Crush It All Weekend Long
The Walla Walla Movie Crush is programmed thematically, comprised of shorts packaged in hour-long blocks. In each block, you’re likely to find a mix of animation, live-action, documentary, and music video.
Blocks run 45 - 50 minutes total, with a few minutes leftover to enjoy conversation with visiting moviemakers (moderated by Crush Curator, Warren Etheredge), transition between blocks, and refill your wine glass.
IMPORTANT: Please note that all content is unrated and may not be suitable for younger viewers.
KEY FOR SYMBOLS:
⭐ = moviemaker in attendance
🏆 = 2024 Movie Crush award nominee
🌏 = world premiere
♥️ = CrushFam (work has been shown at a previous Movie Crush and/or previously served as a Crush juror)
Schedule of Films
FRIDAY, July 11th, 2025
6 PM - VFW
Excluding civil clashes, all wars are foreign, geographically. Here, veterans representing Ukraine, the US, and North and South Vietnam, share stories that urge more thoughtful policy and more compassionate treatment of those who serve and survive.
TARAS (11:30) d. Zeppelin Zeerip
PRIVATE FIRST CLASS (0:14) d. Aaron Bourget ⭐️ 🌎 ♥️
ON HEALING LAND, BIRDS PERCH (33:590) d. Naja Pham Lockwood ⭐️ 🏆
7 PM - WGSD
We’re not saying women are better than men exactly, but they just have more resolve to get… “stuff” done, regardless of the challenges. Here, a literary heroine, a Paralympian, a conflicted mother, an exploited singer, and a Nicki Minaj fan are ready to do whatever it takes.
JANE AUSTEN’S PERIOD DRAMA (12:40) d. Julia Aks, Steve Pinder
SWIMMING WITH BUTTERFLIES (7:52) d. Karl Stelter
I WANT TO FEEL FUN (9:32) d. Jessica Sanders ♥️
VIEW FROM THE FLOOR (5:20) d. Megan Griffiths, Mindie Lind
THE WEIGHT OF A DOG (15:37) d. Lucy Sandler ⭐️ 🏆
8 PM - CONTINUING ED
We’re never too old to learn, never too old to teach. Here, education spills over beyond the classroom to rafting trips, treasure hunts and driving lessons.
BUTCH & MANDALIN: THE SEARCH FOR THE GOLDEN MORRAL (18:50) d. Riley Engemoen ⭐️ 🏆
HEMA (16:22) d. Ritvik Dhavale
CANYON CHORUS (16:32) d. Chris Cresci ⭐️
SATURDAY, July 12th, 2025
11 AM - A/V CLUB
Moviemaking is a collaborative sport. You have to learn to work well with others to realize your vision. Those that start the process in high school (or before!) have an edge. Here, five young directors prove they have what it takes to be the next Greta, Wes, Chloe, Spike, Emerald, PT or Ava.
EVERY LIVING BREATHING MOMENT (18:57) d. Angelo Visser ⭐️ 🏆
GROCERY RUN (1:12) d. Alex Brown ⭐️ 🏆
FOREVER CHEMICAL (8:08) d. Cooper Burkett 🏆
SQUID (1:28) d. Asha Mallick 🏆
SIX MONTHS ’TIL IMPACT (20:46) d. Santiago Salazar ⭐️ 🏆
12 PM - SEEING IS BEREAVING
The loss of a loved one is often inconceivable, as if death wore an invisibility cloak. Here, fathers and mothers, sons and daughters, siblings, mystics, and an oversized legume struggle to make sense of our mortality.
TAKE AWAY (8:56) d. Robert Sickels, Rachel Sapper ⭐️ 🌎
WHEN I SEE ROSES I THINK OF YOU (3:21) d. Jordie Simpson
THE CROSSING OVER EXPRESS (11:36) d. Luke Barnett
DEATH IS A GIANT PEANUT (6:48) d. Amy Boisvert
THE SPEED OF THE DISTANCE BETWEEN US (19:17) d. Yuval Shapira 🏆
1 PM - MAMA’S BOYS
Men owe their mothers their lives. Not all know how to repay the favor. Some opt for flowers, but in this block we find guys who pay less, er, traditional tribute — whether by exceeding expectations, encouraging gyrations, discouraging internet searches, initiating online matches, or simply loving a little too much.
