R&A Shorts: Laughing in Swedish

Veteran director Lukas Moodysson allows the middle aged to be rebellious in his hilarious comedy We Are Not Leaving. After getting fired from his job, a university professor and his two co-workers take over the office of their supervisor to demand he gets his job back. The clever dialogue touches on many things such as politics and religion.

A popular fortune-teller gives fortunes with the vibe of a cult leader in the melancholy comedy-drama Dancing Pigeons that won the Guldbagge award. The gripping description of the need for connection culminates in a situation where one person in the community feels they are in contact with their dead husband through the fortune-teller.

Director Niki Lindroth von Bahr dives into the topic of humanity through animal characters in the hilariously deep animation The End. The stop motion takes place at an airport and will for sure haunt your mind for a long time. The voice actors include the world famous Alexander Skarsgård, as well as the Finnish icon Arja Saijonmaa.

Earworm is a about something very familiar to all of us: a song that plays on loop in your head. An office worker tries a series of hilarious cures for the problem that eventually goes to horror like lengths. Will we still dare to listen to catchy pop-melodies without worrying? Maria Sid plays the role of the doctor!

The worlds of children and adults collide in the lively short A Real Swedish Midsummer by Ville Gob. The quintessentially Swedish midsummer seems to include mosquitoes terrorising everyone, noisy adults, a couple of boxes of wine and Joey Tempest, the frontman of the band Europe.

Taneli Timisjärvi (translated by Johanna Järvinen)