After Winter, Cherry Blossoms (United States) by Jil Guyon

The cherry blossom tree heralds the end of winter and the arrival of Spring. In After Winter, Cherry Blossoms a blossoming cherry tree is the starting point for a visual investigation of mortality and re-birth. Through the application of imaging effects, glowing pink blossoms transfigure into a mesmerizing kaleidoscopic display. The intricate patterns that unfold bathe the viewer in a lush, digitized floral world. Both euphoric and serene, the cherry tree is a timeless metaphor for human existence—a melancholic yet glorious reminder of the fragility and transience of life.

Running time: 00:02:55

Negative Energies (Denmark) by Martin Strange-Hansen

"Negative Energies" is an episode from a web series, small film pearls about what happens when you cross each other's boundaries in public, when people meet. They were created by the Oscar-winning director Martin Strange-Hansen.

Running time: 00:04:48

Karla (Canada) by Naomi Baker

Karla, a seasoned acting coach, sits off stage listening to her student, Julie, rehearse a monologue. As Julie recites her lines, Karla bursts on stage and begins to drill Julie on acting fundamentals and how to make it in the business. When Julie storms out of the theatre, Karla, alone, performs the monologue with immense talent but no one is there to see it. 

Running time: 00:04:50

The Visit (Germany) by Katharina Sporrer

A sister comes to seek redemption but some things can not be forgiven.

Nina has been clean for a year and wants to make amends to her sister Lisa, who has always been by her side. Lisa lives alone with her daughter, after having been left by her partner. Nina wants to apologise for endangering the child, but Lisa struggles to forgive her. What we come to find out that the daughter is actually Nina's and the danger an unspeakable crime.

Running time: 9:01

Pappas Poppy (Norway) by Johanne Wilbrink

Dolls, cunts and daddy issues – a personal portrait of being a woman.

Running time: 00:07:00

You Ask Too Much (Canada) by Ajay Rakhraj

“You Ask Too Much” is a short film shot from the point of view of a near-deaf 94-year-old Sikh woman forcibly moved from her son’s care to her daughter’s. 

We see what she sees. We hear what she hears. We feel what she feels.  The film explores her emotions and experiences — highlighting the stress, anger, love, and boredom of her condition — ultimately landing on a realization of the pain she believes she has caused her family.

Running time: 00:09:23

The middle of the garage (Canada) by Lisa Bolduc

The mysterious arrival of a huge trunk in the garage of Pierre's house turns his life upside down. At 55, with time passing too slowly and dreams gone, loneliness suddenly seems less burdensome. The strange appearance of the object became Pierre's only obsession, and the discovery of its contents, a new goal in life.

Running time: 00:13:00

Fragments (United Kingdom) by Mélodie Roulaud

A portrait of trans non-binary artist Fleur Bloemsma, short film Fragments takes an introspective journey into their understanding and experience of their own body, and the meanders of their mind. Directed by French filmmaker and photographer Mélodie Roulaud, the film interrogates the language used to communicate the body, the self and their representation, through the interconnectedness of physical attributes and bodily experiences with matters of identity.

Running time: 00:03:38

Best Intentions (Denmark) by Martin Strange-Hansen

"Best Intentions" is an episode from a web series, small film pearls about what happens when you cross each other's boundaries in public, when people meet. They were created by the Oscar-winning director Martin Strange-Hansen.

Running time: 00:03:13

Hotel Centaur (Greece) by Lino Kafidas, Dimitris Kafidas

The absolute absurdity and meaninglessness of life are explored in this dark piece set in a Greek mountain hotel, with a cast of unlikely characters. At the centre of its enquiry into the absurd is a disenchanted hotelier whose last concern is the management of his establishment. Rather, he engages with his guests and staff as though they exist as proof of his torment, each day repeating a series of eccentric and pointless actions. His staff put up with his behaviour. Each guest that arrives at the Hotel Centaur bears a particular existential burden. From the suicidal boy who reads Kafka and watches his distracted parents dance, to the artist tormented by his blank canvas, to the story’s most  unexpected guest, a Japanese man who for the past ten years – inexplicably – has written a polite weekly letter enquiring after the mythical centaurs of the area, and wishes to be shown these creatures. Each character searches, each search is shown to be absurd, with the story culminating in a brutal tragedy that is fallout of a bad joke, and the confirmation that life provides us with no easy answers.

Running time: 00:24:10