2020 Heartland International Film Festival

Picture Character

Expired October 25, 2020 3:59 AM
Already unlocked? for access
This virtual screening is eligible for HIFF Audience Choice Awards! 5=great, 1=poor The voting period has closed. Audience Choice Awards will be announced right after the festival!
Protected ContentThis content can only be viewed in authorized regions: United States of America.

LIVE VIRTUAL Q&A: October 9 at 8:00 pm EDT. CLICK HERE to register for FREE!


"Picture Character" explores the complex, conflict-prone, and often hilarious world of the creators, lovers, and arbiters of emoji, our world’s newest pictorial language. How do you create a global language on the fly? This film charts the evolution of emojis, and investigates what they may reveal about our increasingly technological world.


In Arabic, English, Japanese, and Spanish with English subtitles.


Programming descriptions are generated by participants and do not necessarily reflect the opinions of Heartland Film.


Festivals and Awards:

AFI Docs

ART Russia Festival

Design Film Festival

Durango Film Festival

Hawaii International Film Festival

Hot Docs

Melbourne International Film Festival

Sydney Film Festival

Taormina Film Fest

Tribeca Film Festival

WoodsHole Film Festival

  • Year
    2019
  • Runtime
    81 minutes
  • Language
    English, Japanese, Arabic, Spanish
  • Country
    U.S., Germany, Japan, Argentina, Austria, U.K., Scotland
  • Rating
    Suitable for All Ages
  • Director
    Ian Cheney, Martha Shane
  • Producer
    Ian Cheney, Martha Shane, Jennifer 8. Lee
  • Executive Producer
    Fred Benenson, Peter Friedland
  • Cast
    Rayouf Alhumedhi, Florencia Coelho, Daniela Guini, Carmen Barlow, Francis Mason