26th Madurai International Documentary and Short Film Festival 2024
6-10 December; multiple venues, Madurai
Category - International Documentary
Name: Exotismos
Dir: Alessandra Gama; 15:00 min; Documentary; Brazil
Synopsis: The artist Exotismos arises from Yoná's ambition to confront stereotypes associated with beauty and aesthetics, which explore the insecurities of self-esteem. With an artistic approach, she creates cuts and colors that transcend visual changes. In a vibrant and intimate setting, the short film “Exotismos” portrays dialogues and transformations that reveal not only the expression of hair, but also the individuality of non-conformist bodies, in the cultural effervescence of the capital of Goiás.
Name: Forbidden Pilgrimage
Dir: Ellen Vermeulen; 01:22:00 min; Documentary; Belgium
Synopsis: In 1952 Marie-Louise Chapelle was the first French woman to stand on a virgin peak in the Himalayas. In 2022, the director embarks on a journey to the same summit to understand the remarkable woman she was. During 50 years she spent six months living a normal life while retreating the other six months in the mountains. How would she combine an unfathomable passion with the daily chores of family life? An intimate story about an unsolvable contradiction as well as a physical journey through a terrain of snow and ice, guided by two female voices who engage in a dialogue with each other.
Name: Tanya. Summer. Winter.
Dir: Aleksandr Avilov; 01:21:00 min; Documentary; Russian Federation
Synopsis: Tatyana Seminyako learned the language of forest and the philosophy of hunting before she learned how to read and write. From time immemorial, the ancestors of Tatyana and her husband lived on these lands fishing and hunting. When Tanya was very young, she was raised by her grandparents -– the Khanty. She taught her everything. After all, in the forest you do everything yourself. You eat what you caught; you wear what you sewed; you live in what you built. Tanya, her husband and children are Khanty. The Khanty are a small indigenous Finno-Ugric people living in the north of Western Siberia. Population 31,500 people. Documentary film about the life of Tanya and her family.
Name: RETURN TO KAWTHOOLEI: A Refugee Rapper's Journey to His Homeland in Burma
Dir: I am Knyaw, St. Paul Minnesota, "Hons Solo" Honey Moon, "Wah Fish Paste" Shakerpaw Wah; 10:48 min; Documentary; United States
Synopsis: Refugee Rapper Star2 from San Diego, California was born in a Thai refugee camp - his people fleeing the Burmese Army who destroyed their village and attacked them in the middle of the night. He returns to his homeland in Burma (renamed Myanmar) at age 22, 15 years after leaving with his grandmother to go to the United States from the camp.
Name: Shape Of Ritual
Dir: Lotta Emilia Taarasti; 13:51 min; Documentary; Finland
Synopsis: Documentary film Shape Of Ritual stops four people to think about things they repeat every day. The film explores the significance of repetition. During the film these people are trying to point out the difference between everyday routine and a mystical-sounding ritual. At the end of the day-long meditation, the interviewees find a common outcome.
Name: Between The Notes: The Helene Grimaud Documentary
Dir: David Serero; 01:15:00 min; Documentary; United States
Synopsis: Hélène Grimaud: “Between The Notes” is a captivating new documentary about the French pianist. The long-awaited documentary on the life and career of world-renowned pianist Hélène Grimaud. Directed and produced by David Serero in partnership with the Deutsche Grammophon label, this captivating film offers an intimate look into the life of this exceptional artist and the challenges she faced throughout her journey through unique interviews.
Name: GALINA PETROVNA
Dir: Nikita Lovetsky; 16:59 min; Documentary; Kyrgyzstan
Synopsis: For several years now, Galina Petrovna has not left her house in Mayevka Village near Bishkek. There is a cozy blue house with fish garland in which a lonely grandma Galina tells us a story about her ghostly husband who died fifteen years ago. Every day she takes care of the house and even runs a small business. She sells chicken eggs and does laundry for some of her neighbors in her own washing machine. In a house full of pets, Galina Petrovna tells us about her alcoholic husband, pain and a new life after his death.
