Official Programme 2022
Take me to: Action and Activism Animation Comedy Documentary Drama Music Video Student Film
ACTION AND
ACTIVISM
The Smalls Film Festival 2022 presents this year’s theme; Action and Activism, a one-off programme dedicated to the exceptional films, causes and changemakers fighting for the future. These six films present a remarkable insight into the might of community, representation, power and protest - and what it means to take action in the world today.
HANGING ON
Alfie Barker
United Kingdom
A docu-drama spotlighting the strength of community, in a neighbourhood united when faced with eviction.
ELEVATOR PITCH
Martyna Starosta
United States
Shedding light on the subway’s dire accessibility issues, Elevator Pitch reveals an unjust system that shuts many out of cities in motion.
WIFI RIDER
Roxy Rezvany
United Kingdom
A disillusioned Palestinian teenager escapes the isolation of his daily life by creating a new persona that becomes an online sensation.
THE PANOLA PROJECT
Rachael DeCruz & Jeremy S. Levine
United States
Highlighting the heroic efforts of Dorothy Oliver to keep her small town of Panola, Alabama safe from Covid-19. A chronicle of how an often-overlooked rural Black community came together in creative ways to survive.
HAND
Brett Harvey
United Kingdom
A reflective essay on living with young onset Parkinson's disease.
THE FACILITY
Seth Freed Wessler
United States
Detained inside an infamous American detention center as the pandemic spreads, a group of immigrants organise in protest to demand protection and their release. Separated from their families, and fearing for their lives, they take bold action.
ANIMATION
Animation paves the way for us to step boldly into other worlds, broadening our imagination with endlessly creative visions and exquisite skill. The nine films in this programme are masterful, mind-bending interpretations of the human experience - just watch out for the secrets, tantrums, taps, and geese.
USE TANTRUMS
Joe Pelling, Brendan O’Hare & Cory Snearowski
United Kingdom
A guide on how to have a tantrum as an adult.
BUSLINE35A
Elena Felici
Denmark
Passengers on a city bus - stuck in their own world of idles and fears - fail to assist a young teenage girl being harassed in the back seat.
HUDSON GEESE
Bernardo Britto
United States
A Canadian goose takes a moment to look back and remember his last migration while reflecting on his family.
BESTIA
Hugo Covarrubias
Chile
The life of a secret police agent during the military dictatorship in Chile, based on true events. Her relationship with her dog, her body, her fears and frustrations reveal a grim fracture of her mind and of the country.
TAP RUNNER
Paolo Chianta
United Kingdom
Taps and one man’s burning desire to fix them. In a dystopian future, it’s one man’s job to check taps for leakage and wastage. But he is not permitted to fix the taps.
NOIR SOLEIL
Marie Larrivé
France
After an earthquake in Naples bay, the body of a man is found. The police believe the man killed himself and contact Dino and his daughter Victoria for a DNA test. During an unexpected journey together, she digs into her father's mysterious past.
ISLE OF CHAIR
Ivyy Chen
Taiwan / United Kingdom
On a secluded island, a chair has fallen down.
CHARLOTTE
Zach Dorn
United States
Forgotten folk singer Lena Black releases her song, Charlotte, in 1971. Fifty years later, the pop singer T.Y.M. releases a highly-successful cover, affecting Lena, her daughter Diane, and her 11-year-old grandson, Eli.
SOUVENIR SOUVENIR
Bastien Dubois
France
A man’s decade-long quest to make a movie of his grandfather's war memories reveals unforeseen truths about them both.
COMEDY
The impeccable suburban street, the fatigued workplace, the innocent comfort of lying in bed. Wildly imaginative and surprisingly thoughtful, these seven comedy shorts are a testament to the ever-changing landscape of humour, with laughter proving plausible in the most bizarre and unassuming places.
SOFTCORE
Kristoffer Borgli
United States
Taste in music can be painfully revealing, as depicted in this short film (and music promo) starring Greta Titelman and Alex Warren.
THE VOICE IN YOUR HEAD
Graham Parkes
United States
An office worker spends every waking hour tortured by the negative voice in his head, until a concerned coworker takes action.
SHARK
Nash Edgerton
Australia
Jack is a well meaning, misunderstood prankster. It seems he’s met his match in Sofie, who also loves to prank. What could go wrong?
THANK YOU SO MUCH
Tomasz Frymorgen
United Kingdom
Class divides, witch hunts and the darkness beneath our most righteous performance. During the UK’s Thursday evening clap for healthcare workers, an over-virtuous neighbour tries his best to avoid humiliation.
