TALENT (USA) BY MATT CANON

Synopsis: 'Talent' presents one artist's musings on what does (or does not) define or constitute “talent,” unaware that their conclusions about themselves - definitely not talented - are completely contrary to the actual talent they are displaying while talking to us. Running time: 00:06:00.

Selections/awards: The Music Box Theater.

About the director: Matt Canon is an up and coming filmmaker from the Chicago area. After starting a life in acting at a young age, Matt decided that being behind a camera making his own worlds was his true passion. Now Matt spends all of his time bringing his worlds to as wide an audience as he can, hoping to never stop.

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SLURP (FRANCE) BY JULES JOLLY

Synopsis: A couple at the table. Isn’t diner the best time to say things?Running time: 00:02:40.

Selections/awards: Brussels Independent FF, Super Shorts London, and more.

About the director: Jules is an Art Director in the advertising industry. For almost 15 years he worked on ads for Ubisoft, Adidas, Warner Games, Orange and Instagram among others. In recent years he has been learning filmmaking with commercials. Slurp is his first short film. It’s a more personal work, far from commercial matters.

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DYNAMITE (FRANCE) BY JIM VIEILLE

Synopsis: April 2020. Lêg always stays locked up at home, engrossed by screens that all broadcast the same image: a burning car. But is it the outside world that smoulders or Lêg himself ? Running time: 00:04:37.

Selections/awards: Brussels Independent FF, Sydney World FF, and more.

About the director: Jim Vieille is a french director. Dark, violent and enigmatic, his work in different mediums (film, video, installation) explores the boundary between fiction and experimental. His films have been featured in several festivals. In 2010, his first short, 'Take Me To The Water', won the Prize Of The City Of Clermont-Ferrand. In 2021, his music video "Atlas" was nominated at the Berlin Music Video Awards, has received the 1st Prize for the Best Music Video at the Rhode Island International FF and the Best Music Video Award at the Verona, Bruges, London and Los Angeles International FF. Jim lives and work in Paris.

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THE SHAVE (UNITED ARAB EMIRATES) BY FAJER ALALAMI

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Trailer

Synopsis: A coming-of-age story where the inability to age due to a medical condition puts Mohammed in an ongoing struggle to prove his manhood in the face of masculine stereotypes. Running time: 00:10:00.

About the director: Filmmaking has always been to Fajer Alalami, a Jordanian emerging director, her first love and lifelong passion. Fajer grew up in the UAE and graduated with a degree in Mass Communication. Having some commercial promotional work, short films, and video clips under her belt, Fajer envisages the prestigious Arab Film Studio program as a springboard for her professional world of filmmaking.

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CHASSE GALERITE (USA) BY BRIAN HAWKINS

Synopsis: Chasse Galerite is a passionate hunter whose untamed desire often leads him into trouble. Set in the Illinois Country in the late 17th century, this humorous and imaginative folktale, cherished by Missouri's French Creole community, is told in the local dialect by one of its last native speakers. Running time: 00:06:19.

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INTERNATIONAL DEPARTURES (TURKEY) BY ERINÇ DURLANIK

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Trailer

Synopsis: The film speaks of Deniz, who is spending last days bidding farewell to Istanbul, friends, closest relatives and girlfriend, all the while hiding own identity behind the camera. Deniz has won the Greencard and is preparing to start this journey along with the sad, pessimistic, indifferent, angry, hopeful and worried reactions of all. The question is, can we find traces of Deniz’s own feelings, who is busy filming the departure from Turkey? Running time: 00:17:05.

Selections/awards: AFSAD Short FF (Special Jury Award).

About the director: Erinç Durlanık was born in Turkey (1985). After working as an R&D engineer in an Automotive company for five years, he resigned and changed his career. The short films he shot circulated in international festivals and received awards. His stories have been published in various magazines. He is currently directing as a freelancer.

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I HAD A STRANGE DREAM LAST NIGHT (USA) BY MIRA HALEY STEUER

Synopsis: Experimental short about being a child (now young adult) with chronic illness. Drawn and shot as a Freshman in college. 2021. Running time: 00:02:29.

About the director: Mira is a freshman in the Honors Tutorial College at Ohio University. She has been an actress, writer, and storyteller for years but just started making films as a senior in high school.

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IQALUIT (USA) BY TED SCHNEIDER

Synopsis: Do you have to go all the way to Iqaluit to get an abortion? Running time: 00:12:19.

About the director: Ted Schneider is a Manhattan-based actor turned filmmaker. His short film "Early Light," about two veterans working through their PTSD on a horse therapy ranch, won the Soldier’s and Sacrifice Award at the Flicker’s Rhode Island IFF (2020) and Best of Fest and Best Short at both 307 FF and Go West FF. His short film "Nothing Happened," in which a black male artist is arrested in NYC during the height of Stop-And-Frisk, won Best Short at the Trenton IFF (2016) and Grand Prize for Emerging Narrative at the March on Washington FF, where it screened at Obama's White House (2016) hosted by Valerie Jarrett.

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I N T E R S T I C E (SWEDEN) BY OSKAR WILLERS

Synopsis: When Anders makes an indecent proposal to his younger boyfriend Micke, things take a very sudden dark turn. Running time: 00:11:21.

Selections/awards: BFI London FF, Venice Film Week, Cornwall FF, Amsterdam Independent FF, Super Shorts London, Toronto Arthouse FF, and more.

About the director: Oskar Willers has studied Filmtheory and Filmhistory at Stockholm University and went to the hands-on Film Schools: Stockholm Film School and Biskops Arnö Screenwriting School. He has worked as a commercial film- and still photographer and for the last ten years he is also a teacher at Kulturama Film School in Stockholm. I N T E R S T I C E is Oskar's directorial debut.

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OUSMANE (CANADA) BY JORGE CAMAROTTI

Synopsis: Ousmane, a newly arrived immigrant living in Montreal, faces a challenging situation when he meets an elderly disoriented lady at the end of his workday. Running time: 00:25:09.

About the director: Born in Sao Paulo. In 2003, Jorge moved to Montreal, where he pursued a career as a professional photographer and then as filmmaker. Since his beginnings in filmmaking 10 years ago, Jorge has directed a dozen short films, both documentary and fiction, always remaining true to giving voice to the most aggrieved individuals of our society. Jorge wrote and directed Kinship (2019), which was selected in many reputable film festivals such as Palm Springs International, Maryland, Clermont-Ferrand (Sodec), Regard and which received a nomination at the 2020 Canadian Screen Awards for best live-action. Besides working as a mentor for aspiring BIPOC filmmakers, Jorge is now working on his first feature film, Edith.

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