Finalist Films Season 3 – 2022

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Endless distractions threaten to destroy creativity.

Comic Timings of Life

Comic Timings of Life is the first-ever Indian – Australian web series showcasing a light yet realistic take on migrants’ lives. It’ll speak of their constant dilemmas between their passion vs their mundane hustle to do everything to sustain in the new environment. The title denotes how their idea of living abroad shatters into realities instead of living the Australian dream.

The concept of the web series is inspired by personal stories and experiences of migrants in Australia.

Monkey Business (Hindi version)

Available in 11 languages — For children: a fable with monkeys representing humans: a bad ape causes quarrels between two other tribes in order to obtain their fruit, but the other monkeys see through his plan, forgive him and teach him how to grow fruit.
For less innocent spectators : Arms producing countries cause conflicts and this way they force their allies to buy weapons. In the best case the arms are never used, but even then the purchases have an enormous impact on the well being of the population. Can we refuse to be turned against our neighbours ?

A Glimpse of Happiness

Ben is a suicidal and depressed man. After a new attempt to kill himself, he meets Jean-Pierre, a former butcher who has become a serial killer since he got diagnosed with cancer. Both of them are going to change, for the best.

The Grasshoppers Sleep Here

When a man comes with grass cutting machine to a field, a girl is seen sleeping there.

Where developments are inevitable, this simple yet layered film strongly prompts the audience to acknowledge the small ecosystems that are inevitably important.

A PILGRIMAGE INTO TIBET

To acknowledge the 60 year freedom struggle of the Tibetan people and their leader, His Holiness the 14th Dalai Lama, eight intrepid pilgrims take on an epic pilgrimage trek through remote Nepal into occupied Tibet, to walk around Mount Kailash, Asia’s most sacred mountain. Confronting altitude, officialdom and their own physical limits, their journey reveals seldom seen experiences of todays’ Nepal and Tibet. in summer 2019.

Refuge

This is the true story of an Iraqi male college student and a female rape victim from Syria, who come across each other in Istanbul. While the Iraqi guy is trying to get away from Istanbul as soon as possible in order to continue his education in Italy and meet his lover over there, the only thing that the woman wants is stay alive and feel secure.

World Cup

On the night of a couple’s migration, the child of their friend who has been entrusted to them gets lost, and then a secret is revealed …

House of Fortune

Rahil mohajer was buried alive by her husband and her father on her wedding night because they thought she wasn’t a virgin.

Deep-sea Rondo

There was a violet crash from the room, the mom was raped again by the father. The daughter Pin-Han looked out the window glazed, as if seeing the endless sea outside the window. The view of two women’s back standing on the beach in the distance.

Justin and the Werloobee

Based on the published book, FRUIT OF THE VINE (Weisberg and Yoffe, Waldorf Publishing, 2018). In JUSTIN AND THE WERLOOBEE, we meet Justin, a sensitive, introspective boy whose physical features and personality make him a convenient target for many of his cruel peers. One night, he wakes to find himself on a mysterious island, which is inhabited by a horde of bizarre creatures. Despite his desperation to find out where he is and, more importantly, how to get home, he becomes involved in the plight of Irvino, a beast who is ostracized on this island much in the way that Justin is in his own world. The story ends with a twist as Justin, in helping Irvino, ends up helping himself by making a lifelong friend out of Irvino. JUSTIN AND THE WERLOOBEE is unique from other stories in the fantasy genre in that it is meant not only for the grade school-aged fantasy enthusiast, but also for anyone interested in the topic of bullies, and how altruistic qualities can develop in children.

Necrosis

Extensive plundering and pillage of ressources, destruction of the natural habitat, toxic pollution and an exponential acceleration of climatic imbalance lead to the last chapter of the Anthropocene era. As the human species is not capable of finding sustainable ways with mother earth, one catastrophe starts following the other. In a state of panic and self-destruction, ravaged by new diseases, necrotic cell death start occurring in human bodies in response to severe changes in physiological conditions – a chaotic breakdown of human cells under intolerable conditions.
In «Necrosis» a human comes into possession of a strange artifact that allows them to accelerate into an advanced stage of human evolution. Their transformation is initially terrifying, but eventually accepted. The old body dies and and a new state of being emerges.

Today Is Friday

Nader and Saed are arguing with each other because of their problems in the company.
But suddenly something happens which causes some changes to their destiny.

A Day in the Life of Refugees

A desperately ill child sets out for medical treatment. A Coast Guard team keeps watch overnight. An Iraqi becomes an American. Meet them all in a single Day…in the Life of Refugees.

