Film Library 2013
The third year of ASFF offered a rich selection of films from across the globe, and introduced Family Friendly programming as well as special guest appearances from BAFTA. Posing questions about the human experience, a presentation of exciting films listed below offer a glimpse into the festival’s core themes.
Animation
Dir. Iria Lopez
Jose is a pig who lives alone in a Spanish town. After a new neighbour moves in next door, he begins to come to terms with who he really is.
Dir. Marcin Wasilewski
A stylised encounter in an abstract world: a man on his way to meet a woman finds that one unguarded moment is enough to make him lose his senses.
Dir. Emma De Swaef and Marc James Roels
Willy returns to the naturist community where he spent his youth to visit his dying mother. In confused sadness, he flees to the forest, finding motherly protection in a big, gentle beast.
Dir. Julia Pott
Tom Chivers’ poem The Event is brought to life in this unique animation, where a world plummets into chaos after an unknown event disrupts the course of things.
Dir. Joscha Thelosen
A tale about death: living alone in a small house in no man’s land, death finds an abandoned baby on his doorstep that will turn his life upside down.
Dir. Kylie Boon
A stop-motion film about a lonely scarecrow, shunned by the farmyard’s crows, who wakes up one morning to discover the love of his life over in the next field.
Artists’ Film
Dir. Nadja Verena Marcin
//KIDS// narrates, through a revision of the cult film Kids (1995, Larry Clark), the interaction of young adults, the smooth transition between shocking rituals and its adaption as lifestyle.
Dir. Henry Butcher
Personal tragedy sends a man to the place of his childhood: a journey with a dead end, where he struggles to find an explanation to a human sacrifice in the name of big ideas.
Dir. Christian Schmeer
An atmospheric non-narrative documentary short film exploring Beelitz-Heilstatten, an abandoned hospital complex with an intricate past.
Dir. Nick Jordan
Nature House Inc is a film which depicts the proliferation of bird houses, erected to attract the migratory Purple Martin – “America’s Most Wanted Bird.”
Dir. Amanda Belantara
Shot on a static camera in Aomori City, Japan, in the depths of winter, Sonotoki explores the ephemeral yet recurring movements of human life and nature.
Dir. Miguel Endara
The Making of Hero is a short film that visually documents the meticulous process of drawing a portrait composed entirely of 3.2 million ink dots.
Comedy
Dir. Mitch Yapko
A woman with high expectations for her love life finds herself on a blind date with a man who is not her type. Can she finally learn to embrace the unexpected?
Dir. Maurice Caldera
It’s the end of the month, and a salesman with one final sale to make finds a strange figure pitching on his turf. Who is he? And what on earth is he selling?
Dir. Jonathan Kydd
An actor desperate for work endures two sadistic directors and a useless stage manager when he auditions for a small part in Shakespeare’s classic play Henry IV Part 2.
Dir. Adam Jenkins
A minicab driver who dreams of being in one of London’s famous black cabs prepares to take “The Knowledge.” However, the relentless revision is starting to take its toll…/h4>
Dir. Kevin Lim
A boy’s fascination with machines leads him down a road of deceit involving a terminally ill plush toy, a black market kidney and bunnies sold into sexual slavery.
Documentary
Dir. Mia Mullarkey
A modern-day David and Goliath tale, Danger Overhead Powerlines follows a 65-year-old woman who is imprisoned when she tries to protect thousands of trees she planted by hand.
Dir. Pippa Riddick
40 years after that band took that photo, the realities of living on Abbey Road are uncovered. A one-off portrait, highlighting a ridiculous legacy that that band left behind.
Dir. Rory Alexander Stewart
As an intimate study of The Port O’Leith, Edinburgh’s infamous pub, The Port examines its history and distinct tradition, fuelled by the stories of the tight-knit regulars.
Dir. Oliver Murray
40 years and thousands of found objects later, a man pauses to reflect on how treasure hunting moved from a hobby to a full-fledged obsession that took over his life.
