COMPETITIONS
KISFF SPECIAL
HIGHLIGHTS
CELEBRATE DIVERSITY
KINO SUSIDIV
DEMOCRACY IN DANGER
YOUNG FILM LOVERS
EXTRA SHORTS
COMPETITIONS
The Ukrainian Competition brings together a vibrant mix of short films that really tap into the weirdness of our times. These filmmakers are capturing a world full of contradictions, where everything feels sharper, and the desire to live fully is stronger than ever. It’s a showcase of creativity and resilience, offering fresh and innovative takes on what it means to navigate through such a surreal moment in history.
The International Competition presents a diverse range of short films from various locations and genres. This category embodies our festival's desire to explore new and innovative approaches to filmmaking.
The International Competition presents a diverse range of short films from various locations and genres. This category embodies our festival's desire to explore new and innovative approaches to filmmaking.
The Ukrainian Competition brings together a vibrant mix of short films that really tap into the weirdness of our times. These filmmakers are capturing and portraying a world full of contradictions, where everything feels sharper, and the desire to live fully is stronger than ever. It’s a showcase of eagerness and resilience, offering fresh takes on what it means to navigate through such a surreal moment in history.
The International Competition presents a diverse range of short films from various locations and genres. This category embodies our festival's desire to explore new and innovative approaches to filmmaking.
KISFF SPECIAL
Every story has its own melody, and in this program, those melodies take center stage. From quirky tales of love that comes suddenly to bizarre adventures of singing animals taveling through space, these films seamlessly blend storytelling with music. Let the rhythm and lyrics carry you through a variety of emotions, as each short film sings its story straight to your heart.
Our superstar program returns this year to look into a broad spectrum of endless issues, insecurities, coincidences, comedy and drama that evolve around sex and sexuality. How to conquer sexual blackmailing? How to cross/not cross sexual borders in a relationship? How to not expect more from a casual hookup? And most importantly, what is better – sex or pizza? These and other questions and almost no answers (cause that's on you) in the new edition of "Midnight Sexy Shorts".
"Friday, the 13th" is a horror short film program, a captivating journey into the depths of human experience, where themes of loneliness, identity, and transformation are brought to life through a variety of imaginative narratives. From tales of eerie relationships and internal struggles to poignant reflections on prejudice and care, these films weave together a rich tapestry of experiences that will leave audiences contemplating the darker corners of the human psyche.
KISFF programmers have selected the best of the best from this year's program, to show the essense of the festival.
Love Letters invites you into four unique love stories that prove one thing – at the end of the day, we all crave affection. Mad and quiet, awkward and free, childish and mature, these stories will warm your heart and remind you that love comes in all forms.
A retiree trying to go to Hell to meet her son. A young woman trying to catch a perfect man fallen from the sky. An ornithologist trying to blackmail a confectioneer. The European Space Agency trying to send a message to the aliens. These and other attempts in this year's edition of Comedies.
Masturbating your way to true happiness. A darkly comic comeback at Marvel/Disney. A telemarketer with a severe anger problem. A human-to-pet communication. A beautiful friendship with a talking catfish in a dystopian world. Short Attack is a selection of weirdest, boldest, bravest and funniest short films that challenge traditions, forms, storytelling and simply common sense.
HIGHLIGHTS
Danylo Hauk is a director and screenwriter from Lviv, who has been working in the field of short and documentary films for over ten years.
From 2016 to 2019, he studied in the master's program at the Dodge College of Film and Media Arts in California (USA), where he created four short fiction films and one documentary.
Boars, smells, bodies, very bad haircuts and in the end - wanting to be free. How come we see so many bodily experiences in short films from the Baltics?
This is a diverse collection of shorts from Lithuania, Latvia and Estonia from the last 10 years that cover a small window into the Baltic consciousness and understanding of self.
Curated by Laima Graždanoviča, 2ANNAS ISFF
This cinematic essay by Léos Carax, created in a Godardian style, is the director’s self-reflection on his filmography, spanning over four decades. The idea for this short film emerged while working on a project for the Pompidou Center in Paris, which planned an exhibition in the director’s honor that never took place. Trying to answer the question of the curators – “Where are you, Léos Carax?”, – he immersed into the process of self-discovery. The director’s creative search resulted in a vivid cinematic reflection, where his personal story is intertwined with world history, and movie scenes with real life.
A collection of psychedelic Pop Art influenced animated films made in 1970s Tallinn.
