International Short Film Screenings

A curated selection of three cutting-edge short films showcasing diverse voices, techniques, and perspectives in animation from across the globe including the 2024 Oscar®-nominated film, ‘Letter to a Pig’. Featuring a exclusive recorded discussion with "Letter to a Pig" director, Tal Kantor.



italy

In Quanto a Noi (As for Us)

Directed by: Simone Massi

Rating: PG

In quanto a noi (As for us) is narrated by the voice of the German director Wim Wenders and is inspired by the poem “We studied for the afterlife” by the Italian poet Eugenio Montale. Simone Massi realizes a “video-poem” on the Italian nightmares of the XX century history: poverty, war, political terrorism. To wake up from that nightmare, the only solution is to realize that everybody is “already dead without knowing it”.

italy

The Meatseller

Directed by: Margherita Giusti

Rating: PG-13 [Consumer Advice: Some Nudity]

The Meatseller is the true story of Selinna Ajamikoko, a young Nigerian woman who dreams of becoming a meatseller like her mom. In order to achieve her dream, she begins her voyage towards Italy, an experience full of atrocity and inhumanity. This animated journey, led by Selinna’s own voice, guides us through the quest for identity that characterizes every human being.

Margherita started her carrier as storyboard artist and assistant director in Rome. In 2020, she graduated from Centro Sperimentale di Cinematografia’s animation department in Turin, with the animated documentary “En Rang Par Deux”, co-directed with Elisabetta Bosco and Viola Mancini. She is co-founder of the collective Muta animation.

ISRAEL/FRANCE

Letter to a Pig

Directed by: Tal Kantor

Rating: PG

A Holocaust survivor reads a letter he wrote to the pig who saved his life. A young schoolgirl hears his testimony in class and sinks into a twisted dream where she confronts questions of identity, collective trauma, and the extremes of human nature.

Tal Kantor [b. 1988] is an award-winning animation filmmaker & visual artist. Graduated with honors from the 'Bezalel Academy of Arts and Design, Jerusalem', ‘where she currently lectures at the Screen-Based Arts Department. In her works, Tal deals with the subject of Memory and uses a unique technique she has developed, which combines drawing, photography, video, painting, and animation.

“Letter to a Pig”, which won the “Excellence Award” at the Japan Media Arts Festival and The Best 1st Film Award at Animafest Zagreb (2022), is her debut film.