Escapism (2023)

Carne

After a dreadful incident coupled with an ungovernable paroxysm of violence, a butcher will fall into a downward spiral that will burn to the ground whatever dignity still remained in him.

Puddles

An adventurous young boy discovers that puddles can be portals to a fantastical world, but struggles to get his sister's attention away from her phone to see the magic in the world around her.

Tree House

All summer long, four teenagers gather illegally in a military zone to build a hut. But school will soon begin again and the golden days of cabin-building are coming to an end.

Gulis

A story about a dysfunctional father and son who are still coping with a loss, the other with a highly-stigmatized illness who are compelled to talk to one another to make ends meet and heal the wounds of their relationship.

Zibilla

Zibilla, a young zebra adopted by a couple of horses, is the laughing stock of her new schoolmates. She ends up hating her stripes. When she has her stuffed toy stolen, she takes off without a second thought to look for it and that is where her adventures begin...

The Black Dog

A young man and his elderly father are terrorised by a mysterious black dog in Connemara in 1910.

22 vs. Earth

Set before the events of ‘Soul’, 22 refuses to go to Earth, enlisting a gang of 5 new souls in attempt of rebellion. However, 22’s subversive plot leads to a surprising revelation about the meaning of life.

Fish Out of Water

Fish Out of Water manages to unfurl its light-hearted tale of young man and the sea, without a word of dialogue. Avoiding the morning traffic jams, our man (Nick Dunbar) finds peace by rowing each day to work in the city. But when a seductive blonde unexpectedly enters the picture, he finds his morning boat ride heading in unexpected directions. Directed by Lala Rolls (Land of My Ancestors), Fish Out of Water was invited to play in the 2005 NZ Film Festival, plus another 10 overseas fests. Victoria Kelly composes the brass and banjo-inflected soundtrack.

Automatic

Two young women convince each other they are under threat after accidentally photographing what they believe to be a concealed automatic rifle. Shot in drawn-out, static takes, Emma Doxiadi’s comical mystery comments on Greece’s ongoing refugee crisis in real time, pointing squarely at foolish knee-jerk reactions.

Fili di memorie

Plot unavailable

Gay Jesus

Once upon a time in a cheap Jerusalem hotel room, Jesus and Judas are spending their time away from Nazareth between hot, sweaty, carnal love and preparing sermons for Jesus' growing fanbase. Enter Mary Magdalene, jealousy, Satan, and the Romans, and the once-perfect love affair between Judas and Jesus becomes a hellish ring of fire, leading Judas to betray his beloved Christ and the Romans to punish everyone for trying to turn everyone gay.

Miss Fortunate

If luck is a lady, grief is a bitch. A young woman loses her mother and finds herself.

Betty's Blues

The story begins in the basement of a worn-out blues bar in Louisiana in the 1980s. A few regular customers are having a drink. A guitarist gets on stage and everybody comments on the newcomer. The guitarist draws the attention of the audience by tapping the microphone. He introduces himself. He will tell them the true story of Blind Boogie Jones.

Stalker

A boy is haunted by his own thought, which takes physical form.

Details

Amelia falls in love with Dan, but she is fighting to escape a past that threatens to repeat itself. Can Amelia’s new relationship survive the hidden details?

Dying to Come Back

At 78 years old, Manuela buys a camera and AR glasses.

The Madagascar Penguins in a Christmas Caper

During the holiday season, when the animals of the Central Park Zoo are preparing for Christmas, Private, the youngest of the penguins notices that the Polar Bear is all alone. Assured that nobody should have to spend Christmas alone, Private goes into the city for some last-minute Christmas shopping. Along the way, he gets stuffed into a stocking

Like A B1

In Seoul, a Korean girl is passing the French oral exam DELF. Yet the examiner’s questions lead her to speak unexpectedly about her difficult family story. With the stress, her low level of French gets worse, then unconsciously, she starts to express herself with gestures.

Lisbon

A broke queer man agrees to an intimate meeting with an older man for cash, only to be confronted with an unexpected and harrowing request that forces him to grapple with life, death, and his own morality.

King Lavra

A king hides an embarrassing secret - and it causes him to execute every barber who cuts his hair.

Heartsaver

A young woman is late for an important job interview when she notices a woman falling ill just as the train drives into the station.

Dante's Lunch

Every dog has his day, but poor Dante can't seem to catch a break.

Cocoon

China, 1997. An unhappy marriage, a love affair and a child who holds all the secrets.

Girly Is in Control of His Life

Gay teenager Girly looks for a job in a world he is unaware of.

Billy Boy

In an era marked by the reign of fluid relationships, through apps and blind dates, Alejo seeks to fill his sentimental void by constantly changing sex partners.

Poppety in the Fall

In this animated short, a terrible curse deprives Balthasar's kingdom of its stories. Taking the unicorn's horn back into The Belly of the Earth is the solution. Poppety will lead an expedition, by chance uncovering a hitherto closely guarded family secret.

Zing

Day in, day out, Mr. Grimm is busy with his job as the Reaper, harvesting people's lives. One day, his monotonous existence is interrupted by the door bell. It's a little girl. She wants her cat back. Little does she know that she's the next life on Mr. Grimm's list.

Bulldog

Charlie and Jack find an escape from the brutality of country footy in an isolated beach, and each other.

The silent cry of the trees

To protest the construction of a new car lot, a young guy named Bernat comes to the vacant lot in order to tie himself to the only left living tree. Upon arrival, Bernat finds Joel, an unknown young man who also has decided to tie himself up.

The American Wake

A seventeen year old girl who has lived all her life on an island off the coast of Ireland is faced with the choice to remain there or emigrate to America.

Boy Saint

A sumptuous short film of friendship and adoration between boys, based on a poem by Peter LeBerge. Moments of joy, bonding and roughhousing on a school trip to the beach counterpoint one teen boy’s introspective sexual awakenings and questionings. Magnificent cinematography and editing create a visual feast that provides the imagery for a narrated poem by Peter Laberge alluding to early homosexual desires, but with Catholic overtones never directly expressed.

Chang-ok's Letter

Housewife Eun-ha is busy every day: In addition to taking care of her husband who doesn’t help out at all and her willful daughter and son, she has to care for her nagging mother-in-law, who is nearly bedridden.

Ioana

Young Romanian Adrian works as a hustler in Zurich's underground in order to get his sister Ioana out of Romania and to Zurich, where they can both have a better future.

Lazarus Come Out

45 year old Don Valter is a traditional priest who still wears an old fashioned black tunic out of nostalgia. One day young Claudio and his exuberant troupe of actors appear, proposing to perform an avant-garde show based on the Gospel's miracle of the rebirth of Lazarus*. The powerless priest is overwhelmed by this young upstart, who stirs within him emotions that will, whether he likes it or not, pull him into the modern era.

Laurita

Laura and her mother are spending their vacation on the seashore, in Sao Paulo, at a middle-class beach house. Laura's adolescent body is changing but not in harmony with her coming of age. She's less bothered by that than the situation the two of them find themselves in.

Lost Time

Anto travels to the depth of his most beloved memories with Julián. He must cross the threshold of the loss of a loved one.

100 papiers

Plot unavailable

Blanche faïence

Plot unavailable

Paris Ficelle

Plot unavailable

Echoes

Strange entities begin to haunt a middle-aged man and his infant son in a remote cabin in the woods.

Bumping Heads

Craig is an older, average-looking man who isn't handling aging well. Gary is a hot, blond young stud at the center of attention. They literally bump heads one night, and become best friends. But Craig wants to be boyfriends, while Gary has other issues. They work things out (somewhat) during a night in the emergency room.