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Salaud Morisset Boards German-Indonesian Cannes Short 'Vaterland'

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Berthold Wahjudi’s short film is joining the company’s Cannes slate alongside Yesterday the Eyes Didn’t Sleep in Un Certain Regard and Directors’ Fortnight title Low Expectations. Berlin-based Salaud Morisset has acquired worldwide distribution rights to German-Indonesian filmmaker Berthold Wahjudi’s short film “Vaterland” or A Bule Named Yanto, which is competing at Cannes Critics’ Week 2026. Described as a journey back to one’s roots in search of identity, the film follows a German-Indonesian man who visits his younger sister in Yogyakarta to reconnect with his Indonesian heritage through a bittersweet exploration of mixed-race identity. The film is among the 13 short films selected for Critics’ Week this year. It is produced by Jonas Egert and Sylvain Cruiziat of Madfilms, and co-produced by Annisa Adjam for Aftersun Creative and Melissa Byrne for Allergikerfilm. Cinematography is by Noah Böhm, with editing by Clémentine Decremps ( The Fin , Locarno 2025). Berthold Wahjudi is a Germ...
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Cannes Sidebar Film Training Program Expands to Semaine de la Critique With Next Step Studio, First Edition Set in Indonesia

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Continuing the concept launched by La Factory at the Directors’ Fortnight in 2013 , the initiative has helped nurture a wave of emerging filmmaking talent across the globe. From Taiwan to Chile, Lebanon to the Philippines, and Ceará in Brazil, more than 80 filmmakers have taken part in the program, with nearly 50 debut feature films subsequently produced.   Among its alumni is Midi Z, whose feature  Nina Wu  premiered in Cannes Un Certain Regard, and Alireza Khatami, who debuted in Venice with  Oblivion Verses . His latest feature,  The Things You Kill , premiered at Sundance last year. Following Directors’ Factory Lebanon in 2017, Ahmad Ghossein made his feature debut with  All This Victory , which was selected for Venice Critics’ Week in 2019, where it won the Grand Prize. Fellow Lebanese participant Mounia Akl also debuted at the Venice Film Festival with  Costa Brava, Lebanon  in 2021.  Produced and financed locally, the program supports ...
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‘The Fin’ review: Haunting imagery of ecologically devastated Korea – Locarno 2025

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South Korean indie filmmaker Syeyoung Park returns to the Swiss festival with a haunting and artistically fertile dystopian tale set in eco-devastated, reunified Korea. The Fin, written, directed, and shot by Syeyoung Park. Locarno’s Cineasti del Presente sidebar is dedicated to first or second features by directors that are radical, uncompromising, adventurous, and infused with genuine curiosity about the full spectrum of cinematic possibility. Korean filmmaker Syeyoung Park hits the mark perfectly with his new film, The Fin, a sophomore triumph that solidifies his reputation as a daring new voice in Korean underground cinema. Returning to the festival one year after receiving a special mention for The Masked Monster (which competed in the Short Film Auteur Competition)—now a strong contender for the Green Leopard—Park transports audiences to a post-war Korea where the South and the North have reunified. However, this reunification has not brought peace to its people, instead, the cou...
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‘Broken Voices’ Review: Ondřej Provazník’s Solo Debut Tackles Themes of Sisterhood, the Power of Authority, and Sexual Abuse in Prague Girls' Choir – Karlovy Vary 2025

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Broken Voices wins a Special Jury Mention for Kateřina Falbrová’s performance and the Europa Cinemas Label Award for Best European Film at the 2025 Karlovy Vary International Film Festival. Broken Voices premiered in the Crystal Globe Competition at the 2025 Karlovy Vary International Film Festival. After gaining attention for his work on several documentaries (awarded in Jihlava) and the fiction feature Old-Times with Martin Dusek in 2019 — a project that earned nominations for Best Director and Best Screenplay at the Czech Lions — Ondřej Provazník makes a powerful solo debut with Broken Voices. The film is the only Czech fiction feature in the Crystal Globe Competition, yet it stands out as one of the major successes at this year’s Karlovy Vary International Film Festival. Set within the confines of a prestigious girls' choir in Prague, the film follows Karolina (Kateřina Falbrová), a 13-year-old prodigy in younger class who dreams of advancing to the main upper class, where her ...
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Shanghai Film Festival 2025 Unviels Its Competition Lineup

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Twelve new films are vying for the Golden Goblet Award in the Main Competition section, while Asian New Talent strand will host the Asian premieres of  Brand New Landscape  and  Where the Night Stands Still. Black Red Yellow by Aktan Arym Kubat in Main Competition and Where the Night Stands Still by Liryc Dela Cruz in Asian New Talent. The 27th edition of the Shanghai International Film Festival (SIFF) has unveiled its official competition lineup, which includes fiction, documentary, short films, and animation. Hailed as China’s major festival event, this year’s edition will feature 49 films in competition, including 38 world premieres, 8 international premieres, and 3 Asian premieres. The Main Competition will feature 12 films—11 world premieres—battling for the coveted Golden Goblet Award for Best Film. The section highlights notable works from acclaimed filmmakers such as Kyrgyzstan’s Aktan Arym Kubat ( Black Red Yellow ), whose earlier films received recognition at Lo...
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