Film Festivals

US Film Electrick Children to Open Generation 14plus competition at the 2012 Berlin International Film Festival

[caption id="attachment_2311" align="alignnone"]Electrick Children by Rebecca Thomas[/caption]

The Generation 14plus competition at the 2012 Berlin International Film Festival will open with the US directorial debut Electrick Children by Rebecca Thomas. The director and her leading actors Julia Garner (Martha Marcy May Marlene), Rory Culkin (Lymelife) and Billy Zane (Titanic) are expected on the red carpet for this world premiere on February 10. Garner plays a young Mormon who breaks out of her strict religious community and plunges herself into the nightlife of Las Vegas.

The Swiss documentary Die Kinder vom Napf will kick off the competition of Generation Kplus also on February 10. Director Alice Schmid accompanies 50 mountain farm children through the four seasons in the “Wild West” of Lucerne Canton. For the international premiere, the filmmaker and the children from the mountain village of Romoos are coming to Berlin.

Generation is also expecting a number of other well-known guests for the premieres of their films. For Kronjuvelerna (The Crown Jewels): Bill Skarsgård (Shooting Star 2012) and Alicia Vikander (Shooting Star 2011). For Comes A Bright Day: Craig Roberts (Submarine), Imogen Poots (28 Weeks Later), Kevin McKidd (Grey’s Anatomy) and Timothy Spall (The King’s Speech). For Lal Gece (Night of Silence): Ilyas Salman (Abbas in Flower). For ARCADIA: Ryan Simpkins (A Single Man), John Hawkes (Winter’s Bone). The final list of guests will be released shortly before the festival begins.

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Fishing Without Nets Wins Top Short Films Prize at 2012 Sundance Film Festival

[caption id="attachment_2309" align="alignnone"]FISHING WITHOUT NETS[/caption]

The jury prizes and honorable mentions in short filmmaking at the 2012 Sundance Film Festival were presented at a ceremony in Park City, Utah.

The Jury Prize in Short Filmmaking was awarded to:
FISHING WITHOUT NETS / U.S.A. (Director: Cutter Hodierne, Screenwriters: Cutter Hodierne, John Hibey) — A story of pirates in Somalia, told from the perspective of the pirates themselves. Said the Short Film Jury of the film, “By approaching a story of epic scope with an intimate perspective, this visually stunning film creates a rare, inside point of view that humanizes a global story.”

The Jury Prize in Short Film, U.S. Fiction was presented to:
The Black Balloon / U.S.A. (Directors: Benny Safdie, Josh Safdie) — The Black Balloon strays from the herd and experiences what life as an individual is like. He explores New York City in the deepest way, seeing all of its characters.

The Jury Prize in Short Film, International Fiction was presented to:
The Return (Kthimi) / Kosovo (Director: Blerta Zeqiri, Screenwriter: Shefqet Gjocaj) — A man comes back from a Serb prison to his wife and son. Much has changed since he was declared missing and continuing where they left off four years ago may not be as easy as it seems.

The Jury Prize in Short Film, Non-Fiction was presented to:
The Tsunami and the Cherry Blossom / U.S.A. (Director: Lucy Walker) — Survivors in the areas hardest hit by Japan’s recent tsunami find the courage to revive and rebuild as cherry blossom season begins. A visual haiku about the ephemeral nature of life and the healing power of Japan’s most beloved flower.

The Jury Prize in Animated Short Film was presented to:
A Morning Stroll / United Kingdom (Director: Grant Orchard) — When a New Yorker walks past a chicken on his morning stroll, we are left to wonder which one is the real city slicker.

The Special Jury Award for Comedic Storytelling was presented to:
The Arm / U.S.A. (Directors and screenwriters: Brie Larson, Sarah Ramos, Jessie Ennis) — In an attempt to keep up with social pressure in a technologically advanced world, Chance starts a texting relationship with Genevieve, a girl he meets at a yogurt shop.

The Special Jury Award for Animation Direction was presented to:
Robots of Brixton / United Kingdom (Director: Kibwe Tavares) — The trials and tribulations of young robots surviving at the sharp end of inner city life, living the predictable existence of a populous hemmed in by poverty, disillusionment and mass unemployment.

This year’s Short Film program is comprised of 64 short films selected from a record 7,675 submissions.
The Short Film jurors are Mike Judge, creator of Beavis and Butt-Head for MTV and King of the Hill for FOX TV; Dee Rees, Sundance Institute Directing Lab Fellow and writer/director of the award-winning short film Pariah, which later debuted as a narrative feature at the 2011 Sundance Film Festival; and Shane Smith, Director of Public Programmes at TIFF Bell Lightbox.

The 2012 Sundance Film Festival runs through January 29 in Park City, Salt Lake City, Ogden and Sundance, Utah.

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Panorama Lineup for 2012 Berlinale is Complete

[caption id="attachment_2307" align="alignnone"]Leave It On The Floor by Sheldon Larry, USA/Canada[/caption]

This year’s Panorama is presenting 53 feature films: 18 in the main programme, 15 in Panorama Special and 20 in Panorama Dokumente.

Among the final films to be included in the Panorama is the US indie Cherry with Heather Graham, James Franco and Lili Taylor. It portrays a confident young woman who explores her own sexuality and has to deal with the prejudice of those around her. In The Convoy, Alexei Mizgirev presents an apocalyptic portrait of the police and the army in Russia today. After her success with her film Megane (Glasses) in 2008, Japanese filmmaker Naoko Ogigami is returning to the Panorama with Rentaneko (Rent-a-Cat). It’s the enchanting story of a young woman who rents cats to people who are lonely. After presenting his star-studded Taiwan saga Monga in the Panorama 2010, director Dove is coming back to Berlin with his film Love, starring Shu Qi. Crowd-sourcing has rarely made a more monumental work possible: in Iron Sky, a largely Finnish production featuring Udo Kier, director Timo Vuorensola paints a dark picture of the world being threatened from outer space that leads right into the White House. Austrian director Peter Kern’s film is ultimately a surprise: GLAUBE, LIEBE, TOD (BELIEF, LOVE, DEATH) is an intimate drama about the conflicts smouldering between the generations and how an immigrant falls victim to them.