Dir. Meghna Gupta
Unravel follows the Western world’s unwanted clothes on a journey across Northern India to a sleepy town named Panipat, where women recycle the cast-offs back into yarn.
Dir. Stephen MacLean
Weaving through Sheffield’s forgotten buildings, explorers from the underground community of “urbexing” (urban exploring) share their experiences and passion for these derelict artefacts.
Drama
Dir. Lori Precious
A horror film star returns to her long abandoned daughter, claiming that she is dying. But is she really a drifter, grifter, or a ghost come to destroy the family?
Dir. Tom Chick
Retelling of a folk story of the consequences of a son’s battle with a mysterious figure that appears one day, calling his dying mother’s name.
Dir. Michael Tyburski
A successful house tuner provides clients with a unique form of therapy, which carefully examines subtle details in their living spaces.
Dir. Christian K. Norvalls
A man who decides to take a shower after his workout is side-tracked by a noise he cannot identify. Seeking the source, he is left completely exposed.
Dir. Tom Majersk
Anthony Tarr serves his Queen and country, and is dedicated to his life’s work. The model of a loyal patriot and soldier, he is willing to sacrifice everything for his service.
Dir. Ian Allen Lim
After his wife’s tragic death in a car accident, a well respected astrophysicist collapses into a downward spiral, obsessed with proving his theory of time travel.
Experimental
Dir. Christopher Ian Smith
In the industrial hinterland of England, Benjamin encounters a girl. Arcadian and beautiful, she offers escape from his lonely, repetitive life. But is she human? And does she even exist?
Dir. Jason Tovey
On a train travelling through the night, a man is warned by a stranger about a checkpoint and the sinister indoctrination that is taking place in that part of the country.
Dir. Paul Johnson
The story of a young Peruvian dancer trying to pursue her dreams in the harsh world of the largest river city in the Amazon jungle.
Dir. Sandro Miller
Dream Bigger Dreams is a compilation from eight films created for Nick Cave. The films originally were created for an exhibition which Cave was having in Lille, France.
Dir. Natalie Galazka
This magical realism tale unravels a chance encounter between strangers, their merging imaginations and falling in love without words.
Dir. Bouha Kazmi
A beautiful and fragmented story of loss and self- discovery following a vulnerable drifter girl as she treads desolate hollow ground trying to find her direction.
Music Video
Dir. Yves Ackermann
Music video for Swiss composer Balduin. Coloured flower fragments and dust form rhythmic compositions over time. Flower bouquets explode in slow motion: a rework of flowers.
Dir. Eva Munnich
Music video for the band Bees Village: a young man bitten by a werewolf is transformed and freed for a short time before he gets shot by accident.
Dir. Christian Holm-Glad
A music video for Norwegian alt-rock band Gerilja, Animals delves into a surreal world of strange figures, combining a glamorous yet gritty aesthetic with a high-energy intensity.
Dir. Uisdean
Music video for singer songwriter Louise Quinn, featuring electro artist Kid Loco. A crowd waits in anticipation as a singer prepares to take the stage, but never quite makes it.
Dir. Paul Frankl
“Dreamfolk” electronica foursome Mt. Wolf perform their ethereal track Shapeshift in a monochromatic montage where dark, cinematic figures glisten with particles of light.
Dir. Bruno Palma
Animation to the track Animal by The Gorgeous Colours. The protagonist of this short lm is haunted by the shadows of his own personality.
Thriller
Dir. Paul Mallison
A boy must protect his mother, battle-worn by her abusive relationship, from the brutality of her partner. However, a terrible reality awaits him once the circle of abuse has ended.
Dir. Nour Wazzi
Held captive by a circus, Malu is rescued from her shackles by her husband. As she waits anxiously in the darkness for her chance to escape, a disturbing truth surfaces.
Dir. Simon Dymond
On the streets of Nottingham, the lives of three desperate characters collide over a single night. The Grand weaves through the murky underbelly of the city to a devastating climax.
