This section presents new works by women filmmakers from around the world, along with acclaimed films that explore women’s stories. It offers a view of the current and emerging trends in global women’s cinema. This year's lineup features 12 new films, 9 feature-length and 3 short films, produced in countries including Taiwan, Japan, Tunisia, Italy, Spain, the Netherlands, Germany, France, Norway, the United Kingdom, and Canada.
Norwegian filmmaker and actor Vibeke Løkkeberg's The Long Road to the Director's Chair is a documentary that captures a pivotal moment in feminist film history. It documents the year 1973, when Claudia von Alemann and Helke Sander, essential figures of New German Cinema, organized The First International Women's Film Seminar in Germany, laying the foundation for what would later become the women's film festival movement. The film vividly conveys the passionate energy of that era and was featured at this year's Berlin International Film Festival. A rising Taiwanese female filmmaker, Huang Xi, who gained attention with her debut Missing Johnny (2017), returns with a new film, Daughter's Daughter. The film delicately explores the complex emotions between a mother and daughter. Produced by Hou Hsiao-hsien and starring Sylvia Chang, it premiered at the 2024 Toronto International Film Festival. LEE, directed by Ellen Kuras, tells the story of war photographer Lee Miller. With powerful performances from well-known actors, including Kate Winslet and Marion Cotillard, the film brings the weight of real history to life on screen vividly and compellingly. German director Yasemin Şamdereli, known in Korea for her previously released film Almanya: Welcome to Germany, returns with Samia, once again telling a story based on a real person. The film follows the life of Samia Yusuf Omar, a track and field athlete who grew up in Mogadishu, Somalia, and became an Olympic representative. Based on her real journey, the film captures both her dreams and the harsh realities that stood in her way. Roya Sadat's Sima's Song is a narrative film set against the backdrop of the Afghan civil war, depicting the choices and relationship between two women. Through this story, the film offers a peek into the current state of Asian women's cinema. Ogigami Naoko, who explored new themes and rhythms following Ripples (2023), returns with her latest film Maru, which will have its Korean premiere at the festival. A 2024 Locarno Film Festival selection, Salve Maria by Mar Coll is a psychological drama that explores the complex emotions and experiences of motherhood through the story of a writer who has just become a mother. A selection of this year's Sundance Film Festival, Where the Wind Comes From by Amel Guellaty, captures the reality of youth in Tunisia. From Elbow, a 2024 Berlin International Film Festival selection that evocatively portrays life in the diaspora and on the margins, to many other featured works, the New Currents section invites audiences to engage with the evolving wave of women's cinema from around the world.
