Coexistence (Dominican Republic) by José Gómez De Vargas

After the assassination of a resident of an old condo, an extensive investigation holds a group of seven tenants in a interrogation room, all of them suspects of committing the crime.

Running time: 01:36:00

The "Madman" and His Ruins (China) by Xiaolong Zhu

A middle-aged man lives in ruins, and his home has been burned down twice. After suffering from a stroke, he even refused government relief, and his neighbors called him a madman and did not want to interact with him. He lives alone, cultivates alone, eats alone, walks around alone... everything seems very primitive.

Running time: 01:36:08

History, Mystery & Odyssey (United Kingdom) by Martin Cooper

An exploration of the lives and work of 6 extraordinary and world-renowned animators.

Running time: 01:31:00

Descension (United States) by Sean Ryan

In an adaptation of Dante Alighieri's Inferno, when an ex-soldier goes rogue, he is killed and descends into Hell. Will he seek vengeance against his betrayers or atone for his sins to reach the shores of Purgatory?

Running time: 00:18:17

Higher Grounds (United States) by Joe Kramer

On the fateful day intelligent life arrives to destroy Earth, one slacker alien gets sidetracked when he’s smitten with a bitter barista. Suddenly, our survival depends on whether this space-schmuck can get her number, before his plucky partner blows us sky high.

Running time: 00:16:59

Knife, Chocolate (Iran) by Hooshmand Varaei

The son of the family is antisocial, psychotic, skeptic and sexist who judges women by the smell of their cosmetics! He believes that the smell of a decent  woman’s cosmetics is different from an indecent one! He even classifies bees.

Running time: 00:15:00

Mycelia (United States) by Gavin DuBois

A woman reexamines her relationship with an old friend after experiencing visions of a past life.

Running time: 00:14:31

The Loop (Poland) by Antoni Ferency

A young man takes a night bus to meet a girl. He falls asleep. He wakes up in the company of a strange man who turns out to be somewhat similar to him. The sequence of events makes the young man miss his stop and return to the same place from which he set out. He fails to meet the girl, but it's not clear if it's bad or good.

Running time: 00:14:30

Water Flows Downhill (China) by Kyrin Chen

“Water Flows Downhill” mixes fictional dialogues with found footage from Xu Xiangyang Training Studio, Jiangsu, China. The 'studio' is an alternative targeted towards students who are suspended or expelled from school for reasons ranging from “video-game addiction” to juvenile delinquency. The footage captures the lives of the students as they undergo the ‘long march’ – a form of militaristic, competency-based training. Their journey is a reenactment of the story of the ‘Long March’ which is close to Chinese national identity and famously written about in Mao’s poem of the same name. In this practice, there are no fixed classrooms but rather learning on the go, with each student walking at least 1000 kilometres. Their slogan, "A thousand kilometres to define your life," reflects the literal and metaphorical embodiment of this legacy. The pain, comradery and discipline of the march is interspersed with musical practice and dance routines in the school talent show. This raises questions about the kinds of cultural permission involved in the construction of a social vision for reformed students.

Running time: 00:12:00

Aka 赤 (United States) by Abinadi Meza

Aka 赤 (Japanese for "red") is made from 33 meters of handmade 16mm film and shinkansen (bullet train) recordings. The intention is to construct a film as a space for primordial feeling, complex time, immersion, and one's own living body.

Running time: 00:06:00

Chain (United States) by Ling Han

The story of the mantis catching the cicada, unaware of the oriole behind. 

Running time: 00:04:49

Day of the Dead (Belgium) by Kris Curtiz De Meester, Peter Bracke (out of competition)

"Day of the Dead"  is a short film that delves into the unique blend of life, death, and celebration during Mexico's Day of the Dead. The story unfolds against the backdrop of the mesmerizing migration of millions of Monarch butterflies to Mexico, believed to embody the souls of the departed. The film explores the profound Mexican tradition of not just commemorating the dead but reveling in the coexistence of life and death during these sacred days.

Running time: 00:03:11

The melody of ashes (Switzerland) by Jonathan Moratal

Being haunted by the past can lead to an inferno.

Running time: 00:02:20