< Back Short Film Festival The Balticon Sunday Short Science Fiction Film Festival (BS³F³) features independently produced short films from around the world, including live action and animated films in the science fiction, fantasy, and horror genres. Awards are given based on audience preferences. Winners of the 20 25 BS³F³ Thank you to all the filmmakers who submitted their films to our festival, we are pleased to announce the winners: 1) Stephen Kings's The Reach (2024) - Italy Director: Luca Caserta 2) Invasion '53 (2024) - United States of America Director: Danielle Weinberg 3) Dad in The Echo (2023) - China Director: Jacky Heng Sun Commiserations to the rest of our entries. The 2026 Balticon Sunday Short Science Fiction Film Festival (BS³F³) will take place on Sunday evening at 7:00pm. We will thrill festival attendees with independently produced short films from around the region and across the globe. BS³F³ features live action and animated films in the science fiction, fantasy, and horror from some of the best independent filmmakers this side of the Crab Nebula. Awards will be given in both the Live Action and Animation category based upon audience preferences. Some of the history of this film festival can be found on the BSFS website . Balticon 60 Short Film Preview Did you miss our event? Check out our archived selections. Balticon 59 Short Film Festival Balticon 58 Short Film Festival For more information, or if you have any questions, please contact us at: filmfestival@balticon.org

< Back Dr. Valerie J. Mikles Science, Literary Author Dr. Valerie J. Mikles is a scientist and author. By day (like for money) she works on weather satellites for NOAA. She has published 21 novels spanning science fiction and contemporary romance genres. Next, she's branching into murder mysteries. When not writing novels, she fills her time with theater, playing songs on her ukulele, learning new things, and vacuuming cat hair. Her motto in life is “I can be everything I want, just not all at the same time.” Other Socials

< Back Brent Warner Science Scientist Brent Warner recently retired from the aerospace industry, where he worked as a thermal engineer. He is interested in writing systems (ancient and modern, including calligraphy), barbarian interlace, and the standard sorts of SF related topics, such as space and astronomy. Other Socials

< Back Robert A. Heinlein Award The Baltimore Science Fiction Society will present the Robert A. Heinlein Award during the Opening Ceremonies. Sharon Lee Wins 2025 Robert A. Heinlein Award The award will be formally presented during opening ceremonies of Balticon 59 Friday, May 23, 2025 8:00 p.m. Sharon Lee , novelist, is the 2025 winner of the Robert A. Heinlein Award. The award is bestowed for outstanding published works in science fiction and technical writings that inspire the human exploration of space. This award is in recognition of Ms. Lee’s body of work of over 38 novels and short stories. A majority of her space themed work is in the Liaden Universe, written with her late husband Steve Miller, and features merchant families trading across the galaxy. The next Liaden Universe novel, Diviner’s Row, is forthcoming from Baen Books in April 2025. The award will be formally presented during opening ceremonies on Friday, May 23, 2025 at 8:00 PM for Balticon 59, the 59th Maryland Regional Science Fiction Convention. Balticon will take place at the Renaissance Baltimore Harborplace Hotel in Baltimore Maryland. Ms. Lee will participate in the Balticon program across Memorial Day Weekend. Balticon and the Robert A. Heinlein Award are both managed and sponsored by The Baltimore Science Fiction Society, Inc. BSFS thanks The Heinlein Society and the family of Dr. Yoji Kondo for providing funding for this award. The Robert A. Heinlein Award is a sterling silver medallion bearing the image of Robert A. Heinlein, as depicted by artist Arlin Robins. The medallion is matched with a red-white-blue lanyard. In addition, the winner receives two lapel pins for use when a large medallion is impractical, and a plaque describing the award for home or office wall display. The Robert A. Heinlein Award selection committee consists of science fiction writers and was founded by Dr. Yoji Kondo, a long-time friend of Robert and Virginia Heinlein. Members of the original committee were approved by Virginia Heinlein. Virginia Heinlein authorized multiple awards in memory of her husband. Other awards include the Heinlein Prize, which is fully funded by Virginia Heinlein's estate, and a National Space Society award for volunteer projects. More information on the Robert A. Heinlein Award, including past winners, can be found at www.bsfs.org/bsfsheinlein.htm Sharon Lee maintains an official website at https://sharonleewriter.com/ To contact the Heinlein Award liaison at BSFS, email dale@bsfs.org Sharon Lee lives in the town of Waterville in the state of Maine, USA. The Robert A. Heinlein Award was founded by Dr. Yoji Kondo, a long-time friend of Robert and Virginia Heinlein. A grant from the Heinlein Society funds half of the costs associated with the award with additional funding provided by the family of Dr. Kondo. Balticon and the Robert A. Heinlein Award are annual activities of the Baltimore Science Fiction Society. More information on the Robert A. Heinlein Award, including past winners, can be found at https://www.bsfs.org/bsfsheinlein.htm .

