Puerto Rican filmmaker Julián Fernández Garnik will present his narrative short Amanece at the 14th Annual Chelsea Film Festival in New York.
The film is scheduled to screen Sunday, October 18, at 3:15 p.m. in Auditorium 5 at Regal Battery Park. It is part of Program #18, “The Passage of Time,” according to the festival’s official 2026 schedule. The festival’s program page for Amanece carries the film’s listing.
Written and directed by Fernández Garnik, Amanece is a 13-minute drama produced in Puerto Rico in 2025. The film follows Iker, a nine-year-old boy living on the island during the summer of 1999, as an unexpected event forces him to confront the sudden loss of safety around him.
The Phoenix Film Festival describes the story as one in which a child is “forced to mature” after an event disrupts his understanding of security. The film’s listing at The Brattle Theatre further identifies its setting as Puerto Rico during the summer of 1999.
The project draws from personal memories. Cinematographer Alex Forestier describes Amanece as a short film based on his and Fernández Garnik’s childhood.
Fernández Garnik also edited the film and produced it alongside Laura Fernández Garnik. Forestier served as director of photography and filmed the project using a Sony FX6 camera, according to the production credits published by Guayaba Films and Forestier’s portfolio.
Publicly available credits list Valeria Berdecía Martínez, Randy Calzada, Ana Sophia Colón and Gael González Deya among the cast.
A Developing Festival Presence
Before its Chelsea presentation, Amanece appeared in several programs dedicated to independent and Latino cinema.
The film screened in the “LatinX Directed Shorts” program at the 2026 Phoenix Film Festival. The official schedule lists three presentations on April 10, April 12 and April 14.
It was also included in the 42nd Chicago Latino Film Festival and the 2026 Philadelphia Latino Arts & Film Festival. PHLAFF identifies Fernández Garnik as a filmmaker from Carolina, Puerto Rico.
Amanece is also listed in the “Yo Soy de P Fkn R” shorts program at The Brattle Theatre in Cambridge, Massachusetts. That program, scheduled before the Chelsea Film Festival, brings together short films examining Puerto Rican life and identity.
These appearances establish Chelsea as part of the film’s continuing festival run, rather than its world premiere.
Chelsea Film Festival Announces 22 Films by Latinx Filmmakers
In a September 17 press release, the Chelsea Film Festival announced that its 2026 program would include 22 films directed by Latinx filmmakers: three narrative features, three documentaries and 16 narrative shorts.
The narrative features are Three Times by Marlene Grinberg, When Wine Meets Coffee by Manuel NX30 Canales and Party USA by Jared Sprouse.
The documentary selections are Matriclysm: An Archaeology of Connections Lost by Dane Reiley, Alda Matos and Frank Peluso; From Times Square to the World: Immigrant City by Gabrielle Canal; and Ver, Veracruz by Andres Ramirez.
Alongside Amanece, the announced short-film selections include Ant’s Hill, Ashes: Hai Iro No Yuki, Between Threads, Bus, Closure, Half, In the Still of the Night, Daughter Replic, Leo Lets It Rain, Memorarium, Neighbors, Real, The Last Carnival, The Unsaid and Viktori.
The selected productions represent Argentina, Brazil, Canada, Costa Rica, Mexico, Panama, Peru, Puerto Rico and the United States.
The Chelsea Film Festival’s official program classifies Amanece as an international short.
In-Person and Online Presentations
The 14th Annual Chelsea Film Festival will take place in person at Regal Battery Park from October 14-18, 2026.
According to the festival’s press release, online programming will be available through FilmFestival+ from October 14-31. The platform is also accessible through Apple TV.
Founded by Ingrid Jean-Baptiste and Sonia Jean-Baptiste, the Chelsea Film Festival operates as a nonprofit cultural organization supporting independent filmmakers, producers and actors.
