New American Cinema Competition
None of these films have a distributor (yet), but they all have a champion on SIFF’s programming team. New American Cinema fields the largest number of submissions out of any of SIFF’s competitions by far. With so many entries, only a fraction can make it to the finals, and this stiff competition means that each of the finalist films has the potential to change the landscape of American cinema—they’re that good.
The New American Cinema Competition jury, comprised of filmmakers, journalists, and industry professionals, selects the winning film, which will be announced at the Golden Space Needle Awards May 25 and awarded a cash prize of $5,000.
BLKNWS: Terms & Conditions
USA | 2025 | 113 min. | Kahlil Joseph
Kahlil Joseph deftly intertwines Afrofuturist narrative, family legacy, and archival footage into a visual and cerebral feast.
Color Book
USA | 2024 | 98 min. | David Fortune
A recently widowed Black father just wants to treat his young disabled son to one great day in metropolitan Atlanta.
Fucktoys
USA | 2025 | 107 min. | Annapurna Sriram
Annapurna Sriram helms this campy, pastel-colored romp about a woman who embarks upon a sex worker odyssey through Trashtown.
Invention
USA | 2024 | 72 min. | Courtney Stephens
An inventive, autofictional indie about a daughter who investigates her estranged late father’s experimental health marketing schemes.
She’s The He
USA | 2025 | 81 min. | Siobhan McCarthy
A teen comedy by and for trans people, about two seniors who pretend to be transition during their last week of high school.
Slanted
USA | 2025 | 104 min. | Amy Wang
When Joan Huang hastily undergoes an experimental medical procedure to become Caucasian, the consequences could be devastating.