Greta Van Susteren narrates as Voice of America deploys more than 75 news teams in 32 countries to chronicle how forced displacement affects the rich and the poor, newcomers and their hosts, those in flight, and those out to stop them.
More than two years in the making, this feature-length documentary film debuted on World Refugee Day — June 20, 2021.

Crushed Wings

The story of brave Ria, a Female Genital Mutilation survivor who goes through a journey through the impossible.

For your information:

– Film is made with the support of more than 200 volunteers worldwide.
– Topic of this film is based on real facts about FGM survivors.
– Package of Educational/ Drama/ Awareness & Women Empowerment.
– Suitable for Child-Safeguarding / Art / Drama / Humanrights Festivals.

The Boy and The Mountain

Hernán is a child who likes to daydreaming, but in his studies he is not doing well at all. His father constantly urges him to improve, advising him that he must reach very high to succeed in life. Hernán dispenses with his dream, gradually forgetting it to devote himself to his studies. Over time, and already become a successful entrepreneur, Hernán achieves the dream that his father instilled in him, reach high, until one day he will realize that he has not really achieved something he always longed for. Then he will make the crucial decision to fulfill his dream, but fate will play tricks on him. Hernán will have to face a new challenge that will change the meaning of his life.

E-RICKSHAWALI 2021

A young 20 yr old girl dresses up as a boy and drives an e-rickshaw in the historic streets of Delhi to fend for her family. She meets a stranger and then her life takes an erratic turn. For better or worse? OR is it the stranger that has a reality shift.
Get on the front seat of this bumpy yet enjoyable ride with the amazing Voice over of Padma Shri Manoj Joshi weaving in the story through the cinematic authentic locales of Delhi and its monuments- Life will never be the same when you leave home.

Director Biography – Ruhi aka Rohini Hak

There is exactly enough time

Oskar Salomonowitz, the 12-year-old son of filmmakers Anja Salomonowitz and Virgil Widrich, had drawn 206 frames of a flip book when he died in an accident. Using the remaining blank sheets, his father continued drawing the film.
Winner of 24 international film awards!

A boy who cannot see beauty

A boy realize that he cannot see beauty in anything, the only way to cure is to see the absolute beauty.

October 22

The moment he sees her from a distant, he was able to identify that she is the one! The very first love of his life. Memories are rekindled, he remembers the days both used to celebrate their birthdays in primary school (October 22nd). He is so happy to see her again after decades, but not realizing that she is diagnosed with dementia; she is not able to remember her past. Will he be able to make her remember the days they used to be together?

Childfree

This documentary is about Iranians who decided to have no children.

Aparna:Title Song

The story revolved around a girl in the pre-independence time frame in Bengal to independence,reflecting social constraints in that time period and her journey to become a teacher in adulthood.

Chakhyubandhan

Chakhyubandhan or illusion is a state of surreal existence where, one finds itself debating over the silver lining of truth and experience. The story of the cinema revolves around a girl Chitrangada. Chitrangada returns to the city of Bhubaneswar with her husband Dr. Gautam and tries to settle down in the city. In the mean time she befriends her front door neighbour Naina sanyal. Dr Gautam and Naina were in a relationship before his marriage to Chitra and now Naina isn’t willing to free him. Realising that he has to choose one, Gautam threatens Naina to end things with him and eventually Naina agrees to it. When Gautam was about to leave for outstation work, Naina asks if she could take Chitra as the Heroin for her next project. Chitra and Gautam both agrees. At work Chitra meets Apurba, a composer and song writer and over the course of their music video shoot becomes friends with him. So when the proposal of another project to be shot in Darjeeling comes, all of them agrees with no hesitation. None of them had any idea what tragedy awaits them on the hilltop city. During the stay Chitra and Apurba comes closer and Apurba mistakes it as love. He cares for her when she meets a small accident. Later they have some arguments with the caretaker of the guesthouse they were staying at. On Apurba’s birthday he confesses his love and gets rejected and thus he and Chitra have a big argument. The remaining of the shooting couldn’t get complete so everyone takes the evening off and drinks. After a few drinks Chitra falls from her seat and the caretaker identifies her dead due to poisoning. They decide to burn her body and get rid and with the help of the caretaker completes it. After that the ghost of Chitra haunts them and forces Naina to make a confession. Chitra was not actually dead but acted as if she was, and the ghost hunting the crew was part of their plan to dig out the confession out of the killer. Chitra did it with the help of the caretaker Bhuban who warned her much ahead that someone was planning to kill her. Gautam arrives and Naina again confesses everything before them. But she manages to leave. What’s next comes next.

