15 minute read
European Competition
from Kortfilmfestival Leuven 2022 - Catalogue
by Cinema ZED • DOCVILLE • Kortfilmfestival Leuven • DALTON • Zomerfilms
Even outside the country's borders, Kortfilmfestival Leuven has been an important player for years. After all, the festival helps determine which short films end up on the longlist for the Oscars, the BAFTA's and the European Film Awards. Unsurprisingly, the number of submissions of films who want to enter this talent show, increases each year.
This year, the European Competition is expanded for the first time with animation films and documentaries. Because of this, the European Competition is even more varied than previous years. Come discover the films and cast your vote: because both the jury and the public hand out an Award for Best European Short film.
An Encounter
Kelly Campbell • Ireland • 2021 • 20 min. Two unlikely friends ditch school and wander freely through Dublin, until an encounter with a stranger leaves one of them utterly changed.
Production: Claire Mc Cabe • Cast: Gary Lydon, Moses Murphy, Robert Carney • Contact: anencountershortfilm@gmail.com
Bevisbyrden
(Burden of Proof)
Ivar Aase • Norway • 2021 • 9 min. A young woman meets her ex-boyfriend in a public place, in the middle of a bridge. She wants to confront him and make him understand what he has done to her. But it’s her words against his.
Production: Jan Inge Wiig • Script: Ivar Aase • Cast: Dan Skjæveland, Helene Bergsholm • Contact: ivaraase@ gmail.com
Koerkorter
(Dog - Apartment)
Priit Tender • Estonia • 2022 • 14 min. Once a famous ballet dancer, Sergei now lives in a strange, remote area in a hard-tomaintain doghouse. Every day, he will dance in front of the butcher's cows to earn his daily portion of sausages.
Production: Kerdi Oengo, Maret Reismann • Contact: nukufilm@nukufilm.ee
Le variabili dipendenti
(The Dependent Variables)
Lorenzo Tardella • Italy • 2022 • 15 min. Pietro and Tommaso are young teenagers. They meet during a cultural outing in a theatre. As the music of Vivaldi resonates around them, new feelings seem to develop. That same afternoon, surrounded by the silence of the house, they try to understand those feelings.
Production: Centro Sperimentale di Cinematografia • Script: Elisa Pulcini, Mara Fondacaro • Cast: Mattia Rega, Simone Evangelista • Contact: premierefilmdistribution@ gmail.com
Diep in de nacht
(Oh My Night)
Isis Mihrimah Cabolet • Netherlands • 2022 • 25 min. A young woman is stuck in her life. Challenged by her alter ego Blue, she steps out the door and into the world. After a revamp at the vamps, she ends up in a club that throws her off balance, but also makes her shine.
Production: Janneke Doolaard, Matthijs van de Laar • DOP: Sam du Pon • Editing: Tobias Cornelissen • Music: Merel Baldé • Cast: Merel Baldé • Contact: info@doxy.nl
European Competition
Programme 2
L'appel
(The Calling)
Joffrey Monteiro-Noël • France • 2022 • 19 min. 15-year-old Romane suffers from a respiratory disease and is at a wellness clinic for specialized treatment. One night, she hears a strange noise coming from the nearby forest. Romane tries to find the origin of the constant humming only she can hear.
Production: Cosme Bongrain • Cast: Cyrille Mairesse, Léon Durieux, Olivier Rabourdin • Contact: cosme@goodseed.fr
Presente
(Prospect Park)
Francisco Valente • Portugal • 2022 • 13 min. A perfect summer day in the park. Birds are chirping, and two young people meet for the first time in real life. As they calmly take their time to get to know each other, the world outside trembles.
Production: Francisco Valente • Cast: Marco Mendonça, Maria Jorge • Contact: francisco.eca.valente@gmail.com
7 P.M. on a Sunday
Sevgi Eker • Finland • 2022 • 28 min. 14-year-old Ida spends an evening by the water with friends. The next day, a police car comes to pick her up at home. She has to come in to the station for questioning.
Production: Anna Nuuros, Sevgi Eker • Cast: Linda Zilliacus • Contact: sevgi.emel.eker@gmail.com
Martwe malzenstwo
(A Dead Marriage)
Michał Toczek • Poland • 2022 • 18 min. Filip works as a professional film extra, mostly playing roles of dead bodies. On the set of a historical film, he meets Lucy, who plays a dead woman. During the long wait while filming, they get to know each other, which encourages Filip to try and experience life again.
