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Banner: the 60th Chicago International Film Festival

Genre: Drama


A man and woman look into each other's eyes and smile softly in a tight embrace.

About Time [short film]

Donald Conley  |   United States
English  
Drama, Romance

After years of no communication, a pair of exes find themselves together once again. Unable to connect, they take an edible, which acts as a catalyst for an evening of old wounds and new revelations.

An assorted group of Japanese men and women stand behind a camera, shooting a short film.

After Life (1998) (Wandâfuru raifu)

Kore-eda Hirokazu  |   Japan
Japanese  
Drama, Fantasy

A cast of characters waiting in limbo must decide which memory they want to preserve before moving on in this fantastical and poignant drama.

Two men sit in a car, one looking down at a map, and the other holding binoculars.

After the Storm (2016) (Umi yori mo mada fukaku)

Kore-eda Hirokazu  |   Japan
Japanese  
Drama, Family Affairs

A deadbeat dad is trapped with his family waiting out a typhoon. There, the fractured clan reckons with their past as they look to an uncertain future.

A woman looks over another womans shoulder, the second woman looks into a bucket.

All We Imagine As Light

Payal Kapadia  |   France, India, Netherlands, Luxembourg
Hindi, Malayalam  
Drama, Romance, Women Centered

The lives of three women living in working-class Mumbai are explored in this soulful study of the transformative power of friendship and womanhood.

A woman and a man cuddle in bed under the covers in a dimly lit bedroom, touching their hands together.

Alone with You [short film] (Lewahdena)

Tara Shehata  |   Egypt
Arabic, English  
Drama, Sex and Sexuality, Social Commentary

Tensions flare between 30 year-old Nadine and her boyfriend Karim as they go to elaborate means to dispose of their used condom before her parents return home. The different cultural expectations imposed on the two become apparent, bringing unspoken conflicts to the surface.

Two men, bundled in hats and sweaters, sit back to back in a snowy landscape.

Alpha

Jan-Willem van Ewijk  |   Netherlands, Slovenia, Switzerland
Dutch  
Drama, Family Affairs, Thriller

A father and son’s reunion in the Swiss Alps turns from tense to perilous when they embark on a backcountry ski day.

A woman stands profile, a red wall and another woman out of focus behind her.

Armand

Halfdan Ullmann Tøndel  |   Norway, Netherlands, Germany, Sweden
Norwegian  
Drama, Family Affairs, Women Centered

A mother (Renate Reinsve) is called to school to account for her six-year-old’s behavior. But who can say with certainty what really happened?

Better Man

Michael Gracey  |   Australia
English  
Biopic, Drama, Music

Based on the true story of the meteoric rise, dramatic fall, and remarkable resurgence of British pop superstar Robbie Williams.

Black Shadow [short film] (Negra sombra)

María Salafranca  |   Cuba
Spanish  
Art, Drama, Women-Centered

In this short, we see a delicate and deeply moving portrait of Maria, a grieving woman. Small fragments of Maria’s life and surroundings help give the work a sense of poetry and mystery that lingers long after the end of the viewing experience.

A couple in a tiled pool. She holds him tendely as he floats on his back.

Bliss (Hemda)

Shemi Zarhin  |   Israel
Arabic, Hebrew  
Drama, Family Affairs, Romance

The delicate emotional balance of a married couple is put to the test when the past bursts back into their lives, in this perceptive, finely drawn drama.

A blonde woman wearing red lipstick and a red polka-dot dress stands agains a leaf-print papered wall.

Blitz

Steve McQueen  |   United Kingdom
English  
Drama, Family Affairs, Historical

London, WWII. 9-year-old George, sent to the countryside by his mother, embarks on an epic journey to return home and reunite with his family.

A tailor surrounded by spools of thread works on a pair of pants with a sewing machine.

Broker (2022)

Kore-eda Hirokazu  |   South Korea
Korean  
Crime, Drama, Family Affairs

An overwhelmed new mother partners with two baby traffickers to find the perfect well-paying parents for her infant in this heartbreaking human story.

