Leave of Absence(2017)

The Israeli Boys(en)

Secrets, lies, surprises and more are explored in this rich selection of gay short films from Israel. The 6 short films are: Three (2018); A Trip to the Desert (2016); Rubber Dolphin (2018); Stav (2018); After His Death (2017); Leave of Absence (2016).

Wie es euch gefällt(de)

Wandering with the Moon(sv)

Dan, aged 19, leaves his home after a quarrel with his father. At the side of the country road he meets a traveling theater company who has run out of money. He falls in love with the young actress Pia and together they leave, meeting a string of peculiar characters: a vagabond, a friendly vicar and a cynical adventurer.

The Wakeful Sleeper(fr)

B., a film-maker and insomniac, decides to rescue his hours of insomnia from the void by filming his quest for sleep. The insomniac asks questions about these different states of consciousness and about the difficulties humans have in synchronising their social rhythms and biological ones.

Our Sweetest Murder Plan(ja)

Actress and model Serena Motola joins former idol and current YouTuber Michela Sato, in a short film that depicts them as sisters who plan to kill their beloved father after he says he wants to remarry.

20 Hz(en)

Human hearing is capable of detecting sound waves between 20 and 20.000 Hz. … merely a small fraction of the frequency spectrum. Most sounds around us go unnoticed.

Book Bozo(en)

Jimmy Aubrey plays a book agent and on his rounds of selling is induced to substitute for a local fistic star. His adventures in the prize ring furnish a great deal of comedy.

Sissy Sheriff(en)

After losing 12 sheriffs in twelve days, the town of Lizzard Gizzard Gulch makes Woody sheriff number 13, with the task of arresting notorious bank robber Dirty McNasty.

On Sacred Ground(en)

Based on the true events during the 2016 construction of the Dakota Access Pipeline that runs through the Standing Rock Indian Reservation in North Dakota on land that is owned by the Lakota “Sioux” Tribe. The film follows Daniel, a journalist and Afghanistan War military veteran, and Elliot, an oil company executive, who find themselves on opposite sides of the fight during the construction of the contentious pipeline.

God is a Lobster(en)

A girl needs her brother to fulfill an odd request, a good trip turns bad, a CEO gets invited to a mysterious party, and it all centers around the iconic red crustacean.

Absolute Evil(en)

Southern Texas. Savannah and Cooper, a young couple in love, drive through the desert in a black 70s Cadillac convertible. Unaware that they are being followed, they check into a motel at the Mexican border. When Savannah leaves to buy food, a cop sneaks into the room, pulls his gun on Cooper, accuses him of murder and tries to arrest him. But Savannah, who had become suspicious, manages to turn the tables:

Praktikum - Der Film(de)

The female protagonist finally makes it to get a job as an intern. But after a while working at this weird company, she finds out the criminal site of it and learns to be a criminal herself.

Die Alpenklinik(de)

After an alleged malpractice that led to the death of his brother, heart surgeon Daniel Guth took the consequences: he gave up his beloved job and retreated into the solitude of nature. At his place of refuge, the Salzburg mountains, the heiress to a private clinic is desperately looking for a capable chief physician. Daniel declines the post, although he finds the woman attractive. When a boy is seriously injured in a bus accident, he is confronted with his trauma again.

Der Fischer vom Heiligensee(de)

Art in the Public Eye: The Making of Dark Star Park(en)

This piece documents the process behind the creation of Holt's major public art installation, Dark Star Park, in Arlington, Virginia. The park, which features giant concrete spheres and pipes, allows the visitor to reconsider the experience of space, earth and sky within an urban context. It also serves as a kind of contemporary Stonehenge: once a year, on August 1 at 9:30 am, the shadows of the objects exactly align with outlines on the ground. Interviews with the artist, the architects, engineers, contractors, and the public, among others, reveal Dark Star Park as both a public sculpture and a functioning park that reclaims a blighted urban environment.

Sons(zh)

Story of a real family in Beijing. The father's drinking problem starts it all. The mother struggles to keep the family together till she cannot take it any more.

Hunting UFOs: Investigating Alien Hotspots(en)

In the US and around the world, there are reports of certain areas experiencing an unusually high level of UFO sightings.

The Telegraph Route(fr)

This French film chronicles the amazing-but-true story of Lisa Alling who in 1928 successfully walked from New York City to Siberia via the Bering Straight by following telegraph poles. It was shot entirely in the Ukraine. Lisa, a chambermaid, has had enough of American life and wants go home to Siberia. Because she had no money, she decided it was better to walk than stay in the U.S. any longer. An opportunist, she takes whatever food, warmth and even romance that is offered along the way.

Hangnail(en)

Gage and Hannah are a young couple making a new home off the coast of Florida. Their marriage has been rocky, but all of that changes when the new girl, Julie, moves in next door. When Gage begins to fall for the girl next door, only time will tell if it sets him free or tears him apart.

Reconstruction(xx)

Reconstruction tells about a certain night in 1982, reconstructed in 2020 by the people who lived it through together. The film combines dance, drama and documentary, but most of all is a story of a friendship of a boy and a girl, and how jolly situations can turn sour and how, even though close, friends do not share same experiences – and that can have an effect on their friendship.