Production: Agata Golańska • DOP: Tomasz Pawlik • Script: Michal Toczek • Editing: Aleksandra Kasprowicz • Cast: Marta Scislowicz, Sebastian Stankiewicz • Contact: maciej. regula@kff.com.pl
Zoon
Jonatan Schwenk • Germany • 2021 • 4 min. A forest dweller comes across small, shimmering animals in heat. He and his companions snack on the little creatures, and soon a feast begins.
Contact: festival@miyu.fr
European Competition
Programme 3
Too Rough
Sean Lìonadh • United Kingdom • 2022 • 16 min. After a night of intoxication, Nick wakes up at home hungover. In a panic, he notices his boyfriend Charlie is lying next to him. He has to hide him from his own homophobic and dysfunctional family.
Production: Alfredo Covelli, Ross McKenzie • Cast: Jane McCarrie, Joshua Griffin, Kevin O'Loughlin, Neshla Caplan, Oliver Wright, Ruaridh Mollica • Contact: covelli79@yahoo.it
Στον Θρονο Του Ξερξη
(On Xerxes' throne )
Evi Kalogiropoulou • Greece • 2022 • 15 min. In a large shipyard in a dystopian future, there is one rule: people are not allowed to have any kind of physical contact. This complete ban on human touch takes its toll. Any interaction seems strange, and the shipyard is steeped in alienation and repressed sensuality.
Production: Amanda Livanou • Cast: Angela Brousko, Myrto Kontoni, Yorgos Mazonakis • Contact: info@squareeyesfilm.com
Perpetua Felicidad (Eternal Happiness)
Isa Luengo, Sofia Esteve • Spain • 2022 • 21 min. Alma is fifteen, sings in the village choir, and is beginning to connect with her sexuality. Her father, director of the choir, has lost his voice due to a laryngectomy. As the concert approaches, tensions between father and daughter increase.
Production: Pedro Hernández • DOP: Diego Trenas • Script: Isa Luengo, Sofia Esteve • Editing: Alba Cid • Music: Marta Sancho Moliner • Cast: Garazi Urkola, Willy García • Contact: fest@marvinwayne.com
Ice Merchants
João Gonzalez • Portugal • 2022 • 14 min. A father and son live in a house against a steep, icy mountainside. Every day they descend to the village on the ground to sell the ice they've produced overnight. They are satisfied with their daily routine, until it is unexpectedly interrupted.
Production: Bruno Caetano, Michaël Proença • Script: João Gonzalez • Editing: João Gonzalez • Music: João Gonzalez • Contact: emanuel@curtas.pt
Fairplay
Zoel Aeschbacher • Switzerland • 2022 • 17 min. For some people, winning is the only thing that matters. A teenager in search of recognition, a worker who will do anything to hit the jackpot, and a senior executive at the end of his career who still wants to prove himself one more time. Three characters who lose themselves in overwrought competitiveness.
Production: Nelson Ghrénassia, Elena Tati • Contact: festival@salaudmorisset.com
European Competition
Programme 4
Чорний Пес (Black Dog)
Nikita Zarkh • Ukraine • 2022 • 20 min. Leva, a kind-hearted young poet, lives and works at a construction site on the outskirts of a city. He dreams of moving to the city, where he wants to enrol in the university. Leva develops feelings towards one of his workmates, but keeps them to himself. Until he starts to believe the affection might be mutual.
Production: Eugene Rachkovsky, Tabor Production • Cast: Boris Ukrianskiy, Denys Shatskiy • Contact: tabor.production@gmail.com
Green Space
Jamie Fraser • United Kingdom • 2022 • 20 min. A park in South London. A younger and older colleague take a break after a stressful moment. A young woman talks on the phone with her boyfriend, others come to exercise. The park as a public stage for a myriad of individual lives, where everyone experiences their own reality in the same, shared space.
Production: Alastair Hope-Morley • DOP: Theo Tennant • Script: Jamie Fraser • Editing: Jamie Fraser • Music: Jeremy Warmsley • Cast: Charly Clive, Gilbert Kyem Jr., Jordan Brookes, Olivia Leandersen • Contact: jmalcolmfraser@ gmail.com
Snjeguljica (Snow White)
Lana Barić • Croatia • 2021 • 14 min. Željka is a 40-year-old woman, living a quiet life in an isolated village. An unexpected visit will take her back to the past, shaking up her daily routine.
