Film Screening at IFFWW 2024: Short Film Almanac 2

Short Film Competition Almanac 2

• The Middle (United States)
• Super Human Anxiety (United States)
• UNDER THE WING OF A NIGHT (Ukraine)
• The other side (Ukraine)
• Saint Sophia (Ukraine)
• Small Chops (United Kingdom)
• 1 in the Chamber (United States)
• Sally, Get the Potatoes (United States)

Location 1: Embassy of the Czech Republic in London (26 Kensington Palace

Gardens, W84QY)

Time: 12:00 - 14:00

Tickets: £ 5

Attention! Each person may register for only one ticket, and it’s essential to provide your full name as it appears on your passport. Please also bring an ID document for verification at entry.

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The Middle - Directed by Sylvia Ray

A desert teen tries to escape the consequences of a pivotal night and has to decide between telling the truth and protecting her family.

The Middle follows Joanna Baca as she works at a local fast-food restaurant while trying to avoid the reality of the tragic event that happened a few days earlier. She’s pushed and pulled in many directions and ultimately is left to face the facts and make a choice. Life is full of choices and they can affect the trajectory of our lives and, as a teen, it can feel like life or death.

I want to explore these uncomfortable feelings all while showing the lifestyle, beauty, and dysfunction of a small desert town which isn’t often portrayed properly in film. This short film is a teaser for a feature film that explores Joanna’s adolescent life while she goes off the deep end with the “wrong crowd”.

Super Human Anxiety - Directed by Ashley Maria

“Super Human Anxiety” is about a teenage girl, Whitney, who thinks she’s hiding her strong emotions well. But, when her elevator breaks down, fate forces her to out her secret.

Set in an all-girls boarding school, "Super Human Anxiety" follows the story of Whitney — a teenage girl with strong emotions. Recently those emotions have manifested as superhuman strength, and she is working in overdrive to mask her anxiety (and powers). When the elevator she and a teacher are in gets stuck between floors, Whitney must decide if she can trust Ms. Sweetly to help her calm her nerves so they can both get off the elevator safely. When it comes to anxiety, early intervention is critical. "Super Human Anxiety" was written and made to be part of an overall Cinema Therapy platform involving informative storytelling and educational tools created by Impact Partners. This platform empowers mental health programs to help young minds (teen and young adult) to gain insight into their own choices and thoughts. It can strengthen their capacity to regulate emotions and build resilience for managing difficult situations.

UNDER THE WING OF A NIGHT - Directed by Lesia Diak

Olesia, an 11-year-old teen from Ukraine, is growing up under the wing of her mother, away from home. Dance and touch are her ways to release anger and adjust to the reality of Brussels. Every evening Olesia waits for dad’s call from Ukraine. The family’s extreme closeness nurtures the strength of this young girl whose fragility is exposed to constant war-related anxiety after the large-scale Russian invasion of Ukraine.

The other side- Directed by Nataliia Dzhura

Sashka is an ordinary teenager and the captain of his school’s basketball team, which is preparing for the national championship. He is confident that winning will be an important step towards fulfilling his big dream — to play for Ukraine’s national team. But his life drastically changes after meeting a mysterious girl, Katya, who seems to come from another world.
Katya introduces Sashka to a mysterious group of teenagers who live by their own rules and have their own vision of the world. Sashka faces a choice: to stay in the reality he knows and achieve his goal, or dive into a new world where everything is unfamiliar and captivating. Will Sashka be able to combine his ambitions with these new challenges and find balance between the two realities?

Saint Sophia- Directed by Mariia Khomutina

The beginning of the 20th century was marked by significant and dramatic events that changed the whole of Europe. Bringing much grief and suffering, the First World War produced hardened personalities. Sofia Okunevska fights for the right to treat people and be a doctor, despite the fact that she is a woman. Through her efforts, despite discrimination, she builds a path to her dream profession and becomes one of the most famous doctors of the then Austro-Hungary.

Small Chops- Directed by Stephanie Boateng

‘Small Chops’ is a heartwarming short film that follows the rekindling of a deep friendship between Chinwe and Leanna, who, after a prolonged separation due to the demands of adulthood, come together for a memorable day filled with an unexpected twist.

1 in the Chamber- Directed by Annie Girard, Diana Wright

A work-obsessed assassin sent to “retire” her coworker is shocked to discover her target is pregnant and infuriated by how baby-proofed a nursery can be.

Sally, Get the Potatoes - Directed by Danicah Waldo

A little girl's innocence is shattered when she takes an unexpected ride in her wealthy family's rolling laundry cart and learns their dark secrets.

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