BELIEF (13:58) d. Christian Loubek ♥️
MAKE YOU DANCE (2:11) d. Kate Graves ⭐️ 🌎
DON’T GOOGLE MOMMY (2:48) d. Shy Kids
I WANT MY MOMMY (19:25) d. Jacob Samuels ⭐️ 🌎
2 PM - A FLAT CIRCLE
Proverbially, Time is what you make of it, but that ignores what happens when Time is taken from you. Here, the incarcerated, the free, the elderly and the wistful try to tighten their grip, painfully aware of how Time can slip away.
WEEKEND VISITS (11:18) d. Pete Quandt
OLIVE (13:08) d. Tom Koch ⭐️
1,000 FRAMES: CALIFORNIA (0:43) d. Aaron Bourget ⭐️ 🌎 ♥️
THIS IS NOT LIFE (22:29) d. Leo Pfeiffer ⭐️ ♥️
3 PM - MOMMY ISSUES
Motherhood is a life sentence — arguably, the world’s best and most difficult job. Here, we watch the circle of life: from rural obstetrics to familial confessions, from mindful delivery to day-dreaming monotony. There is more than one way to be a mom and more than one way to offer your support.
DOC ALBANY (18:44) d. Ben Proudfoot ♥️
YOURS AND MINE (4:55) d. Quinn Yurasek
TEDDY (15:59) d. Lauren Santucci
MAMA (12:01) d. Ericka Kreutz ⭐️ 🏆
4 PM - CRISIS MODE
Don’t freak out. Everything’s going to be okay. Right? RIGHT?! Nowadays, it’s easy to feel powerless – but you are not alone. In this block, a woman seeks help from a stranger, another seeks hope from a friend, a sister fashions a response to depression, and Richard Kind receives support from an unexpected guest.
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CONVERSATION IN THE CAR (4:57) d. Julia Liang 🏆
STITCHES (15:38) d. Victoria Frings 🏆
ELEMENTS (5:26) d. James Hoolan ⭐️🌎
NIGHT SESSION (10:58) d. Ballard C Boyd 🏆
7 PM - HEART ATTACKS
Love doesn’t promise us a rose garden, but why are there so many thorns? Here, many feel the pricks of questionable choices, after eschewing obvious red flags. A hexed husband, a spurned ex, a horny statue, and a pop band reflect on all of love’s complex… rewards?
YEARN (4:35) d. Ben Smith
THE BRIDE’S CURSE (20:07) d. Alex Kavutskiy, Jerzy Rosę ♥️
LOVE (4:21) d. Damian Kulash Jr, Aaron Duffy, Miguel Espada
BULLDOZER (27:19) d. Andrew Leeds ⭐️ 🏆
8 PM - MONOLOGUING
If you’re hearing voices, don’t worry – that’s just your inner monologue. Here, an unstable dinner guest, an unwell dog, an afflicted animator, a conflicted public radio personality, and a host of “long-time listeners, first-time callers” speak their minds. A few of them even use their outside voices.
UP CLOSE (12:50) d. Lukas Hassel
NOGGIN (7:10) d. Case Jernigan
YOUR OPINION, PLEASE (14:21) d. Marshall Granger
RADIOHEAD (3:12) d. Victoria Basadre 🏆
GOOD BOY BANJO (12:28) d. Jackie! Zhou 🏆
9 PM - PHONE SECTS
Why do we call them “smart” when so much of what people use phones for is so… primal? In this block, we see how phone technology can create community and/or engender isolation. Phones can tear us apart or help us… come together.
