BENEATH THE LEAF OF ABSENCE(2025)

Lessons(en)

A powerful story about a swimming teacher dealing with the overwhelming effects of loss, grief, and guilt.

Tempo Rubato(pt)

What would you do if only after the death of your husband, or your father, or your best friend, you found out that he had loved another man? “Tempo Rubato” is a story about two grieving processes—Ravi’s, who lost his first love to police violence, and Dora and Edu’s, who lost their husband and father, respectively. Tiago, Ravi’s childhood friend, visits his family after the funeral and brings with him two boxes full of videos that Ravi recorded throughout his youth, including a farewell video-letter to his family, in which he confesses the secret he kept his entire life.

Misericordia(fr)

Jérémie returns to his hometown for the funeral of his former boss, the village baker. He decides to stay for a few days with Martine, the man's widow. A mysterious disappearance, a threatening neighbor and a priest with strange intentions make Jérémie's short stay in the village take an unexpected turn.

Traces of Grief(de)

Shell-shocked Barbara must face up to the loss of a dear companion after a tragic accident. Her best friend Klara and husband Torsten devise a plan to thaw Barbara's heart, after she reminisces about the incident, the funeral, and happier times. Will she agree to the suggestions of her nearest and dearest? Can grief turn into hope?

Feast of Love(en)

A meditation on love and its various incarnations, set within a community of friends in Oregon. It is described as an exploration of the magical, mysterious and sometimes painful incarnations of love.

Mécanique(fr)

Cactus Pears(mr)

A thirty-year-old city-dweller compelled to spend ten-day mourning of his father in the rugged countryside of Western India tenderly bonds with a local farmer struggling to stay unmarried. As the mourning ends, forcing his return, he must decide the fate of his relationship born under duress.

Snowboarding(pt)

After news of an accident reaches him a year after the fact, Elias, a young contemplative student, is stuck with strange emotions that he can't explain as he tries to figure out why he feels the way that he is and encounters some revealing conversations along the way.

The Dying Gaul(en)

A grief-stricken screenwriter unknowingly enters a three-way relationship with a woman and her film executive husband - to chilling results.

Europe '51(it)

A wealthy, self-absorbed Rome socialite is racked by guilt over the death of her young son. As a way of dealing with her grief and finding meaning in her life, she decides to devote her time and money to the city’s poor and sick. Her newfound, single-minded activism leads to conflicts with her husband and questions about her sanity.

Ceremony(en)

Ceremony is a personal story about fathers and sons, and the overbearing silence which is passed down for generations. After the death of his grandfather, Oliver (21) and his father (50) bring the urn to a cemetery. Seeing his father in distress, Oliver takes the opportunity to acknowledge their distant relationship, attempting to connect.

Ordinary People(en)

Beth, Calvin, and their son Conrad are living in the aftermath of the death of the other son. Conrad is overcome by grief and misplaced guilt to the extent of a suicide attempt. He is in therapy. Beth had always preferred his brother and is having difficulty being supportive to Conrad. Calvin is trapped between the two trying to hold the family together.

Rise and Shine(en)

A heartfelt, emotional story about loss, grief, and the bond between a mother and son.

Naledi(en)

A star athlete has to come to terms with her debilitating grief to regain her confidence and finish her race.

Behind The Dust(en)

When tragedy strikes a vain and materialistic housewife, she is forced to re-evaluate her lifestyle and vows to put her privilege to good use by seeking out the right person to inherit her wealth under the guise of an elderly woman who needs assistance cleaning her home.

Best Wishes(en)

An old widower, Jasper, routinely makes coffee in two mugs and picks up trash around his community. Some of his more interesting finds speckle his home. His neighbors mostly disregard him. On one of his regular hunts, he chances upon an envelope. To his surprise, he finds old wedding photos and presumes the addressee, Angie, to be the bride. Determined to complete the delivery, Jasper follows a map to the address. When he finally arrives, his excitement is upended when Angie, now divorced, rebuffs him and the photos. He leaves her with an open invitation to his home, should she change her mind. The next morning, Jasper starts his routine-only to find Angie at his door. After a heart-to-heart on loss and new life, Jasper invites Angie to pick up trash with him. Together, they go.

They Came from the Attic(en)

A teenage boy is home alone for the weekend but when nocturnal creatures living in his attic escape, he must survive.

A Christmas Visitor(en)

The Boyajian family learned of 18-year-old John's death in the Persian Gulf War on Christmas Eve eleven years earlier and have not celebrated Christmas since. They have been so consumed by his death that they have forgotten the joys of the holidays, until a mysterious visitor enters their lives and rekindles the spirit of the season.

Ingress(en)

A woman who can move between realities loses her husband in a tragic accident and seeks the help of a spiritual channel to find her way back to him.

Rooster's Crow(fr)

Drowned in the chaos of a family reunion filled with testosterone and pig roast, Reynald will try to prove to his nephew, his family but mostly himself that he's still king.