What is authority? What is disobedience? What is the relationship between the two? What happens with our perception of the world and ourselves when the lines are blurred and authority is challenged? Who can you trust? The male voice of reason as the voice of authority is the starting point for this set of slyly humourous films that in one way or another also seek to question, destabilize or undermine that authority. Fearlessly, these films take on patriarchy, capitalism, spirituality, education, sexuality and desire, as they investigate authority, disobedience and the illusion thereof.
Curated by: Christoffer Olofsson, Uppsala International Short Film Festival
Duration: 92 min.
Programme:
„Hollow Coin“
Dir. Frank Heath, 2016, USA, 12 min., experimental.
Existing between spy thriller and prank call, this charmingly facetious video is about a man at a payphone desperately trying to retrieve his SD card, which is hidden in a hollow coin. Referencing an incident involving a Soviet spy, secrecy and public space dovetail in this hilarious art film comedy.
„Night Soil – Fake Paradise“
Dir. Melanie Bonajo, 2015, The Netherlands/USA, 32min., experimental.
Night Soil examines the healing effect of the hallucinatory plant Ayahuasca on modern man‘s troubled mind. Can it be, for Western civilisation now, what LSD was for the 1960s? How can shamanism, medicinal drugs, sexuality and the return of the feminine be aligned with the narcissism of cyberspace? Exploring these questions the film presents an amalgama of personal accounts on the spiritual and bodily experiences with the Amazonian substance, giving particular weight to the feminine voice and point of view, traditionally neglected in psychedelic research Can empathy, spirituality, feminism and ecological consciousness enable a healthy future for all living organisms on the planet?
„Free Punch“ / „Gratis Punsch“
Dir. Katharina Cibulka, Eva Jiricka, 2006, Czech Republic, 6 min., documentary.
December 18, 2005 we made 50 litres of punch and we offered it for free on various Christmas fairs in Vienna. This is what happened.
„Prove Me Wrong“ / „Geef me’s ongelijk“
Dir. Laura Hermanides, 2015, The Netherlands, 27 min., documentary.
Because of his provocative attitude, 15-year- old Julius is sent to a special school with a behavioural change program. But Julius sees no reason to adjust to the hypocrisy of normality. Will he be able to stay true to his ideals and be released from the programme altogether?
„Audition“
Dir. Lovisa Sirén, 2015, Sweden, 12min., fiction.
Established male actors are invited to an audition. During the test shoot, the female director tries to make them portray something that triggers their defence mechanisms.