SHIFT Film Festival 2022

We celebrate the eighth edition of the SHIFT Film Festival from september 14-18, 2022 and we do so in spite, and maybe especially because, of the crazy times that 2020 & 2021 have brought us so far.

This year’s edition of SHIFT Film Festival will run onsite in Heerlen. Filmmakers will enhance their filmmaking skills during our new, unique program Director's Village and the SHIFT Workshops. We also host the Limburg Film Pitch, where you can win a grant of €2.000. Last but not least, we have lots of short films, feature films in collaboration with Filmhuis De Spiegel and a special Ukrainian Focus.

Official selection

Below you will find an overview of the official selection of the festival in the various programs. The final selection was made by our lead programmer Alexandr Gusev (FIPRESCI journalist). During the festival, the films in the Short Film Competition have a chance to win various jury prizes. In addition to the fact that the selected makers have a chance to win various jury prizes, they participate for free in the rest of the SHIFT Film Festival program. CineSud also provides networking opportunities.

International Short Film Competition

The Short Film Competition where International films will compete for the Best Film Award and a cash prize of 250€, Special Jury Mention and a cash prize of 100€ and the Audience Award.

Return, Ghiath Al Mhitawi, Germany, 16 min

Husam is a Syrian soldier who visits his family on a 24hr leave. After a long absence, he enjoys the company and food of his mother, but there is a lump in his throat.

Phase, Mykola Zaseev, Ukraine, 20 min

10-year-old boy Yarik spends the last days of summer vacation with his grieving mother in the countryside. Playing in the woods, Yarik and his friend see a couple wandering: Yarik suspects that the woman is strangled by the man. Yarik investigates the possible murder.

The Train Driver, Christian Wittmoser & Zuniel Kim, Germany, 6 min

In the five-minute animated documentary film "The Train Driver," an anonymous train driver recounts his experience with suicide on the rails.

Visiting Ben Shemen, Miriam Harris, New Zealand, 16 min

In 1946, three young Jewish teenagers met at the palestinian Ben Shemen school, after the Holocaust and WWII. Now in their late eighties they recount the ways in which Ben Shemen offered a healing and soul-nourishing refuge.

The Peephole, Tiziana Martini, Italy, 6 min

Two women’s eyes, hidden behind the peepholes of their front doors. They both face the same hallway and see the pain of a drunken man, locked out from his wife’s house. What happens if one of the two doors opens?

In The Woods, Ilgın SaçanIn, Türkiye, 2 min

The Woods is a recorded diary of monsters living in an urban forest. Max, one enthusiastic showrunner monster boy, takes us on a tour while his best friend P. records everything.

Fanmi, Sandrine Brodeur-Desrosiers & Carmine Pierre-Dufour, Canada, 14 min

Heart-broken following a break-up, Martine receives the unexpected visit of her mother, Monique. Engrossed in sadness, Martine fails to notice that her mother is hiding something.

Prosopagnosia, Steven Fraser, United Kingdom, 10 min

Prosopagnosia means face-blindness and to understand this neurodiverse behavior, the contents of a memory box are intricately explored.

Cleaner, Edwin Mullane, Ireland, 15 min

Angela is a shy domestic cleaner. Mairead is a houseproud mother alone at home with the children. A friendship soon blooms between the two women. But is this relationship just another work-based transaction?

Shiny New World, Jan van Gorkum, The Netherlands, 9 min

Fifty-year-old Barry is a special kind of cleaner: he cleans crime scenes where demons have wreaked havoc. While shooting a promotion for his business, things quickly get out of hand.

Canary, Chrysoula Korovesi & Marios Gampierakis, Greece, 6 min

A canary is born in captivity amongst other caged birds. A coal miner is experiencing the hardships and risk of everyday labor. The two of them will meet and form a special bond.

Broken Record, Marie Seurin & Mathilde Cadrot, France, 13 min

Francis, a depressed and nostalgic thirty-year-old, can't get over his break-up and spends his time listening to an old French variety song that reminds him of his lost love.

Short Film Competition: Made in Limburg 

Limburg has so much to offer! In this competition, discover films that are produced in Limburg. The films will compete for the Best Euregion Film Award and a cash prize of €250, Special Jury Mention and a cash prize of 100€ and the Audience Award.

Undergrowth, Tim Ewalts, fiction, Belgium, 16 min

Two brothers and their father who live secluded in a forest. While their father tries to teach them how to become lumberjacks, the two are stuck in an escalating struggle for power.

Funkele, Nicole Jachmann, fiction, The Netherlands, 16 min

Fifteen-year-old Robin and her best friend Merel share everything and are inseparable. Except for Robin's budding sexuality and curiosity.

Shut, Niels Bourgonje, fiction, The Netherlands, 15 min

​​When Jonas visits his father after a long time, he's shocked to find him in a confused state. Has his father's mental state badly deteriorated or is something more sinister going on?

Dick, Kiki Henger, fiction, The Netherlands, 7 min

When Ben tries to hold his brother back from making the wrong choices, the opposite happen.