OFFICIAL SELECTION 2023
Experimental Films
Streaming from January 27 to February 10, 2023 on Whush.com.
Water Lily Split (France) by Grégoire Perrier
Synopsis: A water hole, memories bursting on its surface. Basile, hands in the mud, recalls his childhood; between a century-old forest and sunshine highway; his little sister Hortense’s colourful reveries; the insular silences of the mother gardening under the glasshouse; water lilies and angry love. Running time: 01:10:00.
To The Blue (Iran) by Moslem Agha Kochakzadeh
Trailer
Synopsis: An experimental / archived film about children and the sea in cinema, movies and art. Running time: 00:21:05.
Eyes Open (Ukraine) by Vyacheslav Bihun
Synopsis: A film requiem about a bittersweet and human-dependent fate of a rabbit. Running time: 00:15:00.
The Fleeting Noise of Time (Ukraine) by Valerie Kain
Synopsis: A short experimental film about the fear of death. Running time: 00:07:45.
Blue Love (France) by Sylvain Bes
Synopsis: A man, underwater...is fighting against his past... Running time: 00:07:30.
Amellus (UK) by Patrick Chadwick
Synopsis: Shimmering pixels and white noise at the heart of what we call image. Forms emerge and shapes move away, gently and without hurry. A slow persistence takes us away from what we know and moves us slowly into non-existence and memory. Running time: 00:06:12.
Demi-Gods (Iran) by Moslem Agha Kochakzadeh
Synopsis: What is the human experience of war, narcissism and ecological destruction? Demi-Gods addresses these three dark aspects of humanity in the form of a musical and visual essay. It shows our worship of these dark forces, which have now become normalized and fetishized. A furtive look from us mortals at the mechanics of the dark demi-gods of our time; turned into a surreal sequence of sonic and visual transformations. Running time: 00:05:35.
Lux Tenebrae (Spain) by Andres Toro
Synopsis: Life needs Death... Death needs Life. A visual poem about Life and Death. Running time: 00:05:04.
Rebirth (Sweden) by Nils Agdler
Synopsis: 'Rebirth' is the first short film in the Male Nature Studies series. The second film, 'Retardation', was produced in 2021. In these films, Nils Agdler examines alternative approaches to what is popularly called ”toxic masculinity”. Running time: 00:03:45.
Retardation (Sweden) by Nils Agdler
Synopsis: 'Retardation' is the second short film in the Male Nature Studies series. The first film, 'Rebirth', was produced in 2018. In these films, Nils Agdler examines alternative approaches to what is popularly called “toxic masculinity”. Running time: 00:04:45.
Misplaced Analogy (Iran) by Kasra Yazdani
Synopsis: "I tried to compartmentalize the narrative that I created into pieces and handed it over to my friends so they could put it together one by one and have their own stories. 25 different films were produced. Some of the altered stories inspired by the 25 individuals were actually much more interesting than my narrative. Surprisingly, the stories had many similarities; strangely enough, even some of the scenes were arranged in exactly the same order. This film is the result of those 25 films." Running time: 00:04:05.
I Me (Israel) by Shoshanah Ciechanowski
Synopsis: The video “I Me” deals with the social anxiety of “I.” It manages her life, accompanying it with continual fear of connecting with people and tumbling into situations of embarrassment or rejection. Uncontrollable sobbing, blushing, and inability to respond to the surroundings are typical of the routine of her life. The work reflects the fragility of the childlike persona who faces the surrounding world. Running time: 00:04:00.
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Ruined Arbor (Mohsen Namjoo) (Iran) by Kasra Yazdani, Golrokh Hemmati
Synopsis: Music is based on an old Iranian poem about a carpet weaver girl weaving a carpet under a ruined roof. Images have been photographed from different carpets of Iranian ethnicities. Running time: 00:02:00.
![A Feast That Never Comes [8m].jpg](https://static.wixstatic.com/media/b3ca3c_c0e2bcc18ff0484ea92b772e888a9476~mv2.jpg/v1/crop/x_0,y_15,w_540,h_770/fill/w_400,h_570,al_c,q_80,usm_0.66_1.00_0.01,enc_auto/A%20Feast%20That%20Never%20Comes%20%5B8m%5D.jpg)
A Feast That Never Comes [8m] (USA) by Maria Juranic
Synopsis: Four characters inhabit cycles within cycles of contentment, discontentment, inertia, movement, desire, and betrayal. A story emerges—told through the marriage of music (Ex-Fiancée) and dance (ChrisMastersDance)—functioning as a set of nesting dolls, inviting you to uncover as many layers as you wish.