Circus & Film | short film screening (INT)

international free 60 min no language barrier

About

What does Circus look like on the big screen?

The Circus & Film network, initiated by the CircusDanceFestival, explores circus through the camera lens and creates visibility for international circus filmmakers.

Since its foundation, in collaboration with numerous international festivals, a jury has been reviewing submissions to an open call every year and looking for circus forms on screen with distinctive cinematic approaches.

The selected films premiere at the CircusDanceFestival in Cologne and then tour international partner festivals: Short Waves Festival (PL), Circus City Bristol (UK), Moovy Tanzfilm Festival Köln (DE), Dynamo Workspace and OFF -Odense International Film Festival (DK),Carnaval Sztukmistrzów (PL), Dinamico Festival (IT), Flic Circus School(IT), Cirkus Kolektiv (HR).

The event partner is Circus Dance Festival – Circus & Film Network 2026.

About films

Lehmann/Pels | “Urban Club Art” (Germany, 2 min)

The film “Urban Club Art” is an experimental image/sound montage that works with objects and places, reassembling them into new visual constellations. Inspired by Fluxus ideas, a series of subtle image compositions, absurd installations and witty montages unfold. A juggling club moves through public space, always on the jump from one GPS coordinate to the next. It’s a special kind of sightseeing tour of Cologne. The finale presents a visionary reimagining of the Cologne skyline – from a circus perspective.

Circo Aereo | “Lähde” (“Fountain”) (Finland, 17 min)

“Lähde” is a coming-of-age documentary filmed over twelve years on a bridge in Helsinki. When the story begins, Hugo is still a baby and Arsi is eleven years old. By the end, one has become a teenager and the other a young adult. Over the years, the boys share their thoughts and hopes for the future, while juggling balls mark the steady flow of time and the new cityscape of Helsinki develops in the background.

Concept, Execution: Sanna Silvennoinen, Jukka Mantere

Music: Atte Kantonen

Production: Circo Aereo

Nuua Company | “Affairs of the Cities” (Finland, 8 min 26 s)

This short film is based on a scene from the performance “Kulovalkea”. The durational, repetitive juggling choreography with coffee cups was created to depict authoritative figures occupying themselves in apparent activity – yet accomplishing very little. The title draws on the old saying “affairs of the cities”, historically used to refer to politics. Nuua Company is a Finnish contemporary circus and visual theatre group founded in 2013. With its experimental works, Nuua has carved out its position in the international performing arts scene.

Direction: Olli Vuorinen

Featuring: Valpuri Kaarninen, Rosa-Maria Autio, Juho Yrjölä, Merri Heikkilä, Maria Peltola, Jaime Allen, Nelli Kujansivu, Petteri Savikorpi

Cinematography, Editing: Christoffer Collina

Music: Katri Salmenoja

Production: Nuua Company, Sirkum Polaris

Kallo Collective | “NITRO” (Finland, 13 min 58 s)

“NITRO” is a road movie far away from highways and roads. It’s the story of three batshit bonkers friends and their pink convertible half-built house. “NITRO” is a caffeine-packed frenzy of non-verbal performance, reimagining the role of a classic form of storytelling. This joyful, chaotic clownkenstein of a film celebrates the utter splendour of throwing yourself into a task with so much commitment that it destroys any hope of completing it.

Direction: Christoffer Collina, Sampo Kurppa

Screenplay: Sampo Kurppa

Cinematography, Editing: Christoffer Collina

Music: Sami Tammela

Production: Sari Lakso

Jenny Mansikkasalo | “Vertical Feeling” (Finland, 8 min 28 s)

“Vertical Feeling” is a dream-like short film about what it’s like to grow up climbing the aerial silk. How does vertical suspension feel in the body? How does it affect one’s body image and perhaps even an identity that is still developing? In the film, memories, experiences and imagination blend together. The outlines of the body blur, the silks flow, and the inner child has something to say.

A short film by: Jenny Mansikkasalo

Performing: Jenny Mansikkasalo, Aino Hermansson

Cinematography: Miikkael Christoffer Kukkula

Editing: Miikkael Christoffer Kukkula, Jenny Mansikkasalo

Sound Design: Ville-Matti Koskiniemi

Mat Santa Cruz | “Les fleurs éclosent à l'ombre” (France, 10 min 51 s)

A man who feels lonely tries to rediscover sensations and emotions by putting himself in danger. Between rural romance and cowboy melancholy, dark danger lurks around every corner. Our protagonist seeks out the thrill of danger with almost calculated precision and care. Time passes, and one poetically staged knife throw and balancing act follows another. The game with his own vulnerability takes its course, and danger becomes our lonely hero’s companion.

Direction: Mat Santa Cruz

1st Assistance: Maud Peyrache

Starring: Marc Oosterhoff

Acting for Climate Montréal | “Branché” (Canada, 15 min 55 s)

“Branché” is a unique exploration of circus and movement arts withafemale drive. The short film traverses time and natural landscapes in Quebec. It is a poetic exploration of the beauty and potential of people working in harmony with nature, as well as the more threatening and chaotic conflicts of the climate crisis. As dwindling resources and habitable land bring about an existential collapse, the daring acrobatic formations and breathtaking falls remind us that the unity of nature and humanity is truly worth preserving.

Direction: Janique L Robillard, Eric Bates

Acrobatic Director, Editing: Nathan Biggs-Penton

Co-Creation: Acting for Climate Montréal, Cirque Barcode

Director of Photography: Kes Tagney

Musical Composition and Recording: Olivier Landry-Gagnon

Co-Creation: Acting for Climate Montréal, Cirque Barcode