Stepping into the screening room for this year’s Twelve Vacancies Film Festival felt like entering a pocket dimension—one shaped by a brilliant lineup of experimental short films from young filmmakers around the world, gathered to share and appreciate their work. Filled with film enthusiasts, the energy in the room was both electric and eerie. Excited chatter quieted down as the lights dimmed, and anticipation took over the crowd.
The festival’s focus on screening visually innovative films paid off: Each piece felt distinct, often unconventional, and always driven by intention. Whether through textured animation, surreal imagery, irony or detailed sound design, each move was intentional. Every frame reflected a sharp artistic vision and the filmmaker’s willingness to take risks.
Standouts included Itch by Maggie Zeng, a symbolic exploration of anxiety. The film follows Manon, a young woman waiting for her date to arrive. As she sits on a bar stool, an uncontrollable itch overtakes her—first as physical irritation, then as phantasmic monsters. Itch’s pink and red colour palette adds to its audience’s unease, mirroring the unravelling of Manon’s sense of control. The short film blurs the line between metaphor and real-life unease, using the itch as a symbol of psychological burden and agitation. It reveals the cerebral discomfort of anxiety through visceral embodiment.
In an interview with The Tribune, Zeng revealed that Itch—animated entirely in Krita, a free software program—was her graduation film at Concordia University. It has since screened at Montreal’s own Fantasia Festival, among others internationally.
“What inspired me was a series of bad dates and a flare of eczema before my last year at uni started,” Zeng said. “I wanted to combine my feelings about love and desire with how something emotional can leave a lasting mark on your body. And I’m a fan of horror, so it felt natural to take a body horror approach.”
Another standout was Reverend Mother by Mia Buono, which uses the framework of confession to examine a morally complex young Catholic woman through the framing of confession and the strain it creates in her romantic relationship. The film’s writing is sharp, full of ironic detachment and quiet moments of emotional clarity. A unique aspect of Buono’s filmmaking was her decision to film analog on 16mm film.
“It seems to really connect every piece of the process on set in a way that digital doesn’t,” she told The Tribune. “We have very limited takes. I couldn’t see a monitor, so I have to just watch the actors, etc. It just requires a degree of coordination and trust that I feel like really strengthens the film.”
The choice to film in an actual church with a choir added indispensable richness to the dark but comedic tone.
At the end of the screening, the audience voted for their favourite film. My Friend in the Jingle Truck by Sima Naseem was awarded as the Fan Favourite. Set in Karachi, the film follows a young girl who encounters a magical bird in a traditionally painted truck. Via her journeys through vibrant scenes of Pakistani culture and heritage, the story explores themes of friendship, imagination, and letting go. The use of stop-motion and 2D animation brought the magical world to life, highlighting the intricate details of handcrafted Pakistani artwork. The film was both whimsical and moving, capturing the wonder of childhood in frames layered with texture, colour, and care.
Twelve Vacancies Film Festival made room for risk, honesty, and experimentation; it was a space that challenged and pulled viewers into unfamiliar realities. As the last film’s credits rolled and the lights came back up, what stood up was not just the talent on display but also the sincerity behind it. It was a reminder that sometimes, the strangest images are the ones that feel most true.
Through 14 short films, the festival opened up many new ways of seeing the world: Distorted, delicate, frightening, and real. It was proof that emerging artists aren’t just experimenting with form; they’re carving out space for new stories, new emotions, and new ways of being.
Twelve Vacancies Film Festival ran from March 20-21.
