2023 WINNERS
Congrats to our winners!

Animation
ANTS DON'T SPEAK BUT THEY WORK TOGETHER
7:02 min | [CC]
The film is an insight into the world of a boy who is a daydreamer. He is deaf and mute and has a
special relationship with nature. Boy realizes his admiration towards the unity among ants. He saves some of them from being crushed. The film talks about his relationship with the ants & ends on cumulative note.
Directed by Nikhil Sudhakar

Student
The Legacy: One Heart. One Team. One Goal.
1:04:08 | [CC]
The Legacy: One Heart. One Team. One Goal" is an uplifting film documentary created by the CSDR High School video production class and directed by David Figueroa. The film shows the incredible journey of a Deaf football team as they come together to overcome obstacles and pursue the state championship.
Directed by David Figueroa

Short
Fable Deaf
13:50 min | [CC]
It is an animated film produced by Egyptian children that tells about the Coronavirus crisis from their point of view and how it affected their lives.
Directed by Chrystene R. Ells

Feature
LaCrimosa
1:20:00 | [CC]
Based on true events, two Deaf friends aspire to become filmmakers in a world of silence.
Directed by Austin Chapman

Mature
Tarneit
20 min | [CC]
Inspired by stories of a distant place, best friends Tyrone and Clinton must fight to find a way out of Tarneit, a place surrounded by violence and tradition.
Directed by John Sheedy
2023 Program Book
WELCOME!
Thank you for joining us for the inaugural year of The Deaf Film Festival. The Zankza Project, of which The Deaf Film Festival is its first major hosted event, is a newly established 501(c)(3) organization that aims to support Deaf artists and creatives across all disciplines by creating opportunities to showcase their work, engage with the community and collaborate with other artists and creatives. We are excited about the personal and professional growth, networking opportunities, and collective creativity that will without a doubt invigorate the Austin community.

We look forward to welcoming you all to the beautiful R.L. Davis Auditorium on October 7th, 2023 at the Texas School for the Deaf for this year’s festival. We will be presenting over a dozen phenomenal films across 5 different film categories for your viewing pleasure. Additionally, we will be hosting an afterparty for attendees and Deaf creatives to mingle and network.
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Whether you’re a film industry professional, a cinephile, or an occasional movie lover who wants to support your community, you’re bound to have a blast at The Deaf Film Festival—all while supporting talented Deaf filmmakers and creatives.

Sincerely yours,
MJ Kiego
Founder & President of Zankza Project
Chair of the Deaf Film Festival
2023 SCHEDULE
9:30 am
Doors open at Texas School for the Deaf
10:00 am
Opening remarks
10:15 am
Animation Category
-
The Ears Robber 4:16 min
-
Quarantine 3:01 min
-
Ants Don't Speak But They Work Together 7:02 min
10:30 am
Break
10:35 am
Student Film Category
-
​ The Legacy: One Heart. One Team. One Goal. 1:04:08
11:45 am
Lunch Break - LOTZ of BBQ
1:30 pm
Short Film Category
-
Say Cheese 1:00 min
-
By Hand 10:59 min
-
Klarissa 6:52 min
-
Fable Deaf 13:50 min
-
The Witnesses 5:21 min
-
Scott 8:15 min
-
Pop 5:19 min
-
Tharcisse A.K.A. Drogba: The Deaf Shoemaker 6:03 min
-
The Participant 9:35 min
-
Imaginings 13:00 min
3:15 pm
Break
3:30 pm
Feature Film Category
-
​ LaCrimosa 1:20:00
5:00 pm
Dinner Break - Crepe Crazy
6:15 pm
Mature Film Category
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The Device That Turned Me Into a Cyborg Was Born the Same Year I Was 3:19 min
-
The Hunted 4:26 min
-
The Multi 18:16 min
-
They 5:00 min
-
Inspired 28:00 min
-
Reverie 5:00 min
-
19:24 10:55 min
-
Ladylike 11:29 min
-
You Are Noted 20:15 min
-
Tarneit 20:00 min
8:30 pm
Doors open at VUKA
9:00 pm
Awards Announcement
10:00 pm
21+ Only
11:30 pm
Last Call for Alcohol
12:00 am
Festival Afterparty Ends

HOW TO GET TO DFF
Texas School for the Deaf - Main Auditorium
1102 S Congress Ave, Austin, TX 78704

ALL FILMS

Animation
The Ears Robber
4:16 min | [CC]
In the early morning, the mayor wakes up and discovers with dread what is missing from him. His ears are gone! Soon enough, the whole town finds itself troubled by a mysterious entity that robs the ears from its inhabitants...
Directed by Arno Liou

