Featuring films by a selection of new talents, this year's lineup of shorts includes lyrical works from Turkey and Iran, a pair of brilliant shorts in French from Switzerland and Canada, and a bittersweet goodbye story from Italy.

THE UNTOLD TALES OF ARMISTEAD MAUPIN examines the life and work of one of the world’s most beloved storytellers, following his evolution from a conservative son of the Old South into a gay rights pioneer whose novels have inspired millions to claim their own truth. Jennifer Kroot’s documentary about the creator of Tales Of The City moves nimbly between playful and poignant and laugh-out-loud funny. With help from his friends (including Neil Gaiman, Laura Linney, Olympia Dukakis, Sir Ian McKellen and Amy Tan), Maupin offers a disarmingly frank look at the journey that took him from the jungles of Vietnam to the bathhouses of 70’s San Francisco to the front line of the American culture war.

Prepare to be dazzled! "Thirsty" is the compelling story of Scott Townsend a.k.a., Thirsty Burlington, who caught the filmmaker's eye during Thirsty's striking performance as Cher. The film lays bare Scott's life growing up as a girl-boy in Cambridge public housing and eventually becoming a revered drag queen delighting club-goers with her spot on impersonation of Cher. Using an array of storytelling techniques within a non-linear structure, the film moves through dramatic, fantasy and musical sequences, capturing both the harsh realities of living a life with a slippery gender and the sparkle that Thirsty exudes. Townsend embodies this natural phenomenon of a gender that roams between male and female. "A bouquet from a single stem," as Thirsty sings. "Thirsty" asks that we let everyone be beautiful and create the world they want. For Townsend that means, "To be safe and comfortable in all his skins, and loved for all that he is." Desc. courtesy of the Woodstock International Film Festival.