This year’s theme, “Where Is Everybody?”, draws inspiration from the famous Fermi Paradox - the unsettling question of how a universe so vast, so ancient, and so full of possibility can appear so silent. If intelligent life should be out there, why can’t we see it? Why does nobody answer?

We bring this question back to Earth.

In a world filled with injustice, conflict, inequality, and suffering, we find ourselves asking a similar question: Where is everybody?How is it possible that so much wrong can happen so easily, so quietly, so continuously while so many remain passive observers? The silence of the universe becomes a metaphor for the silence of society. Just as we search the cosmos for signs of life, we search our own communities for signs of courage, empathy, and responsibility.

This theme invites filmmakers and audiences to look at the gap between what should be and what is.If the universe can feel empty, perhaps it is because we have not learned how to fill it - with action, with accountability, with a collective voice that refuses to stay quiet.

Through cinema, we confront the void.We question the passivity.We challenge the silence.

Guest Country In Focus: South Korea

Every year, Kino Kosova invites a guest country whose films open new artistic perspectives. Our past choices - Greece, Bosnia and Herzegovina, and Portugal - came from natural cultural or social connections: shared Balkan heritage, history, and political complexities that made artistic collaboration both natural and necessary; or, in the case of Portugal, the realities of diaspora in Switzerland, where both Kosovo and Portugal have strong communities contributing to the country’s cultural landscape.

This year, with South Korea in focus, we intentionally move beyond familiar parallels. There is no pre-existing cultural link between Kosovo and South Korea, and no shared migration story within Switzerland. Instead, we explore the potential of a new connection formed entirely through cinema.

A Shared Cinematic Language

Despite their differences, Kosovar, South Korean, and Swiss films share a striking thematic alignment. Each examines: identity and belonging, social pressure and inequality, transformation within rapidly changing societies and the resilience of individuals navigating complex realities

Kosovar cinema often reflects post-conflict identity and intimate human stories.
 South Korean cinema is globally recognized for its inventive storytelling and fearless social critique.
 Swiss cinema brings a multilingual, multicultural perspective shaped by migration and coexistence.

Together, they create a compelling dialogue about how societies evolve and how people find their place within them.

Why South Korea?

South Korean cinema has, for years, captivated the world with its bold storytelling, emotional depth, and fearless exploration of social realities. Its films move between genres with ease, blending beauty and brutality, humor and tragedy.

They resonate strongly with the themes Kino Kosova presents and offer our audience a new cinematic horizon.
 By choosing South Korea, we are initiating a cultural bridge based not on existing ties, but on the belief that cinema itself can create meaningful connection.

South Korea in focus is our invitation to expand boundaries - artistic, cultural, and personal. And by placing South Korea in focus, we respond to the theme as well, by filling an artistic “absence” with new dialogue, new perspectives, and new encounters. The theme asks where everyone is and our choice reminds us that sometimes, connections don’t appear on their own; we build them.

Festival Partner – Seoul Independent Film Festival (SIFF)

The Seoul Independent Film Festival (SIFF) is a competitive annual festival in South Korea that showcases a wide range of independent films, regardless of theme, format, or genre. Established in 1975, its purposes include discovering new talent, contributing to the qualitative improvement of independent cinema, and introducing international independent films to inspire Korean filmmakers. It is the only independent film festival in Korea with a competitive showcase and aims to be a bridge for global networking, introducing Korean independent films to overseas platforms and vice versa.