IT FEELS PERSONAL
Hugh Clegg
United Kingdom
When Hugh finds out that his video has been stolen, re-contextualised, and turned into a viral meme by an anonymous TikTok user, he embarks on an internet odyssey to find the thief.
SNOOZE
Adam Collins
Ireland
A couple struggle to get out of their comfy bed.
CENSOR OF DREAMS
Leo Berne & Raphaël Rodriguez
France
Night after night, The Censor and his team mould Yoko’s memories into fantastical dreams. Tonight, nothing happens as planned.
DOCUMENTARY
One of film’s most vibrant and complex artforms, documentary holds great power in bringing true stories to life on screen. In 2022, the genre is stronger than ever, most noticeably as the Covid-19 pandemic compels filmmakers to break new ground in the creative, beautiful ways they film the changing world around them.
THE FIELD TRIP
Meghan O'Hara, Mike Attie & Rodrigo Ojeda-Beck
United States
A group of fifth graders learns what it takes to get ahead in the modern American workplace.
VO
Nicolas Gourault
France / United States
A deadly accident between a self-driving car and a pedestrian sets off an investigation about the role of human workers in the training of driverless cars.
IN THE COMPANY OF INSECTS
Duncan Cowles
United Kingdom
A filmmaker comes to terms with his feelings of loss by focussing on something smaller. You are invited to join a deadpan meditation on the end of life, in the company of insects.
ALLOWED
Zillah Bowes
United Kingdom
Weeds aren't just weeds. They're like friends. During the Covid-19 pandemic, plants and flowers are allowed to grow wild. Using 3D animated photos, Allowed lyrically re-examines our relationship with urban plant life in the urgent context of biodiversity loss and climate crisis.
MAALBEEK
Ismaël Joffroy Chandoutis
France / Belgium
Survivor but amnesiac of the attack at Maalbeek metro station on 22 March 2016 in Brussels, Sabine is looking for the missing image of an over-mediatised event of which she has no memory.
PERFECTING THE ART OF LONGING
Kitra Cahana
Canada
Cut off from his loved ones due to a strict Covid-19 lockdown at the long-term care facility where he lives, a quadriplegic rabbi reflects on love, mortality and longing. Filmed remotely by his daughter, his narration presents a profound and moving testament to the human spirit.
NIGHT RIDE
Todd Karehana
New Zealand
When a mother of ten returns nightly to the old family home to feed stray cats, her son questions its connection to the death of his brother. Joining her night rides, it’s time to unravel the truth.
DRAMA
Underground worlds, enigmatic strangers and commanding performances star in a compelling programme of six determined dramas. Taking us on a journey through the emotional intricacies of love, grief, desire, fear and freedom - this is an unforgettable deep dive into what it truly means to be human.
CALVING
Louis Bhose
United Kingdom / Ireland
In a rural Irish village, a strange calf is born. And it won't stop screaming.
AUGUST SKY
Jasmin Tenucci
Brazil / Iceland
As the Amazon burns for the seventeenth day, a nurse in Sao Paulo finds herself drawn to a neo-Pentecostal church.
I AM AFRAID TO FORGET YOUR FACE
Sameh Alaa
Egypt
After being separated for 82 days, Adam travels down a rough road to be reunited with the one he loves, whatever it takes.
PUNCH-DRUNK
Larry Ketang & Liam White
United Kingdom
In a café in Marseille, a man's life is knocked off its axis when his lunch is disturbed by a chatty stranger.
BLANK SHORES
Alex Kyrou
United Kingdom
Emily takes it upon herself to investigate the disappearance of her partner, leading her to an unregulated world far removed from her own.
WARSHA
Dania Bdeir
France / Lebanon
A Syrian migrant working as a crane operator in Beirut volunteers to cover a shift on one of the most dangerous cranes.
MUSIC VIDEO
From the gritty low-budget to the decadent masterpiece, music videos continue to innovate, captivate and inspire, thriving in the era of YouTube and TikTok. Here is where cinematic trend-makers can experiment with heartfelt moods and groundbreaking visuals; where genre mash-ups and psychedelic rhythm combine to make you watch - and move. The possibilities are endless.
KELLY LEE OWENS -
CORNER OF MY SKY FT. JOHN CALE
Kasper Häggström
The strange tale of a magic toaster portal, starring Michael Sheen as a man whose toast keeps disappearing.
ROSS FROM FRIENDS -
THE DAISY
Rudá Santos
Speed-cubing meets 3D animation and sci-fi. Featuring real life Rubik’s Cuber Katie Mouchan-Davies.
