INTERNATIONAL SHORT FILMS
A Summer Place | A Summer Place
Chypre, France | 20' | 2020
Director: Alexandra Matheou
Cast: Mary Mina, Aurora Marion
Producer: Savvas Stavrou, Soyo Giaoui
Synopsis:
In a city overtaken by oligarchs and a real estate boom, two women find themselves lost at sea. Each will end up saving the other, in all of life’s most unexpected ways.
Biography:
Alexandra Matheou is a Cypriot screenwriter, director and producer based in London, Cyprus and Athens. Her short films have screened internationally and she is an alumni of Talents Sarajevo 2018. She has previously worked for The Discovery Channel in London and is now Head of Development at Athens based production company Topcut-Modiano. In 2019, Alexandra was invited to join the Euro-Connection forum at the Clermont-Ferrand International Short Film Festival with her short film A Summer Place.
Bravehearts | Bloco dos Corações Valentes
Brazil | 11'| 2023
Director: Loli Menezes
Cast: Berna Sant'Anna, Laine Milan, Carlos Eduardo Valente, Tony Alano
Executive Production: Milena Moraes e Loli Menezes
Synopsis:
Mocinha and Madalena are an elderly couple who have been together for 50 years. On what Mocinha believes to be her last night, they welcome Luis and Zé Ronaldo, a couple of lifelong friends, for a dinner. Between memories of their love stories and the decisions that need to be made in the present, the deep bonds that unite the four friends are reaffirmed. The farewell imagined by Mocinha then becomes a delicate ritual that celebrates the fullness of their lives.
Biography:
Filmmaker and producer, she studied filmmaking at the University of Southern Santa Catarina, Brazil. Her first short film, "Ocorredor", won 10 awards in numerous festivals. With the short film "Selma after the rain", she toured 17 countries and won 11 awards.
Cycle | Döngü
Turkey | 10’39” | 2022
Director: Naz Çaybaşı
Cast: Ceylin özgül
Producer: Tunç eser alıcı, Naz Çaybaşı
Synopsis:
One day, a girl living in a village sees blood on her underwear. She’s having menstruation, but she doesn't know what it is. She hesitates to ask someone and tries to discover on her own. She finally finds an answer, but that answer is only the part of the cycle she’s in.
Biography:
She was born in 1992. She graduated from Istanbul University, Faculty of Communication, Department of Radio, TV and Cinema in 2014. She worked as an assistant director in cinema, digital platform series and commercials. She continues her career as a director.
Deaf | Sorda
Spain | 18' | 2021
Director: Nuria Muñoz-Ortín, Eva Libertad
Cast: Miriam Garlo, Pepe Galera, Santa Cruz García
Producers: Nexus Film
Synopsis:
Angela is deaf and Darío is hearing. They are a couple and have six chickens, four dogs, a vegetable garden and many communication problems. Now they are also going to have a child.
Biography:
They co-direct the production company Nexus Film in which they develop their own projects such as «Leo and Alex in the 21st century» short film with 70 selections and 3 awards, candidate for the Goya 2021. «Nikolina», a feature film premiered at the International European Fantasy Film Festival SOMBRA 2020, with a special mention for best leading actress. They are currently developing «Angela in the world», a feature film inspired by «Deaf», which already has funding from ICARM, selected at COOFI
ESCAPE | ESCAPE
Argentina | 17' | 2022
Director: Victoria Andino
Cast: Noelia Vergini, Diego Cremonesi
Producer: Maria Victoria Andino
Synopsis:
Clara spends most of her time alone with her 3-month-old baby. As days go by, motherhood becomes an overwhelming mental burden. Her partner seems not to be aware of her state of mind. One day their dog runs away and Clara will find an opportunity there.
Biography:
Victoria Andino (1979) is an Argentinian film director graduated from ENERC (National Film School of Argentina) and has a degree in Audiovisual Teaching (UnSAM). Her graduation thesis, the short film The Blood Secret (2006), was internationally awarded. A Woman Knows, her first long feature film, is in advanced progress. She is also currently filming The Tasks, a thought -provoking documentary series about the care and domestic workers’ duties. Escape is her second short film of a motherhood trilogy that begins with Aldana and León (2019)
Housemaid #2 | Dienstmeid #2
Netherlands | 12’06” | 2021
Director: Roxanne Stam
Cast: Maike Meijer, Gijs Scholten van Aschat
Production: Roxanne Stam, Sacha Gertsik, AVROTROS
Synopsis:
When 52-year-old Nora plays her supporting role for the umpteenth performance and again undergoes the toxic behaviour of the theatre company and the bullying of the male lead actor Peter, she decides to take matters into her own hands.
