by Michele Vicenti, Italy, 2025, 20 min. - In competition, regional premiere In the arid landscape of the Alta Murgia, Raffaele—a farmer and guardian of the land—faces recurring wildfires that threaten the fields and biodiversity. His daily role as a sentinel reveals the fragility of a land undergoing desertification and the impact of the climate crisis on the lives of those who live there. #ClimateChange #Desertification #EnvironmentalCrisis Michele Vicenti is an Italian fi

by Teresa Juksaar, Estonia, 2025, 14 min. – In competition, regional premiere A small Estonian family, who has moved into the city’s most prestigious neighborhood, unexpectedly receives a goat as a gift through a charity program. Someone thinks they’re doing a favor for a distant stranger with a single click. Amid the moving boxes of a house still in the process of being packed up, a little goat wanders about. The father takes it upon himself to solve the problem, since the c

by Niccolò Donatini, Italy, 2024, 12 min. – In competition, regional premiere Alma is twenty years old and has ADHD. In the world of beehives, Alma feels perfectly at ease; over time, she has learned to manage the inattention associated with her neurodiversity. The bees symbolize the safe haven that Alma shares with her father, Pietro. The day of the college entrance exam arrives. What appears to be chaotic and unmanageable actually conceals an intrinsic order. #inclusion #so

by Stefania Accettulli, Italy, 2024, 16' – In competition, regional premiere   Aura, a fighter who rejects emotional contact, tries to teach the art of judo to Miriam, a traumatized girl with a phobia of physical contact.   #sexism #culturalviolence #feminism #machismo   Assistant director and recently director, Stefania Accettulli has produced, written, and directed several documentaries, music videos, and short films, including "Deerstalker," a project selected at sever

by Gabriele Gravagna, Italy, 2017, 33 min. – Out of Competition, Regional Premiere The film follows Dine, Magassouba, and Omar, three unaccompanied foreign minors housed at the Elom and Azad centers in Palermo, run by Asante Onlus. Through their stories, *I Am Here* chronicles the difficult and often traumatic journey that thousands of young migrants undertake to save their lives. With a simple and direct style, and supported by UNICEF, the documentary invites teenagers in pa

by Ed Antoja, Spain, 2024, 10 min. – Out of Competition, National Premiere   In a rural community, a crime deep in the woods upsets the town’s equilibrium. As the authorities try to piece together what happened, tensions, conflicts, and hidden interests related to the land and the new urban development plan come to light. #EnvironmentalAlert #ClimateChange #ProtectOurLand #VoicesOfNature   Ed Antoja is a Catalan filmmaker with extensive experience in documentary filmmaking (

by James Andrews, USA, 2025, 12 min – In competition, national premiere by James Andrews, USA, 2025, 12 min – In Competition, National Premiere   An American Vietnam War veteran returns a precious memento to the daughter of an enemy combatant, 50 years later. The film stars Elyse Dinh, a war refugee, and Brian Delate, a war veteran.   #reconciliation #war #forgiveness #interpersonalrelationships   James Andrews is a freelance filmmaker based in Seattle, Washington. “The Jou

by Irati Dojura Landa Yagarí, Colombia, 2025, 12 min – In Competition, Regional Premiere   Deep in the Emberá jungle of Colombia lives Kari, a young girl whose smile has been stifled by fear. The discovery of an ancestral myth from her community awakens an unstoppable force within her: laughter, as an act of freedom and courage. The short film stood out at the latest Berlinale for the originality of a story that blends fiction with surprising animation techniques.   #feminism

by Malu Jannsen, Netherlands, Belgium, 2024, 20' – In competition, regional premiere The final days of young Heylken, accused of witchcraft just as she is about to leave her village for good. Her free spirit and powerful voice will inspire twelve-year-old Griet. #ethniccleansing #balkans #war Malu Janssen (born 1989 in Eindhoven) is a screenwriter and director living in Amsterdam. After studying theater and film at Utrecht University, she enrolled at the Netherlands Film Aca

by Maryam Khodabakhsh, Iran, 2023, 13' – In competition, regional premiere Negar, a young woman with a visible scar on her cheek, begins to struggle to cover it during her engagement ceremony, tackling social norms and her identity. #violenceagainstwomen #womensissue Maryam Khodabakhsh was born in 1987 in Iran; she is a director, screenwriter, and editor. She has received 50 awards for her work. She believes that each of us has a voice, and that our mission as human beings i

