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Strawberry Shortcake film image; woman sitting on ground in front of strawberry cake

VIFF Short Forum 5

VIFF Short Forum

Image: Strawberry Shortcake

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Shorts from Belgium, Canada, France, South Korea, Taiwan, and USA.

 

Oct 1 & 2: Q&A with filmmakers

 

This short film program includes the following films:

Stuffed
Louise Labrousse, France (11 min)

A woman decides to treat herself to a bowl of noodles in the bath.

 


Strawberry Shortcake
Deborah Devyn Chuang, Taiwan (21 min)

A teenage girl falls into a Freudian phantasy with her mother.

 


The Painting
Michèle Lemieux, Canada (11 min)

Using pinscreen animation, an instance of institutionalized incest in art history is examined through the portrait of Queen Mariana of Austria, who was 14 when she married her uncle.

 


Zanatany, When Soulless Shrouds Whisper
Hachimiya Ahamada, Belgium/France/Qatar (27 min)

Tensions rise in the community, days before the little known 1976 Majunga massacre.

 


Shadow
Kamell Allaway, USA (12 min)

A young mother’s shadow takes on a life of its own, terrorizing her and her daughter.

 


Hatch
Alireza Kazemipour & Panta Mosleh, Canada (11 min)

A group of Afghan refugees hide inside a water tanker as they attempt to cross the border to safety.

 


Time to Dilate
Kim Nayoung, South Korea (22 min)

Two lovers, Myung-ki and Do, break up because of a secret Myung-ki’s been hiding. When they meet again, this secret cannot be ignored.

 

Supported by

    

Community Partner

Director

Various

Country of Origin

Various

Year

2023-2024

Language

Various with English subtitles

18+
115 min
Action Animation Art, Music & Photography BC Spotlight Black Cinema Cinemas of Asia Experimental & Avant Garde Family Relations Horror & Thriller Human Rights & Social Justice LGBTQIA2S+ Q&As at VIFF Romance Shorts Women Directors

Book Tickets

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Missing VIFF? Check out what's playing at the VIFF Centre

Sentimental Value

Dir. Joachim Trier
135 min

A once-revered director crashes back into his family’s lives, eager to recruit his daughter for a film role. When she declines, he finds a new muse in an eager but unpolished Hollywood star, sending his botched reconciliation spiraling into chaos.

VIFF Centre - VIFF Cinema

The Painted Life of E.J. Hughes

Dir. Jenn Strom
82 min

A beautiful portrait of E.J. Hughes, who quietly helped reshape the artistic landscape of British Columbia in the 20th century. This extraordinary documentary explores Hughes’s legacy not only as an artist, but as a devoted, humble human being.

VIFF Centre - Lochmaddy Studio Theatre VIFF Centre - VIFF Cinema
Cutting Through Rocks
Cutting Through Rocks film image; person riding a motorcycle backlit by a sunset

Cutting Through Rocks

Dir. Sara Khaki & Mohammadreza Eyni
95 min

Winner of Sundance's World Cinema Documentary Grand Jury Prize, Cutting Through Rocks follows Sara Shahverdi — motorcyclist, midwife, and first-ever councilwoman elected in her Iranian village. A vérité triumph by Sara Khaki & Mohammadreza Eyni.

VIFF Centre - Lochmaddy Studio Theatre

A Poet

Dir. Simón Mesa Soto
120 min

When embittered poet Oscar Restrepo takes a job at a local high school, he meets Yurlady, a talented student from a poor background. Seeking to help her cultivate her art, he draws her into the poetry world — to disastrous and comedic results.

VIFF Centre - VIFF Cinema VIFF Centre - Lochmaddy Studio Theatre

Mr. Nobody Against Putin

Dir. David Borenstein & Pavel Talankin
90 min

Nominated for the Academy Award for Best Documentary, and Special Jury Prize Winner, Sundance, 2025, this exposé shot by a Russian primary teacher shows how the Putin propaganda machine works to militarize children.

VIFF Centre - Lochmaddy Studio Theatre

Cousin Harley + Walk Hard: The Dewey Cox Story

Dir. Jake Kasdan
180 min

Come join Local Hillbilly heroes Cousin Harley, for a night of traditional Rockabilly, Western Swing and early Rock n Roll before reveling in the rock n roll biopic excess of John C Reilly as the legendary Dewey Cox!

VIFF Centre - VIFF Cinema