XConfessions 34[2023]

The Bible: In the Beginning...(en)

Covering only the first 22 chapters of the Book of Genesis, vignettes include: Adam and Eve frolicking in the Garden of Eden until their indulgence in the forbidden fruit sees them driven out; Cain murdering his brother Abel; Noah building an ark to preserve the animals of the world from the coming flood; and Abraham making a covenant with God.

Paris Je T'aime(fr)

Olivier Assayas, Gus Van Sant, Wes Craven and Alfonso Cuaron are among the 20 distinguished directors who contribute to this collection of 18 stories, each exploring a different aspect of Parisian life. The colourful characters in this drama include a pair of mimes, a husband trying to chose between his wife and his lover, and a married man who turns to a prostitute for advice.

Sexual Tension: Violetas(es)

What are the rules that determine how attraction and desire are set free? Glances, unexpected smiles, confiding in unknown women. Long cherished fantasies, intimate friendships and unexpected meetings. In Volume 2 of the Sexual Tension diptych, Marco Berger and Marcelo Mónaco take us on a journey through the twists and turns of female seduction: two guests of a hostel become roommates (and more); a keen shop assistant helps a woman uncertain about what dress to buy; the outset of a great passion between two girls during a picnic, even though one of them has a boyfriend. In the film we also find a conversation about Woody Allen between a waitress and a woman, which goes too far; and two high-class escorts who discover that they are attracted to each other, when they are in bed with a client. The film finally shows what could happen, but never did happen, and will probably never happen, to two thirty-year-old women. Maybe it would be better not to have sex with people we love. Sex ...

Periphery(de)

August 1st in Zurich. An unbearably hot day. While many are celebrating the Swiss national holiday, five individual fates take their course: 1. As a symbol against capitalism in Switzerland, Vinc is planning an attack in the city centre. 2. Tibetan descendent Sonam is struggling to settle into her new job as a police officer – worse still, she makes a major mistake during her first operation. 3. Hunter Edi’s status quo is unbalanced when a financial predicament puts his morals to the test. 4. Young Ukrainian Sonja arrives in Zurich full of hope to surprise the love of her life – but she is in for an even bigger surprise. 5. Chilean Javier no longer feels at home in Switzerland and decides to return – with his daughter, but without her mother’s knowledge – to his motherland.

Boys On Film 19: No Ordinary Boy(en)

As Boys On Film reaches the end of its teenage years, we take a look at those unique boys who go one step further, who excite, invigorate, and always impress, who break boundaries, shape their worlds and are more than what they appear. Volume 19: No Ordinary Boy includes ten complete films: Scott T. Hinson's "Michael Joseph Jason John" also starring Eric Robledo; Abhishek Verma's animated "The Fish Curry"; Ben Allen's "Blood Out Of A Stone" starring Alex Austin and Oisín Stack; David Färdmar's "No More We" starring Jonathan Andersson and Björn Elgerd; Jannik Splidsboel's "Between Here & Now" starring Francesco Martino and Peder Bille; Amrou Al-Kadhi's "Run(a)way Arab" also starring Ahd and Omar Labek; Dean Loxton's "Meatoo" starring Calum Speed and Warren Rusher; Jake Graf's "Dusk" starring Elliott Sailors, Sue Moore, and Duncan James; Leon Lopez's "Jermaine & Elsie" starring Marji Campi and Ashley Campbell; and Marco Alessi's "Four Quartets" with Laurie Kynaston.

If You Were Me 7(ko)

An omnibus movie consisting of three shorts by CHOI Ikhwan, SHIN Yeonsik, and LEE Gwangguk. A delightful dissection of human rights in this day and age through a student who gets punished for wanting to eat deokbokki, a man with delusions of grandeur, an insurance agent who spends a strange day.

Laughter and Grief by the White Sea(ru)

Laughter and Grief by the White Sea is a 1987 Soviet traditionally animated feature film directed by Leonid Nosyrev made at the Soyuzmultfilm studio. The film is a celebration of the culture of the Russian Pomors who live around the White Sea.

