COUNTDOWN: 1-Minute Film Night

A woman recalls a long lost goodbye.

Tavish Gunasena is a photographer from Colombo, Sri Lanka. His work is centred around humans and their entanglement with their natural, built and virtual environments, with a focus on themes of Sri Lankan heritage and traditions, South Asian identity, and social documentary. This is his first attempt at making a film with actors.

This film documents a sensory collage of what is familiar to the artist when she returns to Sri Lanka.

Ebony Maurice-Wilmott is an artist from Melbourne, Australia with an interest in the consequences of traces. Her practice integrates archival and process-based enquires that result in constructions which shift from one medium to another until the referent is obscured. Maurice-Wilmott completed her honours degree in Fine Art at Monash University in 2024 where she received the Monash University Museum of Art Award, the Firestation Print Studio Graduate Residency, and selected for Hatched: National Graduate Show 2025 at Perth Institute of Contemporary Art. 

A woman is awakened one morning by a strange sound. As she realises its unexpected source, she finds herself enjoying the fleeting company of her strange and charming visitor.

Irushi Tennekoon is a Colombo-based animator, illustrator, and educator who divides her time between teaching animation at AOD and diving into fun experimental projects in her home studio. She is a graduate of the Royal College of Art and a Chevening Scholar.

Miguel De La Rosa is a composer based in London and specialises in film, TV, video games, and concert music. With degrees from Berklee Valencia and the Royal College of Music, his work spans short films, animations, documentaries, and live performances.

In a World Full of Problems follows a few kids in Colombo on a sun-drenched afternoon, simply existing—laughing, wandering, and making magic out of the ordinary against the backdrop of a chaotic world.

Creative Chaos is a kids' group that explores storytelling, self-expression, and creativity through theatre, arts, writing, film, discussions and play. A space where young minds can experiment, collaborate, and express themselves—embracing the beauty of a little chaos.

A fallen tree, a lone leaf, and an unyielding whisper of life—this inspired my painting, and short film. In the quiet resilience of nature, I found hope. Through brushstrokes and moving frames, I tell a story of survival, reminding us that even in loss, life finds a way to bloom again

Sanath Herath is a Sri Lankan artist and landscape architect whose work explores the intersections of ecology, conservation, and art. His exhibitions, including Metamorphosis Papiliones Ceylonesis and Theatre of Serendib Birds, highlight the delicate balance of native ecosystems. Through intricate natural history paintings, he hopes to raise awareness of biodiversity loss and the impact of humans in ecosystems.

Set to a popular children's song that starts 'Me gase boho, pani dhodam thibe', this short animated film shows what the wild landscape of this country can provide and, like the rhyme, cautions against taking too much.

Shenuka Corea is an animator, illustrator and comic artist from Colombo. Shenuka is also an
enthusiastic D&D player, nature lover and reader of books. She holds an MFA in Visual
Narrative from the School of Visual Arts, New York.

'A Roller Coaster Ride' is a mixed-media artwork reflecting a personal mental health journey. After years of inexplicable struggle, an ADHD diagnosis brought clarity. What began as a sketch of a missing piece of the artist’s head evolved into a painting, then a jacket made from discarded pant legs—transforming fragmentation into creativity, and struggle into expression.

Shakya Maryan is a creative designer transforming discarded pants into wearable art. Having studied fashion design, they now take an unconventional approach, doing the opposite of traditional fashion practices. Their work focuses on climate action, LGBTQIA+ empowerment, and mental health. A recent mental health journey became the catalyst for their latest creative expression.

This stop-motion animation film explores the vision the children at Let’s Build Great Things has for their neighbourhood “Nagaswatte” in the future!

Let’s Build Great Things is a creative space where kids (9–16) explore art and design every Sunday. With the help of volunteer teachers, they sketch, build, and bring ideas to life—learning problem-solving and creative skills along the way. We also host exhibitions to showcase the exciting projects they bring to life! It’s all about making, imagining, and having fun while discovering the world around them!

Island Dispatch is an artwork video that brings to life the rich history of Slave Island, Sri Lanka. Once a colonial outpost where enslaved Africans (Kaffirs) were brought by the Portuguese and Dutch, it later housed Malaysian and Indian soldiers under British rule. Over time, it transformed into a vibrant multicultural hub. This artwork unites these historical figures in a symbolic group photograph, portraying the cultural dispatch and deep-rooted legacy of Slave Island.

Jeebi (Disharath Seneviratne) is a Sri Lankan contemporary artist known for blending
traditional and modern influences with comic and sci-fi elements. His work challenges
cultural norms through fusion drawings, creating a unique visual language that sparks
conversation. By intertwining past, present, and imagination, Jeebi’s art invites viewers to
explore new perspectives and limitless creative possibilities.

