Films / Programs

First Look Student Film Section

In 2006, the Denver Post called First Look "arguably the best niche festival in Denver” for its efforts to introduce Rocky Mountain audiences to the great filmmakers of the future by showcasing their early works. We are proud to announce that First Look is now part of the Starz Denver Film Festival.

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  American / Sandinista

  USA , 2007 , 30 min. As Nicaragua descended into civil war in the 1980s, the American government backed the Contras in an effort to destabilize the government. This fascinating documentary follows three American engineers whose grassroots activism changed global politics. ... more
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  Bean

  USA , 2008 , 20 min. At fifteen, Bean has had a hard time saying goodbye to her surrogate father. So when her mother takes up with a good-for-nothing, Bean takes action.... more
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  By the Numbers

  USA , 2008 , 8 min. Claude is obsessed with numbers—and with finding love in all the wrong places. Driven to desperation, he places his fate in the hands of the New York telephone network.... more
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  Carpet Kingdom

  USA , 2007 , 17 min. A legacy of carpet is all that is left when the family patriarch passes away. This clever comedy reflects upon the nature of responsibility and what lies in the great beyond. ... more
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  Celine's Downward Spiral

  Singapore , 2008 , 14 min. In this unsettling documentary, Celine discusses with candor her lifetime battle against serious depression.... more
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  If a Body Meet a Body

  USA , 2008 , 20 min. Scrutinizing the lives of three employees at the world’s busiest coroner’s office, this Student Academy Award–winning documentary asks the sobering question, “What happens when the living make their living by confronting the dead?” ... more
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  Multiple Choice

  USA , 2007 , 20 min. In this coming-of-age comedy, Adam is forced to make a tough choice the night before his SAT test—young love or his academic future!... more
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  My Wooden Dog

  Poland , 2007 , 17 min. In this bittersweet fable, Tadek, an oddball hero, tries to bring about a happy ending to his relatives' troubles. When his clumsy schemes fail, the world in his quirky head crumbles.... more
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  On the Grind

  USA , 2008 , 12 min. A socially conscious portrait of street rapper Artino Rope, who faces the possibility of homelessness as he considers the consequences of his quest for fame.... more
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  The Only Girl

  USA , 2007 , 13 min. An offbeat romantic comedy about Wilson Weston, the lone shot-putter on the high-school track squad, and his very popular new teammate Alycia Selt—the headmaster's daughter and the only girl at St. James Academy. ... more
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  Premature

  USA , 2008 , 15 min. Tisha, a streetwise teenager from the Bronx, has no one to turn to when she discovers she’s pregnant—so she must face the most difficult decision she will ever make alone.... more
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  Ralph

  Great Britain , 2008 , 13 min. Ralph is fifteen years old and in love with his best friend Claire. When he travels to Marseille to declare his feelings for her, he discovers he’s gotten her phone number wrong. Alone and desperate, he takes refuge in a café—where he may yet find the way to her. ... more
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  The Scritch-Scratch of Busy Little Hands

  USA , 2007 , 2 min. A rebellious boy escapes into art to survive Catholic school in this clever animated short.... more
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  Side Effect

  USA , 2008 , 13 min. Lauren is such a sweet babysitter! And so efficient! Only…where's the baby? This finely executed horror film touches on serious issues within the creepy context of an overmedicated society. ... more
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  These Were the Feets of Ashley

  Canada , 2008 , 13 min. Fresh from a date with the beautiful Ashley, Neil’s convinced it was a disaster. But with the help of his friend Jeff, he begins to exorcise his personal demons.... more
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  Unattached

  USA , 2007 , 24 min. This Student Academy Award recipient documents New York City's strange, unintentionally tragicomic Modern Orthodox Jewish singles scene. Relying on traditional matchmakers to find potential mates, the mostly twenty-somethings who belong to it would have lots of choices—if only their expectations wer... more
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  Zoologic

  USA , 2007 , 4 min. An uncooperative penguin throws a wrench into the works of a picky zookeeper in this hilarious, Student Academy Award–winning animated short.... more