In a dark, isolated home, a Chinese American teenage girl lives under the strict control of her mother, who treats punishment as care and obedience as survival. As the girl’s compulsive hair-pulling turns into a secret obsession, the tension between them builds toward a violent confrontation.
Nominee
Parallel Gazes
Madeleine, Jean-Jacques, and Félicien orchestrate a car theft to break free from their financial and social constraints. During the act, they kill a witness, drawing the public’s attention. Hunted by all, this decision leads them down a bewildering path between love and violence, one they can no longer control.
Beyond the Mountains
A brilliant student from a poor rural family arrives in the city for university, only to be scammed and left homeless. As he struggles to survive by scavenging, unaware that the entire city is searching for him, his acts of kindness quietly ripple through society. Beyond the Mountains is a powerful story of resilience, misunderstanding, and the quiet strength of human compassion.
Sash Window
A female musician attempting to cross the Iranian border by land, gets arrested by the police because of an exit ban. The events during her detainment inspire her for her new musical piece.
How to Rebury Your Friend
When a factory acquires their hometown’s graveyard, two men return to rebury their dead friend—only to dig straight into a tug-of-war between locals and the factory.
Tomoshibi
The 2011 Japan tsunami survivors. Walls stand as reminders, separating humanity from the sea. The film explores adaptation to life with these barriers, reflecting on the relationship between man and nature.