The Payphone (2023)

Beautiful Alexander

An almost dialogueless, poetic impression of an insecure teenager’s dilemma. Alexander spends his first holiday alone in an old beach cabin. Longing for affection, but searching for his identity, he stays inside. From the cabin, he watches the people on the beach. On a diving board, in the middle of the sand, he spots someone who is making some dance moves. Hesitant at first, but increasingly uninhibited, Alexander mimics him, which yields a cautious dance duet at a safe distance. Will he dare to make the next move?

Auroras

Constantly orbiting at 400 km (250 mi) above the earth, the ISS is perfectly situated to witness the beautiful streamers of green and red light emanating from the collision of highly charged solar wind particles with oxygen and nitrogen atoms in the earth's atmosphere. Centered about the northern (Aurora Borealis) and southern (Aurora Australis) poles the Auroras move in an almost hypnotic dance below the space station.

Women's Letters

On the front lines of the Great War, nurse Simon repairs the broken faces of the soldiers every day with love letters, words from women that have the power to heal the wounds of these paper soldiers. Simon himself seems impervious to holes, uncreasable, untearable in his white coat. His secret is his war godmother, who occupies all his thoughts whenever he has a moment to breathe. But when death strikes where it is least expected, can words written on paper still erase the pain?

When Jeff Tried to Save the World

When Jeff discovers that the bowling alley he manages is being sold, he must do everything he can to save the place he's come to call home. This is the original / short.

Open

When his father passes away, Vijay is forced to return home after a 10-year estrangement and open up to his mother about his sexuality.

Snorkel

Inés and Julia are on holiday doing what they like most – snorkelling. Every night at eight o'clock the girls stand by their father and wait for their mother to call.

Hidden

Lonely and closeted, Xiao-Wei turns to the internet—until real-life feelings bring more questions than answers.

Undercurrent

On a winter evening in 1979, the arrest of anti-government protesters is underway. The city is under curfew, but a teenage student, out of curiosity, follows a mysterious young man from a riverside path into an abandoned hut. Living in Taiwan under martial law, are men constantly escaping from government, society, or the affection buried in their hearts?

A Crime

During the porfiriato, Matilde is sold as a servant to some bosses. She will have to face the accumulated fatigue due to the constant abuse received.

Thus Began Antoine's Down-Going

Antoine - a grieving loner - spends his days in a cafe on Place Clichy watching people. Every day, he sees a woman he calls Albertine get out of the subway and go to the movies. Today, he takes it upon himself to talk to her. Thus began Antoine's down-going.

Nahjum

A prehistoric family's desperate search for a mythical source of life turns to tragedy when the egos and obsessions of its male members rise to the surface.

Open

Jess comes into "Gay's The Word" (the first Gay and Lesbian bookshop that opened in London) where she meets Leah for the first time. They coincidentally meet by the same bookcase over three days. What sparks is a romantic awkward chemistry between the two, transpired by Jess' curiosity in Leah and the chance for an artistic and sexual liberation possibly waiting for her at the end.

Fifteen Love

Alexandra has been playing tennis for as long as she can remember. After years of training under the instructions of her father, Julio (a retired tennis player who intends to relive his victories through his daughter), she has become one of the most promising junior tennis players in the Spanish circuit. During one of the most important tournaments of the 1978 season, the increasing pressure from her father will exert on and off the court will begin to affect her mental health. With the arrival of adolescence and the questions it brings, Alex will realize that, perhaps, this is not her destiny.

Play / Ground

Dad fights to get grandma out of bed. But grandma can’t, she just sleeps. Love just wants to play – to be part of things and be close.

A Family Affair

A woman makes a powerful connection with a surprising stranger on her 30th birthday.

Requited

Nicolas, a young man in his mid 20s, struggles to decide whether or not to go to the wedding of his best friend from high school, Aaron, who he's always been quietly in love with. The two had a falling out years earlier after Nicolas inexplicably kissed Aaron's girlfriend. Nicolas clings to an idealized image of his former friend, unconsciously sabotaging his own happiness in the process. The film is a realistic slice-of-life that poses the question "How do you get over something you never had?"

