Belgium

CHILDISH FILMS SHORTS - recommended for all ages
A shoe-wearing shell, a bird that whistles, a cat that boogies, free-range bacon and eggs, a lost thing, a soccer player, and a flying Leonardo Da Vinci, and the Childish Films stop-motion trailer made at MSPIFF last year.

Alexandre Dumas’ legendary, prolific, but eventually tumultuous relationship with his ghostwriter August Maquet is beautifully examined in a film that puts Oscar-nominated actor Gerard Depardieu back full-blown in his bountiful persona as the celebrated French author.

recommended for age 5+

This beautifully hand-drawn (English language) animated feature from France’s animation studio, Folimage, is a deservedly popular thriller for kids--currently being nominated for major animated feature awards.  

The seedy underbelly of Antwerp's criminal world is exposed in this Flemish thriller from Jan Verheyen.  This stylish film is a start to finish joyride that follows Nazim Tahiri in his quest to avenge his father's death at the hands of the Albanian mafia. All the while the Belgian police are searching for a way to bring the syndicate to justice.  

In the midst of civil war in war-weary Chad, elderly Adam (Youssouf Djaoro) battles for his job tending a swimming pool in a luxury hotel.  Ex-swimming champion, he is demoted from his position and replaced by his son. Overwhelmed with feelings of resentment, he makes a fateful decision that he'll have to live with for the rest of his life. 

A smart and lighthearted feature in the vein of Love Actually that blends everyday scenes with Amélie-esque theatrics, this quirky romantic comedy is a roller coaster ride of first crushes, lustful desire, infidelity, baby fever, and enduring love.  Set in Antwerp, the film centers on the four women of the Miller family who attract men like bees to honey. But once these men are in, there may be no way out.

Winner of the SACD Prize in the Director’s Fortnight competition at Cannes Film Festival and the Belgian entry for Best Foreign Language Film at the Academy Awards. 

What might have been a delightful shot across the bow of domineering Hollywood studios, however, falls a bit short. - Hollywood Reporter

This hilarious mockumentary on the entertainment industry by Belgian writer/director Frédéric Sojcher takes a stiff-fingered jab at both Hollywood and the U.S. government at the same time probing European cinema’s forgotten past.