San Diego Scene

Local artists and filmmakers tell their stories from within the great city of San Diego. Adelaide: Adelaide, a second-generation belly dancer, confronts her longing for motherhood as mother and daughter create a moving portrait of lineage, femininity, and transformation. Between The Variables: Benjamin Lou, a gifted math genius student living with Spinal Muscular Atrophy (SMA) at MIT, reflects on how his disability has shaped his identity, his relationship with his parents, and his hopes for the future. Through interviews, family footage, and his own voice, this short documentary offers a personal and nuanced portrait of a young man navigating both academic excellence and physical limitations. Rather than focusing on triumph or tragedy, Between the Variables explores how Benjamin makes sense of his life—on his own terms. God Dammit: After a career-ending injury shatters the identity of an up and coming jiu jitsu athlete (Charlie Morgan Patton), a freak accident sends her on a combative encounter with a football-loving God (Kate Flannery), forcing her to confront the pain, absurdity, and beauty of staying alive. Midnight Snack: A woman's quiet evening is interrupted when an unwelcome intruder breaks into her home. The Beautiful Life: The Beautiful Life follows Maria Jutasi Coleman’s reflections on a promise she made to herself as a nine-year-old Holocaust survivor: to live a beautiful life. Yo Soy Mariachero: Rosalío Chavarín set aside mariachi for decades to support his family. Today, he lives that childhood dream alongside his daughter and granddaughter.