Animation Short – Official Selection – June 2021
Skindeep | United States | 2021 | 09’
Directors: Edi , YUCA, Youth
Writers: Dr. Robert Carter, Ph.D., Jesse Lee, Grace Taylor, Beth Beijos, Ysabel Cacho, Bernardo Romero, Kim Barke, Amy Fortunato, Ingrid Silva, Marília Mafé, Marília Marz, Ana Cardoso
Producers: Lu Krasa, Aline Buzi
Cast: Micha Logan, Grace Taylor, Susan O’Doherty, Judy Lewis, Michael Sailors, Kaizo Kim, Sandra Nelson, Piper Sobel, Dr. Macheo Payne
Synopsis: An animated short film that brings race-based trauma to the surface.
Stolen. | United States | 2021 | 03’
Director: Christina Giordano
Cast: Magdalene Raith
Synopsis: Where do stolen items go? This film brings you on a journey from who and where stolen items could have gone.
Hand | Hong Kong | 2021 | 06’
Director: Tsz Wing Ho
Synopsis: “Hand” is a 2D abstract animation which is accompanied by the song, “Sekktortjek” composed by Mads Lindgren. The idea of the work is to present the weird beauty of hand creatures composed of gestures, geometric shapes and abstract patterns in order to create a surreal journey for the audience. The creatures undergo different transformations such as phenakistoscopes in synchrony with the music.
Blood Swim | Hong Kong | 2021 | 08’
Director: Junjie Zhang
Writers: Junjie Zhang , Xu Zhou
Producers: Weird Power Creative , Junjie Zhang
Synopsis: At a bar, hard-to-get Amy finds her match, the charming Ken who has a blue light coming from his chest. At Ken’s tropical mansion with a private pool, Amy swims to her heart’s content and Ken devotedly serves her poolside refreshments. Her new perfect life is disturbed when a mysterious figure appears, and Ken’s attentions begin to dwindle. After a dubious sexual encounter with Ken, Amy is led by the mysterious figure to a secret place, where she discovers the truth of the blue light.
Fly Away | United Kingdom | 2021 | 03’
Synopsis: When a boy has some kitchen trouble little did he know that he would come in contact with the one that he falls in love with. “Fly Away” is a story created and animated during the UK COVID-19 pandemic and the times we lived in made people think more creatively and openly about communication and appreciate those around them more. Even when distance is an issue, love will find a way.
Homeward Clown | United States | 2021 | 06’
Director: Allison R Power
Synopsis: A lost clown travels across trouble stricken 1930’s America to reunite with his circus family.
The Cookie Cutter | United States | 2020 | 09’
Director: David Rocco Facchini
Producer: Dellarocco Studios
Synopsis: With bathing suit season just around the corner, Steve needs to put his sweet-tooth for cookies in check! But when an ambitious Cookie Scout darkens his doorway, dead-set on the sale, it becomes the ultimate battle of the bulge!
Kandittundu (Seen it) | India | 2021 | 12’
Director: Adithi Krishnadas
Producer: Nilima Eriyat
Synopsis: The ever-vibrant Mr. P. N. K Panicker has several shockers up his sleeve. He takes the viewer along a moonlit stroll and paints a quirky picture of the supernatural encounters he has had.
Girl and Robot | Ireland | 2020 | 12’
Director: Joe Loftus
Writer: Joe Loftus
Synopsis: ‘Girl and Robot’ follows the story of a traumatized young girl who is chased across the desert by officers of the state. On her way, she meets a Robot who is afraid of being left alone. As the pursuers catch up, the Girl and the Robot must work together to survive.
The Call | France | 2021 | 05’
Director: Gabriel Vuillemin
Writer: Gabriel Vuillemin
Synopsis: Some time after cities fell, spirits and creatures live silently among the ruins and few electronic artefacts…
First Class Ticket | United States | 03’
Director: Mike Schneberg
Writer: Mike Schneberg
Synopsis: An alien robot escapes the monotony on its home planet, only be to sucked back into it again on another.
Symfaunic | United States | 2021 | 08’
Directors: Erin Bergin, Darby Kate Snyder
Synopsis: A young faun challenges the harmony of her forest glade when her new taste in music clashes with her brother’s teachings.
Children Short – Official Selection – June 2021
Forget Me Not | United States | 2021 | 08’
Directors: Courtney LeBlanc, Saige Guevara
Writers: Saige Guevara , Courtney LeBlanc, Paula Navarro
Synopsis: In an attempt to preserve her legacy, a cartoon classic wages war on her rebooted counterpart.
Circle in a Square | Ireland | 2021 | 05’
Director: Cillian Grant
Writer: Cillian Grant
Producer: BCFE
Synopsis: In a grey and dull world, Stan Pavlova still believes there is colour and wonder to be found.
Honey Drop | United States | 2021 | 03’
Director: Brandon Lopez
Producer: Brandon Lopez
Synopsis: In the deep, lush forest, an oddball pair of grizzly bears discover an unexpected food source. Unfortunately, one impatient bear makes a rash decision that drops him into a regretful and painful consequence.
Il richiamo dell’aria (The call of the air) | Italy | 2020 | 11’
Director: Valentina Malcotti e Emilio Romeo
Writer: ispirato ad un racconto di Piero Chiara
Producer: SVEVA film
Cast: Sara Sozzoni
Synopsis: Chiara is a little girl who dreams of flying. To make this dream come true she builds a flying machine, with care and precision. The world of adults, however, calls she back to reality. Will she be able to take flight and make her invention work? Inspired by a story by Piero Chiara, “The call of the air” tells the conflict between reality and fantasy, through the gaze of a child…
Commercial/Ad/TVC – Official Selection – June 2021
Fit for the future | Switzerland | 2021 | 02’
Director: Jonas Hofmann
Synopsis: Have you ever seen lawyers jumping around and turning somersaults? For this image film we woke up the inner Super Marios of our clients employees. Making them the protagonists of an adventurous short story in an illustrated game world based on the companies 7 guiding principles (simply effective, simply professional etc.). As a legal expenses insurer, Coop Rechtsschutz (engl.: Coop Legal Protection) is good at solving cases as effectively as possible. Ideally, not in court at all, but early on through skilful mediation. The lawyers and heroes of this story brought their personal talents and style to the set. They stand up for their client against the inflated paper monster. Result: Building and strengthening team play and employer branding. Image building in the sense of Coop Rechtsschutz: simply different.
