Big Fish - Rumba Rwandaise (Belgium) by Luzie Kurth

The film BIG FISH - Rumba Rwandaise immerses into the world of Mère Josee, who invites the viewer to embark on a culinary journey through Congolese and Rwandan cuisine that goes beyond the sense of taste. Sharing food means sharing stories. A cinematic portrait of a passionate woman who sets the pace in her own dance of life, even if her freedom to move ends where the European border regime starts.

Running time: 01:19:00

The Glitter Factory (Sweden) by Alexander Rynéus    

Swedens only glitter factory is located in Dalarna close to my home village. Between the years 1950–1970 it produced Christmas tree tinsel during the winters. After the factory closed, the house was also the home of my grandfather and grandmother until they passed away. In the midst of the prevailing Covid pandemic I spent a lot of time in the house. Me and my parents went through different objects from different times still occupying the house and The Glitter Factory turned into an archaeological excavation with confused archaeologists. The film camera was with me in the house and suddenly years had passed. In The Glitter Factory, the year’s cycle materialized in an attempt to produce different objects, according to the different needs of the different seasons, that would sustain the factory’s survival. Christmas tree tinsel in the winter, binoculars in the spring, sunglasses in the summer, and zippers in the autumn. With the ever- present feeling of time, I filmed my parents over and over again. Over time scenes from life, dreams and imagination came to life in The Glitter Factory. The act of looking and a spotlight on mortality slowly emerged. The house itself started to fade away and a new place became visible. A house that invites us to spend time with each other, a camera that gives us a reason and moments to pay attention to the way we look at things and the way we speak about them.

Running time: 00:51:00

Darwin Nix (United States) by Brice Goldberg

Darwin Nix is an artist living and working in the small town of Evergreen, Alabama. Darwin grew up in Evergreen and has returned after living in Memphis, Philadelphia and Santa Fe as an accomplished fine art painter. His current work strives to subvert the overt confederate sentimentality he has witnessed since returning to the south. Living alone and with very few funds, Darwin has created a series of radical protest paintings and sculptures that reflect and antagonize what he deems to be a cultural inbreeding of ignorance and stupidity.

Running time: 01:19:15

Richard Orlinski, The Art Documentary (United States) by David Serero

Director David Serero is set to bring the captivating world of acclaimed French sculptor Richard Orlinski to the silver screen with the much-anticipated documentary art film. This cinematic masterpiece promises to take audiences on an extraordinary journey into the life and artistry of Orlinski, exploring the passion, innovation, and groundbreaking vision that have defined his career. Through his dynamic editing, David Serero takes the film at the rhythm of Orlinski’s vision: colorful and vibrant.

Running time: 00:52:00

Landless Shepherd (France) by Lucie Francini, Sabina Hourcade

The decision is made, next winter Maina will no longer be a landless shepherd. No more nomadic life, no more constant searching for a new home, the impossibility of managing her land as she sees fit. Maina wants to settle down, determined to anchor herself in the land of her birth and to follow through on her convictions. Despite her strong character and unshakeable self-confidence, Maina's move proves to be more complicated than expected.

Running time: 01:07:00

Fabulous Femininities (United Kingdom) by Jonothon Lees

Fabulous Femininities is a captivating feature-length documentary that offers an intimate glimpse into the lives and journeys of six extraordinary burlesque performers from across the United Kingdom. Through this documentary, the film aims to challenge misconceptions surrounding burlesque and showcase its empowering nature as a celebration of body positivity, creativity, and self-expression.

Running time: 00:50:25

Gamemaster (Denmark) by Magda Wyszynska

A poetic and honest story about a man who believes that those who forget to be playful will grow old very quickly. Jens-Rune lives to create an enchanting world full of adventures. For 40 years, he and his friends have been exploring it in Jens-Runes version of the role-playing game Dungeons & Dragons. Despite his impressive achievement of 40 books filled with stories and imaginative drawings, he still lacks recognition from the outside world, his daughters in particular. Therefore, he decides to showcase his life's work in an exhibition – but navigating the "real world," especially without email and the internet, proves to be a challenge.

Running time: 00:58:40

L'inizio del tempo - The beginning of time (Germany) by Anna Kiehl

"It is the beginning of my time" it says right at the start of the film. The Italian sculptor Arnaldo Pomodoro (98) sees one of his early works again after 60 years and takes the audience on a journey full of memories and full of craftsmanship precision. The protagonist of the film is the relief "L’ Inizio del Tempo". It has almost been destroyed beyond recognition and is now being restored step by step. Arnaldo Pomodoro's memories of his successful life merge with the rebirth of this work of art. The spectators immerse themselves in the studio of the artist in Milan and the sounds of the grinding stone will echo for a long time.

Running time: 01:19:55

The Lost Shoes (Italy) by Tomaso Aramini, Rafiqfuad Yarahmadi

The story of a man from the Verona countryside who devoted his life and political experience to his communist ideals, culminating in the kidnapping of a NATO general. Along with him thousands of other people who tried to radically change Italy and the world during the 70s.

Running time: 01:28:00

The Children of Popodia (France) by Sofia Babluani

In Georgia, at King Tamar's bording school , Christian and Muslim teenagers keep instructors on their toes, playing hooky and falling in love. The idea of this peacfull island, has its beginnings in a tumultuous love story between two people of different faiths.

