“How much can a heart and a troubled mind take? Where is that fine line before it all breaks?” In these exciting Mind the Gap shorts, unexpected encounters and revelations challenge characters, and change them in indelible ways. In Hang Luong Nguyen’s contemplative Rooftop Lempicka (Vietnam 2025, 20 min), a young girl comes of age as she forms an unlikely friendship with an undisclosed sex worker. A birdwatcher and a nature writer question their future together after spending a day watching birds in Brooklyn in Heather von Rohr’s tender A Bird Came Down (US 2025, 13 min). Linda Mai Green explores the paranormal and the absurd when a sound artist has an otherworldly encounter in her captivating Mondegreen (US 2025, 21 min). In Abbesi Akhemi’s stylish and comedic The Incredible Sensational Fiancée of Sèyí Àjàyí (US/Nigeria 2025, 16 min), a renowned scholar’s public breakup sends her on a quest for revenge. —Osinachi Ibe
Total run time: 70 min