

AUSTIN UNDER THE STARS 2025
OFFICIAL SELECTION
SEPT 13, 2025 AT AFS CINEMA

The Tree With No Heart
Aaron Huckleberry
In war-torn Syria, a troubled woman, her idealistic son, and her mentally challenged cousin take in a wounded Western aid worker, unknowingly igniting a chain of deadly consequences that forces them to confront their pasts, their beliefs, and the brutal realities of survival.
Hollywood analysis extracts:
¨This script is an emotional gut punch. The climax is a raw, cathartic unraveling. The final tableau of all ghosts unburied but unhealed is unforgettable. Few scripts demonstrate this degree of emotional depth .¨
¨The tonal control of this screenplay is extraordinary. It walks a tightrope between tenderness and terror, between meditative lyricism and brutal realism. The script understands the emotional and spiritual contradictions of its setting, and it never resorts to melodrama or moralizing.¨
¨A rare and powerful screenplay—sensitive, courageous, and quietly revelatory. It delivers the kind of intimate, slow-burn emotional drama that transcends borders and speaks to human decency in its rawest form.¨
