Short film competition, vol. 1

Part of Samizdat 2024 Short Film Competition

With last festival’s Short Film Audience Award going to Comrade Policeman by Kazakh director Assel Aushakimova, the festival is continuing and expanding its Short Film Competition. This year, 17 titles — from Estonia to Kyrgyzstan — will compete for the main prize, awarded based on audience voting.

This block of shorts features seven films, including an experimental documentary about last-minute emigration from repression and war, an exploration of Kazakhstan’s search for a new national identity, an absurdist sci-fi comedy, and two films focusing on Indigenous communities living on the territory of Russia.

The 2024 edition of Samizdat is supported by Screen Scotland’s National Lottery Film Festival and Screening Fund and Film Hub Scotland, part of the BFI’s Film Audience Network, awarding funds from Screen Scotland and National Lottery funding from the BFI.

Programme (in order of screening)

Suitcase by Dasha Brian, Poland

The theme of the movie is the mental and psychological state of people who decide to leave their country. In this project, we focus on the problem that every refugee faces even before they find themselves in a foreign country. The moment of making such an important decision is very traumatic in itself, and when a person has no time to think and prepare, they inevitably face a number of psychological problems.

Alibaba by Vlad Popa, Romania

A grandmother, a mother, and her daughter meet to negotiate the transfer of the child to a better school, only to discover that the options available are lacking in morality.

The Consul of Nowhereland by Alex Milic, Montenegro

A short-form character documentary following the charismatic and strange ambassador of Yugoslavia: a nation that long longer exists.

Ruminate by Mina Panjković, Poland

Confronted with the mystery of her beloved cow’s miscarriage, Jagoda searches for answers in the nature, only to find things she had never considered before.

The Blanket (Шобрет) by Regina Vitányi and Karl Kaisel, Estonia

The Blanket tells a story of a museum exhibition piece that belongs to Natalia, who came from the Udmurt Republic and now works at the Estonian National Museum. She tells a story how it feels when some of the exhibited items in the museum once belonged to a person she knew. The film illuminates connections between memory, materiality and cultural identity — exploring the seeming dichotomy between artefacts and living stories.

Tarbasa, or How We Sawed Meat (Et Erbes Ebeter Eterbes) by Nikita Davydov, Sakha Republic (Russia)

Early morning in the Yakut village, a shot is heard... The perpetrators of the crime hide in the forest, where they are accidentally found by local women. After the women tell everyone in the village, the enraged residents decide to organise a lynching.

Space Dumbs by Alan 'Wasted Talker' Talkenov, Kazakhstan

The crew of the spaceship "Showtime" lands on a foreign planet in search of something new and strange… This film was made for the 48 Hour Film Race 2023

Happy Independence Day (TÄUELSIZDIK KÜNIÑIZBEN) by Camila Sagyntkan, Kazakhstan

A fast-forward metaphor for Kazakhstan's path to look for a new identity through the image of a middle-aged man named Marat, who loses his meaning in life after the death of his spouse. His dissatisfaction with the new society grows, much like the fear of becoming inessential and outdated.

Accessibility

Wheelchair accessible, English subtitles, Pay-what-you-can tickets (£0-£8)

If you want to attend this screening but find it unaffordable, you may be able to have the cost of your ticket, commute, and/or childcare covered by the Audience Access Fund — see here for further details.

Content notes: War, state oppression, trauma and grief, discussions of abortion and miscarriage, blood, discussions of ethnic discrimination

Access notes: Fast-moving images, flickering and colourful images, sudden loud noises (passing cars, sirens, singing)