The 10th Norient Film Festival looks behind the scenes of today’s world. Sometimes nostalgic – in films from Portugal, Greece, India, the Netherlands, and Iran – sometimes raging – in Argentina, Ghana, and the U.S. – and sometimes questioning – in Lebanon, Mali, Kenya and Morocco. Check full program here, and the essay collection Nothing Sounds the Way It Looks here, and the the special video commissions below.

  • Introduction by Philipp Rhensius
    In the essay collection «Nothing Sounds the Way It Looks» 30 writers from 17 countries reflect on their worries, dreams, and hopes in the 21st century. Inspired by the films of the 10th Norient Film Festival, divided into 8 central Norient Topics.
  • Q&A by Anna Trechsel
    As part of the Q&A series of the 10th Norient Film Festival 2021, radio producer Anna Trechsel sat down with the director of the documentary «Panoptic» (Lebanon/United Arab Emirates) Rana Eid.
  • Q&A by Miriam de Rosa
    As part of the Q&A series of the 10th Norient Film Festival 2021, the director Felix Blume «Curupira, Creature of the Woods» (Mexico/France/Brazil 2018) and the director Raquel Castro «SOA» (Portugal 2020) met with researcher Miriam de Rosa to talk about their films.
  • Q&A by Luisa Fernanda Uribe
    As part of the Q&A series of the 10th Norient Film Festival 2021, the directors of the documentaries «A Girl’s Band» (Argentina 2018) Marilina Giménez and «Dazzle Lights» (Argentina 2018) Alejandro Gallo Bermúdez came together and talked about their films. The session was moderated by cultural producer Luisa Fernanda Uribe .
  • Q&A by Miriam de Rosa
    As part of the Q&A series of the 10th Norient Film Festival 2021, the directors Midge Costin «Making Waves» (USA 2019), Subash Sahoo «The Sound Man Mangesh Desai» (India 2017) and the global cinema researcher Monia Acciari met with researcher Miriam de Rosa.
  • Q&A by André Santos, Clive Bell
    As part of the Q&A series of the 10th Norient Film Festival 2021, the directors Judit Kalmár, Céline Coste Carlisle as well as fado singer Marta Miranda met with writer André Santos and musician Clive Bell to talk about their film «Silêncio: Voices of Lisbon».
  • Q&A by Nana Akosua Hanson
    As part of the Q&A series of the 10th Norient Film Festival 2021, the directors Paul Chandler, Jim Chuchu, Thomas Burkhalter, and Peter Guyer talked about the connection and common theme of their documentaries: music as a means of expression.
  • Q&A by Clive Bell
    As part of the Q&A series of the 10th Norient Film Festival 2021, the director Kamal Hachkar met with musician and Shakuhachi player Clive Bell to talk about their film In Your Eyes, I See My Country (Morocco & France 2019).
  • Q&A by Ksenija Stevanovic
    As part of the Q&A series of the 10th Norient Film Festival 2021, the director Serdar Kökçeoğlu and producer Dilek Aydın met with music producer Ksenija Stevanovic to talk about their film «Mimaroğlu: The Robinson of Manhattan Island» (Türkiye and USA 2020).
  • Video by Vanja Kovačević
    This episode of our 2021 video series is a musical conversation between two piano players. The video looks for situations of duality in the spaces around us. In finding each other, the protagonists find new hope for the second year of the pandemic.
  • Video Essay by Gabber Modus Operandi
    This episode of our 2021 video series is a dinner conversation by the electronic music duo Gabber Modus Operandi, taking place in Denpasar, Indonesia. They talk about Bali, toxic tourism, colonialism, and also some good news around the locals.
  • Q&A by Martin Stokes
    As part of the Q&A series of the 10th Norient Film Festival 2021, the director Georg Mürer and ethnomusicologist Martin Stokes met to talk about Mürer’s film «Her Bijî Granî» (USA, Kurdistan, Türkiye 2020).
  • Video Essay by Kamran Heidari
    This episode of our 2021 video series portrays the Iranian sorna player Ebrahim Salmanpor Qashqai. «I am the most famous Qashqai wedding sorna player in Fars province and no one has ever been better than me», he says while looking back on his life, his performances at Qashqai weddings, and the challenges the COVID19 pandemic has brought to his people.
  • Video Essay by Adythia Utama, Riar Rizaldi
    This episode of our 2021 video series is a collaboration between two Indonesian artists: Filmmaker Adythia Utama and musician Riar Rizaldi put a perspective on how freely we receive any kind of information through the screens of our gadgets during the pandemic.
  • Video Essay by Emma Mbeke Nzioka
    This episode of our 2021 video series is an introspective account of non-binary artist Janice Iche’s state of mind as they reflect on how the journey through 2020 was and their dreams of what 2021 holds for life.
  • Video Essay by Roy Dipankar
    In this episode of our 2021 video series, a filmmaker in lockdown connects with his creator friends living in worlds separated by oceans, time, and tides. A loopback at the year that was and the times to look forward to through a contemplative exploration of sound, visual, and spaces.
  • Video Essay by Monofee
    In this episode of our 2021 video series, Taiwanese multimedia artist Monofee uses the medium of silent cinema to present a narrative of hope, conflict, and uncertainty over the turn of the new year.
  • Video Essay by Lechuga Zafiro, Jusomor
    This episode of our 2021 video series by visual artist Jusomor and sound artist Lechuga Zafiro is deeply inspired by the re-encounter with our elders during the current times of uncertainty and confusion.
  • Video Essay by Poetra Asantewa, Henry Desouza Nelson
    In this episode of our 2021 video series, poet, writer, and designer Poetra Asantewa ponders over the future of the city of Accra, what it ought to look like, where it ought to be, and who it should aim to be.
  • Video by Eden Tinto Collins, Gystère
    «The F.r.iction Show» juxtaposes the creations of multi-disciplinary artists Gystère and Eden Tinto Collins as the result of a process of global reflection around a musical identity borrowed from different Afro-Eurasian cultures. But it is also a proposal of context for this music to emerge, out of the Space.
  • Video Essay by Umlilo
    In this episode of our 2021 video series, multidisciplinary South African artist Umlilo forwards these questions to the universe and puts a few tarot cards on the table.
  • Playlist by Agostino Quaranta, Francesco Fusaro
    This playlist is an audiovisual journey through the last 45 years of Italian music. Far from being a systematic overview of Italian heritage, this selection aims to outline a heterogeneous, if not divergent, landscape of sounds and music videos.