Things We Try to Save - Live Action Documentaries 1

Festival
PÖFF Shorts 2026
Programme

What are we willing to fight for, what do we try to protect, and what are we prepared to sacrifice in the process? From fragile ecosystems and threatened cultural heritage to political sovereignty, the consequences of consumption and the fading traces of memory, these films explore our desire to preserve what matters to us. But saving one thing can mean changing another, and good intentions rarely offer simple answers. What we choose to protect reveals as much about us as what we risk losing.

Screenings

Screening110616 / Mida me püüame päästa - lühidokumentaalid 1
Q&A duration
Screening duration

Films

The Quiet Invasion

Local title
Vaikne sissetung
Director
Inuk Jørgensen
Country
Year
2026
Festival
PÖFF Shorts 2026
Programme
Genre
Subject

Against the backdrop of escalating geopolitical tensions and renewed American interest in Greenland, this short film explores what a possible invasion could feel like in the 21st century. Blurring the line between facts and fear the film examines how modern invasions can unfold not only through military force, but through influence, exploitation, dependency, and the gradual erosion of sovereignty.

Director
Inuk Jørgensen
Screenwriter
Inuk Jørgensen
Producer
Inuk Jørgensen
Executive producer
Joshua Oppenheimer
Cinematographer
Inuk Jørgensen
Editing
Inuk Jørgensen
Composer
Jukka Wagnholt
Sound
Inuk Jørgensen, Jukka Wagnholt
Runtime
Language
Subtitles

The Last Wild River

Local title
Viimne metsik jõgi
Original title
Ostatnia dzika rzeka
Director
Agnieszka Kokowska, Anastazja Dąbrowska
Country
Year
2026
Festival
PÖFF Shorts 2026
Programme
Genre
Subject

A poetic documentary about a scientist who spent decades fighting for the survival of noble crayfish. A journey into nature, between fairy tale and reality, reflecting on resilience, dedication, and belief that even one person can change the world.

Director
Agnieszka Kokowska, Anastazja Dąbrowska
Screenwriter
Agnieszka Kokowska, Anastazja Dąbrowska
Producer
Agnieszka Kokowska, Jerzy Kapuściński, Magdalena Tomanek
Cast
Agnieszka Kokowska
Cinematographer
Agnieszka Kokowska
Editing
MICHAŁ PODDĘBNIAK, Agnieszka Kokowska
Composer
Antoni Wojnar
Sound
ProSound Studio
Runtime
Language
Subtitles

The True Type

Local title
Täiuslik lehm
Director
Nicole Humiński, Víctor Muñoz Sanz
Country
Year
2026

In monumental frames, the film follows the image of the “ideal cow” across a Holstein cattle show, a 17th-century Dutch masterpiece, and the laser-guided robot arm of a milking robot. Three perspectives — breeding, art, and science —deconstruct the standards of perfection that have been built, painted, and judged for centuries.

Director
Nicole Humiński, Víctor Muñoz Sanz
Screenwriter
Nicole Humiński, Víctor Muñoz Sanz
Producer
Andres Lepik, Andjelka Badnjar
Co-producer
Nicole Humiński, Víctor Muñoz Sanz
Cast
Quim Serrabassa, Abbie Vandivere, Jolijn Schilder, Kees de Koning
Cinematographer
Nikolai Huber, Nikolai Huber
Editing
Nicole Humiński
Runtime
Language
Subtitles

Treasures

Local title
Aarded
Director
Hélène Estèves
Year
2026

Congolese artist Eddy Ekete takes what the world throws away and transforms it into something impossible to ignore. Using discarded waste collected in Kinshasa, Democratic Republic of the Congo, he creates towering sculptures that come alive through performances on streets across the world.

Through his performance, Ekete joyfully returns trash to sender while confronting audiences with the environmental costs of consumerism, and the enduring legacies of neocolonialism.

Director
Hélène Estèves
Producer
Hélène Estèves, Eddy Ekete
Co-producer
Miro Malonda, Koko Kabamba, Michael Kalamo, Beni Mbuyamba, Mbo Yannick
Cast
Eddy Ekete
Cinematographer
Hélène Estèves, Miro Malonda
Composer
Christ Kisendo, Le Dim
Runtime
Language
Subtitles

Wind

Local title
Tuul
Original title
Vind
Director
Odveig Klyve
Country
Year
2026
Festival
PÖFF Shorts 2026
Programme
Genre
Subject

It is a short documentary with no dialogue. It shows how wind turbines appear as technical constructions in a landscape where birds, animals and people move. The film wants to create a deeper reflection on wind power plants, energy production and nature without giving simple answers.

Director
Odveig Klyve
Screenwriter
Odveig Klyve
Producer
Odveig Klyve, Bjørn Leiv Gulbrandsen
Cast
Odveig Klyve
Cinematographer
Nils Petter Devold Midtun
Editing
Nils Petter Devold Midtun
Composer
Nils Henrik Asheim, Ruth Wilhelmine Meyer
Sound
Frode Ytre-Arne
Runtime
Language

Woodeaters

Local title
Üraskid
Original title
Drewnojady
Director
Julia Pełka
Country
Year
2026
Festival
PÖFF Shorts 2026
Programme
Genre
Subject

In a historic Lemko church in the region of Podkarpacie in Poland, a quiet, relentless battle is being fought against wood-boring beetles that are destroying the church structure. A fumigator, in an attempt to save the church, resorts to radical measures bearing a historical burden. This is a story of the tension between culture and nature, and of the struggle whose outcome steers the viewer towards questions with no simple answers.

Director
Julia Pełka
Screenwriter
Julia Pełka
Producer
Paulina Skibińska
Cinematographer
Szymon Kluz
Editing
Julia Pełka, Mateusz Powszedniak
Sound
Joanna Napieralska
Sound
Joanna Napieralska
Runtime
Language
Subtitles

Listen

Local title
Kuula
Director
Taliesin Black-Brown
Country
Year
2026

As his mother slips away into dementia, an Alaskan sound recordist listens for what remains.

Director
Taliesin Black-Brown
Producer
Sam Davis, Greg Moga, Taliesin Black-Brown
Cast
Hank Lentfer
Cinematographer
Mack Fisher, Mack Fisher
Editing
Ben Kaplan
Composer
Garth Stevenson
Sound
Calvin Pia
Runtime
Language
Subtitles