The Past We Keep

A moment suspended between memory and imagination, Lina revisits a time in her life marked by emptiness and quiet despair. As she encounters her younger self, a silent truth emerges: some wounds will heal, but their traces remain.
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Lina blickt auf ihre Vergangenheit zurück. Sie erinnert sich an eine Zeit, die von Leere und Aussichtslosigkeit geprägt ist. Die Begegnung mit ihrem jüngeren Selbst zeigt ihr, dass manche Wunden zwar heilen, aber immer Teil von ihr bleiben.

  • Laura Bilgeri
    Key Cast
  • Susa Meyer
    Key Cast
  • Lea Kriegshaber
    Cast
  • Kadi Sakho
    Cast
  • Djiké Sakho
    Cast
  • Allegra Sakho
    Cast
  • Benedict Heinz
    Cast
  • Joshua Haiden
    Director
  • Joshua Haiden
    Writer
  • Nicole Scherleitner
    Script Supervisor
  • Maximilian Gübitz
    Producer
  • Joshua Haiden
    Producer
  • Leonie Federle
    Set Manager
  • Stella Permantier
    Set-Runner
  • Jannis Berner
    Set-Runner
  • Xaver Haiden
    Director of Photography
  • Anne Hasenhütl
    1st Assistant Camera
  • Ivan Tsoy
    1st Assistant Camera
  • Katharina Simuneck
    2nd Assistant Camera
  • Tim Saint Jalmes
    2nd Assistant Camera
  • Andreas Foramitti
    Gaffer
  • Theo Lechner
    Lighting Technicians
  • Tobias Wutschek
    Lighting Technicians
  • Jan Knickmann
    Lighting Technicians
  • Emma Sophie Schaub
    Production Design
  • Lou Riéra
    Production Design Assistant
  • Leonie Picher
    Production Design Assistant
  • Serapia Lentsch
    Costume Design
  • dariadéh
    Costume Design
  • Angie Hainzer
    Hair & Make-Up Design
  • Johannes Kollmann
    Production Sound Mixer
  • Lukas Mitgefaller
    Set-Photography
  • Stefan Pecher
    Editor
  • Alina Johannes
    Assistant Editor
  • Mathis von der Goltz
    Composer
  • Oliver Aitzetmüller
    Sound Design
  • Tom Varga
    Colorist
  • Victor Vecsei
    Social Media Marketing
  • Anna Pintsuk
    Social Media Marketing
  • Maximilian Knoll
    Social Media Marketing
  • Vivian Sedlak
    Graphic Design
  • Milan Konrad
    Graphic Design
  • Fiona Hofer
    Portfolio Illustration
  • Theresa Pügelmeier
    Paintings
  • Sylvie Sadiku
    Paintings
  • Milan Konrad
    Paintings
  • Project Title (Original Language):
    Narben
  • Project Type:
    Short
  • Genres:
    Drama
  • Runtime:
    9 minutes 15 seconds
  • Completion Date:
    April 30, 2025
  • Country of Origin:
    Austria
  • Country of Filming:
    Austria
  • Language:
    German
  • Shooting Format:
    Digital
  • Aspect Ratio:
    1.66:1
  • Film Color:
    Color
  • First-time Filmmaker:
    No
  • Student Project:
    No
  • Digital Cinema Package:
    Unavailable
  • Schmeckt! Kurzfilmfest
    Vienna
    Austria
    June 13, 2025
    World Premiere
    Official Selection
  • Jung & Abgedreht
    Hanau
    Germany
    June 14, 2026
    Germany Premiere
    Young Professionals
Director Biography - Joshua Haiden

Joshua was born in Vienna. In 2021, he graduated with a major in Photography and Film. After graduation, he spent a year in Los Angeles working with the USC Shoah Foundation. During this time, he focused on the visual documentation of the Holocaust and closely collaborated with survivors, creating educational materials based on their stories.

While in Los Angeles, he participated in various photography and film projects, as well as producing his own work, which has since gained international recognition. Back in Vienna, he collaborated with local artists and worked in advertising and narrative filmmaking.

He studied Photography and Design at the Faculty of Design in Würzburg. During his studies, he also took acting and dramaturgy courses at institutions such as the Stella Adler Studio of Acting (NYC and LA) and Anthony Meindl’s Actor Workshop.

His latest short film, Narben, celebrated its world premiere at the great Gartenbaukino in June 2025 in Vienna and was selected for the “Young Professionals” competition section of the 2026 Jung & Abgedreht Festival. Since the beginning of this year, he has also been part of the project management team of the Schmeckt! Short Film Festival.

He is currently developing his first feature-length film, continuing his focus on intimate, psychologically driven stories rooted in memory, identity, and human connection.

Filmography

Short film (2025)
NARBEN - THE PAST WEKEEP
Director, Writer, Producer

Feature Film Screenplay (2024)
THE WATER BENEATH US
Writer

Short film (2023)
OLD PATTERNS
Director, Writer, Producer, Editor

Short film (2021)
FREE, JAZZ
Director, Writer, Producer, Editor

Trailer for the Create Your World Festival (2020)
ARS ELECTRONICA
Director, Concept, Producer, Editor

Experimental Short film (2019)
CONFUSION
Director, Concept, Editor

Short film (2019)
VERGÄNGLICH
Director, Writer, Producer, Editor

Add Director Biography
Director Statement

Inspired by a short story by Florian Fleischhacker

The first time I read Florian’s short story, it stayed with me. Something resonated deeply in its silence, in what wasn’t said.

Everyone, in their own way, tries to make sense of where they belong. And many of us carry things: memories, regrets, unresolved thoughts — that are hard to let go of. The Past We Keep is about that quiet negotiation between who we were and who we are trying to become. It’s about the act of forgiving, not just others, but ourselves.

The screenplay draws from the original story but takes its own form, with scenes that unfold in stillness, with gestures that speak where words fall short. I believe that cinema lives in the unspoken, in the glance that lingers, in the space between moments.

Lina’s inner journey is told through a daydream that feels more like a memory than a fantasy. We kept it grounded, almost real, but allowed a subtle, surreal texture to remain, to reflect how the mind processes what it cannot fully grasp.

This is a deeply personal film for me. As someone who has wrestled with questions around mental health, I wanted to tell this story with care, not as a solution, but as a gesture toward more openness and more tenderness in how we deal with the invisible things we carry.