In this program of short films our protagonists discover that sorting out their lives can be much more difficult to achieve than they realized.
This short film program includes the following films:
Far From the Tree
Emma Marková, Czech Republic (23 min)
A woman and her teen daughter live in a small dead end city where both women are trying to break out of their miserable circumstances.
Cut
Samuel Lucas Allen, Australia (19 min)
A teenage boy caught in a web of lies is pulled in different directions as he tries to juggle anti-Semitism, his queerness and an orthodox Jewish father.
Night Shift
Santiago Lago, Argentina (27 min)
The night shift clerk at a sex hotel, suffering from narcolepsy, is faced with a night when things are unusually busy and housekeeping finds a gun in room 6.
Spasm
Sahra Asadollahi, Iran (27 min)
A woman who has never acted in film before goes for an audition that becomes a test of more than just her acting ability.
Mira
Eva Louise Hall, USA (12 min)
A struggling accordionist busker gets more than she bargained for when her desire to get noticed attracts the attention of a mysterious and enticing competitor.
Community Partner
Various
Various
2022-2023
International Shorts
Various with English subtitles
Book Tickets
Indigenous & Community Access
Indigenous Access Tickets Community Access Tickets Ticket Donation Requests
Missing VIFF? Check Out What's Playing at the VIFF Centre
Possible Love
Lee Chang-dong’s first film since Burning (2018) is a sardonic, slow-burning satire about two couples: a documentary filmmaker married to a wealthy businessman, and a working-class family struggling to make ends meet after the husband has been laid off.
The Exorcist
Thirteen-year-old Linda Blair is Regan, the movie star daughter who is possessed by a demon, and whose body becomes a spiritual battleground. It builds slowly, carefully, into a maelstrom of sheer unadulterated horror.
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.
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.
An American Werewolf in London
Two American students get into a spot of bother with the wildlife in rural England. Then they introduce the virus to the big city... John Landis's goofy horror comedy is a very good night out. So long as it's not a full moon...
