18th Science Fiction + Fantasy Short Film Festival

Science Fiction + Fantasy Short Film Festival

June 3 - 4, 2023

The Museum of Pop Culture (MoPOP) in partnership with SIFF presents the 18th annual Science Fiction + Fantasy Short Film Festival (SFFSFF).

Tickets: $22 ($20 SIFF and MoPOP Members)

Ticket includes both short film sessions.

Youth Track Streaming: Want to check out the best and brightest of tomorrow's Sci-Fi and Fantasy filmmakers? Secure your ticket to SFFSFF's Youth Track virtual streaming package, featuring 9 of the trippiest youth-made films out there. Selected by MoPOP's Youth Advisory Board, you can check out these films exclusively online for one week only!

CONTENT NOTE
Some films in this year's festival contain violent and sexual themes that may not be suitable for all audiences. Viewer discretion is advised.

It started with film makers: artists from around the world with stories to tell. Artists you’ve never heard of. Artists you should hear of. They took from their surroundings what was needed and made of it something more. MoPOP and SIFF channeled their work to the screen, and now you get to see it.

SFFSFF is a one-of-a-kind festival celebrating out-of-this-world cinema and the daring filmmakers that make it possible. Now in its 18th year, SFFSFF brings the work of short film creators from around the globe to Seattle for one night only. We’re talking world premieres. We’re talking soon-to-be cult movies that aren’t streaming anywhere. We’re talking the origin story for the cutting edge of short film cinema, the stellar nursery for next year’s SciFi and Fantasy storytelling superstars.

It started in the hearts and minds of a global family of filmmakers. It comes to life this June 3 at SIFF Cinema Egyptian. All it needs is you.

SESSION ONE

Ham

The year is 1961 and Ham the chimpanzee has been chosen to represent earth as the first ape in space, but a malfunction aboard his ship threatens his return home.

Rift

An unhappy married man who still believes in true love finds himself in a dilemma when meets a woman in a virtual dating app called RIFT.

Filter

Xiaomei is a heavy user of the Beauty Cam/filter and cannot extricate herself from the world dressed by the Beauty Cam/filter. However, the unexpected visit of her mother forces her to face reality. But what is the reality? Who are we without the filter? What is our real appearance? The anxiety and confusion of contemporary young people fermented in the digital space. Will it quietly reform who we are in real life?

Sally’s Lullaby

Mom and Dad team up with their daughter Sally to get rid of a monster in her closet.

Glass Doll

The Glass Doll is a post-apocalyptic film about a broken porcelain doll who repairs other broken toys, but must decide between giving up her closest friend and fixing herself.

Golem

In Golem, an actress - Cristina - is desperate. Her co-star is away and she has to perform for a very important agent in a matter of hours. Using her skills as an acting coach, Cristina resorts to the only available tool: her assistant, a clumsy and “unimaginative" robot named Golem.

Morning is Broken

Izzy is depressed. After a breakup that shattered both her friendgroup and her Dungeons & Dragons party, her heroic alter ego "Morwenna Morningsong" is frozen in a game that may never end. She needs bravery, imagination, and a little help to reconnect with a true friend and her true self

Sentence

Only a few tenacious human writers (Brian, Edward, and Alice) remain in the realm of creation While beautiful sentences created by Athena (A.I. writer) bombard human writers every minute. Now, human writers must decide whether to survive as writers until death or leave the realm of creation to live as human beings.

Backroom Blues

Three pre-teen friends come up with the ultimate 90's heist; to infiltrate the mythical "backroom" of their neighbourhood video store!

My Kid from Hell

An upbeat, conservative mom and her (actual) DEMON daughter work through their differences to live together under one roof.

SESSION TWO

Table 8

An anxiety-ridden man meets his friend for dinner in a shadowy restaurant to share a dark suspicion. At first, his friend doesn't believe him, tries to convince the man there's nothing going on. But the further they get into their midnight conversation, the more they both begin to fear: something about this evening isn't quite right...

Boo Hag or Shadow Man

When a career conjure woman brings home an evil spirit, she and her roommate must divide banishment duties with no time to consult the chore wheel.

Betty and Barney

A couple undergoes hypnosis to recall a horrific alien abduction.

A Bloody Graveyard Story

The three teenagers Tom, Leila and Petey have an unexpected encounter when they sneak into a cemetery at night to summon an exceptionally terrible ghost.

The Jellyfish Man

Spencer’s neighbor refuses to turn off his music, but it’s unclear who is disturbing the peace.

Dance of the Golden Monkey

A man on his existential quest for the meaning of life gets literally slapped in the face by a monkey-man who steals his favourite jar of marmalade and chases him through an absurdist world where he learns to live in the moment.

Tanjiro – Xavier Goodman

Xavier, on a mission to save Lareta, encounters armed resistance. An action packed film that is the first installment of a coming trilogy.

Vibrator Girl

An isolated young woman uses her vibrator compulsively — until it starts deforming her body in disturbing ways. To regain control and change the way she masturbates, she goes on a journey through a lurid underground of corporate neurologists and orgasm gurus, none of whom seem to have her best interests in mind. Ultimately, there’s little she can do to withstand her vibrator’s eerie influence.

Secret Santa

Robin is Santa's biggest fan. It's Christmas Eve and Robin has hatched a plan to stow away in Santa's sleigh and hitch a ride to the North Pole. Won't Santa be surprised! But it's Robin who’ll be getting the surprise. Robin is about to find out that you should never meet your heroes.

Blonsh

When a teenage boy embarks on a mission to find a condom at his girlfriend’s house, he must face his fears, and an intergalactic alien, for a shot at losing his virginity.