This triptych tale of a family in turmoil is equal parts incredibly moving and scabrously funny, Matthias Glasner’s award-winning drama may be called Dying, but it’s really a celebration of the messiness of life.
Festival Programme
Films — by Genre
- Activism
- Americana
- Animals
- Based on Books
- Body and Mind
- Cannes
- Comedy
- Coming of Age
- Crime
- Documentary
- Education
- Environment
- Family Ties
- Feminism
- Horror
- Human Rights
- Indigenous
- LGBTQIA+
- Love Stories
- Media and the Internet
- Music
- Māori/Pacific
- Politics
- Rebellion
- Refugee and Migrant Stories
- Religion
- Rural Life
- Sci-Fi
- Science & Technology
- Sports and Gaming
- Stylistic
- Thriller
- Travel
- WTF?
- War Zones
- Women Make Docs
- Women Make Features
- Youth
Comedy
Head South
Christchurch-born filmmaker Jonathan Ogilvie returns home for this evocative coming-of-age story that brilliantly captures the feeling of growing up weird in the Garden City. Starring Ed Oxenbould, Márton Csókás and featuring Stella Bennett aka Benee in her acting debut, Head South will be our Opening Night film for the Christchurch leg of the festival.
Humanist Vampire Seeking Consenting Suicidal Person
Vampire humaniste cherche suicidaire consentant
A sensitive vampire meets a depressed teenage boy in this deadpan romantic comedy about two loners connecting.
In Restless Dreams: The Music of Paul Simon
Paul Simon is that rare popular artist who has produced vital music across seven decades. Drawing on archives and intimate new footage, this comprehensive documentary examines the creative career of a lifelong seeker.
Kneecap
Belfast’s own Beastie Boys become unlikely figureheads of the Irish Language Act in this madcap biopic of sex, drugs, and Gaelic rap.
The Monk and the Gun
Is “political freedom” worth the cost of familial or social discord? When Bhutan’s king abdicates in favour of democratic reform, a strange series of events unfolds, where the old and the new collide in wondrous fashion.
My Favourite Cake
Keyke mahboobe man
A lonely but fiercely determined 70-year-old widow takes second chance on love in this charming and funny yet politically subversive romance from Iran.
New Zealand's Best 2024
The year’s best New Zealand short films as chosen by guest selector, Gerard Johnstone.
Ngā Whanaunga Māori Pasifika Shorts 2024
Support these Māori and Pasifika films at screenings all across the motu.
We Were Dangerous
Earning director Josephine Stewart-Te Whiu the Special Jury Prize for Filmmaking at SXSW this year, this electric debut launches our festival with a fiery trio of delinquent schoolgirls railing against the colonial system in 1950s New Zealand.