South Africa

Bulgaria

The short movie 'Humansize the city' catches a glimpse of the profane experience of a person within the city frame. Even so, it refers to the spirituality hidden underneath the surface. It perceives the city inhabitant as a human being whose life consists of the performance of everyday human acts rather than the grandiosity of celebration festivals. Each human movement or gesture embodies a ritualistic nature and seeks a place to be expressed or manifested within the urban environment. The film questions how even underlooked architectural and urban spaces give meaning to a person in his everyday struggle in search of it.

Azerbaijan

It is a fictional film focusing on the experiences of queer people in the general public and public toilets with a twist. Generally, queer people feel uncomfortable in the streets and public places in Baku including the restrooms. There are many unfortunate cases of physical attacks, harassment, and hate crimes. Baku’s streets ARE NOT SAFE for queer people. But, the movie takes a different look at the issue and tells a story of a gay man using public toilets as cruising areas.

Albania

Reinventing inclusive design through the use of cardboard. A material usually employed as container, now it can be a doormat or a table. Through examples of re-use, cardboard becomes a symbol and gives a new understanding of inclusive design: creativity, accessibility and recycling may be pillars for a new (social) inclusion within modern design and architecture.

Portugal

MuBE portrays the “Museu Brasileiro da Escultura” built in 1987 by the Architect Paulo Mendes da Rocha. The short movie invites the spectator for a slow journey through the museum, enlightening the relation among the building, the cityscape and the nature, blurring the boundaries between private and public space. His attitude towards architecture was not just to make aesthetic and solitary architecture, but first of all he strived to change the thinking of the people, living, visiting or working in his buildings. In his architecture, rooms act like public spaces, where no divisions and privacy nor segregation take place. People are forced to interact and live together. In his mind, a house should not be more than a place to sleep. And all the rest of the functions are happening in the city itself. MuBE was designed as an introverted, restrained building, carved into stone, it does evolve all the necessary functions in the subterranean layers of São Paulo without disturbing the visual aspect of the surrounding landscape. The portico, the roof over the communal spaces, shelters sculptures and visitors from rain and sunlight, like a stone in the sky. The short movie emphasizes the stone in the sky, through the infinite palette of degradation, weathering patinas and the ever aging construction materials in opposition to contemporary forms of fast architecture and unsustainable resources. Paulo Mendes da Rocha's architecture transcends time and social limits of an inhospitable and inhuman society. Through the use of materials in their most legitimate aspects, Brutalism reveals itself in essence, thus echoing the meaning of architecture: to develop spaces that link city and people.

Azerbaijan

The film addresses various challenges that could be faced particularly by pedestrians, people with disabilities, and women* regarding public transport, the exclusive infrastructure of roads and public spaces, and the design of underground passages. Around a round table, young people discuss their stories regarding the confusing and challenging urban experiences where lack and sometimes the abundance of unreasonable passages makes life easier for cars, yet so tough for the citizens. Further, the dysfunctioning "Top-up" points for accessing public transport are also reflected in the film. Most of the public transport in Baku could be accessed through the "Baku card" payment, whereas most bus stops are underequipped with the machines to top the cards or they are not properly functioning. The situation puts many people in a helpless situation when they try to hop on quickly to the coming bus, but also there is a sweet culture of asking others on the bus to pay for them in return for small cash. Last, the unsafe reality of Baku's streets for women and the lack of inclusion regarding people with disabilities are shortly reflected in the film.