Glitches in the (Eco)system

The films Papaya (Brazil, 2026, 76’) and The Snails (France, 1966, 10’) will be screened at this event.
The event was curated by Diana Voinea and Anda Duțescu as part of the F-SIDES Wildcards 2026 Residency, a film curation training program co-funded by the National Cultural Fund Administration.

Amid technological advances unprecedented since the Industrial Revolution, nature remains, ambivalently, one of the last strongholds constantly subjected to the pressures of exploitation and subjugation within the logic of capitalist profit. At the same time, it continues to represent a symbol of resilience and a potential space of resistance against alienation.

 Papaya (dir. Priscilla Kellen), offers us the perspective of an anthropomorphized papaya seed, which discovers the ecosystem to which it belongs and confronts the anxiety caused by the pollution affecting it. In its attempt to survive, it constantly searches for ways to endure and protect its fellow beings.

The second film, René Laloux’s short film Les Escargots, creates a temporal parallel between the climate anxieties of the present and a dystopian fantasy inspired by the agricultural innovations of the 1960s. Viewed together, the two films reveal different ways in which technology, nature, and the desire for control intersect, generating consequences that exceed the initial intentions of human intervention.

We invite you to discover with us two films from different periods and geographical contexts, brought together by the same questions surrounding climate anxiety, the relationship between nature and technology, and the forms of uncontrolled exploitation of the environment.

Rezidența F-SIDES Wildcards 2026 este un program de formare dedicat curatoriatului de film, conceput ca un laborator de idei în care participanții își dezvoltă propriile concepte curatoriale în dialog cu profesioniști din industrie și cu rețele internaționale de cinema. Programul încurajează vocile emergente să exploreze curatoriatul de film dintr-o perspectivă personală, critică și conectată la realitate și le oferă instrumente și resurse esențiale pentru practicarea acestei profesii.

Proiect cultural co-finanţat de Administraţia Fondului Cultural Naţional. Proiectul nu reprezintă în mod necesar poziţia Administrației Fondului Cultural Național. AFCN nu este responsabilă de conținutul proiectului sau de modul în care rezultatele proiectului pot fi folosite. Acestea sunt în întregime responsabilitatea beneficiarului finanțării.