Philadelphia Unnamed Film Festival 2023: 8th Edition

PUFF was founded as an alternative festival to bring new and undiscovered films to cinema fans in Philadelphia. PUFF’s aim is to grow into a multimedia experience where people can enjoy our great city while experiencing the best in new cinema.

POST UPDATE: 10/5/23 – First year attending Philly Unnamed Film Festival. Held at Theatre Exile (1340-48 S 13th St, Philadelphia, PA 19147) The Festival Organizer, Willy Keiper, has invited me in the past, but prior years I always had a conflict. This year I was excited to find myself free to attend the evening block on Friday, Sept 29th. Two of the films that stood out were Nick Verdi‘s “Sweet Relief” for it’s overall quirky, Napoleon Dynamite-esque brand of humor, thrown into a teen horror flick. And Alisa Stern and Scott Ampleford‘s “Spiral to the Center” see more below…

Click for Trailer

SPIRAL TO THE CENTER | Short Film 30min | Writers/Directors Alise Stern & Scott Ampleford

Spiral to the Center is a fictional investigative documentary with a sci-fi twist. Rick reviews music on YouTube. He doesn’t get a lot of views but that’s fine – he just loves music. Everything changes when he reviews an old vinyl record and discovers a strange message hidden in a track. His video review goes viral and Kacy, a documentary filmmaker, begins to follow Rick as he tries to uncover the meaning and origin of the message. They both get more than they bargained for when Rick unearths more records, more messages, and an enigmatic label called Henge, which disappeared in the 1970s, leaving behind only 12 albums and a dark secret.

This one was my style, a mix of mysticism & sci-fi, a truly believable mockumentary. I have to say, for a good portion of the film they had me believing at least half of the story was true, particularly Rick’s YouTube channel. Then I assumed they just elaborated some parts to fill in the story; but nope, all made up. Alise says they have a feature length version written, all they need is the backing to get the other scenes filmed. I truly hope they find their angel investor, cause it’s a good yarn with an astounding level of detail.

Click Image for Q&A with Alise after Premiere of their film at PUFF8

PUFF Award Winners

ORIGINAL POST September 7, 2023

“This is the most exciting lineup we’ve had in a while,” added Matt Profaci, the festival’s operations manager. “It’s a truly unique blend of new, independent filmmaking with some really bizarre throwbacks that are unmissable. Our programmers worked so hard this year and we can’t wait to unleash #PUFF8 to our fans.”