11th edition CIFF – 9-13 April 2025

A Different Man

A dramedy about Edward Lemuel (Sebastian Stan), a shy and sensitive man living with facial disfigurement caused by neurofibromatosis. Edward’s only work to date has been acting in an instructional video about treating co-workers with facial disfigurements.

All We Imagine As Light

Three nurses live in modern-day Mumbai: Prabha (Kani Kusruti) and roommates Anu (Divya Prabha) and Parvati (Chhaya Kadam). Having moved from smaller towns to the bustling metropolis, each woman must find her own way of adapting to the city and dealing with new experiences and emotions.

Anora

Sean Baker, well-known to CIFF audiences for The Florida Project, returns with Anora, a Palme d’Or-winning film that is equal parts screwball Cinderella tale and edgy Pretty Woman.

Belle de Jour

The 50th anniversary release of Luis Buñuel’s dark, beautiful, and somewhat surreal tale demonstrates the film’s enduring significance. Séverine (Catherine Deneuve, then 27 years old) is married to the handsome surgeon Pierre (Jean Soire); they look like the ideal couple on the surface. Their apartment shows exquisite taste; everything has its place, but Pierre’s place is not in his wife’s bed.

Bird

A story of children raising children. The complete absence of anything resembling structure is normal for them. Bird is told from the viewpoint of 12-year-old Bailey (Nykiya Adams), who is growing up in an unconventional family with her brother, Hunter (Jason Buda). Their extravagantly tattooed father, Bud (Barry Keoghan), is a pretty good dad – if only because he actually talks to his kids.

Boléro

France, Italy | 1967 | 101 min | French | e.s. Previous Next Boléro offers a free interpretation of the life of Maurice Ravel (1875–1937).

Conclave

A tense papal election thriller filled with humor and suspense, Conclave boasts a top-tier cast, including Ralph Fiennes, Stanley Tucci, John Lithgow, and Isabella Rossellini. Following the death of the Pope, the search for a new leader reveals the divisions within the conclave, as factions compete to either push Catholicism forward or pull it back.

Critical Zone

Another film from Iran that had to be shot clandestinely. Drug dealer Amir (Amir Poosti) roams the streets of Tehran, supplying his clients. Living alone with his horny bulldog, Mr. Fred, his nightly journeys take him to the most unexpected places, where he encounters a diverse array of people from all walks of life: a yoga teacher, transgender prostitutes, a hospital patient, and flight attendants who double as drug mules.

Firebrand

USA | 2023 | 120 min | English | d.s. Previous Next Firebrand is a historical drama based on the novel “Queen’s Gambit” by Elizabeth

Hard Truths

United Kingdom, Spain | 2024 | 97 min | English | d.s. Previous Next A deeply sober, compassionate drama about an Afro-Caribbean family with flashes

How to Make Millions Before Grandma Dies

A heartwarming and deeply moving story set in Bangkok, How to Make Millions Before Grandmother Dies explores the complexities of family relationships, sacrifices, and generational differences.

Il pleut dans la maison

An intimate portrait of life in the poorer parts of Belgium’s southern half. The responsible teenagers Purdey (Purdey Lombet) and her younger brother, Makenzy (Makenzy Lombet), have to take care of their alcoholic and egocentric mother. During a long, hot summer, Purdey and Makenzy are left completely to their own devices.

Invisible Beauty

USA | 2024 | doc | 111 min | English | d.s. Previous Next Invisible Beauty chronicles the life and legacy of top model and

La Prisonnière de Bordeaux

Welcome back, Isabelle Huppert! In this offbeat drama, La Prisonnière de Bordeaux explores an unexpected friendship between two women from vastly different social classes. Alma (Isabelle Huppert) is wealthy, while Mina (Hafsia Herzi) struggles to make ends meet. Their lives intersect in the waiting room of a prison, where both have come to visit their incarcerated partners.

LaRoy, Texas

In a small Texas town, mistaken identity and infidelity set the stage for LaRoy, Texas. Ray (John Magaro), broke and despondent, is mistakenly identified as a dangerous hitman and handed an envelope full of cash. With his friend Skip (Steve Zahn) by his side, Ray must outrun the real hitman to survive and escape LaRoy.

Lee

USA | 2024 | 116 min | English | d.s. Previous Next Lee offers a compelling, partial biographical portrayal of American model-turned-war-photographer Lee Miller (Kate

Memory

Usa, Mexico | 2024 | English | 100 min. | d.s. Previous Next Sylvia (Jessica Chastain) works at a public home in New York for

Miséricorde

France, Spain | 2024 | French| 102 min. | e.s. Previous Next A young man, Jérémie (Félix Kysyl), returns to his sleepy hometown of Saint

My Favourite Cake

Once again, the Iranian government has gone to extremes to prevent the distribution of this film. Production facilities were raided; computers, hard drives, and other materials were confiscated. Fortunately, the filmmakers had a copy stored in another country. The film’s gentle humanity is a compelling rebuke to this ruthless repression.

My First Film

USA | 2024 | English | 100 min. | n.s. Previous Next In this deeply personal work, which Anger calls “giving birth to yourself,” we

No Other Land

A documentary created by a Palestinian-Israeli team that sheds light on the ongoing destruction of Masafer Yatta, a cluster of villages in the southern West Bank of Palestine. The film presents shocking and unsettling footage of homes and a school being dismantled, revealing the impact of military oppression on daily life.

Oddity

The first horror film ever to be screened at a CIFF film festival, Oddity immediately takes you on a gripping, creepy, well-paced, and chilling journey. Living up to its name, the film features excellent cinematography and perfect audio effects that heighten the tension in every scene of this Irish horror-clairvoyant-detective story.

Poison

Luxembourg, Netherlands | 2024 | English | 89 min. | d.s. Previous Next Based on the award-winning play by Dutch writer Lot Vekemans*, a scheme

Quand vient l’automne

France | 2024 | French | 103 min. | e.s. Previous Next A perfect actor’s film set in an intimate film noir. Michelle, now retired,

Queer

A story about love, lost love, and mad-about-the-boy obsession. Based on the autobiographical novel by William Burroughs. William Lee (Daniel Craig) lives cheaply in Mexico City after the Second World War, haunting bars, needy, horny, and moody.

Santosh

United Kingdom, India | 2024 | Hindi | 128 min. | e.s. Previous Next A masterful and intricately woven Hindi police procedural, Santosh exposes the

Small Things Like These

Ireland | 2024 | English | 98 min. | d.s. Previous Next The film, adapted from the Booker Prize-nominated novel by Claire Keegan, reveals the

Sujo

Mexico | 2025 | Spanish | 127 min. | e.s. Previous Next When a cartel gunman is killed, he leaves behind Sujo, his beloved four-year-old

The Last Showgirl

A film about family, friendship, and aging, as well as a homage to the nightlife working class.

The Room Next Door

In Almodóvar’s first English-language feature, scripted by himself and adapted from the novel What Are You Going Through, we experience a layered and characteristic Almodóvar film.

The Third Man

Set in post-World War II Vienna, this thriller – restored to mark its 75th anniversary – is widely regarded as one of cinema’s undisputed masterpieces. The Third Man is a masterclass in black-and-white storytelling, seamlessly blending classic film noir elements with a city teeming with spies, shadows, and secrets.

Un Cuento de Pescadores

Mexico | 2024 | Spanish, Purepecha | 103 min. | e.s. Previous Next A horror story that intertwines four tales set on a fishing island

When Evil Lurks

Argentina, USA | 2023 | Spanish| 100 min. | e.s. Previous Next The film initially appears to be a straightforward but masterfully structured possession story.