The short and bizarre film CITYWALK has made its way into some of the strangest and most exciting film festivals around the world.
CITYWALK has travelled across Europe and the United States, visiting everything from high-quality festivals to the most unapologetic trash film events. And somehow it all feels exactly right for this particular film. We love the beautiful, the crazy, the sick, the over-the-top – and the completely super-trashy love letters to cinema.
In Sweden we are especially happy about the film’s participation in one of the world’s most renowned short film festivals – Uppsala Short Film Festival, which celebrated its 44th edition this year. The festival’s Kortkort programme, where CITYWALK was screened, is dedicated to ultra-short, bold and experimental films where filmmakers challenge storytelling in extremely compact formats.
Another highlight was Lund Fantastic Film Festival, Sweden’s biggest and coolest genre film festival. Our feature film May You Live was also part of the programme, giving us a double screening – CITYWALK and May You Live lighting up a dark October evening in southern Sweden.
Brazil seems to have a soft spot for Swedish films. The country has been one of the biggest audiences for Homecoming, and May You Live was also warmly welcomed into the Brazilian film scene. The international genre festival SINISTRO Fest, held in Fortaleza in Ceará, selected CITYWALK for its 2025 programme. We are delighted by the enthusiasm that our films receive there.
In North Macedonia, CITYWALK was screened under the open sky at the charming and original Flipbook Film Festival – a festival created from the heart, filled with warmth and a strong sense of community.
The film also travelled to the Netherlands and BUT Film Festival, a celebration of everything sick, trashy, weird and underground. Wild parties mixed with art, performance, music and plenty of film. We felt right at home.
In Germany it was time for punk at Punk Film Festival Berlin – Too Drunk To Watch Film Festival. And honestly, how punk is it not to screen a bizarre indie stop-motion short about a genital?
In the UK, the film was shown at Cardiff Mini Film Festival, perhaps one of the most thoughtfully organised festivals we have seen.
The United States offered several stops as well. Bizarroland Film Festival is a welcoming home for all weirdos tired of conventional film structures – as far away from Hollywood superhero movies as you can get. Needless to say, we clicked immediately.
Out in the desert near Los Angeles, CITYWALK even ended up at what might be the most epic, nerdy and spectacular event we’ve ever experienced: Wasteland Film Festival, part of the annual Mad Max-inspired Wasteland Weekend. Participants build their own vehicles, create characters and live together in the desert for a long weekend filled with performances, competitions, cosplay, music and film. Completely insane and absolutely fantastic.
It has been incredibly fun to screen CITYWALK at so many different festivals, from elegant cinema halls to the most deliberately trashy and bizarre events.
Long live diversity in film!
CITYWALK at film festivals around the world – from Uppsala Short Film Festival to Wasteland Film Festival in the California desert.
CITYWALK poster
Backa Studios is a Swedish production company developing and producing short and feature films with strong characters and original storytelling.
Read in English → CITYWALK reser runt jorden