Within the official cinema circles of the Soviet Union, animation was mainly targeted towards toddlers, young children, and teenagers. Here, on the other hand, the artists had clearly used children-oriented cartoons as a means of artistic expression, and experimented with the possibilities of the film medium in general and this created a discrepancy. These selected films appear as fragmented manifestations of post-Second World War youth culture that also filtered into the ‘wrong side’ of the Iron Curtain. (Andreas Trossek)
CELEBRATE DIVERSITY
The One Minutes is a global platform for experimental video art, closely collaborating with various art education institutions worldwide. Using the power of video, The One Minutes aims to contribute to creating spaces for free expression, collective imagination, and global solidarity in our different yet deeply interconnected realities.
Boldly and unapologeticaly, once again, Out & Proud is a celebration of LGBTQIA+ lives and stories that defy outdated convention. This program showcases films that not only explore the diverse experiences of queer people but also push the boundaries of filmmaking itself. By challenging the heteronormative ideas about film language, these stories offer fresh perspectives and innovative approaches to storytelling.
Explore the limitless ways of loving yourself and others, breaking free from conventional frames and boundaries. Join us in celebrating the beauty of fluidity, self-discovery, and the freedom to live and love beyond expectations.
The program brings together the stories of women (and about women) from different territorial, social, cultural, traditional contexts. However, their heroines go through experiences that overcome these contextual boundaries and are characterized by a certain commonality, and, therefore, mutual understanding. This year, the focus of the selection is organically shifted in the direction of female physicality: the plots largely revolve around the theme of the first menstruation, abortion, postpartum depression, as well as already customary issues of self-acceptance and finding one's own subjectivity.
Curated by Maria Vasylieva and Sasha Prokopenko
KINO SUSIDIV
The program was created in cooperation with the Ad Arte Foundation – a Polish foundation that promotes audiovisual culture and specializes in short films. One of their largest projects is the Short Waves film festival.
The chase for success, the daughter's relationship with her father, the surroundings of the women's toilets in the nightclub, or the hopelessness of hanging around and the impossibility of expressing oneself as one would wish. These are the themes of the Best of YFF 15+ films, which reflect contemporary approaches in cinema that appeal to (not only) young audiences.
The selection of best Czech short animated films for the youngest audiences and families which take the audience to diverse worlds in the kindest company possible.
Film directing isn’t just about bringing your own ideas to life; it’s also about reimagining the works of others.
Born to be Short showcases the latest works of emerging Hungarian directors, who took on the challenge of adapting existing stories as part of a university project. These films offer fresh and unique perspectives, demonstrating the creative potential of short film adaptations.
DEMOCRACY IN DANGER
Free Fall into Uncertainty explores the paradoxes of the digital age, where technology offers vast opportunities that we continually misuse.
Powerful short films about the different faces of facism throughout history and today.
Curated by Riina Mikkonen, the executive director at the Tampere Film Festival.
YOUNG FILM LOVERS
Navigating the highs and lows of adolescence, Teen Spirit dives deep into the world of teenage experiences. The selection brings together stories that capture the intense emotions and pivotal moments of youth – from the thrill of first love and the challenges of friendships to the complexities of relationships with parents and the journey of self-discovery. Teen Spirit explores the urgent, sometimes overwhelming aspects of growing up, including learning about our own bodies and the importance of setting boundaries with others. These films offer an authentic and relatable glimpse into the rollercoaster ride that is being a teenager.
The chase for success, the daughter's relationship with her father, the surroundings of the women's toilets in the nightclub, or the hopelessness of hanging around and the impossibility of expressing oneself as one would wish. These are the themes of the Best of YFF 15+ films, which reflect contemporary approaches in cinema that appeal to (not only) young audiences.
The selection of best Czech short animated films for the youngest audiences and families which take the audience to diverse worlds in the kindest company possible.
Adventure awaits! The World Around Us invites young viewers on a magical journey through animated short films that explore the wonders of our planet and beyond. In this program, children can travel to distant countries, continents, and even outer space, discovering diverse cultures and the beauty of our world.
EXTRA SHORTS
The One Minutes is a global platform for experimental video art, closely collaborating with various art education institutions worldwide. Using the power of video, The One Minutes aims to contribute to creating spaces for free expression, collective imagination, and global solidarity in our different yet deeply interconnected realities.
Scroll, scroll, scroll… You never know if the next TikTok or reel will be about the cutest kitty or something utterly and inexplicably wrong. This program is basically the same but well-curated.