Name: 4:30
Dir: Vasilii Ovchinnikov; 15:00 min; Documentary; Russian Federation
Synopsis: Ilya, a blind pensioner, plans to complete the marathon in the average time of sighted athletes. His journey intertwines with his guide, turning the athletic challenge into an emotional race from mutual dislike to unexpected support. A short film that combines surrealism and documentary.
Category - International Documentary
Name: One Side of the Road (w VO)
Dir: Christophe Jalil Nordman; 01:26:00 min; Documentary; France
Synopsis: A road runs through a village in Tamil Nadu in southern India. This road is a frontier that divides habitats, and it is a gateway to a wider world, the nearby industrial city, a means of possible emancipation for some, but the enslavement of others by the spatial segregation of castes in these rural areas of southern India. Between 2019 and 2022, four dalits (former "untouchables") reveal their ongoing struggle to survive: over-indebtedness, poor working conditions in the sugar cane fields and brick factories, domestic and social violence, discrimination and political unrest. These four characters from the same village, with their intertwined destinies, describe their daily lives through intimate and rare testimonies, which form a life journey around three extraordinary years marked by an international pandemic and its harsh economic and social consequences in rural India. Fragile lives on one side of the road, a partition of territory that emancipates, separates and brings together all at once.
Name: Dindigul Diaries
Dir: Annette Danto; 01:07:41 min; Documentary; United States
Synopsis: Shot over a twenty-three year period, Dindigul Diaries is a feature length documentary telling the stories of four women living in the Dindigul region of Southern India. Dindigul Diaries is about the dignity of labor and the resilience of working women. It addresses human rights topics of girls education, dowry, and cultural restrictions and expectations of females around the world.
Name: Under The Scorching Sun
Dir: Prathap Ramamurthy, Jagannath Radhakrishnan; 17:08 min; Documentary; United States
Synopsis: A short documentary that shows the toil of everyday workers in Chennai, India, under extreme heat.
Name: Moonshadow
Dir: Azadeh Bizargiti; 01:15:12 min; Documentary; Czech Republic
Synopsis: This is the story of Fahimeh Akbari, a leading lady in the musical and cultural history of Iran, an exceptional talent whose magical voice and unique style enriched both the folklore and urban musical landscapes of Iran, a pioneer who breathed new life into the musical scene by introducing and marrying European tunes and rhythms with that of Gilan, Iran.
Dir: Christophe Jalil Nordman; 01:26:00 min; Documentary; France
Synopsis: A road runs through a village in Tamil Nadu in southern India. This road is a frontier that divides habitats, and it is a gateway to a wider world, the nearby industrial city, a means of possible emancipation for some, but the enslavement of others by the spatial segregation of castes in these rural areas of southern India. Between 2019 and 2022, four dalits (former "untouchables") reveal their ongoing struggle to survive: over-indebtedness, poor working conditions in the sugar cane fields and brick factories, domestic and social violence, discrimination and political unrest. These four characters from the same village, with their intertwined destinies, describe their daily lives through intimate and rare testimonies, which form a life journey around three extraordinary years marked by an international pandemic and its harsh economic and social consequences in rural India. Fragile lives on one side of the road, a partition of territory that emancipates, separates and brings together all at once.
Name: Dindigul Diaries
Dir: Annette Danto; 01:07:41 min; Documentary; United States
Synopsis: Shot over a twenty-three year period, Dindigul Diaries is a feature length documentary telling the stories of four women living in the Dindigul region of Southern India. Dindigul Diaries is about the dignity of labor and the resilience of working women. It addresses human rights topics of girls education, dowry, and cultural restrictions and expectations of females around the world.
Name: Under The Scorching Sun
Dir: Prathap Ramamurthy, Jagannath Radhakrishnan; 17:08 min; Documentary; United States
Synopsis: A short documentary that shows the toil of everyday workers in Chennai, India, under extreme heat.
