SCREEN

Lost Persons Area - Sometimes you have to get lost to find the way to what you really want and what you really need. In front of a featureless landscape, somewhere in Belgium, high tension towers are the only landmarks. Living among these industrial skeletons are Marcus, Bettina and their daughter, Tessa. Marcus, along with a Hungarian engineer, Szabolcs, has a company that maintains the towers; Bettina runs the cantina. Tessa lives her own solitary life, wandering the emptiness whispering to herself while collecting small forgotten things and arranging them mysteriously. Four people adrift in their own private eddies. With understated performances (young Kimka Desart as Tessa), muted colors and an occasional haunting sigh of music, this is a film of telling moments closely observed, with a denouement both inevitable and surprising. These characters and their fates will linger in your memory long after the film is over.

Shorts Program 4: Animated Worlds - Animated films can be both visual and emotional treasures. This set of shorts follows an orphaned mouse as he soars to unbelievable heights, the terrifying tale of felines running from a twisted pianist, and an important decision by a magical elephant that may save the world. The world of stop-motion shows a falcon traveling through a steampunk world and a beautiful love story expressed through song. A cartoon otter must save his new friend from a hungry sushi chef, a troubled ninja confesses his sins, and someone takes an unexpected step in an alternate version of the Greek story of the Minotaur. Also included is a very personal tale woven from a single ribbon tied among thousands, a look inside the dark and twisted mind of Franz Kafka, and the story of a man whose life is changed forever when a mysterious package sheds light on the truth. To top it all off, the award-winning director of Ryan (Cinequest 2005) creates another amazing short film focusing on one couple's heartbreaking journey to couple's counseling. The Shorts Program 4 features the following films: Ariadne's Thread - dir. Attila Bertoli (Hungary), The Cascade and Its Dust - dir. Stefan Pautze (Germany), The Cat Piano - dir. Ari Gibson, Eddie White (Australia), The Falcon - dir. Scot Hampton (United States), Fard - dir. David Alapont, Luis Briceno (France), Her Morning Elegance - dir. Oren Lavie, Yuval Nathan, Merav Nathan (Israel), The Mouse That Soared - dir. Kyle Bell (United States), Ninjas vs. Guilt - dir. David Chai (United States), Ollie and the Baked Halibut - dir. Kelly A. Williamson (Canada, United States), Prayers for Peace - dir. Dustin Grella (United States), Samsa - Homage to Franz Kafka - dir. Rene Lange (Germany), The Spine - dir. Chris Landreth (Canada), and The Way to Heaven - dir. Dalton Grant, Jr., Mier Tang (China, United States).

Shorts Program 5: More than you bargained for. - As we go through life, we are often faced with unexpected surprises as we reach the end of our journey. This series of shorts shows a woman preparing for her cancer treatment who must also give solace to others, a young girl given a priceless gift after the death of her father, and a director who tries to explain the inexplicable pain of living with dementia. Nature has a deadly surprise for the hunter of a rare bird, an old hotel about to be demolished tells many tales on its last New Year, and a disturbed man tries to warn his family of an imminent robot attack on Earth. There can be humor in telling secrets before a family's last supper together, but there can also be great beauty in quiet cravings discovered and graphically fulfilled. The Shorts Program 5 features the following films: Alena's Journey - dir. Karoly Ujj Meszaros (Hungary), The Attack of the Robots from Nebula-5 - dir. Chema García Ibarra (Spain), Commentary - dir. Robert Cambrinus (United Kingdom), The Feast of Stephen - dir. James Franco (United States), Sapsucker - dir. Christopher Holmes (United States), Socarrat - dir. David Moreno (Spain), Variations - dir. Krisztina Esztergalyos (Hungary), and Winter Fugue - dir. Jadrien Steele (United States).