Production: Vinko Brešan • Script: Lana Barić • Editing: Vladimir Gojun • Cast: Lana Barić, Nikša Butijer • Contact: lanabaric@gmail.com
Ovan Gruvan - Au-dessus de la mine
(Ovan Gruvan - Above the Mine)
Lova Karlsson, Théo Audoire • France • 2022 • 13 min. Lampposts lie on the ground in the snow, a soft crackling resounds, lights flicker and a huge shadow moves slowly. Brief exchanges on a walkie-talkie and snippets of an old song gradually reveal what is going on.
Production: Anne Luthaud, Joanna Sitkowska, Marcello Cavagna • Editing: Léa Chatauret, Lova Karlsson, Théo Audoire • Music: Lova Karlsson, Vassily Mitrecey • Contact: lova.josefina.karlsson@gmail.com
Le mobilier (The Furniture)
Mehdi Pierret • Belgium • 2021 • 15 min. An art gallery organizes an exhibition presenting contemporary art and art performances. The cleaning lady Ilidia has trouble understanding the purpose of these performances and gets irritated by the visitors' behaviours.
Contact: mehdi.pierret@insas.be
European Competition
Programme 5
Lullaby
Magdalena Chmielewska • Austria • 2021 • 21 min. In her desperate search for sleep, Eva tries to spend the night at other people's homes as much as possible, so she can watch them while they sleep. Because of the many sleepless nights, she wanders through a world that seems familiar and safe by day, but is uncanny and eerie by night.
Production: Saskia Arth • Contact: mail@magda.vision
The Operator
Matt Riley • United Kingdom • 2022 • 19 min. Bleary-eyed and coffee fuelled, Michael starts another dull day of business as usual; connecting long distance intergalactic calls from a remote satellite. Until he unexpectedly receives a distress call. No one ever receives a distress call.
Production: Becky Adams, Paul Mills • Cast: Alice Fraser, Amy De Bhrún, Celya AB, Graham Dickson, Hugh Dennis, Pierre Novellie, Stuart Laws • Contact: matthew_riley@ hotmail.co.uk
Kakukkfióka (Another Nest)
Márk Beleznai • Hungary • 2022 • 17 min. 24-year-old Ádám is a small-time weed dealer who lives in the flat of his recently deceased grandmother. His quiet, deadend life changes when his much younger half-brother suddenly appears, wanting to temporarily move in with him.
Production: Gábor Osváth • DOP: Máté Barna • Editing: Dániel Kőváry • Music: Máté Obbágy • Cast: Dávid Fazekas, Zsombor Kövesi • Contact: filmfabriqproductions@ gmail.com
CHRYSALIS
Eydís Eir Brynju-Björnsdóttir • Iceland, Czech Republic • 2021 • 11 min Icelandic Vanesska is a 13-year-old girl who has just been diagnosed with Tourette's syndrome. It once started with small tics in her feet. They went away, but came back, along with more tics. Vanesska tries her best to come to terms with her new reality.
Production: Ellyn Cernochova • Script: Eydís Eir Brynju-Björnsdóttir, Linda Barnett • Cast: Eva Urbanova, Tereza Hofava, Vanesska Kalvarova • Contact: eydisbjorns@ gmail.com
Opera Night
Hilke Rönnfeldt • Denmark • 2022 • 15 min. Cleaner Angeli is working at the Copenhagen Opera House, where everything is being prepped for the big show that evening. When she discovers a crack in the basement where water is pouring out, she wants to alert someone. But no one listens because "the show must go on".
Production: Laura Valentiner-Bohse, Sidsel Filipsen • Script: Andrea Winding, Hilke Roennfeldt • Cast: Afshin Firouzi, Danica Curcic, Ellaha Lack, Tammi Øst • Contact: hilkeroenn@gmail.com
European Competition
Programme 6
Onbewaakt ogenblik
(A Quiet Kind of Thunder)
Janna Grosfeld • Netherlands • 2021 • 19 min. After Willem's wife's failed suicide attempt, their relationship seems forever changed. Willem has to deal with her depression and suicidal feelings, while he himself struggles with the breach of trust this has caused. They try to give their life together meaning again, but the question remains whether this is possible.
