![](https://cinemachicago.wpenginepowered.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/09/FF59_ShortsProgram2-Animation_1200x600.jpg)
Shorts 2: Animation – Desires
Synopsis
These animated shorts create an idiosyncratic mosaic of the difficulties, joys, enigmas, and triumphs of the human experience. Featuring works by Nienke Deutz, Osman Cerfon, Patricio Plaza, Flóra Anna Buda, Tzor Edery, Tom Prezman, Vishavjit Singh, and Ryan Westra.
The Miracle (Belgium, The Netherlands, France) is a hotel where Irma, a 40-year-old woman surrounded by families, tries to find comfort in her solitary life. Children display varied emotions with a singular expression in Aaaah! (France). An ailing priest in the Mexican colonial era is given a medicine that confronts him with his spiritual ailments in Carne de Dios (Argentina, Mexico). On the day that Alice turns 27 (France, Hungary), a drunken accident makes her question the choices she has made in her life thus far. Remembrances of a former drag queen’s experience in one of the first queer bars in Paris are imaginatively told in Maurice’s Bar (France, Israel). Based on true events, American Sikh (U.S.) tells the story of a courageous man in post-9/11 New York City who faced prejudice and racism with humor and heroism.
Screenings & Events
Virtual Screening
This program will be available to stream from October 16 at 12:00pm CT to October 22 at 11:59pm CDT.
Sold Out/Rush Only? Learn when new tickets get released by signing up for our ticket availability email list!
Sponsors
Accessibility Partner
![](https://cinemachicago.wpenginepowered.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/09/FF59_ShortsProgram9-FamilyAnimation_1200x600.jpg)
![](https://cinemachicago.wpenginepowered.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/09/FF59_ShortsProgram9-FamilyAnimation_1200x600.jpg)
Shorts 9: Family Friendly Animation – Better Together
Synopsis
All ages are welcome in this family-friendly program, full of colorful films that celebrate play, encourage curiosity, and emphasize the importance of communal bonds. Featuring works by Shira Avni, Lena von Döhren, Eva Rust, Guillermo Casarin, Seungbae Jeon, Christian Kaufmann, João Rodrigues, Afnan Bawyan, Adriel Meka, and Mitra Shahidi.
Two One Two (Canada) offers a poetic and deeply personal glimpse into motherhood in the form of a gorgeous, glimmering two-headed monster. A gassy fish allies with other sea creatures to fend off a hungry seagull in the hilarious and melodious underwater tale POND (Switzerland). A girl connects with her Mayan heritage on a camping trip with her father that turns into an exciting adventure in Balam (Mexico, U.S.). Peek into the inner lives of batteries with the oddball charmer Battery Mommy (South Korea). After a tiger escapes from the zoo, a bored subway worker gets the surprise of a lifetime in Town Hall Square (Germany). A curious girl gets sucked into the bizarre and magical world of the book she is reading in Ana Morphose (Portugal). A woman attempts to overcome language barriers by preparing a cultural dish that takes on a life of its own in Saleeg (Saudi Arabia, The Netherlands, Sweden). A friendly boy makes an unexpected connection when he attends a mysterious summer camp in Camp Kona (U.S.). In Starling (U.S.), a couple is visited by their child in her new spiritual form for a beautiful meditation on grief and eternal love.
Screenings & Events
Virtual Screening
This program will be available to stream from October 16 at 12:00pm CT to October 22 at 11:59pm CDT.
Sold Out/Rush Only? Learn when new tickets get released by signing up for our ticket availability email list!
Sponsors
Film Supporters
![](https://cinemachicago.wpenginepowered.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/09/FF59_ShortsProgram8-Architecure_1200x600.jpg)
![](https://cinemachicago.wpenginepowered.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/09/FF59_ShortsProgram8-Architecure_1200x600.jpg)
Shorts 8: Architecture – Versions of Home
Synopsis
In celebration of this year’s Chicago Architecture Biennial, this program tracks how we establish strong connections to a place, and the complications of staying in it. Featuring works by Camille Authouart, Mariia Ponomarova, Lloyd Lee Choi, and Ufuoma Essi.
