L'enfant d'en haut

This drama follows the dilemma of a young, unwillingly pregnant wife who gives her child up for adoption by a businesswoman. Anna doesn't need another mouth to feed. She can barely afford to care for the two she already has so when she discovers that she is six weeks pregnant she readily accepts the cash offer from Terez, her tough boss at the store where she works. If she will isolate herself throughout the pregnancy, secretly bear the child and immediately allow Terez to sign for it, Anna will receive $50,000. Most of the story then focuses upon Anna's emotional processes as she evaluates her choice. Included are dream segments and shots an unborn baby in the womb.

Belgian director Chantal Akerman avoids her usual "real time" technique in Histoires d'Amérique. The anecdotal nature of the subject matter compels Akerman to fragment her narrative, rather than offer it in one, uninterrupted continuum. Still, another Akerman trademark - permitting the "drama" to emanate from the actors rather than the situations - is very much in evidence. This informal history of Jewish life over the past 100 years is related in a series of eyewitness accounts, re-created by a group of largely unknown actors. Also known as American Stories, the Belgian/French Histoires d'Amérique began building an audience when it was shown at the Berlin Film Festival.

To salve his guilty conscience an elder brother removes his disturbed younger sibling from a mental institution after a suicide attempt and tries to bring him back to mental competency through one on one contact. Free of the institution he continues to be haunted by dreams of a lost twin and chants the eerie phrase "Do I stand before the king?" It is the elder brother that seems doomed to lose himself in his brother's insanity.

A film about two young women, trying to decide how to go on with their lives and loves: Marie just dumped her boyfriend, who's married and can see her just secretly twice a week. At this point Pipa invites her to join her on a visit at her home at the coast of Portugal. Only when they are arrived there, Marie learns that Pipa has come to marry Manuel, and that she too is unsure if she'll be happy with her decision.

When famed photographer Christina Eames dies unexpectedly, she leaves her estranged daughter, Mae, hurt, angry and full of questions. When Mae finds a photograph tucked away in a safe-deposit box, she soon finds herself delving into her mother's early life - an investigation that leads to an unexpected romance with a rising journalist.

Manuela (40) is the cook in a restaurant when the Balkan conflict breaks out on the other side of the world. The madness of war permeates her surroundings, invades her intimacy and unleashes its own warlike escalade.

Everyday family life as perfectly normal madness. “As Melhores Coisas do Mundo“ follows a few days in the life of the 15-year-old Mano, who is fighting on two fronts: his parents have just got divorced and he is going through puberty. Mano tries to make his way through life, with its first sexual experiences, his depressed brother and his self-centered parents. It’s a humorous homage to the pitfalls of daily life and the diversity of life.

Seven short films - each one focused on the plight of a different child protagonist.

Ali must lie and say she is her wife's sister so she can be with her in the hospital. Through Ali's memories, we see the women's relationship develop as Ali faces the truth in the present.

Rewi Rapana returns to the small country town of Te Mata after his family has left the district. His arrival rekindles old tensions as well as renewing family ties. He is seeking an identity and a permanent place to call home yet desperately hiding a secret from his past. Oddly enough there is one person with whom he finds peace of mind. She is an old woman known as Kara. A special relationship develops between Rewi, Kara and Kara’s great granddaughter Awatea.

On the Japanese island of Amami, despite lacking parental guidance, Kaito and his girlfriend Kyoko try to find their place in the world. While Kaito suffers from the absence of his father, who moved to Tokyo after his birth, Kyoko must come to grips with her mother’s terminal illness.