Biography:
Roxanne Stam (1988) graduated in 2012 from the Theater School in Amsterdam. After working as script supervisor and acting coach she started making her own films. Her work is characterized by an unmistakable female gaze, strong acting and a lot of attention to production design.
It Happened at Home | It Happened at Home
United Kingdom | 9'’3' | 2022
Director: Sydney Oberfeld, Apolline Pilley
Cast: Harmony Rose Bremner, Isobel Laidler, Charlie Beaven
Producer: Sydney Oberfeld, Apolline Pilley
Synopsis:
Aya is a young woman who lives with her best friend Alice in a cozy London flat, the same flat where she was recently sexually assaulted. When Aya’s relationship to her most sacred space and intimate parts of herself are wounded, she grapples with the grey area around consent. With Alice’s quiet support, Aya starts to feel at home again.
Biographies:
Sydney is a filmmaker and creative producer from Montreal currently based in London. She currently works at Good Chaos, a London based production company that produces an international slate of film & TV.
Apolline is a French and American filmmaker from Paris, France. She has written, directed and produced music videos & short films and her aesthetic sensibilities also push her towards creative direction. She currently resides in London where she works as an assistant producer.
Just the two of us | Toutes les deux
France | 19’57” | 2022
Director: Clara Lemaire Anspach
Cast: Mara Taquin, Julie-Anne Roth
Producers: Topshot Films, Bastien Daret, Arthur Goisset, Robin Robles
Synopsis:
Alma knows it. If her mother persists in not taking the new treatment offered to her, she will die. She therefore has only one idea in mind: to make her change her mind as they both drive towards the south of France. Once last mother-daughter journey in which Alma will have to find the strength to let her mother go..
Biography:
Clara Lemaire Anspach first worked as a director in France and Iceland before turning to writing by joining a scriptwriting school. Since then, she has been working as a scriptwriter for TV and cinema, and is also working on her own projects as a director.
North Pole | Severen pol
Macedonia | 15' | 2021
Director: Marija Apcevska
Cast: Antonija Belazelkoska, Luka Mitev, Frosina Trajkovska, Andrea Noveva, Nadja Mijatovic, Teodora Kostova, Kristina Janevska, Tea Pavlova, Marija Trpevska, Marko Gjeorgievski, Vojdan Jovanovski, Leo Gacov, Teo Gacov
Producer: Robert Naskov
Synopsis:
Misty field, crowded locker room. Margo belongs to neither.
Maybe if she loses her virginity, she will finally find her place.
Biography:
Marija Apcevska holds BA in Directing from FDA, Skopje and MA in Film and Media Production, NYFA, Los Angeles. Her shorts have traveled to festivals worldwide and won several awards. Her latest film, North Pole, premiered at Festival de Cannes Official Short Film Selection. She is currently working on her first feature, Spring Cleaning.
Memoir of a Veering Storm
Greece | 14' | 2022
Director: Sofia Georgovassili
Cast: Daphne Peel, Maria Kallimani, Konstantinos Sideris, Stefania Sotiropoulou, Nikos Hatzopoulos, Elena Mengreli
Producer: Stelios Cotionis, Sofia Georgovassili
Synopsis:
It is a morning in September. A storm is about to break. Α mother drives a girl to school in the morning and picks up a woman at the end of the school day. Anna, a fifteen-year-old girl sneaks out of school, and with the help of her boyfriend, they visit a hospital. There, she has to face an event that will jolt her into adulthood.
Biography:
Sofia Georgovassili is an award-winning actress and filmmaker based in Athens, Greece. Her first short film as a director, Preparation, 2017 had its world premiere in the section Short Cuts at Toronto International Film Festival, 2017, followed by many festivals worldwide and won numerous awards amongst them Best director award at Drama ISFF. Human condition and coming-of-age are at the heart of her films.
Mulaqat | Sandstorm
Pakistan, United Kingdom | 20' |2021
Director: Seemab Gul
Cast: Parizae Fatima , Hamza Mushtaq , Ayesha Shoaib Ahmed, Nabila Khan, Aun Ali Saleem, Masuma Halai Khwaja, Qasim Ali
Production: Sanat Initiative
Synopsis:
Zara, a schoolgirl in Karachi (Pakistan), shares a sensual dance video with her virtual boyfriend, who then blackmails her. Caught between his manipulative behavior and the desire to experience love on her own terms, Zara searches for the strength to reject the confines of a patriarchal society.
Biography:
Seemab is an award-winning writer/director and producer from Pakistan. Her films have screened in Uppsala, FNC Montreal, Dok Leipzig, Sheffield Doc Fest, Geneva Contemporary Art Centre and many international festivals. Her short film Sandstorm (Mulaqat) premiered at the 78th Venice International Film Festival and in competition at Sundance 2022. Seemab is an alumna of the Locarno OD Producers Lab, Biennale College Cinema and Berlinale Talents. She is a graduate of the London Film School.
