By Renée Santos
The Hollywood Times
In Mind of Thoughts, Belgian filmmaker Charlotte Verminck crafts an arresting meditation on the mind’s power to both create and destroy. The short, featured at this year’s LA Femme Film Festival, is a hauntingly poetic exploration of self-doubt, identity, and the invisible wars that live inside us.
At the center of the story is Elle Davis, a rising artist on the cusp of her big break — and on the edge of emotional collapse. As she prepares to take a coveted spot at an elite art school, Elle’s thoughts begin to twist and fracture, manifesting into a suffocating inner voice that threatens to undo her. Under the watchful gaze of her mysterious mentor, Ms. Margret, the line between imagination and reality blurs, and what begins as creative ambition spirals into psychological reckoning.
Verminck’s visual storytelling is hypnotic. Through fluid movement, striking use of light and shadow, and dance-infused sequences that mirror the chaos of Elle’s internal state, the film transforms the intangible — intrusive thoughts, self-criticism, fear — into something deeply tactile and raw. Every frame feels intentional, pulling the viewer into the disorienting rhythm of a mind at war with itself.
What elevates Mind of Thoughts beyond its stunning aesthetic is its emotional honesty. Verminck’s artist statement anchors the film’s power: she reminds us that we process roughly 70,000 thoughts a day — and 80% of them are negative. Her film becomes an act of rebellion against that statistic, an invitation to look at failure not as defeat, but as transformation.
As Elle confronts her shadow self, Mind of Thoughts becomes less about destruction and more about reclamation — the courage to face the parts of ourselves we hide, and the beauty that can emerge from doing so.
Mind of Thoughts is an evocative short that lingers long after the screen fades to black — a mirror held up to our own inner noise, and a reminder that sometimes the loudest battles are the ones no one else can see.
Screening Information
This film will be screened at the 21st Annual LA Femme International Film Festival, taking place October 16–19, 2025. The live, in-person festival screenings are held at Regal Cinemas/Regal LA Live, located at 1000 W Olympic Boulevard, Los Angeles, CA 90015 (in Downtown LA).
