Short Film Filmed at Congers Lake Set to Screen at Yofi Fest

A local story on invisible disabilities returns to New York

After screenings from New York City to San Diego and Australia, The Sign — the latest short film by Melissa Mars, a French-born, Algerian-rooted, New York–based award-winning filmmaker — will screen at Yofi Fest 2025.The film was shot in the scenic park of Congers Lake, Rockland County.

This film follows the story of a woman who, when a jog through the park turns to panic, finds herself dialing 911. However, things are not always what they seem. 

Praised as “powerful, educational, and profound”, The Sign promises to captivate audiences through its singular perspective.

A dramedy with a unique visual language, the film unfolds entirely from the knees down, never revealing any faces. This immersive mise-en-scène amplifies The Sign’s powerful message about disability awareness and the often unseen realities of invisible disabilities.

Director Melissa Mars had this to say – “Drawn from real-life experience, I made The Sign for the people around me who live with invisible disabilities, conditions too often misunderstood or dismissed simply because they can’t be seen. The film unfolds entirely from the legs down, never revealing any faces. I was inspired by animation techniques that stay at a child’s eye level, building a distinctive atmosphere. This visual constraint creates a sensory, subjective experience that reflects how perception can be limited — how much we see, and how much we miss, when we only look at the surface.

Working with a team that included a service dog and his handler, both with firsthand experience of disability, I wanted to make the unseen visible — to spark empathy, awareness, and a deeper understanding of what it means to move through the world differently.”

Introducing Domino, Service Dog & Actor

The Sign marks the acting debut of Domino, a service dog working alongside his handler who lives with a traumatic brain injury (TBI), an invisible disability in his case.

Domino, a standard poodle born in 2020 in Sun Valley, California, comes from a long lineage of working poodles. He was raised and trained by Canine Support Teams (CST) in Murrieta, CA. After more than a year of foundational training and socialization with CST’s Puppy Raisers, Domino advanced to CST’s Pups in Prison Program, where he was paired with a dedicated inmate trainer.

There, Domino mastered nearly 90 specialized service tasks tailored to different disabilities and needs. Upon completion, he was matched with his handler, who underwent intensive training at CST to become a certified service dog team. Since fall 2021, Domino has been assisting his handler daily in New York.

When offered the role in The Sign, Domino didn’t hesitate, using his talents to help raise awareness about service dogs and the common misconceptions they face in public spaces. He even has now an IMDb page and an Instagram profile!

The Sign has been officially selected at YOFI Fest’s 13th Edition in Yonkers, NY on Saturday, November 15th, 2025 – 4:00 PM – 6:00 PM.