Maruja | Maruja
Spain | 15' | 2022
Director: Berta Garcia-Lacht
Cast: Guadalupe Fiñana, Montserrat Roig, Neus Bos Bolós, Juan Manuel Urbano, Gemma Sastre, Carlos Cuevas
Producer: Playlab Films, Miss Wasabi Films
Synopsis:
Maruja lives with her husband in San Ildefonso, a working-class neighborhood of Cornellà, on the outskirts of Barcelona. She is 87 years old, she gets bored at home and often goes out in search of fresh air that makes her smile, always with her shopping cart.
Biography:
Filmmaker and actress. Creator and photographer of «Proyecto Tetas», Sigma Photo Spain Winner and exhibited at Mutuo Gallery, CC Pati Llimona, Casa Orlandai and La Barraca. Her first short film, «Maruja», was selected to participate in Dones Visuals’ Acció Curts 2020, received the ICEC and ICAA grants, and is a co-production between Playlab Films and Miss Wasabi Films.
Suite Night | Suite Night
Iran | 13' |2022
Director: Mahtab Pishghadam
Cast: Aysan Ghanbari
Producer: Mahtab Pishghadam
Synopsis:
Yasi and Raha, two girls who are rejected by everyone and everything. Yasi tried everything she could to make a last call to Raha before she's taken to solitary confinement.
Raha fears the rumors that if a girl is virgin before her execution, her virginity must be taken by a man, more than she fears death. Yasi does everything in her power not to let her girlfriend get executed.
Biography:
Mahtab Pishghadam (she/her) was born 1996 in Iran and has studied graphic studies and worked as an assistant director she has since 2017 been writing and directing short films
Unveiling Selma | Unveiling Selma
United Arab Emirates | 14'| 2022
Directors: Mariam Al Serkal, Maaria Sayed
Cast: Haya Al Qaidi, Salam Al Blooshi, Abdullah Alrashdi
Producer: Mariam Al Serkal
Synopsis:
In rural UAE, Selma divides her days between her seven year old daughter, and the daily household chores until she decides to take a stand for herself.
Biographies:
Maaria Sayed is an independent filmmaker based between Mumbai and Italy. Maaria is an alumni of Asian Film Academy, Bucheon Fantastic Film School, Fajr Talent Campus, Cine Qua Non Lab among others. Her work has been supported by Busan Film Commission, Cineteca di Bologna among others.
Mariam Al Serkal is an Emirati producer and director, who has been immersed in the media field since 2003. With 20 years of experience in leading media projects, she was always passionate about creating stories from the region and has founded her production company Triplets.
Impatient Pain | Les douleurs impatientes
France | 17’19” | 2022
Director: Marisa Ingold
Cast: Adèle Wismes, Fleur GEFFRIER, Terrence AMADI, Marie BERNARD, Baptiste DEZERCES, Judith MARGOLIN, Guillaume BURSZTYN
Producer: Duno Films
Synopsis:
A night on duty in a psychiatric emergency room. Lisa, a young woman dedicated to her patients, is torn between her humanist commitments and an all-powerful hospital administration.
Biography:
After her doctorate in psychiatry, Marisa Ingold deepened her self-taught knowledge in cinema, by integrating the Master II in Screenplay and Directing at La Sorbonne. Marisa is writing her first feature film, as well as a drama series whose stories revolve around the themes of the doctor-patient relationship, the quest for self, or even dysfunctional intra-family ties.
Stille Post (InBetween Home)
Austria, Romania | 17’ | 2022
Director: Brigitta Kanyaro
Cast: Diana Cavaliotti, Lara Kelemen, Gisela Salcher, Karl Fischer
Producer: Chris Dohr, Eugen Kelemen
Synopsis:
In her efforts to obtain accommodation and thus a residence permit in Austria, Marinela, an overburdened single Romanian mother, relies on her daughter Ilinca as a mediator and translator. The 8-year-old, however, has other plans.
Biography:
Brigitta Kanyaro is a Romanian actress and filmmaker living in Vienna. After graduating from drama school, she worked in various positions both in front of and behind the camera. Together with the young production company "Glitter and Doom" she is developing her feature film debut "Vagabonds" and since 2022 she is a new writer in the Writers Room for the ORF series "Schnell Ermittelt".
Warsha | Warsha
France, Lebanon | 15’ | 2022
Director: Dania Bdeir
Cast: Khansa
Producer: Inter Spinas Films- Coralie Dias
Synopsis:
Mohammad is a crane operator working in Beirut. One morning he volunteers to take on one of the tallest and notoriously most dangerous cranes in Lebanon. Away from everyone’s eyes, he is able to live out his secret passion and find freedom.