VooDooSh – “Some Heroes” | United States | 2021 | 01’
Director: Sergio Mishchenko
Writer: Sergio Mishchenko
Synopsis: Commercial for a Heroes of Might and Magic III streamer
Documentary Short – Official Selection – June 2021
Fright Nights | United States | 2021 | 10’
Director: Alexander Henninger
Producer: Alexander Henninger
Cast: Tony Liberatore
Synopsis: The story behind one of America’s largest haunted attractions.
“CONTACT” Requiem for a Word | Canada | 2020 | 08’
Director: Olivier D. Asselin
Writer: Olivier D. Asselin
Producer: Pierre-Mathieu Fortin
Synopsis: An investigation into how language is changing in the age of COVID-19. The complete upheaval of social relationships today is leading to the reinterpretation of certain terms, which have suddenly taken on a fatal connotation. This film is a funeral mass in memory of the word “contact.”
More woman, more cry | Norway | 2021 | 24’
Director: Anne Haugsgjerd
Writer: Anne Haugsgjerd
Producer: Jarle Bjørknes
Synopsis: Anne Haugsgjerd (77), a renowned Norwegian director, reflects in a poetic, provocative and emotional way about entering the last chapter of her life. A naked story about aging, gravity and smoking weed.
Turkish for Almans | Germany | 2021 | 30’
Director: Annika Sehn
Writer: Annika Sehn
Producer: Annika Sehn
Cast: İdil Baydar, Tunay Önder, Vesile Hacıbekiroğlu, Hussen Chaer, Aytac Bahar, Abdul Kenan
Synopsis: English_Deutsch I’ve lived in Germany for such a long time and I still don’t speak any Turkish yet.“ Your children have friends named Mehmet and Ayşe? Your neighbor is gossiping about you in Turkish? You always wanted to impress your friends while ordering kebab? Then this film is just right for you. In addition to lessons and exercises, we go on exciting field trips. We visit Turkish wrestlers, a philosophical commedienne and learn Turkish slang words on the streets of Neukölln. All of this in Germany, right next door. Ihre Kinder haben Freunde, die Mehmet und Ayşe heißen? Sie wollten schon immer mal beim Döner Bestellen ihre Begleitung beeindrucken? Und endlich wissen, was die Jungs an der Ecke auf Türkisch über Sie reden? Dann ist dieser Film genau das Richtige für Sie. Die Moderatorin und Türkei-Expertin Annika Sehn vermittelt Ihnen die Grundlagen der türkischen Sprache, audiovisuell und interaktiv. Dabei steigen Sie in die Gesellschaft der Türkischsprachigen ein: Wir besuchen türkische Wrestler, eine philosophische Kabarettistin und lernen Umgangssprache auf den Straßen Neuköllns. Alles in Deutschland, direkt nebenan.
Limousine | Lithuania | 2021 | 15’
Saulė Bliuvaitė
Saulė Bliuvaitė
Giedrė Burokaitė, Kristina Ramanauskaitė
While driving around in different limousines, passengers unrelated to each other are united by a common destination – the unknown.
Saucy Toinha | Brazil | 2020 | 13’
Director: Sérgio Bloch
Writer: Sérgio Bloch
Producer: Leda Stopazolli and Sérgio Bloch
Synopsis: That Toinha is not just any Bahian, this is evident to those who see her, for the first time, behind her board. What many do not even suspect is that she is the one who makes the palm oil that she uses to prepare her delicacy. She climbs the coconut tree, drops the bunch, cooks the coconuts, macerates in the pestle, and when everything turns into a paste, she separates the liquid from the bagasse in a long manual process. Then it boils the palm again and only then does the oil appear, like a blade, over the water. At night she will serve the dumplings generously stuffed and packed in a banana leaf, which Toinha takes off her feet and prepares over the fire. The business takes a lot of work, but who cares? – “My acarajé has to be perfect. That’s why I do the male and female frills ”- she says proudly.
MUDLARKER | United States | 2021 | 24’
Directors: Miles G. Cohen , Seb Tuinder
Cast: Adele Daly , Merrill Kazanjian
Synopsis: An injured school bus driver forced into retirement scavenges for survival at a radioactive beach in Brooklyn. An ode to aging — Mudlarker follows 66-year-old Adele Daly as she finds a means and a sense of belonging at Dead Horse Bay, a historic landfill littered with junk.
Experimental Short – Official Selection – June 2021
Tautology | United States | 2021 | 05’
Director: Natalie Brown
Writer: Natalie Brown
Producer: Jared Formanek
Cast: Isabel Powell
Synopsis: This film is about goodbyes, changes, and difficult choices to turn away from a religion that brings peace.
A video essay by Victor | Belgium | 2020 | 15’
Disfruté | Brazil | 2021 | 06’
Director: Igor Selingarde
Writer: Igor Selingarde
Producer: Murilo Paiva
Cast: Thatiana Fanucchi , Vinicius Fratti
Synopsis: Would absolute love be what everyone seeks all the time? On this episode of Sophie’s life we see how her mind behaves in anonymous relationships, caught up in this psychic spiral of “who am I”. This vicious cycle of seduction and domination, asphyxiated by feelings of passion and doubt, threatens her mental health through the unceasing search for “Disfruté”. Disfruté means orgasm.
Route_in | Greece | 13’
Director: Nikos Pavlineris
Writer: Nikos Pavlineris
Producer: Nikos Pavlineris
Cast: George Lourakis, Elena Katechi, Lydia Tsirogianni, Daphne Katsarou
Synopsis: Christina, Selini, Vasso and Kostas are four young people who are overwhelmed by a routine that hurts them. What happens when they realize they have no time for themselves?Are they trying to escape from the situation that is hurting them?
