Sio Roho Yangu - Not My Soul (United States) by Joe LoBianco

In 1807, a young slave is condemned to a sweltering hot box for her defiance, facing torment and uncertainty. Trapped in the oppressive heat, she struggles to survive, oscillating between fleeting hope and crushing despair. She draws strength from distant memories and spirituals. As her spirit is tested, the journey transforms from a desperate victim into a determined fighter, in a powerful testament to resilience and the unbreakable human will.

Running time: 00:14:29

Poquinca: The Dreamstate Livestream (United States) by Sasha Gransjean

Poquinca is a documentary series that explores current societal shifts as well as the discovery of identity in physical and virtual spaces. A sociological journey through the transition from adolescence to adulthood. This episode mainly follows Jing in a blossoming relationship, Patra in clubs and with friends, and Sakylor working on dance moves and uncertainties in tik tok trends.

Running time: 00:16:09

Knife, Chocolate (Iran, Islamic Republic of) by Hooshmand Varaei

This movie is the story of a happy family! The son of the family is antisocial, psychotic, skeptic and sexist who judges women by the smell of their cosmetics!

Running time: 00:15:00

Tadasana (Canada) by Erin Audley

"Tadasana" is my most intimate work as a filmmaker and artist.  The work was inspired by my struggles with my well-being, both physical and mental. It is a non-narrative experiential short film that unfolds in the form of a guided yoga meditation. The narrator instructs the viewer through the foundational yoga pose, Tadasana (Mountain Pose), while simultaneously delving into themes of mental health, perception, and the inherent links between the body and the mind. 

The film’s meditative guidance is contrasted with invasive interjections, intrusive thoughts similar to my own battles with anxiety and depersonalization-derealization disorder, where both internal and external perceptions become foreign, distant, and disconnected from the self. The focus on body awareness highlights my personal health struggles, where rather than a source of strength, the body is viewed as a liability; fragile, fallible, and unreliable, a vessel constantly at the brink of breakdown.

The film concludes with an assertion of the unavoidable: “We all die.” The final fade to black is representative of this inevitability, completing the transformation of  the experience from a meditation on posture to the ephemeral nature of life.

Tadasana is both a guided meditation and a journey into the existential angst I carry, where the body is both a source of grounding and disconnection, and every breath is a reminder of life's fragility.

Running time: 00:10:30

Tangle (Belgium) by Carla Hoogewijs, Frank Stevens

Tangle is a multimedia film blending vivid imagery, haunting words, and evocative soundscapes to delve into the core questions of human existence. Structured as a monologue in five chapters, it begins with a single breath of steam and culminates in the miracle of cell division, symbolizing the cycle of life and death. Through themes of chaos versus order, the yearning for self-expression, and the boundless symbolism of the sea, the film becomes an invitation to reflect on life’s tangled essence. A collaboration between Carla Hoogewijs, whose lyrical prose grapples with existential wonder, and Frank Stevens, whose striking visuals echo the mystery of the human condition, Tangle is as poetic as it is profound—a journey through the beauty and harshness of being alive.

Running time: 00:38:39

Higher Grounds (United States) by Joe Kramer

On the fateful day intelligent life arrives to destroy Earth, one slacker alien gets sidetracked when he’s smitten with a bitter barista. Suddenly, our survival depends on whether this space-schmuck can get her number, before his plucky partner blows us sky high.

Running time: 00:16:59