LA FEMME INTERNATIONAL FILM FESTIVAL 2026 REVIEW! In their animated short, Braving the Night, Joshua Kushner and Luisa G. Carranza tell the story of a young girl afraid of the night and the father who protects her.
It’s three in the morning, and six-year-old Samantha Culwin is wide awake and refuses to go back to sleep. She’s just had a nightmare so vivid she’s afraid closing her eyes again will put her back in danger. So she begs her dad, Rick, to stay up with her. Rick wisely doesn’t tell her, “It’s just a nightmare.” Instead, he goes into the dream with her, stepping into the frightening fantasy world of Samantha’s mind and helping her stand up to whatever is waiting there.
“Instead, he goes into the dream with her, stepping into the frightening fantasy world of Samantha’s mind…”
As Samantha grows up, the villains stop being imaginary. In school, the monsters are bullies, and they’re all too real. Rick is still there to help her face them. Years go by. Samantha gets married, then divorced, and through every bad dream and every rough patch, her dad shows up. Then one day, the tables are turned.
Braving the Night is a whimsical tale of the nightmares that haunt children and the heroic parents who protect them. 2D animation is the perfect format for Daniel Feldman and Joshua Kushner’s story, capturing their relationship at every stage of life.
Directors Kushner and Carranza beautifully illustrate the bond between father and daughter, and the lengths parents will go to protect their children from harm, big or small. The twist at the end will bring a tear or two.
Braving the Night screened at the 2026 LA Femme International Film Festival.
"…As Samantha grows up, the villains stop being imaginary."
