Questioning the nature of our material world, artists from South Africa, Spain, Iran and Brazil invite conditional realities to ponder memory, history and the length of existence. Witness and wonder, prepare to confront the possible meaning of it all.
This short film program includes the following films:
A Bird Called Memory
Leonardo Martinelli, Brazil/United Kingdom (15 min)
Returning to MODES with his latest lyrical offering, Leonardo Martinelli (Fantasma Neon, VIFF ’21) explores the existential longing and interior world of Lua, a trans woman on a wistful search for a missing bird amidst the streets of Rio de Janeiro.
Mast-del
Maryam Tafakory, Iran/United Kingdom (18 min)
An intimate mid-night moment between two Iranian women, Mast-del explores threat posed to forbidden bodies and desires.
Loving In Between
Jyoti Mistry, South Africa/Austria (19 min)
Repurposed archival footage from the Eye Film Museum, and animation encapsulate a portrait of social norms, religious persuasions, and political interventions that dictate and punctuate how and who we love. Yet, emancipation is found in the erotic.
Aqueronte
Manuel Muñoz Rivas, Spain (27 min)
Passengers settle in for a reflective and contemplative voyage aboard a ferry from one port to another. Destination unknown. The journey seems to expand, as the impending and distant shore is postponed. Observations are sharp, yet the magnitude of space becomes blurred.
Series Media Partner
Community Partner
Various
Various
2023
MODES
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
The Big Lebowski
The Coens' whacky, warped slacker generation riff on Raymond Chandler, a shaggy dog story which delights in going sideways at every turn. Jeff Bridges is the Dude, and what he really wants is to get his rug back...
The Thin Red Line
After a 20-year hiatus, Terrence Malick re-emerged with this earching adaptation of James Jones's autobiographical novel about the WWII battle of Guadalcanal. The Thin Red Line is a lyrical, meditative war movie, a philosophical discourse on war itself.
Out of Sight
Adapted from Elmore Leonard's novel about the mutual attraction between an escaped bank robber and the FBI agent on his tail, Out of Sight is sexy and romantic, cosmopolitan, and full of Soderbergh's sleight of hand, shuffling time like a card sharp.
Memory of Princess Mumbi
In 2093, a filmmaker arrives in the African village of Umata, where he meets Princess Mumbi, a woman torn between love, legacy, and the future of storytelling. It's a fabulous genre-blending fable about memory, invention and cinematic resistance.
Late Fame
Based on a novella by Arthur Schnitzler (Eyes Wide Shut) this is a sly, poignant comedy about vanity and art from director Kent Jones, starring Willem Dafoe as a mailman belatedly acclaimed for a book of poetry he wrote in his youth.