Boys Like You

A young man struggles with the boundaries of friendship when he finds himself in an intimate situation

Revolution

A coming-of-age story about Jack, a 16-year old Iranian boy growing up in 1989 Los Angeles. With the 1979 Iranian Revolution a distant memory, the AIDS movement as a backdrop, and a haunting score by Vampire Weekend's Rostam Batmanglij, Jack learns how to stage his own much smaller revolution within the confines of his traditional family.

The In-Between

The story or two men who fall in love and move in together.

Guys! Action!

The high school multimedia club students aim to win Best Short Film in Cinemalaya Film Festival to avoid dissolution ordered by the school admin.

All the Way

Rayvenn and Lourenço find themselves in new relationships but will their political differences drive them apart?

Infected 2030

The film is set in 2030, where a happy couple's life changes after the wife contracts a virus and is quarantined.

Pool Blue

Pool Blue is an attempt which tells, without dialogue nor rationality, a connection fantasized between two men. It is the fantastical projection which reveals certain eroticism. Pointless and discreet, the desire is present, two men are careful, gauge to the point to create a link of seduction. This link is intelligently staged, it is invisible with the eyes of the other swimmers, mysterious for both men and very explicit for the spectator.

A Way made for Two

Segismundo Morey has spent his last few years facing the challenges imposed by Andrade’s rare disease. This medical condition, which affects his nervous and muscular system, has left a deep mark on his daily life and that of those around him. Over the years, Segismundo has had to overcome physical and emotional obstacles, dealing with difficulties in walking and moving normally. However, despite the constant challenges, he has found comfort and strength in the unconditional love and support of his family. Together, they have faced the adversities of Andrade’s disease, forming an indestructible bond that has been key in their shared journey.

A New Goodbye

Helen lives with her son Bruno, but Bruno doesn't behave like a normal kid. She will have to overcome the mourning crisis to withstand reality.

Confession

Gayoung, a director, expects to hear a farewell confession from her boyfriend, who's an actor. (Part of "100인 X 100초영화 프로젝트", a project dedicated to celebrate 100 years of South Korean cinema.)

Arrival

Ten girls are waiting for arrival of the train. We find out from the conductor that it is delayed indefinitely. We spy on the girls from the outside and they figure it out. While they are telling their stories, sharing their problems and concerns, we are all waiting for the train. Will the train arrive? Where are they going and what are they really waiting for?

Paseo

Plot unavailable

The Trap

Maggie's friends have planned a surprise birthday party (despite it being a month away). During the party, Maggie realizes there's more to it then that.

The Mess He Made

A man spends 15 minutes waiting for the results of a Rapid HIV Test.

Lalibela

On the eve of Easter, an icon depicting the Ethiopian Mother of God enters a Ukrainian village. After the icon is noticed by regular parishioners, a conflict begins between the young priest and his flock. Peasants do not agree to have a dark-skinned Mother of God in the church. One night someone makes his way to the church and cuts the icon. After the night events, the icon begins to pour myrrh.

Dancing at Lughnasa

Five unmarried sisters make the most of their simple existence in rural Ireland in the 1930s.

Amen

Begoña, Pelayo and María are saying a last goodbye to their mother. Confusion arises when they discover she wanted to be buried in a very special outfit.

Leylak

In present-day Queens, a Turkish gravedigger is unable to face a shattering truth and risks losing the dearest connection left in his life.

My Biker

A summer trip with his friend Motor takes an unexpected turn when Gentle’s motorcycle breaks down, revealing feelings neither expected.

The Doldrums or How to Cure Sadness

The tiricia is an illness of the soul when the heart is saddened. A story of three generations afflicted with being tiricientas: Ita, Justa and Alicia – grandmother, mother and daughter – who have at different times suffered, tolerated and allowed abuse, dragging on the disease. Alicia decides to break the cycle, eradicating it for future generations.