2 FEET | United States | 2021 | 07’
Director: KALIE GRANIER
Writer: KALIE GRANIER
Producer: KALIE GRANIER
Synopsis: “2 FEET” explores the aesthetics of macroalgae and their majestic kelp forest through the lives of five women from five continents. This film sits at the intersection of art, science, and ecological conservation, depicting the life power of the underwater forest through women’s prayers. «2 FEET» raises collective consciousness, centering dialogue within living environments to which humans inherently belong while promoting tangible action and response at the intersection of climate change and social justice. This short film is an ode to the giant kelp of the pacific and to ecofeminist. values. Fusing Contemporary Art and Science Using artistic film of kelp to explore how linked patriarchal, colonial, and capitalist systems oppress women and ecological foundation species. In collaboration and dialogue with the scientists from REEF CHECK Foundation and the Musician Gabo Lora.
The Hairy Notion of a Green Afternoon | United Kingdom | 2021 | 06’
Director: Susanne Deeken
Writer: Susanne Deeken
Synopsis: In ’The Hairy Notion of a Green Afternoon’ a mysterious protagonist emerges from elemental energies, leading us on her sensational journey. She (the ‘Ur-Frau’) is a mysterious force, ever-changing, responding to, and even becoming, her encounters with nature. She evolves from the primal shadows of space, takes on the wild freedom of horses and the blinking light of stars to then caress the melancholy power of the sleepy moon. Submerging in the echoed splash of the deep cave pools, she bleeds with the pained prick of a blooming rose. Absorbing the throb of a golden heartbeat, she continues her tale of becoming. Magical creatures accompany her: transmogrifying trees that become bejewelled majesties or the ever-changing fauna that become her cosmos. Her story is that of emotion – felt, rather than told – a tale where the original score pulsates expressively with the visuals’ rhythm. It is a tale of enrichment and empowerment, breathing and oozing nature’s forms and wonders.
AXIOM | United States | 2020 | 02’
Director: Sarah E Harrison
Cast: Aimee Gironimi, Sabrina Azul, Robert Rhodes
Synopsis: In this experimental mixed media narrative, the viewer is taken through the transformative journey accentuating the emphasis of psychological external influence. This piece goes through the thought process of what identity means without the impact of social media, advertisement, news, and societal and cultural norms. To add to the experimental aspect forms of claymation stop-motion and 3D animation/modeling were used.
Jasminum | Lebanon | 2021 | 03’
Director: Lara Rassoul
Writer: Lara Rassoul
Producer: Lili Roman
Synopsis: Nature retaliates after being abused.
Where ill winds blow | Switzerland | 2021 | 09’
Director: Francis Meier
Writer: Francis Meier
Producer: Niza Lou Waldburger
Cast: Adrian Naef
Synopsis: Balthasar wakes up in the cold, in nothingness. After finding refuge in a hut, he begins to remember a past existence.
Mini Short – Official Selection – June 2021
The World’s Greatest Home | Canada | 2021 | 03’
Director: Zubair Pradhan
Writer: Zubair Pradhan
Producer: Zubair Pradhan, Altaf Pradhan
Synopsis: The ‘World’s Greatest Home’ is a beautiful story about the journey of two children from remarkably different backgrounds and the exquisite world they build together. Set in Guerrero, Mexico, it begins with the protagonist Levi, a child separated from his family in Guerrero, who is now forced to scrummage through scraps to put a meal on his table. As he encounters David, a hometown boy from a seemingly high income family, he is introduced to a stunning world filled with superheroes, delicious food, swimming pools, amusement games and lots of color.
Limerence | United Kingdom | 2021 | 03’
Director: Sayna Fardaraghi
Cast: Djenaba ‘Damsel’ Davis-Eyo, Casey Ward, Isra Mohamed Said, Cameron Strick, Arjemaine Espinosa, Mina Cuffwright, Stephanie Choi
Synopsis: Micro-short film exploring unsent love letters and the feeling of Limerence.
r e L I E f | Brazil | 2021 | 04’
Director: Leonardo Aiello
Writers: Leonardo Aiello, Luiz Gustavo Auricchio
Producers: Murilo Paiva, Felipe Zamberlan
Cast: Daniela Cury, Thais Piza
Synopsis: The relief felt in the past becomes a void in the present, that can only be perceived by a level o maturity. The story is presented by the vision of a woman that searches for relief throughout her entire existence. Her craziness mingles with the purest feelings, like love, and all of this is personified within her mind.
The Hunter | United Kingdom | 2021 | 02’
Directors: Michael Bird, Rafe Bird
Writers: Michael Bird, Rafe Bird
Producers: Michael Bird, Rafe Bird
Cast: Rafe Bird
Synopsis: A time traveller lays dead at the bottom of a flight of stairs. In his final moments he fondly remembers his ‘deathmatch through time and space’ against his formidable arch nemesis.
Jasminum | Lebanon | 2021 | 03’
Director: Lara Rassoul
Writer: Lara Rassoul
Producer: Lili Roman
Cast: Nature retaliates after being abused.
Mobile Phone Short – Official Selection – June 2021
Negatives | Australia | 2021 | 15’
Director: Jimmy Gannon
Writer: Jimmy Gannon
Producer: Jimmy Gannon
Cast: Jimmy Gannon, Laura Gannon, Jayd Isaacs, Guy Fairbourn, Kate Field
Synopsis: When a darkroom technician cancels plans with friends to go to work, he quickly learns what happens when the negatives of his decisions catch up with him.
Chase!! | Japan | 2021 | 03’
Directors: Hiroki Kawanami, Tommaso Barbetta
Writers: Hiroki Kawanami, Tommaso Barbetta
Producer: Hiroki Kawanami
Cast: Hiroki Kawanami, Yuichi Yarita, Aimee
Synopsis: A thief steals phone from a guy, then this peculiar and astonishing chase begins!
Jasminum | Lebanon | 2021 | 03’
Director: Lara Rassoul
Writer: Lara Rassoul
Producer: Lili Roman
Synopsis: Nature retaliates after being abused.
Music Video – Official Selection – June 2021
Bloom | Australia | 2021 | 05’
Director: Tim Eather
Producers: Tim Eather, Gemma Robinson
Cast: Gemma Robinson , Ria Roseau, Monique Pearson, Helena Paplos
Synopsis: The official Music Video for the single ‘Bloom’ by artist Ameera. A moody, experimental and cinematic exploration of the beauty to be found in the cycles of life and death mirroring and interacting with one another.
