October’s Back: Young Hearts, Strange Worlds brings together seven short films about young people standing at the edge of change, caught between the worlds they inherit and the ones they dream into existence.
These are stories of strange encounters, impossible beliefs and unexpected transformations: teenagers searching for signs in the digital universe, families carrying invisible histories, outsiders looking for a place to belong, and ordinary spaces that suddenly reveal something extraordinary.
(Still from En Toronto no pasa nada – These Things don’t happen in Toronto by Manolo Orellana Naranjo)
Across comedy, fantasy and drama, the programme explores growing up as an act of invention. The characters inherit stories, places and expectations, but they reshape them through curiosity, humour and imagination.
They remind us that even as we grow older, something of that original magic remains: the ability to look at the world and believe it could become something else.
SHORT FILMS
Los jóvenes andan (Youth Walks) — Miguel Ariza, Spain, 11 min
At night some use the city as their own playground, garbage turns into confetti and the world is an infinite slide. However, light changes everything.
La sangre (The Blood) — Joaquín León, Spain, 14 min
Álvaro is a teenager who feels out of place in life. He doesn’t want to study or work the land like his mother. At the procession of the Virgin Mary in the village, he sheds tears of blood and people begin to offer him large sums of money.
Creo en mucho más que la magia (I Believe in Much More than Magic) — Virginia Rita Luengo, Spain, 12 min
Carmen and Alba venture into the forest, searching for magical lights. As they wait, Carmen has a revelation—could this be more dazzling than magic itself?
Nivel Dios (God level) — César Tormo García, Spain, 12 min
Laura, a whimsical 16-year old teenager is in love with her young and attractive Religion teacher and will experience an excessive spiritual awakening that will lead her to lose her mind.
En Toronto no pasan estas cosas — Manolo Orellana Naranjo
A heavenly angel comes to Earth to save humanity from the destruction of their planet. However, he falls into Montejaque, a town in Málaga. The residents mistake him for death and begin fighting among themselves to avoid leaving with him. Instead of peace, he only manages to provoke more violence.
La idea de una isla (The Idea of an Island) — Carmen Pedrero, Spain, 19 min
Bombs fall down while a mother sings to her daughters. Nature shivers. Houses become empty. 9-year-old Emilia is about to learn that the war around her is not a game anymore.
Un piso estupendo (An awesome flat) — Gabriela Isabel Gómez de Arteche Núñez, Alejandra Llorens Andrés, Daniel Pérez Valderrama, Camila de Lucas y Jaime Marqués Cordero, Spain, 17 min
Bright and cozy 20m2 apartment in a great area of the city. Bathroom next to the bedroom, fully equipped kitchen-dining room, and east-facing orientation. For more information, please do not hesitate to contact us. Visits available now. No time-wasters, please.
A programme about young hearts, strange worlds, and the magic that stays with us.
