Wednesday, 8 February
20:00-22:00
This screening session features 10 short films (see below). All selected films are in English and/or have English subtitles.
LOCATION:
Cinema Galeries (Studio)
26 Galerie de la Reine
1000 Brussel
FREE ENTRY:
Pre-registration for this screening has ended, but a few more tickets will become available at the cinema 10 minutes before the start. Check out our other screenings too, for which you can still reserve some free tickets!
SAFELY FEEL THE REAL WORLD (CHINA) BY JODY XIONG
Synopsis: Durex 001 collaborated with Volvo XC40 to co-release a short film. Colored in signature Durex 001 colors (black and gold), the animation follows a couple who wakeup from a VR simulated dream and escape to a safe reality on “001 Island.” In the visual narrative between the two brands, safety is a sexy and apparent benefit, one that allows us to approach intimacy and embrace reality. At the most critical moment in this film, In a very original way, a glass-like stomach and a metal esophagus are used to emphasize Volvo’s strong four-wheel drive, ground grip and other safety features. Running time: 00:03:00.
Selections/awards: D&AD / British Design & Art Direction (Bronze Award in Film Art Direction), London International Awards.
POCKET CALL (GERMANY) BY PAUL SPENGEMANN
Synopsis: A video call to the cinema. Whether the call from inside the trouser pocket was a prank, coincidence or fate, willing us to be exactly the audience called, remains unanswered and in the end, it doesn’t really matter. It's a way to access something, to dial into something, whether it's welcome or not. Replicas of mistakes, connected pixels make polygons, which then become specks of dust, threads, or bits of fluff, which condense in the dark cavern of a trouser pocket. A microscopic setting asks the fundamental ontological question of what substance the world is really made of and how in this materialist perspective anything new can emerge. The result is a technological replica, or digital reconstruction, of chance. Running time: 00:06:30.
Selections/awards: Loop Barcelona, Kasseler DokFest, Internationales FF Dresden, Short Waves Festival, and more.
HEAT WAVE HALLUCINATION (USA) BY JIL GUYON
Synopsis: Heat Wave Hallucination is a kaleidoscopic self-portrait that transports the viewer into a psychedelic world of vibrant color and dramatic, hypnotic sound. Running time: 00:01:29.
Selections/awards: Super Shorts LA FF, Obskuur Ghent FF, Manhattan Indie FF (Best Experimental Film).
HOSPES (USA) BY STEPHANIE J WILLIAMS
Synopsis: A film about appearing "racially ambiguous". Performing a choreography of resistance, a scaffolded amalgam of body pieces tries to remain whole in an environment programmed to disassemble it. Running time: 00:11:50.
Selections/awards: Flickers' Rhode Island IFF, New Orleans FF (Jury Award Winner: Animation), Sweaty Eyeballs Animation Festival, Portland FF, San Diego Underground FF, and more.
BEEF (USA) BY BRENDON KINGSBURY, SEAN WEBLEY
Synopsis: Some cows don't need to jump to make it over the moon. Running time: 00:13:30.
Selections/awards: Brooklyn FF (Experimental Spirit Award), Nashville FF (Winner Edge Shorts), Tacoma FF, Shorts Mexico, NYC Indie FF, and more.
SECANT (USA) BY TIMOTHY DAVID ORME
Synopsis: Music by Lanier Sammons. Running time: 00:03:00.
IQALUIT (USA) BY TED SCHNEIDER
Synopsis: Do you have to go all the way to Iqaluit to get an abortion? Running time: 00:12:19.
Selections/awards: Boston Short FF, Toronto Arthouse FF, and more.
BEFORE THE EARTHQUAKE (SWEDEN) BY GUSTAV HUGO OLSSON
Synopsis: A man at a restaurant tells his girlfriend a weird story about that he once in his life have had exactly the same feeling as now. That time the whole world started to shake. The girlfriend gets uncomfortable about his behaviour and the story that really doesn't make much sense. They continue their conversation and the table starts to rattle... Running time: 00:06:51.
Selections/awards: Producer's Night LA 2022, Toronto Arthouse FF, Boston Short FF, Verona IFF, and more.
TO DO (UK) BY SAUL PANKHURST
Synopsis: A reflection on the Self Improvement Industry, explored through the filmmaker’s attempts to participate in a guided pseudo-mindfulness exercise. Running time: 00:03:23.
MULIKA (DEMOCRATIC REPUBLIC OF THE CONGO) BY MAISHA MAENE
Synopsis: An 'afronaut' emerges from the wreckage of a spaceship in the volcanic crater of Mount Nyiragongo. As he descends into the city below, encountering the people of present-day Goma, he begins to understand what he must do to change the future for his people. Running time: 00:13:35.
Selections/awards: Sundance FF, Locarno FF.