The Brutalist

Brady Corbet  |   United Kingdom
English, Hebrew, Hungarian, Italian, Yiddish  
Architecture, Drama

Escaping postwar Europe, a visionary architect (Adrien Brody) arrives in America to rebuild his life, his work, and his marriage. But power and legacy come at a heavy cost.

A woman with long dark hair sits along concrete steps, looking down at the notebook in her hand.

By the Stream (Suyoocheon)

Hong Sangsoo  |   South Korea
Korean  
Art, Drama

A retired director is hired by a local university to direct a short play in this wistful meditation on regret, connection, and the creative process.

Three people stand under a shower head amongst jungle growth.

Cabo Negro

Abdellah Taïa  |   France, Morocco
Arabic, French  
Drama, LGBTQ, Sex and Sexuality

Two young queer Moroccans seek refuge and human connection as they wait at a luxury villa for a wealthy American who is nowhere to be found.

A woman in a large coat, wearing her facemask on her chin, reaches a hand out to a large robot.

Caught by the Tides (Feng Liu Yi Dai)

Jia Zhang-ke  |   China
Mandarin  
Drama, Film on Film

In a career-spanning odyssey, Jia Zhang-Ke delivers an epic look at the romantic destiny of his perennial heroine, Qiaoquio (Zhao Tao).

A black man and a young boy sit at a dining table, pencils in hand working on something in front of them.

Color Book

David Fortune  |   United States
English  
Drama, Family Affairs, Social Commentary

In this intimate and affecting neorealist drama, a father takes his son to his first baseball game. But a series of obstacles will test him along the way.

A man and a woman in vintage dress sit together. She holds up her hand, the letters 'F-L-O-W-' on screen above them.

Compensation (1999)

Zeinabu irene Davis  |   United States
English  
Drama, Historical, Romance

Newly restored, this bold, original Chicago drama follows two love stories, set nearly a century apart, that echo each other in salient ways.

A preist in a red cap and robe stands profile, looking down.

Conclave

Edward Berger  |   United States, United Kingdom
English, Italian  
Drama, Religion, Thriller

During the secretive process of selecting a new Pope, a Cardinal finds himself at the center of a conspiracy that could shake the foundation of the Church.

A rag-tag looking baseball team in red uniforms observes from their dugout.

Eephus

Carson Lund  |   United States, France
English  
Comedy, Drama, Sports

Two adult baseball teams play one final game on their beloved field in this shaggy, delightful, and nostalgic portrait of a fading America.

An older man wearing goggles and blue swimtrunks floats on his back in crystal blue water.

Faruk

Aslı Özge  |   Germany, Turkey, France
Turkish  
Drama, Family Affairs, Social Commentary

An elderly widower tries to fight the urban redevelopment scheme threatening his Istanbul condo building. With nostalgia, he navigates a changing world.

A man with dark hear, wearing headphones, looks back over his shoulder

Ghost Trail (Les Fantômes)

Jonathan Millet  |   France, Germany, Belgium
Arabic, English, French  
Drama, Political, Thriller

A Syrian exile in France hunts the man responsible for torturing him — and countless other political prisoners — in a tension-filled game of cat and mouse.

A black and white image of women in uniform with their heads down, except one woman whose eyes look straight ahead.

The Girl with the Needle (Pigen med nålen)

Magnus von Horn  |   Denmark, Poland, Sweden
Danish  
Drama, Historical, Women Centered

Karoline, a pregnant factory worker in post-WW1 Copenhagen, accepts a job at an adoption agency where she uncovers a terrible secret.

Glancing over his shoulder, a perspiring man observes a room with his mother by his side

Go in Peace [short film] (Al nan la paix)

Jean Gaspa  |   France
French, Haitian creole  
Drama, Family Affairs, Social Commentary

When Evens and his mom planned a trip to the consulate office, they were hoping for a quick errand. They end up waiting hours to learn the status of Evens’ travel documents, and everyone in the overcrowded waiting room grows more aggravated — and interconnected — with each other.

