Synopsis

Some worlds can only truly be conjured outside of physical reality. These eight thrilling shorts unfold in an inventive array of visual and narrative styles that come together to form a vibrant snapshot of contemporary animation. May not be suitable for all ages.

Paradaïz, an abstracted depiction of returning to Sarajevo, hums with absurdist humor and a real longing for home. This is not your Garden uses 3D scan data to capture a ghostly portrait of Bogota’s highland cloud forests, which are currently threatened by climate change and human development. One man’s plans for the future are laid out in Retirement Plan. Every resident chases their own version of happiness in the colorful apartment building at the center of Dollhouse Elephant. In the quiet sepia-toned countryside of Dog Alone, a young woman, her grandfather, and a nearby dog all confront loneliness. In dipolar bipolar, the internal life of a person managing bipolar disorder appears as pulsing, maximalist visions. As eight-year-old Agata boards a full bus from Poland to Belgium by herself in Autokar; she notices that those around her seem different. The present moment sits perfectly still in Ordinary Life.

Synopsis

Set in modern-day Tokyo, Rental Family follows an American actor (Brendan Fraser) who struggles to find purpose until he lands an unusual gig: working for a Japanese “rental family” agency, playing stand-in roles for strangers. As he immerses himself in his clients’ worlds, he begins to form genuine bonds that blur the lines between performance and reality. Confronting the moral complexities of his work, he rediscovers purpose, belonging, and the quiet beauty of human connection.

Synopsis

In 1987 suburban Tokyo, sensitive eleven-year-old Fuki is faced with her father’s terminal illness without much in the way of emotional support from her overwhelmed mother. Left to her own devices, she retreats into her own imagination, developing an interest in telepathy and a penchant for phoning into a dating agency. Seeking out adventures, she begins to navigate the difficult terrain of early adolescence, all the while trying to process the tremendous loss looming on the horizon.

Reaching back to a formative chapter from her own life, Festival alum Chie Hayakawa (Plan 75) fashions an impressionistic sketch of a girl adrift. The irrepressible presence of gifted newcomer Yui Suzuki animates every frame—she delivers a mesmerizing performance of richness and complexity beyond her years, transforming Renoir into a moving, episodic character study filled with illuminating insights and beautiful imagery.

Synopsis

If Invasion of the Body Snatchers traded pods for human pyramids and took place in a Japanese high school, it would be New Group.

Ai is an ordinary schoolgirl easily swayed by the opinions of her peers. But her worldview begins to change with the arrival of nonconformist newcomer Yu, who returns from living abroad just in time to witness a series of unexplained events taking hold in their community. The bizarre phenomenon begins with a student freezing on all fours in the middle of a soccer field; soon, others join in, positioning themselves alongside and on top of him. Before long, the entire town is overrun with human pyramids. In a world where no one is safe from these random gymnastic formations—or the self-styled fascist leadership aligning itself with these “new groups”—Ai and Yu must renounce individualism and assimilate or face destruction.

A disarming and strange second feature from director Yûta Shimotsu, New Group takes body horror in grotesque directions to create an eerie new entry in the contemporary J-horror canon. The uncanny contortions gleefully captured by the filmmaker’s kinetic camera are both funny and disturbing—but the film’s astute commentary on the rise of authoritarianism in today’s world is what’s most unsettling.

Synopsis

Set against the backdrop of an ever-changing Tokyo, Brand New Landscape is an assured, complex debut inflected with an ingenious injection of the surreal. Reeling after the death of their mother and long estranged from their father, twentysomething siblings Ren and Emi are left to their own devices. Making ends meet delivering flowers, Ren spends his days carrying the weight of his mother’s absence and simmering in anger over his father’s silence. Meanwhile, Emi is about to marry and put the past behind her. When an urban development project compels their father to return to the city, the siblings are forced to reckon with their painful family history as they are offered one last chance at reconciliation.

Featuring a collection of stunning performances and beautifully composed images, the film draws parallels between Tokyo’s shifting landscape and the family’s tumultuous path toward reunion. Filmmaker Yuiga Danzuka crafts a mesmerizing reflection on the price of progress and change at scales both large and small.