Breaking the Silence(en)

Francesca, tormented by her past, breaks the silence to talk about surviving the horrors of the comfort stations of Imperial Japan.

XIa(bg)

XI "A" follows the story of Lina - a former dancer, who goes in for her dream job, namely to become a literature teacher.

Your Will Be Done(de)

For Johannes and Lydia Klare, their faith in God comes first. Together they lead a small community in Stuttgart, successfully. People listen to them, they are becoming more and more close to them. There are even plans to make the donor-funded community much bigger by the generous contributions of Volker. First of all, the couple have quite different, more urgent points to take care of. When one day they watch the homeless street-boy Simon drifting back and forth in drug-related crises, they take him in for a short while. Together they want to help him again on the right path. But it is not just the drugs that are causing conflicts. Simon's homosexuality also presents the two with great challenge, since it is not so easy to unite with their faith.

Gabriela(en)

It's the summer after high school graduation and Gabriela, a young undocumented Guatemalan woman, pursues her dream of swimming for an illustrious Country Club swim team. Despite her single-minded determination, Gabriela is continually confronted with her overprotective mother’s ears, limitations on her economic and legal status, and self-judgment. As she questions her self-worth against the structures of contemporary American Southern life, Gabriela embarks on a quest towards personal freedom and self-acceptance.

Our Son(en)

When his husband Gabriel files for divorce, Nicky fights for custody of their 8-year-old son Owen, as he struggles to come to terms with what it means to love someone and what it means to be a father.

Black Belts(en)

KJ, an offbeat middle schooler and martial arts movie nerd from Compton, challenges the top dojos in South LA, wearing his uncle’s old black belt. But when his former fighter dad gets too involved, both learn there’s more to life than keeping your guard up.

Project CC(en)

A brilliant child scientist must join forces with her sister when a cloning experiment goes awry.

Burning Blue(en)

Two Navy fighter pilots find themselves in the midst of a forbidden relationship throwing their lives and careers into disarray.

Zoe.Misplaced(en)

Zoe's regimented life is thrown into upheaval when she unexpectedly falls in love. In doing so, she is faced with making a series of choices whose outcomes not only impact on her independence but on the relationships with those most important to her.

Yoshiko & Yuriko(ja)

Based on a true story, Yoshiko and Yuriko relates the journey and great love affair of Yoshiko, who was a renowned translator of Russian literature and drama, and Yuriko, who was a feminist novelist and great activist of the post-war democratic literature movement. Both have left huge marks on Japanese literary history. The two women shared a strong attraction to each other from their first meeting and enjoyed a powerful love affair. Yoshiko reveals that she's an out lesbian, whilst Yuriko is married (not altogether happily) to a well-known scholar - a situation she can't walk away from with ease.

Wildhood(en)

Link and his brother flee their abusive father and embark on a journey where Link discovers his sexuality and rediscovers his Mi’kmaw heritage.

Run(en)

A woman's morning jog takes a dark turn.

Private Desert(pt)

40-year-old Daniel has been suspended from active police work and is under internal investigation for violence. When Sara, his internet love affair, stops answering his texts he decides to drive north in search of her, starting on what is apparently a fool's errand. He shows Sara's picture around, but nobody seems to recognize the woman. Until eventually one guy pops up, saying he can put the two in touch under very specific conditions.

I am Leo(de)

Wide meadows, romping in the woods and building cabins. Leo (12) spends the autumn holidays with big sister Noémie and cousin Emil on Grandma Marlies' farm. However when Leo is surprised by what Grandma Marlies calls big news, Leo faces an identity crisis. "I am Leo" immerses itself into the emotional world of a child who is on the way to discover their gender identity. A film about expectations that overwhelm, about thoughts that restrict and about the courage to find yourself.

The Ghost(en)

When Spurs legend John White was killed by a bolt of lightning in 1964, the football world was rocked by the tragedy. He was just 27 years old. His son, Rob, was only six months old and never knew his father. The man who was revered by hundreds of thousands of football fans across the country was a stranger…

26(es)

False Creek Stories(en)

This is False Creek, perhaps an insignificant point on a map. Its happenings won't splash across the front page of your morning newspaper, but the daily affairs of this little neighborhood are the main headlines to the people that live here. Their source for these stories is Bill, a wheelchair bound man with paraplegia who devotes his time and ambition to seek out those local chronicles that his neighbors so desire. But with Bill's responsibility to entertain comes certain jealousy from Igor, who thinks he's better suited for the job. And from Doug, who just craves the respect it brings. Today, dressed with a shirt he found in the free-box, and with hope in his heart, Doug sets out to gain that respect.

I Saw the TV Glow(en)

Teenager Owen is just trying to make it through life in the suburbs when his classmate Maddy introduces him to a mysterious TV show — a vision of a supernatural world beneath their own. In the pale glow of the television, Owen’s view of reality begins to crack.

The Lovers Lyfe(en)

The Lovers Lyfe is based on a true story that shows no matter how long or how far apart if its meant to be, it will be. The Lovers Lyfe is set in Pittsburgh in the early 90s with Nina, a young, ambitious single mother from Pittsburgh, who lost her mother tragically to cancer while she was pregnant with her daughter.