans
Written & Directed by Anika Kan Grevstad*
Produced by Chris Bauer, Corrina Leatherwood, & Skye Mahaffie

Take Care
Written & Directed by Brittany Ashley*
Produced by Brittany Ashley* & Henry Loevner
Cinematography by Matt Miller
Music by Tancred

When Memory Turns Into Sound
Written, Directed & Produced by Lemia Bodden*
Cinematography by Jason Joseffer
Executive Produced by Brandy Troxler and Yolonda Bodden 
Composed by David Dart and Geoff Yenson

 

Budget Paradise
Written & Directed by Latajh Simmons-Weaver
Produced by Caitlyn Durkin, Sean Gillane 
& Chris Walters*

Deliberate
Written & Directed by Marta Roncada*
Produced by William French, Raphael Gindre & Marta Roncada*
Cinematography by Dan Finlayson
Music Composition by Taylor Page

Escape Artist
Written by Bo Price*
Directed by Sergine Dumais*
Cinematography by Jean Kavanagh

I Don't Care
Directed by Jay Guffey
Written by Mike Nielsen*
Produced by Brian J. Leitten*
Cinematography by Phillip Jackson

Memoria Obscura
Written, Directed & Produced by Efe Tuncay*

Millstone
Written & Directed by Peter Hoffman Kimball*
Produced by Alan Cameron & Peter Hoffman Kimball*
Cinematography by Lidia Marukyan 
Music Composition by Paul Weichselbaum

Sound and Vision
Written & Directed by Pedro de A. Silveira*
Produced by Sam Chi-Yen Yu
Cinematography by Oliver Hales
Music Composition by Tozoco

Veidar
Directed by Johannes Hülsemann*
Produced by Johannes Hülsemann* & Frederic Eynck
Written by Johannes Hülsemann* & Kim Langbein
Cinematography by Simon Jakeman
Composing by Christoph Jordan

A Look Back at UCLAxFilmFest 2025

UCLAxFilmFest 2025 was a roaring success with three days of unforgettable events, an inspiring panel, a world-wide virtual screening and over 2,000 RSVPs. All of the films were outstanding and memorable! Thank you to all of you who attended and voted for the Audience Choice Award.

Congratulations UCLAxFilmFest 2025 Winners

Obsession - FilmFestival - 2025

Best Film

Obsession
Written and Directed by Devon Kane*
Produced by Michael Goi, Devon Kane* and Madelaine Melcher
Cinematography by Ariana Hoshino

Best Director Soo Jin - FilmFestival - 2025

Best Director

Soo Jin Jeong* for Min
 

Cat. Film Festival 2025

Best Unique & Artistic Film

cat.

Written and Directed by Jessica Redish*
Produced by Alpha Faye, Terry Hardacre and Jessica Redish*

Above the Desert - FilmFestival - 2025

Entertainment Studies Award

Above the Desert with No Name


Directed by Sonia Sebastian*
Written by Heather Older
Produced by Maarten Cornelis, Heather Older and Sonia Sebastian*
Cinematography by Tamara Santos* and Erick Turcios
 

Serene - FilmFestival - 2025

Audience Choice Award

The Serene Place


Directed by Shriya Rana*
Written by Shreyas Ayaluri*
Produced by Rui Dong and Shriya Rana*
Original Score by Miquel Pardo

 

* UCLA Extension Student or Alumni

Congratulations to UCLAxFilmFest 2025 Winners!

Best Film

Obsession
Written and Directed by Devon Kane*
Best Director

Soo Jin Jeong* for Min
Best Unique & Artistic Film

cat.