New discoveries include Columbian director Jhonny Hendrix Hinestroza’s Chocó, in which a young woman learns to assert herself in a rural world. Deepak Rauniyar’s HIGHWAY is a Nepalese road movie: all the passengers on a bus are in a hurry to get somewhere, but the ride is constantly delayed by strikes.

List of newly announced titles

Panorama fictional films

Bugis Street Redux by Yonfan, Hong Kong
with Hiep Thi Le, Michael Lam, Greg-O, Ernest Seah

Cherry by Stephen Elliott, USA
with Ashley Hinshaw, James Franco, Heather Graham, Dev Patel, Lili Taylor – WP

Chocó by Jhonny Hendrix Hinestroza, Columbia
with Karent Hinestroza, Esteban Copete, Fabio García, Daniela Mosquera, Jesús Benavides – WP

GLAUBE, LIEBE, TOD (BELIEF, LOVE, DEATH) by Peter Kern, Austria
with Traute Furthner, Peter Kern, Joao Moreira Pedrosa – WP

HIGHWAY by Deepak Rauniyar, Nepal/USA
with DAYAHANG Rai, ASHA Magarati, SHRISTI Ghimire, EELUM Dixit – WP

Iron Sky by Timo Vuorensola, Finland/Netherlands/Australia/ Germany
with Christopher Kirby, Götz Otto, Julia Dietze, Udo Kier – WP

Love by Doze, Niu Chen-zer, China/Taiwan
with Shu Qi, Vicky Zhao, Ethan Juan, Mark Jau

Man On Ground by Akin Omotoso, South Africa
with Hakeem Kae-Kazim, Fabian Adeoye Lojede, Fana Mokoena

My Brother The Devil by Sally El Hosaini, Great Britain
with James Floyd, Saïd Taghmaoui, Nasser Memarzia, Fady Elsayed – WP

Rentaneko (Rent-a-Cat) by Naoko Ogigami, Japan
with Mikako Ichikawa, Reiko Kusamura, Ken Mitsuishi, Maho Yamada, Kei Tanaka – WP

The Convoy by Alexey Mizgirev, Russian Federation
with Oleg Vasilkov, Azamat Nigmanov, Dmitry Kulichkov – WP

Panorama Dokumente

Wo men de gu shi (Our Story –10-year ‘Guerrilla Warfare’ of Beijing Queer Film Festival) by Yang Yang, People’s Republic of China

“Blut muss fließen” – Undercover unter Nazis by Peter Ohlendorf, Germany – WP

Panorama short supporting films

7 Deadly Kisses by Sammaria Simanjuntak, Indonesia
with Sunny Soon, Daud Sumolang – WP

A Lazy Summer Afternoon with Mario Montez by John Heys, Germany – WP

Green Laser by John Greyson, Canada – WP

ZUCHT und ORDNUNG (LAW and ORDER) by Jan Soldat, Germany – WP

List of fictional films announced earlier
10+10 by Hou Hsiao-hsien, Wang Toon, Wu Nien-Jen, Sylvia Chang, Chen Guo-Fu, Wei Te-Sheng, Chung Meng-Hung, Chang Tso-Chi, Arvin Chen, Yang Ya-Che and others, Taiwan
Death For Sale by Faouzi Bensaïdi, Belgium/France/Morocco/United Arab Emirates
Diaz – Don’t Clean Up This Blood by Daniele Vicari Italy/ Romania /France – WP
Die Wand (The Wall) by Julian Roman Pölsler, Austria/Germany – WP
Dollhouse by Kirsten Sheridan, Ireland – WP
Elles by Malgoska Szumowska, France/Poland/Germany
Fon Tok Kuen Fah (Headshot) by Pen-Ek Ratanaruang, Thailand/France
From Seoul To Varanasi by Kyuhwan Jeon, Republic of Korea
Hot boy noi loan – cau chuyen ve thang cuoi, co gai diem va con vit (Lost In Paradise) by Vu Ngoc Dang, Vietnam
Indignados by Tony Gatlif, France – WP
Keep The Lights On by Ira Sachs, USA
Kuma by Umut Dag, Austria – WP
La mer à l’aube (Calm At Sea) by Volker Schlöndorff, France/Germany
L’âge atomique by Héléna Klotz, France
Leave It On The Floor by Sheldon Larry, USA/Canada
Mai-wei (My Way) by KANG Je-kyu, Republic of Korea
Mommy Is Coming by Cheryl Dunye, Germany – WP
Parada (The Parade) by Srdjan Dragojevic, Serbia/Republic of Croatia/ Macedonia/Slovenia
Sharqiya (Central Station) by Ami Livne, Israel/France/ Germany – WP
The Woman Who Brushed Off Her Tears by Teona Strugar Mitevska, Macedonia/Germany/Slovenia/Belgium – WP
Wilaya by Pedro Pérez Rosado, Spain
Xingu by Cao Hamburger, Brazil