ITLU AMMA

On a stormy night, a 19-year-old boy is stabbed. Unable to get help, he slides into an overflowing manhole. Balasaraswathi, a traditional Brahmin widow, alone searches for her son Venu in the storm as even police could not help her. On the following day, the police show her the dead body of her son. Later they reveal the cause of death as murder. Investigations start, the mother affirms no possible pre-existent disputes that may lead to the killing. She says that her son is meek, and his only world is she. The police could not trace the killer as the motive of the killing is unknown. The widow, who never used to go out of her house, makes round the police station to know of the furtherance of their enquiry. Experiencing the outside world, she slowly understands the structure of the society. She sees Satyam, his wife and friends arguing with a goonda political leader. She sees him holding the baby as his wife being arrested alongside other protesters for the cause of a rape victim. She decides to lead a solitary fight to discover the motive of her son’s killing. She writes open letters addressing the murderer(s) what made them to commit the murder as her son is not involved in any notoriety or carrying any money. This creates commotion in the public. How her endeavour makes the reality of life walks into her house and life, how she understands those fighting for justice are outdone, how the truth will be suppressed, how an ordinary woman turns to be a social activist and how she stands for the just cause Satyam has laid his life, forms the crux of the story

TikTok Rollie Viet Mix MV

Do you ever wonder how your subconscious mind/un-conscious mind works? In this video, you will see how the mind of an average Joe works, the way he feels, acts, his secret desires, his needs, wants, conflicts, are all on display through the lenses of two AI generated images Da Vinci and Beethoven who happen to be present inside his “house” of thought as the plot is revealed.

In hip hop/rap music, wordplays play an important role. Thus, the song title TikTok Rollie is a wordplay. This has four meanings. First, it could mean showing off a Rollie on TikTok, the social app. It could also mean a fake Rollie because a real Rollie rolls and doesn’t make tick tock sounds. Third, it could mean inside/outside as tick-tock sounds come from the inside of a watch, whereas a Rollie is known for its luxury brand name. Fourth, it could mean new/old. In this MV we’ve decided to explore the meaning of a fake Rollie through multiple levels of plots which contradict one another which is a representation of common human’s contradiction. After watching this video, one can’t help but wonder we’re also a TikTok Rollie at some point in our lives or multiple times in any given day. We may not like that particular person but on the outside we need to pretend we’re so fond of him/her. Social norms force us to become a TikTok Rollie. Which social bullet will cause enough pain in our lives that will eventually be the only force that will wake us up from our dream state of mind?

Between Two Worlds

Amateur dancers from NYC’s South Asian diaspora team up to form Junoon Performing Arts. Their mission is to build community by merging their love of Bollywood with their passion for Contemporary dance to both celebrate their heritage and address social issues that have personal resonance for them including terrorism, homophobia and domestic violence.

Crossroads Life

Crossroads Life depicts that part of life that cinema forgot: corporate work. Movies typically use it only as a plot backdrop; we never know what that “important presentation” really was about, nor what is at stake in managers’ struggles. Based on real events, Crossroads Life is as much about the contents of management work itself as about the humans engaging in it.
Clara, a CFO (Chief Financial Officer) for the Romanian subsidiary of a large life insurance corporation, is promoted to regional CFO. She expatriates to Amsterdam and quickly finds out that the methods she used before, and who she was before, do not work in the new context. She persists, working harder and harder, but sinking more and more. The solution takes an unexpected shape, prompting Clara to question the very core of who she thought she was.

Transit

d due to a technical snag. On the other hand, Ali, a refugee teen walks past his now desolate town to alight a boat.

Jack waits in anticipation for his flight, getting frustrated while Ali is in his voyage. In the middle of the sea, the mercenary boatman throws Ali off the boat since he doesn’t have money.

Seated at the airport lobby, Jack assures his daughter that he will be back home soon whereas Ali swims the ocean waves, battling for survival.

Jack picks up his luggage and moves towards his chartered flight with a renewed sense of hope. Simultaneously, Ali arrives on a shore successfully and then walks ahead on the sandy beach.

Apache Leap

Apache artist Keane is forced into a desperate mission to get a job before the deadline passes and his dreams evaporate, all while navigating family stresses, enemies from his past, and an unpredictable old car.

Produced on location in the San Carlos Apache Reservation and the neighboring city of Globe, Arizona, this independent feature explores the extraordinary beauty and the unique challenges of these two communities, and the scorching ribbon of highway that connects them.