Animation
Quarantine
3:01 min
It is an animated film produced by Egyptian children that tells about the Corona virus crisis from their point of view and how it affected their lives.
Directed by Marwa Ali

Animation
ANTS DON'T SPEAK BUT THEY WORK TOGETHER
7:02 min | [CC]
The film is an insight into the world of a boy who is a daydreamer. He is deaf and mute and has a
special relationship with nature. Boy realizes his admiration towards the unity among ants. He saves some of them from being crushed. The film talks about his relationship with the ants & ends on cumulative note.
Directed by Nikhil Sudhakar

Student
The Legacy: One Heart. One Team. One Goal.
1:04:08 | [CC]
The Legacy: One Heart. One Team. One Goal" is an uplifting film documentary created by the CSDR High School video production class and directed by David Figueroa. The film shows the incredible journey of a Deaf football team as they come together to overcome obstacles and pursue the state championship.
Directed by David Figueroa

Short
Say Cheese
1 min | [CC]
A hearing college student attempts to ask out his crush, a deaf classmate. Using his beginner ASL (American Sign Language), he tries to ask her to the movies but instead, he signs a visually similar sequence which translates to “cheese”. Using the universal love of the movies, the two work it out and end up on a date.
Directed by Anna McClanahan

Short
By Hand
10:59 min | [CC]
Oscar and his deaf younger sister Nia are sent down to a remote coastal town to visit their estranged fisherman father Mark. Over the space of an afternoon, the trio are ripped apart and brought back together again in this film surrounding deafness in a family dynamic.
Directed by Rhys Prichard

Short
Klarissa
6:52 min | [CC]
Klarissa working on the project to develop her artwork to explorer her identity influence into the ink drawing on paper by using traditional Japanese ink work. Through her interview to look back in her early life to discover her interest in art and how she identifies into her identity during the free pride festival in Glasgow. She builds up her artist career after her Fine art’s graduation as her dream to become artist philosophy and recognised Klarissa trademark of her ink brush draw style.
Directed by Ruaridh Lever-Hogg

Short
Fable Deaf
13:50 min | [CC]
It is an animated film produced by Egyptian children that tells about the Coronavirus crisis from their point of view and how it affected their lives.
Directed by Chrystene R. Ells

Short
The Witnesses
5:21 min | [CC]
A young Deaf woman and her friends teach two unexpected guests a very valuable lesson they won’t forget.
Directed by Garrett Zuercher, Jared Johnston

Short
SCOTT
8:15 min | [CC]
A portrait of Scott Campbell, a Deaf Photographer based in Glasgow, Scotland. In this short documentary film, Scott tells us about his journey in photography and what impact it has had on his life, as well as sharing with us some of his most treasured work.
Directed by Will Clark

Short
POP
5:19 min
From the creative minds of Kissfist Deaf, POP is a short film about a wise and traveling door-to-door peddler who sells a miracle to an unwitting hearing person. Is it a blessing or a curse? The film explores an alternate universe where instead of resistance to deafness, there is acceptance and willingness.
Directed by Megan Malzkuhn

Short
Tharcisse A.K.A Drogba: The Deaf Shoemaker
6:03 min | [CC]
Tharcisse was born deaf. After his parents died, he was adopted in a very poor family but after some time an organization that supports youths who live with a disability helped him and taught him how to make shoes. Now his life has changed as he can be able to make shoes, sell and earn some money to support himself and his adoptive mother. It has also boosted his morale.
Directed by Gilbert Sibomana

Short
The Participant
19:35 min | [CC]
In this strange drug clinical trial short powerhouse drama film where nothing is what it seems.
Directed by Kyle Emroe

Short
Imaginings
13 min | [CC]
It is an animated film produced by Egyptian children that tells about the Corona virus crisis from their point of view and how it affected their lives.
Directed by Anja Hiddinga

Feature
LaCrimosa
1:20:00 | [CC]
Based on true events, two Deaf friends aspire to become filmmakers in a world of silence.
Directed by Austin Chapman

Mature
The Device That Turned Me Into a Cyborg Was Born the Same Year I Was
3:19 min | [CC]
In The Device That Turned Me Into A Cyborg Was Born The Same Year I Was, Chella Man explores the nuances of life on a continuum between the Deaf and hearing world. The film oscillates between a daydream and a nightmare as Man steps into his autonomy as a Deaf adult. We witness the constraints of machinery and how immobilizing it can be to live and breathe as a cyborg.
Directed by Chella Man