Biography:
Dania Bdeir is an award-winning Lebanese-Canadian filmmaker. Bdeir was a 2019 Berlinale Talent and participated in its Short Film Station with WARSHA, which had its world premiere at the 2022 Sundance Film Festival and won the Jury Prize for the Best International Fiction Short. Bdeir is currently developing PIGEON WARS, which received development financing from Telefilm Canada.
The first sunday after the first full moon
Lithuania | 15’ | 2022
Director: Greta Griniute
Cast: Elžbieta Latėnaitė, Dalia Michelevičiūtė, Ina Kartašova, Jolanta Dapkūnaitė, Emilija Latėnaitė - Beliauskienė, Mindaugas Papinigis, Michael Tcherepashenets, Stanislovas Žekonis
Producers: Ieva Černiauskaitė, Ieva Misiulaitytė, Dana Soady, Alice Raymond
Synopsis:
When London-based DJ Egle returns to native Lithuania for an Easter celebration, she finds herself facing more than just the music.
Biography:
Greta Griniute is a freelance writer/director with a passion for comedy. Born in Lithuania, Greta spread her wings after high school when she moved to the UK to study physical theater and acting. Greta’s passion for film and theater soon led her to Italy where she began her career as an assistant director with acclaimed theater company MOTUS. Greta’s filmmaking career first took off when she attended the international film festival Cinemademare, writing and directing a handful of her own shorts as well as collaborating on many others.
SAND | SAND
Colombia | 13’30” | 2022
Director: Rossana Montoya
Cast: Rossana Montoya, Paula Lozano
Producer: Hans Fresen
Synopsis:
After the death of her father, Ilana, a 7-year-old girl, is faced with dealing with her late father's grief.
Biography:
She studied anthropology at the University of Brasilia. Since she was very young she has been involved in theatre, television and cinema as an actress. She also participated as co-writer and lead actress in the feature film "El Abandono" directed by Hans Fresen, which won the 2021 Colombian Film Fund post-production grant. Her debut feature, the short film "Arena", written, directed and starring by her and produced by Hans Fresen, recently won the BAM 2021 distribution award.
Snowdrops at the end of the train
Bulgaria | 25' | 2022
Director: Galina D. Georgieva
Cast: Iliana Kodjabasheva, Velislav Pavlov, Ana Valchanova, Ivan Savov
Producers: Pavlina Jeleva, Georgy Cholakov, Irina Kitova, Ina Darova
Synopsis:
In a dystopian world, flowers have become the only source of energy. This comes at the cost of massive shortages, and only the owners of expensive energy bonds can enjoy power supply. Eva R., an employee of the Garden power station, relinquishes her most precious belonging – three fragile snowdrops – in exchange for the privilege of government-assisted suicide. Though even a smooth exit from this joyless world proves too much to hope for.
Biography:
Galina D. Georgieva is a Sofia-based film director, screenwriter and playwright. Galina is the author of the absurdist play Asteroid 35 111, which was performed at the Municipal Theatre Vazrazhdane. Galina has been part of the European playwriting platform New Stages South-East since 2020. She won a scholarship from the Bulgarian Ministry of Culture for her second play A Sunday in the Future (2021). Galina is author in the Literary Newspaper and part-time lecturer at Sofia University in MP in Literature, Cinema and Visual Arts.
Popcorn | Palomitas
Espanha | 13' | 2022
Realizadora: Mónica Dolado
Elenco: Andrea Del Río, Mario De la Rosa, Laura Montesinos, Sandra Martín
Produtores: Mónica Dolado, Chon López
Synopsis:
Little Red Riding Hood, now an adult, faces the moral conflict of becoming a murderer, in order to avenge the rape and death of her little sister at the hands of LOBO.
Biography:
Mónica Dolado studied Cinematography Direction at the Centre d'Estudis Cinematogràfics de Catalunya. For 25 years she has been working as a camera operator in different TV series. Her interest in writing led her to publish the novel "Para los que Sueñan Despiertos" in 2004. The need to evolve professionally and to film her own stories led her to study screenwriting in 2021 at the Factoría del Guión. "Palomitas" is her first work as a screenwriter and director.
Other Cats to nip | D'autres chats à fouetter
France | 26' | 2022
Director: Ovidie
Cast: Sophie-Marie Larrouy, Yannick Renier, Grégoire Tachnakian
Producer: Hannah Taïeb, Thierry Lounas
Synopsis:
At a high school carnival, Paula, a respected city English teacher, finds herself acting as a famous superhero: Catwoman. She wears a costume that allows her to exercise her own superpower: domination.
Biography:
Ovidie is a writer and director of fiction and documentaries, with a doctorate in literature and film studies, specializing in questions of the body, feminism and sexuality.