List of documentaries announced earlier

Anak-Anak Srikandi (Children of Srikandi) by the Children of Srikandi Collective, Germany/Indonesia – WP
Angriff auf die Demokratie – Eine Intervention (Democracy Under Attack – An Intervention) by Romuald Karmakar, Germany – WP
Audre Lorde – The Berlin Years 1984 to 1992 by Dagmar Schultz, Germany – WP
Brötzmann – Da gehört die Welt mal mir (Brötzmann – That’s When The World Is Mine) by Uli M Schueppel, Germany – WP
with Caspar Brötzmann, Eduardo Delgado Lopez, Danny Lommen
Call Me Kuchu by Malika Zouhali-Worrall, Katherine Fairfax Wright, USA – WP
Detlef by Stefan Westerwelle, Jan Rothstein, Germany
with Detlef Stoffel, Anneliese Stoffel, Gustav-Peter Wöhler, Lilo Wanders, Corny Littmann – WP
Herr Wichmann aus der dritten Reihe (Henryk from the back row) by Andreas Dresen, Germany – WP
In the Shadow of a Man by Hanan Abdalla, Egypt – WP
König des Comics (King of Comics) by Rosa von Praunheim, Germany – WP
with Ralf König, Joachim Król, Hella von Sinnen, Ralph Morgenstern
La Vierge, les Coptes et Moi (The Virgin, the Copts and Me) by Namir Abdel Messeeh, France/Qatar/Egypt
Marina Abramovic The Artist is Present (Marina Abramovic The Artist is Present) by Matthew Akers, USA
Olhe pra mim de novo (Look at me again) by Kiko Goifman, Claudia Priscilla, Brazil
The Reluctant Revolutionary by Sean McAllister, Great Britain/Ireland
The Summit by Franco Fracassi, Massimo Lauria, Italy – WP
Ulrike Ottinger – die Nomadin vom See (Ulrike Ottinger – nomad from the lake) by Brigitte Kramer, Germany – WP
with Ulrike Ottinger, Ingvild Goetz, Irm Hermann, Ulrich Gregor
Unter Männern – Schwul in der DDR (Among Men – Gay in East Germany) by Markus Stein, Ringo Rösener, Germany – WP
with Eduard Stapel, Frank Schäfer, Jürgen Wittdorf, John Zinner, Helwin Leuschner
Vito by Jeffrey Schwarz, USA
Words of Witness by Mai Iskander, USA – WP

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Film Lineup of 6th Culinary Cinema of the 62nd Berlinale

[caption id="attachment_2305" align="alignnone"]Last Call at the Oasis [/caption]

“Trust in Taste” is the motto of the 6th Culinary Cinema of the 62nd Berlinale that will be held from February 12 to 17, 2012. Fifteen films about food and the environment will be presented in the Martin-Gropius-Bau.

This year’s Culinary Cuisine includes a remarkable number of premieres.

In Felipe Ugarte’s and Juantxo Sardon’s Mugaritz B.S.O., musician Felipe Ugarte translates delicious and visually pleasing culinary dishes made by Basque star chef Andoni Luis Aduriz from San Sebastián into music. The musician and the cook show how ingredients for a dish and music develop worldwide out of a region’s landscape and tradition. Andoni Luis Aduriz is coming extra to Berlin to prepare a meal for his film.

Entre les Bras (Step Up to the Plate) by Paul Lacoste documents the stirring change of generations at the French three-star restaurant Bras in Laguiole. Father Michel Bras is convinced that getting to the top is easier than staying there. After this documentary, Michael Kempf will have the delicate task of creating a meal inspired by the French cuisine.

In the documentary Last Call at the Oasis by Oscar-winner Jessica Yu, experts and tireless activists, such as the real Erin Brockovich, fight the local and global misuse of water. Filmmakers and experts discuss surprising ways to solve the shortage of water. One proposal involves recycling wastewater. Christian Lohse will cook a meal for the occasion.

In TSAO Jui-Yuan’s fictional film Joyful Reunion, a top vegetarian chef is forced to close his restaurant because he has lost his memory. When he eats a dish from his childhood, his memory comes back and he recognizes his first love again. Named Cook of the Year by Der Feinschmecker magazine, Marco Müller will prepare a meal that captures this melodrama.

The late screenings at 10 p.m. will focus on social and ecological topics. In Das Rohe und das Gekochte (The Raw and the Cooked) Monika Treut documents the emergent green movement in Taiwan. On a powerful visual journey around the world, Canned Dreams depicts the plight of all the workers who contribute to producing a can of ravioli. Lupe el de la Vaca (Lupe of the Cow) presents several small-scale Mexican farmers who master their harsh lives with humour and music. In the Korean gangster film Hindsight, the boss of a gang falls in love with a fellow student during a course in cooking. In Oma & Bella, Alexa Karolinski portrays how her grandmother and her grandmother’s girlfriend cultivate Jewish traditions in Charlottenburg.

A number of shorts films will supplement the programme: Should The Wife Confess? (Bernardo Camisão), Asparragos (Laura Zuallaert), Lepokoa (Safy Nebbou) and Pokot Ash Yoghurt (Francesco Amato, Stefano Scarafia).

“Youth Food Cinema” will address the importance of traditions in the family at 9:30 a.m. on February 17. The Mexican film Canela (Cinnamon) by Jordi Mariscal tells the story of a girl, her grandmother and their love of cooking. Afterwards, the chef of the Mexican embassy, Armando Hernández, will prepare a Mexican meal with students. As Grandmother Tere says in the film: “Cooking well is not a question of age but of talent.”

