Shorts New Talents Competition: Animation 2

Festival
PÖFF Shorts 2025

As we settle into adulthood, one of the things we must contend with is balancing our desire for independence and freedom with the fact that we need other people, and they need us in turn.

Striking out on one’s own and shrugging off the expectations of family or society is vital for growth. But are we prepared for this independence? What happens when we are needed?

These films provide new perspectives on our warring desires for independence and connection. When do these desires become dangerous? When are they vital for survival?

While the body needs the spine to stay upright, the spine can also cause us pain. Without it we would be painless, yet formless. Language without meaning.

We must learn to rely on ourselves and acknowledge that we still need each other. After all, there are wolves out there; in our minds, in front of the camera, sharing our home, stealing our chocolate. But remember, while codependence can be a safe space, it can also be a fungus that infects our body.

Screenings

Screening060420 / Shorts New Talents võistlusprogramm: anima 2
Q&A duration
Screening duration

Films

Two Point Five Stars

Local title
Kaks koma viis tärni
Original title
Two Point Five Stars
Director
Sina Lerf, Dario Boger, Dario Marti
Year
2024
Festival
PÖFF Shorts 2025
Programme

Robin sits at the reception desk of a hostel, as she does every day. She plays online chess to the monotonous melody of the lobby music. However, the pleasure of playing chess doesn't last long as various guests gather in the lobby and cause increasingly bizarre situations until Robin herself gets carried away by this absurdity.

Director
Sina Lerf, Dario Boger, Dario Marti
Runtime
Subtitles

Cleanliness

Local title
Puhtus
Original title
Cleanliness
Director
Andrejs Brīvulis
Country
Year
2025
Festival
PÖFF Shorts 2025
Programme

A diary of an office worker’s day. A humorous look at his casual homosexual adventures turns bitter when it is revealed that he is already in a relationship with a deeply depressed, alcoholic man.

Director
Andrejs Brīvulis
Runtime
Language
Subtitles

Urban Duo

Local title
Linnaduett
Original title
隆昌公寓
Director
Hongyu Yue
Country
Year
2024
Festival
PÖFF Shorts 2025
Programme

In the bustling noise of Shanghai, Longchang Apartment, a century-old building, seems like a haven from time. A father experiences a peaceful slow life here, where neighbors live in harmony. His son, on the other hand, is caught up in the fast pace of the city day after day. Their lives are parallel yet starkly different...

Director
Hongyu Yue
Runtime
Language

Floating

Local title
Hõljumine
Original title
Floating
Director
Jelena Milunović
Year
2025
Festival
PÖFF Shorts 2025
Programme

A daughter gradually realizes that her father is struggling with mental illness. Isolated and rejected by society, he lives alone in a dark apartment, drifting like a balloon. She tries to find a way to reconnect and bring him back to solid ground.

Director
Jelena Milunović
Runtime
Language
Subtitles

Wandering Dot and the Blank Square Page Universe

Local title
Rändav täpp ja universum tühjal ruudulisel paberil
Original title
Wandering Dot and the Blank Square Page Universe
Director
Ieva Lība Ratniece
Year
2024
Festival
PÖFF Shorts 2025
Programme

Is a blank page ever really empty? Where does an artwork begin or end? Are you the one directing creative flow or is it leading you? One may feel a creative impulse, but confronting daunting emptiness as a point of departure is inevitable. The only thing left to do is to make the first step, first dot, line or movement and suddenly the page transforms into something completely else and the multitudes it contains take up life on its own.

Director
Ieva Lība Ratniece
Runtime
Language

Four Walls of Memory

Local title
Mälu neli seina
Original title
Four Walls of Memory
Director
Joanna Platek
Country
Year
2024
Festival
PÖFF Shorts 2025
Programme

A story about a girl who wanted to escape her own fear, but accidentally traps herself together with it in a small cabin in the woods. Locked inside four walls, with no way out, she has to deal with hunger, cold and the fear of something that once wanted to hurt her... but now lies dead beside her.

Director
Joanna Platek
Runtime
Language

Hunting

Local title
Jaht
Original title
Qui part à la chasse
Director
Lea Favre
Year
2024
Festival
PÖFF Shorts 2025
Programme

Today, Lea is going in search of a subject for a documentary film. When she believes she's finally caught her prey, the roles end up being reversed. The hunter becomes the hunted.

Director
Lea Favre
Runtime
Subtitles

Dipolar Bipolar

Local title
Dipolaarne bipolaarne
Original title
Dipolar Bipolar
Director
quankai li
Country
Year
2025
Festival
PÖFF Shorts 2025
Programme

Inside my head, there's a cat, a dog, and a pile of rocks.
The title of this film is means “two extremes”. It symbolizes the two extremes of bipolar disorder.

Director
quankai li
Runtime
Language
Subtitles

Stone of Destiny

Local title
Saatuse kivi
Original title
Stone of Destiny
Director
Julie Černá
Country
Year
2025
Festival
PÖFF Shorts 2025
Programme

This short film explores the beauty of finding your path, even when it’s fraught with uncertainty.

Director
Julie Černá
Runtime
Language
Subtitles

Le Jardin Rossini

Local title
Rossini aed
Original title
Le Jardin Rossini
Director
William Burger, Siméon Jacob, Odelia Laine, Garance Mondamert, Tara Rewal, Mathilde Vergereau, Arthur Wong
Country
Year
2025
Festival
PÖFF Shorts 2025
Programme

Herve Rossini is a renowned artist who expresses himself through his surrealist garden.

Director
William Burger, Siméon Jacob, Odelia Laine, Garance Mondamert, Tara Rewal, Mathilde Vergereau, Arthur Wong
Runtime
Language
Subtitles