Ascent of a Woman - Live Action Documentaries 2

Festival
PÖFF Shorts 2020
Programme
Doc@Shorts

What do you think about when you think about women? Do we yield to the stereotypes proffered by a society that often has many ways in which it should catch up to modern times? Or do we look beyond to frame experience in a new way? The Ascent of a Woman takes the viewer on a journey with women who can be vulnerable but refuse to give in to circumstances as they break the mould and speak their truth. Sometimes they are the quiet superheroes of the everyday. But if needed, they can also be kind, proud and loving lionesses, protecting each other and those in need.

Films

World premiere

MAMA

Local title
Emme
Director
Pablo de la Chica
Country
Spain
Year
2020

Following the daily routine of a young woman who works at the Lwiro Chimpanzee Sanctuary in the Democratic Republic of the Congo, the film explores unconditional love as a source of healing and hope.

Director
Pablo de la Chica
Runtime
Language
Spanish, French

Baltic premiere

They go gentle into that night work

Local title
Öötöö zen
Original title
Yötyön Zen
Director
Soile Mottisenkangas
Country
Finland
Year
2020

A short film on the nocturnal rhythm of grunt work. A mail carrier, a plate rolling operator and a train driver arrive at the scene of their night shifts. This portrait depicts how they embrace the sphere of their posts. The mechanical repetition eases them into relaxation like a form of meditation.

Director
Soile Mottisenkangas
Runtime
Language
Finnish

International premiere

Lora

Local title
Lora
Director
Mari Moraga
Country
Brazil
Year
2020

In the largest city of Brazil, Lora is a free woman and full of presence, who reveals another way to think about the situation of homeless people.

Director
Mari Moraga
Runtime
Language
Portuguese

Baltic premiere

The Beekeeper

Local title
Mesinik
Director
William McGregor
Country
United Kingdom
Year
2020

A beekeeper on the island of Anglesey faces losing her ancestral home to the development of a nuclear power plant.

Director
William McGregor
Runtime
Language
English

International premiere

AMALGAMATION

Local title
Amalgamation
Director
Sylvia Nicolaides, Nicolas Iordanou
Country
Cyprus
Year
2020

Traditional music always suspends in time over every culture. From time to time, groups or individuals gravitate towards traditional music, approaching it with sensitivity and also courage to adapt it and bring it in the now for us to revisit and be re-introduced to it. The all-female choir 'Amalgamation' is giving traditional Cypriot and Mediterranean music the breath of today with the respect and the love it deserves, dealing cultural heritage, history, femininity, the musical traditions of the Mediterranean, and how many common elements we actually have uniting us, rather than dividing us.

Director
Sylvia Nicolaides, Nicolas Iordanou
Runtime
Language
Greek