Name: Moonshadow
Dir: Azadeh Bizargiti; 01:15:12 min; Documentary; Czech Republic
Synopsis: This is the story of Fahimeh Akbari, a leading lady in the musical and cultural history of Iran, an exceptional talent whose magical voice and unique style enriched both the folklore and urban musical landscapes of Iran, a pioneer who breathed new life into the musical scene by introducing and marrying European tunes and rhythms with that of Gilan, Iran.
Name: Harvest of Light
Dir: ESİN ÖZALP ÖZTÜRK; 52:00 min; Documnetary; Turkey
Synopsis: Turkish capital Ankara’s district Evren is home to a community of seasonal workers. The workers, who come to Evren with their families to harvest onions, are trying to cope with various difficulties while trying to hold on to life.
The documentary "Harvest of Light" is centered around the generator, used as a metaphorical beacon of hope in the film, and operates for only 2 hours a day. In this short time, the workers tell their stories amidst the chaos of labor, perseverance, and the struggle to catch up with life.
Name: The Specter of Marx
Dir: Yuting Lam; 27:00 min; Documentary; Hong Kong
Synopsis: A curious Karl Marx drifts away from his grave to follows a mysterious man around London, to see what he is up to.
Name: Te Pito o Te Henua
Dir: Martin Kingman, Nils Cowan; 29:55 min; Documentary; Chile
Synopsis: “Te Pito o Te Henua” (The Navel of the World) tells the story of the community behind Rapa Nui’s largest and most colorful annual Indigenous celebration, the Tāpati Rapa Nui Festival. Honoring ancient rites and competitions, Rapa Nui families participate in nine days of athletic feats, cultural demonstrations and ceremonies paying respect to the land, water and other natural beings of the island. They also crown a Queen to represent her people for a year throughout Polynesia and on the world stage.
Name: Ngarridurndeng Kured
Dir: Emma Masters, Dean Munuggullumurr Yibarbuk; 18:00 min; Documentary; Australia
Synopsis: LOGLINE: Ngarridurndeng Kured (We Going Home Now) follows Dean Yibarbuk, his family and and the Indigenous Fire Rangers he leads into the heart of Kuwarddewardde. Here ancient rhythms and traditional practices combine with western science to create a unique relationship to guard against devastating wildfires and support the return of Binninj Nawarddeken to their traditional homelands and ways of living in the bush.
Name: Fracking the Contract
Dir: Sophie Rousmaniere; 40:00 min; Documentary; United States
Synopsis: In southern Portugal, where we some of the most beautiful beaches in all of Europe, major oil and gas companies acquired fossil fuel exploration contracts along its coast. João Camargo, activist and climate expert, Angela Rosa, a local farmer, and Laurinda Seabra, a former South African oil industry worker, are struggle to save their land and form community support groups.Taken as a true example of unity and civil force, the film raises up the following question can civic involvement make a difference? The answer is a resounding YES.
Name: Lago Escondido, soberanía en juego
Dir: Camilo Gómez Montero; 01:17:00 min; Documentary; Argentina
Synopsis: A group of Argentines try to reach Lake Escondido, in the south of their own country, where the British billionaire Joe Lewis has created a fiefdom of twelve thousand hectares that functions as a parallel state.
Name: Topsy-Turvy
Dir: Mashrukur Rahman Khan; 26:50 min; Documentary; Bangladesh
Synopsis: Cyclone Remal rages on the coast of Patuakhali, the villagers are pushed through the edge to survive the storm.
Name: Homelandsickness
Dir: Gülsel Özkan; 01:24:29 min; Documentary; Germany
Synopsis: One usually exchanges goods not people. The "population exchange" between Greece and Turkey 100 years ago affected more than 2 Mill. people. Until today only few know about this time. In the massacres and expulsions lie buried not only endless tragedies, but also an important part of the history of the 20th century.
Dir: ESİN ÖZALP ÖZTÜRK; 52:00 min; Documnetary; Turkey
Synopsis: Turkish capital Ankara’s district Evren is home to a community of seasonal workers. The workers, who come to Evren with their families to harvest onions, are trying to cope with various difficulties while trying to hold on to life.
