MetroShorts

The sixth edition of our popular program of films from the vibrant, creative community of filmmakers in DC and the immediate Metro area.

Members of all filmmaking teams from all the films are expected in person: Shawn Patrick Tilling, Kamilah Thurmon, Chelsie Pennello, Ramsey Telhami, The Black Fire Documentary team, and other guests.

Total running time: 93 minutes

"Meet Cute"

Shawn Patrick Tilling
Canada, 2022, 3 minutes, animation
For two people waiting for the bus, it is a fateful day. Shawn Patrick Tilling draws on the silent movies of the 1920s as his influence for this charming wordless courtship.

The Legacy of Lee's Flower Shop

Kamilah Thurmon
USA, 2022, 23 minutes, documentary
Started in the U Street corridor in the Jim Crow era, Lee's Flower and Card Shop is the oldest continuously family-owned flower business in Washington, D.C. This loving portrait of family and community is a lens through which to observe the history of Black-owned business in the nation's capital.

Mandarins

Chelsie Pennello
USA, 2022, 14 minutes, narrative
The black sheep of the family attempts to eulogize her mother with a dark story about pigeons.

Would You Still Love Me?

Ramsey Telhami
USA, 2022, 4 minutes, narrative
A romantic picnic takes a highly unexpected turn.

Black Fire: Radio, Rhythms, and Revolution

Kia Freeman-Hicks and Patrick Mamou
USA, 2022, 27 minutes, documentary
In 1975, Jimmy Gray and J. Plunky Branch founded Black Fire Records to produce culturally relevant jazz and progressive music for the Washington, D.C. community. Their ground-breaking creativity in the studio is a testament to how music and activism of that era came together to revolutionize the music business.

A Chocolate Lens

Gabriel Veras
USA, 2022, 21 minutes, documentary
How do you take a picture and tell a whole story? This short film chronicles Steven Cummings' photographic journey through a disappearing Black Washington. The resulting images are a love letter to Black people across America.