FFFB 2023 · Short Programme · Relationships: people & nature

91 Min. | 2022

Sprache: OmeU | Originalsprache: diverse

The festival weekend kicks off with all kinds of questions being asked in relationships between people, but also between nature and humans. How to handle problems best? Talking it all through or keeping silent? When a defiant, guttural scream meets the torture of complete silence, it becomes clear that these characters are together alone, all fighting their own battle. But as humans we often think our problems are above everything, which is why the second part of this programme is a call from nature, reminding us that our relationship to earth is no less important.

Female Filmmakers Festival Berlin 2023 October 4 – 8

 

Part 1: People

Ma Lina – Ydalie Turk (South Africa) – 14min
Ma Lina is a drama about grief and the complicated relationship dynamics between two young girls and a domestic worker, in post-apartheid South Africa.

Infinite Jest – Mirella Drosten (Germany) – 4min
The family looks happy from afar. But if you look closely, you’ll see, that every individual is fighting their own battle.

Slaps – Angela Chen (USA)- 1min
The mysteries of love and relationships boiled down to 90 seconds.

Bruise – Mo O’Connell (Ireland) – 15min
From the outside it looks like Heather has it all, but then the cracks begin to show. Heather is dealing with a serious situation of coercive control, domestic and sexual abuse. After a particularly harrowing incident at her house she manages to escape, she runs outside and screams but nothing comes out. She continues her journey and she faces a situation of sexual violence followed by being harassed by a stalker. Surrounded by the support of women she mets along the way, Heather faces her husband, who is now in front of her and she screams at the top of her lungs. This time the scream is deafening. It is a defiant, guttural scream.

Secure – Zoé Kugler, Jana Dünner (Switzerland) – 7min
In the powerful short film „seCURE,“ sexual violence and its aftermath are explored through the captivating perspectives of four survivors. Through expressive dance and poetry, their inner world is unveiled, depicting their search for safety. As they navigate a seemingly comforting yet lifeless environment, the key held between their fingers becomes a guiding symbol. Ultimately, the film conveys the profound journey towards finding safety within their own bodies.

Silence Kills – Mariam Harutyunyan (Armenia) – 7min
The girl chose to attend a party but felt even more isolated there than she did when she was by herself.

The Visit – Katharina Sporrer (Germany)- 9min
Nina has been clean for a year and wants to make amends to her sister Lisa, who has always been by her side. Lisa lives alone with her daughter, after having been left by her partner. Nina wants to apologise for endangering the child, but Lisa struggles to forgive her. What we come to find out that the daughter is actually Nina’s and the danger an unspeakable crime.

 

Part 2: Nature

The Elusive Purpurea Vulpavis – Michèle Kaye (Canada) – 9min
A supposedly eco-friendly tour company is guiding tourists through a wooded area with the hopes of glimpsing an elusive, critically endangered animal.

Mother of the Forest- Lea Hejn (UK)- 12min
The Mother of the Forest ~ Curupira ~ is the story of a powerful Amazonian goddess told through the voices of the Borarí people from the heart of the forest in Pará, Brazil.

Sentient Souvenirs – Pearl Elizabeth Marley (USA) – 17min
An educational, short documentary that explores tourist-shop hermit crabs and how detrimental, widespread and unregulated the hermit crab industry really is. Are we humans able to put an end to this?