Kenan is a taciturn 35-year-old tollbooth attendant shuffling between the monotony of his traffic-besieged box and caring for his ailing but domineering father at home. Desperate to resist his father’s attempt to marry him off to a neighbor and equally determined to prove his worth by fixing his father’s old car, Kenan edges ever closer to a nervous breakdown. Making wonderful use of an expert cast (led by the excellent Serkan Ercan), a richly saturated color palette, and keen art direction, writer-director Karaçelik has crafted a wry, heartbreaking ode to lost dreams in a sleepwalking world. (96 mins.)

Bianca manages a precarious living as a talented but underemployed actress in Rio de Janeiro, performing for private events dressed as female movie icons. Troubled by the thought she has missed her chance at a “big break,” she perseveres with single-minded dedication to her craft until an audition leads to a rare opportunity and to possible redemption for years of social marginality. But her world may still prove too insecure, even for one as gifted and deserving as Bianca. Set against rich visuals and a down-to-earth tone, Karine Teles’ remarkable lead performance drives an enveloping drama of everyday tragedy in the working world of an artist. (85 mins.)

Winner of the Best Actress Award at the Rio International Film Festival.

This radiant film-within-a-film, set in the Rwandan capital of Kigali, follows a determined filmmaker’s futile attempt to fund his first feature, THE CYCLE OF THE COCKROACH—a haunting drama about a brother and sister in the aftermath of genocide. Two extended segments of THE CYCLE play out onscreen, capturing the horror and systematic madness of events whose fundamental characteristics are anything but unique to Rwanda. GREY MATTER offers bracing insight into the nature of political violence. “Ruhorahoza reveals the quietly terrifying depiction of madness to be the obverse of the policy of calculated, forward-looking oblivion; his brilliant ending distills the paradoxes of normalcy atop a volcano of blood into a single, stinging shot.”—The New Yorker (100 mins.)

In Kinyarwanda and French with English subtitles.

In 1983, after seven years under the Argentine dictatorship, democracy blossoms in an out-of-the-way village when the birth of its 501st inhabitant results in official “town” status and the first mayoral election. Unctuous local scion Hidalgo is hot for the post, and his main opposition, Baldomero, soon turns up dead. Baldomero’s brother Florencio vows to avenge his murder—and keeps Baldomero’s index finger in a jar as a reminder. Based on real events, director Teubal’s charming dramatic comedy pokes fun at small town ways while celebrating the birth of true democratic values. “A gentle political satire … both an engaging, often amusing portrait of a community on the cusp of change and an attack on human credulity.”—Variety (93 mins.)

In Osuna’s animated feature, Antonio, a lonesome, middle-aged virgin, endures constant torment at the hands of coworkers and his bullying mooch of a brother. The only incorruptible employee in a Bogotá notary’s office, Antonio sees his status improve when a confident and scrupulous reformer (who, oddly enough, looks very much like Antonio) replaces his outgoing boss. After falling in with a self-improvement group, Antonio begins to realize what the film’s pleasingly undulating lines illustrate explicitly: everything is in motion and change is all but inevitable; the only question is what one makes of it. “A distinctive animation style and an undeniably heart-warming story make for a surefire crowd-pleaser.”—Chicago International Film Festival (97 mins.)

During the years of Argentine dictatorship and its notorious Dirty War (1975–83), an anxious young mother and her precocious daughter flee Buenos Aires for the temporary seclusion of a ramshackle cottage on a remote beach. What begins as a childhood idyll is soon contaminated by the larger political crisis. Markovitch draws on her own experiences to capture the lacunae of childhood’s social and psychological worlds in this exquisitely acted, atmospheric drama about innocence in tumultuous times. (99 mins.)

Winner of the Best Film Award at the Guadalajara Film Festival

From absolute darkness come the distant voices of a man and a woman arguing. Then the screen radiates with the brilliant green of countryside traversed by a car. Subtitles relay the conversation inside the car—between another man and woman—but we hear no voices. A middle-aged couple drives with their young nephew, who sits in the back seat wearing earphones. The couple attempt to hide some truth from the child as they debate his future—and their own—in a language that is not as private as they believe. Farshbaf, a protégé of Abbas Kiarostami, has constructed an intriguing, subtly humorous meditation on communication and emotional disability. (84 mins.)

Winner of the International Critics’ Prize at the Montreal World Film Festival.

Zineb is an emotionally exhausted psychiatrist assigned to treat a young pregnant woman who was found in the street and who believes she is being stalked by the “Lord of the Horse.” As the traumatized girl slowly opens up to Zineb—her past revealed through evocative flashbacks—her story awakens repressed regions of Zineb’s troubled mind, and the women’s realities merge into a fever dream of fear, deceit, and denial. Mouftakir’s tense and visually striking psychological thriller took top honors at Africa’s 2011 FESPACO Festival. “Elements of magical realism and a David Lynch-like sense of atmosphere and rhythm create an unforgettable psychological road trip in this cinematic triumph.”—Mill Valley Film Festival (104 mins.)

In Arabic with English subtitles.

A newly enacted law allowing prisoners conjugal visits sparks an unlikely friendship between two lonely people visiting their incarcerated spouses. Elsa’s contact with her husband is silent and dutiful; Shpetim, a gentle, soft-spoken man who visits the prison to see his wife, experiences equally passionless encounters. When an amnesty sets their spouses free, their fragile bond is threatened. Alimani’s quietly sensual, contemplative first feature takes a wonderfully personal approach to a profound social transformation. (83 mins.)

This year’s Albanian submission for the Best Foreign Language Film Oscar.

In Albanian with English subtitles.

A broken family, headed by the patriarch Salih, lives within the gated courtyard of a dilapidated house in Baghdad. Salih’s pregnant daughter has fallen mute and only finds solace with Salih’s young second wife Kerima and preteen son Muhanad. To keep the family afloat, Muhanad must work in the street shining shoes, and, more ominously, they are forced to take in a sullen and imperious boarder. Rasheed’s brooding second feature captures the beautiful surroundings of modern Baghdad and finds unexpected sources of resilience in the wake of catastrophe. (90 mins.)

In Arabic with English subtitles.