PERFUME GENIUS -
DESCRIBE (AG COOK REMIX)
Jack Wedge
Brain-bending chaos and adventure follows two robbers who embark on a dramatic escape into space.
EELS -
ARE WE ALRIGHT AGAIN
Greg Barnes
Eels superfan Jon Hamm finds blissful solace in their music, totally oblivious to the fact that his house is being burgled.
DESIRÉE DAWSON -
MEET YOU AT THE LIGHT
Alexander Farah
A bittersweet and heartfelt portrait of a young woman and her diabetic dad, featuring Ishaval Gill and her real-life father Kamaldevinder Gill.
JAMES BLAKE -
SAY WHAT YOU WILL
Bear Damen
James Blake is haunted by the success of Finneas. Can he get past this inferiority complex and find peace with who he is?
SALVATORE GANACCI -
STEP-GRANDMA
Vedran Rupic
Bringing his trademark eccentricity to the world again, Salvatore Ganacci pretends to be the grandchild of a lady who lives in the woods.
SLOWTHAI -
FEEL AWAY
Oscar Hudson
Slowthai starts growing a pregnant belly on a maternity ward and gives birth in a fever dream that also involves cake.
BOYZ NOISE -
ALL I WANT
Dan Streit
A lonely, perfection-seeking bodybuilder tries to find friends in Los Angeles - a task hindered by vanity, self-obsession and social media.
MODESELEKTOR -
MEAN FRIEND
Abigail Wilson
A man in a leather gimp suit is abandoned in the woods and chased across fields by a bonkers team of mystery dancing assailants.
KHRUANGBIN -
TIME (YOU AND I)
Felix Heyes & Josh R.R. King
British comedian Stephen K. Amos and actress Lunga Anele-Skosana build sandcastles around London, rating each one out of ten.
IDLES -
WAR
Will Dohrn
Four characters go about their daily lives in a video told solely through the gestures, movements and perspective of their hands.
THE LUMINEERS -
BRIGHTSIDE
Kyle Thrash
What does love mean to you? Couples of all ages, races, and genders give their answers in a joyous celebration of romantic love.
CUCO -
CAUTION
Cole Kush
Slow it down and try to keep it cool. Cuco leaves his bedroom and goes on a face-melting visual trip through dreamlike CGI worlds.
RICHARD WRIGHT -
WHEN I WANT
Dan Carr
A comedic catalogue of every time Richard Wright smokes cannabis (and the effects it has on him), filmed over the course of a year.
STUDENT FILM
Presenting their vision for the future of cinema, the student programme is dedicated to young international talent as they enter the professional sphere. This dynamic and gutsy array of work is a testament to their fresh voices, inventively tackling themes of loneliness, identity, injustice, love and seduction. It’s clear where their future is headed.
SOAK
Hannah Bang
United States / Korea
A 16 year old tries to convince her runaway mother to return home.
LA NEIGE INCERTAINE
Marion Boisrond, Marie-Liesse Coumau, Gwendoline Legendre, Ada Hernaez & Romane Tisseau
France
On the lookout for polar bears in the Arctic, a wildlife photographer realises she may have missed more than a shot.
DOUBLESPEAK
Hazel McKibbin
United States
A young woman grapples with the aftermath of reporting sexual harassment in the workplace.
JUST A MUM
Madalyn Farley
United Kingdom
Just a Mum follows a woman’s initiation into motherhood. Beginning as a powerful, glowing, pregnant female, she loses her identity to the all consuming new person in her life.
GIRL IN THE WATER
Shi-Rou Huang
Taiwan
Based on personal experiences, our heroine is reminded of the ups and downs of love in a film depicting femininity and female internal time-consciousness.
BIG TOUCH
Christopher Tenzis
United States
An Afro-Surrealist story about a giant woman and a tiny man who through the power of touch, experience an unexpected transformation.
CURIOSA
Tessa Moult-Milewska
United Kingdom
Overly curious Mary visits her boyfriend's flat for the first time, just to discover it’s been stripped bare of all personal belongings. After being denied an explanation, she climbs into his head.
WET
Marianne Bergeonneau, Lauriane Montpert, Mélina Mandon, Cloé Peyrebrune & Elvira Taussac
France
During a thrilling massage, a lady is going to seduce her masseur. A maze of sensation, flesh and steam lead them to meet again.
THIS TREE IS HOSTILE
Hugh Clegg
United Kingdom
In an attempt to cure his loneliness, a filmmaker embarks on a curious odyssey through London, searching for human connection.
