Gardel

Architectural distortions of the second city.

Two women – one passive and resigned, the other aggressive and domineering – interact in various locations in New York city. The film explores the dynamic between them before ending with a showdown at the roller-coaster on Coney Island.

An overdressed girl tries her luck in dance events that are for Finnish tourists in a small Estonian health resort town, Pärnu.

A young man in a tram is asking a bit too much from a stranger.

An elderly lady pushes the limits of customer service at an up-market department store by continuously requesting announcements for interesting-looking men.

The absurd logic of the ‘real character’ and the extreme rules of Disneyland become apparent when a real fan of Snow White is banned from entering the theme park dressed as Snow White.

Two different women, from opposite sides of the country, look for distractions from the mundane and the malaise of modern life.

A man and a woman move deeper into the dark of the night. Through the impersonal images of Google Earth, their erratic path leads us towards a place where something dramatic appears to have taken place. The only compass is the beating of the hearts that guide their way.

Games with muscles, games with power, SM games. The naked body employed as a prop. Perceptions of one's own body are the focus of Body-building, and it leaves the good-girl role far behind, sometimes in striking poses, sometimes in martial dress.

Experimental short documentary

Alexander V. Men was a Russian Orthodox priest, theologian and writer, whose influence is felt among Christians, both in Russia and abroad. He was murdered on September 9th, 1990.

Several fragments of one day in Leningrad in the autumn of 1989, refracted in the imagination of the artist.

A vanishing portrait film of friends and loved ones, taking place over the course of a year; we see in real time as they disappear into the darkness during a sunset.

Throughout three decades, Bill Laswell has been a constant innovator, fusing seemingly disparate genres into a whole new sound. Touching upon everything from worldbeat, funk, rock, hip-hop and jazz, there are no limits to his experimental approach. Among his many talents is his ability to bring together well-matched singers and players to create a distinct style that defies easy classification. His Soundstage episode embodies his unique approach, transcending any genre boundaries and delivering an engaging performance. From the World Beat of Tabla Beat Science, to the jazzy flavors of Pharoah Sanders backed by Material, it’s an exciting mix. Other surprises include a rocking Buckethead set that includes a little breakdancing and songs by Praxis. The show culminates with an all-star performance, funked up by Bootsy Collins.

Cassette-Television

Fragmentum Cinema: Sueños

Lars von Trier challenges his mentor, filmmaker Jørgen Leth, to remake Leth’s 1967 short film The Perfect Human five times, each with a different set of bizarre and challenging rules.

A haunting commemoration of the Tiananmen Square uprisings.

The theme of death is heavily interwoven in Smolder’s surreal salute to Belgian painter Antoine Wiertz, a Hieronymus Bosch-type artist whose work centered on humans in various stages in torment, as depicted in expansive canvases with gore galore. Smolders has basically taken a standard documentary and chopped it up, using quotes from the long-dead artist, and periodic statements by a historian (Smolders) filling in a few bits of Wiertz’ life.

A film searching for life.