The films in this shorts program are all about discovery. Beautiful and thought-provoking voyages of internal and external discovery that honour relations and history, while encountering stimuli that promote a new understanding of self.
Q&A Oct 4 & Oct 6
This short film program includes the following films:
Before Birth
Álex Mena, Carmen Jiménez, Spain (20 min)
A documentary/diary film that focuses on one of the directors, Álex Mena, who journeys to her grandmother’s village looking for a closure never realized after she died.
Firecracker Bullets
Chad Charlie, USA (14 min)
In this personal documentary, Indigenous comedian Chad Charlie goes to participate in the Standing Rock occupation and has a transformative experience.
Ponto Final
Miguel López Beraza, Spain/Portugal (23 min)
The director returns to his parents’ home and talks them into playing roles in a film he is making, addressing delicate personal and familial subjects in the process.
Will You Look at Me
Shuli Huang, China (20 min)
A 25-year-old gay man returns to his hometown in China after film school, and reflects how his coming out as gay affected (and continues to affect) his mother.
For You Today the Light of the Sun Will Not Shine
Andrea Bordoli, Switzerland (19 min)
Two construction workers wander through a hybrid natural-industrial zone by day and night, exploring and discovering seemingly insignificant details.
Empire of My Melodious Mind
Jeannette Louie, USA (9 min)
The odds and ends within a single cabinet spark an interior rumination of the self, family, and culture that form the identity of an American-born Asian woman.
Community Partner
Various
Various
2021-2022
Various with English subtitles
Book Tickets
Missing VIFF? Check out what's playing at the VIFF Centre
Everytime
Winner of this year’s prestigious Un Certain Regard award at Cannes, Sandra Wollner’s exquisite debut is a tender drama in which a mother is drawn closer to her youngest daughter and her late daughter’s boyfriend as they make sense of a shared tragedy.
Image: © The Barricades Panama Film, Gregory Oke
Man in Motion: Celebrating Rick Hansen
Coinciding with the 40th anniversary of the Man in Motion World Tour, friends from across the country will join Rick Hansen for the hometown premiere of Man in Motion: The Rick Hansen Story. Following the screening, Rick will be joining us on stage for an extended Q&A.
The Quiet Applause
This gentle, lyrical film stars Yang Hae-bom as San, an adorable toddler living in the countryside. Her life is peaceful save for the aggressive outbursts of her brother, whose autism has created tension between the parents…
Short Forum 2: Anthropomaxx
Dogs, frogs, hogs, and more!
Flies
Flies is the story of elderly and embittered Olga, the father and son she accepts as tenants, and the spiritual reawakening they provoke in her. Director Eimbcke plots Olga’s shift from battle-axe to benevolent spirit with grace. A heartwarming gem.
Once Upon a Time in Harlem
Once Upon a Time in Harlem splices together footage shot by William Greaves in 1972 of a group of Harlem Renaissance luminaries in conversation at Duke Ellington’s townhouse. The film is a living archive of memory, disagreement, style, and Black genius.