The documentary "Harvest of Light" is centered around the generator, used as a metaphorical beacon of hope in the film, and operates for only 2 hours a day. In this short time, the workers tell their stories amidst the chaos of labor, perseverance, and the struggle to catch up with life.
Name: The Specter of Marx
Dir: Yuting Lam; 27:00 min; Documentary; Hong Kong
Synopsis: A curious Karl Marx drifts away from his grave to follows a mysterious man around London, to see what he is up to.
Name: Te Pito o Te Henua
Dir: Martin Kingman, Nils Cowan; 29:55 min; Documentary; Chile
Synopsis: “Te Pito o Te Henua” (The Navel of the World) tells the story of the community behind Rapa Nui’s largest and most colorful annual Indigenous celebration, the Tāpati Rapa Nui Festival. Honoring ancient rites and competitions, Rapa Nui families participate in nine days of athletic feats, cultural demonstrations and ceremonies paying respect to the land, water and other natural beings of the island. They also crown a Queen to represent her people for a year throughout Polynesia and on the world stage.
Name: Ngarridurndeng Kured
Dir: Emma Masters, Dean Munuggullumurr Yibarbuk; 18:00 min; Documentary; Australia
Synopsis: LOGLINE: Ngarridurndeng Kured (We Going Home Now) follows Dean Yibarbuk, his family and and the Indigenous Fire Rangers he leads into the heart of Kuwarddewardde. Here ancient rhythms and traditional practices combine with western science to create a unique relationship to guard against devastating wildfires and support the return of Binninj Nawarddeken to their traditional homelands and ways of living in the bush.
Name: Fracking the Contract
Dir: Sophie Rousmaniere; 40:00 min; Documentary; United States
Synopsis: In southern Portugal, where we some of the most beautiful beaches in all of Europe, major oil and gas companies acquired fossil fuel exploration contracts along its coast. João Camargo, activist and climate expert, Angela Rosa, a local farmer, and Laurinda Seabra, a former South African oil industry worker, are struggle to save their land and form community support groups.Taken as a true example of unity and civil force, the film raises up the following question can civic involvement make a difference? The answer is a resounding YES.
Name: Lago Escondido, soberanía en juego
Dir: Camilo Gómez Montero; 01:17:00 min; Documentary; Argentina
Synopsis: A group of Argentines try to reach Lake Escondido, in the south of their own country, where the British billionaire Joe Lewis has created a fiefdom of twelve thousand hectares that functions as a parallel state.
Name: Topsy-Turvy
Dir: Mashrukur Rahman Khan; 26:50 min; Documentary; Bangladesh
Synopsis: Cyclone Remal rages on the coast of Patuakhali, the villagers are pushed through the edge to survive the storm.
Name: Homelandsickness
Dir: Gülsel Özkan; 01:24:29 min; Documentary; Germany
Synopsis: One usually exchanges goods not people. The "population exchange" between Greece and Turkey 100 years ago affected more than 2 Mill. people. Until today only few know about this time. In the massacres and expulsions lie buried not only endless tragedies, but also an important part of the history of the 20th century.
Name: Debtors
Dir: Andrzej Danis; 23:33 min; Documentary; Poland
Synopsis: As a gesture of solidarity with his mother, a grown-up son decides to stage a court drama in which they win the child support they were entitled to. While working on the scene, he meets people who also have been wronged by non-paying parents.
Dir: Andrzej Danis; 23:33 min; Documentary; Poland
Synopsis: As a gesture of solidarity with his mother, a grown-up son decides to stage a court drama in which they win the child support they were entitled to. While working on the scene, he meets people who also have been wronged by non-paying parents.
Name: Exotismos
Dir: Alessandra Gama; 15:00 min; Documentary; Brazil
Synopsis: The artist Exotismos arises from Yoná's ambition to confront stereotypes associated with beauty and aesthetics, which explore the insecurities of self-esteem. With an artistic approach, she creates cuts and colors that transcend visual changes. In a vibrant and intimate setting, the short film “Exotismos” portrays dialogues and transformations that reveal not only the expression of hair, but also the individuality of non-conformist bodies, in the cultural effervescence of the capital of Goiás.
