Polyphem (2026): Cast, Story and Release Details

Prepared by Movies Dock Editorial

Polyphem is a 10-minute experimental landscape short that reinterprets the Polyphemus episode from Homer’s Odyssey through the damaged terrain of the Anthropocene. Set at Germany’s only active bauxite tailings pond, the film connects ancient myth with red mud and industrial aluminium waste.

Polyphem is a 2026 experimental short film directed by Ilaria Di Carlo. Running for 10 minutes, it forms the second chapter in a series of landscape films inspired by the stages of Homer’s Odyssey.

Rather than placing the myth in an ancient setting, the film relocates the story of Polyphemus to a contemporary industrial environment. Its setting is Germany’s only active bauxite tailings pond, where red mud and aluminium waste shape the landscape.

Polyphem movie details

Story without spoilers

The film reimagines the Polyphemus episode from Homer’s Odyssey within a landscape marked by industrial extraction and environmental damage. Its central setting, a bauxite tailings pond in Germany, provides the contemporary context for an interpretation of the ancient myth.

As the second instalment in an experimental landscape-film series, Polyphem connects the stages of Odysseus’s journey with the Anthropocene—the period associated with humanity’s significant impact on the planet. The film’s premise rests on the contrast between a well-known classical narrative and a modern site of industrial waste.

What to expect

Polyphem is an experimental landscape film rather than a conventional narrative feature. Its short 10-minute runtime and premise suggest a concentrated interpretation of myth, place and environmental transformation.

Viewers can expect the film to foreground its unusual location: the only active bauxite tailings pond in Germany. The supplied synopsis identifies red mud and industrial aluminium waste as important elements of the setting, while the Odyssey provides the work’s mythological framework.

Cast and creative team

Polyphem is directed by Ilaria Di Carlo. No cast or writer is listed in the supplied information.

Release and production context

Polyphem is a 2026 production from Germany and Italy, with English as its spoken language. It has a runtime of 10 minutes and is listed as released on October 17, 2026. No production companies are identified in the supplied details.

Movies Dock view

With its brief runtime, industrial location and connection to Homer’s Odyssey, Polyphem presents a focused reinterpretation of myth through a contemporary environmental landscape. It also serves as the second chapter of Ilaria Di Carlo’s experimental series of films based on the journey in the Odyssey.

Film data:
TMDB · IMDb