We announce the line-up of the Documentary Shorts Competition of the 33rd edition of the International Film Festival of the Art of Cinematography EnergaCAMERIMAGE.
The aim of the competition is to recognize the art of documentary filmmaking as creative interpretation of reality. Putting emphasis on the visual and aesthetic aspects of the selected nonfiction entries, the jury awards the best cinematographers in the competition.
The prestige of Documentary Shorts Competition was recognized by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences which has chosen EnergaCAMERIMAGE Festival as the ACADEMY AWARD® qualifying festival in the Documentary Short Subject category. This means that the Golden Frog award winners in Documentary Shorts Competition at EnergaCAMERIMAGE will qualify for consideration in the Documentary Short Subject category of the Annual Academy Awards® without the standard theatrical run, provided that the given film complies with other Academy rules.
THE BELIEVERS
DIRECTOR: Evan Newman
CINEMATOGRAPHER: Bill Kirstein
PRODUCTION: Perceptual Studio
COUNTRY AND YEAR: Thailand, USA 2024
A tiger stalks his dreams… A woman seeks belonging… A man finds courage under the magical spell of his tattoos… Each year in Thailand, believers in Sak Yant gather for a sacred day, when personal faith erupts into mass spiritual possession. The Believers conjures a surreal, sensory window onto the unseen forces that transform us.
LANAWARU
DIRECTOR: Angello Faccini
CINEMATOGRAPHER: Angello Faccini
PRODUCTION: Violeta Films
COUNTRY AND YEAR: Colombia, Mexico, USA, 2024
Moisés, an eleven-year-old Yukuna boy, confronts the fears of the Amazon jungle seeking solace in the Indigenous traditions, healing rituals, and guidance from his grandfather which are the core of the spiritual system for conservation of the territory, and through which the local and Indigenous communities maintain a balanced relationship between people and nature.
NO MEAN CITY
DIRECTOR: Ross McClean
CINEMATOGRAPHER: Ronnie McQuillan
PRODUCTION: Sandbox Films
COUNTRY AND YEAR: UK, 2025
Two workmen and an apprentice navigate Belfast at night, replacing old sodium streetlights with LEDs. Beneath their glow, the city grapples with change as progress marches on.
PLONGEURS
DIRECTOR: Hector Aponysus
CINEMATOGRAPHER: Jaime Ackroyd
PRODUCTION: Park Pictures
COUNTRY AND YEAR: France, 2024
In Marseille, plongeurs are known for diving from extreme heights – motorways, clifftops and buildings – into the Mediterranean Sea. They are both applauded and vilified, regularly featuring in music videos, viral TikTok reels and local news, where journalists offer romantic accounts of their exploits. Each summer, a death or severe accident occurs, prompting the press to turn on the plongeurs, making them mascots for the city’s social ills, often with a thinly veiled racist subtext. The film follows these young men, many from impoverished, immigrant backgrounds, as they navigate the uneasy transition from boyhood to adulthood, revealing how this hazardous pastime helps them articulate and negotiate their complex experiences and identities.
A QUIET STORM
DIRECTOR: Benjamin Nicolas
CINEMATOGRAPHER: Alexandre Nour
PRODUCTION: Skeptic films
COUNTRY AND YEAR: Canada, Japan, 2025
In Japan, Maïto is 14 years old and has a talent that allows him to move into a world beyond his everyday limitations. Raised in a home where the needs of his disabled sister were always at the forefront, he had to find his own way to draw attention to himself. He can express himself in Krump, a dance in which he can use movement to convey his emotions and relieve stress. It is also an opportunity for him to communicate better and deepen his bond with his deaf sister. A Quiet Storm proves that words are not necessary to build valuable relationships.
VOICES FROM THE ABYSS
ORIGINAL TITLE: Las voces del despeñadero
DIRECTORS: Víctor Rejón, Irving Serrano
CINEMATOGRAPHER: Eliott Reguera Vega
PRODUCTION: Ramón Llaven
COUNTRY AND YEAR: Mexico, 2025
La Quebrada cliff divers in Acapulco, Guerrero, are a diverse group – boys, girls, young people and elders, Afro-Mexicans and Indigenous residents – who earn a living by diving from a 100-foot drop into the sea as part of a thrilling show. Voices from the Abyss explores the nature of their dives through slow-motion footage, personal testimonies and an original poem recited by the divers themselves.
WELCOME HOME FRECKLES
DIRECTOR: Huiju Park
CINEMATOGRAPHER: Benjamin Kodboel
PRODUCTION: National Film and Television School (NFTS)
COUNTRY AND YEAR: UK, 2025
For the first time in four years, a daughter returns to Daegu, South Korea, determined to end the domestic war that plagued her childhood. They have been hurting each other for years as they never learned to live harmoniously. Despite their efforts to find peace, the scars of the past remain unresolved. Through conversations with her parents, she uncovers a pattern of domestic violence deeply ingrained in her family's history. At last, she realises that only she can break this cycle.