East Side Stories(2012)

Genius Party(ja)

The seven short films making up GENIUS PARTY couldn’t be more diverse, linked only by a high standard of quality and inspiration. Atsuko Fukushima’s intro piece is a fantastic abstraction to soak up with the eyes. Masaaki Yuasa, of MIND GAME and CAT SOUP fame, brings his distinctive and deceptively simple graphic style and dream-state logic to the table with “Happy Machine,” his spin on a child’s earliest year. Shinji Kimura’s spookier “Deathtic 4,” meanwhile, seems to tap into the creepier corners of a child’s imagination and open up a toybox full of dark delights. Hideki Futamura’s “Limit Cycle” conjures up a vision of virtual reality, while Yuji Fukuyama’s "Doorbell" and "Baby Blue" by Shinichiro Watanabe use understated realism for very surreal purposes. And Shoji Kawamori, with “Shanghai Dragon,” takes the tropes and conventions of traditional anime out for very fun joyride.

Eros(en)

A three-part anthology about love and sexuality: a menage-a-trois between a couple and a young woman on the coast of Tuscany; an advertising executive under enormous pressure at work, who, during visits to his psychiatrist, is pulled to delve into the possible reasons why his stress seems to manifest itself in a recurring erotic dream; a story of unrequited love about a beautiful, 1960s high-end call girl in an impossible affair with her young tailor.

Grounding: The Last Days of Swissair(de)

The demise of airline Swissair in 2001 was a huge blow to Switzerland's economy and to the country's morale. It was a sad day for Swiss history when the airline's fleet was grounded on 2 October 2001. "Grounding" is set during the last days of the doomed airline, and tells the story of manager Mario A. Corti's unhappy fate, the last, unlucky CEO at the traditional airline company, as well as of all those nameless people who lost almost everything in the maelstrom of Swissair's downfall: their job, home and their belief in Switzerland.

The Decameron(it)

A young Sicilian is swindled twice, but ends up rich; a man poses as a deaf-mute in a convent of curious nuns; a woman must hide her lover when her husband comes home early; a scoundrel fools a priest on his deathbed; three brothers take revenge on their sister's lover; a young girl sleeps on the roof to meet her boyfriend at night; a group of painters wait for inspiration; a crafty priest attempts to seduce his friend's wife; and two friends make a pact to find out what happens after death.

Scoop(en)

Inspired by real events, this fictional dramatization gives an insider account of how the women of Newsnight secured Prince Andrew's infamous interview.

To Each His Own Cinema(fr)

Commissioned to mark the 60th anniversary of the Cannes Film Festival, "To Each His Own Cinema" brought together 33 of the world's pre-eminent filmmakers to produce short pieces exploring the multifarious facets of cinema and their perspective on the state of their chosen artform in the early 21st century.

Boys Life(en)

Each of the three short films in this collection presents a young gay man at the threshold of adulthood. In "Pool Days," Justin is a 17-year old Bethesda lad, hired as the evening life guard at a fitness center. In the course of the summer, he realizes and embraces that he's gay. In "A Friend of Dorothy," Winston arrives from upstate for his freshman year at NYU. He has to figure out, with some help from Anne, a hometown friend, how to build a social life as a young gay man in the city. In "The Disco Years," Tom looks back on 1978, the year in high school that he came out of the closet after one joyful and several painful encounters

Spirits of the Dead(fr)

Anthology film from three European directors based on stories by Edgar Allan Poe: a cruel countess haunted by a ghostly horse, a sadistic young man haunted by his double, and an alcoholic actor haunted by the Devil.

Everybody Calls Me 'The Cat'(es)

Perro callejero(es)

An abandoned child steals to survive and has problems when he decides to steal from the priest who helps him.

Perro callejero 2(es)

After serving his three-year sentence, Perro, who was only visited by Father Maromas, returns to his old environment. There, Chava recruits him back into drug trafficking.

Welcome Home(ru)

New York-set comedy about a group of immigrants who have become hostage to their life choices.

Aliko and Ambai(en)

Aliko & Ambai is a feature film about two young women facing the challenges of growing up in the beautiful Eastern Highlands of Papua New Guinea. The challenges are significant: tribal conflict, poverty, bullying, domestic violence,and forced marriage. Aliko struggles to complete her education and Ambai searches to escape her abusive home and reunite with her biological father. They navigate the many obstacles in their lives and endeavour to build brighter futures for themselves, supported by the strength of friendship.

LSD 2: Love, Sex aur Dhokha 2(hi)

In a high-tech world, three intertwined stories discuss identity, online intimacy and the allure of social networks.

Christmas Eve(en)

An anthology of seven incredible true stories that happened on Christmas Eve around the world.

Beyond the Clouds(fr)

Four tales, each centered on a woman, journey inward to explore the enigmatic reality of their lives, connecting through a single narrative thread.

No Touching at All(ja)

Toshiaki is a young gay man. On the first day of work, he meets Yosuke in the elevator. Yosuke is Toshiaki's new boss. Toshiaki is attracted to Yosuke. Toshiaki can't be honest with his feelings about it due to a traumatic incident from his past.

Boxer(pl)

With only his wife by his side, a promising young boxer flees communist Poland to chase his dream of becoming the greatest fighter in history.

Agáta(cs)

Three "miniatures" touching on romantic relationships between men and women from different perspectives. Matěj, a young vegetable garden guard and lover of idleness and village women, spends the night in the grass with Agáta, the wife of a switchman, even though he is not particularly interested in the unsatisfied woman. Voloďa, a young man growing up without a father, is confused about his feelings for the married thirty-year-old Míša, who seduces him on a whim and then rejects him. The hunter with a "free spirit" refuses to spend even a single day with his unhappy village wife, whom the mayor (who first got him drunk) married him to years ago out of envy for his shooting skills.

30/30 Vision: Three Decades of Strand Releasing(en)

Over 30 filmmakers and friends of Strand Releasing have come together to honor the company’s indelible contribution to independent cinema over the past thirty years. The participating filmmakers have each created a short film for the project, all shot on iPhones.