Mature
The Hunted
4:26 min | [CC]
Against a backdrop of the harsh Australian bush during a post-apocalyptic future, a young, Deaf girl is led into an ambush by her mentor in this tale of trust and survival.
Directed by Dan Farmer, Adam Bigum, & Ramas McRae

Mature
The Multi
18:16 min | [CC]
An isolated Black Deaf woman has constructed a world of order to keep a childhood trauma buried deep in her psyche, then an unexpected turn of events forces her to confront her demons from the past who threaten to destroy everything she has built as she tries to keep control of her life before it’s too late.
Directed by Natasha Ofili & Storm Smith

Mature
They
5 min | [CC]
"They" is about Deaf people navigating and finding love with the assistance of artificial intelligence. Communication and identities/differences within the Deaf community are shown.
Directed by Sarah Margolis-Greenbaum, Aaron Margolis-Greenbaum
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Mature
INSPIRED
28 min
Raina, once the only Deaf and Disabled person in film school, reunites with her ex and former TA, Sebastian. On their date, it becomes clear the ways in which their college romance–and its sudden end–inspired the people they’ve become and the actions they take. Their love was never normal, it was special.
Directed by Darian Slattery

Mature
Reverie
5 min | [CC]
In 'Reverie,' Luke and Cody's love for each other is immense and beyond, but as things unfold, one of them must confront what was, is, and will be.
Directed by Chase Chambers, Justin Jackerson, Jules Dameron

Mature
19:24
10:55 min | [CC}
Justine is French, Karl is Danish. Both deaf, they have had a long
distance romantic relationship for two years and keep the connection using new technologies. “19:24” is a short film that presents a conversation and its history
over the notifications that appear on the screen of a smartphone. One evening, at 19:24, Karl sends a video message to say that he will not be joining Justine for the weekend and that he needs to think things over.
Directed by Audrey Sangla & Aurelien Mancino

Mature
Ladylike
11;29 min | [CC]
Aubrey brings her girlfriend, Kat, to an intimate family dinner. Upon their arrival, the girls are met with hostility from Aubrey’s aunt. Tensions worsen throughout the evening, eventually causing Aubrey to flee the home, leaving her family to reflect on their actions.
Directed by Natalie Ring

Mature
You Are Noted
20:15 min | [CC]
After a breakup with her boyfriend, Emma tries to start a new life. However, she receives a mysterious note in front of her apartment thus creating fear and terror. A dark thriller with terrible consequences.
Directed by Thorbjorn Krischke

Mature
Tarneit
20 min | [CC]
Inspired by stories of a distant place, best friends Tyrone and Clinton must fight to find a way out of Tarneit, a place surrounded by violence and tradition.
Directed by John Sheedy

AFTERPARTY AT VUKA

411 W Monroe St, Austin, TX 78704 | 8:30 PM to Midnight
Park anywhere on the TSD campus and walk to VUKA.
Entertainment by Sheena Lyles with Mistress of Ceremonies Sin Nombre.
There will be appetizers, desserts, and a cash bar.
Come try our themed cocktail: The Paparazzie!
8:30 pm
Social & Hors d'Oeuvres
9:00 pm
Film Awards
10:00 pm
21+ Only
10:30 pm
Entertainment
11:00 pm
Socialize/Wrap Up
11:30 pm
Last call for the cash bar
12:00 am
Closing
What to expect
OUR TEAM

MJ Kiego
Founder & Festival Director

Nick Kiego
Assistant Director

Finnegan Thurber
Marketing Director

Kerry Cooler
Volunteer Director

Deidra Pelletier
Afterparty Chairperson

Toj Mora
Programming Director
THE JUDGES

Nyle DiMarco
Nyle DiMarco, a New York Times best-selling author and oscar-nomimated, has conquered obstacles and won admirers since he made his entrance in 2014. In addition to his prosperous TV appearances, he is presently crafting and creating both scripted and unscripted shows, while also consulting on disability integration and genuine depiction. DiMarco is now embarking on his first directing project, a documentary.
DiMarco is currently producing and developing scripted and non-scripted programming; including sales and development with Spectrum, NBC, Universal, Netflix, Peacock and more.

