Synopsis

Iman, an ambitious family man, receives an appointment to become an investigating judge in Iran’s Revolutionary Court. Such a professional step means major advancement for him, his wife, and his two independently minded teenage daughters. His rise is complicated, though, when nationwide student-fueled protests against the government cause violent unrest in the streets, forcing Iman to work overtime. When his handgun mysteriously goes missing, his nerves are strained to the breaking point.

Equal parts tension-fueled domestic drama and paranoid political thriller, the film offers an excoriating examination of an oppressive, patriarchal society about to reach a tipping point. Currently living in exile to avoid an eight-year prison sentence for his films’ criticism of Iran’s hardline conservative government, veteran auteur Mohammad Rasoulof (There Is No Evil, 2020) returns to the Festival with this exhilarating, timely work that rises to the urgency of the moment.

Synopsis

In this real-life tale set in a remote village in Azerbaijan’s Talysh mountains, elderly TV repairman Samid dusts off his old Soviet film projector with dreams of bringing movies on the big screen back to his rural community. When he meets Ayaz, a tech-savvy young man who creates short animated movies on his cell phone, the two join forces to realize Samid’s vision. But first, he must get a new projector bulb all the way from Lithuania and overcome skepticism among some of the town’s more conservative citizens.

Impeccably photographed and suffused with its protagonists’ love of cinema, The Return of the Projectionist unfolds with the sublime simplicity of the Iranian New Wave and the charm of Cinema Paradiso. Against the backdrop of Azerbaijan’s conflict with Armenia and Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, Samid and Ayaz’s goals may seem trivial, but their everyday struggles — between tradition and modernity, past and future — resonate deeply.

Synopsis

Transplanted from his African homeland to drug lord Pablo Escobar’s infamous Colombian compound, Pepe the hippo reflects on his tumultuous life in this bold, inventive cinematic essay. When Escobar abandons his plan for a private zoo, Pepe escapes to a nearby river, where his hulking presence unsettles the nearby fishing communities. The first and last hippopotamus ever killed in the Americas, he is feared and hunted. Through Pepe’s story, director Nelson Carlos De Los Santos Arias crafts a rich, layered narrative about displacement, dislocation, and the ecological consequences of human hubris. Pepe himself narrates a cacophony of events, from riverside beauty pageants to sentimental cartoons to historical inquiries. And his guttural, ghostly laugh is a constant presence in the film’s soundscape. Unpredictable and playful, Pepe is an unforgettable, immersive cinematic experience.

Synopsis

Matthias is a master of his profession. He’s the perfect chameleon, impeccably at ease in any social situation, wearing any costume, in any character’s skin. Do you need a “cultured boyfriend” to impress your friends?  A “perfect son” to influence your business partners? Or maybe just a sparring partner to rehearse an argument with a spouse? Whatever it is, Matthias is your man! And he is available for rent. Yet, while Matthias excels in all of these roles, just being himself with his partner and among his friends is a real challenge.

With an appealing absurdist tone and humor that deftly balances incisive wit with unbridled funny, Peacock takes the “rent-a” concept to the next level. Performance pieces that take delight in sending up the art world and sharp jabs at aspirational culture combine in this corrosive comedy that lays bare the darker essence of human relationships.

Synopsis

Born weeks after Iran’s 1979 Islamic Revolution, filmmaker Farahnaz Sharifi soon realized she was living on two different planets: the public one which was constrained by political and religious strictures, and the private one where she could fully be herself.

Discovering the power of images at an early age when she bought her first camera, Sharifi began recording her family life while also obsessively collecting decaying Super 8 reels left behind by anonymous people. In contrasting these two worlds — scenes of violent repression on the streets versus home movies showing moments of joy, dancing, and domestic freedom — Sharifi offers an intimate and timely reflection on how recorded images can be a powerful corrective to the erasure of histories and female identity. Winner of top prizes at nearly a dozen international film festivals, My Stolen Planet allows Sharifi’s own story, along with images of voiceless women from the past and present, to form a vivid and collective act of resistance.