A black and white image of a man sitting in the rain. He clutches a bouquet of flowers, two people stand in the background.

Grand Tour

Miguel Gomes  |   Portugal, Italy, France, Germany, Japan, China
Portuguese  
Drama, Historical, Romance

1917. A British civil servant flees his post in Burma to avoid his fiancee. Undeterred, she embarks on a journey across Asia to find him.

A man and a woman, he looks down at her with kindness in his eyes.

Happy Holidays

Scandar Copti  |   Palestine, Germany, France, Italy, Qatar
Arabic, Hebrew  
Drama, Family Affairs, Social Commentary

A minor car accident triggers a cascading chain of events exposing lies and unspoken truths in this panoramic portrait of a patriarchal society.

A woman holds a phone to her ear, her face lined with concern.

Hard Truths

Mike Leigh  |   United Kingdom, Spain
English  
Drama, Family Affairs, Social Commentary

Legendary British filmmaker Mike Leigh directs this fierce, compassionate, and darkly humorous study of family and the thorny ties that bind us.

A group of people working around an old wooden house and large wheel.

Harvest

Athina Rachel Tsangari  |   United Kingdom, Germany, Greece, France, United States
English  
Drama, Environmental, Historical

A medieval English village is threatened when a nefarious landowner makes plans for profit-driven agriculture in this breathtaking atmospheric fable.

A young man holds a young woman lovingly, their livingroom behind them.

Here

Robert Zemeckis  |   United Kingdom, United States
English  
Drama, Family Affairs

The director, writer and stars of Forrest Gump reunite for an emotional journey through generations of human experience.

Two people with long brown hair facing away embrace, looking out at trees behind a chain link fence.

Honeymoon [short film]

Alkis Papastathopoulos  |   Greece, France, Cyprus
Greek  
Drama, LGBTQ, Road Movie

Two best friends, Fay and Sandra, go on a road trip across Greece as one makes plans to leave everything behind and move to France. After a transphobic attack by a former acquaintance, the two end up traveling by different means as the limits of their friendship, flirtation, and intimacy are tested.

A family of four stands posing and smiling, though the mother looks off distractedly.

I’m Still Here (Ainda Estou Aqui)

Walter Salles  |   Brazil, France
Portuguese  
Drama, Historical, Political

Brazil, 1971. Amid a military dictatorship, a mother of five is forced to reinvent herself after a violent and arbitrary act by the authorities.

A woman in a field looks over her shoulder with an angry expression.

The Kingdom (Le Royaume)

Julien Colonna  |   France
French  
Coming of Age, Crime, Drama

A teenager’s bond with her outlaw father is tested during a hot Coriscan summer in this heart-pounding coming-of-age thriller.

A black man, lit by yellow light, stares off camera with concern.

The Knife

Nnamdi Asomugha  |   United States
English  
Drama, Social Commentary, Thriller

After an African-American father confronts an intruder in his home, his actions spark a tense and confrontational investigation with far-reaching consequences.

A man and woman stand with their foreheads touching, staring into eachothers eyes.

La Cocina

Alonso Ruizpalacios  |   United States, Mexico
English, Spanish  
Culinary, Drama, Literary Adaptation

An impassioned line cook stirs up chaos that threatens to collapse a frenzied Times Square kitchen in this kaleidoscopic portrait of the American Dream.

A statuesque teenage girl stands center frame, donning hoop earrings and braids in a ponytail.

Lana [short film]

Laetitia Angba, Julie Redon Lissouba  |   Canada
French  
Coming of Age, Drama, Women-Centered

As Lana grapples with finding her own voice while living under the roof of a strict parent, her real-world responsibilities get heavier. With her father’s immigration status under increasing scrutiny, she’s forced to imagine a new view of her family and herself.