In the land of Sindas, an alternate reality of ancient Sri Lanka, a young prince is denied his ancestral wealth. With the help of a forbidden ritual he tries to summon a demon that will do his bidding. But all rituals require an offering.

Shehan Jude Fernando is a Designer and Animator striving to tell stories for the future. Sifting the leaves of technology with muses of the local in stories of the people for the people.

Self-proclaimed conspiracy theorist “Dhruvi” believes he has found The Balangoda Man. The documentary follows them on their hunt.

We are a group of friends that have grown closer over the years as a result of our love for movies and shared interest of growing the film making community in Sri Lanka. We were glad to not only return to our passion, but share it with other creatives through this opportunity.

A heartfelt journey through time, this film offers a nostalgic glimpse into village life through the eyes of a man and his wife. Reflecting on their past, they share stories of a tight-knit, community-driven existence. The tellers highlight the simplicity and values of the past, offering a stark contrast to the modern, capitalistic society we currently inhabit.

Sohani Weerasooriya is an educator passionate about language, intercultural communication, yoga, and mental health. She is the founder of @BridgeTheGaplk, which reflects the many cultures she’s called home. Now living on the green fringes of a southern coastal town, her work explores alternative ways of living and ancestral practices that foster well-being.

The sea, once a thriving source of life and sustenance, the effects are evident in our daily lives through reduced marine resources, polluted shores, and a loss of biodiversity, reminding us of the urgent need to protect this invaluable natural resource. over time, human activities have transformed the once-thriving sea into a degraded and sometimes lifeless environment.

Kanesh Thabendran (1988) is a practicing artist and recognizes his self as a thinker and layout designer.He lives and works in Jaffna Sri Lanka. He pursued his bachelor’s degree in Fine Arts at the University of Jaffna, completing it in 2015. He has participated in solo and many group exhibitions national and international; he did his first group exhibition at Saskia Fernando Gallery “Seven conversations” 2015; Including Colombo Art Binnale –Conceiving space (2016); Human rights arts festival 2017, Colombo; Colombo scope Arts Festival 2017, Colombo; Island Mentality” Saskia Fernando Gallery, Colombo, Sri Lanka – 2018. “Unspoken Saskia Fernando Gallery, Colombo, Sri Lanka – 2023” Thabendran’s works have reached many private and museum's collections.

"I dropped 100,000 eggs last year... maybe 50,000 survived. The government gave the eggs, the boat, and the net. This is basically a farm," said the second-generation freshwater fisherman after catching a blue claw prawn at a lake near my friend's house. It was the artist's first time seeing a lotus-filled lake in Colombo. First time seeing a huge prawn.

Manuja Mallikarachchi is a based-out-of-Colombo designer, who hangs out around art too much to not be an artist, dabbles in film—after giving up on it a decade ago—mostly in a motion graphics way. Usually plays at the intersection of art and technology, with structured design and/or dynamic expression.

This is an allegory about the impact of social media on human behaviour and productivity. The star held by the figure symbolizes a mobile device and he is captivated by the glowing light. He keeps staring at the light as he is adrift in a boat being taken away from real life and purpose.

Asitha Amarakoon (b. 1983) is an art educator cum digital artist based in Gampaha, Sri Lanka. He is working mainly with the digital medium. Through his digital art and illustrations, Asitha explores the themes of nature and the intersection of technology and human behaviour. Currently, Asitha serves as a lecturer at the Department of Fine Arts, University of Kelaniya.

The film depicts the unexplained disappearance of a small boy. Young Souls can never rest until they find resolution or answers.

Young filmmaking siblings, Satya and Jai Burgess made this short during the lockdown. They used their time to be creative and make memories to look back on.

Triggering the dive response in freediving activates the body’s natural survival reflex, optimizing oxygen use and conserving energy. This response, initiated by facial immersion in water and breath-hold, slows the heart rate, constricts blood vessels, and shifts blood toward vital organs. It enhances breath-hold duration, improves efficiency, and allows freedivers to explore deeper while minimizing oxygen consumption.

Kalim Iqbal is a recreational freediver, freediving instructor and ocean advocate based in Colombo, Sri Lanka.

Ruvin De Silva is a multidisciplinary artist and freediver based in Colombo, Sri Lanka.

"When I was a kid I remember looking far out to the horizon and could see the sea and the sun set into the see. Over time giving way to affordable housing the skyline changed rapidly. Wellawatte beach is a refuge for one of the densely populated areas of Colombo. I remember as a kid going for swims, playing on the beach and going for my runs. I remember looking with curiosity at those who come to fish. I still think there is a lot more than that meets the eye at it’s Wella Beach."

