Short film "CHOKE" takes on censorship, loyalty and complicity

Driving the news: "CHOKE" premieres at 5:45pm Thursday at AMC NEWCITY 14 as part of this year's Chicago International Film Festival (CIFF).

• The film screens again at noon on Oct. 24 at the Chicago History Museum.

Zoom in: The writer and co-director stars as Poppy Sanchez, a marketing executive for a "Very Nice Town" where she lives. Sanchez's latest campaign promotes the town's new loyalty test called the CHOKE, which can ban anyone's speech for 24 hours if they're a "bad apple."

What they're saying: Velez says the film is about the threat of censorship, but also about complicity and humanity.

• "We're exploring the ethical question: 'If you saw your friend or neighbor being brutalized, would you speak up?'" Velez tells Axios.
• "And if not, what does that mean for you if, and potentially when, the same evil comes for you?"

Context: Velez and co-directors Kemi Mayomi and Cee Pham shot the short film in Albany Park, Humboldt Park, and the South Side with an entirely Chicago-based crew for about $15,000.

State if play: "CHOKE" is one of more than 60 short films screening at CIFF, after it screened in Los Angeles earlier this year.

• It screens as part of the "City & State Shorts: Journey Within" program, featuring all Chicago-based filmmakers.
• Velez, Mayomi and Pham will attend the screening.

What's next: If "CHOKE" wins at the Chicago International Film Festival, it could qualify for submission to the Oscars.