Harold Foxx
Harold Eugene Catron Jr, better known by his stage name Harold Foxx, is a writer, filmmaker, comedian, and actor who happens to be Deaf. Originally from Memphis, Tennessee. Harold attended Gallaudet University in Washington, D.C. He resides in Los Angeles, California, and created “The Harold Foxx Show,” an online series of comedic video sketches currently available on various social media platforms.
​
Best known for his stand-up comedy, Harold has performed at iconic venues such as the Crow Comedy, the Laugh Factory and Flappers Comedy Club, as well as in major cities across the nation. Harold also recently performed in the Palm Springs International Virtual Comedy Festival 2020.
​
Harold was involved in numerous film, television, and stage productions including “The Actor Whisperer,” “For My Woman,” “Audism Unveiled,” Deaf West Theatre and Pasadena Playhouse “Our Town,” Playwrights Horizons’ “I Was Alive With You” (NYC Off-Broadway Production), National Theatre of the Deaf 2020 Online Playwrights Convening. He also wrote, produced, directed, and acted in “Smell the Nature” for 2021 Easterseals Disability Film Challenge.
​
Harold was selected for a competitive fellowship for the 2021 RespectAbility Lab for Entertainment Professionals with Disabilities. Currently, Harold is training with The Groundlings, an improvisation and sketch comedy theatre & school based in Los Angeles. Harold serves as Associate Producer on Orange Kite Productions’ feature documentary Being Michelle. Harold also serves as an Art Education Teaching Artist for Deaf West Theatre and was Post Production intern for a comedy and romantic feature film Something from Tiffany’s by Amazon Studios.

Sandra Mae Frank
Sandra Mae Frank (she/her) is an actor, director, and producer. She is known for her work in theatre productions, television, and film. She recently appeared in NBC's "New Amsterdam" as Dr. Elizabeth Wilder for the final two seasons. Her theatre credits include Deaf West's "Spring Awakening" on Broadway, Deaf Austin Theatre's "Next to Normal" (partnered with Ground Floor Theatre) and "Cinderella" (partnered with Zach Theatre), and Lyric Theatre's "Fun Home" and "Fiddler on the Roof." Her TV credits include NBC's "Zoey's Extraordinary Playlist" and Netflix's "Daybreak." Her film credits include Tello Films' "Season of Love" and "Entangled." On top of her acting career, she is also the Production Manager of Deaf Austin Theatre and embarking on a directing career, including Halen Hayes Award 2023's Outstanding Director for Olney Theatre's Music Man, co-directing with Michael Baron.
Also, catch her upcoming feature film with Joel Kinnaman, coming soon, called "The Silent Hour."
Follow her on Instagram (@sandramaefrank)

Toj Mora
Toj is a filmmaker, producer, and editor with over a decade of experience. His recent post-production and editing work includes Netflix’s DEAF U (2020), and an upcoming Marvel series, ECHO (Disney+). He is currently working on a new Starz series starring and executive produced by Lauren Ridloff.
​
As a producer and filmmaker Toj’s work includes commercial productions like BEYOND INCLUSION (2016) and indie films such as HAMBURGER AIRPLANE (2020). Recently, Toj was the Director of Photography for a docu-series on deaf music artists, where he led a crew of five deaf cinematographers through two full days of filming. He is also slated to edit the series.
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Toj enjoys films with dark comedy and great villains.

Lauren Ridloff
Lauren began her meteoric rise as an actor just five years ago. Prior to that, she won the title of Miss Deaf America and was a kindergarten teacher in Manhattan for a decade. After leaving that job to take care of her two young children, she was hired in 2016 to tutor director Kenny Leon in American Sign Language as he readied the Broadway revival of Children of A Lesser God. After working together for months, Kenny and the producers concluded that Lauren was the ideal and only choice for the lead. She pulled it off with resounding success, including multiple rave reviews from the New York Times and a Tony nomination. She soon became a series regular on the longrunning AMC series, The Walking Dead. She then became the first Deaf superhero opposite Angelina Jolie and Kumail Nanjani in Marvel's worldwide hit, Eternals. Next, she’s set to executive produce and star opposite Joshua Jackson in an untitled series for Starz. Lauren received a 2020 BAFTA Breakthrough award recognizing the most promising stars of film and television.

OUR GRATITUDE
Thank you to the City of Austin for awarding the Elevate grant to the Deaf Film Festival!
SPECIAL THANKS TO
OUR SPONSORS
Without our sponsors, the Deaf Film Festival would not have been possible.
Producer

H-E-B

Serverdev
Co-Producer

Dovetail Communication Group

Dozanu Innovations

Inka's Screen Printing

Lensrentals

Texas School for the Deaf

What's the Sign?
Associate Producer

Writerduet
WE HOPE YOU ENJOY THE SHOW
Thank you for being part of the first annual Deaf Film Festival! We are so grateful to our sponsors, the creatives who submitted their incredible films, our judges, and everyone who helped us work toward the success of this event.