Beirut Shorts 2025 - Awards

A hopeful vision of renewal and connection rises from the Beirut Shorts International Film

Festival poster of the 19th edition, reflecting Lebanon’s enduring spirit and its steady return to

color after years of hardship. The design speaks not only of struggle but also of togetherness

and transformation, as if the city itself is breathing again. High above the horizon, an airplane

cuts through the sky. This presence is both physical and emotional, reminding us that Lebanon’s

story extends far beyond its borders, yet always circles back to Beirut. Around the city, the

clouds remain, but softer now: still present, still whispering of challenges, yet no longer casting

the same weight. They are breaking apart, allowing the light to pass through, suggesting that

hope has begun to outshine despair.

At the heart of the composition, the butterfly appears once again, weaving her quiet magic. She

is delicate yet powerful, her wings in motion as though painting the city back into life. This

butterfly is no ordinary symbol: she represents resilience, rebirth, and the power of

transformation in progress. As she dances across the poster, she draws color into the frame,

suggesting that Lebanon, like the butterfly, is not fixed but forever becoming. The return of

vibrant hues in the skyline speaks of a Beirut reimagined by its youth, a city rebuilt not only in

bricks and mortar, but in creativity, cinema, and dreams.

The poster’s cityscape deepens this narrative by blending modern towers with traditional

Lebanese houses. It is a visual dialogue between heritage and progress, between memory and

aspiration. The traditional rooftops honor the authenticity and cultural roots of Lebanon, while

the modern buildings rise as a declaration of ambition, innovation, and forward-looking vision.

Together, they form a skyline that is neither past nor future alone, but both: an evolving Beirut

that embraces continuity while striving for transformation.

The gradual return of vivid tones after the muted shades of clouds and shadows mirrors

Lebanon’s own emergence from crisis into a future painted with creativity and hope. Every

choice, the mix of architecture, the layering of sky and city, and the butterfly’s flight contributes

to a visual story of a country and a generation in motion, unfinished yet unstoppable.