Among the short films in competition, a world premiere and 5 Italian premieres from 19 countries around the world.
These are the 12 short films in competition:
100 Days of Badass Women by Douglas John Imbrogno from the USA in an Italian premiere. A West Virginia artist pulled herself out of a depression by painting 100 portraits in 100 days of “tough” notable women from the present and the past.
A Fistful of Rubbish by David Regos, from Spain with an Italian premiere, is set in the Tabernas desert in Spain. The only desert in Europe and an area known for being the backdrop of many famous Sergio Leone films, unfortunately it is an area plagued by waste. But a group of locals are forming a team and taking matters into their own hands.
From Italy Altromare: Professional Fishing for Biodiversity by Stefano Romano. Altromare is a project which, through the direct involvement of local fishing communities, especially in the collection of plastic waste in the sea, has set itself the goal of restoring and preserving the delicate marine biodiversity in the coasts of Campania, Calabria and Puglia.
Also from Italy Elettra by Alessandro Quadretti in world premiere starring Lisa Granuzza Di Vita, electro-sensitive actress. Elettra is a girl like many others: she studies, shares an apartment with a co-tenant she is a close friend of and lives her days with carefree. Suddenly, however, he discovers that he suffers from electrosensitivity …
Faleminderit by Nicolas Neuhold (Luxembourg). In 1921 a Luxembourgish cartographer visited Albania to prepare maps for the new independent country. During the chaotic Conference of Ambassadors in Paris, an observation he made will change the outcome of the diplomatic meeting.
From Trash to Treasure: Turning Negatives into Positives by Iara Lee filmed in the USA, Bulgaria, Lesotho. From erosion, to overgrazing, to persistent poverty, the people of Lesotho, a mountainous country surrounded by South Africa, face a number of difficult challenges. A story through the art of various designers, directors, musicians.
God’s Daughter Dances by Sungbin Byun from Korea in an Italian premiere. A transgender dancer, Shin-mi, receives a call from the Military Manpower Administration to participate in the military service exam.
I Am Afraid to Forget Your Face by Sameh Alaa shot in Egypt, France, Belgium, Qatar, winner of the Palme d’Or at Cannes. After 82 days away from his beloved, Adam is ready to do anything to face the distance that separates them.
Winter by Giulio Mastromauro, best short for the David di Donatello 2020. Timo, the youngest of a Greek community of carouselers, is faced with the harshest winter together with his loved ones.
Jabal – The Mountain by Alessio Genovese in Italian preview. Giusy is tired of living in the community in which she grew up, in the indifference of the older ones and the hostility of her companions. She decides to cut the ties that force her and ventures alone through the streets of a gray and aggressive Palermo.
Max by Florence Hugues, from France as an Italian premiere, is the story of a young mechanic.
The Nightwalk, by Adriano Valerio, in Sicilian premiere. Jarvis has just moved to Shanghai when he is suddenly confined to his still empty apartment. He finds it difficult to cope with loneliness, dives into very dark thoughts and a state of deep anxiety. The only way to escape his nightmares is to escape and cross the deserted city to a friend’s house.
These are the 10 animated shorts in competition:
Le Renard et L’Oisille by Sam and Fred Guillaume (Switzerland, Belgium). A lone fox becomes a father to a newborn bird. They form a family until fate shows that they have to go their separate ways.
Asmahan the Diva by Chloé Mazlo from France. The life of Asmahan, the Druze diva and princess was short, but intense: weddings, glory, espionage, lovers, alcohol, poker, suicides, murders, scandals, a mysterious death in the waters of the Nile … This oriental Marilyn has marked the golden age of Egyptian musical comedies.
Also from France Glace à l’Eau by Mathieu Barbe, Damien Desvignes, Victor Hayé. Separated from its glacier, a curious iceberg drifts with the currents. He is then amazed to discover, with a little fear, a world as majestic as it is tormented.
Mila by Cinzia Angelini (USA, UK, Canada) is the story of a little girl who finds herself in the midst of the 1943 bombings in Trento, after which she remains without a family. With the help of a woman who, like her, has lost part of her life, Mila manages, however, thanks to her imagination, to cling to the hope of a better future.
Again from France Navozande, Le Musicien by Reza Riahi. During a ferocious attack, a young musician and the love of his life are brutally separated from each other. Fifty years later, the musician is called to play at the Mongolian castle where his beloved was kept.
Galchenok (Nestling) by Marat Narimanov from Russia is the story of a friendship between a lonely old man and a helpless little bird, stylized like a 1960s movie.
Only a Child by Simone Giampaolo from Switzerland gives shape and color to Severn Suzuki’s original speech at the UN summit in Rio (1992): a child’s desperate call to action for the future of our planet.
Sad Beauty by Arjan Brentjes from the Netherlands. In a heavily polluted world, a young woman mourns the disappearance of animal species. When she gets sick from a bacterial infection, nature seems to send her a message in her hallucinations.
Farzaneh Omidvarnia’s Song Sparrow shot between Iran and Denmark. A group of refugees try to reach a safe country in search of a better life in a refrigerated truck. However, the freezing temperature of the truck turns their hopes for a better future into a fierce struggle for survival.
The Empress by Chin-En Chang from Taiwan. In an ancient eastern kingdom, an emperor is controlled by his ministers. The emperor no longer tolerates the situation and runs away from the palace. During the escape childhood memories emerge. The emperor’s father never took him seriously, because the emperor is actually a girl.