Production: Bente van der Meer, Dagmar Nietsch • DOP: Jan Koks • Script: Douwe Nagelmaker • Editing: Lise Robbe • Music: Florian Jankowski • Cast: Margo Dames, Reinout Bussemaker • Contact: dagmar.nietsch.ahk@gmail.com
Pachyderme
Stéphanie Clément • France • 2021 • 10 min. Like each summer, Louise goes to her grandparents for a few days' holiday in the country. Playing in the green grass in the garden, swimming in the lake, fishing with grandpa; everything seems as wonderful as grandma's strawberry tarts. But this year, it snows in the middle of summer and a monster dies.
Contact: festival@miyu.fr
Ruina
Frank Lucas • Spain • 2022 • 22 min. Zoe arrives in Barcelona and wanders - seemingly aimlessly - through the city. As the night slowly progresses, it becomes clear that she has a strange and desperate plan to finally get revenge.
Production: Ángeles Hernández, David Matamoros, Gerard Rodriguez • Cast: Hwidar Abdelatif, Najaa • Contact: gerard@japonicafilms.com
Kierre (Spiral)
Eva-Maria Koskinen, Salla Sorri • Finland • 2022 • 18 min. Ballet teacher Anna recognizes in Jasmine, the mother of one of the new ballet students, her school bully from back when they were kids. Both women try to behave in a civilized manner, but the underlying tensions inevitably grow.
Production: Paria Eskandari • Cast: Alma Pöysti, Linda Zilliacus, Vivian Taht • Contact: andy@rainafilms.com
Backflip
NIkita Diakur • Germany • 2022 • 12 min. Attempting a backflip is not safe. You can break your neck, or land on your head, or land badly on your wrists. None of that is nice, so the director's avatar does the trick. It practices on a 6-core processor with the help of Machine Learning.
Production: Emmanuel-Alain Raynal, NIkita Diakur, Pierre Baussaron • Contact: festival@miyu.fr
European Competition
Programme 7
Heart Fruit
Kim Allamand • Switzerland • 2022 • 19 min. Late summer in the city. Everyone seems preoccupied with love. A woman in the library looks intrigued at someone across the hall, two men discuss the ideal kiss atop a rooftop terrace...
Production: ZHDK • Cast: Sofia Borsani • Contact: kim.allamand@gmail.com
Nest
Hlynur Pálmason • Denmark • 2022 • 22 min. Three children have grand plans for the snapped electricity pole near their house: they are going to build a treehouse! Against the backdrop of an extraordinary coastal landscape that constantly changes through the seasons, two brothers and a sister build their dream hut.
Production: Anton Máni Svansson, Eva Jakobsen, Katrin Pors, Mikkel Jersin, Anne Dammegaard Søllested, Snowglobe Film • Cast: Grímur Hlynsson, Ída Mekkín Hlynsdóttir, Þorgils Hlynsson • Contact: anna@snowglobefilm.com
BLUSH – An Extraordinary Voyage
Iiti Yli-Harja • Finland • 2022 • 14 min. For Fatu, a simple visit to the grocery store feels as nerve-racking as a lunar expedition: for the first time in his life, he’s wearing makeup in public.
Production: Mikko Heino, Valtteri Munkki • Contact: otto. suuronen@ses.fi
Le Buone Maniere
(Good Manners)
Valerio Vestoso • Italy • 2021 • 19 min. 50-year-old Mimmo was once a leading sports commentator. But his career went downhill ever since, much to his frustration. Until he unexpectedly gets the opportunity to make a comeback through an unusual job offer that will allow him to take revenge for a childhood trauma.
Production: Camillo Esposito • Cast: CLAUDIO CRISAFULLI, FRANK MATANO, GINO RIVIECCIO, GIOVANNI ESPOSITO • Contact: info@capetownfilm.org
Muss ja nicht sein, dass es heute ist (It Doesn't Have to Be Today)
Sophia Julia Groening • Germany • 2021 • 7 min. Four friends sitting at a square in Finkenberg, Cologne, trying to find the right words and punctuation marks in a WhatsApp message that will never be sent.
Production: Bazon Silvester Rosengarth • Cast: Marcel Demeler • Contact: sophiagroening@yahoo.de