Films in Culinary Cinema 2012

Canela (Cinnamon) Mexico
By Jordi Mariscal
With Ana Martín, Isabel Yudice, Norma Angélica, Mónica Dionne, Carlos Cobos
World premiere

Canned Dreams Finland
Documentary by Katja Gauriloff
International premiere

Comme un chef (The Chef) France
By Daniel Cohen
With Jean Reno, Michaël Youn, Raphaëlle Agogué, Julien Boisselier, Salomé Stevenin, Serge Larivière, Issa Doumbia, Bun Hay Mean
International premiere

Entre les Bras (Step Up to the Plate) France
Documentary by Paul Lacoste
World premiere

Hindsight Republic of Korea
By Lee Hyeon-seung
With Song Gang-ho, Shin Se-kyung, Chun Jeong-myung
European premiere

Joyful Reunion Taiwan/China
By Tsao Jui-Yuan
With Gua Ahleh, Huo Siyan, Lan Zheng-Long (Blue), Kenneth Tsang
World premiere

Last Call at the Oasis USA
Documentary by Jessica Yu
International premiere

Lupe el de la Vaca (Lupe of the Cow) Mexico
Documentary by Blanca X. Aguerre
International premiere

Mugaritz B.S.O. Spain
Documentary by Felipe Ugarte, Juantxo Sardon
German premiere

Oma & Bella Germany/USA
Documentary by Alexa Karolinski
World premiere

Das Rohe und das Gekochte (The Raw and the Cooked) Germany/Taiwan
Documentary by Monika Treut
World premiere

Short films

Asparragos Belgium/Peru
Documentary by Laura Zuallaert
German premiere

Lepokoa (The Scarf) Spain/France 2003
By Safy Nebbou
With Pilar Rodríguez, Joseba Apaolaza, Olatz Beobide, Manu Gaigne

Pokot Ash Yoghurt (Living Food Communities) Italy
Documentary by Francesco Amato, Stefano Scarafia
World premiere

Should The Wife Confess? Belgium/Portugal
By Bernardo Camisão
With Sofia Caessa, Hilbren Buys
German premiere

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7 Films Added to Competition program of the 62nd Berlin International Film Festival

[caption id="attachment_2303" align="alignnone"]Flying Swords Of Dragon Gate[/caption]

With seven more films, the Competition program of the 62nd Berlin International Film Festival is nearing completion. To date it includes 22 films, of which 17 are vying for the Golden and Silver Bears. 18 films will celebrate their world premieres in the Competition of the Berlinale 2012.

A special screening of Steven Soderbergh’s action thriller Haywire in the Berlinale Palast will supplement the programme.

Like last year, the winner of the Golden Bear will be screened after the award ceremony on February 18.

“We are very pleased that a large number of this year’s Competition films are screening in Berlin as world premieres. Many entries in the Competition 2012 revolve around radical changes and departures. They shift perspectives, presenting history and stories from the point of view of those involved,” says Festival Director Dieter Kosslick.

Further films in the Competition programme:

A moi seule (Coming Home)
France
By Frédéric Videau (Le fils de Jean-Claude Videau, Variéte Francaise)
With Agathe Bonitzer, Reda Kateb
World premiere

Bel Ami
Great Britain
By Declan Donnellan, Nick Ormerod (feature debut)
With Robert Pattinson, Uma Thurman, Kristin Scott Thomas, Christina Ricci
World premiere / out of competition

En kongelig affære (A Royal Affair)
Denmark/Czech Republic/Germany/Sweden
By Nikolaj Arcel (Islands of Lost Souls, Sandheden om mænd, Königspatience – Intrige im Parlament)
With Mads Mikkelsen, Alicia Vikander, Trine Dyrholm, David Dencik, Mikkel Boe Følsgaard
World premiere

Flying Swords Of Dragon Gate
Hong Kong, China
By Hark Tsui (Once Upon A Time In China, Detective Dee And The Mystery Of The Phantom Flame, Time And Tide)
With Jet Li, Zhou Xun, Chen Kun, Kwai Lun Mei
European premiere / out of competition – 3D

Rebelle
Canada
By Kim Nguyen (La cite, Truffe, Le Marais)
With Rachel Mwanza, Alain Bastien, Serge Kanyinda
World premiere

Shadow Dancer
Great Britain/Ireland
By James Marsh (Project Nim, The King, Man On Wire)
With Clive Owen, Andrea Riseborough, Gillian Anderson
European premiere / out of competition

Special screening in the Berlinale Palast:
Haywire
USA
By Steven Soderbergh (Sex, Lies and Videotape, Traffic, Erin Brockovich)
With Gina Carano, Ewan McGregor, Michael Fassbender, Antonio Banderas, Channing Tatum
German premiere

Films already announced:

Aujourd´hui by Alain Gomis, France/Senegal – WP
Barbara by Christian Petzold, Germany – WP
Captive by Brillante Mendoza, France/Philippines/Germany/Great Britain – WP
Cesare deve morire (Caesar Must Die) by Paolo and Vittorio Taviani, Italy – WP
Csak a szél (Just The Wind) by Bence Fliegauf, Hungary/Germany/ France – WP
Dictado (Childish Games) by Antonio Chavarrías, Spain – WP
Extremely Loud And Incredibly Close by Stephen Daldry, USA – IP (out of competition)
Gnade (Mercy) by Matthias Glasner, Germany/Norway – WP
Jayne Mansfield’s Car by Billy Bob Thornton, Russian Federation/USA – WP
Jin líng Shí San Chai (The Flowers Of War) by Zhang Yimou, People’s Republic of China – EP (out of competition)
Kebun binatang (Postcards From The Zoo) by Edwin, Indonesia/Germany/Hong Kong, China – WP
L´enfant d’en haut (Sister) by Ursula Meier, Switzerland/France – WP
Les Adieux à la reine by Benoît Jacquot, France/Spain – WP
Metéora (Meteora) by Spiros Stathoulopoulos, Germany/Greece – WP
Tabu by Miguel Gomes, Portugal/Germany/Brazil/ France – WP
Was bleibt (Home For The Weekend) by Hans-Christian Schmid, Germany – WP

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Berlinale Announces Short Film Lineup and Jury for 2012 Festival

27 films from 22 countries will be competing for the Golden Bear and Silver Bear Jury Prize, the DAAD Short Film Award and a short film nomination for the European Film Prize.

