International Competition Program #2 – REPEAT

The International Competition Programs are the backbone of the entire MIAF mission. Drawn from more than 2,450 submissions they showcase the best, most imaginative animating talent on the planet. For Programs 1 to 5 the only rule is diversity: you’ll get a bit of everything! For Programs 6 to 10 we take the opportunity to highlight interesting themes and styles that felt prominent in the year’s submissions.

The program includes a ‘bookmark’ tribute to our good friends at Croatia’s Bonobo Studio, an indie production and distribution house that has had films in every MIAF since the early 2000’s. The opening film HOW by Marko Mestrovic revels in a wonderfully opaque and utterly moody visuality that tangles narrative as much as the language it folds into the mix. And, in a glorious juxtaposition, we chose Bonobo’s new film by Jenny Jokela, DOLLHOUSE ELEPHANT, as a bravura cacophonous conclusion to the screening which can’t help but send you out to the bar with heads full of colour and noise.

How
Marko Mestrovic
Croatia, 8’47, 2025
Patrolling the cracks between reality and the more poetic forms that counterbalance it exists endless loops of experiences that challenge the imagination.

Off-Time
Nata Metlukh
USA, 10’45, 2025
A data engineer rushes through life with the belief that his chaotic multitasking is saving him time, only to discover the joy of life when time itself begins to break apart.

Tawny Owl
Anastasiia Zhakulina
Russia, 8’00, 2025
Life in the forest hides a lot of dangers; not only for the little birds who live there, but even for the master predators who prey upon them.

Ira
Rozenn Busson
France, 7’25, 2025
In the depths of a seething world, Ira does not realise that her rage has the power to awaken the volcano that harbours her.

What Is, Is Now
Jikke Lesterhuis
Netherlands, 2’15, 2025
A bird restaurant situated on a lonely sandbank operates to the rhythm of the tide … and the exacting rules of nature: eat or be eaten.

The Acrobat
Ruslana Baratova
Russia, 4’52, 2025
The life of a travelling performer is not a life for everybody, but for some it is the only way they can express themselves.

Lost & Found
Yu-Chiao Lin
Taiwan, 5’50, 2025
If life was meant to be easy there wouldn’t be so many doors for everyday torments to hide behind. But on one beautiful day everything can change.

Dollhouse Elephant
Jenny Jokela
Finland, 11’14, 2025
Jokela’s latest high energy fiesta of colour and visual havoc plunge us into a neighbourhood of inhabitants determined not to go it alone.

This session is classified: Unclassified (M) Mature, not recommended for viewers under 15 years.