Among the record number of over 5,400 films, the Black Nights' short film and animation festival has selected a total of 104 films for international competition programmes.

Premiering in the international Live-Action Competition, Skin of A Mandarin (Estonia, 2023) tells the story of Anna, who finds herself in a situation where social customs and the compassion of strangers are put to the test due to the bureaucracy of a funeral home. The film is the debut of Jaanika Arum, known as an actress, as a screenwriter and director.

Simon Vahlne's comedy My Gig In Sweden (Sweden, 2023), Stephen Korytko's The Golden Record (Luxembourg, 2023) and Abbas Taher's There is No Friend's House (Iran, 2023) will also have their world premieres.

Laurence Boyce, the Short Film Programme Director for Shorts described the selection: "This year's short film competition rebels against an unjust world. However, the programme is also about love."

In the international Animation Competition, most films have their European or Baltic premieres. Among them are the 2023 Palme d'Or winner Flóra Anna Buda with 27 (Hungary, France 2023) and Oscar-nominated director Daria Kashcheeva's Electra (Czech Republic, France, Slovakia 2023).

"The animations at PÖFF Shorts continue to reflect the most recent trends and tendencies and fine films in the international animation scene. We have a lot of strong films directed by women," said Vassilis Kroustallis, Animation Programme Director.

Carolina Sandvik returns to the festival program with the animated film The Lovers (Sweden, 2023), which premiered at the last Locarno Film Festival, and Heta Jäälinoja, an alumnus of the Estonian Academy of Arts, with the satire Nun or Never!.

The jury of the international short film competition program includes Prague Shorts programmer Radka Weiserová (Czech Republic), director Rodney Llaverías (Dominican Republic, USA) and producer Kristofer Piir (Estonia). The animation winners will be deliberated by director Sara Gunnarsdóttir (Iceland), programmer Filip Kozlowski (Poland) and producer Aurelia Aasa (Estonia).

The best short film, the best animated film and the best Estonian film selected by the international jury will be nominated for the short film Oscars. A nominee for the Best Short Film award of the European Film Academy will also be selected from among the competing films.

The films of the PÖFF Shorts National Competition will be announced on October 11. The entire festival programme will be announced on October 26.

The international short film and animation festival PÖFF Shorts will take place from 7 to 15 until November with screenings in Tallinn and Tartu.

The festival is presented by Elisa nad Metropol Spa Hotel.

View all films selected here.

Get a Festival Pass here.