Written, Directed & Produced by Jessica Redish*
Entertainment Studies Award

Above the Desert with No Name


Directed & Produced by Sonia Sebastian*
Audience Choice Award

The Serene Place


Directed & Produced by Shriya Rana*
Written by Shreyas Ayaluri*

Above the Desert with No Name
Directed by Sonia Sebastian*
Written by Heather Older
Produced by Maarten Cornelis, Heather Older and Sonia Sebastian*
Cinematography by Tamara Santos* and Erick Turcios

Amorous
Written & Directed by Tanya Jade*
Produced by Joel Crane and Tanya Jade*
Cinematography by Joel Crane

Arrowhead
Written & Directed by Reinhard J Cate*
Produced by Austin Simmons
Cinematography by Nate McLean
Original Score by Alexander Arntzen

Buckets
Written and Directed by Dan Lubetkin*
Produced by Jenica Bergere and Dan Lubetkin*
Cinematography by Grant Smith

Cat.
Written and Directed by Jessica Redish*
Produced by Alpha Faye, Terry Hardacre and Jessica Redish*

Clarity
Written and Directed by Joseph Oliver Hooten*
Produced by Don Ohmer and Kyle Smithers
Cinematography by Adriana Serrato
Original Score by Daniele Truocchio

Delphinium
Written and Directed by Melissa Puente* and Patience Ray
Produced by Patience Ray

Echoes in the Dark
Written and Directed by Connie Jo Sechrist*
Produced by Kristen Brancaccio and Connie Jo Sechrist*
Cinematography by Darren Joe
Composition by Matthew James

The Experiment
Directed and Produced by Maxim Akbarov
Written by Timur Akbarov*

Fighter
Written, Directed and Produced by David Higinio*
Cinematography by Gilberto Alves
Original Score by Sebastian Felipe Celis

In Plane Sight
Directed by Ben Gutteridge*
Written by Dave Beazley and Ben Gutteridge*
Produced by Paul Thomas
Cinematography by Matthew Emvin Taylor
Original Score by Ben Barber*

Johnny Malibu
Directed by William Mazzola*
Written by Carol Saraiva*
Produced by Maju Cancella and Bia Gallo

Marriage Interview
Written, Directed and Produced by Shirley Yip*
Cinematography by Caleb Tou
Original Score by Lydia Ainsworth

Match Dot Mom
Written and Directed by Tara Parian*
Produced by Stacey Haid and Eve Symington
Cinematography by Rachel Bickert
Original Score by Freya Berkhout

Min
Written and Directed by Soo Jin Jeong*
Produced by Suah Shim ad Thomas Percy Kim
Cinematography by Youngcheul Kim (K.S.C.)
Original Score by Tae Gyun Kim

Obsession
Written and Directed by Devon Kane*
Produced by Michael Goi, Devon Kane* and Madelaine Melcher
Cinematography by Ariana Hoshino


Physical Therapy
Written and Directed by Ahuatl Amaro*
Produced by Brian Bonilla and Jason Genao
Cinematography by Daniel Miramontes
Music by Sean Segal

Sema and Kara
Written and Directed by Lal Okyar*
Produced by Zeynep Çalka
Animated by Arda Şahinbaş, Bengisu Cengiz, Deniz Karadağ and Zeynep Çalka

The Serene Place
Directed by Shriya Rana*
Written by Shreyas Ayaluri*
Produced by Rui Dong and Shriya Rana*
Original Score by Miquel Pardo

Sexy Grandma
Written, Directed and Produced by Jonathan Wolfe*
Cinematography by Dimitri Luedemann*

The Velvet Kiss
Written and Directed by Michael David Yudcovitch*
Produced by Melissa Jay and Michael David Yudcovitch*
Cinematography by Senda Bonnet
Music Composition by Lorne Yudcovitch

marquee and signage of the Los Angeles Theatre featuring uclax filmfest

UCLA's Connection with DTLA

UCLAxFilmFest 2024 was held at the historic Los Angeles Theatre in Downtown Los Angeles. UCLA Extension is no stranger to downtown – in fact, that’s where it all started more than 100 years ago.
And with UCLA’s recent acquisition of the iconic Trust Building, the continuing education arm of the institution plans to return to its roots to better serve those at the heart of the city.

Read More

sponsor logos for 2023 UCLAxFilmFest

Presented by Entertainment Studies, UCLAxFilmFest celebrates our talented filmmakers and showcases their exceptional films in conjunction with industry panels and networking opportunities.