Film Festivals

Lineup for Perspektive Deutsches Kino section at 2012 Berlinale is Complete

[caption id="attachment_2180" align="alignnone"]This Ain’t California by Marten Persiel[/caption]

With 13 films, including three full-length documentaries and four full-length fictional films as well two sets of three medium-long films each, the programme of the 2012 Perspektive Deutsches Kino is complete . Section director Linda Söffker sums up the selection: “The GDR was colourful, adolescents are critical and good films end in our minds.”

West Berliner Michael Schöbel and East Berliner Ronald Vietz launched Wildfremd Productions in 2011 so as to make a film such as had never been seen on the screen before about teenagers in the GDR in the 1980s. Under the direction of Marten Persiel, they revived the weird and strange world of “Rollbrettffahrer”, as skateboarders were called in the GDR, using a veritable treasure trove of footage from super-8 films they had dug up from the period. This Ain’t California is Persiel’s first full-length documentary.

Unlike the skateboarders in the GDR, today’s young slam poets rebel with rhymes and verses, political and socio-critical visions or just plain nonsense. Marion Hütter’s documentary Dichter und Kämpfer accompanies four word-acrobats from Berlin, Leipzig, Bochum and Stuttgart with a camera for a year and shows how they enjoy giving their audiences food for thought.

Jan Speckenbach’s dffb graduation film, DIE VERMISSTEN with André M. Hennicke in the lead, envisions parents’ fears when their children are missing. Have they disappeared against their will because something happened to them? Or have they disappeared because they wanted to rebel against their parents and find a life different from theirs? Jan Speckenbach, whose short film Gestern in Eden screened in the Cinefondation in Cannes in 2008, plays with a threatening scenario in his debut film.

In their self-financed production Karaman, Tamer Yigit and Branka Prlic also tell a story that ends differently in each viewer’s mind. Zehra (Isilay Gül) wants to immigrate to Germany. But as a Muslim woman, can she leave an Islamic country for the West? The family are against it. Karaman is the second full-length feature by directing duo Yigit and Prlic.

Four medium-long films round off the programme:
The 43-minute fictional film Trattoria (directed by Soleen Yusef), produced at the Filmakademie Baden-Württemberg in Ludwigsburg; the 26-minute fictional film Ararat by Engin Kundag made at the ifs köln; the 32-minute fictional work about the pleasure of idleness, Sometimes we sit and think and sometimes we just sit (directed by Julian Pörksen), produced by Credofilm (Berlin); and Alice Gruia’s self-produced 53-minute documentary, Rodicas, about two friends of the same name.

An overview of all the films in Perspektive Deutsches Kino:

Ararat by Engin Kundag

Dichter und Kämpfer (Rhymers and Rivals) by Marion Hütter (documentary)

DIE VERMISSTEN (REPORTED MISSING) by Jan Speckenbach

Gegen Morgen (Before Tomorrow) by Joachim Schoenfeld

Karaman by Tamer Yigit and Branka Prlic

Man for a Day by Katarina Peters (documentary)

Rodicas by Alice Gruia (documentary)

Sometimes we sit and think, and sometimes we just sit by Julian Pörksen

Sterben nicht vorgesehen (Dying Not Planned For) by Matthias Stoll (documentary)

Tage in der Stadt (Out Off) by Janis Mazuch

This Ain’t California by Marten Persiel (documentary)

Trattoria by Soleen Yusef

Westerland by Tim Staffel

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Ten More World Premieres Added to 2012 Berlinale

[caption id="attachment_2178" align="alignnone" width="550"]In the Land of Blood and Honey[/caption]

An additional ten world premieres will be screening in the Competition programme of the Berlinale 2012. Directors Billy Bob Thornton, Christian Petzold, Paolo and Vittorio Taviani, Benedek Fliegauf, Hans-Christian Schmid, Matthias Glasner, Miguel Gomes, Alain Gomis, Ursula Meier and Spiros Stathoulopoulos will all be competing for this year’s Berlinale Bears.

On the first weekend of the Festival, Angelina Jolie will be presenting her directorial debut, In the Land of Blood and Honey, in the Haus der Berliner Festspiele’s new cinema.

