Dom
Xavi Herrero, 19’ , Spain, 2025
Daroga is a Dom, one of the lowest castes in India. He works in the public crematoriums of Manikarnika, in Varanasi. He hates his job but is trapped by the country’s caste system and doubts a religion and society that imprisons him without allowing him to prosper in life.
Biography:
A Catalan filmmaker and producer who has lived in Ibiza since 2014, the year he abandoned his professional career in Barcelona, focusing on TV-3 and other production companies such as El Terrat and Dorna, among many others. In 2016, he created Ibizacinefest, the Ibiza International Independent Film Festival, which he continues to direct today and is currently preparing for its 9th edition. At the same time, he produces and directs four feature films related to the island of Ibiza. “Moonface. A Woman at War” won a Silver Bizanga at the 2019 Malaga Film Festival and the Audience Award in the Affirming Women’s Rights section.
🎬 03/10/2025 🕒 17:30-19:00 📍 Goya Cinema
Evacuate or Die
Elias Hissa, 19’52” , Lebanon, 2025
As danger closes in, Alaa is forced to leave his lifelong home in Beirut’s southern suburb. Now, living in a modest rented house, with nothing to do and nowhere to go due to the war. He becomes obsessed with the news, and his anxiety grows between the escalating aggressions in his country and the fear of losing the family home his father once entrusted to him.
Biography:
Elias Hissa is a Lebanese film director, born on September 18, 1989, in Metn, originally from Halba, North Lebanon. He holds a bachelor’s degree in Audiovisual Arts from AKU-Lebanon and began his career at the age of 21.
With experience in campaigns, music videos, and TV shows, he has worked as a director and editor for several renowned Arab production companies, including MBC Group, Endemol, Imagic Group, Different Production, and Blue Engine Studios.
Currently, Elias is pursuing a master’s degree in Cinema and Television at USEK-Lebanon. Inspired by cinematic greats such as Jim Jarmusch, the Dardenne Brothers, David Lynch and Andrei Tarkovsky, he aims to create films that leave a lasting impact, powerful, and memorable emotions in his audiences.
🎬 03/10/2025 🕒 14:00-16:00 📍 Goya Cinema
Forty days road
Ali Zianiatrib, 30’ , Germany – Morocco, 2025
In Forty Days Road, two colleagues (Ali and Ian) set out on a captivating journey across Egypt to trace the long route of camels traveling from Sudan to a market near Cairo. Along the way, they uncover the tough conditions of transport and join the camels on a 24-hour journey from the Sudanese border to one of the biggest Egyptian camel market near Cairo.
Biography:
Ali Ziani is a 33-year-old investigator and animal welfare activist from Morocco. His passion for animal protection has been the driving force behind his career, motivating him to work tirelessly for the well-being of animals. In 2017, Ali moved to Spain to pursue a master’s degree in Granada. He is now based in a small village near Barcelona.
For the past six years, Ali has been working full-time as an investigator for Animals’ Angels, an international NGO dedicated to animal protection, focusing primarily on the issues surrounding animal transport and markets. His work has taken him to numerous countries, including those in the European Union, Morocco, Egypt, and the Middle East, where he has personally witnessed the harsh realities faced by animals during their transport and trade.
🎬 02/10/2025 🕒 17:00-19:00 📍 Goya Cinema
Henshin
Jorge Pastor, 15’ , Spain, 2025
Sara Yonehara, an 18-year-old violinist, is on the verge of realizing her dream: performing alongside professional musicians. She will have the opportunity to do so with the Camerata Garnati in a concert featuring the world premiere of “Metamorfosis” (Henshin), a composition enhanced by Mayumana’s dynamic intervention.
Biography:
Jorge Pastor Sánchez (Barcelona, 1973). He holds a degree in Information Sciences from the University of Navarra. He practices his profession (and his vocation), journalism, at the Ideal newspaper in Granada, where he has been a staff writer since 2001. His career, closely tied to the Local and Culture sections, is backed by more than 12,000 articles in the print and digital editions of Ideal. He has received around ten national and international awards, including the Concha García Campoy Journalism Award and the Andalucía Journalism Award.
Beyond his work at Ideal, Jorge Pastor has directed the ten-episode web series Tranvía Crucis, the documentary Silencio en la sala (Silence in the Courtroom), and the fiction short film La rebelión de Bernarda (Bernarda’s Rebellion), which has garnered forty official selections and about ten awards. Currently, Teníamos un plan (We Had a Plan) is in distribution, and in the first quarter of 2025, he will premiere his documentary Henshin.