A father looks proudly at his son in a children's playroom.

Like Father, Like Son (2013) (Soshite chichi ni naru)

Kore-eda Hirokazu  |   Japan
Japanese  
Drama, Family Affairs

A couple learns that, due to a hospital mix-up years ago, they must welcome their unknown biological son — and bid farewell to the boy they’ve long loved.

A man leans up against a soup cart talking to a female Salvation Army officer

The Man Without a Past (2002) (Mies vailla menneisyyttä)

Aki Kaurismäki  |   Finland, Germany
Finnish  
Comedy, Drama, Romance

In this touching deadpan comedy, a welder, who finds himself in Helsinki and experiencing total amnesia, sets out to rebuild his life with a ragtag group of outsiders.

A claymation little fella, they wear a hat with googly eyes.

Memoir of a Snail

Adam Elliot  |   Australia
English  
Animation, Coming of Age, Drama

In this unique stop-motion animation, a melancholy misfit recounts the tragic but beautiful tale of her life to her pet snails.

A figure slinks through a foggy forest.

Misericordia (Miséricorde)

Alain Guiraudie  |   France
French  
Crime, Drama, Mystery

Jérémie returns to his sleepy hometown to attend a funeral. When a mysterious disappearance disturbs the community, a cloud of suspicion begins to form.

A woman shows an older man her phone, she leans her head on his shoulder.

My Favourite Cake (Keyke Mahboobe Man)

Maryam Moghaddam & Behtash Sanaeeha  |   Iran, France, Sweden, Germany
Farsi  
Drama, Romance, Social Commentary

Widowed Mahin, 70, lives alone in Tehran. Out to tea one afternoon, she’s inspired to break from her routine and revitalize her love life.

A man and two kids sit on ice, bundled up in their winter gear and wearing ice skates. They look out together.

My Sunshine

Hiroshi Okuyama  |   Japan, France
Japanese  
Coming of Age, Drama, LGBTQ

Coached by a former skating champion, two school children train as an ice dancing duo and navigate a blossoming bond in this gentle coming-of-age tale.

Nickel Boys

RaMell Ross  |   United States
English  
Coming of Age, Drama, Literary Adaptation

Based on the award-winning novel, the film chronicles the powerful friendship between two Black teenagers navigating the harrowing trials of a reform school in Florida.

Two young girls and two young boys sit on a bed. The oldest boy looks serious while the others are smiling.

Nobody Knows (2004) (Daremo shiranai)

Kore-eda Hirokazu  |   Japan
Japanese  
Coming of Age, Drama, Family Affairs

When their mother disappears, a young boy and his three siblings must figure out how to get by on their own in this at once heartfelt and heartbreaking drama.

Close-up on a woman and a man in black and white. She is looking at him concerned as he looks down at the ground.

O [short film]

Rúnar Rúnarsson  |   Iceland, Sweden
Icelandic  
Drama, Family Affairs, Social Commentary

A lonely man struggles to hide his alcohol addiction during an important reunion with an estranged loved one. A naturalistic and unflinching glimpse into one man’s inner turmoil, this stark and intimate portrait is told with profound humanity.

Two men stand together looking camera left. Behind them the multicolored lights of a carnival ride.

Okie

Kate Cobb  |   United States
English  
Drama, Thriller

When a famous novelist returns to his rural Illinois hometown, he receives a mixed welcome that’s equal parts admiration and resentment.

A black woman, wearing black lipstick, sunglasses, and a sequin helmet/mask sits with her hands on the wheel of a car.

On Becoming a Guinea Fowl

Rungano Nyoni  |   Zambia, United Kingdom, Ireland
Bemba, English  
Drama, Sex and Sexuality, Women Centered

On an empty road in the night, Shula stumbles across her uncle’s dead body. As his funeral begins, family secrets prompt a reckoning.

Two decorated military men look screen right.