LET IT OUT / Stay Homas | Spain | 2020 | 04’
Director: Ben Woolf
Producer: Nick Bolger
Cast: Guillem Boltó, Klaus Stroink, Rai Benet
Synopsis: Animated music video for Barcelona break-out/lock-down band Stay Homas. First single release from their first studio album.
Monamour – Just Like This (ft. Jana) | Russian Federation | 2021 | 06’
Director: ALEKSANDR SEROV
Writer: ALEKSANDR SEROV
Producer: ALEKSANDR SEROV
Synopsis: Hi! Whatever happens in our lives we should dance with this lyrical song. This video is a fantasy about crazy life in Russia in near future. Including main problems in our country.
Beyond the River | United States | 2020 | 02’
Director: Wen-Chun Cheng
What Remains | Switzerland | 2021 | 05’
Director: Stefan Fitzner
Writer: Stefan Fitzner
Producers: Release me, I’m Restless Productions, LIONLION
Cast: Michael Rückert, Matthias Rückert, Andre Bayer, David Laplant
Synopsis: “What Remains” is a narrative-driven music video about a renowned Quantum Physicist who disappears after an alleged routine test in a research facility. His brother, left behind, struggles to keep his sanity while in pursuit of finding his twin brother. After almost going mad, he has a sneaking suspicion and tries the impossible… unaware that the effect might be the cause for his brother’s disappearance. Because everything is interconnected.
Jordan Hart – “Freedom” | Canada | 2021 | 06’
Directors: Michael Joseph McDonald, Joe Bluhm
Writers: Michael Joseph McDonald, Joe Bluhm
Producer: Michael Joseph McDonald
Synopsis: Freedom tells the coming-of-age story of a boy with Down Syndrome who learns to navigate the world with a loving mother, an absent father, a classroom bully, and a life-long crush.
Get Closer | Brazil | 2020 | 06’
Director: Lucas Orsini
Writer: Rosy Ribeiro
Producers: Rosy Ribeiro, Natania Borges, Vaine, Davi The Producer
Cast: Davi The Producer, Vaine, Natania Borges, Alexandre Roiz, Ana Flávia, Lang Soares, Renata Almeida
Synopsis: Get Closer (Encosta) is the audiovisual result of a diasporic encounter where creative creatures gather around a musical performance that screams in chorus for freedom. The video clip tells the story of a meeting between different artists that, almost inevitably, results in the succession of events that we witness in a very dynamic sequence plan. Like the rain, the expression of each individual inevitably comes to the fore, through singing, dancing and musical composition. It represents the journey of black bodies that defend their existence in an vigorous and irreverent way, for the simple fact of being there, doing what they were born to do. Set in an apparently cozy house, the video clip suggests that we can call home everything that shelters us and serves as a fruitful environment for creation.
First Class Ticket | United States | 03’
Director: Mike Schneberg
Writer: Mike Schneberg
Synopsis: An alien robot escapes the monotony on its home planet, only be to sucked back into it again on another.
Favourite | Italy | 2021 | 05’
Director: Martin Basile
Writers: Martin Basile, Giovanni Marinaro
Producers: Martin Basile, Giovanni Marinaro
Cast: Vittorio Saldutti, Lorenza Rogna
Synopsis: A young man is driving. His girlfriend, from the backseat, teases him. When he turns the look, she’s not there anymore.
Narrative Short – Official Selection – June 2021
Where the stars don’t go out | Latvia | 2021 | 12’
Director: Gerri Pavloff
Writer: Henry Keen
Producer: Masha Fridman
Cast :Rihards Lepers, Andis Strods, Inita Sondore, Nikita Osipovs, Lauma Alberta, Rubens Povilaitis
Synopsis: An exquisite restaurant’s Chef and his crew are quite nerveous, they are expecting a famous food critic’s visit. The critic arrives and orders a Chateaubriand steak. The Chef cooks and decorates the course personally, meeting the highest standards of the craft. When the scrupulous critic announces his verdict, the Chef’s lucky star is about to go out forever. Devastated, the Chef returns home, keeping what happened to himself, but his family doesn’t need the words to understand the sadness that’s about him. The Chef is yet to discover a place where the stars do not go out…
While the tree tops dance | Denmark | 2021 | 16’
Director: My Hyttel
Writer: My Hyttel
Producer: Simone Scholte Randazzo
Cast: Karla Løkke, My Laub
Synopsis: When Freya meets her childhood friend, Gry, after 10 years apart she is overwhelmed with nostalgia, but she soon realises that Gry is dealing with a gloomy side of life that Freya has never seen before. Her warm childhood memories are shredded to pieces as she is forced to reconsider all she knows about her past.
MAMA | Canada | 2021 | 10’
Director: John Edwards
Writer: John Edwards
Producers: Sam Graham, Kyle Mac
Cast: Juana Samper, Indiana Edwards
Synopsis: A mother and son struggle to survive in a vast wilderness, exploring the divine connection between motherhood and mother-earth. A Spanish Language short film, starring a real life mother & son, written and directed by their husband and father. Filmed off the coast of Vancouver Island, Canada. Created by Canadian, Colombian & Maltese filmmakers.
And then, the silence | France | 2020 | 18’
Director: Lucas Trochet
Writer: Lucas Trochet
Producer: Idris Lettifi
Cast: Igor Kovalsky, Constantin Vidal, Riton Liebman, Matthieu Dessertine
Synopsis: Breton coast. The storm season has started. Matthias, in his twenties, kills himself on the job in the small family farm, waiting for the recognition of his father. As we prepare to celebrate the annual procession of the Virgin in the village, Hugo, his brother, comes back home.
Pub Kid | United Kingdom | 2020 | 04’
Director: Liam Young
Writer: Liam Young
Producer: Mollie Bromfield
Cast: Archie Hine, Denny Hodge
Synopsis: What happens when your local playground becomes your local pub? Pie-eyed parents, lairy locals and awkward situations for a child in an adult world. Pub Kid is yet again spending his school night in the pub. His parents are getting lairy with the other locals and Pub Kid clearly doesn’t want to be there. As Pub Kid explores the pub, he encounters multiple different people and situations that are extremely awkward. Meanwhile, an elderly local is observing from the bar and talking to the audience about what Pub Kid is probably thinking, all whilst reflecting on his own youth.