Aravali The lost Mountains

Aravali: The Lost Mountains is a documentary on marble quarrying in Rajasthan’s Rajsamand district, India. The Aravalli Range is the world’s oldest fold mountain range, and it helps to sustain the ecosystem. Ground water levels have been drained and average rainfall has also been depleted as a result of continual mining for the past 35 years, resulting in a serious water crisis and air pollution in Rajasmand. On the other hand, mining is the primary source of income for the majority of the population. As a result, this film examines both sides of the same coin, namely, the economy and the environment. We sought to interview people and experts to figure out how to strike a balance between the two.

A Kerala Fisherman’s Life After the Floods

During August 2018 the Indian state of Kerala experienced the worst floods in that region for nearly 100 years. Almost one year since then here is Shaji talking about life as a fisherman on the Kerala backwaters, what happened during the floods and some of the problems he, his family and their community now face.

The Weight of Water: The Human Cost of Climate Crisis

A grieving mother. A flooded football field. A burdened woman. Three emotional stories set in Nepal show how communities are already being impacted by flooding and drought, all made worse by the injustice of climate change and increasing extreme weather events.

BELOSA

The film is about a tribal girl named Savitri and her society which is far away from economic, educational and social factors … Savitri’s father is arrested on false charges of theft and her mother also goes missing, in which Savitri struggles to live and find her mother …

THE LAST DAY OF PATRIARCHY

THE LETTER ROOM

When a kind-hearted prison officer (Oscar Isaac) is transferred to the letter room, he soon gets involved in an inmate’s personal affairs…

CENSOR OF DREAMS

Every night, The Censor and his team moderate Yoko’s dreams. Tonight nothing happens as planned.

SHARK

Completing the trilogy of wickedly dark comedy shorts that began with Spider and Bear, Nash Edgerton finds a perfect match in Rose Byrne as Sofie, a woman who loves pranks just as much as Jack, Edgerton’s onscreen alter ego. Alas, the couple’s quest to outdo each other may lead to the most outrageous calamity of all.

BEAR

Jack has a new girlfriend, but he’s still up to old tricks.

SPIDER

It’s all fun and games until someone loses an eye.

Bibi’s Breakfast

A family drama at the kitchen table. About a father and his daughter and their inability to reach out to each other.

A typical weekday. At first sight a typical home. Ben has had his daughter stay overnight. He’s up early to be ready to leave for work and drop her off at the station, when he is hearing the familiar music of an old cassette coming from the kitchen. He enters and sees his daughter Bibi still in her dressing gown. She has prepared a surprise breakfast for him and wants to stay. Just like before.

Bibi starts to look for her father’s old mug, explains why a warm tea cosy on your head helps you to get in touch with your feelings and tells him about eating a bee.
Ben can’t bear to listen to her and ignores the childhood game with a hollowed out boiled egg she wants to play. Breakfast turns into a painful tussle. In his efforts to alleviate the situation, Ben shuts his eyes to Bibi’s real need: a true connection and acknowledgement of her struggle in life. It pushes her to the borders of her pain and she becomes a threat to herself. Ben has to set aside his own fear and step into Bibi’s world in order to reach her and give her the one thing she needs: her father’s love and security.
It’s a bitter and dangerous dance of illness, fear, denial, guilt and unconditional love.

Rizwan

Synopsis
RIZWAN (Drama)
Rizwan is an inspiring story of a young boy from Gujarat, India, went to Africa (Congo DR then Mozambique) empty handed, survived against all odds, sailing his life through rough weather with positive attitude and grew steadily to become one of the most successful businessmen in Southern Africa. Today he spends his time as philanthropist in Africa and Asia.

This is a gripping story of Struggle, Courage and Guts.

Shot in 3 Countries: Maputo – Mozambique, Kinshasa – DR Congo, Porbandar – India.
Rizwan is an Indo Mauritius Project.

Shilpa Ananth – FEAR

FEAR is a story about a woman that has been a victim her entire life, controlled by her regrets and everything she is too afraid to say or do, constantly haunted by the choices she never made and the traps she keeps falling into. The character of the Goddess on the other hand is a manifestation of the fear within the woman, her dual nature in conflict, and we see her bound by the powerful Goddess and her army for the better part of the song, unable to hide, or escape from the prison of self doubt, her fears taking over. The song however ends on a victorious note with the protagonist physically breaking the chains holding her down, and facing her worst nightmare, the Goddess of Fear. She finally defeats her fear, as she rises up against adversity, celebrating her metamorphosis into a woman that is a perfect balance of both identities, an Empowered Queen. The concept of the mirror that weaves in and out throughout the story, is to convey the breaking and letting go of the ego.