Locker 13(en)

The story of Skip, a young ex-convict who takes a position as a night janitor at an old-west theme park. His supervisor Archie, teaches him the ropes, but more importantly attempts to convey critical philosophical messages through a series of four stories: a down and out boxer is given the opportunity to become a real golden gloves killer; an assassin kidnaps three people in order to find out who hired him for his latest hit; a new recruit is initiated into a lodge of fez-wearing businessmen where hazing can take a malevolent turn; and a member of a suicide club introduces real fear into a man about to jump to his death.

Sky Blue Story(ja)

Composed of four stories, each part of 10 minutes, namely: "Rainbow and Zebra", "The Goddess of Victory and the Snail", "The Ant and Love Letter", and "His Royal Highness and the Sheep".

How a Man Gives Birth(cs)

The hero of the opening story, the Postman Puppet (directed by Zdeněk Troška), works as a postman in the mountains. When his wife is taken to the maternity ward, he goes on his usual hike through the solitudes. Little Libor goes after the father of two girls (Petr Pospíchal), who longs for a son. Meanwhile, the weather on the ridges worsens sharply. An experienced mountaineer and his little friend spend the night in a makeshift shelter... The second episode of Hádanka (directed by Jan Ekl) has a criminal plot. A new father (Vlastimil Hašek) gets drunk with friends in a wine bar and the next day becomes a suspect in a murder. He doesn't remember the critical moments, but his testimony leads to the capture of the real perpetrator... The main character of the final short story True Love (directed by Vladimír Drha) is a frat boy (Pavel Zedníček) who spends whole days in pubs. He gets a harsh lesson from his wife, who refuses to let him see the baby...

21st Century Girl(ja)

21st Century Girl is an omnibus feature that is of the girls, by the girls and for the girls. The work of 15 women directors under the age of 30, each of whom contributed an 8-minute film, the package highlights a range of genres, visions and thematic concerns.

Tri razy svitá ráno(sk)

German Angst(de)

Horror anthology consisting of three episodes directed by Jörg Buttgereit, Andreas Marschall and Michal Kosakowski.

Tbilisi, I Love You(en)

Following "Paris, Je t'aime" "New York,I Love You" and "Rio, Eu Te Amo" “Tbilisi, I Love You” has become the next film in the “Cities of Love” franchise.

Secret Diary of Fanny(it)

Written and directed by Sergio Pastore in 1969. Il diario proibito di Fanny is an anthology film starring Giovanna Lenzi as four different women, all named Fanny. The film touches upon all the hot-button issues of 1968: illegal immigrants from the Eastern bloc, the Prague Spring, the Italian star cult and even abortion.

New York Stories(en)

Get ready for a wildly diverse, star-studded trilogy about life in the big city. One of the most-talked about films in years, New York Stories features the creative collaboration of three of America's most popular directors, Martin Scorsese, Francis Coppola, and Woody Allen.

Tokyo!(ja)

Three distinct tales unfold in the bustling city of Tokyo. Merde, a bizarre sewer-dweller, emerges from a manhole and begins terrorizing pedestrians. After his arrest, he stands trial and lashes out at a hostile courtroom. A man who has resigned himself to a life of solitude reconsiders after meeting a charming pizza delivery woman. And finally, a happy young couple find themselves undergoing a series of frightening metamorphoses.

The First Issue(ko)

Never Open That Door(es)

A man tries to avenge the death of his sister, a gambling addict. Another man, an ex-convict who whistles when he commits a crime, is reunited with his blind mother.

Kadhaveedu(ml)

Kadhaveedu' is a dedication to Malayalam being accorded the Shresthabhaasha (Malayalam has been declared a Classical language in 2013) status and presents, as a single entity, three different stories penned by the doyens of Malayalam literature - Vaikkom Muhammed Basheer, M T Vasudevan Nair and Madhavikutty. The film is an anthology with adaptations of stories written by renowned Malayalam fiction writers Basheer, M. T. Vasudevan Nair and Madhavikutty (Kamala Surayya).. The stories have been tweaked to fit in a modern setting and the script has been conceived by the director himself.