German actress Sandra Hüller, Palestinian artist Emily Jacir as well as filmmaker David OReilly will be picking the winners in 2012:

International Short Film Jury:

Sandra Hüller (Germany)
After ten years in the business, renowned and prize-winning actress of the screen and stage Sandra Hüller already boasts a remarkably wide repertoire of roles. She has performed regularly in theatres since 2006, in both classic and modern pieces. For her first major film role in Hans-Christian Schmid’s Requiem she won the Silver Bear for Best Actress at the Berlinale in 2006 as well as the German Film Prize. In 2011 she performed in two Berlinale films: Brownian Movement (2010, directed by Nanouk Leopold – Forum); and Über uns das All (Above Us Only Sky, 2011, directed by Jan Schomburg – Panorama).

Emily Jacir (Palestine)
Emily Jacir, one of the Arab world’s leading contemporary artists, works in a variety of media, including installation, performance, social intervention, photography, film and video. She has exhibited her works throughout the world and been honored many times for her artistic achievements including a Golden Lion at the 2007 Venice Biennale. Jacir is currently leading the Home Workspace in Beirut where she has created the curriculum and programming for 2011-2012. She is also preparing a new work for the dOCUMENTA (13) that opens this June.

David OReilly (Ireland)
The Irish-born filmmaker, now based in California, is known for his groundbreaking contemporary 3D animation. He has received over 75 awards for his short films that have been shown worldwide at more than 200 festivals. His first festival was at the Berlinale 2008, where he presented RGB XYZ. At the 2009 Berlinale he won the Golden Bear for Best Short Film with Please Say Something. His latest short film, The External World, screened at Venice (2010) and Sundance (2011), and went on to win numerous awards.

Berlinale Shorts 2012:

Ad balloon, Lee Woo-jung, Republic of Korea, 24’ (IP)
An das Morgengrauen, Mariola Brillowska, Germany, 3’ (WP)
Ein Mädchen Namens Yssabeau, Rosana Cuellar, Germany / Mexico, 18’ (DP)
Enakkum Oru Per, Suba Sivakumaran, USA / Sri Lanka, 12’ (WP)
Erotic Fragments No. 1, 2, 3, Anucha Boonyawatana, Thailand, 7’ (IP) Gurehto Rabitto, Atsushi Wada, France, 7’ (WP)
impossible exchange, Mahmoud Hojeij, Lebanon, 10’ (WP)
Karrabing! Low Tide Turning, Liza Johnson, Elizabeth A. Povinelli, Australia, 14’ (WP)
La Santa, Mauricio López Fernández, Chile, 14’ (WP)
LI.LI.TA.AL., Akihito Izuhara, Japan, 8’ (WP)
Licuri Surf, Guile Martins, Brazil, 15’ (IP)
Loxoro, Claudia Llosa, Spanien / Peru / Argentine / USA, 19’ (IP)
Mah-Chui, Kim Souk-young, Republic of Korea, 23’ (IP)
Nostalgia, Gustavo Rondón Córdova, Venezuela, 30’ (WP)
Panchabhuta, Mohan Kumar Valasala, India, 15’ (WP)
PUSONG WAZAK! Isa Na Namang Kwento Ng Pag-ibig Sa Pagitan Ng Isang Kriminal at Isang Puta, Khavn De La Cruz, Philippines, 15’ (WP)
Rafa, João Salaviza, Portugal / France, 25’ (WP)
Say Goodbye to the Story (ATT 1/11), Christoph Schlingensief, Germany, 23’ (WP)
Shi Luo Zhi Di, Zhou Yan, People’s Republic of China, 25’ (WP)
Strauß.ok, Jeanne Faust, Germany, 5’ (WP)
The End, Barcelo, France, 17’ (WP)
The Man that Got Away, Trevor Anderson, Canada, 25’ (WP)
Utsikter, Marcus Harrling, Moa Geistrand, Sweden, 12’ (WP)
Uzushio, Naoto Kawamoto, Japan, 6’ (WP)
Vilaine Fille Mauvais Garçon, Justine Triet, France, 30’ (IP)
Yi chang ge ming zhong hai wei lai de ji ding yi de xing wei, Sun Xun, People’s Republic of China, 12’ (WP)
zounk!, Billy Roisz, Austria, 6’ (WP)

Berlinale Shorts Special 2012:

Magyarország 2011, András Jeles, Ágnes Kocsis, Ferenc Török, Simon Szabó, Márta Mészáros, Péter Forgács, László Siroki, György Pálfi, Bence Fliegauf, András Salamon, Miklós Jancsó, Ungarn, 75′ (IP)
presented by Béla Tarr

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2012 IFFR presents 196 short films in Spectrum Shorts

The International Film Festival Rotterdam has selected 196 short films from more than 3,500 submissions for its main programme Spectrum Shorts, which can be seen from Thursday 26 through Monday 30 January in LantarenVenster. This year, Spectrum Shorts encompasses no less than 42 world premières; many of these films that have been made by young filmmakers and video artists from all over the world. Short films can also be seen in the IFFR’s Tiger Awards Competition for Short Films; screening in advance of feature films; in the themed Signals programmes and during the Short Film Marathon on Saturday, 4 February.

Spectrum Shorts, the IFFR’s short film programme this year is not quite as extensive as in previous years. This means that both festival audiences and the many filmmakers and film professionals that come to Rotterdam specially for this have more time to meet one another before and after the film screenings.