🎬 03/10/2025 🕒 14:00-16:00 📍 Goya Cinema
Hitch 60
Sara Al Obaidly, 19’ , Qatar – British, 2025
Maureen, a teenage girl immersed in London’s 1960s Mod scene, dreams of something greater than the world of fashion and pop music. She craves adventure and to break away from her mundane job in the city. Inspired by the iconic Fry’s Turkish Delight TV commercial, Maureen convinces her best friend Sherry to embark on a daring journey toward the Middle East. Nearly six decades later, the two women reflect on their unforgettable adventures and mishaps during the golden age of hitchhiking.
Biography:
Sara Al Obaidly, is a photographer and filmmaker. Her photographic work has been exhibited internationally in venues such as The National Portrait Gallery (London), MATHAF (Doha), Kraftwerk (Berlin), and Manege Central Exhibition Hall (St Petersburg). Featured in publications such as TIME, Vogue Italia, Harper’s Bazaar and Le Monde, Al Obaidly received the ‘Artist of the Year’ Award in 2019 and ‘Cover of the Year’ Award in 2017 both from Grazia Arabia. She has held residencies at the International Studio and Curatorial Program (NYC, 2019) and the Doha Fire Station (2015).
🎬 03/10/2025 🕒 14:00-16:00 📍 Goya Cinema
My Grandmother's Secret
Nourhan Abdelsalam, 11’ , Egypt, 2024
Nourhan, a curious granddaughter, uncovers a haunting family secret: a crime that affected her grandmother when she was just six years old. This revelation sparks Nourhan’s quest for truth and understanding. Driven to explore the pain, resilience, and perseverance embedded in her grandmother’s past, she revisits the locations connected to the traumatic event—an abandoned countryside and a renowned building in downtown Cairo.
Biography:
Nourhan Abdelsalam is an Egyptian filmmaker with a double major in Media and Cinema. She also participated in the Béla Tarr workshop. Currently, she serves as a selection committee member and coordinator at Between Women Filmmakers’ Caravan. Her debut short documentary, “My Grandmother’s Secret,” was selected for the 45th Cairo International Film Festival.
🎬 03/10/2025 🕒 14:00-16:00 📍 Goya Cinema
October Blossom
Noby MENG, 6’ , China, 2025
The Yi girl “October Blossom” from Diaocao Village is about to turn sixteen. Her mother and grandmother are busy sewing new clothes for her to wear at the skirt-changing ceremony. On her birthday, the girl and all the family members, young and old, male and female, danced around the bonfire. The flames lit up the sky and also the girl’s cheeks. In the singing, the girl’s thoughts drifted beyond the four walls of the courtyard. At this moment, she was filled with longing and anticipation for the future and the vast world…
Biography:
Life style blogger and veteran media professional. Besides traditional lifestyle experience content, they also focus on in-depth understanding of local customs and humanistic stories, and adopt a warm and humanized perspective, dedicated to telling good stories of Chinese rural areas.
🎬 03/10/2025 🕒 14:00-16:00 📍 Goya Cinema
Plastic Flowers
Adán Aliaga, 11’, Spain, 2024
My mother got her first embroidery machine when she was 13 years old. After my father died, my mother and grandmother walked through the cemetery to replace the fresh flowers with plastic flowers. My mother and grandmother still continue embroidering.
Biography:
Adán Aliaga (1969, Alicante) started as a director in 2006 with “My grandmother’s house”, which won the Joris Ivens Award for Best Docu- mentary at the IDFA. Since then, he has directed nine more feature films, which have won international awards such as the Pilar Miró, the New York Emmy and the Gaudí Award. In 2023 his short film “The Cage” was nominated for a Goya Award. In addition, his project “La vida reflejada” has been selected for the Film Academy’s 22/23 Residence.
🎬 03/10/2025 🕒 20:00-22:00 📍 Goya Cinema
Survivors
Oliver Stiller, 20’ Mexico-Germany, 2025
On the night of 26 to 27 September 2014, students from the University of Ayotzinapa were attacked by Mexican security forces in the city of Iguala/ Mexico. Forty-three students were kidnapped. Six people died during the night. Most of the kidnapped people are still missing. Ernesto and Eduardo were among the victims of the night. Unlike their abducted fellow students, they survived the attacks. To this day, they have not let go of that night and their lives have changed dramatically.
Biography:
Oliver Stiller studied International Management. He is currently writing the screenplays for the German-Mexican scenic movie “Das Leben hat noch Schulden” and “MS Schwarze Träne”. The short documentary “Esperanza 43“ directed by Oliver Stiller about the abducted and probably murdered students of Ayotzinapa/ Mexico won the German Human Rights Movie Award (Deutscher Menschenrechts- Filmpreis) in 2016 in the short movie category. “Survivors” is the new film about the case of Ayotzinapa.
