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DANCES WITH FILMS ’26: Shorts

Title: The Resistance (2026) Director: Natalie Schwan Writer: Natalie Schwan Studio: Velocity Films IMDb Plot: When brutal violence shatters her sheltered world, a young woman joins a covert Belgian Resistance group and is drawn into a daring operation that could save lives, or cost her everything. Joe Says: Stories like The Resistance remind us to remember the people who made sacrificial victories possible.

World War II remains one of history’s most enduring storytelling landscapes due to the extraordinary courage displayed by ordinary people. Against unimaginable evil, everyday citizens found remarkable reserves of bravery. When those stories are told well, heroism needs no embellishment. 

The Resistance is one such story.

Inspired by the remarkable true events surrounding the Belgian Resistance’s daring mission to attack a deportation train carrying Belgian Jews to Auschwitz, writer-director Natalie Schwan crafts a historical short that honors those who refused to play mere witness. 

Eva is portrayed with believable vulnerability by Ella-June Henrard. Sheltered from the realities unfolding around her, Eva’s world is irrevocably altered after witnessing the Nazis’ brutality firsthand. Alongside her fiancé Pierre (Felix Meyer) and inspired by her sister Helene’s growing involvement in the underground movement, Eva discovers that resistance begins with a single decision to stop looking away.

Schwan understands that acts of defiance do not always arrive with explosions or grand speeches. Sometimes resistance is quieter. Sometimes it is choosing compassion when hatred is easier. Sometimes it is risking everything so that strangers might live.

That emotional truth gives The Resistance its power.

Visually, the film is striking. Although photographed in color, it often carries the timeless texture of a classic black-and-white war drama. Cinematographer Connor Van Bodell fills the frame with rich shadows and muted warmth, creating images that feel both period-authentic and distinctly cinematic. Modern camera movements and slick visual storytelling keep the short film from feeling like a historical recreation on PBS.

The Resistance is emotionally resonant and impressively realized. More importantly, it serves as a reminder that freedom has always depended on individuals willing to risk everything for someone else.

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Be sure to check out The Resistance and many other indie films during the Dances With Films fest.