Congrats to Our 2025 Feature Contest Quarterfinalists!

We’re excited to announce our 2025 Feature Contest quarterfinalists! This year’s submissions showed tremendous talent. It was a pleasure to read everyone’s work.

Many thanks to our dedicated judges, who spent hours reading and evaluating our submissions.

WHAT’S NEXT

Quarterfinalists will be offered any open spots to this year’s retreat after the semifinalists, finalists, and winners are invited to attend. Attendees receive three 90-minute one-on-one sessions with CineStory mentors and participate in mentor-led panel discussions and group writing exercises on topics ranging from finding representation  to pitching like a pro. Click here for more information about the feature retreat.

Congratulations to this year’s feature quarterfinalists, and please check back in August, when we’ll announce our semifinalists!

THE 2025 FEATURE RETREAT & FELLOWSHIP QUARTERFINALISTS

(listed alphabetically by title)

24 HOURS FROM TULSA by Louisa Rorschach

ALEC LEACH AND THE LANKY BRUNETTE by Lucy Johnson

AMEN & AMEEN by Susan Polk

ANTON SUCKS by Gabriel Ozaki

THE APPLEGATE ESTATE by Price Garrison & Jason Cohen

THE ART OF DECEPTION by Emma Needell

ARTEMIS ONE by Nic Cohen

ARTICLES OF WAR by Criss Gidas

THE AUDITION by Eric Carlson

AUTUMN GOLD by Winnie Soldi

AXE by Mac Kammerer

BARRY’S BODY by Kasi Brown & Brandon Walter

THE BEAST OF AMERICA by Julia Jones

BERT AND THE CASE OF THE MISSING POPS by Kathleen Snider

THE BLACKOUT by Saya Date

BOULEVARD OF BOLD DREAMS by LaDarrion Williams

BOYSBOYSBOYS by Dalton Causey

CALM by Joel Michalak

CAMP S.L.A.Y. by Joel Michalak & Andrea M. Jensen

CAR CRASH GIRL by Taylor Wells

CAROLINE by Aaron Edwards

THE CATERPILLAR AND THE BUTTERFLY by Eliyannah Amirah Yisrael

COLLAPSED by Vincent Bain

THE COMEBACK by Jolan Bastien

COYOTE by Clark Childers

THE CRUDE by Zach Green

THE CULT OF US by Jim Picariello

DANCE MASTERS by Tania James

DEMONS by Shiva Ramanathan

THE DEVIL, A REBEL, A FOOL by Clay Fusco

DINKUM by Nicole Ma

DOGCATCHERS by Darren Moran

DON’T CALL IT SCRUNCHY by Charles Haine

ECHOES OF A GATHERING by Regina Junior

EMA by Kathryn Prescott

ESCAPE FROM APE CANYON by Jarrod Tallman

EVERYTHING IS FINE by Sean Cabiling

FAIR GAME by Jacob Marx Rice

FAULTLINES by Cynthia Damon

FEHU by Thomas Ronca

FELT by Ran Jing

FINDING NANTUCKET by Carter Stewart

THE FIREDOGS by Lit Kilpatrick

THE FOURTH PSALM by John Martins III

FROM RUSSIA WITH METAL by Kevin Caruso

GOAT by Julia Lederer

GOWER GULCH by Morgan Sloane

GREEN RIVER by John Dummer

HALIFAX by Noah Miller

HARVEST by Greg Beam & Kim McKean

HATCHED by Tracey Nelson

HIATUS by Elizabeth Logan

I NEED YOUR KIDNEY, BRO by Drew McInturff

IN THEORY by Matthew Sprosty

THE ITALIAN LOVER by Suzanne Griffin

JAANEM (MY LOVE) by Alana Saab

JANE by Kathryn Prescott

JOLLY by Despina Moraitou

JUST SAY YES by Christine Hoang

KICK by Karlyn Gibson

KISS ME LIKE THAT by J. Florence Jones

THE LADDER by Faisal Qureshi

LIFE OR SETH by Zoey Sidwell

LONGEVITY by Alister Austin

MADRID AFFAIR by Jeffrey van Davis

MELPOMENE by Jacob Norremark

MERRILY EVER AFTER by Kathleen Kreiser

METHOD by Matthew Foss & Cora Vander Broek

MILKMAID/SOLDIER by Talena Sanders

MOON SHOCK by Ryan Skinner

MOOSE JAW by Melissa Puente & Ryan Sonderegger

MORTIS by Kristen Kiesling

THE MOVING SEA by Satch Watanabe

MRS. TECHNICOLOR by Liz Dory

THE NATIONAL GEOGRAPHIC FIELD GUIDE TO LESBIANS OF NORTH AMERICA (1953 EDITION) by James Wright

NGUYEN OR LOSE by Kathy Li

THE NINTH CONSPIRATOR by Joe Tremba

NOBODIES by Joel Ballanger

OATH by Paul Frank

OFF THE BEATEN PATH by Lisa Romagnoli

OPERATION MOM by Reenita Hora

THE OTHER SIDE OF 25 by Becca Hurd

PAMPLONA by Alison Wroblewski

THE PIRATES OF CHEMO by Paul Schutte

POEMS OF YORE by Quanah Hicks

POSTPONED by Maren Hill

POTTER’S FIELD by Lincoln Reed

PROMISE/NEW YORK by Patrick Kirkland

RANGER DANGER by Hayley Nash

RAT BASTARDS by Keri Lee

RAVE TIL DAWN by Angela Matemotja

RED RAIN by Amanda Kowalski

RED TIGER by Edward Pereira

RESIDUE by Matilda Szydagis

RUN RENEGADE by Mary Ann Rotondi

SANDY GRAY by Teddy Cecil

SCARCE by Mrittika Sarin

SEPTEMBER GURLS by Karen McDermott

SHACKLETON by Pauline McAlonan

SHORE BREAK by Keith Strausbaugh

SLAY by Elise Gammon

SPEAK NOW by Michelle Somruthai D’Angelo

SPIRIT LINES by Cephra Stuart

THE SPORTSWRITER by Ray Gettman Bush

STARS AT NOON: THE JACKIE COCHRAN STORY by Krista Gallagher

STEEL SHUTTERS by Ray Shea

THE SUNSHINE by Jeremy Merrifield

SWIPE IT by Kenneth Fu

THEATER KIDS by Kris Horowitz

THINGS THAT REMAIN by Suleyman Anadol

THIS END UP by Mike Ackerman

THREE DAYS IN NIGHTCREEK by Danielle Tjoelker

TOPHER & NATE & THE INVADERS FROM MARS by Ryan Dooley

U.S. INC. by Joel Michalak

THE UNEXPECTED BBLISS OF STRANGERS by Johanna Salloum

THE USER ILLUSION by Olga Yakimenko

THE VALLEY OF HINNOM by Jacob Marx Rice

VANISHED by Rachel Hroncich

WALK WITH ME INTO WATER by Sophia Khan

WARP SPEED by Reenita Hora

WEIGHT OF ANOTHER by Frank Donnangelo

WENDYBOT by Kasi Brown & Brandon Walter

WHICH WAY TO LOVE by Rebekah Reaves

WILDFIRE by Victor Neumark

YOU CAN’T TAKE IT WITH YOU by Jocelyn Jacobs

ZANDER THE GREAT by Allison Orr Block