Curtas Vila do Conde 2017 comes to Festival Scope

Festival Scope will once again give short film fans the chance to see some of the freshest and most important shorts that are playing on the short film circuit. This time Festival Scope will be presenting films from the 2017 edition of Curtas Vila do Conde, the Portuguese film festival renowned for showcasing an eclectic selection of shorts.

The seven short films - which are available from now until 30th July – include films selected for Critics' Week, Karlovy Vary and Rotterdam. There’ll also be the chance to see the latest film from Jennifer Reeder, whose previous films A Million Miles Away and Blood Beneath The Skin were both huge hits on the festival circuit.

Only 300 tickets are available per film, and the films are free. To be able to see them go to www.festivalscope.com

The full selection of films are:

Bad Bunny (Coelho Mau), (Dir. Carlos Conceição, France / Portugal, 2017)/ Not available in Germany and France
A wayward boy punishes his mother’s lover. Beauty and horror fondle each other. Young gods callously abjure conventional morality. Death goes whoring in child’s guise. Selected at Cannes La Semaine de la Critique

This Is Not an Olive Tree (Esto no es un olivo), (Dir. Carlos Arteiro, Portugal, 2017)
A theoretical exercise can stem from a physical one: using the camera as if it was the vibrating device placed on the olive trees for the harvest of its fruit, the final result is a series of original and intriguing images.

Burning Mountains that Spew Flame (Montañas Ardientes Que Vomitan Fuego) (Dirs. Helena Girón, Samuel Delgado, Spain, 2016)
Immersing the viewer in the darkest corridors deep in the earth, this film suggests all sorts of underground activities, from the political to the mythical. Adopted by the resistance during the war, one of the longest volcanic tunnels in Europe is also the site of a particular chapter in political history. Selected at IFF Rotterdam, Karlovy Vary IFF, Toronto IFF

All Small Bodies (Alle Kleinen Körper) (Dir. Jennifer Reeder, Germany, 2017)
The story of "All Small Bodies" unfolds in a place similar to what it means to inhabit adolescence: an enchanted forest, filled with mystery, magic and fear. The time is that of a distant post-apocalyptic future. Jennifer Reeder sustains an elaborate visual style, already present in her previous films, and uses saturated colors and surreal scenes to connect it with the fairy tale imagery.

Chika, the Dog in the Ghetto (Chika, die Hündin im Ghetto) (Dir. Sandra Schießl, Germany, 2016)
Chika the dog and the five-year old Mikasch live in a Jewish ghetto in an unnamed Polish city. The little dog helps Mikasch to develop as a child despite the persecution of the Jews by the Germans. Best Animation at Queens World Film Festival

The Watershow Extravaganza (Dir. Sophie Michael, United Kingdom, 2016)
The Watershow Extravaganza is a film presenting the eponymous attraction at Watermouth Castle in Devon, UK. Built for the 1951 Festival of Britain before being installed in the theme park in the 1980s, the show choreographs water and coloured light to paper roll music played by a 1920's Mighty Mortier organ. Selected at Toronto IFF

Where Do You Stand Now, Joao Pedro Rodrigues? (Où en êtes-vous, João Pedro Rodrigues ?) (Dir. João Pedro Rodrigues, France/ Portugal, 2016)
Commissioned by the Centre Pompidou on the occasion of their 2016 retrospective dedicated to Rodrigues, Où en êtes-vous, João Pedro Rodrigues ? is a lyrical self-portrait that offers an important and explicitly autobiographical complement to his feature film The Ornithologist. Intermingling home movie footage with solitary wanderings and memories of his early career and partnership with João Rui Guerra da Mata, Rodrigues’ new film looks back from the vantage of mid-life to meditate on the people and experiences that helped shape his vision and voice.