The Package (1989)

Andrew Davis  |   United States
English  
Crime, Drama, Thriller

Gene Hackman and Tommy Lee Jones star in this densely plotted, Chicago-set thriller about an army veteran who becomes a pawn in a sprawling conspiracy.

A couple in a well-decorated, modern dining room. A large Great Dane dog looks at the man, who has a ball at his feet.

Peacock

Bernhard Wenger  |   Austria, Germany
English, German  
Art, Comedy, Drama

In need of a “cultured boyfriend”? A “perfect son”? Matthias is available for rent in this incisive comedy that levels up the “rent-a” genre.

4 black men around a dining table looking off camera left.

The Piano Lesson

Malcolm Washington  |   United States
English  
Drama, Family Affairs, Literary Adaptation, Social Commentary

A family clash over an heirloom piano explodes. The battle between brother and sister — one hopes to sell it, the other refuses to give it up — unleashes haunting truths about how the past is perceived and who defines a family legacy.

An old man smiles, in the background two boys laugh.

The Quiet Son (Jouer avec le feu)

Delphine Coulin & Muriel Coulin  |   France
French  
Drama, Family Affairs, Social Commentary

When his sons’ paths begin to radically diverge, a father must figure out how to love and support them both in this intimate, urgent family drama.

A weathered warrior nocks an arrow.

The Return

Uberto Pasolini  |   Italy, United Kingdom
English  
Action, Drama, Historical

After 20 years away, Odysseus (Ralph Fiennes) returns home to win back his queen (Juliette Binoche) and kingdom from a group of power-hungry suitors.

An older man and a younger man stand by a whirring projector.

The Return of the Projectionist (Le Retour du projectionniste)

Orkhan Aghazadeh  |   France, Germany
Azerbaijani, Talysh  
Action, Drama, Historical

In rural Azerbaijan, an aging projectionist teams up with an aspiring young filmmaker to bring movies back to their small town.

Two kids sit together and smile at eachother in a dirty, tiled hallway.

Rita

Paz Vega  |   Spain
Spanish  
Coming of Age, Drama, Family Affairs, Women Centered

Seen through the eyes of 7-year-old Rita, a mother (Paz Vega) struggles to protect her children in this poignant look at innocence and violence in the home.

Two women sit on a bench in a garden. The red headed one watches the blonde speak.

The Room Next Door

Pedro Almodóvar  |   Spain
English  
Drama, Women Centered

In Almodóvar’s latest exquisite look at women’s inner lives, Julianne Moore and Tilda Swinton star as old friends whose relationship is put to the test.

A group in uniforms holds back a crowd. One uniformed woman is turned away, with a concerned expression.

Santosh

Sandhya Suri  |   United Kingdom
Hindi  
Drama, Mystery, Social Commentary, Women Centered

Newly widowed Santosh is compelled to take her husband’s old job on the police force, where she’s thrust into an intriguing murder investigation.

A woman stands in the foreground, two women stand behind her. They all look somewhat concerned.

The Seed of the Sacred Fig

Mohammad Rasoulof  |   Germany, Iran, France
Farsi  
Drama, Family Affairs, Social Commentary, Thriller

When Iman’s handgun mysteriously goes missing, he reaches a breaking point in this tense domestic drama crossed with a paranoid political thriller.

A closely knit, multigenrational family smile together

Shoplifters (2018) (Manbiki kazoku)

Kore-eda Hirokazu  |   Japan
Japanese  
Drama, Family Affairs, Social Commentary

A tight-knit unit of petty thieves and outsiders comes together to shelter an abandoned child, but an unforeseen incident threatens to tear apart their newfound family.

A man in a red track suit holds up his hands, a man in black stands in front of him laughing and holding a gun.

Sicilian Letters (Iddu)

Fabio Grassadonia & Antonio Piazza  |   Italy, France
Italian, Sicilian  
Crime, Drama, Thriller

After serving time, a corrupt politician is enlisted by Italy’s secret service to take down Sicily’s last godfather using only handwritten letters.

