New visions: Four creative worlds

New Visions presents films that dare to stray from the expected path. Bold, distinct works by filmmakers exploring what else is possible with cinema when moving away from established narratives, testing new forms, and searching for their own way of seeing.

This year's section connects four filmmakers from diverse cinematic backgrounds across Portugal, Denmark, and Italy. We are especially pleased that all four directors will be attending in person: their cinematic poetics will thus meet not only on screen, but also in conversations with the audience and each other.

Alessandro Comodin takes us into the forest, myth, and memory in Happy Times Will Come Soon (I tempi felici verranno presto), where reality slowly slips away to take on a more mysterious form. João Nicolau, Portuguese director and musician, weaves music, humor, adventure, and poetry in Providence and the Guitar (A Providência e a Guitarra) to craft a playful, unusual cinematic fantasy. A Q&A with the director will take place before the screening, and the evening will continue with live music.

Coming from Denmark, Stefan Kruse presents the film essay A Reconnaissance, which constructs a reflection out of surveillance technology imagery on who watches, who is watched, and how our gaze shifts in an era of increasingly militarized control. Meanwhile, Roberto-C. in Padrone e sotto (Master and Servant) explores the invisible layers of Naples and the lives of people who often remain out of sight, lacking power, money, and a public voice.

Four films, four distinctly different ways of approaching the world and cinema. New Visions does not seek a single answer to where contemporary cinema is headed. Rather, we are interested in what happens when a filmmaker allows themselves to chart their own course.

Screenings on October 1:

20:00 | Palazzo del Cinema - Hiša Filma (Kinemax)
A Reconnaissance - Stefan Kruse (29')
Padrone e sotto - Roberto-C. (83')
Q&A: Stefan Kruse & Roberto-C

Screenings on October 3:

15:00 | Palazzo del Cinema - Hiša Filma (Kinemax)
Happy Times Will Come Soon (I tempi felici verranno presto) - Alessandro Comodin (102')

18:30 | Palazzo del Cinema - Hiša Filma (Kinemax)
Q&A: João Nicolau

19:30 | Palazzo del Cinema - Hiša Filma (Kinemax)
Providence and the Guitar (A providência e a guitarra) - João Nicolau (125')