Competition

Aujourd´hui
France/Senegal
By Alain Gomis (L´Afrance, Andalucia)
With Saül Williams, Aïssa Maïga, Djolof M’bengue
World premiere

Barbara
Germany
By Christian Petzold (Yella, Jerichow, Dreileben)
With Nina Hoss, Ronald Zehrfeld
World premiere

Cesare deve morire (Caesar Must Die)
Italy
By Paolo and Vittorio Taviani (Padre padrone, La notte di San Lorenzo, La masseria delle allodole, San Michele aveva un gallo)
With Fabio Cavalli, Salvatore Striano
World premiere

Gnade
Germany/Norway
By Matthias Glasner (The Free Will, Sexy Sadie)
With Jürgen Vogel, Birgit Minichmayr, Henry Stange
World premiere

Jayne Mansfield’s Car
Russian Federation/USA
By Billy Bob Thornton (Sling Blade, The King of Luck, All the pretty Horses)
With Billy Bob Thornton, Robert Duvall, John Hurt, Kevin Bacon
World premiere

L´enfant d´en haut (Sister)
Switzerland/France
By Ursula Meier (Tous à table, Des épaules solides, Home)
With Léa Seydoux, Kacey Mottet Klein, Gillian Anderson, Martin Compston
World premiere

Metéora (Meteora)
Germany/Greece
By Spiros Stathoulopoulos (PVC-1)
With Theo Alexander, Tamila Koulieva
World premiere

Tabu
Portugal/Germany/Brazil/France
By Miguel Gomes (The Face You Deserve, Our Beloved Month Of August)
With Teresa Madruga, Laura Soveral, Ana Moreira, Carloto Cotta
World premiere

Csak a szél (Just The Wind)
Hungary/Germany/France
By Benedek Fliegauf (Dealer, Rengeteg, Tejút, Womb)
With Lajos Sárkány, Katalin Toldi, Gyöngyi Lendvai, Géza Jungwirth
World premiere

Was bleibt (Home For The Weekend)
Germany
By Hans-Christian Schmid (Storm, Requiem, Distant Lights)
With Lars Eidinger, Corinna Harfouch, Sebastian Zimmler, Ernst Stötzner
World premiere

Berlinale Special

In The Land Of Blood And Honey
USA
By Angelina Jolie (directorial debut)
With Zana Marjanovic, Goran Kostic, Rade Šrbedžija, Vanesa Glodjo
German premiere

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Special Flight Among Lineup for 9th Human Rights Watch Film Festival in Toronto

[caption id="attachment_2165" align="alignnone"]Special Flight[/caption]

The 9th Human Rights Watch Film Festival opens on February 29, 2012 in Toronto Canada at TIFF Bell Lightbox with Fernand Melgar’s documentary Special Flight, a portrait of the legal limbo that faces thousands of detainees in Switzerland’s Frambois detention centre as refugees anxiously await confirmation of their requests for asylum. The festival is a co-presentation between TIFF and Human Rights Watch, and will run until March 9.

Festival highlights include Jon Shenk’s The Island President (2011), winner of the Cadillac People’s Choice Documentary Award at the Toronto International Film Festival 2011, which follows Maldives President Mohamed Nasheed as he tries to save his country from being inundated by rising sea levels – the result of global warming; Pamela Yates’ Granito: How to Nail a Dictator (2011), a haunting tale of genocide and delayed justice that spans four decades, two films, and director Yates’ own career; Mimi Chakarova’s The Price of Sex (2011), a startling exposé of sex trafficking in Europe and the Middle East; and Sundance and Emmy Award-winning director Lee Hirsch’s The Bully Project (2011), which acts as a catalyst for change by confronting the prejudices which spark bullying and giving voice to those who work tirelessly to protect the vulnerable.

“The lineup of timely films in this festival inform and remind audiences of human rights issues being faced around the world,” said Helga Stephenson, chairperson of the festival. “The themes that emerge this year – the plight of refugees, the trafficking of young women, bullying among teens – are extremely relevant. We hope the films will provide a springboard for discussion and increase awareness of human rights issues – both locally and globally.”

The full line-up of films follows.