Name: Forbidden Pilgrimage
Dir: Ellen Vermeulen; 01:22:00 min; Documentary; Belgium
Synopsis: In 1952 Marie-Louise Chapelle was the first French woman to stand on a virgin peak in the Himalayas. In 2022, the director embarks on a journey to the same summit to understand the remarkable woman she was. During 50 years she spent six months living a normal life while retreating the other six months in the mountains. How would she combine an unfathomable passion with the daily chores of family life? An intimate story about an unsolvable contradiction as well as a physical journey through a terrain of snow and ice, guided by two female voices who engage in a dialogue with each other.
Name: Tanya. Summer. Winter.
Dir: Aleksandr Avilov; 01:21:00 min; Documentary; Russian Federation
Synopsis: Tatyana Seminyako learned the language of forest and the philosophy of hunting before she learned how to read and write. From time immemorial, the ancestors of Tatyana and her husband lived on these lands fishing and hunting. When Tanya was very young, she was raised by her grandparents -– the Khanty. She taught her everything. After all, in the forest you do everything yourself. You eat what you caught; you wear what you sewed; you live in what you built. Tanya, her husband and children are Khanty. The Khanty are a small indigenous Finno-Ugric people living in the north of Western Siberia. Population 31,500 people. Documentary film about the life of Tanya and her family.
Name: RETURN TO KAWTHOOLEI: A Refugee Rapper's Journey to His Homeland in Burma
Dir: I am Knyaw, St. Paul Minnesota, "Hons Solo" Honey Moon, "Wah Fish Paste" Shakerpaw Wah; 10:48 min; Documentary; United States
Synopsis: Refugee Rapper Star2 from San Diego, California was born in a Thai refugee camp - his people fleeing the Burmese Army who destroyed their village and attacked them in the middle of the night. He returns to his homeland in Burma (renamed Myanmar) at age 22, 15 years after leaving with his grandmother to go to the United States from the camp.
Name: Shape Of Ritual
Dir: Lotta Emilia Taarasti; 13:51 min; Documentary; Finland
Synopsis: Documentary film Shape Of Ritual stops four people to think about things they repeat every day. The film explores the significance of repetition. During the film these people are trying to point out the difference between everyday routine and a mystical-sounding ritual. At the end of the day-long meditation, the interviewees find a common outcome.
Name: Between The Notes: The Helene Grimaud Documentary
Dir: David Serero; 01:15:00 min; Documentary; United States
Synopsis: Hélène Grimaud: “Between The Notes” is a captivating new documentary about the French pianist. The long-awaited documentary on the life and career of world-renowned pianist Hélène Grimaud. Directed and produced by David Serero in partnership with the Deutsche Grammophon label, this captivating film offers an intimate look into the life of this exceptional artist and the challenges she faced throughout her journey through unique interviews.
Name: GALINA PETROVNA
Dir: Nikita Lovetsky; 16:59 min; Documentary; Kyrgyzstan
Synopsis: For several years now, Galina Petrovna has not left her house in Mayevka Village near Bishkek. There is a cozy blue house with fish garland in which a lonely grandma Galina tells us a story about her ghostly husband who died fifteen years ago. Every day she takes care of the house and even runs a small business. She sells chicken eggs and does laundry for some of her neighbors in her own washing machine. In a house full of pets, Galina Petrovna tells us about her alcoholic husband, pain and a new life after his death.
Name: 4:30
Dir: Vasilii Ovchinnikov; 15:00 min; Documentary; Russian Federation
Synopsis: Ilya, a blind pensioner, plans to complete the marathon in the average time of sighted athletes. His journey intertwines with his guide, turning the athletic challenge into an emotional race from mutual dislike to unexpected support. A short film that combines surrealism and documentary.
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