Deus Ex Machina | France | 2021 | 21’
Director: Langlois Jessy
Writer: Langlois Jessy
Producer: Langlois Jessy
Cast: Leeb Tom, Charmetant Christian, Coppin Dorcas
Synopsis: A young adult goes looking for his biological father. He’ll understand, when he finds out, that his daddy never ran away as he was told. His father suffers from a very little-known disease: Prosopagnosia, an inability to recognize faces. Even if he would regularly meet his son in the street, he would be unable to know who he is. In spite of everything, father and son will end up and help each other.
TOTEM | United States | 2021 | 20’
Director: Luka Tartaglia
Writer: Luka Tartaglia
Producer: Mario Coletti
Cast: Luka Tartaglia, Kyle Anderson, Janis Valdez, James Yevak, David Malek, Enisha Brewster, Austin Willis, Carter Dau, Kisha Sharon Oglesby, Mattia Minasi
Synopsis: After a difficult childhood, two adopted brothers, an Italian and an American, move to Hollywood to become actors, but soon realize that dreams are very different from reality. Getting back on a path of crime is the only way to raise enough money to produce their own movie, but hard choices come at a big cost…
Concrete Rose | United States | 2021 | 20’
Director: Khalid Sena
Writer: Ramesh Mulberry
Producer: Queens Films
Cast: Doron Je’Paul Mitchell, Mariko Takai
Synopsis: Marcus a recently released Ex con has difficulties integrating back into his ever-changing community. He quickly becomes enticed to return to his old life but meets an older woman who welcomes him to work in a garden where he finds redemption and peace.
No/Low Budget – Official Selection – June 2021
Rebirth of Venus | Netherlands | 2021 | 10’
Director: Robin Noorda
Writer: Robin Noorda
Producer: Robin Noorda
Synopsis: Rebirth of Venus is a short arthouse film by filmmaker and artist Robin Noorda, realised in stop-motion animation. This experimental film is based on a poem by Noorda about inequality and oppression. He addresses an array of manifestations of oppression causing the exploitation of nature and violation of human rights and especially women’s rights. In Noorda’s view, all these phenomena of oppression have a common denominator… The dilapidated and overgrown Piranesi-style buildings are inspired by the iconic architecture of two of the most totalitarian and predatory regimes in European history: the Roman Forum and the concrete structures of Nazi architect Albert Speer. In this magical-realistic setting, insect-like optical instruments create feminine statues that come to life. The miniature set is made of polystyrene packing material. Noorda was inspired by the architectural potential of some of the shapes in the waste material and decided to reuse it. It is a zero budget film.
ĀMRA | Israel | 2020 | 09’
Producer: Imri Agmon
Synopsis: Imri, an Israeli army veteran quests to rural Vietnam, and in an unforgettable encounter with an old Buddhist monk, learns the true meaning of happiness.
Scene from a friendship | Norway | 2021 | 10’
Director: Mia Jensen
Writer: Mats Eldøen
Producers: Beathe Hofseth, Mia Jensen, Mats Eldøen
Cast: Camilla Klaudiussen, Mathias Luppichini
Synopsis: Her and Him spends an evening at home. He rehearses piano, she is writing lyrics to a new song. A call makes her challenge him to write something with her, to push him out of his comfort zone. Together they move into a new terrain and they literally create sweet music together. Afraid of letting go, she escapes the situation by telling that she just got news that she’s leaving for NYC in two weeks. Disappointed by the rejection, he retracts into his shell. She is a songwriter and he is a classical pianist. He is a morning person, she has no idea what person she is. She dances without irony, he never dances. She eats leftovers, he prepares meals for the entire week. They don’t match, but still hang out all the time. When she decides to challenge his rules of living, they step into something new – something more. But dare they stay? Do they dare to let go of who they think they have to be?
Jasminum | Lebanon | 2021 | 03’
Director: Lara Rassoul
Writer: Lara Rassoul
Producer: Lili Roman
Synopsis: Nature retaliates after being abused.
The Hunter | United Kingdom | 2021 | 02’
Directors: Michael Bird, Rafe Bird
Writers: Michael Bird, Rafe Bird
Producers: Michael Bird, Rafe Bird
Cast: Rafe Bird
Synopsis: A time traveller lays dead at the bottom of a flight of stairs. In his final moments he fondly remembers his ‘deathmatch through time and space’ against his formidable arch nemesis.
Short Comedy – Official Selection – June 2021
CABU CABU 011 | Italy | 2019 | 15’
Director: Matteo Silvan
Writer: Alberto Dessimone
Producer: Fabrizio Daffara
Cast: Gianni Bissaca, Rosanna Sparapano, Jacob Bamba
Synopsis: Mamadou is a Senegalese young man living in Turin working as a cabu-cabu, a kind of abusive taxi driver used exclusively by the African community. Sometimes Mamadou is forced to accept extra work for dangerous friends. One day, he has to deliver a suspect bag across the city, but is distracted by the sight of Aaida, a beautiful girl of Nigerian origin. Meeting the looks of the two young men will kick off a series of encounters and confrontations with other people who will get on the yellow-gold taxi of Mamadou by delaying the delivery of the bag. When the day is over, Mamadou will lose his beloved taxi and go home on foot with Ernesto, a new friend, and perhaps with a future appointment with Aaida.
Celestine | Austria | 2021 | 18’
Director: Denis Pejovic
Writer: Denis Pejovic
Producer: Denis Pejovic
Cast: Peter Moucka, Rita Radinger, Max Konrad, Rafael Wagner, Marco Otoya
Synopsis: A conservative and old pensioner tries to seduce a young and graceful woman named Celestine who lives next door and is his tenant. He causes a water pipe burst in her apartment and offers her one of his rooms to stay overnight. Unexpectedly, the same water pipe burst happens in another apartment and Celestine makes the same offer to the romantic and dreamy young Jonas who then also moves in. Both men fight for the same woman.