SUMMER RELAY (1:08) d. Aaron Bourget ⭐️ 🌎 ♥️
SUCH GOOD FRIENDS (11:12) d. Bri Klaproth ⭐️
SWIPE (5:01) d. Patrick Smith ♥️
FACE TWEAK (2:44) d. Bianca Poletti ⭐️ ♥️
HOW I LEARNED TO STOP WORRYING AND LOVE MY PHONE (1:07) d. Erik Minkowski
KAMIKAZE (9:52) d. Ray Smiling ⭐️ ♥️
A STONE ONLY ROLLS DOWNHILL (3:56) d. Damian Kulash Jr, Chris Buongiorno
BOYSLUT (14:58) d. Gabriel Guttierez Morales ⭐️ 🌎 ♥️
SUNDAY, July 13th, 2025
12 PM - DISHES SERVED COLD
Was it Eugène Sue or KHAAAAAAN! who first offered advice on how best to serve Revenge? No matter: here, a six-year old, a sex worker, a teen, a Baroness, and an athlete-activist, turn the tables in ingenious ways, aware that sometimes Justice is sweeter when homemade.
KINDERGARTEN ICE (1:40 d. Leah Shore ♥️
MONSTER SLAYER (21:03) d. Catie Skipp 🏆
SO LONG, FAREWELL (2:37) d. Riki Lindhome, Elisabeth Caren
FENICE (12:32) d. Sterling Hampton IV ♥️
AZI (14:00) d. Montana Mann 🏆
1 PM - AFTERLIFE INSURANCE
If death and taxes are the only certain things, what are we guaranteed after we die? Here, a mortal crew seek comfort in plotting their own coil-shuffling, or in sanctifying others’ passing.
THE SACRED SOCIETY (12:32) d. Benny Zelkowicz 🏆
HARVESTER (13:15) d. Charlie Schwan
DIES IRAE (6:21) d. Victoria Basadre 🏆
OUT FOR DELIVERY (16:29) d. Chelsea Christer 🏆 ♥️
2 PM - ART SAVES
It could be argued that creative expression has saved more lives than Western medicine, depending on how you assess threats to our well-being. Whether you’re making music, building homes, animating resistance, countering criticism or re-enacting tragedy, the Arts offer us tools to heal ourselves.
RANDY AS HIMSELF (10:37) d. Margaret Miller
THE TREACHERY OF INSTAGRAM (0:45) d. Aaron Bourget ⭐️ 🌎 ♥️
DALE (9:26) d. Justin Streichman
SYNTHESIZE ME (15:44) d. Bear Damen 🏆
COUNTERWEIGHT (9:18) d. Austin Wilson, Christian Sorenson Hansen ⭐️ 🌎
THE WILD-TEMPERED CLAVIER (7:18) d. Anna Samo 🏆 ♥️
3 PM - PET(A) PEEVES
Animals bring out the best and worst in people. It’s a broad spectrum, from unconditional love to unimaginable cruelty. In this block, a dog needs rescue, rats save themselves, fish magically materialize, and bunnies fall prey to bullies - and the Third Reich (true story!).
APOLLO (14:09) d. Giles Perkins
THROUGH THIN ICE (10:58) d. Gabrielle Kardon, Arthur Veenema 🏆
MINE! (8:15) d. Lou Morton
THE NAZI RABBITS OF AUSCHWITZ (4:59) d. Nigel Islington 🏆 🌎
FISHTANK (17:04) d. Wendi Tang ⭐️ 🏆
4 PM - NEXT OF KIN
Some day, all of this will be yours. The key word is “this.” Do you crave, question, or fear your inheritance? Here, three very different and very differently-functional families involuntarily explore the cost of succession: a price greater than any estate tax.
FIRE AT WILL (9:37) d. Morgan Gruer
YOU’RE TOO SENSITIVE (10:52) d. Dan Chen 🏆
THE MUSIC STORE (32:07) d. Joe Gilette ⭐️ 🏆