The Shorts programme screens at a single festival location: LantarenVenster in the Kop van Zuid area of Rotterdam. From Thursday 26 January through Monday 30 January, the short films can be seen here in carefully compiled compilations. The IFFR short films selection committee was made up of Juliette Jansen, Erwin van ’t Hart, Sacha Bronwasser, Peter Taylor and Theus Zwakhals, and was headed by festival programmer Peter van Hoof.

On the morning of Monday, 30 January, from 22.00 hours in Worm (Boomgaardsstraat 71, Rotterdam) the Shorts programme will conclude with the award of the Tiger Awards for Short Film. As well as the award itself, each of the three winners will receive an amount of 3,000 Euros.

Spectrum Shorts has close ties to the rest of the festival. For example, this year six projects by filmmakers who have previously attended the festival or who are showing their work this year have been selected for CineMart. These include Christelle Lheureux (France), who returns with her mid-length film LA MALADIE BLANCHE; Benjamin Naishtat (Argentina, HISTORIA DEL MAL) and Gabriel Abrantes (Portugal, PALÁCIOS DE PENA). Their new film projects have been selected for CineMart.

This year, Spectrum Shorts features a lot of brand new work, including 42 world premières, 41 international premières and 33 European premières, often by talented young filmmakers and video artists. In addition, the IFFR is now also showing new short works by experienced and world-famous filmmakers such as Nathaniel Dorsky (Filmmaker in Focus at the IFFR in 2011), Jay Rosenblatt, Pedro Costa, Amit Dutta, Henry Hills, Ben Russell and the latest films from former Tiger Awards winners Ben Rivers, Mati Diop and Lewis Klahr.

The Dutch presence in the Spectrum Shorts programme is particularly strong this year, with the world premières of VEXED, the new project by Rotterdam’s own Telcosystems; 7 PEAKS by Anna Abrahams, the long-expected third part of her trilogy; LIGHTHOUSE by Wouter Venema; THICKER THAN PAINT THINNER by Babak Afrassiabi, TAMINO by Eveline Ketterings and THE BUNKER – THE HABITUATION – THE WAIT – THE LIGHT by Jonas Staal in which he gives an absorbing depiction of the worldview of Fleur Agema, a member of the Dutch parliament for the PVV (‘Freedom Party’). New works by Johan Rijpma (TAPE GENERATION); Esther Urlus (DEEP RED); Roderick Hietbrink (LIVING ROOM) and one of the artists from the Soundtrack City Rotterdam project, Katarina Zdjelar (RISE AGAIN), all also deserve special attention.

Anyone who has missed the regular screenings of the short films during the first festival weekend will have another chance to see them on Saturday, 4 February, as all the highlights will be screened again (without intervals) in the Short Film Marathon, from 10 in the morning to 1 a.m.

After the festival, every month, throughout the year, a new selection of short films will be shown online (for free) on the IFFR’s YouTube channel.

The IFFR’s festival program consists of three main sections: Bright Future – idiosyncratic and adventurous new work by novice makers, including the Tiger Awards Competitions -, Spectrum and Spectrum Shorts – new and recent work by experienced film makers and artists who provide, in the opinion of the IFFR, an essential contribution to international film culture -, and Signals, a series of thematic programs and retrospectives offering insight in topical as well as timeless ideas within cinema.

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Your Sister’s Sister to Open 2012 Seattle International Film Festival

The Seattle International Film Festival (SIFF) announced Your Sister’s Sister as the opening film to be presented at the 2012 festival’s prestigious Opening Night Gala, Thursday, May 17, 2012.

Your Sister’s Sister, written and directed by Seattle’s Lynn Shelton (Humpday) and starring Emily Blunt, Rosemarie DeWitt and Mark Duplass, is SIFF’s first opening selection locally produced and shot by a Seattle filmmaker. SIFF takes place May 17 through June 10.

“I am thrilled beyond measure that Your Sister’s Sister has been chosen to open the 2012 Seattle International Film Festival, and that it represents the first locally produced film to ever receive this honor,” said Shelton. “I hope the city will come raise a glass to our incredibly talented crew and to the entire Seattle film community, without which this film would never have been made. After a world premiere at the Toronto Film Festival and a U.S. premiere at Sundance, our homecoming in May will be the sweetest celebration of them all.”

Spotlighted this year as one of Variety’s ‘10 Directors to Watch,’ Seattle-based Shelton has seen much success in the festival circuit, most recently with the world debut of Your Sister’s Sister in Toronto where it received acquisition by IFC Films. Shelton will also screen the film at Sundance this year, making her first return to the festival as a member of the U.S. Dramatic Competition jury, since her 2009 Humpday breakout.

A year after his brother’s death, Jack (Mark Duplass) still see-saws between emotionally wobbly and outright volatile. When he makes a scene at a memorial party, Iris (Emily Blunt) intervenes with a plan: Jack must oil up his old bike and trek to her father’s cabin on an island on Puget Sound, where isolation will give his brain a chance to detangle. When Jack gets to the woods, however, he finds not solitude but Iris’ sister Hannah (Rosemarie DeWitt), herself nursing a wounded heart and a bottle of tequila. After several shots and some slurred commiseration, liquor isn’t the only fluid these two end up sharing. Their hangover descends in the form of Iris, who pulls up with a bag of groceries the next morning. [TIFF]

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Magnolia Pictures To Distribute THE QUEEN OF VERSAILLES from Sundance Film Festival

The Wagner/Cuban Company’s Magnolia Pictures announced today they have acquired North American distribution rights to THE QUEEN OF VERSAILLES, an outrageous, timely and moving film that premiered last night to a sold out crowd at the Eccles theater as this year’s opening night film at the Sundance film festival. Television and international rights are still available.

