It’s a compact ten offerings that make up the short films selection over at the Directors’ Fortnight. The eyebrow-raiser goes to Radu Jude – who has been “banging” out a bunch of short films since the release of 2021’s Bad Luck Banging or Loony Porn. His The Potemkinists looks at the defiant gesture against Russia made in 1905 by the sailors from the Potemkin Cruiser – they would receive political asylum in Jude’s native Romania. With renewed interested in the life of Maria Schneider (Jessica Palud’s biopic with Anamaria Vartolomei as Maria will premiere next year), Elisabeth Subrin continues to dissect the life of an actress (and perhaps contextualizes the hugely uncomfortable, very telling interview) with Maria Schneider, 1983 — you’ll see The Sea Ahead actress Manal Issa (image above), Aïssa Maiga and filmmaker Isabel Sandoval) in the film. Also in the line-up, Argentinian filmmaker María Silvia Esteve who won the Pardino d’oro at last year’s Locarno, comes to the section with The Spiral. Here is the line-up.
ARIBADA by Simon(e) Jaikiriuma Paetau & Natalia Escobar / 30’ – Germany, Colombia
AS TIME PASSES by Jamil McGinnis / 14’ – United States, Turkey
BEBEN (Tremor, Tremblement) by Rudolf Fitzgerald-Leonard / 15’ – Germany
DES JEUNES FILLES ENTERRENT LEUR VIE by Maïté Sonnet / 33’ – France
HAPPY NEW YEAR, JIM (Bonne année, Jim) by Andrea Gatopoulos / 9’ – Italy
JITTERBUG by Ayo Akingbade / 24’ – UK
MARIA SCHNEIDER, 1983 by Elisabeth Subrin / 24’ – France
POTEMKINISTII (The Potemkinists) by Radu Jude / 18’ – Romania
STAGING DEATH by Jan Soldat / 8’ – Germany, Austria
THE SPIRAL (La Spirale) by María Silvia Esteve / 19’ – Argentina