A man stands next to a disheveled woman, nuns stand behind them.

Small Things Like These

Tim Mielants  |   Ireland, Belgium
English  
Drama, Literary Adaptation, Religion

Cillian Murphy delivers a powerhouse performance as a devoted family man who wrestles with speaking out in the face of wrongdoing in his small town.

Three teenaged friends sit next to each other. One girl stares at another, unbeknownst to them.

Space Coast [short film]

Caroline Bates  |   United States
English  
Coming of Age, Drama, Family Affairs

A group of friends come to terms with the end of childhood in a dying tourist town home to the former space program.

In black and white, a baby lies on its back beneath a framed window of space with a white orb gleaming at its center.

Space Plug [short film]

Marcus Anthony Thomas  |   United Kingdom
No Dialogue  
Drama, Horror, Science Fiction

A baby is born into a mysterious white room in outer space. There, they grow up nourished by an extraterrestrial creature, but plagued by a desperate desire to break free. Deeply unnerving and wildly inventive, this one-of-a-kind sci-fi journey bursts with style and intrigue.

A family of 5 in the kitchen. The father talks to the young boy while the two girls look at their mother.

The Sparrow in the Chimney

Ramon Zürcher  |   Switzerland
German  
Drama, Family Affairs

Still grieving the death of her overbearing mother, Karen hosts a family gathering that turns fiery as the ghosts of her past reveal themselves.

A black man wearing a sharp suit and glasses stands alone in a hallway lined by lockers.

The Spook Who Sat by the Door (1973)

Ivan Dixon  |   United States
English  
Action, Crime, Drama, Social Commentary

A Black CIA agent secretly uses his training to lead a guerrilla army against the U.S. government in a powerful tale of resistance and liberation.

A woman walks down an empty street alone.

Suçuarana

Clarissa Campolina & Sérgio Borges  |   Brazil
Portuguese  
Drama, Road Movie, Women Centered

Wandering in search of her mother’s homeland, a woman forms an unlikely bond with workers in an abandoned factory in this mystical road movie.

A man in a tshirt and jeans sits on a stone wall with a blue sky behind him.

Super Happy Forever

Kohei Igarashi  |   France, Japan
Japanese  
Drama, Romance

A heartbroken Sano returns to the seaside resort where he fell in love with his wife five years earlier in this unconventional, affecting romance.

Two young women peer curiously into a fish tank.

The Damp Season [short film]

Olivia Huilin Gao  |   United States
Chinese  
Drama, Family Affairs, Women-Centered

In this drama about family ties, a young girl comes across the teenaged version of her immigrant mother from whom she has long been estranged. A newfound empathy for her mother leads them to reconnect.

A man with glasses and a goatee stands close to camera looking off to the right with a disdained expression.

The Museum [short film]

Annette Elliot  |   United States
English  
Architecture, Art, Drama

After being offered the chance to showcase his art in Chicago’s most famous museum, a black sculptor reflects on decades of rejection. Elliot’s film is a melodic portrayal of the bias of history, and the institutions that control its interpretations.

Two men sit on a planter in a city

To a Land Unknown

Mahdi Fleifel  |   United Kingdom, Palestine, France, Greece, Netherlands, Germany, Qatar, Saudi Arabia
Arabic, English, Greek  
Crime, Drama, Social Commentary, Thriller

Stranded in Athens, displaced Palestinian cousins devise a dark scheme in order to reach Germany and start a new life.

Several young girls wearing skimpy clothes sit together against a blue wall.

Toxic (Akiplėša)

Saulė Bliuvaitė  |   Lithuania
English, Lithuanian  
Coming of Age, Drama, Women Centered

In a small industrial town, two 13-year-old girls enroll in a modeling school where they are confronted with extreme, impossible beauty standards.