< Back Nicole Givens Kurtz Literary Author Nicole Givens Kurtz has been called “a genre polymath who does crime, horror, and Science Fiction and Fantasy (Book Riot).” They’ve named her as one of the 6 Black SFF Indie Writers You Should be Reading, 30 Must-Read SFF Books by Black Authors, and The Best of the West: 8 Alternative History Westerns. She’s a two-time Atomacon Palmetto Scribe Award winner. With over 20 years in publishing, she’s written for Pseudopod, Fiyah, Apex Magazine, White Wolf, The Realm (formerly Serial Box), Subsume, and Baen. Nicole has over 50 published short stories and is the author of the Cybil Lewis and Death Violations cybernoir series as well as the Kingdom of Aves fantasy mystery series. She’s written the critically acclaimed, weird western anthology, Sisters of the Wild Sage: A Weird West Collection. She has conducted workshops for Clarion West online and is the owner of Mocha Memoirs Press. She’s the editor for the groundbreaking SLAY: Stories of the Vampire Noire anthology. Other Socials

< Back Tris Lawrence Literary Author Tris Lawrence has been writing since she was a child, filling notebooks with the worlds, dreams, and voices inside her head. She declared in sixth grade that she wanted to be a writer, started drafting her first novel, and never looked back. When not writing, she is a wife, a mother (to two children, two cats, and a dog), a knitter, a system administrator, a black belt in taekwondo, an avid reader, and a music aficionado. Sleep, she claims, is optional.Tris can be found on most social media platforms as tryslora, talking about writing and fandom in equal measure. She is most active on Bluesky, Tumblr, Pillowfort, and Mastodon. Other Socials

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< Back Tavair Dominque Music Musician Formerly known as The Sagacious Traveler, Tavair Dominque is a singer-songwriter, poet, and author based in Baltimore. His music, available on all streaming platforms, includes Phoenix Rising the Space Cowboy, inspired by BBC’s Doctor Who, about a space cowboy fleeing an inevitable truth. Tavair’s 9-part series, The Sagacious Traveler, blends personal reflection with speculative themes, offering advice to his younger self across timelines, while later entries explore his present self seeking guidance from his future self. His Elliott Sundae series follows a character unraveling fractured realities, lost time, and unspoken connections. This series will appear in Meanderings, his upcoming anthology weaving poetry and speculative fiction, set for release in late 2025. Tavair’s poetry has been featured in the Maryland Bards 2025 Poetry Review, which includes his poem Hilltop Barber Shop. Other Socials

< Back John Appel Literary Author John Appel is a science fiction, fantasy, and RPG adventure writer. Now retired from the IT trenches, he lives with his wife and two adult children smack between downtown Baltimore and downtown Annapolis and makes daily trips to the word mines. His debut novel ASSASSIN’S ORBIT was published by Rebellion in July 2021 and was a finalist for the 2022 Compton Crook Award. John is a graduate of the Viable Paradise workshop and a founding member of the Maryland Space Opera Collective writing group (MD SPOC). Other Socials

< Back Ruthanna Emrys Literary Author Ruthanna Emrys is the author of the Innsmouth Legacy series, including Winter Tide and Deep Roots, and A Half-Built Garden. She writes radically hopeful short stories about religion and aliens and psycholinguistics. She lives in a mysterious manor house on the outskirts of Washington, DC with her wife and their large, strange family. She creates real versions of imaginary foods in her crowded kitchen, gives unsolicited advice, and occasionally attempts to save the world. You can find her at https://www.ruthannaemrys.com, as @r-emrys on Bluesky, and at https://www.patreon.com/ruthannaemrys Other Socials

< Back Catherine Asaro Literary Author Catherine Asaro has written more than 30 books in science fiction, fantasy, and near-future thrillers. She earned her doctorate in chemical physics and masters in physics, both at Harvard. Her works The Quantum Rose and The Spacetime Pool are both Nebula® Award winners. Among her other distinctions, she is a multiple winner of the AnLab from Analog Magazine and the RT BOOKClub Award for “Best Science Fiction Novel.” Her most recent book is The Down Deep. A former ballet and jazz dancer, Catherine has performed on both coasts and in Ohio. As a musician, she performs at various cons and jazz clubs. She has appeared at cons and other venues as a Guest of Honor or author guest in the US and abroad. For more information, see her Facebook page at www.facebook.com/Catherine.Asaro and her patreon page at Patreon.com/CatherineAsaro. Other Socials https://www.patreon.com/CatherineAsaro.

< Back Mike Luoma Literary Author Mike Luoma writes and publishes science fiction and comics, narrates audiobooks, creates the long-running "Glow-in-the-Dark Radio" podcast, and curates the Adult Alternative music mix on WBKM.org radio out of Burlington, Vermont. His Vatican Assassin introduced BC, a killer for the New catholic Church whose story unfolds in Vatican Ambassador and Vatican Abdicator. He recently released a 15th Anniversary Edition of the novel, with an audiobook featuring voice cameos from podcasting luminaries. Info at MikeLuoma.com / glowinthedarkradio.com. Other Socials https://www.glowinthedarkradio.com/