Amma, Do Giraffe's Cry?

Synopsis

An enclosure glass at Prague Zoo divides the world between the humans and the animals. On the free side, Kartikeya is in a conversation with his Zoologist mother, finding answers to mysterious layers he believes the animals carry. This film exposes how our human-centricity shapes our reality, and invites us to see the animal world, once again, like children.

From the filmmaker

In many ways, this film became a conversation between me and my mother, a debate between scientific inquiry and poetic expression. I became increasingly aware of the relationship and friction between image and sound. My distant mother exists only in sound, while the animals I encountered in Prague Zoo remain in the image. Ultimately, I came to think of the film as a love letter to my mother, about something we both love deeply, but encounter and understand in our own ways.

Details

Runtime: 27m

Year: 2026

Festivals: Visions Du Reel 2026

Credits

Director: Kartikeya Saxena

Producer: Kartikeya Saxena, Tomáš Šimon

Cinematography: Ya Ching Yang

Editing: Shawrya Kumar

Poster

Stills