Synopsis
A meditation session goes off-script when the app’s AI begins to unravel mid-guidance—leaving the human on the other end to improvise calm, connection, and something that looks a lot like therapy. Present Tense is an absurdist comedy about machine anxiety, emotional labor in the digital age, and the strange intimacy we build with the voices in our phones – building to a final reveal that shifts the ground under everything that came before.
Credits
Director (1)
Technical details
- Type : Short film
- Sub-genre : Comedy
- Coproducer countries : France, United States
- Original French-language productions : Unspecified
- Production year : 2026
- Runtime : 4 min
News & awards
Selections (1)
Cleveland International Film Festival
United States, 2026
Compétition internationale
Comedy Shorts Program
Movies and programs to discover
MyFrenchShorts
Full movie to watch for free!
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Sixteen-year-old Diane exists exclusively through her mother's gaze. But this intensely close bond between Diane and her mother, Sophie, is becoming increasingly problematic for the teenager. At high school, she would like to be loved like she is at home and expresses it in an awkward way like when she exchanges a favor for a look, in the toilets. A loudmouth, provocative, and seeking attention, Diane tries to stand apart from her mother and wishes, during a weekend, to live like an adult.
