Which films have been selected for the European BOO?

The short films in this section explore the boundary between conflict and understanding. In 1:10, a school sports day turns into an unexpected spiral of violence, while Martyr's Guidebook follows Tony, whose selflessness turns against him. In the Greenlandic film The Thief, the search for a lost dog turns into a fragile test of friendship, Dancing in the Corner sensitively depicts the relationship between a son and father who find their way to each other through the television screen, and the animated Hoofs on Skates tells the story of a pig and a cow who learn to overcome their fears on a frozen lake. Humor, poetry, and chilling reality come together in a mosaic that explores the fragile balance between vulnerability and courage, empathy and aggression.

 

The short films in this section touch on moments when the boundaries between childhood and adulthood, between playfulness and cruel experience, disappear. The Voiceless follows a young man who loses himself in the nighttime techno world until his path is interrupted by an unexpected encounter with a child. In God Is Shy, an innocent game on a train turns into a terrifying ritual in which fear materializes into transcendental forms, and God does not appear as a kind old man. The dystopian Wild Child shows a girl who must come to terms with becoming an adult in a world without adults. The animated absurdity of Free the Chickens turns an animal rescue mission into a grotesque full of politically incorrect humor, Supersilly delves into the inner world of a woman searching for the roots of her pain, and A Round Applause for Death stages death as a spectacle that the audience stares at in disbelief but applauds with enthusiasm. Together, the films explore what happens when innocence ends and full responsibility for oneself and the world begins.

 

A Round Applause for Death (dir. Stephen Irwin, 2024, 5 min, Great Britain)

 

In this section, reality takes on unexpected forms – absurd, comical, and disturbing. Carcassonne-Acapulco presents a bizarre, claustrophobic situation in which mysterious knocking on the cockpit door begins during a flight over the Atlantic. In Fish River Anthology, a mundane wait at a supermarket counter turns into an existential reflection and a fish musical. Free Drum Kit follows Lila as she tries to get rid of her ex-boyfriend's drum kit, starting a cascade of unexpected events. Between the Lines, shot in a single take, explores the subtle nuances of a chance encounter on the subway and the uncertainty of whether it is a flirtation or a threat. And Detlev, with dark humor, portrays a lonely forty-something whose ritual of eating warm toast at a gas station begins to be disrupted by an unknown observer. Together, the films show that heaven may not be above us, but in the absurd, fragile, or bizarre moments of everyday life.

The films in this section explore how technology, relationships, and fantasies change our ability to be together—and alone with ourselves. In At Least I Will Be 8,294,400 Pixel, a young man sets out to find a girl whose face he discovers in visualizations of his memories generated by artificial intelligence. My Secret Cyberlove presents a sitcom story about Robert and his sex robot. In the intimate film Scars We Love, a painful conversation between two ex-partners turns into an emotional confrontation full of tears and escapism into memories. The surreal Wish You Were Ear shows a world where people exchange body parts after a breakup and seek wholeness through fragments of past loves. Lost in Galactic Translation follows a lonely scientist who makes contact with aliens and dreams of a new sense of belonging. And Pubert Jimbob opens up a strange, hallucinatory world into which a young man is drawn by a single strange object. Together, the films form a collage of the desire for connection and the necessity of disconnection, which is as inevitable as it is confusing today.

The four films in this section explore relationships that are as fragile and changeable as the elements to which they relate. The animated film Mother's Child captures the exhausting daily life of a mother caring for her disabled son, as well as the search for beauty in moments of utter exhaustion. ...About Twofold Floors and Heavenly Bonds balances on the border between the grotesque and the dramatic, as introverted Gregor sets off with his cousin to work in Hungary and confronts both his family's and his own limits. Fireworks combines the holiday atmosphere with the onset of adolescence, when a pyrotechnician's relationship with his daughters is disrupted by their desire for their own experiences and loves. And Sauna Day reveals the intimate space of an Estonian men's sauna, where beneath the rough surface emerges a need for closeness and sharing. Together, the films show that blood ties and fluid spaces create conditions for closeness, tension, and transformation.

 

The six films in this section explore how defiance, resistance, and the desire for order arise—and how often they turn into disorder. Oscar-nominated The Man Who Could Not Remain Silent recalls the true story of a man who stood up to armed forces and refused to stand by and watch injustice. The experimental film Notes from Planet Three blends children's scientific knowledge with the world of internet disinformation. Dog and Wolf follows stripper Rudo, whose wild parties cannot drown out the pain of a broken relationship. The animated Volcelest presents a thrilling story of an ermine and a farmer in a parable about survival and conflict. In the raw drama Skin on Skin, a fragile bond develops between two men in a German slaughterhouse, but also draws them into a spiral of violence and helplessness. And the documentary Am I Calling You at a Bad Time uses archival recordings to paint a portrait of a woman for whom the telephone became a source of play, work, and exploitation. Together, the films create a kaleidoscope of moments where the boundaries between order and chaos, power and powerlessness, courage and resignation are blurred.