For a generation weaned on Youtube and educated through Netflix, short films are a vocabulary of sorts. A local film festival, co-organized by a CWRU graduate student, seeks to capitalize on that love of the short film form.

The Short Sweet Film Festival, now in its second year, will be featuring exclusively short films in a variety of genres. All submissions must fall within the 25 minute mark. This year’s two day festival will consist of 40 films, gleaned from submissions totaling around 80.

According to co-director and judge Mike Suglio, the festival has placed special emphasis on local films and presents a unique way for students to interface with both local and national filmmakers. “It’s a great opportunity for students. There will be a bunch of local filmmakers there, and we’re bringing in some people from out of town as well,” says Suglio.

The festival is also cross-genre, with categories for fiction, nonfiction, and animation. In addition to offering an eclectic mix of films for viewing, the festival is also a juried competition.

The panel will consist of Suglio, CWRU Professor Linda C. Ehrlich, and local filmmaker Cyprian Piroch. Prizes are offered for two films from the fiction, nonfiction, animation, and student film categories. There will also be prizes for the best film of the festival and the best short and sweet film, which is the film that most embodies the festival’s mission statement.

The festival will be taking place at Market Garden Brewery located on Cleveland’s west side, adjacent to the West Side Market. The event will be sponsored by Atlas Cinemas, TV Boy, a local production company, and the Jolly Scholar will sponsor the event. Screenings will begin at noon on Saturday, with music from two CWRU alums Lane Seliga and Chris Black beginning after 7 o’clock.

Tickets are available online, with prices at $12 for one day and $15 for both Saturday and Sunday. According to Suglio, ticket sales have already quadrupled in comparison with last year’s and the organizers anticipate selling out.