International Film Festival Rotterdam (IFFR) announced the first titles in the Bright Future and Limelight programs for its next full in-person edition taking place from January 25 to February 5, 2023.
In the Bright Future program, dedicated to young and emerging film talent, a supernatural virus spreads across Sri Lanka in Jagath Manuwarna’s powerfully satirical debut feature Whispering Mountains, which has its world premiere in Rotterdam. Likewise Umut Subasi world premieres his Istanbul-set deadpan dramedy Almost Entirely a Slight Disaster. A rural Kenyan village gives the name to Angela Wanjiku Wamai’s gripping debut Shimoni, which screens in Europe for the first time following its TIFF premiere.
The Limelight lineup of avant-premieres and cinematic highlights from the year’s festival circuit will include Pierre Földes’ beguiling animated take on Haruki Murakami’s short stories Blind Willow, Sleeping Woman, as well as Alice Diop’s courtroom drama Saint Omer. Two couples defy the authorities in Iranian filmmaker Jafar Panahi’s No Bears, which will screen at the festival while its director remains imprisoned in Iran.
Additionally, the 40th edition of IFFR’s co-production market CineMart will take place from Sunday January 29 to Wednesday February 1, with one-to-one meetings and informal networking taking place in person for the first time since 2020. Reality Check, IFFR’s platform to reflect on and discuss current issues in the film industry, also returns.
Bright Future
Almost Entirely a Slight Disaster, Umut Subasi, 2023, Turkey, world premiere
Four millennials in Istanbul, demoralized by money and social troubles, break down in the solitude of their apartments. But chances are that you will be laughing through this poker-faced tragicomedy about a generation whose future prospects are indistinguishable from a game of chance.
La amiga de mi amiga, Zaida Carmona, 2022, Spain, international premiere
Zaida treats her life like a movie; recently dumped, the film follows her through a series of fast-paced hookups in Barcelona’s queer art scene. She ends up falling for Lara, a fellow filmmaker, who happens to be her friend’s girlfriend.
Amiko, Morii Yusuke , 2022, Japan, international premiere
This gentle but affecting tale about an extraordinary girl, her imagination and isolation features a triumphant young performance and confident debut direction. Both in its moments of sorrow and mischievous whimsy, Amiko is as uplifting as it is heartbreaking.
Clementina, Agustín Mendilaharzu, Constanza Feldman, 2022, Argentina
A delightful absurdist comedy about the life of two eccentrics – not to mention their collection of handmade objects, toys, books, souvenirs, records and leaves – during pandemic times. Shot with refreshing formal inventiveness and paying special attention to the humorous qualities of sound.
A los libros y a las mujeres canto, María Elorza, 2022, Spain, international premiere
A los libros y a las mujeres canto is an affectionate documentary about four women and their libraries – a film where passion, commitment and transmission matter more than genius. María Elorza brings into focus the kinds of characters and stories that often remain at the margins of culture.
Whispering Mountains, Jagath Manuwarna, 2023, Sri Lanka, world premiere
The young people of Sri Lanka are committing suicide in droves. The government blames a supernatural virus that must be cleansed by ancient ritual. Jagath Manuwarna’s debut feature is a powerfully satirical and layered reckoning with decades of civil unrest and suppression.
Shimoni, Angela Wanjiku Wamai, 2022, Kenya, European premiere
A gripping narrative about a tortured man trapped between the victim’s vulnerability and the perpetrator’s guilt. An affecting Kenyan film that addresses the profound, inescapable pain of open wounds that, unable to find expression and recognition, are condemned to be distorted and recreated.
Limelight
Blind Willow, Sleeping Woman, Pierre Földes, France, Canada, Luxembourg, Netherlands
Failing marriages and dead-end jobs may be the stuff of kitchen sink realism, but they become occasions for life-altering encounters with dreams, fantasies and fevered visions in Pierre Földes’ beguiling animated feature based on short stories by Haruki Murakami.
The Blue Caftan, Maryam Touzani, 2022, Morocco, Belgium, Denmark, France
When master tailor Halim, a closeted gay man, and his ailing wife Mina hire a young apprentice at their clothing store, the unvoiced tensions in their relationship come out in the open.
Godland, Hlynur Pálmason, 2022, Denmark, Iceland
A Lutheran priest is sent to the Danish colony of Iceland to oversee the building of a church and a journey of (self-)discovery begins. Part ironic essay on religion’s foibles, part hard look at civilisation’s soft spots, Godland is among the year’s richest cinema experiences.
No Bears, Jafar Panahi, 2022, Iran
Over video calls from a peripheral Iranian village, dissident artist Jafar Panahi directs a film crew on the other side of the Turkish border. As the film’s fiction clashes with the actors’ real-life situation, the filmmaker’s own reality catches up.
Un petit frère, Léonor Serraille, 2022, France
Rose has emigrated from the Ivory Coast to France with her two sons. A caring mother, she motivates them to make the best of their lives, but her own search for love bears down on the boys, who hurtle into adulthood in contrasting ways.
Saint Omer, Alice Diop, 2022, France
Laurence Coly admits to drowning her baby, but pleads ‘not guilty’ in court. Perplexed by this contradiction, novelist Rama attends Laurence’s trial, but what she experiences begins to shake the foundations of her own life.
War Pony, Riley Keough, Gina Gammell, 2022, United States
Winner of the Cannes Caméra d’Or, the directorial debut of Gina Gammell and Riley Keough is set in America’s Pine Ridge Indian Reservation. Filmed in close collaboration with local inhabitants, the sharply realistic drama explores a spiritual, indigenous perspective.
First confirmations in full:
Bright Future
- Almost Entirely a Slight Disaster, Umut Subasi, 2023, Turkey, world premiere
- La amiga de mi amiga, Zaida Carmona, 2022, Spain, international premiere
- Amiko, Morii Yusuke, 2022, Japan, international premiere
- Clementina, Agustín Mendilaharzu, Constanza Feldman, 2022, Argentina
- A los libros y a las mujeres canto, María Elorza, 2022, Spain, international premiere
- La mala familia, Nacho A. Villar, Luis Rojo, 2022, Spain, France, international premiere
- Shimoni, Angela Wanjiku Wamai, 2022, Kenya, European premiere
- Whispering Mountains, Jagath Manuwarna, 2023, Sri Lanka, world premiere
Limelight
- Aftersun, Charlotte Wells, 2022, United States, United Kingdom
- Blind Willow, Sleeping Woman, Pierre Földes, France, Canada, Luxembourg, Netherlands
- The Blue Caftan, Maryam Touzani, 2022, Morocco, Belgium, Denmark, France
- Boy from Heaven, Tarik Saleh, 2022, Sweden, Finland, France
- Eo, Jerzy Skolimowski, 2022, Poland, Italy
- Godland, Hlynur Pálmason, 2022, Denmark, Iceland
- Mediterranean Fever, Maha Haj, 2022, Palestine, Germany, France, Cyprus, Qatar
- Medusa Deluxe, Thomas Hardiman, 2022, United Kingdom
- No Bears, Jafar Panahi, 2022, Iran
- Nostalgia, Mario Martone, 2022, Italy
- Un petit frère, Léonor Serraille, 2022, France
- Saint Omer, Alice Diop, 2022, France
- War Pony, Riley Keough, Gina Gammell, 2022, United States
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