For the eighth year in a row, the Eastern Promises section features the latest film releases from the former Socialist Bloc. Fourteen remarkable titles will take us to some favourite destinations (Poland, Romania) as well as less explored territories. New releases from Lithuania, Azerbaijan, Yakutia or Northern Macedonia will bring stories of the men facing difficult moral and life dilemmas. We will watch their existential groping in both frolicking comedies and dramatic thrillers. We will be taken to the early 1990s in the Baltics (The Southern Chronicles) or to the harsh territory of today’s Russia (Konchitsya Leto). Powerful women’s stories will unfold in Poland or Georgia. Their heroines will go through the disillusionment with the current power structures of the world (Loss of Balance), but at the same time they will be able to submit themselves to their mission, be it protection of the Bialowieza Forest (Simona Kossak) or help with illegal abortions (April). A number of thought-provoking debuts will include the magical-realism drama Wet Monday uncovering deep adolescence traumas or the audience favourite DJ Ahmed about two young people trying to emancipate themselves with the help of a tractor and boombox. The rich spectrum of innovative filmmakers will be complemented by experienced directors such as Sergei Loznitsa or Radu Jude whose latest premieres from Berlin or Cannes pose disturbing questions about empathy (Kontinental ‘25) and our ability or willingness to confront the evils of totalitarian regimes (Two Prosecutors).