Current Comments
Cinema at the Pulse of the Present
The segment Current Comments deals with this present, touches a raw nerve, calls the accustomed processes into question, and puts contemporary debates in a nutshell. What are the issues that concern us? And what concerns the artists and filmmakers who have submitted their work to this festival? These programs exhibit one of the strengths of the short format: its proximity to current issues—from the climate crisis and migration to human rights and dangerous scenarios for democracy.
The six programs of the year 2025 asked about peace and depict war, or explored questions of the private and the personal—Mother, Mother, for instance, explored aspects of womanhood, while Suburb Stories cast an at times humorous, at times contemplative gaze on the visible and hidden layers of suburban life. Raw Data offered insights into the origins and complexity of digital filmmaking. The Machine In The Garden examined the relationship between humans and nature as such. And finally—with particular urgency in light of current armed conflicts and global uncertainty—Pacifictions explored ways of restoring peace. When Will We Ever Learn? underscored the importance of this search through documentary footage from the war zones of our time.