Whole Milk | United States | 2021 | 06’
Director: Ian Michel Phillips
Writer: Ian Michel Phillips
Producer: Da Eun Kim
Cast: Davi Armanino, Emily Gottlich, Ian Michel Phillips, Leonidas Nazari Michel, Trish Phillips
Synopsis: Ryan Hostetter has been enamored by the world inside his fridge since he was young. Now unemployed and struggling to embrace his adult life, Ryan takes one last interview for his dream job. A job inside his fridge.
Short Dance/Musical – Official Selection – June 2021
Moving Barcelona | United Kingdom | 2021 | 07’
Director: Jevan Chowdhury
Writer: Jevan Chowdhury
Synopsis: Moving Barcelona is a magical realist dance story about the Catalonian capital, an autonomous region in the Spanish State contending with an identity crisis. A city with everything going for it is still haunted by the ghosts of its past and despite much progress, it finds itself unearthing old wounds. Narrated by celebrated actor, Pep Munné, who appeals for calm, there is a sense of reassurance that all is okay. The movement of the city however tells a different story, and he is resigned to the fact that things inevitably, are the way they are. Barcelonians, in pursuit of happiness, find themselves on a treadmill to nowhere in a tale of modern day life. Moving Barcelona is the eighth film in an award-winning collection of works by the London-based film-maker, Jevan Chowdhury to capture the world as a stage. Life on the street in London, Paris, Brussels, Dallas, Prague, Yerevan and Athens have all been recorded in this growing canon.
ALEZAN | France | 2021 | 08’
Director: Loïc Faquet
Writer: LOÏC FAQUET
Cast: ALIZEE DUVERNOIS
Synopsis: A woman in a wedding dress finds herself in a stable. As her intimacy is being disturbed, she starts wondering about the possibility to choose her own destiny.
Short Drama – Official Selection – June 2021
Enemy Blood | Denmark | 2021 | 30’
Director: Klaus Hjuler
Writer: Klaus Hjuler
Producer: Jannick Raunow
Cast: Oliver Due, Caspar Phillipson, Ken Vedsegaard, Peter Zhelder
Synopsis: Finn is a member of a resistance group in Nazi occupied Denmark. His group gets an assignment to kill a Danish Nazi collaborator, and Finn volunteers for the assassination squad. But Finn has a secret that has very personal consequences.
Sita | India | 2021 | 19’
Director: Abhinav Singh
Writer: Abhinav Singh
Producers: Sibasis Nayak, Dayanidhi Dahima, Abhinav SIngh
Cast: Om Kanojiya, Shriya Pilgaonkar, Lilliput, Deveshh Ranjan, Trishaan
Synopsis: Sita is a story of a young 11 year old dalit boy who finds a dead newborn baby girl in the streets. All he wishes to do now is give her a respectful cremation.
Antarvasna | India | 2020 | 15’
Director: Abhinav Singh
Writer: Abhinav Singh
Producers: Sibasis Nayak, Dayanidhi Dahima, Abhinav Singh
Cast: Shivani Tanksale, Sanjaay Khapare, Sreenika Patwardhan, Pankaj Avadhesh Shukla, Shriya Pilgaonkar, Voiceover
Synopsis: A middle class housewife in her late 30’s struggles to find time to masturbate.
Restless | Denmark | 2015 | 29’
Director: Asger Krøjer Kallesøe
Writer: Asger Krøjer Kallesøe
Producer: Maja Dyekjær
Cast: Sarah Boberg, Elliot Hove, Sophie Zinkernagel, Esben Dalgaard
Synopsis: Tinna, herself a recovering long time drug user, has her heroin addicted son living with her in her rehabilitative “half-way home”. As Tinna gets a job, she decides its time for her son to move out.
Spark | Australia |2020 | 10’
Director: Sophie Hawkshaw
Writers: Madeleine Jurd & Tanna Nankivell
Producers: Madeleine Jurd & Tanna Nankivell
Cast: Madeleine Jurd, Brendan Donoghue, Amanda Maple-brown, Tanna Nankivell, Nick Barraclough
Synopsis: After catching a glimpse of life away from her family farm Jean, an adventurous teen decides whether to continue coming back or forge a new path for herself.
Unforgettable | Japan | 2021 | 22’
Director: Junki Tachibana
Writer: Junki Tachibana
Producers: Ryosuke Yamashita, Akiyoshi Ohkuma
Cast: Taro, Sena , Norihiko , Koji , Chiona , Miku, Banjyo
Synopsis: A story of two brothers. The protagonist, Shinji, has led an unhappy life due to his criminal brother. As his brother is about to be released from prison, Shinji is worried about how to deal with his brother in the future. His fiancée, his mother who is trying to break off her relationship with his brother, and people who knew the two of them when they were children are all part of Shinji’s complicated environment. As his life progresses, it becomes increasingly difficult for him to control the memories and thoughts that he wants to forget but cannot. The bond with his brother that remains deep in his heart shakes Shinji passionately. Will he break off his relationship with his brother, or will he take his brother’s hand? A conflict without a clear answer runs through Shinji’s mind. This is a story that makes you think about what it means to live with someone you love, and what happiness means to you. It is a story that makes you think.
First Contact | Germany | 2021 | 12’
Director: Nils Witt
Writer: Nils Witt
Producer: Witt
Cast: Loredana Linglauf, Aylin Öcal, Francisco Akudike, Michael Ophelders
Synopsis: Lilly arrives for the first aid course way too late and provokes with her behaviour the teacher Mr. Grimm. Especially since she has actually only eyes for her classmate Noah. Her classmate Susan, on the other hand, is top of the class and is interested in Lilly herself. Meanwhile, Mr. Grimm wants to convey the teaching content, Lilly tries to get in touch with Noah, but Susan deliberately and the teacher unintentionally try to thwart this every time…
Deus Ex Machina | France | 2021 | 21’
Director: Langlois Jessy
Writer: Langlois Jessy
Producer: Langlois Jessy
Cast: Leeb Tom, Charmetant Christian, Coppin Dorcas
Synopsis: A young adult goes looking for his biological father. He’ll understand, when he finds out, that his daddy never ran away as he was told. His father suffers from a very little-known disease: Prosopagnosia, an inability to recognize faces. Even if he would regularly meet his son in the street, he would be unable to know who he is. In spite of everything, father and son will end up and help each other.
