MONDAY 12/10 | 20:00
Ali
15’, 2025
Bangladesh, Philippines
Fiction
Synopsis
In a coastal town, women are not allowed to sing. A teenager joins a singing competition for a chance to move to the city, while hiding his true voice in a sinister way.
Credits
Directed by: Adnan Al Rajeev | Screenplay: Arvin Belarmino, Kyla Romero | Cinematography: Kamrul Hasan Khosru | Editing: Taiful Chowdhury Shadhin | Production Design: Shihab Nurun Nabi | Costume Design: Aniqa Zaheen | Sound Design: Bien Sparks | Cast: Al Amin, Indrani Shoma | Producers: Tanveer Hossain, Kristine De Leon | Production Company: Katalog. | Co-producers: Narra, Barebones, Getafixxi
Director's Bio
Adnan Al Rajeev made his directorial debut in 2008 with a TV fiction for the local industry. He gained widespread acclaim for his subsequent fictional works, including Bikal Belar Pakhi and YouTumor.Beyond. Adnan is the founder of Runout Films, one of Bangladesh’s premier production houses.
Filmography
2025 Ali
Selected Awards
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Short Film Special Mention, Cannes Film Festival, France, 2025.
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Short Film Prize, SXSW London, UK, 2026.
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Youth Jury Award, SEMINCI, Valladolid IFF, Spain, 2025.
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Diversity Award, International Filmfest Bremen, Germany, 2026.
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Best Short Fiction Award, Kathmandu International Mountain Film Festival, Nepal, 2026.
Salt
22’, 2025
Cyprus, UK
Fiction
Synopsis
1948 Cyprus: A WWI veteran defies British colonial rule by illegally collecting salt, challenging imperial authority, injustice, and cultural oppression.
Credits
Directed by: Constantinos Nikiforou | Screenplay: Demetris Roussounis, Nikolas Kouroumtzis | Cinematography: Sofronis Sofroniou | Editing: Emilios Avraam | Production Design: Sossee Eskidjian | Art Direction: Annie Vasiliou | Costume Design: Lakis Yenethlis | Music: Stavros Makris | Sound Design: Marco Lopez | Cast: Jonny Coyne, George Georgiou, Demetris Roussounis, Panagiota Papageorgiou | Producers: Monica Nicolaidou, Constantinos Nikiforou | Production Company: Caretta Films | Co-producer: Demetris Roussounis
Director's Bio
Constantinos Nikiforou is a Cypriot film producer and founder of Caretta Films, specialising in European co-productions, independent cinema and television. He has produced feature films and TV projects that have screened at major international festivals and been broadcast internationally, reaching audiences across Europe and beyond.
Filmography
2025 Salt
2024 TAXI
Abortion Party
13’, 2025
Spain
Documentary, Animation
Synopsis
After managing to scrape together money to pay for an abortion after her Polish exchange student boyfriend gets her pregnant, the director decides to celebrate with a party. In attendance are her geriatric ska musician neighbour, semi-retired gang affiliates, her dirty gay roommate, and ever-present bedbugs.
Credits
Screenplay, Directing, Animation, Editing, Production: Julia Mellen
Director's Bio
Julia Mellen is a Brazilian American filmmaker living in Madrid. Her work has been shown at the London Short Film Festival, Metrograph Theater in NYC, and featured in Filmmaker Magazine’s “25 New Faces of Independent Film”.
Filmography
2025 Abortion Party
2020 Yung Lean, Please be my Yung Love
Selected Awards
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Audience Award, Vienna Shorts, Austria, 2026.
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Alice Guy Award, FIDMarseille, France, 2025.
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Best International Short Film, London Short Film Festival, United Kingdom, 2026.
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“fully political” Short Film Award for Democratic Culture, Filmfest Dresden, Germany, 2026.
The Shift
18’, 2025
Iran
Fiction
Synopsis
A young factory worker tries to change one of his shifts in order to meet the girl he loves. But everybody refuses to change shifts with him because they are afraid of losing their jobs.
Credits
Directed by: Samaneh Yadollahi | Screenplay: Samaneh Yadollahi | Cinematography: Ali Hosseinzadeh | Editing: Marjan Tabasi | Production Design: Melika Gholami | Art Direction: Samaneh Yadollahi | Costume Design: Melika Gholami | Sound Design: Zohreh Aliakbari | Cast: Keivan Mohammadi, Shabnam Dadkhah | Producer: Hasan Shams | Production Company: Shams Film | Co-producer: IYCS
Director's Bio
Samaneh Yadollahi is an Iranian filmmaker born in 1997. She has been practising cinema as an assistant director since 2020. The short film Hair is her first experience as a filmmaker, which took part in various prestigious festivals.
