HERE:
Houston Stories at the
Houston Cinema Arts Festival
November 25, 2025 - by SARAH ONTIVEROSIt’s been a little over a week since the Houston Cinema Arts Festival wrapped up their annual program. From live music to hands-on workshops, to book-signings, art exhibits, and of course, incredible films from all across the world; it was a festival brimming with artistry and every feature felt thoughtfully put forth. With this year’s theme: HERE - we felt compelled to reflect on what it means to be present and how life is built upon experiences that inform who we are and where we’re going. The short films in the Houston Stories block tackled this in a multitude of ways, through experimental narratives, animation, musical portraits, documentaries, poetry, and even dark comedy.
In the opening film, I’d Give the Whole World to be Back Where I Used to Be… a black and white homage to Houston set to the whimsical crackle and pop of old-timey Jazz, nostalgia immediately kicks in upon seeing Herman Park and other Houston landmarks. It reminds the Houstonians in the room just how special our city is and that there have been so many versions of it: past, present and future that we all, in some way, have felt a part of. But how does one carve an identity out of this shared experience, out of our former selves or our family unit, or society? This is the question that seems to thread itself through all the films that follow. Working Class asserts itself as a commentary on the roles of women in society. Through retro fashion and fitness, this experimental film reclaims the space outside of the “housewife” image and presses us to recognize that the modern woman can be and do a multitude of things. The who and the what comes from our craft and sometimes from the chaos, in the documentary short-film Dendê Agrestino: Between Here and There, Brazilian fashion-designer André Louis Silva Borges seems to weave his history through his garments, even using native shells and straw as main source material. The idea is that past experiences, good or bad, and things like estrangement or longing for a sense of self, can be the seeds for creation and what we do with those determines our growth. We see this theme play out in a variety of ways, in This Station is My Father and Subject, we are witnesses to sons aching to separate themselves from their fathers and discover who they are outside of that relationship. The true poetry of both of these films is not just in the literal and visual sense, but in the notion that language can be more than an aesthetic of words and rhythms, it can hold secrets and pain but also release us from both. The family unit, fathers in particular, crossover in many of these films. In String Theory, a father is being mourned by a grieving daughter who finds comfort and personal power in the strumming of his old guitar. In Yardman, it is a father who inspired this film about a Jamaican man who reminisces about home and longs to return to a place and form of self that he recognizes. Alternatively, in Down the Hatch, the lone animated film in the bunch, a mother and daughter navigate the swells of addiction and the hope of recovery, told from the heartbreakingly innocent perspective of a child. The implications for each of these films is that where we come from often dictates where we go, and some of them almost insist upon delivering ourselves from those experiences, but what they all beg us to consider, is who or what we unearth in ourselves is what matters most.
In Heavy is the Head, we follow a young Black boy through adolescence and then adulthood. Watching as the world leaves its mark on his sense of self, expectations weighing on his shoulders that seem to slump with the passing of the years. It’s noted that he lives in, “a world that often sees him before he truly sees himself” and we see this notion in a number of marginalized communities, where people assume that what you look like indicates who you are. Houston artists in the documentary film Psalms of the South, armed with ancestral history and a paintbrush, work to shift this narrative by underscoring the beauty, resilience, and wondrous complexity of Blackness and womanhood. In the same vein, the ensemble of people documented in HXC: Houston’s Hardcore Scene, are often lumped together and equate to little more than just studded belts, black t-shirts, and angsty dispositions. On the contrary, we see that through music and camaraderie, they’ve identified themselves beyond the physical, and any assumptions of who they are are left at the door. These films simultaneously dismiss any preconceived notions of self and declare, alongside the rest of these films, that our individuality and purpose are in our power.
Closing out this short film block, we’d be remiss not to mention Turn Right on Kirby, the dark comedy that also felt like the palette cleanser between all of the conflict and grief. In a neon-lit kaleidoscope of memory, we see a life play out as that very life begins to make its exit. It’s a reminder that this life is fragile and that sometimes, out of chaos comes creation - or a much needed laugh when that eventual right on that very important street turns out to be the wrong one. That’s the beauty of life, no matter the mistake, we can always get back on the road to self-discovery. This year’s festival theme, HERE, seemed to connect us all at a time when disconnection feels more prominent and palatable than ever, and “connecting through cinema” isn’t just an HCAF slogan, it’s a legacy and it is at the heart of all their initiatives. We not only see but experience this with their Houston Stories and Borders | No Borders short film blocks, as well as with their international CineSpace competition and various other feature film screenings. The theme, ultimately, serves as a reminder to not just to put your feet up and watch a movie, but to stop and look around the theater, or the art exhibit, or the music venue, and relish in the here and now and the community of people that share your interests and aspirations. To realize that the past may inform the present but what you do in the present informs who you can become.
Thank you to the Houston Cinema Arts Society and all partnered organizations, sponsors, coordinators, curators, and volunteers. We have never enjoyed the movies more.
Films mentioned:
I’d Give the Whole World to be Back Where I Used to Be… | Dir. Cooper Sukaly
Working Class | Dir. Manny King
Dendê Agrestino: Between Here and There | Dir. Amanda Borvá
This Station is My Father | Dir. Timoteo Cortez
Subject | Dir. Rafael Elorza
String Theory | Dir. Jerzy Carranza
Down the Hatch | Dir. Alexandra Lukina
Heavy is the Head | Dir. Chap Edmonson
Psalms of the South | Dir. Channing Smith
HXC: Houston’s Hardcore Scene | Dir. Lorena April Luna
Turn Right on Kirby | Dir. Derik Mercado