Two feet dangle over the edge of a tipped over row of plane seats in the middle of the jungle

Transamazonia

Pia Marais  |   France, Germany, Switzerland, Taiwan, Brazil
English, Portuguese  
Drama, Environmental, Mystery

A healer and her evangelist father are at the center of a conflict between an indigenous community and illegal loggers in this mystical eco-thriller.

A doctor dressed for surgery looks at anoher doctor.

Transplant

Jason Park  |   United States
English, Korean  
Coming of Age, Drama, Family Affairs

Whiplash meets Grey’s Anatomy in this intense psychological drama about an ambitious Korean-American resident training under a notorious heart surgeon.

A chrsitmas tree with legs in the foreground. A cross a snowy yard, two people look on.

Universal Language (Une Langue Universelle)

Matthew Rankin  |   Canada
Farsi, French  
Comedy, Drama

Three overlapping stories set in a surreal, not-too-distant future create a deadpan picture of life in Winnipeg that’s both hilarious and heartwarming.

A man, illuminated by soft orange light, in a push up position.

Unstoppable

William Goldenberg  |   United States
English  
Biopic, Drama, Sports

This inspiring drama follows Anthony Robles, who was born with one leg but whose unbreakable resolve empowered him to defy the odds and pursue his dreams.

A woman in church looks over her shoulder

Vermiglio

Maura Delpero  |   Italy, France, Belgium
Italian  
Drama, Historical, Women Centered

Set amid the majestic Italian Alps, this intimate drama chronicles a year in the life of a young war bride and her sisters in the wake of WWII.

Two men dressed in suits stand ankle deep in water.

Viet and Nam

Trương Minh Quý  |   Vietnam
Vietnamese  
Drama, LGBTQ, Romance

Coal miners in love find solace in one another as a mother searches for her husband’s remains in this haunting tale of longing and memory.

An older man, in a home lit by sunlight, with a young child haning over his shoulders.

The Village Next to Paradise

Mo Harawe  |   Austria, France, Germany, Somalia
Somali  
Drama, Family Affairs, Social Commentary

The humble dreams of a group of Somali misfits form the backbone of this gentle, gorgeously realized ode to the persistence of life in the face of death.

A woman walks in a field in the foreground amidst a vast landscape in the background, where smoke rises from a mountain top.

Vox Humana [short film]

Don Josephus Raphael Eblahan  |   Philippines, United States, Singapore
Tagalog  
Drama, Environmental, Science Fiction

Speculation surrounds a man who lives in the forest. Some believe that he may be the cause of several recent natural disasters. A zoologist arrives to speak to him in hopes of reaching an understanding.

Two men in a forest drop a small firework into an empty gatorade bottle.

Vulcanizadora

Joel Potrykus  |   United States
English  
Drama, Thriller

Middle-aged buddies walk in the woods towards an unknown destination. Are these overgrown adolescents blowing off steam, or is something darker afoot?

Close up on a young woman’s face looking up at something that is letting off a purple light.

We Are Not Alone [short film]

Adebukola Bodunrin  |   Canada, United States
English  
Drama, Science Fiction, Women-Centered

A young Nigerian immigrant enlists the help of a stranger to communicate with an extraterrestrial vessel approaching Earth that may hold the promise of taking her away from a lonely world. With stunningly creative visuals, this beautiful sci-fi drama displays a deeply compassionate understanding of the unfulfilled promises and unexpected connections of the immigrant experience.

A freckled red-headed woman stands on a porch.

When the Light Breaks (Ljósbrot)

Rúnar Rúnarsson  |   Iceland, Netherlands, Croatia, France
Icelandic  
Drama, Women Centered

A group of art students reckon with a sudden, inexplicable loss over the course of a long Icelandic summer day.

A woman tighly hugs her young son in a filed of yellow flowers

Who Do I Belong To (Mé el Aïn)

Meryam Joobeur  |   Tunisia, France, Canada
Arabic  
Drama, Family Affairs, Religion, Social Commentary

An isolated village in northern Tunisia is beset by strange events when matriarch Aicha’s son returns from war with a mysterious pregnant bride.