Filmography
2025 The Shift
2022 Hair
First! / Pierwszy!
4’, 2026
Poland
Animation
Synopsis
A mysterious man sets out to fulfil his dream of flying to the Moon.
Credits
Directed by: Michał Gątarek | Screenplay: Michał Gątarek | Cinematography: Michał Gątarek | Editing: Piotr Igor Pawlak | Music: Der Slapstick Tod | Sound Design: Igor Kokot | Cast: Krzysztof Pokora, Gabriela Radek | Producers: Michał Gątarek, Piotr Igor Pawlak | Production Company: Kinofaktura
Director's Bio
Michał Gątarek, born in 1985 in Poland, is a graduate of the Academy of Fine Arts in Wrocław, with a degree in painting and drawing. In 2026, he made his debut with the animated film titled First!, created within the Kinofaktura collective.
Filmography
2026 First! / Pierwszy!
Kinds of Fathers
14’, 2026
Cyprus
Fiction
Synopsis
A man and his family struggle to navigate grief after the loss of a child.
Credits
Directed by: Christos Artemiou | Screenplay: Christos Artemiou | Cinematography: Dimitris Loutsios | Editing: Manos Makrygiannakis | Sound Design: George Theodoulou | Colour Grading: Apostolis Gkanatsios | Cast: Christos Artemiou, Andreas Poumbouris, Evelina Poumbouri, Charalambos Apostolou, Chris Nikola | Producer: Charalambos Apostolou
Director's Bio
Christos Artemiou is a writer and director based between Athens and Cyprus. His debut short film, Prelude to a Supernova, has received multiple awards at international festivals, including Best Film, Best Director, and Best Performance Awards at the ISFFC 2025.
Filmography
2026 Kinds of Fathers
2025 Prelude to a Supernova
Stolen Memories / Stjålne Minner
18’, 2026
Norway, Sweden
Fiction
Synopsis
Eighteen-year-old Emil’s night turns to horror when a break-in reveals old photographs of him as a child naked with his mother in a bathtub, making him question his past.
Credits
Directed by: Anders Davidsen | Screenplay: Anders Davidsen | Cinematography: Benjamin Loeb | Editing: Matilda Lind | Production Design: Saga Gloria Thiberg Stærmose | Costume Design: Marie Nesset | Sound Design: Jakob Bechmann Hansen | Cast: Jørgen Cleve Broch, Hannah Fjeldbraaten, Turid Rivertz Vatne, Anderz Eide, Jonatan Bratt Silset-Pedersen | Producer: Jonas Bruun, Louise Beyer | Production Company: SKALA – Storm Films | Co-producers: Stina Ikovic, Alicia Hansen, Prolaps Produktion
Director's Bio
Anders Davidsen graduated from The Norwegian Film School in 2022 with the experimental non-narrative film Kosmos. Prior to that, he went to The European Film College and worked on various film sets. Stolen Memories marks his first short film after completing film school. He is now developing several feature films in both Norway and Denmark.
Filmography
2025 Stolen Memories / Stjålne Minner
2022 Kosmos
2019 Rust
2018 Black Sheep
Awards
The Hourglass Award for Best Screenplay, Norwegian Short Film Festival, Norway, 2026.
Sisters’ Swim / Le Bain des Sirènes
15’, 2026
France, Belgium
Animation
Synopsis
Every year, Rose and Lina, two sisters who aren’t particularly close, have to make the trip to Ostend, Belgium, for the traditional New Year’s Day swim imposed by their mothers. The problem is, she is no longer there
Credits
Directed by: Lola Degove | Screenplay: Lola Degove, Zoé Bertemont | Animation: Lola Degove | Editing: Billie Bellin, Soline Guyonneau | Music: Bruno Schweisguth | Sound Design: David Davister | Cast: Mara Taquin, Rose Eva Huault, Lina Yolande Moreau | Producers: Priscilla Bertin, Judith Nora | Production Company: SILEX FILMS | Co-producers: Vanessa Buttin-Labarthe, Jean Bouthors, Hugo Deghilage, Vincent Tavier, LES ASTRONAUTES, PANIQUE !n
Director's Bio
Lola Degove is an animation film director who graduated from EMCA and La Poudrière. She has directed several short films, including Damn Rain, which was acquired by France Télévisions and has been selected for numerous festivals, including Premiers Plans in Angers and Anima in Belgium.
Filmography
2026 Sisters’ Swim / Le Bain des Sirènes
2022 Damn Rain