The Homing Bird(2014)

Kongomüller(de)

After numerous military operations, Major Müller can't find a way back into civilian life. Following his urge to communicate, the Major is looking for listeners and encouragement. He doesn't find either. Instead, the repeated monological memory of his own heroic deeds determines his present – with all the consequences. This 30-minute short film is based on the statements made by the mercenary Siegfried Müller in the documentary “The Laughing Man” (Walter Heynowski and Gerhard Scheumann, DEFA studio for newsreels and documentaries, 1966), as well as records from the German colonial period in Africa. An intensive contribution to the necessary public debate about the consequences of military operations.

Wild Summon(en)

A natural history fantasy film, following the dramatic lifecycle of the wild salmon in human form, with narration by Marianne Faithfull.

Hakob Hovnatanyan(hy)

Exploring the art of Armenian portraitist Hakob Hovnatanyan, Parajanov revives the culture of Tbilisi of the 19th century.

Candid Cameramaniacs(en)

Short comedic subject on the history of photography from the daguerrotype to modern amateur photographers.

The Christmas Gift(ro)

A son's letter to Santa for Christmas turns his father's evening into a thriller he did not ask for.

Famous Boners(en)

This Passing Parade series entry looks at three instances of people who either caused or were the victims of errors.

Naive Cinema(pt)

An essay film on the editing of erotic movies.

The First Emperor of China(en)

This historical drama tells the story of Qin Shihuang, who unified China’s vast territory and declared himself emperor in 221 B.C. During his reign, he introduced sweeping reforms, built a vast network of roads and connected the Great Wall of China. From the grandiose inner sanctum of Emperor Qin's royal palace, to fierce battles with feudal kings, this film re-creates the glory and the terror of the Qin Dynasty, including footage of Qin's life-sized terra cotta army, constructed 2,200 years ago for his tomb.

Paris in the Belle Epoque(de)

The Bokelberg photographic collection brings to life the Paris of the Belle Époque (1871-1914), an exhibition of workshops and stores with extremely beautiful shop windows before which the owners and their employees proudly pose, hiding behind their eyes the secret history of a great era.

Wittgenstein's Poker(en)

On October 25, 1946... in a small crowded room at Cambridge University, two of the world’s greatest twentieth-century philosophers, Ludwig Wittgenstein and Karl Popper, came face-to-face for the first and only time. A third man, Lord Bertrand Russell was also present, acting as umpire of the event. The meeting - which lasted only 10 minutes - did not go well. To this day, no one can agree precisely what took place in those fiery minutes. Almost immediately, rumours started to spread around the world that the two philosophers, Wittgenstein and Popper, had come to blows armed with red-hot fire pokers!

Ada Blackjack Rising(en)

In the pre-dawn twilight of an Alaskan shore, a young Native woman reflects on the story of Ada Blackjack, the sole survivor of a disastrous 1921 Arctic expedition, and the loneliness she must have felt waiting for a rescue through the months-long polar night.

The Ball Method(en)

Alice Ball, a 23 year-old African American Chemist living in 1915 Hawaii fights against racial and gender barriers to find an effective treatment for leprosy before Kalani, a 10-year-old patient is exiled into the leper colony of Molokai.

The Death Disc: A Story of the Cromwellian Period(en)

During the reign of Oliver Cromwell, Catholic worship is forbidden on pain of death. Three soldiers are arrested as Catholics and condemned to die. Cromwell decides to spare two of them and to determine which should die by chance. The guards bring the first child they meet. Whichever soldier she gives the 'death disc' to shall die. Cromwell is charmed by the girl and gives her his signet ring. By chance the child is the daughter of one of the soldiers and gives the death disc to her father, because she thinks it's pretty. The child is returned home to her mother, who learns of her husband's pending execution and of the power of the ring. She rushes to the place of execution and saves her husband by producing the ring.

Genre Hopper(fi)

A young filmmaker accidentally claps her idol’s mystical clapperboard, throwing the two on a frantic journey through film genres and beyond.

Techniquement Si Simple(fr)

Despejadas(pt)

When the Sun Hides(es)

Córdoba, Argentina, 1976. It was an August night when soldiers dressed as civilians broke into Pablo and Vera's house. They must do everything possible to save themselves and protect their little daughter.

Living Art(bn)

The thousand-year-old tradition of pottery in the Indian subcontinent is now under threat. With the market being flooded with plastic in the evolution of civilization, today this Pal community is becoming displaced.

Here Ends the World We've Known(fr)

1645. Guadeloupe. Ibátali, a Kalinago native and wife of a French colonist, leads Olaudah, an escaped African captive, on a journey where he may lose his freedom and his life. She is ready to sacrifice him to save her own skin. But their wounds bring them together. Will this be enough to make them something other than what colonisation has decided they should be: a savage to be exterminated, an African to be enslaved?

13 Courts Mortels(fr)