The Understudy (2024)

When You Hear the Bells

In Afghanistan, "batchas" are young male prostitutes who live under the protection of a master in a house where they are trained to dance dressed as girls for a men's audience. Veteran dancer Saman starts worrying when he sees Bijane, the new recruit, who has been chosen to replace him. Despite his jealousy, he must initiate Bijane into the art of the Batcha dancing.

Chrome Soldiers

Five ex-soldiers go to a small town in Oregon to help a friend investigate the murder of his brother.

Thesis

While doing a thesis about violence, Ángela finds a snuff video where a girl is tortured to death. Soon she discovers that the girl was a former student at her college...

The Polar Bear

Four characters become involved in one dramatic story: Nico has a mission to drive a car containing a live bomb to a specified destination, park the car and escape as quickly as she can. Leo has become his client's target, having carried out a "contract" that unfortunately had already been cancelled. Fabian and Reza want to enjoy themselves without any money, bringing themselves into contact sooner or later with the police. Sooner or later all four will meet up in dramatic circumstances....

2 Days in the Valley

In a sleepy bedroom community of LA's San Fernando Valley, the murder of a professional athlete by two hit men sets into motion a chain of events that puts the mundane lives of a dozen residents on a collision course. This clever tale tells the story of two hit men, a mistress, a nurse, a vindictive ex-wife, a wealthy art dealer and his lovelorn assistant, a suicidal writer and his dog, and a bitter cop and his partner.

Red Corner

An American attorney on business in China, ends up wrongfully on trial for murder and his only key to innocence is a female defense lawyer from the country.

Nowhere to Go

The runaway high school students, Hyeon-su and Dong-gyu, are helped by Min-jung who is a member of the so called runaway family. Hyeon-su asks to go to a runaway family’s residence, but Dong-gyu opposes it, and Hyeon-su and Dong-gyu feel for each other as they depend on one another. Dong-gyu frankly confesses to Hyeon-su, but Hyeon-su denies his feelings and leaves Dong-gyu to head for the home of runaway family by himself.

The Private War of Joseph Sargent

Porn Star Grayson Lange along with Addison Graham and Robby Valls star in a film about two mercenaries on a secret mission in the jungles of South America. Once captured, their last night together will reveal dark secrets and create sexual tensions. So much so that it will cause unforeseen collateral damage that stretches well beyond the jungle. This highly provocative and erotic film was part of Eroddity(s) 2. Now re-worked as a stand-alone short the film seems to take on new meaning.

Evita

The hit musical based on the life of Evita Duarte, a B-movie Argentinian actress who eventually became the wife of Argentinian president and dictator Juan Perón, and the most beloved and hated woman in Argentina.

Conspiracy Theory

A man obsessed with conspiracy theories becomes a target after one of his theories turns out to be true. Unfortunately, in order to save himself, he has to figure out which theory it is.

Fallen

Homicide detective John Hobbes witnesses the execution of serial killer Edgar Reese. Soon after the execution the killings start again, and they are very similar to Reese's style.

Kai Rabe gegen die Vatikankiller

Director Rufus Lindner is shooting his first film: " Die Vatikankiller". With audience favorite Kai Rabe in the leading role, success is guaranteed. But suddenly chaos descends on the film team: A starlet is murdered, the bitchy leading man goes increasingly crazy, a drunken policeman causes a lot of trouble, and the sex-obsessed producer Egon Lütter doesn't make things any easier.

Zločin v Polné

An exciting drama from a detective history. In 1899 a dead girl - seamstress Anežka Hrůzová - was found between the village of Věžnička and the town of Polná. She was 19 and she had a cutting wound on the throat. There was no sexual violence involved and since the local doctors thought that there was not enough blood on the crime scene, everyone jumped to the conclusion that Jews must have killed her and added her blood to their passover matzot. There was a potential murderer at hand too - a cheeky, not very bright young Jewish rover, Leopold Hilsner…

Balcony

Tina doesn’t know much about the schoolgirl in the Hijab. She might come from Egypt or Iraq – but what does it matter? She would like to be there for her neighbour, to protect her from her tough life at home and in the neighbourhood. But how come Tina thinks she knows so much about this foreign girl? Prejudice and tentative advances collide head-on in the block.

The Gift

A department store gift wrapper is a lonely spectator at the centre of the festive season until a stage magician makes a surprising request.

L'échappée

In her room, Mona, a young teenager, gets ready. She waits for the arrival of the one with whom she is in love.

Must Not Think

A short film produced by, and staring, two high school students in Paris. Focusing on a couple of young lovers and their fear of not being accepted because they're gay, they try to only appear as friends in front of one of the boys father.

Mother Knows Best

The family's mother has absolutely no problems with her son having just introduced his boyfriend to her. She only wants to give him a little well-meaning advice.

Out of the Village

A brother and his sister seek closure after Ebola ravages their West African village.

Hostiles

A legendary Native American-hating Army captain nearing retirement in 1892 is given one last assignment: to escort a Cheyenne chief and his family through dangerous territory back to his Montana reservation.

Relativity

Emshwiller made this film on a Ford Foundation grant, and in his original proposal to the Ford Foundation, he outlined the film as "something that deals with subjective reality, the emotional sense of what one's perception of the total environment is -- sexual, physical, social, time, space, life, death."

Roxi

Roxi, the glamorous wife of millionaire industrialist Charles Logan, has recently moved to a remote Greek island where she awaits the arrival of her husband and his only child, Sean. Although married to Charles for several years, Roxi has never met her stepson. When Sean arrives on the island alone, she is angry with Charles for not being there for what was supposed to be a family reunion!

Body Beautiful

A heavyset woman who keeps being harassed by her aerobics instructor and her attempts to get even with him on a Body Beautiful contest.

Xavier

Nicolas notices that his eleven year old son Xavier spends his time not only playing drums, but also paying attention to a certain type of boys.

Rastres

Rita is a little 9-year-old girl who lives immersed in her own little world, full of illusions and innocence. After secretly hearing her parents say that they may have to leave their home behind forever, without really understanding the situation, Rita will find herself in the need to defend and protect her little world to prevent what she has heard from happening.

Black Report

After a businessman is murdered, an investigation identifies a suspect who is then put on trial for that crime.

Madtown

A stand-up comedian confesses to a murder on-stage at an open mic night to a shocked audience - his crime the result of a deadly triangle formed between his older sister, just released from prison after a 20-year stay for the murder of their parents, the loving bond he now shares with a caring surrogate family, and the ultimate choice he must make between them - his dysfunctional blood ties with his own sister, or his picturesque view of the ideal family.

Code of the Streets

Frankie Thomas plays Bob Lewis, leader of a gang consisting of Sailor, Murph, Monk, Trouble and Yap. The son of disgraced police officer Lt. Lewis, Bob vows to clear his dad's name, and also to prove that accused murderer Tommy Shay is innocent.