Spain, Korea, and France at EuroAsia Shorts 2024

Spain, Korea, and France will showcase their short films collectively at “EuroAsia Shorts 2024,” and will also be part of the closing night with other European and Asian short films.

Now in its 18th edition, EuroAsia Shorts (originally the Asian-European Short Film Showcase) remains a collaboration between a small group of Washington, D.C. embassies and cultural centers. Since 2006, the festival has presented more than 300 short films, including many award-winning shorts making their U.S. debut.

Each year, EuroAsia Shorts presents a diverse range of films and styles united by a common theme. The event features post-screening cultural Q&A sessions and discussions with experts every night, fostering an international cinematic dialogue unique to Washington.

This year’s theme: Dignity

Wherever we are in life, whatever obstacles we face, the desire to preserve our dignity and the dignity of others is universal. Dignity is as fundamental to our humanity as safety, nourishment, or social connection. And yet, there are times when we choose to sacrifice it, in ways both large and small —for other priorities, for other people, or for causes greater than ourselves. Can we place a value on dignity? Is it a right, a privilege, or merely a matter of perspective? When human dignity is threatened, how far are we willing to go to preserve it? To practice dignity requires more than words, especially in a shrinking world of diverse human values, abilities, cultures, and experiences. In our search, perhaps we can rediscover our shared humanity.

Spain, Korea, and France at EuroAsia Shorts 2024

This screening will be followed by a brief conversation with Miguel Albero, Sarah Diligenti, and Adam Wojciechowicz.

Intentando (Trying)

• Directed by Juan Manuel Montilla Langui, Spain, 2021, 16 minutes.
• Santiago is a father with cerebral palsy that makes him walk with difficulty. Every day he goes to school to pick up his son Diego and they take the same way back but today will be different, Diego, now a teenager, and Santiago, who still sees a child in his son, will have a discussion full of truths that hurt and silences that move.

Une Fille Indigne

• Directed by Julie Cléry and Guillaume Desjardins, France, 2024, 33 minutes.
• When Manon’s mother secretly discovers her daughter’s unwanted pregnancy, she suddenly organizes her birthday party on the very day of the abortion date. Despite all the secrets and manipulation games she undergoes, Manon will try her best to keep her mother happy.

There is Nowhere to Go (갈 곳 없는)

• Directed by Jero Yun, Korea, 2024, 15 minutes.
• As two welfare workers make house calls to seniors living alone in a poor and seemingly forgotten community, they uncover a terrible memory. A reflection on the realities of elder care, economic migration, urbanization, low birth rates, and generational change.

Oro Rojo (Red Gold)

• Directed by Carme Gomila, Spain, 2021, 12 minutes.
• This short film denounces the challenges faced by Moroccan women working as strawberry pickers in Huelva. It constructs a narrative highlighting the structural issues at play, including migration policies, resistance to extractivism, and racial capitalism. Through this, it prompts reflection on the conflict’s complexity and representation.

Closing Night (all participating countries)

• On Friday, June 14, at 7:30 pm.
• At the Austrian Cultural Forum, 3524 International Ct NW, Washington, DC 20008.
• Light reception included after the program.

Semillas (Seeds)

• Directed by Toni Bestard, Spain, 2022, 5 minutes.
• Spain, 1938. A woman is quietly planting seeds in her garden when two armed soldiers appear. Before being detained, she hides some of the seeds in her pocket.