2022 Voices Heard Films: Lizard Boy

Lizard Boy by Shun Powell Jr
Milwaukee, WI (Milwaukee Premiere)

Running Time: 20 minutes
Screening Time: Saturday, Sept 10 at 4PM
Horror/ Sci-Fi

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Senior year of high school takes an unexpected turn when friendship is sacrificed because of jealousy. A group of friends visit a home that has blood in its history but the chance to live forever keeps them coming.

Director Bio:

Shun Powell is a production house owner located in Milwaukee, WI. Shun created Pixel Visionaries to create unique content in the horror/sci fi genre here in the city. He has been doing special effects makeup since his freshman year of high school and Shun has also been a professional photographer for the last 4 years with a focus on portraits.

2022 Voices Heard Films: Bodies #1: Milwaukee Waters

Bodies #1: Milwaukee Waters by Michelle Trujillo

Milwaukee, WI (Milwaukee Premiere)

Running Time: 5 minutes
Screening Time: Saturday, Sept 10 at 4PM
Experimental

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Bodies is a series shot on 16mm film that explores the magic and life of public bodies of water.

Director Bio:

Michelle Trujillo was born in Miami to Colombian and Costa Rican Parents and grew up in South Florida. She received her BA in Multimedia Studies from Florida Atlantic University and her MFA in Film from the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee. She is currently working and living in Milwaukee, WI where she is an Associate Lecturer for the program of Film, Video, Animation and New Genres at the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee.

The focus of her practice is to question and explore representations of Latinx culture, gender and identity creation. Her work stems from an intersectional feminist perspective but does not always offer solutions to the problems it engages with. Instead, she is concerned with upsetting power structures and notions of normality through disorientation. She works in Spanish, English and Spanglish as a mirroring of her lived experience. She also works in various mediums such as eco and hand-processed 16mm film, digital video, 35mm still film and cyanotypes

2022 Voices Heard Films: Hermanita

Hermanita by Hisonni Mustafa
Milwaukee, WI (Milwaukee Premiere)

Running Time: 13 minutes
Screening Time: Saturday, Sept 10 at 4PM
Drama

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After recently being released from prison, Daniella learns that her little sister has been abused at the hands of her stepfather and has to decide if her duty to protect her sister is more important than freedom.

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Director Bio:

Hisonni Mustafa is a Guyanese American filmmaker from the most segregated city in America, Milwaukee, WI. Hisonni creates films that depict the protagonist's perilous journey toward being loved, financially secure, and discovering their significance in this world. Consequently, Hisonni has been selected as a featured filmmaker in Oscar Winner John Ridley’s, Filmmakers With No Boundaries showcase, won Best Director at the American Black Film Festival, the HBO feature film competition at MVAAFF, and became a semi-finalist for Gemstones Rising Storyteller Search.

Since 2013 Hisonni has written, directed, shot, edited, produced, and crowdsourced a dozen award-winning projects. Hisonni's feature films and shorts earned awards from over 100 festivals, including Cinequest, Hollyshorts, and Urbanworld. Hisonni's shorts/web series have gained over six million views online and award nominations from LA Webfest, The VH1 Streamy Awards, Marseille Webfest, The IAWTV awards, and Marvel's Stan Lee. In 2020, Hisonni's independently produced film Take Out Girl has received awards from The Bentonville Film Festival, Dances With Films, Ashland Independent, Cinequest, and Indie Memphis.

Director Statement

This film is for my little sister, who I love with all my heart. - Hisonni Mustafa

A message from Lizette Hunter, EP

Hello!

I'm Lizette Hunter, an actress, and filmmaker. I'm proud to present a project I've written, produced, and am the lead actress in, entitled Hermanita or Little Sister. Our film is based on a true story about a damaged family, their secrets, and the unwavering loyalty sisters have for one another.

