Tria
Giulia Grandinetti
Italy. 2022. 17 min
In a dystopian Rome, a law is enforced which doesn’t allow immigrant families to have more than three children. If a fourth is to be expected, he or she must be born, however, one of them must then be killed, giving the females priority for sacrifice. Zoe, Iris and Clio are three sisters, but one of them will soon be killed…
Continue reading Tria (Giulia Grandinetti) ItalyThe Violent
Sasha Gromova
Russia. 2023. 16 min
Zhenya is 15. Besides being a quiet and sensible boy, he is a promising violinist. Behind the door of Zhenya’s bedroom he daily hears his tyrannical stepfather being violent with the boy’s mother, but cannot find the courage to intervene. One sunny morning Zhenya comes to a decision to radically change his family’s life.
Continue reading The Violent (Sasha Gromova) RussiaWomen Beyond Bollywood
Rahila Bootwala
Canada. 2022. 53 min
India’s cinema industry is the largest in the world, and Bollywood is its flagship: stars, music, drama, not to mention rampant sexism, are its defining features. Today, a new generation of filmmakers is finally showing women as more than eye candy or appendages to larger than life male heroes. Montreal filmmaker Rahila Bootwala left India as a young woman, wanting to work in film but feeling disconnected from an industry dominated by men and beholden to their fantasies. In this empowering documentary, she goes back to India to meet with the women who are reshaping the industry.
Continue reading Women Beyond Bollywood (Rahila Bootwala) CanadaBangla Surf Girls
Elizabeth D Costa
Canada, Bangladesh. 2021. 86 min
Shobe, Aisha and Suma break away from the drudgery of their lives by joining a surf club in Cox’s Bazar, Bangladesh. The girls fight family pressure and social judgement, for a few hours on the waves each day and gain confidence as their natural skill and prowess gains attention and praise. The joy and freedom of the waves are a stark change from the abuse and hardship they face at home. Soon they are poised to make history as Bangladesh’s first women surfers. However the fate of the club itself hangs on the leadership of the coach who has his own challenges. The odds stack up but the girls refuse to give up. .Balancing the freedom of the waves with the restrictive realities of their circumstances, we experience the thrill and struggle of coming-of-age in a developing country.
Continue reading Bangla Surf Girls (Elizabeth D Costa) Canada, BangladeshTarlan
Yuliya Zakharova
Kazakhstan. 2021. 75 min
The story of one sincere and eternal friendship; growing up of a lonely boy and a lonely foal.
After various ups and downs that occurred in Zakir’s family, the boy realizes that there is no one closer to him than the foal, to whom the name Tarlan is given by him. Zakir, who is not understood by his parents, is mocked by his peers, feels lonely and finds a kindred spirit and best friend in Tarlan. Zakir does not give up and believes that his new friend will someday bring him good luck.
The grown-up Zakir and Tarlan have a goal to win at their first races.
At what cost will a teenager’s dream come true?
Asia
Ruthy Pribar
Israel. 2020. 85 min
Asia,s motherhood has always been more of a struggle than an instinct. Having had his daughter when she was still a teenager marked her relationship with Vika from the beginning. Although they live together, both barely have contact with each other. Asia is now concentrating on her job as a nurse, while her daughter spends the day with her friends at the skate park. This routine changes drastically when Vika’s health begins to deteriorate. At that time, Asia must become the mother her daughter desperately needs. Her illness ends up becoming a unique opportunity to reflect the love that unites this small family.
Continue reading Asia (Ruthy Pribar) IsraelNoria
Elisabet Terri
Spain. 2021. 13 min
Simon suffers from Asperger’s syndrome, but that doesn’t stop him from trying to communicate with Valeria, a deaf-mute girl who regularly visits the same lonely beach as he does.
Simon loves to search for lost treasures with the help of his metal detector, and is fascinated by Ferris wheels, although he has never been on one. Valeria would like to be able to get off the one that afflicts her heart.
Raavi
Jasmine Kaur Roy
India. 2021. 14 min
Fear and insecurity plague the mind of 73 year old Raavi as she finds herself trapped in her own home. While she wallows in the misery of her confinement, some scraps of memories float from a distant past and find release. The past and present fuse seamlessly and suffering acquires a new meaning.
Continue reading Raavi (Jasmine Kaur Roy) IndiaBad Egg
Mehak Jamal
India. 2022. 28 min
Zoya receives a disturbing call from her mother – her sister Zara has gone missing during the pandemic. Surprisingly, Zoya isn’t rattled enough. She’s hiding something, all of which leads back to the fateful night of a party. Throughout the film, Zoya interacts with her surroundings as if she’s re-calibrating to them. As the plot unravels, so does she. In this story, appearances can be very deceiving.
Continue reading Bad Egg (Mehak Jamal) IndiaLibya, No Escape from Hell
Sara Creta
France. 2021. 60 min
Libya, No Escape From Hell is an eye opener on the migrants’ reality in Libya but also on the horrific machine that has been set up and the scale of those responsible for the situation that take advantage of European policies.
The detention centres in Libya where thousands of migrants await in inhuman conditions for someone – the militia, Europe, the UN – to decide what their fate should be, are at the heart of this documentary. If officially, detention centres are run by the UN-recognised government in Tripoli, in reality they are in the hands of militias that control the country and see in migrants a ready source of cash by kidnapping and torturing them.
Continue reading Libya, No Escape from Hell (Sara Creta) France
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