di Farnoosh Abedi, Iran, 2022, 10’ – Fuori concorso, prima regionale Nel paese occupato dall’esercito degli spruzzatori, nessuno ha il diritto di crescere alcun tipo di pianta, né pubblica né privata. La maggior parte delle persone e dei soldati non sanno nemmeno come cresca una pianta o come sia fatta, finché un giorno uno dei soldati trova un seme sepolto in profondità nella polvere. Ne è molto incuriosito. È solo l’inizio di qualcosa di straordinario, qualcosa di grande, q

by Frederic Salva, Spain, 2025, 6' – Out of competition national premiere More and more often, we find ourselves caught up in conversations where immigrants are blamed for everything, and those who disagree remain silent, nodding, or smiling to avoid being noticed. This time will be different. #racism #prejudice #migrants Frederic Salva has collaborated on several social projects and short films in the fields of editing and production. In 2024, he won the Eima-Plató film comp

by Nebojsa Slijepcevic, Croatia, Bulgaria, France, Slovenia, 2024, 14' – Out of competition, regional premiere February 27, 1993, Štrpci, Bosnia and Herzegovina. A passenger train from Belgrade to Bar is stopped by paramilitary forces carrying out an ethnic cleansing operation. Of all the innocent civilians on board, only one in 500 passengers dares to oppose them. This is the true story of Tomo Buzov, the man who could not remain silent. #ethniccleansing #balkans #war Born i

by Filippo Ciccone, 20', Italy, 2024 - In competition, regional premiere A journey through four communities in Ecuador and Colombia who have chosen to radically change their lifestyles to live in harmony with nature. Through faces, everyday gestures, and lush landscapes, the film presents a possible model of sustainability, where caring for the environment becomes a collective choice and a shared dream. Yo vivo aquÍ fits into the contemporary environmental film genre, but wi

by Hamed Nobari, 1', Iran, 2024 - In competition, national preview A minute of visual poetry celebrating the wonder of childhood. Through the contrast of red and blue, the film follows a child immersed in the magic of the sea and its fish, transforming a simple gesture into a small ritual of discovery. #ecology #CinemaDArte #NatureToProtect Hamed Nobari is an Iranian director working in short films and audiovisual production. He is the founder of Elixir Image, a production a

by Farnoosh Abedi, Negar Fardiah, Iran, 2025, 25' – in competition, national premiere The unbearable lightness of the death of loved ones... There are wounds in life that eat away at you like the plague. The weight of the death of loved ones sometimes becomes so oppressive that another birth is inevitable to free oneself from it. #endoflife #parents #biology #accompanyingdeath Farnoosh Abedi was born in 1985 in Isfahan, Iran. A graduate of the Faculty of Arts and Architectur

by Marco Di Gerlando and Ludovica Gibelli, Italy, 13' - regional premiere, in competition On Holocaust Remembrance Day, a professor proposes an experiment to his class that highlights the dynamics of exclusion and responsibility. Through the students' eyes, the film questions the present and invites reflection on how the mechanisms of discrimination arise—and how to counteract them. #DayOfRemembrance #AgainstDiscrimination #CivicEducation #CollectiveResponsibility #NoToExclus

by Antoine Chapon, France, 2025, 23' – In Competition, Regional Premiere Ten years after the demolition of the Basateen al-Razi neighborhood in Damascus, two former residents reconstruct, using their memories, what no longer exists. Through testimonies, archival materials, and the very 3D animations created by the regime to promote the new "Marota City," the film explores the violent erasure of a place and the resistance of the stories that inhabited it. A work that intertwin

by Emmanuel Rondeau, France, 2024, 24' - out of competition, regional preview Just two hours from Rome, in the wild heart of Italy, the central Apennines are home to deer, wild boar, bears, and wolves. With the return of nature, it is increasingly intertwined with the lives of the rural communities that inhabit this region. "A Story of Coexistence" explores the evolving relationship between nature and people. For those with open minds and hearts, there are surprising opportun

by Gabriele Gravagna, Italy, 2023, 15' – Out of competition Three Nigerian girls were killed in Palermo in 2011. The public will say they were just “prostitutes,” but the woman who tells us this story, looking us straight in the eye, reminds us that Loveth, Favour, and Bose were human beings. Osas Egbon is the president of the first Italian association against the exploitation of prostitution, made up entirely of Nigerian women who were former victims of trafficking. They are