Finlandia

The ‘Muxes’ are a unique group of people in Oaxaca state in Mexico. They are an example of a third gender, and proof that gender norms are a lot more fluid than what we might think.
“Finlandia” is a spectacular film about a community not many people know. Marta is a fashion designer who is assigned to explore this vibrant muxes community for ideas for a new fashion line of a high fashion company. She pretends to be a curious Spanish tourist and befriends the heads of the community, while hiding her real intentions. As the friendship between Marta and her new acquaintances becomes stronger, she begins to question the integrity of her assignment.
In his debut film, director Horacio Alcalà brings to the big screen the breathtaking views of the southern Mexican desert and combines artistic and visual cinema with a sweeping melodrama full of love for the Muxes community.

In association with the Embassy of Mexico

Becoming Charlie

Becoming Charlie” is a short web-series about a search for identity.
Discovering their non-binary identity takes not only Charlie, but everyone close to them out of their comfort zone, and shakes up some seemingly unshakeable truths.
Charlie, in their early 20’s, are still living with their mother Rowena, who has no control over her own life or finances, both she and Charlie move from one job to the next. It seems the only let out for Charlie is rap music. Charlie is working as a courier and realises more and more that everyone’s expectations of them don’t resonate with what they’re feeling. On top of that, there’s tension in the family – Rowena’s sister Fabia tries to collect some old overdue debts and causes a chain reaction.
Charlie finds themselves wondering more and more “Where do we belong?”

Courtesy of ZDF

In association with Goethe Institut

Neon Spring

Laine is 20 years old and loves techno rave parties. Her parents are each deep in their own world and barely speak to each other. Even though she lives with her father, she is the one taking care of her mischievous younger brother. Laine yearns to connect with her emotionally distant father, but mostly gets a cold shoulder. She finds release in the underground techno scene of Riga. There Laine meets young men and women who are just like her and even falls in love. The more things turn bleak at home, the more Laine gets swallowed by the party scene and puts herself and those close to her in danger.
Neon Spring” is a coming of age film about finding your place in the world, looking to belong and the desperate need for human connection. Even though the film deals with complex issues, its approach is fresh, daring and very surprising, considering its country of origin.
Portraying Laine is the very impressive Marija Luize Melke, who also co-wrote the script with director Matiss Kaza. The result is an unapologetic and complex youth experience.

Viewing is 18+ due to to scenes of sexual violence and drug abuse.

Director in attendance.

El Houb – The Love

In “El Houb – The Love” we meet Karim, a Moroccan-Dutch successful businessman, who decides to come out to his conservative Muslim parents after an ultimatum from his partner. In order to make them listen to him, he barricades himself in the family home pantry, the closet with household appliances, canned food and the main electric board. While he’s hiding in the closet, Karim relives childhood memories, negotiates with his partner and participates in a long overdue battle with his parents and brother trying to change their conservative attitudes.
El Houb – The Love” is loosely based on the real life experiences and theater work of Fahd Larhzaoui who portrays Karim.
Lovely guest appearances by Lubna Azabal (“Incendies”, “Tel Aviv on Fire”) as Karim’s tough and traditional mother who keeps trying to feed him Moroccan sweets even while threatening to disown him, and by Slimane Dazi, the French-Moroccan actor as Karim’s sensitive father.
El Houb – The Love” is a film that is all heart.

8 Years


Please be aware – the screening is NOT in Tel-Aviv Cinematheque.


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Spanish dramatic comedy “8 Years” takes us to the breathtaking views of the Canary Islands and raises the question “How do you get over your true love? “.
Jose considers David to be the love of his life, but when David breaks up with him after eight years together, Jose is haunted by memories of their relationship. Those memories take him back to the place where the two met, and back to the past that wasn’t as ideal as he remembered.

Miguel Diosdado and Carlos Mestanza are wonderful as Jose and David, as well as guest appearances by the legendary Isabelle Torres (from the mini-series “Veneno”), in her last role before her death, and by the Netflix star Sergio Momo (“Elite”, “Welcome to Eden”, “The Neighbour”), who steals the show as a sexy mobster.

Viewing is 18+.

In association with 

Easy Tiger

Easy Tiger” is an intimate portrait of vulnerable masculinity, during an unstoppable romance.
An unexpected moment during a session with a new client confronts a psychologist with his inner world. For a long time he’s been feeling alienated and lonely in his relationship and perfect city life. For the first time his basic human nature bubbles up and he can’t control his desires, and that forces him to see what he doesn’t want to become in order to find out who he really is.
In his debut feature film, director Karel Tuytschaever deconstructs cinematic language and the media of picture and sound in order to create a unique and first of it kind cinematic experience.

Viewing is 18+ due to explicit nudity.

Jezabel

Venzuelian director Hernan Jabes’ third film is a bold and surprising erotic psychological thriller.
In a country where political chaos reigns, a group of upper class privileged youth – Lolo, Caca, Eli and Alan, live carelessly amongst drugs, sex and petty crimes, until one day Eli is brutally murdered. 16 years later Alan is experiencing a beautiful romance with an author who specialises in unsolved murders. The memories start to resurface and the haze of drugs alcohol dissipates and reveals an unexpected truth.
Jezabel” is a film that keeps the audience on the edge of their seats, with many surprising turns and twists and gives us a dazzling performance by Gabriel Agüero as Alan.

Viewing is 18+ due to explicit sex scenes.

Camila Comes Out Tonight

Camila’s entire world is thrown into a spin when her mother moves the family to Buenos Aires. She starts attending a new school, million miles away from her liberal world view. Politically opinionated Camila is like a breath of fresh air to the other students and she quickly draws the attention of fun loving Bruno and Clara. Even though Bruno is nothing like the boys Camila dated in the past, it’s the flaming haired Clara that invokes something stronger in Camila’s heart. But Camila is unaware that Clara has a secret that can ruin their budding relationship before it even begins.
Director Inés Barrionuevo brilliantly captured the teen spirit in all its chaotic glory, and actress Nina Dziembrowski is absolutely mesmerizing as Camila.

We Will Never Belong

Adolescence can be tough, especially for young queer girls who haven’t yet fully formed and accepted their identity. Emi recently discovered that her mother is in a loving relationship with another woman and she’s not handling it well. She leaves her mother and returns to her birthplace to live with her father and his new family and spends more time with her maternal grandmother. Everything there is a lot less confusing until her intriguing step-sister shows up. Soon Emi realizes why she’s been having such a hard time dealing with her mother choosing to live her life freely.
We Will Never Belong” delicately traces the journey of one girl to find her truth. Director Amelia Eloisa’s debut film does that with plenty of style and grace.

Director in attendance

Chrissy Judy

Everyone has this friend that can’t seem to get their life in order, but you can’t help loving them despite the trail of mess they leave in their wake. For 30-something drag queen Chrissy it’s her BFF Judy, a perpetually messy drag queen who always drinks more cocktails than she should. After spending years in the bar scene of New York, Judy is convinced that this summer their drag show will get the break they’ve been waiting for, but Chrissy has different priorities, which force a very disappointed Judy to take a hard look on her own life as a drag artist and rediscover her true self.
This dark comedy gives us a glimpse into the underbelly of queer culture and struggles gay men face in the pursuit of love, acceptance, romance and identity. While exploring the universal pain of drifting apart from your best friend, the question of “What do you do when the family you’ve chosen doesn’t choose you back anymore?” arises.