Zul Luthufi (1990) is a lawyer and entrepreneur based in Colombo, Sri Lanka. He is the founder of the sustainable brand Tutti Natural Rubber Yoga Mats. Luthufi has a deep passion for Sri Lankan history, culture, and the untold stories that shape its identity. Having grown up in the Wellawatte neighbourhood, he is particularly interested in the rapid changes in the urban, political, and social landscape of his homeland.

This is a visual short story about the fishing community of Dewata in the south coast of Sri Lanka which sources one of our island's greatest and most prosperous industries.

F. Shifani Reffai is a writer and documentary filmmaker living in a village on the outskirts of Weligama. She enjoys organic farming, community building and facilitating Non Violent Communication gatherings. Her interests lie in storytelling, exploring the nexus between creative energy and mindfulness practices, and working with subjects around marginalization, gender and conflict.

We are a visual culture that preserves images pretty automatically, almost pathologically. But what about the sounds endemic to a time and a place? How can we be more attentive to the sounds that fill this island, the clues they can give us, the weight they may hold in our hearts.

Rachitha explores encounters between sonic and visual media, and the ways that manifests culturally. He is interested in the creation, cultivation and conservation of sounds that are both endemic and emergent to a place; a kind of sonic ethnography. Rachitha is also a music supervisor for film, including 'Santosh' by British-Indian filmmaker Sandhya Suri, which premiered at the 2024 Cannes Film Festival.

The film 'The Melancholy of a Last Flower (2022 - 2025)' brings the memories of the dark past to initiate deep explorations that link historical social and ecological dynamics in Sri Lanka and interpret them from a global south perspective. Further, it strives to disrupt the normalization of suffering in the wake of trauma by foregrounding histories of violence to summon the past, while engaging the present through healing and cleansing processes—in Sri Lanka and across conflict-ridden borders.

Pushpakanthan Pakkiyarajah (b. 1989, Batticaloa, Sri Lanka) is a multimedia artist whose
practice ranges from installations to performance-based soundscapes, videos, sculptures, and
drawings. His interdisciplinary practices reflect the painful and often silenced legacies of the
thirty-year civil war while also tackling globalization’s dark sides.

The video is part of the ‘Work in Progress’ series which critiques ongoing land grabs in the Northern and Eastern provinces of Sri Lanka in the name of Sinhala Buddhist culture. Using traditional ola leaf manuscripts, the main writing material and vehicle of knowledge in Sri Lanka for over 2000 years, the work interrogates the construction of antiquity.

Malinda Jayasinghe (b. 1992) is a self-taught visual artist with a multidisciplinary practice which combines drawing, painting, and sculpting. He began to fuse his interest in socio-political currents and identity after he completed an Art History course at Theertha International Artists Collective. His current practice explores religious, racial and gender privilege in institutions of power.

Kitty Ritig believes that true love exists —It might be a never ending journey to find it but it does exist.

Kitty Ritig (b. Colombo, Sri Lanka) is a multidisciplinary visual artist exploring themes of belonging, intimacy, and connection. Through traditional and digital media, she examines shifting perceptions and the act of looking. Holding a Master’s in Fine Arts, she is also a lecturer and Facilitator for creative workshops, fostering artistic dialogue and expression.

A poetry-film about getting a haircut.

As a scorpio, naturally, Mayun makes brooding video poems.

This one-minute film echoes past and present traumas. A watermelon, used as a symbol, is shot its shattered pieces falling onto a human body draped in white, already stained. As a Sri Lankan Tamil, the ongoing crisis rekindles memories of our own suffering, raising questions about power and the fate of minorities.

Rinoshan Susiman is an interdisciplinary artist from Batticaloa, Sri Lanka, holding both a BFA and MFA in art and design. His artistic practice navigates the intersection of digital and traditional mediums, with a focus on exploring the self within a sociopolitical context, particularly through visual storytelling. Grounded in personal experience, Rinoshan’s work engages with landscapes both physical and emotional as spaces where hidden histories, identity, and memory intersect. His practice examines how these landscapes shape individual and collective perceptions, highlighting narratives that often remain untold or marginalized.

This video manipulation explores the fluidity of borders between Paduvankarai (rural) and Eluvankarai (urban) in Batticaloa, highlighting movement, transition, and liminal spaces shaped by the civil war. It examines identity, belonging, and migration while questioning rigid boundaries. Additionally, it raises concerns about casualties from invasions, extending the dialogue beyond immediate geographic confines.

Rupaneethan Pakkiyarajah is a visual artist and lecturer at the Swami Vipulananda Institute of Aesthetic Studies, Eastern University. He completed a Bachelor of Fine Arts degree in Art and Design (Honors in Sculpture) at the University of Jaffna, Sri Lanka, in 2016. In 2024, he earned a Master’s degree with honors, majoring in Decorative and Applied Art and Folk Crafts at Gzhel State University, Moscow, Russia.

