QUITE SLOWLY | Karlis Andzs | 0:12:00 | United Kingdom

 

Synopsis:

Quite Slowly is an experimental short film, juxtaposing elements of time and life with the spirit of nature, the living world and human memory. Combining documentary and narrative, it contemplates the transience of the individual’s existence and the traces of their being that endure beyond it.

 

MY FRIEND SEGA | Artyom Gryanik | 1:33:00 | Russian Federation, Serbia

 

Synopsis:

In front of the director, a man without a leg becomes a symbol of the modern dream of social media fame. However, the constant stream of content and love from his followers cannot fill the emptiness within him. The protagonist goes through a period of suffering, but in the end, he finds new meaning.

 

INFERIOR SHADOWS | Ramin Khalighi | 1:25:20 | Iran, Islamic Republic Of

 

Synopsis:

Parvin and Rasoul, a young couple, left their small town for the big city to find work and a better life. Parvin’s younger brother, Amir Ali, is also living with them as a guest. This family, all three struggling with addiction and forced into scavenging, recounts their story. We witness their daily struggle for survival and their attempts to escape the swamp in which they've become trapped.

 

IN THEIR OWN TIME | Sourya Dipta | 1:53:39 | India

 

Synopsis:

In Their Own Time follows three women—Srija, Tuhnu, and Jhumur—over three years as they reflect on love, loss, identity, and memory. Their faces remain unseen, while the cityscape of Kolkata becomes a visual canvas for their voices and emotions.

In the first part, they share everyday stories—about work, family, and friendship. Gradually, their reflections deepen, blending with the evolving rhythm of the city.

Three years later, we revisit them. They speak of change, growth, and shifting dreams, revealing how their lives—and relationships with themselves and the director—have transformed over time.

 

PORTRAIT OF AN UNKNOWN ARTIST | Eli Gothill, Owen Gothill | 0:39:02 | Belgium, Germany

 

Synopsis:

An intimate portrait of Tom Schurr, an American artist based in Berlin, as he navigates the grips of Parkinson's disease. Through archives and raw reflections, the film explores the questions of resilience, success, and the passage of time in the face of physical decline.

 

ALLEY | Defne Kirmizi | 0:05:34 | Austria, Turkey

 

Synopsis:

The camera lingers, tracing a quiet alley where people go in and out of frame — glimpsed, reflected, and lost. A game unfolds in this stage, where shifting perspectives turn passersby into unwitting performers. Elsewhere, landscapes are slipping away and rebuilt on a cyclical pattern. A brief syncopation in a daily routine, a fleeting interplay of a place and bodies in motion.

 

IMMIGRATION TO NOWHERE | Nikolay Flotskiy |  0:23:25 | Norway

 

Synopsis:

«Immigration to Nowhere» is a black and white filmic journey accompanied by a philosophical poem, written and pronounced in Norwegian language. The poem opens a story of a person facing the feeling of emptiness, while going through immigration adaptation. In a broader sense the film touches an immense issue of today’s traumatic world transformation caused by a gap between technological progress and human development. Where are we all going? – The question which is vocalized in the image by the way of its cinematographic manifestation that drives the viewer to a point of a lost future.

 

THE GETAWAY (TRILOGY) | Nikita Popkov | 1:33:50 | Russian Federation

 

Synopsis:

In a collapsing world, people either take a stand or escape.

Three stories explore the search for refuge:

A city boy adapts to village life during a pandemic lockdown.

A bike messenger makes a hard choice amid global chaos.

A major music competition faces civil unrest.

Yet, time and again, something—or someone—stops the fall.

 

SCORPIO EMBRYOS | Mohammad Rasai | 0:10:00 | Iran, Islamic Republic Of

 

Synopsis:

He fed on the flesh of the dead — that was his way of life.

In a land ruled by a ruthless, bloodthirsty dictator, death became ordinary, and blood soaked the earth. But no reign of terror lasts forever. Change is coming. The blood will dry. The land will heal.

 

 

BRIGHT FUTURE | Andra Macmasters | 1:29:00 | Romania, South Korea

 

Synopsis:

In the summer of 1989, thousands gathered in North Korea for a student festival promoting peace, friendship, and anti-imperialism. Over 42 years, this event became a cultural meeting ground for youth from the West, socialist countries, and the developing world, offering a rare space for dialogue amid Cold War tensions. The festival focused on political issues like nuclear disarmament, social justice, and peace, taking place at a historic turning point that marked the end of an era.