Every year, the Alexandria Film Festival screens independent films highlighting diverse perspectives and experiences. The 19th Annual Festival, to be held November 7-9, 2025, features more than 60 films telling the stories of people in a wide variety of professions and roles: Comedians, musicians, military members, and zookeepers. Mothers, neighbors, siblings, and spouses.
Here we introduce you to four filmmakers who explored women’s stories and voices in either short or feature-length films screening at the 2025 festival.
Note: Filmmakers’ answers were edited for length and clarity.
Roser Corella, “Kickoff” (77 mins., documentary)
Information and screening time
What was your inspiration for this project?
We were struck by the transformative power of sport. Through football (American soccer), Gazi and the women of Kök-Tash find a voice that defies expectations and fosters social change. As they train and compete, they discover strength, self-worth, and community. This is a story of defiance, love, and women refusing to be confined by societal roles. We hope their journey will encourage others to believe in the possibility of transformation, no matter the obstacles.
What did you enjoy most about shooting this film or putting this project together?
While filming, we were guests at the house of Gazi, the organizer of the tournament. Her whole family became our crew: the teenage nephew was our fixer, and his mother turned into our producer on the ground. Every evening after dinner, family meetings doubled as production meetings where we planned the next day’s shooting. Of course, the plan was usually turned upside down the next morning—like when someone suddenly invited us to a wedding! We felt truly welcomed, and their support and collaboration were essential to making this film possible.
Do you have a behind-the-scenes story fans would love to hear?
Since we came from Berlin, even though we are Spanish and Italian, in the village we were known as ‘the Germans.’ Every time we entered someone’s home, they proudly showed us their new fridge or washing machine, saying with a smile: ‘This is German!’
Zulian Tjuatja, “Masks” (3 mins., drama)
Note: Zulian will participate in a Q&A following the film screening.
What was your inspiration for this project?
I've been traveling to Japan every year for the last 10 years and have been studying Japanese for ~5 years. One day, my teacher and I were discussing the societal constructs that shape public-facing behavior in Japan, especially what lies beneath once one peels away said constructs. That discussion sparked the idea that eventually became the screenplay for Masks.
Why did you want to become a filmmaker?
Two reasons: first, of all artistic mediums, I feel that film is the one that is best suited for probing into life's most profound truths. Second, as an Asian American man who has struggled with finding role models, making my own films is a way for me to create my own representation.
Do you have a behind-the-scenes story fans would love to hear?
My Japanese teacher plays the masked woman's coworker, and her husband plays the boss. In the scenes where he speaks to the masked woman, he is actually speaking Turkish (he is fluent in Japanese, but I thought him speaking in his native language looked more fluid), as I just needed some footage of him lecturing/regaling her. It took me 10 minutes to get roughly 30 seconds of workable footage because they were friends and wouldn't stop laughing.
Nathan Hilgartner, “No Choice” (95 mins., drama)
Information and screening times
Note: Nathan will participate in a Q&A following the film screening, along with producer Shannon Semler, and actors Hannah Deale, Maria Prudente, and Robert Denzel Edwards
What was the inspiration for this project?
Like many people, I was shocked by the Supreme Court decision overturning Roe v. Wade. Even in this time of regression and reaction, I didn’t expect that essential rights would be rolled back so quickly and decisively. As always, we know that injustice falls unevenly: women from states with abortion bans can travel to get care only if they have the money, the job flexibility, the social support. So I imagined a young woman, living in poverty, working at a low wage job, struggling to get an education and build a better life. I imagined her getting pregnant and knowing that a baby would put an end to her hopes and dreams. I imagined her troubled relationship with her mother, her frightening encounters with the harsh treatment that healthcare and legal systems visit on the most vulnerable. Having imagined this character, I became frightened for her. Her life and situation seemed like a living nightmare. Then, hitting on this idea of a waking dream, I wondered “what are her dreams telling her when she’s asleep?” Our dream life is one of the places we find truth. I have always dreamed vividly, and I believe that cinema as a medium owes much to dreams. This vision of a real-world nightmare is the kernel of the film.
Do you have a behind-the-scenes story fans would love to hear?
This is my first feature film. We wrapped production just a year after I first had the idea for the script. Because we had a very tight timeline and a truly tiny budget, I realized that the only way we would be able to pull it off was to shoot it in my hometown, Ithaca, New York, where we had friends, neighbors, and connections to the local acting community. We shot using mostly borrowed equipment on sets we hammered together inside an out-of-business grocery store. The roof of the building where we shot the film was leaky, and we feared a heavy rain would flood our sets and ruin our equipment! We spent a lot of time trying to waterproof the building, with limited success. Fortunately, some more experienced folks helped us fix the problem.
What are you most excited about for your film screening at the AFF?
We are living in confused and frightening times. People are angry – many of them, justifiably. In part, NO CHOICE comes from that place of anger, sounding the alarm over a terrible injustice. Yet the crucial question is what should we do with that anger? I don’t think it’s enough for people to get angry and shout at their screens. So if this film makes people mad, I hope that they will carry that anger forward into action and organize, strategize, and demand change. Audiences in the DC area are among the most politically-engaged in the country and I hope they will respond to the film's urgency.
Shoshana Rosenbaum, “The Other You” (78 mins., dramedy)
Information and screening time
Note: Shoshana will participate in a Q&A following the film screening, along with producers Julie Gold and Kimberly Skyrme, and cinematographer Anne Saul
Why did you want to become a filmmaker?
As a writer and visual artist, I love how filmmaking brings both elements together. I also love that making a film is a group effort that brings the talents of many kinds of artists together to make something collaboratively. It's a wonderful experience to make a piece of art as a collective.
What did you enjoy most about shooting this film or putting this project together?
The energy: much of the filmmaking team met through Women in Film and Video-DC, and many of us have made projects together previously, so the set was female-dominated and grounded in warm artistic relationships. Many of us are also moms, and moms know how to get things done! Because this is a comedy, we had wonderful comic actors on set and we laughed a lot. We also had an infusion of youthful energy due to our three young actors and a bevy of fantastic college interns. We worked very hard to shoot a feature in 18 days and we had a great time doing it.
Do you have a behind-the-scenes story fans would love to hear?
We shot this film in the summer, and most of us are from the area, so we knew we would be dealing with heat and thunderstorms. However, we didn't anticipate racing to the basement with our equipment during multiple tornado warnings, or arriving on set early one morning to find the whole block had no electric power due to downed trees. Thanks to the amazing can-do attitude of our cast and crew, we pivoted and shot only exterior scenes that day, supported by our producer Kimberly Skyrme turning her car into a mobile office with a printer, equipment charging station, and hair and make-up station—complete with a hair dryer!