In 1971, 27-year-old Newsweek reporter Alec Shimkin discovers a secret US-led military campaign in Vietnam. The story is about to reveal war crimes on an immense scale, undeniably Pullitzer-worthy material. But the Scoop never got the exposure it deserved: though published in Newsweek, Shimkin’s findings were tucked away in a small sidebar, far from the front-page attention they warrented. Shimkin’s discovery was Operation Speedy Express, a campaign that may have involved war crimes on a scale that makes the infamous My Lai massacre pale by comparrison. Yet almost no one knows the full truth, because Alec himself vanished before he could bring it to light. In the trail of Alec’s quest and his childhood obsession for war, the documentary Soldier’s Bones, directed by Kasper Verkaik, searches for the deadly echo of Speedy Express in the Mekong Delta.

For the first time in On Tour, we bring together a striking selection of short films, including a preview of two new festival shorts! In The Age of Vigilance takes us on a bumpy, sometimes satirical, ride through state oppression, repression and hopelessness within a system that turns its back to those it is supposed to protect. The selection reflects the current Orwellian state of affairs, where government surveillance, manipulation of truth and abuse of power dictate daily life in most parts of the world. Together, these films capture the urgency and fragility of life under constant pressure, when vigilance becomes a daily condition, asking what it means to live under pressure, and what it takes to keep thinking, feeling, and resisting.

In a world that often overlooks the power of the elderly, Micheline, Francis, and Yves lead a group of activists on a bold and tender journey to redefine the often-complicated relationship between aging and sexuality. Together, they prove that desire, defiance, and the need for intimacy are not strictly reserved for the youth.

An Asian tourist visits the touristic highlights that the Netherlands has to offer. After losing his passport – due to biased assumptions about his identity – he ends up in a refugee asylum situated on a former luxury cruise ship in Amsterdam. Awaiting a solution to his precarious situation, he manages to start special friendships with the residents of the asylum through non-verbal communication. This hybrid film was made with non-professional actors and refugees playing themselves, and is inspired by a true story.