An artist explores, observes, and draws scenes of La Défense, a neighborhood west of Paris whose large-scale public artworks constitute the largest open-air museum in Europe, in The Great Arc (France). Former residents remember happier times in a beloved apartment in Three Windows on South West (The Netherlands, Ukraine). Closing Dynasty (U.S.) follows a day in the life of a streetwise kid named Queenie as she navigates her own path through New York City. And Is My Living In Vain (U.K., France, New Zealand) explores the Black church as a site of personal and political belonging through portraits of communities across west Philadelphia and southeast London.
Screenings & Events
Virtual Screening
This program will be available to stream from October 16 at 12:00pm CT to October 22 at 11:59pm CDT.
Sold Out/Rush Only? Learn when new tickets get released by signing up for our ticket availability email list!
![](https://cinemachicago.wpenginepowered.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/09/FF59_ShortsProgram7-BlackPerspectives_1200x600.jpg)
![](https://cinemachicago.wpenginepowered.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/09/FF59_ShortsProgram7-BlackPerspectives_1200x600.jpg)
Shorts 7: Black Perspectives – Resonance
Synopsis
Vibrant cultural legacies come to life, hidden histories are unearthed, everyday life is illuminated, and resonant stories unfold in captivating splendor in this collection of shorts. Featuring works by Kim Hibbert, Darragh Amelia, Gertrude Malizana, Jesse Gerard Mpango, Cece Mlay, Jarreau Carrillo, Felicia Pride, Adrian Gardner, Derrick Woodyard, Joe Brewster, and Michèle Stephenson.
A Brooklyn woman harbors the secret of electronic music’s true origins in Africans with Mainframes (U.S.). Three dedicated film workers journey through the world of informal film culture in Apostles of Cinema (Tanzania). A barber’s quest for a holiday becomes an exploration of identity and experience in The Vacation (U.S.). In Look Back at It (U.S.), a Baltimore-based single mother finds her groove with the help of her teenage daughter. Techie Lucas finds his casual hookup taking an unexpected turn in Man>Code (U.K.). A young boy’s journey of understanding and acceptance amidst his parents’ separation is explored in Love Taps (U.S.). And Black Girls Play: The Story of Hand Games (U.S.) delves into the historical use of hand games and artistic communication in Black culture.
Screenings & Events
Virtual Screening
This program will be available to stream from October 16 at 12:00pm CT to October 22 at 11:59pm CDT.
Sold Out/Rush Only? Learn when new tickets get released by signing up for our ticket availability email list!
Sponsors
Black Perspectives Program Sponsor
![](https://cinemachicago.wpenginepowered.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/09/FF59_ShortsProgram6-Comedy_1200x600.jpg)
![](https://cinemachicago.wpenginepowered.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/09/FF59_ShortsProgram6-Comedy_1200x600.jpg)
Shorts 6: Comedy – Awkward Laughs
Synopsis
The works in this program muck around the dark corners of human experience, bringing forth the darkly comedic, can’t-help-but-laugh moments that arise in difficult times. Featuring works by Daniel Sinclair, Malia Ann, Azadeh Navai, Lou Marino, Peter Collins Campbell, and Éric K. Boulianne.
A surprise interruption during a fruitless therapy session brings a married couple closer than they thought possible in the hilarious The Breakthrough (U.S.). A lonely man is perplexed when his mother passes away and leaves him with her heart in a jar in the beautifully tender The Heart (U.S.). The endlessly charming Rizoo (Iran, U.S.) follows a rebellious 8-year-old who recently moved back to Tehran from the United States as she navigates familial and societal expectations. An intimate and endearing work of docu-fiction, Geranios (Chile) follows best friends whose effortless charisma and fierce dedication carries them through tough times. In the delightfully idiosyncratic Variations on a Theme (U.S.), a couple starts literally splitting into multiple versions of themselves. The ups and downs of a couple’s journey trying to get pregnant are humorously and compassionately explored in Making Babies (Canada).
Screenings & Events
Virtual Screening
This program will be available to stream from October 16 at 12:00pm CT to October 22 at 11:59pm CDT.
Sold Out/Rush Only? Learn when new tickets get released by signing up for our ticket availability email list!