In the years before World War II, a penniless Japanese child is torn from her family to work as a maid in a geisha house.
Sophie is far from being the model little girl one would like her to be, unlike her friends Camille and Madeleine. She always insists on having her own way, often getting into trouble, to the despair of one and all. But her mother is unbending and otherwise inclined. She will not let her get away with anything, and poor Sophie will often have to live with the consequences of her bad behaviour and learn her lesson.
Hundreds of years ago in Lapland, a little boy named Nikolas loses his family in an accident. The villagers decide to look after the orphaned boy together. Once a year - at Christmas - Nikolas moves to a new home. To show his gratitude, Nikolas decides to make toys for the children of the families as good-bye presents. Over the years, Nikolas's former adoptive families become many, and soon almost every house has presents on its doorstep on Christmas morning. At thirteen, Nikolas is sent to live and work with Iisakki, a grumpy old carpenter, who forbids Nikolas to continue making presents for Christmas. Gradually, however, Nikolas wins Iisakki's trust. Together they begin to look after the Christmas traditional that Nikolas has begun. When the aged Iisakki has to leave Nikolas and move away, the tradition of Christmas presents is once again at risk. Thankfully, Nikolas comes up with a solution that brings children joy every Christmas, even continuing to today.
A talented group of orphaned children in Swaziland create a fictional heroine and send her on a dangerous quest.
A neighborhood boy might have the solution to his problems, though. For two silver candlesticks, he promises to give Conrad a rare, vicious, growling and cunning animal with supernatural abilities, which supposedly was coveted in the past by Egyptian pharaohs, Borneo pirates and even Napoleon Bonaparte himself. Eventually the trade is made, Conrad gets the creature.
When everything in his life seems to be going wrong, downtrodden and alcohol-dependent Karl has a fateful encounter in Munich with Yu, a mysterious Japanese dancer from his father’s past. Unexpectedly, Yu begins to help Karl confront his demons (both literal and figurative) and begin to heal.
Two Farewells deals with Alzheimer's disease with a respectful sense of humor.
A mysterious health condition emerged in late 2022: dozens of people go to sleep and never wake up, entering a deep coma popularly known as "The Sleep Plague." Ester, a psychology student burdened with guilt over her recent loss of her mother, finds herself involuntarily living in her own dreams. With the chance to reunite with her mother, Ester will discover that living in her mind may not be as pleasant as it seems.
A lost poker gambler has to change his life after an unfortunate turn of events
Years after immigrating to the United States, Matt (Gabriel Berm) grapples with the notion of family. A call from his sister, Callie (Callie Morken), becomes the catalyst for a realization: he learns that family transcends borders and manifests in varied forms. The deepest connections endure physical separation, teaching Matt that what truly matters is the unbreakable bond they share, echoing louder than any distance.
During his visit to a graveyard, a young man is suddenly projected into a dream-like realm. Empty and removed from time, the familiar landscape forces him to confront certain pains when blood suddenly effuses from his hands.
