Perspectives Film Festival 2018: Breakthroughs in Cinema explores the theme of Institutions — systems of power that govern and transcend the individual. For decades, filmmakers have been crafting films that try to reconcile society’s need for order and Man’s need for freedom. They call attention to characters that strive to find their place in various kinds of institutions: be it patriarchy, politics, economics, religion, nationality, marriage, or even film itself.

This year, Perspectives tests the limits of the individual against the limits of their institutions. The curated films seek to capture this perpetual tension, guided by a simple premise: no one is isolated enough to resist organization, yet no institution is formidable enough to remain unchallenged.