In 2020, he completed an online course titled “Public Art Practice in Place-Shaping” in the Global Classroom for Art and Design, conducted by the Mariam Dawood School of Visual Arts and Design at Beaconhouse National University (BNU), Lahore, Pakistan.

He has been continuously expanding his practice through participation in residential exchange programs and exhibitions, including Colomboscope (Colombo), URONTO (Bangladesh), a solo exhibition at Paradise Gallery Café, a solo exhibition at the Center of Oriental Literature of the Russian State Library (Moscow, Russia), and a group exhibition at Barefoot Gallery (Colombo).

The rhythmic clatter of the press, the careful inking of type, and the smell of freshly printed paper evoke a sense of craftsmanship and nostalgia. The personal connection to letterpress is often tied to the sense of time and dedication that goes into each print, but a reflection of creativity and tradition that lingers long after the ink has dried.

T. Krishnapriya is a practicing artist. She pursued her Bachelor’s degree in Fine Arts at the
University of Jaffna in 2012, Master’s in Beacon house national university Lahore 2020. She lives and works in Jaffna. Srilanka. She has participated in several solo exhibitions, group exhibitions, and residency programs.

"How have political victimization, questionable religious principles, and oppression played a role in the neglect of women’s rights? There are issues regarding freedom of leadership and education, gaps in the matrimonial legal system implemented since the colonial period, and the restriction of women's expression and decision-making autonomy due to patriarchal power. Narratives interwoven with gender hierarchy, cultural, and social-political discrimination have been marginalized. This digital art film is based on a true-life incident. These moving images are collected from my surroundings, and they called out for a chaotic animation. So, I created an assemblage of women's conflict narration through textures of color and sound. The resulting layers convey anger and pain."

Mohammed Thajudeen Fathima Rukshana (1989), a multidisciplinary artist from Kurunegala, Sri Lanka, explores gender biases, societal dehumanization of women, and cultural expectations in her work. She holds a BFA from SVIAS and an MA ADS from Beaconhouse National University. She has exhibited in Colombo, South Asia, the UK, UAE, and India, including Colomboscope, Serendipity Arts Festival, and the India Art Fair.

Despite human actions causing harm to the environment and its habitats, nature possesses an
inherent ability to heal and regenerate. "Freedom to Breathe" reflects this resilience, symbolizing
nature's struggle to reclaim life and balance, even in the face of destruction. The film emphasizes
the hope and strength of the natural world, which continues to breathe life into itself, despite
human interference.

Krishanth Kathiramalai, (1994, Batticaloa, Sri Lanka), a self-taught artist, who uses art to express
human emotions like grief, abandonment, and survival, drawing connections between these
feelings and nature. Influenced by personal struggles and their surroundings, his work aims to
inspire positive change and highlight the resilience of both people and the environment,
especially through the transformative power of nature.

"This one-minute film honors my mother’s lifelong journey as a poet. Featuring one of her own poems about why she writes, the film blends her words with visuals, creating an intimate tribute to her artistic voice. It celebrates poetry as a bridge between memory and expression, preserving her legacy through storytelling."

Lojithan Ram is a multidisciplinary artist and lens-based medium practitioner. He holds his BFA
specialisation (painting) at the RAFA, University of Jaffna (2018). Founder of Batticaloa Photo-History Archive (since 2021); Co-founder of We Are From Here Collective (since 2018); He has also participated in numerous community engagements and exhibitions.

"From the age of 11 months, I lived in a different country. Sri Lanka was a distant land we'd visit. Fast forward 23 years, I'm married and moving to a new country. Australia. To restart. To live a new life. To make a home. But then 2018, I'm whisked off to Sri Lanka. I made it home for the next 6 years. Then, once again, life has settled and I'm packing up to move back to Melbourne. To resettle. And with me, my son. Who was moved from Melbourne to Sri Lanka and now back to Melbourne. Who inherits the story of a migrant. So I wonder what home is. My memories of childhood are attached to Saudi and the UAE. But it's not home anymore. Its only a place I visit."

Safiya Sideek, raised in Abu Dhabi, explores home and belonging through art. Moving between Colombo, Melbourne, and the UAE, she found solace in nature, shaping her practice in acrylics, ink, and watercolor. Through personal and political upheavals, her work reflects resilience, capturing landscapes and everyday moments that tether us to place and identity.

A glimpse into art handling in the West and a reflection on the re/distribution of power and resources.

Shanika Perera is a Master’s student in Museum and Heritage Studies at the Reinwardt Academy in Amsterdam, currently on professional leave from her role as Senior Programme Manager at the Geoffrey Bawa Trust. From 2016 to 2022, she played a key role in producing multiple editions of the interdisciplinary art festival Colomboscope. She holds a Bachelor's degree in Graphic Design.