When the Ocean met a Whale | Republic of Korea | 2020 | 24’
Director: Min Kyung Won
Writer: Min Kyung Won
Directors: Park Ho Young, Kim Ki Yong
Cast: Hwang Jung Yoon, Kim Hyun Jin, Yoo Yeon
Synopsis: Ji-young, who dreamed of becoming a travel writer, works as a civil servant in the office while compromising with reality. She lives a boring everyday life. Then one day, she gets pickpocketed on her way to deposit money in the bank, and gets help from Hyuk-jin, who works as a petition police officer at the bank. After that day, they come across at cafes, restaurants, and bookstores around them. Ji-young and Hyuk-jin often encounter each other, and they feel strange feelings. Meanwhile, Ji-young sees the ex-lover who came to Hyuk-jin and becomes jealous and realizes that she loves Hyuk-jin. Ji-young gradually decides to become a travel writer in search of her true dream and confesses love to Hyuk-jin.
Where ill winds blow | Switzerland | 2021 | 09’
Director: Francis Meier
Writer: Francis Meier
Producer: Niza Lou Waldburger
Cast: Adrian Naef
Synopsis: Balthasar wakes up in the cold, in nothingness. After finding refuge in a hut, he begins to remember a past existence.
Short Fantasy/Sci-Fi – Official Selection – June 2021
Help3 | France | 2019 | 16’
Director: Janek TARKOWSKI
Writers: Janek TARKOWSKI, Valentine THOMASSET
Producer: Quentin DANIEL
Cast: Gérard CHAILLOU, Clément BARTHELET, Juliette GERNEZ, Guillaume DENAIFFE
Synopsis: Nicolas, a pensioner fond of his independence, loses his autonomy following a heart attack. This results in his son, Gabriel, imposing on him a robot to assist him in his daily life, but Gabriel may have taken a thoughtless decision…
Red String of Fate | Canada | 2021 | 11’
Directors: Lovina Yavari , Lance Fernandes
Writer: Onna Chan
Producers: Lovina Yavari, Onna Chan
Cast: Onna Chan, Lovina Yavari, Jason MacMullin, Melinda Shankar
Synopsis: In the year 2090, a robotics engineer tries to bring her fallen lover back to life.
TAKE ME. | United States | 2020 | 28’
Director: Kenneth Bordes-Hollon
Writer: Kenneth Bordes-Hollon
Producer: Michelle Jennings, Andrew Jennings
Cast: Shanelle Hudson, Melvin Mogoli
Synopsis: When someone finds a chair that can take them anywhere, in any time, they search for a way to change fate.
Whole Milk | United States | 2021 | 06’
Director: Ian Michel Phillips
Writer: Ian Michel Phillips
Producer: Da Eun Kim
Cast: Davi Armanino, Emily Gottlich, Ian Michel Phillips, Leonidas Nazari Michel, Trish Phillips
Synopsis: Ryan Hostetter has been enamored by the world inside his fridge since he was young. Now unemployed and struggling to embrace his adult life, Ryan takes one last interview for his dream job. A job inside his fridge.
Short Horror – Official Selection – June 2021
Fury | Serbia |2021 | 25’
Director: Petar Ristovski
Writer: Nada Savič
Producers: Nada Savić , Miloš Pavlović , Lazar Ristovski
Cast: Teodora Ristovski
Synopsis: Fury, the Goddess of revenge, returns to Earth to save her past self, the seven-year-old girl Mia who is kidnapped and is to be sold. Mija’s memories are being erased in a special chamber at the edge of the city. While the clock is ticking, the Fury chases those responsible and confronts them with their sins: greed, addiction, fear, lust. Their sins kill them, one by one.
Effigy | Australia | 2021 | 08’
Director: Connor Clarke
Writer: Connor Clarke
Producer: Connor Clarke
Cast: Connor Clarke
Synopsis: People have evolved to rely on the internet to keep us entertained with endless content but with the internet come anonymity and a sense of security some use to torment others online. But what happens when cryptid predators evolve to use this technological dependence against the keyboard warriors who hide in the dark! Be careful who are you are online. Effigy, a horror short written by Connor Clarke.
Short Thriller/Mystery – Official Selection – June 2021
The Confession Of Beuningen | Netherlands | 2020 | 06’
Director: Arjen Schotel
Writer: Arjen Schotel
Producer: Robin Bruinsma
Cast: Jack Wouterse, Nikki Kuis
Synopsis: “The Confession of Beuningen” is about Marius van Beuningen. A man with two sides who has done things that daylight cannot bear. For once he makes his confession. But isn’t it too late?
Hydra | Canada | 2021 | 23’
Director: Olivier Ross-Parent
Writer: Olivier Ross-Parent
Producer: Alana La Rosa-Dancoste
Cast: Patrick Abellard, Lucas DiTecco, Maryline Chery, Ricardo Gomez, Haïtam Alam
Synopsis: Hoping to turn things around for himself and his family, Daniel, a pathological liar, takes risks that only the person he believes himself to be could pull off.
Stop Motion – Time Lapse – Official Selection – June 2021
Reprisal | Turkey | 2020 | 04’
Director: Boral Kambay
Writer: Boral Kambay
Producers: Özgür Akbaş , Boral Kambay
Synopsis: Nature’s retaliation tells about the relationship between nature – humans and that any damage done to nature is a return to human beings. As a result of Humans’ destruction of harmless creatures, plants and biodiversity over time, nature retaliates and creates a virus that destroys first the habitat and then the humanity.
Gyoro goes to the theater | Japan | 2021 | 04’
Director: Shoichi “DAVID” Haruyama
Writer: Amon Miyamoto
Producers: Noriko Matsumoto(dwarf), Shunsuke Kojima(xpd), Yuzo Kajiyama(HoriPro), Kaoru Ikawa(HoriPro)
Cast: Takeshi Kaga, Megumi Hamada, Hayato Kakizawa, Kairu Nakamura
Synopsis: Covid-19 has shuttered theaters everywhere. We made this short film as an ode to the power of the theater, and the lifetime of memories that stay with us after every performance. This is a heartwarming story about a boy Takuto and his family. While helping his family for packing, Takuto found a pair of mysterious opera glasses from a piled-up cardboard box which turns out to be his grandma’s relic. The magical opera glasses named ‘Gyoro’ suddenly came to life when Takuto touched it. Gyoro brings back happy memories to grandpa and mom of going to theaters with grandma. With Gyoro, Takuto gradually becomes fascinated by the world of theater.
