Pick Up

Set five years on from the school days of director Stevan Filipovic's previous film Next to Me, a state of emergency exists and politicians are accused of capitalising on public anxiety around Covid-19, which makes the shocking situation that reunites the characters significantly more extreme. The story centres on Ksenija (newcomer Mina Nikolic), a driven young woman striving to move from tabloid hack to a career journalist in a world of click-bait headlines and showbiz scandals cooked up to feed the masses. Ksenija's personal and professional journey is hampered when Vera tests positive for Coronavirus and Ksenija must question how far she will bend to survive in a climate where political pressure is increasingly overt and can be said to capitalise on fear during the pandemic.

Featuring seven stories from seven auteurs from around the world, the film chronicles this unprecedented moment in time, and is a true love letter to the power of cinema and its storytellers.

March 2020. The roomates leave with their families and Artur is left on one's own thinking that this lockdown will only lasts fifteen days. In the apartment next door, Cèlia lives in a similar situation. In these difficult moments they begin to become close, but always keeping in mind that she has a partner.

A husband and wife are forced to re-evaluate themselves and their relationship through the reality of the Covid-19 lockdown.

Mike, a young adult, waiting to go out on a date with his boyfriend is thwarted by a life-changing event. It is told from the perspective of his mirror.

Upon the announcement of another UK national lockdown, Flo and Rob find themselves stuck in their house in London. Meanwhile, Flo tries to maintain a brand-new relationship with Evelyn, who had to abruptly leave to her hometown in Mexico.

What happens when sleep becomes a luxury

TRABALHEI ATÉ ONTEM

During the COVID-19 lockdowns, a woman trades sex and love to supplement her ever-dwindling stock of toilet paper.

When governments use Covid emergency act edicts to restrict the gathering and worship of the Church, three pastors facing the risk of imprisonment, unlimited fines, and their own Churches splitting apart take a courageous stand and re-open in the face of a world that has chosen to comply.

The Indian government announces a nationwide lockdown without proper notice, in the wake of the pandemic. A father who is a daily wager in Bengaluru, and his 10 year-old son, decide to go back to their hometown Raichur, which is 450kms from Bengaluru. And they have to walk all the way due to the lack of transportation. The scorching heat and bad weather shakes their journey as well as both of their lives.

Made during confinement, "In My Room" plunges us into the poignant story of a woman at the twilight of her life, through recordings of the director's deceased grandmother. Living rooms become stages where life is performed. Windows become portals to the lives of others.

An experimental attempt that examines the four corners of the inner zoned quarantine world to question a person.

A short poetic narrative about dealing with separation. Told in French and presented to English audiences without subtitles to leave the characters' feelings up to interpretation.

New York City. March - April 2020. At the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic, two men, both named Walter Stoyanov, watch their lives getting turned upside down, as one of them falls ill and the other one is being investigated by FBI Special Agent John McCallany.

Based on real-life events, the film recounts the efforts of the Wuhan medical staff as they attempt to deal with the rising cases of Covid-19.

Broken up with on the eve of a global lockdown, a man is pushed to the brink of madness by his isolation... only to discover he may not be as alone as he initially thought.

An outbreak has Esteban confined at home and separated from Alan. From his rooftop bedroom, he tries to maintain their relationship through video calls, but the isolation seems endless and reality catches up with them.

Harkening back to the apartment movies of the 1970s, "Footnotes" is the story of neighbors and near total strangers, Will and Apurna. When they begin spending lock-down together in the wake of the 2020 pandemic, what starts as a platonic convenience quickly develops into something more. But when a solo trip home to her small New England town puts a strain on their newfound connection, Will and Apurna are forced to reckon with what they mean to each other. Are they friends? Lovers? Or just more forgotten footnotes...

One night, a Brazilian woman wakes up in a country exhausted from violent acts. Republic is a short film realized at home, in the beginning of 2020s quarantine, in the center of São Paulo, República neighborhood.