New Directors Competition

A 14-year-old boy vacationing with his family in rural Quebec falls for a rebellious older girl in this tenderly-observed, haunting rumination on first love.

Just as Alma is preparing to take her vows to become a nun, her estranged brother turns up demanding his share of the family inheritance, setting into motion a haunting tale of love, deceit, and forgiveness.

Searching for meaning in her life and work, a young journalist investigates the deportation of a local asylum seeker in this understated yet profound character-driven drama.

A headstrong pregnant 14-year-old is sent to live at La Maternal, a support home for young mothers, where she must quickly learn how to be a parent.

Warmth, humor, and winning performances infuse this heartfelt comedy that follows twin brothers Kolya and Vasily in their search for common ground and a long lost father.

In this charming, absurdist tale of mid-life restlessness, an aspiring novelist suffering from writer’s block finds himself out of his depth after he is befriended by his new neighbor who dabbles in petty crime.

In 1972 Bucharest, agathering of freedom-minded teenagers is interrupted when the secret police come knocking in this alternately tender and tense, politically inflected coming-of-age drama.

An introverted Foley artist working on a commercial is invigorated when her body begins to transform in unexpected, intoxicating ways.

In a remote Alpine village, Marco and Anna find their relationship tested as his behavior grows increasingly erratic in this moving meditation on the nature of enduring love.

In a dystopian near-future, the fates of three lonely souls become intertwined as they are drawn into the sphere of Plan 75, a government program that gently coerces senior citizens to be euthanized.

In this visually stunning story of first love, a young woman sets out to bury her father in his rural Illinois hometown and finds connection with a fellow lonely soul.

A day in the Tunisian fig harvest: fruit pickers young and old gossip, squabble, flirt and reminisce, seeking connection and reflecting on love and life in this sun-dappled slice of life.

Although a series of surreal cataclysmic events throws his life into chaos, cheery Pepe remains steadfastly optimistic in this riotous, deadpan fable set in the endless Finnish winter.