Films by emerging talents and established auteurs, including the likes of Neo Sora, Marta Popivoda, Abdellah Taïa, Salvatore Mereu and Radu Muntean, are part of the 2025 edition of the Locarno Film Festival‘s Pardi di Domani program, its short and medium-length selection, which was unveiled Tuesday.
Locarno calls its Pardi di Domani section “a vital space for expressive experimentation and innovative forms of cinematic poetry” and “a cornerstone” of its mission “to foster dialogue between generations and traditions and to support the filmmakers who will define the future of cinematic expression.”
The edition at this year’s 78th edition of Locarno features 40 world premieres across three competitions and 25 countries, “offering audiences a glimpse into the possible pathways the cinema of the future might take.”
In the Concorso Internazionale and the Concorso Nazionale, fresh voices find their first international expression, international and Swiss, respectively, while the Concorso Corti d’Autore highlights “how filmmakers, well-versed in feature-length storytelling, draw creative strength and inspiration from the short form,” the fest emphasized.
The latter this year includes the likes of Mongolian filmmaker Lkhagvadulam Purev-Ochir, Italian director Salvatore Mereu, acclaimed Japanese filmmaker Neo Sora, award-winning Moroccan writer Abdellah Taïa, Serbo-Croatian duo Matija Gluščević and Dušan Zorić, Laotian director Mattie Do, Canada’s Ryan McKenna, Romanian filmmaker Radu Muntean and Katharina Huber, the German director who won the best emerging director award at Locarno in 2023 for her feature Ein schöner Ort.
Said Giona A. Nazzaro, artistic director of the Locarno Film Festival: “The program of the Pardi di Domani has not only gained an ever-growing following over the years, but has also established itself as one of the unmissable events for lovers of short cinema. A breeding ground for experimentation and creative joy that continues to reap successes and launch authors ready to make a fruitful mark on contemporary cinema.”
Eddie Bertozzi, head of the Pardi di Domani selection committee, lauded “a selection of bold films that plunge us into the heart of today’s most pressing tensions.” He added: “Featuring both established voices and striking new discoveries, this program sparks a dialogue between diverse cinematic experiences and offers a radical invitation to rethink identity, bodies, and conflict from fresh and provocative perspectives.”
The films in Pardi di Domani will be eligible for a range of awards. The full lineup follows.
Concorso Corti d’Autore
A VERY STRAIGHT NECK by Neo Sore – Japan, China – 2025
World Premiere
CAIRO STREETS by Abdellah -rata – France – 2025
World Premiere
HISTERIÖNI NAPAD SMEHA (HYSTERICAL FIT OF LAUGHTER) by Duöan Zorié, Matija Gluööevié – Serbia, Croatia – 2025
World Premiere
INDEX by Radu Muntean — Romania — 2025
World Premiere
NANG NORN (THE SLEEPING BEAUTY) by Mattie Do – USA, Laos, Thailand -2025
World Premiere
SLET 1988 by Marta Popivoda — Germany, France, Serbia — 2025
World Premiere
SOLITUDES by Ryan McKenna – Canada – 2025
World Premiere
SPÄTERNTE (LATE HARVEST) by Katharine Huber – Germany – 2025
World Premiere
SU CANE EST SU MIU (THE DOG IS MY DOG) by Salvatore Mereu – Italy -2025
UNE FENETRE PI-EIN SUD (A SOUTH FACING WINDOW) by Lkhagvadulam PurevOchir — France, Mongolia — 2025
World premiere
Concorso Internazionale
BAISANOS by Andrés Khamis Giacoman, Francisca Khamis Giacoman — Chile, Spain,
Palestine — 2025
World Premiere
BLEIFREI 95 (UNLEADED 95) by Emma Hütt, Tina Emy Muffler -Austria, Germany —
2025
World Premiere
BLIND, INS AUGE (BLIND, INTO THE EYE) by Atefeh Kheirabadi, Mehrad Sepahnia Germany, Iran — 2025
BOA by Alexandre Dostie — Canada, France — 2025
World Premiere
CE QU’ON LAISSE DERRIÉRE (WHAT WE LEAVE BEHIND) by Alexandra Myotte, JeanSébastien Hamel – Canada – 2025
World Premiere
DIE UNIFORMIERTEN (THE UNIFORMED) by Timon Ott -Germany -2025
World Premiere
ELDORADO by Anton Bialas – France – 2025
World Premiere
FORCE TIMES DISPLACEMENT by Angel WU -Taiwan — 2025
World Premiere
HONEY, MY LOVE, SO SWEET by UT Trinidad – Philippines — 2025
World Premiere
HYENA by Altay Ulan Yang – USA – 2025
World Premiere
JOLIE PETITE HISTOIRE (HAPPILY EVER AFTER) by Elodie Beaumont -rarillon France – 2025
KOZE! (GOATS!) by -ronéi Gaéina – Croatia, France – 2025
World Premiere
PI-ÄNCTON (PLANCTON) by Irene Moray – Spain, France – 2025
World Premiere
POI-UOTOK (PENINSULA) by David Gaöo – Croatia – 2025
World Premiere
PRIMERA ENSENANZA (PRIMARY EDUCATION) by Aria Sénchez, Marina Meira Cuba, Spain — 2025
World Premiere
RANDAGHI by Enrico Motti, Emanuele Motti – Italy – 2025
World Premiere
STILL PLAYING by Mohamed Mesbah – France – 2025
World Premiere
UN CIE’ BAS (A SKY SO LOW) by Joachim Michaux – Belgium, France – 2025
World Premiere
UNA VEZ EN UN CUERPO (ONCE IN A BODY) by Maria Cristina Pérez Gonzélez Colombia, USA – 2025
World Premiere
YOYO by Mohammadreza Mayghani – Iran, France -2025
World Premiere
Concorso Nazionale
AIR HORSE ONE by Lasse Linder – Switzerland, Belgium -2025
World Premiere
ICH BIN NICHT SICHER (I’M NOT SURE) – Luisa Zürcher – Switzerland — 2025
World Premiere
I-IAVANT-POSTE 21 by Camille Surdez – Switzerland – 2025
World Premiere
LES DIEUX (THE GODS) by Anas Sareen – Switzerland – 2025
LOST TOUCH by Justine Klaiber — Switzerland — 2025
World Premiere
NEST by Stefania Burla — Switzerland — 2025
World Premiere
NOIRS MATINS (BLACK MORNINGS) by David Gonseth – Switzerland – 2025
World Premiere
O RIO DE JANEIRO CONTINUA I-INDO (RIO REMAINS BEAUTIFUL) by Felipe Casanova — Belgium, Brazil, Switzerland — 2025
World Premiere
TUSEN TONER by Francesco Poloni – Switzerland – 2025
World Premiere
YONNE by Julietta Korbel, Yan Ciszewski – Switzerland, France -2025
World Premiere