The thought of people seeing this film and taking something away from it makes the early call times and late rehearsals worthwhile. As a full-time working mother of two, being away from them for any amount of time is difficult, but being able to show my children that there is no expiration date on following your dreams is invaluable. I hope you enjoy our film.

2022 Voices Heard Films: Sisters

Sisters by Allie Morgan

Middleton, WI (Milwaukee Premiere)

Running Time: 5 minutes
Screening Time: Saturday, Sept 10 at 4PM
Drama/LGBTQ

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A story of two sisters coming to terms with their sexuality in different ways and their coming out journey together.

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Director Bio:

I'm a 28 year old black lesbian writer and director from the Midwest. My ultimate goal is to make television shows and films that represent women of color and the LGBTQ+ community.

2022 Films: Greed

Greed by Amber Danger Johnson

St. Paul, MN (Milwaukee Premiere)

Running Time: 4 minutes
Screening Time: Saturday, Sept 10
Experimental/ Horror/ Comedy

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A revolutionary message for women everywhere to break the binds of their patriarchal overlords, dispel the myth of greed and take what is rightfully theirs.

Men take heed, a reckoning is coming.

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Director Bio:

Amber Danger Johnson was born in the wilds of Minnesota where she learned the survival skill of telling a very good story.

She honed her craft of storytelling through film at a small film program in Moorhead, MN where she had the freedom to experiment and run wild with both film and video technology.

Through the years she has made a living creating corporate video content for a number of Fortune 500 companies around Minnesota while sharpening her skills as a filmmaker on her own projects.

Her last short film, Lady Lillian, has screened at over 30 festivals all over the world; winning 7 awards for Best of Show and Best Comedy Short Film.

She is excited to bring her latest work, GREED, to screens all over the world.

Director Statement

GREED was initially conceived for the Twin Cities Horror Fest's Seven Deadly Sins Fundraiser. Seven contributing artists were assigned one of the 7 deadly sins. When Amber began working with the idea of greed, she turned inward and looked at how greed has shown up in her life. Realizing it was often an accusation used to "keep her in her place" she began to research and think about how the concept of greed has been used to hold women back, keep them repressed and away from their power.

So, she thought, "What if?".
What if women actually were greedy, what if they took everything they wanted and did what they pleased. It would be beautiful delicious chaos and the leader of this revolution would be the greatest villain that ever lived.

With nods to Dionysus, The Wyoming Incident, Grimm's fairytales, industrialized beef processing and the African goddess Oya, GREED creates a true horror story for every man who has benefited from the injustice of women's inequality.

2022 Voices Heard Films: Atardecer Milwaquiano

Atardecer Milwaquiano by Alex Gambacorta
Milwaukee, WI (Milwaukee Premiere)

Running Time: 4 minutes
Screening Time: Saturday, Sept 10 at 4PM
Animation/Documentary

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A love letter to Milwaukee that highlights the hidden stories that live in our memories.

Director Bio:

Alex is a student, filmmaker, poet, and artist, born in Milwaukee, WI. She grew up outside of Chicago and attended Marquette University where she earned a B.A. in Writing Intensive English and Social Welfare and Justice. Upon graduation, Alex moved to Montana and has recently moved back to Milwaukee and Marquette to pursue a M.A. in English. 

2022 Voices Heard Films: Battle Fantasy X Chow Chow

Battle Fantasy X Chow Chow by Ricardo Tenorio

Milwaukee, WI (Milwaukee Premiere)

Running Time: 10 minutes
Screening Time: Saturday, Sept 10 at 4PM
Animation

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A young boy finds his village destroyed when a golden machete falls from the sky to him. Is this destiny calling? He must use this new weapon to challenge the one responsible. Who will win?

Director Bio:

Ricardo Tenorio is a visionary award-winning filmmaker. His filmography includes the theatrical 2017 feature film, Ashface as well as many short films. His brand label, Animation Overload Studios, is not only limited to just film. Graphic design, Visual art, scriptwriting, and other skills let him tell his many stories in any art form. A Hispanic jack of all trades!