Hot Water

On a tram ride along the coastline, Robin looks back on her turbulent relationship with Ada. Unspoken words are all that’s left, the broken pieces cut like glass. But why are they not sharp enough?

Rachid, a 21-year-old keen young man of Moroccan descent, has one goal: to find a job. He confidently applies for a job as dishwasher in a restaurant, which to him seems like a job anyone can do. But it soon turns out that all is not as simple as he imagined.

In a clean-cut suit, briefcase firmly in hand and a shiny pink piggy bank under his arm, Kamiel Maes, a groundskeeper for the parks department, stands at the door of the five-star hotel. The sliding doors open and the luxurious lobby appears. Whereas in everyday life Kamiel works in the park in front of the hotel and sees one Mercedes after another drive up, his savings have ensured that today he is standing on the other side of the door. In an overenthusiastic mood, Kamiel waltzes through the world of money and business. While everything seemed like a utopia to Kamiel, it turns out to be more of a world of unhappiness. Happiness proves to be relative, and the scents and colors of plants and flowers remain Kamiel's happy home.

The story of Tom, an adolescent who learns to cope with his sexuality. Which is not always easy.

Boys on Film presents ten encounters from across the globe, where the dangerous allure of a risky attraction yields emotional results — proving that the age-old adage of taking the plunge is as relevant — and sexy — as ever before. The 10 short films are: My Uncle's Friend [O Amigo do Meu Tio] (2021); Budapest, Closed City [Budapest, zárt város] (2021); Eden (2020); Chaperone (2022); Break Me [Knus meg] (2018); By His Will [שעשני כרצונו] (2021); Red Ants Bite (2019); Jim (2022); Hornbeam (2022); Too Rough (2022).

Jasper, a 20 something playboy with little empathy, has a date in a rather obscure motel Petit Ami with Vincent, a mysterious older man. For Jasper just another day on the job, until he discovers Vincent's secret.

Jasper a 20 year old boy, on the edge of adulthood, wanders around lost in the Port of Ghent. Fragments of a phone call betray a loss.

Golden boys, teen lust, self-conscious dolls, chance encounters, a vengeful creature, holiday romance, hidden sexuality — Boys On Film celebrates it's (not so) sweet sixteen with an astonishing selection of the latest international gay short films. Volume 16: Possession features ten complete films: Kai Stänicke's "Golden" with Christian Tesch and Maximilian Gehrlinger; Christopher Manning's "Jamie" starring Sebastian Christophers and Raphael Verrion; Kai Stänicke's "B." starring Susanne Bormann and Andreas Jähnert; Blake Mawson's "PYOTR495" starring Alex Ozerov; Charlie Francis's "When A Man Loves A Woman" starring Tommy Jay Brennan, Jemima Spence, and Diane Brooks Webster; Anthony Schatteman's "Follow Me" starring Ezra Fieremans and Maarten Ketels; Jake Graf's "Chance" starring 'ABS' and Clifford Hume; Andrew Keenan-Bolger's "Sign" starring John McGinty and Preston Sadleir; Oliver Mason's "Away With Me" starring Chris Polick and Lee Knight; and "We Could Be Parents" by Björn Elgerd.

A restless young man roves in the gay hotspots of a metropolis. Anonymous places dressed in mirrors, intense colors and kitschy decors are the landscape for this stranger in search of comfort, connection and himself.

The night is blue and the moon is yellow. A renowned private eye is hired to observe a lonesome pianist.

Amidst an icy dreamscape, a woman takes refuge in a black metal karaoke bar. Outside, she finds a lone penguin stranded in a tree, cut off from its colony.

Agadez, a desert city in northern Niger, is weighed down by geopolitical interests and the harsh European border policy. The filmmaker weaves testimonies of three courageous women who each, in their own way, try to confront this reality. They speak about their work, their role in the community, and how they put solidarity into practice. Their inspiring stories offer a glimpse of a feminism that is not theoretical, but rooted in everyday life—a feminism that is truly practiced and lived.

While separating peanuts from their shells, the women in a collective in Agadez, Niger, talk to each other about the men passing by and the filmmaker being present. Focusing on their working hands, the camera reveals the harsh conditions of these women’s daily lives.

Three moody geraniums take control over their fate and plan their escape from the windowsill they spent their entire boring life on.