From acclaimed filmmaker and photographer Lauren Greenfield (Thin, Kids + Money; named one of the top 25 most influential photographers of our time by American Photo), THE QUEEN OF VERSAILLES is a prescient, wildly entertaining documentary about billionaires Jackie and David Siegel, who are constructing what will be the largest house in America—a 90,000 square foot behemoth modeled after the palace of Versailles. When the financial market collapses in 2008, their extravagant dreams are put on hold. David’s massive time-share business runs into difficulties, and the filmmaker is there to capture the Siegel’s truly uncanny turn of fortune. While delivering big laughs, THE QUEEN OF VERSAILLES also manages to be a moving, clear-eyed snapshot of a unique and sobering moment in our history, as we are forced to reevaluate the sustainability of the American dream. THE QUEEN OF VERSAILLES is an Evergreen Pictures production and its producers are Lauren Greenfield, Danielle Renfrew Behrens, Frank Evers and Dan Cogan.

“THE QUEEN OF VERSAILLES brilliantly encapsulates the salient issues of the American economic downturn, while also being one of the jaw-droppingly entertaining films I’ve seen in a very long time,” said Magnolia President Eamonn Bowles. “Lauren Greenfield is an exceptionally talented filmmaker with a wonderfully humanistic touch, and she has found a truly magnetic, charismatic star in Jackie Siegel.”

“I am really excited to be working with Magnolia, who we huddled with late into last night,” says Lauren Greenfield. “I feel like we have found a true kindred spirit, who cares as much about our film as we do. I am really looking forward to working with such a smart, impressive team.”

Magnolia is planning a summer theatrical release for the film.

The deal was negotiated for Magnolia by SVP of Acquisitions Dori Begley, with Submarine’s Josh Braun and David Koh. Domestic television and international rights are in active discussion.

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Sony Pictures Classics goes SEARCHING FOR SUGAR MAN at Sundance Film Festival

Sony Pictures Classics announced today that they have acquired the rights in North America to Malik Bendjelloul’s directorial debut, SEARCHING FOR SUGAR MAN. The film is produced by Simon Chinn of Red Box Films (PROJECT NIM, MAN ON WIRE) and executive produced by John Battsek of Passion Pictures (THE TILLMAN STORY, ONE DAY IN SEPTEMBER) in association with Canfield Pictures and The Documentary Company. SEARCHING FOR SUGAR MAN had its world premiere last night as the Opening Night Film of the World Cinema Documentary Competition at the 2012 Sundance Film Festival. Josh Braun and David Koh at Submarine Entertainment brokered the deal with Sony Pictures Classics, with Protagonist Pictures handling International Sales.

This is SPC’s third film with executive producer John Battsek. Previous films include Academy Award® Winner ONE DAY IN SEPTEMBER and MY KID COULD PAINT THAT.

SEARCHING FOR SUGAR MAN tells the incredible story of Rodriguez, the greatest ’70s rock icon who never was. Discovered in a Detroit bar in the late ’60s by two celebrated producers struck by his soulful melodies and prophetic lyrics, they recorded an album which they believed would secure his reputation as the greatest recording artist of his generation. In fact, the album bombed and the singer disappeared into obscurity amid rumors of a gruesome on-stage suicide. But a bootleg recording found its way into apartheid South Africa and, over the next two decades, he became a phenomenon. The film follows the story of two South African fans who set out to find out what really happened to their hero. Their investigation leads them to a story more extraordinary than any of the existing myths about the artist known as Rodriguez.

“SEARCHING FOR SUGAR MAN is an incredible story that we can’t wait to share with American audiences. We are thrilled to be distributing this film by talented new director Malik Bendjelloul and to be working again with our good friend producer John Battsek and Simon Chinn” states Sony Pictures Classics.

Adds Producer Simon Chinn, “We are hugely excited that SEARCHING FOR SUGAR MAN has been acquired by Sony Pictures Classics. Their passion for this film combined with their stellar track record makes them the perfect distributors for it.”

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Italian actor and director Nanni Moretti to be President of the Jury of the 65th Festival de Cannes

Nanni Moretti will be President of the Jury of the 65th Festival de Cannes to be held from May 16 to 27, 2012.

Accepting the invitation, the Italian actor and director said: “This is a real joy, an honour and a tremendous responsibility to preside over the jury of the most prestigious festival of cinematography in the world, a festival that is held in a country where film has always been treated with interest and respect.

As a director, I was always very moved when my films were presented at the Festival de Cannes. I also have very happy memories of my experience as a jury member during the fiftieth anniversary season, and of the attentiveness and passion that went into the jury’s viewing and discussion of all the films.

As a spectator, fortunately I still have the same curiosity that I had in my youth and so it is a great privilege for me to embark on this voyage into the world of contemporary international film.”

Nanni Moretti has presented six films at the Festival de Cannes, including last year’s Habemus Papam (We Have a Pope).

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42nd Berlinale Unveils Films in Main Program

[caption id="attachment_2280" align="alignnone"]Ang Babae sa Septic Tank (The Woman in the Septic Tank) [/caption]

The 42nd Berlinale Forum will be showing 38 films in its main program, including 26 world premieres and 8 international premieres.

Ann-Kristin Reyels’ film Formentera follows a young couple on holiday who run into the ’68 ideals of their parents’ generation and come to realise the extent to which their own ideas about life diverge from one another. Sleepless Knights by Stefan Butzmühlen and Cristina Diz is also set in Spain, telling a story of gay love in the provinces and presenting the co-existence of different generations as an alternative to urban dislocation.