Running time: 01:07:25

History, Mystery & Odyssey (United Kingdom) by Martin Cooper

An exploration of the lives and work of 6 extraordinary and world-renowned animators.

Running time: 01:31:00

Fifteen Zero Three Nineteenth of January Two Thousand Sixteen (Sweden) by Petra Bauer, Marius Dybwad Brandrud

fifteen zero three nineteenth of january two thousand sixteen explores how everyday routines and gestures are transformed when a mother loses her child in the violence impacting Swedish outskirts since the early 2000s. The film depicts how a home can hold both mourning and resistance.

Running time: 01:02:00

In Ruins (Hungary) by Bence Sypos    

The ruin pub is a scrappy, cultural space where they couldn't afford furniture, the embodiment of freedom, the cause of terrible noise, a relic of the past...

At the turn of the century, a culturally vibrant capital was razed to the ground by the war. The people who lived there had to start all over again. Perseverance and will brought the city back to life, only to fall back into decline. It is in this circularity that Budapest exists, and to it the ruin pub is linked, embodying the permanence built out of the ruins of Eastern Europe. The characters are the ruin tavern owners, young people, who have been, witnessing the ruin bar district’s change and how the project has become the prime destination for foreigners: the party district. In Ruins is a first-hand account of the ruin pub phenomenon in Budapest, and its story is its past, present and uncertain future, while the persistence of human destinies and shoulder-to-shoulder struggles are a bitter and triumphant history of Budapest.

Running time: 01:39:00

Last Ride Home (Canada) by Joshua Saunders

Last Ride Home explores the profound human cost of the Ukraine war, shedding light on the volunteers delivering critical medical aid on the frontlines and the families left waiting in uncertainty. It follows the stories of families bidding tearful farewells to husbands and fathers, fathers who often rely on the life-saving interventions to make it back home. Through these deeply personal narratives, the film captures the struggles of separation, sacrifice, and resilience in the face of war.

Running time: 01:06:00

Thank God for The Gift (Belgium) by Luc Vrydaghs

Thank God for the Gift' tells the story of Jan Hoet, one of the most striking figures from recent Belgium art history. The film shows the remarkable career of the top curator, but even more so the remarkable person he was. Hoet's favorite painting The Adoration of the Mystic Lamb offers a rich conceptual framework for the film.

Running time: 01:22:00

The Painted Life of Gregory Gillespie (United States) by Evan Goodchild

Director Evan Goodchild learns that an artist committed suicide in the converted art studio where he lived for three years in Western Massachusetts. Further investigation reveals it wasn’t just any artist, but Gregory Gillespie (1936-2000), an American master of surreal, haunting paintings and sculptures, some of which are in collections as renowned as the Metropolitan Museum of Art, The Whitney and the Hirshhorn in Washington D.C. Drawing on previously unseen archival footage and extensive interviews with artists, family and art world insiders, and using arresting photography and storytelling to pull viewers into Gillespie’s work and process, Goodchild uncovers the full story of an artist’s escape from an insular New Jersey upbringing to study in New York and Italy and become one of the most celebrated, coveted and disturbing painters of the 1970s and beyond.

Running time: 01:29:00

Manchu: A Brotherhood of Sacrifice (United States) by Matthew Leonard Wilcox

This documentary film follows a U.S. army unit named the Manchus during their service in Vietnam from 1968 to 1970. This film depicts the Vietnam War from the ground up and explores the chaos of war.

Running time: 01:56:46

Armed with a Brush (Netherlands) by Nèma van Raalte

A full-feature documentary portraying the works and lives of Chilean street art movement Brigada Ramona Parra (BRP). The BRP originated in 1968 as a propaganda department of the JJCC (Juventudes Comunistas de Chile, Chilean Communist Youth League). As a young group they supported the democratically elected President Salvador Allende. The early members of the Brigada Ramona Parra (named after a political activist assassinated in Santiago in 1946) painted verbal messages on strategically placed walls of the capital to communicate their views in support of democracy and equality. Their art form evolved into colourful murals depicting symbols of what they have always believed to be basic human rights, while lashing out against totalitarian regimes and social inequalities. During the Pinochet regime, members of the BRP were captured, tortured, and killed, while others went into exile. Still, BRP members persisted in their belief that the paintbrush was mightier than the sword, that ideas would eventually conquer senseless violence and repression. Today's BRP is stronger and more determined than ever to peacefully paint for justice and equality among Chileans. Despite the political lull, the BRP brigadistas remain relentless in their strife for a more equitable democracy in Chile, passing their art form and beliefs on to even younger generations, relentlessly, colourfully depicting the dreams and hopes forever painted in the hearts and minds of the Chilean people.

Running time: 00:54:24

The "Madman" and His Ruins (China) by Xiaolong Zhu

A middle-aged man lives in ruins, and his home has been burned down twice. After suffering from a stroke, he even refused government relief, and his neighbors called him a madman and did not want to interact with him. He lives alone, cultivates alone, eats alone, walks around alone... everything seems very primitive.

Running time: 01:36:08

The Asbestos City (United States) by Joe DeVito, III

This documentary captures the human story of small-town America in Manville, New Jersey throughout and beyond the storm events of Hurricane Ida in 2021. This is a borough in the heart of the state that is in a constant struggle for economic resilience and famous for tragedy, yet it remains strong in its community values, American pride, and cultural history.

Running time: 01:24:42