It’s here! We’re unveiling the first seven films of this year’s Future Gate Sci-Fi Film Festival. Get ready for a massive lineup of sci-fi premieres from literally all corners of our planet, cult classics from the 1980s, films that have already become modern genre classics, documentaries, and a selection of some of the most exciting short films. In short: Future Gate is coming.
Zombie apocalypse from the director of Train to Busan
The main competition for the latest sci-fi releases will feature two films that also caught attention this year at the Karlovy Vary International Film Festival.
Colony (Gunche) is a full-blown zombie thrill ride from Sang-ho Yeon, the director of the cult classic Train to Busan. This time, he takes the zombie genre into a whole new dimension — and once again, it’s bloody.
Inside a skyscraper housing a department store and a top-secret laboratory, an unknown and rapidly mutating virus is unleashed, forcing a group of survivors to run for their lives.
This star-studded film features Ji-hyeon Jeon (My Sassy Girl, Kingdom) and Chang-wook Ji (Healer, The Manipulator, Suspicious Partner), among others.
Can we remain human in the future?
Light Pillar (Han ye deng zhu) explores what intimacy might look like in a world where intergalactic travel has become an everyday reality. Will we still be able to maintain meaningful personal relationships, or will our humanity eventually migrate into virtual space?
The film premiered in the prestigious Perspectives section at the Berlinale, where it received strong reviews from critics and a warm response from audiences.
African sci-fi that conquered Tribeca
In the African sci-fi film Crocodile, screened at the Berlinale, you’ll see how to make science fiction without a big budget or extensive resources — but with plenty of love, determination, and a desire to tell a story.
The film won the prestigious Viewpoints Award at the Tribeca Festival, recognizing films with a distinctive directorial voice and a unique perspective.
A Cult Cyberpunk Classic
Blade Runner, Ridley Scott’s cult classic, explores the boundaries of what it means to be human. Harrison Ford stars as the iconic detective Deckard, on the trail of replicants whose desire to live challenges everything he once believed.
After several years, the film returns to Future Gate, where this year it will represent one of the most influential sci-fi genres of all time: cyberpunk.
A Czech Punk Tribute to Action Sci-Fi
The Czech short film Disconnected is a low-budget punk tribute to the action B-movies of the 1980s and ’90s. Bob (Albert Čuba), a lone scientist, is on the run from the gang behind an app capable of controlling the human mind. When he crosses paths with taxi driver Sára (Andrea Mohylová), he unexpectedly finds an ally.
Nuclear Disaster in Japan
Fukushima: A Nuclear Nightmare offers a gripping reconstruction of one of the worst nuclear disasters in history. Following the earthquake and tsunami that struck Japan in 2011, it reveals the chaos, systemic failures, and the courage of those who risked their own lives to prevent an even greater catastrophe.
Short Sci-fi films from the iShorts
iShorts returns to Future Gate with a selection of short sci-fi films that serve up the future in small but highly concentrated doses. Expect robots, artificial intelligence, strange technologies, dark humour, and worlds only a few steps removed from our own. Because sometimes you don’t need two hours for great sci-fi. All it takes is one brilliant idea.
And this is just the beginning. More films and the full Future Gate programme are coming soon!