Beziehungsweisen (Negotiating Love) by Calle Overweg also explores the complicated set of compromises involved with living together on a daily basis, blending documentary means and staging techniques to observe different clients attending couples’ therapy. What Is Love by Ruth Mader tackles a similar theme, tracing the various different manifestations of love in five vignettes from the Austrian provinces.

Present-day nomads form the focus of two films in this year’s program: Habiter / Construire (Living / Building) by Clémence Ancelin, which documents a road construction project in Chad and the effect it has on the local desert population, and Hiver nomade (Winter Nomads) by Manuel von Stürler, a portrait of two shepherds in French-speaking Switzerland in the depths of winter.

The Jordanian film Al Juma Al Akheira (The Last Friday) by Yahya Alabdallah tells the story of a taxi driver in Amman who is forced to bring some level of order into his failed existence. The documentary Bagrut Lochamim (Soldier / Citizen) confronts us with the uncompromising views of young Israelis about their Arab compatriots and neighbours. Mani Haghighi’s Paziraie Sadeh (Modest Reception) is an intelligent provocation in which a rich couple distributes plastic bags full of money in the Iranian provinces – a handout aimed purely at degradation.

Rodrigo Plá’s moving Uruguayan film La demora (The Wait) tells the story of a woman driven by her desperate situation to abandon her senile father. Mariano Luque’s directorial debut Salsipuedes is a visionary look at domestic violence that serves as a calling card for the new generation of young filmmakers working in Córdoba in Northern Argentina. For its part, the documentary Escuela normal (Normal School) by Celina Murga observes a secondary school in Buenos Aires where the pupils imitate the political structures of the adult world.

American independent cinema also has a strong presence in this year’s Forum program. David Zellner’s fairytale-like Kid-Thing explores the day-to-day life and fantasies of a neglected little girl. Brian M. Cassidy and Melanie Shatzky’s Francine follows a shy woman (played by Oscar-winning actress Melissa Leo) recently released from jail and her overwhelming affinity for animals. And So Yong Kim’s For Ellen shows the final attempts made by a neglectful rock-musician (played by Paul Dano) to build a relationship with his young daughter.

Three films from Japan deal with the tsunami of 11 March 2011 and the meltdown at Fukushima nuclear power station. In No Man’s Zone (Mujin chitai), Fujiwara Toshi advances like a Tarkowskian Stalker into the contaminated zone around the nuclear reactors and evokes images of an invisible apocalypse. Iwai Shunji discusses the political, economic and social situation of a country in a state of dependence in friends after 3.11. And Funahashi Atsushi’s Nuclear Nation creates a portrait of a mayor without a town, who is desperately trying to keep together a community scattered across different emergency shelters in the Tokyo suburbs and is brought to question old certainties in the process.

Main Program

Al Juma Al Akheira (The Last Friday) by Yahya Alabdallah, Jordan/United Arab Emirates – IP

Ang Babae sa Septic Tank (The Woman in the Septic Tank) byMarlon N. Rivera, The Philippines Avalon by Axel Petersén, Sweden

Bagrut Lochamim (Soldier / Citizen) by Silvina Landsmann, Israel – WP

Bestiaire by Denis Côté, Canada/France

Beziehungsweisen (Negotiating Love) by Calle Overweg, Germany – WP

La demora (The Wait) by Rodrigo Plá, Uruguay/Mexico/France – WP

Escuela normal (Normal School) by Celina Murga, Argentina – WP

Espoir voyage by Michel K. Zongo, France/Burkina Faso – IP

For Ellen by So Yong Kim, USA – IP

Formentera by Ann-Kristin Reyels, Germany – WP

Francine by Brian M. Cassidy/Melanie Shatzky, USA/Canada – WP

friends after 3.11 by Iwai Shunji, Japan – IP

Habiter / Construire (Living / Building) by Clémence Ancelin, France – WP

Hemel by Sacha Polak, The Netherlands/Spain – WP

Hiver nomade (Winter Nomads) by Manuel von Stürler, Switzerland – WP

Jaurès by Vincent Dieutre, France – WP

Kashi (Choked) by Kim Joong-hyun, Republic of Korea – IP

Kazoku no kuni (Our Homeland) by Yang Yonghi, Japan – WP

Kid-Thing by David Zellner, USA – IP

Koi ni itaru yamai (The End of Puberty) by Kimura Shoko, Japan – IP

Die Lage (Condition) by Thomas Heise, Germany – WP

No Man’s Zone (Mujin chitai) by Fujiwara Toshi, Japan/France – IP

Nuclear Nation by Funahashi Atsushi, Japan – WP

Parabeton – Pier Luigi Nervi und römischer Beton (Parabeton – Pier Luigi Nervi and Roman Concrete) by Heinz Emigholz, Germany – WP

Paziraie Sadeh (Modest Reception) by Mani Haghighi, Iran – WP

Príliš mladá noc (A Night Too Young) by Olmo Omerzu, Czech Republic/Slovenia – WP

Revision by Philip Scheffner, Germany – WP

Salsipuedes by Mariano Luque, Argentina – WP

Sekret (Secret) by Przemyslaw Wojcieszek, Poland – WP

Sleepless Knights by Stefan Butzmühlen/Cristina Diz, Germany – WP

Le sommeil d’or (Golden Slumbers) by Davy Chou, France/Cambodia

Spanien (Spain) by Anja Salomonowitz, Austria – WP

Tepenin Ardi (Beyond the Hill) by Emin Alper, Turkey/Greece – WP

Tiens moi droite (Keep Me Upright) by Zoé Chantre, France – WP

Toata lumea din familia noastra (Everybody in Our Family) by Radu Jude, Romania/The Netherlands – WP

What Is Love by Ruth Mader, Austria – WP

Zavtra (Tomorrow) by Andrey Gryazev, Russia – WP

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