GFF Perspective World Cinema

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GFF26 Perspective: World Cinema

The global perspective.

Written by Sam Fraser.

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Advising on world cinema for this year's programme has seen the GFF spotlighting exceptional film and talent from France, to the Phillipines, and South Africa, and many, many more.

The first film I locked for our programme this year was The Garden of Earthly Delights, directed by Morgan Knibbe, knowing we must screen it for the upcoming edition. A co-production between the Netherlands/Philippines, it follows 11-year old Ginto in a queer coming-of-age tale set amongst the sex tourism and drug abuse of the Manila slums. Ginto has dreams of becoming a gangster and making a quick buck, but his path is slowly converging with that of an insidious Dutch tourist. It is powerful, kaleidoscopic, and often incredibly hard to watch, but vital and vibrant filmmaking that should be experienced in the theatre.

Returning to Europe, I was left stunned the first time I watched director Robert Kwilman’s Permit. Set in Poland, Permit centres on a Colombian migrant working in a meat-packing plant within the country, used as a pawn to pacify and control other incoming migrants from Colombia. He aids in taking their passports, taking them to work, and takes every order given to supplicate them, but must come to terms with his individual culpability when a worker mysteriously goes missing.

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Agathe Rousselle as Elisabeth in A Second Life. The film will have its UK premiere at GFF26.

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Further west, Laurent Slama’s A Second Life is a heartfelt romp from beginning to end. Set against the backdrop of the Paris Olympics, Agathe Rouselle (Titane) plays Elisabeth, a hearing-impaired migrant in the city working tirelessly to maintain her job and obtain a visa. Serendipitously she meets the slightly annoying, pink-haired and positive Elijah (Alex Lawther; Black Mirror, Alien: Earth), and the two find their days irrevocably entangled. It’s a surprising, warm film, and Rouselle is mesmerising in every scene.

After debuting at Toronto International Film Festival, Between Dreams and Hope from director Farnoosh Samadi had generated an intense buzz. Set in Iran, Samadi weaves a powerful tale concerning transgender man Azad and his partner Nora, who are forced to travel back to his family home so that his father can sign the release for gender affirming care. It is a disturbing, yet incredibly moving sophomore film, shining light on a burgeoning and underrepresented queer and trans community within the country that struggles for safety and acceptance.

Finally, have you heard about Hen, or perhaps Hen? I brought Nico Scheepers South African

folk-horror Hen to the programme where it was miraculously, lovingly (cluckingly?) met by

another Hen, György Pálfi’s 2025 TIFF Platform Prize contestant. In Hen (South Africa) a man and his wife are drawn into a grisly, violent curse when they rescue a young boy who has seemingly survived a mysterious massacre, with bloody results. Whilst Hen (Greece) has an equally dark edge, it focuses on the dramatic, life-or-death experience of a single chicken (expertly chicken-acted by eight real chicken actors; Eszti, Szandi, Feri, Enci, Eti, Enikő, Nóra, and Anett). In both Hen and Hen, peril is abound and lurking around every corner… how fast can these chickens run?

Sam Fraser is a programmer and event producer who has been involved with some of the UKs largest film festivals, joining GFF as part of our programming team. Sam recently pre-screened world features for Sundance, curates the screening series Queer Classics, and works for SXSW London as Shorts Programmer.