Student Short – Official Selection – June 2021
Artifact | Nigeria | 2021 | 05’
Synopsis: We follow an object, transformed through its interactions with humans across time. In conceptualising the film, I wanted to portray the passage of time, the immensity of its length in comparison to our lives. The things we do, create, and the actions we take can outlive us several times over.
White, Black and True Love | Slovenia | 2021 | 06’
Director: Anja Paternoster
Writer: Anja Paternoster
Producer: University of Nova Gorica School of Arts
Cast: Lina Akif, Anja Möderndorfer, Klemen Kovačič, Nina Ivanišin, Klemen Janežič
Synopsis: Two lines, white representing the female and black representing the male, move across the body. They show different emotions which paints us a love relationship. The lines differ in speed and color. They are faced with various trials. Through a life journey they experience a whole range of different emotions. Even at their lowest they don’t surrender but persist with their journey to a goal that is to understand the meaning of the words ‘true love’.
Leaks in Exposure | Germany | 2021 | 20’
Director: Katharina Nesterowa
Writer: Katharina Nesterowa
Producer: Katharina Nesterowa
Cast: Thea Rasche, Merve
Synopsis: When the young translator Medya is threatened by her family at night, she takes refuge in the apartment with her boss Nina, a war journalist.Over time, the isolation and proximity lead to an escalation revealing the different privileges of both women. The film negotiates the margins in the relationship of two women between work, friendship and love. Cultural differences and definitions of freedom blur the boundaries between power, dependence and desire.
मेरा भाई_My Brother | India | 22’
Director: Shreela Agarwal
Writer: Daniel Yang, Shreela Agarwal
Producer: Wong Jade Xin
Cast: Aditya Srivastava, Syah Riszuan Bin Huslan
Synopsis: Ram, an undocumented Indian-Muslim immigrant is working in the cemetery alongside a young, illegal Indonesian immigrant trying to make ends meet in Singapore. Suddenly, the police arrive.
A Silent Song | Hungary | 2020 | 15’
Director: Dora Laszlo-Gulyas
Writers: Dora Laszlo-Gulyas, Bartek Pietryka
Producers: Maciej Ślesicki, Dora Laszlo-Gulyas
Cast: Maciej Piasny, Leonard Gorgoń, Olga Pacyga, Anastazja Pazura
Synopsis: A young, talented musician decides to reconnect with his estranged deaf sister by composing a song dedicated to her. One that will symbolically “solve” their unresolved conflict from childhood. Time is really not on his side…for soon, he, too, will go deaf. Now – as he enters the world of his deaf sister he refused to understand up till now – he finds his true voice in silence…along with a way for both of them to start anew.
Eden | Belgium | 2020 | 17’
Director: Sven Spur
Writer: Sven Spur
Producer: Sven Spur
Cast: Mustaf Ahmeti, Vincent van Driessche
Synopsis: A restless young man roves in the gay hotspots of a metropolis. Anonymous places dressed in mirrors, intense colors and kitschy decors are the landscape for this stranger in search of comfort, connection and himself.
Secret Places | New Zealand | 2021 | 15’
Director: Nicole Chen
Writer: Nicole Chen
Producer: Kelly Chen
Cast: Melissa Xiao
Synopsis: A false sexual assault accused by an Asian teen who wants to take charge of her and her mother’s life, soon discovers the empowerment she gained is short-lived.
Master | Russian Federation | 2021 | 14’
Director: Margarita Titova
No Limits | Israel | 2021 | 21’
Director: Uriya Kapach
Writer: Uriya Kapach
Producer: Uriya Kapah & the Film & TV Track at Ariel University’s School of Communication. Israel
Cast: Shani Langzam, Aviad George, Inbar Klingel, Einat Kapach, Itay Tzidon, Adar Sasson-Pinkasovich, Ofir Martin, Hisham Suleiman, Jalal Masarwa
Synopsis: Yael is driving back home when she is suddenly hit by a Palestinian car. The Palestinians trick her and steal her car! Much to their surprise, the thieves discover a baby in the back seat! Yael is desperate and anxious to save her baby. She stops Roy’s car and convinces him to help her search for her baby in the hostile Arab village nearby. They both take drastic measures and risk their own lives to save her baby. This short, heart-wrenching movie presents the complex relationship between the Jewish and Palestinian residents of the Samaria region, and how human connections help to overcome the obstacles between them. Based on a true story.
NOAH | France | 2020 | 15’
Director: Enzo Croisier
Writer: Enzo Croisier
Producers: Enzo Croisier, EICAR Production
Cast: Kelyan Kezbari, Olivier Mathé, Adam Migevant, Marie-Claire Arenes, Alex Andrea, Martine Ducqlerc
Synopsis: When a father and son come face to face with two old psychopaths, running for their lives will be their only option where survival instinct and filial love will be pushed to the limit.
Symfaunic | United States | 2021 | 08’
Director: Erin Bergin, Darby Kate Snyder
Synopsis: A young faun challenges the harmony of her forest glade when her new taste in music clashes with her brother’s teachings.
A Burning Mind | United States | 2021 | 15’
Director: Savannah Oviedo
Writer: Mitchell Sawyer
Producer: Elijah Stordeur
Cast: Ian Segears, James Arnold
Synopsis: A high schooler with a passion for music struggles to find people who will accept him for who he is, along with his own mental health.
Where ill winds blow | Switzerland | 2021 | 09’
Director: Francis Meier
Writer: Francis Meier
Producer: Niza Lou Waldburger
Cast: Adrian Naef
Synopsis: Balthasar wakes up in the cold, in nothingness. After finding refuge in a hut, he begins to remember a past existence.
Trailer – Official Selection – June 2021
‘Ori Tahiti Dancers | French Polynesia | 2021 | 02’
Directors: Nyko PK16, Hugues Damesin
Writer: Nyko PK16
Producer: Nyko PK16
Synopsis: ‘Ori Tahiti Dancers is the 1st documentary series on Polynesian dancers from around the world
