White Snow (Praveen Morchhale) India

White Snow
Praveen Morchhale
India. 2025. 81 min

A young filmmaker, Amir’s film is banned from screening in the very remote mountain region on a complaint of the religious head of the town, after the film’s first screening in a community hall of the town. Amir’s only fault is that he has shown in the film the post-partum blood after a child’s birth. He is later arrested and put in custody on the pretext of the absurd reason of trying to create social unrest, though the real reason was very different. Seeing no hope, his mother Fatima risks her life and leaves home with a small TV and DVD player keeping them on a Yak (mountain animal) to show the film to people in remote villages to fulfil Amir’s dream. During her arduous journey, she meets many people who try to help her, but their own limitations do not permit them to screen her films. Resilient Fatima keeps traveling and quietly observes people’s kindness and social and economic conditions. Gradually the tiring journey, hopeless situations, and unsuccessful efforts break her mentally and physically and bring her close to madness. A surprise heart-breaking incident makes her a free soul in the end.

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The Temperature of the Universe (Viktor Sharimov) Russia

The Temperature of the Universe
Viktor Sharimov
Russia. 2025. 93 min

Set in a remote picturesque Astronomy village, where scientists investigate the cosmos undisturbed by the hustle and bustle of the city, the story navigates the characters through a breakup to an unlikely romance. The film is a story of separation and reunion that unfolds in a remote astronomers’ village in the Caucasus (filmed in Nizhny Arkhyz, home to real-world observatories). The isolated, quiet setting allows the characters to reflect on life without the noise of the city, exploring themes on the boundary between science, human relationships, and the vastness of the cosmos.

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