Like “Esperanza 43”, “Survivors” and also the documentary short film “Exodus” about the first historical caravan of Central American migrants were made on research trips for the scenic film project “Das Leben hat noch Schulden” and received numerous awards.
“The Hawk / Der Bussard” is the most recent short feature film by Oliver Stiller.
🎬 03/10/2025 🕒 20:00-22:00 📍 Goya Cinema
Alamesa, Hay Lugar Para Todos
PABLO AULITA, 46’ , Argentina
Can a group of neurodiverse young people carry out a first-class gastronomic project? In ALAMESA, the participants will challenge their own limits, facing the challenge of not using fire, knives, or scales.
Biography:
PABLO AULITA (Buenos Aires, Argentina, 20/01/73) Director of documentaries and television programs. With over 30 years of experience, he creates audiovisual content for local and international media. He has directed more than 32 educational programs and documentaries, including: “Alamesa, hay lugar para todos” (2024, HBO MAX), “Mi nombre es Cris” (2024, FLOW), “El Límite Infinito”(2020, NETFLIX), “Superadaptados” (2021, Motiva Channel) Emmy Award for Best Human Interest Documentary, “Capitales del Fútbol” (2011-2017, ESPN).
🎬 02/10/2025 🕒 17:00-19:00 📍 Goya Cinema
El Alma Del Gigante
ASER ÁLVAREZ, 62’ , Spain, 2025.
Francisco Leiro is the last survivor of a heroic age of sculpture that does not exist, and the Galician artist with the most international renown. We don’t make a biography or a presentation of his work, but rather we are simply showing the physical and mental conditions of this sculptor’s creative process today.
Biography:
ASER ÁLVAREZ GONZÁLEZ (Ourense, Spain, 06/20/1976) Degree in Politics and Journalism, Masters and Specialist in Audiovisual communication, directs the Carlos Velo International Film Festival. He has worked in newspapers, radio and television, is a partner of Arraianos Producións and author of books, guides and multimedia works. The documentary 100% CEF is his debut feature, which won the Mestre Mateo Award for Best Documentary, the Special Prize at the Bucharest Film Festival and other awards, circulating around festivals in Europe and America. Since then he has produced numerous documentaries recovering the stories of characters lost in history.
🎬 03/10/2025 🕒 17:30-19:00 📍 Goya Cinema
I will remember you
Mohamed Rida Gueznai, 93’ , Morocco
A young Moroccan director stumbles upon an audio tape that his grandfather has recorded during the Arab-Israeli war of October 1973. He embarks on a journey searching for fragments of his grandfather’s footsteps. He then finds himself dealing with a group of ex-soldiers, forgotten by history, rejected by society and unfairly treated by their country.
His journey sheds light on the military and intimate past of the grandfather, and the experience of the Moroccan soldiers in this conflict… thus, it makes the grandson ponder over questions that are answered by the eternal reality of war.
Biography:
Mohamed Rida Gueznai, a 30 years old Moroccan director and Producer, he made his first short film at the age of 12 with a mobile phone, which led to him creating a film club in school that allowed him to make several short films.By 2020 he had his MA in Documentary Cinema at Abdelmalek Essaadi university. Currently, he is a research student in the Ph.D. In 2024, he finished making his first feature-length documentary « I will remember you » which he spent five years making.
🎬 02/10/2025 🕒 20:00-22:00 📍 Goya Cinema
The Last Standing Doctor
Ibrahim Saber, Abdulqader Sabbah, 45’ , Qatar, 2025
The Last Doctor Standing follows the extraordinary resilience of Dr Abu Safiya and his medical team, who endured over 16 months of relentless pressure, including repeated Israeli military attempts to evacuate and destroy the hospital.
🎬 03/10/2025 🕒 20:00-22:00 📍 Goya Cinema
Nord Express
Kārlis Lesinš, 93’ , Estonia, Poland, 2025
Nord Express is a detective-style documentary that follows filmmaker Kārlis Lesinš as he investigates the delayed and over-budget construction of Rail Baltica, a 870-kilometer high-speed railway intended to connect the Baltic States with the rest of Europe. Despite 30 years of planning and EU funding, the project faces uncertainty just years before its intended launch.
Biography:
Kārlis represents the new generation of Baltic directors, and this movement can be observed in his work. Just recently he released his first feature, Despair (2020), and has started work on his second full-length documentary Nord Express (2020). This project has been featured in a previous edition of Ex Oriente. He has already been awarded the Latvian National Film Award “Lielais Kristaps” for his work – short fiction film Converts (2016) as the Best Student Short, and short documentary Grandfather’s Father (2017) – as Best Debut.
🎬 02/10/2025 🕒 14:00-16:00 📍 Goya Cinema