Igor Zelić’s short film Opera, produced by the Film Association Šuma (Vedran Šuvar), will have its audience debut as part of the international competition at ISFF Oberhausen.

Opera is an experimental short exploring the notion of perception through a cinematic collage constructed using a single source of light. Through layered manipulation of that one source of light, the frame acquires the rhythm of multiple sources, while the interplay of light acts as a transformative force on the space and perception. The film addresses the ability of an image to disguise reality – and what happens when it can no longer do so.

The film was financially supported by the Croatian Audiovisual Centre.

Nela Gluhak’s experimental short Töst will also feature in the international competition. The title was created as a Zagreb Cinema Club challenge, which instructed filmmakers to depict their daily rituals.

Nela Gluhak’s titles have been selected for screening at Oberhausen for the second consecutive year. Last year, her animated short Wshmsh screened in the children’s film competition.

“It’s incredible that for the second year running, one of my films has been selected for such an important festival. Last year I thought that was a once-in-a-lifetime occurrence, but apparently, it happened again. It changes my perspective a bit, and I hope that in the future I will be able to compete at other important festivals with my subsequent films”, said the author, adding that she had submitted three works to the festival this year, least expecting Töst to be selected for the programme.

“I honestly thought that it would make the selectors chuckle because it’s short, humorous, and very, very light-hearted and unpretentious, but that it would not get selected. I knew they loved bread, but I honestly didn’t expect them to love it so much,” said Gluhak, this year also sitting as a jury member of the MuVi programme, devoted to music videos.

The International Short Film Festival Oberhausen is one of the most important short film events in the world, and it is often an indicator of new trends and a place to discover new talents. This year, 7600 films were submitted for the competition programmes, while 121 titles from 48 countries have been selected.

Find out more about ISFF Oberhausen at its official website.