The bonds of family form the basis of this program of short films. Bonds with history and responsibility—sometimes close, sometimes strained—now and for the future.
Q&A Oct 1 & Oct 3
This short film program includes the following films:
Killing Ourselves
Maya Yadlin, Israel (15 min)
A film student and her family drive to the desert to shoot a scene for her latest film, but things quickly deteriorate and nothing goes as planned.
Mumu
Mo Sha, China (25 min)
The six-year-old daughter of a deaf-mute couple frustrates her father, who believes she can hear and speak.
Baby
Cristina Sánchez Salamanca, Colombia (15 min)
The daughter from a man’s first marriage feels left out and misunderstood at a birthday celebration for her younger stepsister.
Ellie
Fernando Bonelli, Spain (20 min)
An emergency room nurse arrives late for work after being involved in a serious car accident and soon has to make life or death choices involving a loved one.
Nest
James Hunter, Australia (9 min)
An isolated father haunted by his child’s cries of hunger takes up work as a timber feller, only to find operations halted by a mysterious alarm coming from deep in the woods.
Further and Further Away
Polen Ly, Cambodia (24 min)
A young Bunong woman and her older brother spend one last day in their rural Cambodian village before a move to the city in search of a more prosperous life.
Community Partner
Various
Various
2021-2022
Various with English subtitles
Book Tickets
Missing VIFF? Check Out What's Playing at the VIFF Centre
La Bola Negra
A big, old-school historical melodrama gets a thrillingly modern, queer makeover from Spanish duo Javier Calvo and Javier Ambrossi, who artfully juggle three gay protagonists across stories set in 1932, 1937, and 2017. Winner: Best Director, Cannes. Screening on 35mm.
The History of Concrete
After attending a workshop on pitching saccharine Hallmark movies, John Wilson tries to apply all the same best practices to his documentary about concrete. Frequently absurd and endlessly entertaining detours, asides, and digressions ensue.
The 39 Steps
In our new film studies series, FRAMEWORK, film scholar Michael van den Bos explores the work of Alfred Hitchcock, across four monochrome masterworks. This week: The 39 Steps (1935), a witty and fast-moving spy thriller from Hitchcock's English period.
The Great McGinty
Preston Sturges' first film as writer-director is an omnivorous satire on endemic political corruption, the tale of a tramp who gets his entry into politics by casting 37 votes for mayor at $2 a pop. Eventually he'll be on the ticket himself...
To Be Or Not To Be
Strange but true: one of the greatest comedies of Hollywood's golden era was inspired by Hitler's annexation of Poland in 1938. Jack Benny is the renowned theatre actor whose performance of Hamlet is interrupted by the Germans.
The Mad Dog of Europe
The story of an unmade screenplay from the writer of Citizen Kane. In 1932, Herman Mankiewicz wrote a film that foretold the persecution of the Jews and the war in Europe. But Hollywood wouldn't take the risk and The Mad Dog of Europe was never made.