IFFR Unveils 10 World Premieres for 2027 Festival Season

International Film Festival Rotterdam has announced ten world premieres for its upcoming 56th edition. The festival is scheduled to run from January 28 through February 7 next year. These initial selections form part of the festival's Bright Future and Harbour sections.

The Bright Future strand focuses on feature-length debuts from filmmakers with varied approaches to storytelling. Parbat Chapagai presents a stylized adaptation of Dostoevsky's 'Crime and Punishment' titled 'Portrait of a Young Criminal.' The film is set in small-town Nepal and stars a destitute tutor who resolves to kill his rich employer to save a teenage sex worker. Lucila Las Heras offers 'The Muglur,' a dark fairy tale about a woman who makes a pact with a strange creature to help her write a fantasy novel. Ben Hicks contributes 'Kids Go Free,' a documentary made over 15 years across three countries that explores economic security and adventure. Mohamed El Zayat brings 'In the Name of Galeela,' an Egyptian ensemble dramedy about a community convincing a blind grandmother of a pilgrimage.

Ali Bakhtiari's documentary 'Tehran the Obscure Atelier of Desire' is also included in the debut selection. The film captures artists in Tehran returning to unfinished works while a threat of war looms outside their studios.

The Harbour section features several filmmakers who have previously shown work at the festival. Kiluanji Kia Henda returns with 'Karl Marx, Luanda,' a satirical future history of Angola. This follows his 2021 commissioned performance 'Resetting Birds' Memories.' Kyros Papavassiliou presents 'Yiannis,' a film about a Cypriot teenager searching for a missing body in the occupied north. This is his first feature since 'Impressions of a Drowned Man' screened in the 2015 Tiger Competition. Rita Hui Nga Shu returns with 'The Lapse,' which layers declassified documents with her AI-cloned voice to examine life in Hong Kong. Her previous film 'Decameron' premiered at the festival in 2021.

New voices in the Harbour section include siblings Iskander and Feisal Azizuddin. They direct 'Ali and Ben's Spicy Meats,' a comedy horror about two broke buddies who discover a magic recipe made from human meat. Omer Shamir contributes 'Waiting Room,' a documentary portrait of a Palestinian photojournalist who moves his family to Egypt to escape Khan Younis.

Vanja Kaludjercic, the festival director, stated that cinema is most exciting when it challenges expectations. He noted that these ten films offer a glimpse of the range available, from the playful to the politically urgent.

The festival said the debut filmmakers bring markedly different approaches to their subjects. The subjects range from claustrophobic fairy tales to tragic personal experiences.

The complete program for the 56th edition of IFFR will be launched on December 16. The announcement marks the first look at the films that will screen in the coming year.

The lineup includes productions from Mexico, Argentina, Egypt, the U.S., Taiwan, Japan, Nepal, Angola, Portugal, Malaysia, France, the U.K., Iran, Cyprus, and Greece.