Special Flight (Vol spécial)   Dir: Fernand Melgar

Wednesday, February 29 at 8pm *OPENING NIGHT*

In Switzerland’s Frambois detention centre, refugees anxiously await confirmation of their requests for asylum while living in fear of the “special flights” that face those who are rejected, returning them to their countries of origin and crushing their dreams of a new life. Fernand Melgar’s film is a deeply affecting portrait of the legal limbo that faces thousands of detainees every year. Melgar evocatively captures the atmosphere of agonizing tedium and sudden, shocking rupture that characterizes these institutions: deportation notices arrive swiftly, with no option for appeal, and the physical removals from the centre are even more harrowing as the wardens often develop deep connections with the detainees.

Habibi   Dir: Susan Youssef

Thursday, March 1 at 8pm

While shooting her documentary Forbidden to Wander, Susan Youssef travelled the Gaza Strip and observed how restricted access impeded development and stability, deepened poverty and radicalized the political conflict, with the resulting violence and despair permeating communities and individual psyches alike. This experience informed the making of Habibi, a tragic romance about Layla (Maisa Abd Elhadi) and Qays (Kais Nashef), university students whose blossoming passion is interrupted when they are forced to
return home to their families, their student visas having been revoked during the latest wave of restrictions. The young lovers find themselves trapped between the physical barriers of political oppression and the restrictive, patriarchal ideology of the oppressed.

The Bully Project   Dir: Lee Hirsch

Friday, March 2 at 8pm

News stories across North America attest to the destructive impact of bullying, as dozens of teens every year commit suicide following histories of emotional and physical violence from their peers that went unchecked and unchanged. Sundance and Emmy-award winning director Lee Hirsch spent a year documenting the lives of tormented teens and their families, exposing shocking scenes of verbal and physical abuse and vividly depicting bureaucratic indifference or impotence, parents who are powerless to help, and innocent kids on the cusp of adulthood who desperately cling to the slim hope that “things will get better.” The Bully Project acts as a catalyst for change by confronting the prejudices which spark bullying and giving voice to those who work tirelessly to protect the vulnerable.

Color of the Ocean (Die Farbe des Ozeans)   Dir: Maggie Peren

Saturday, March 3 at 8pm

Located off the coast of northwest Africa, the Canary Islands are both a tourist paradise and a purgatory for refugees. Border guard José (Alex González) is cynical about his work, but his weary attitude is put to the test when he encounters Nathalie (Sabine Timoteo), a German tourist assisting a boatload of refugees she discovered landing on the coast. When one of the refugees, a Congolese man named Zola (Hubert Koundé), is placed in an internment camp with his son, Nathalie determines to help them escape – but the two soon find themselves in yet another precarious situation, in which they are dependent on nefarious smugglers.

Burma Soldier   Dirs: Nic Dunlop, Annie Sundberg & Ricki Stern

Sunday, March 4 at 8pm

Myo Myint’s decision to enlist in the Burmese army at the age of seventeen was not motivated by ideology, but simply because it was the only path to employment, respect and security. In this capacity he supported the brutal military junta that dominated the nation for nearly half a century until he lost a limb to a mortar explosion, and emerged from this trauma as an activist determined to bring democracy to his country. Speaking from the Umpeim Mai refugee camp in northern Thailand as he awaits refugee status, Myint gives a sobering record of his experiences and his suffering at the hands of the military regime he once served, including over a decade in solitary confinement for voicing his disapproval of the junta. Myint’s story, illustrated by archival footage smuggled out of Burma, is a vivid account of an individual’s sacrifice to help change the lives of millions.

This Is My Land… Hebron   Dirs: Giulia Amati & Stephen Natanson

Monday, March 5 at 8pm

The largest city in the occupied West Bank and the site of one of the first Israeli settlements there, Hebron is populated by 160,000 Palestinians and 600 Israeli settlers who require a garrison of 2,000 Israeli soldiers for protection. For these unwilling neighbours, conflict has become a way of life, and directors Giulia Amati and Stephen Natanson capture this charged situation through the multiple, interweaving narratives of residents and observers. Featuring interviews with ordinary Israelis and Palestinians living in the city, activists on both sides, prominent Ha’aretz journalists and members of the Israeli parliament, This Is My Land… Hebron is a vivid portrait of a chasm between cultures.

The Price of Sex   Dir: Mimi Chakarova

Tuesday, March 6 at 8pm

Award-winning photojournalist Mimi Chakarova delves into the world of international sex trafficking in this startling exposé, revealing the cruel conditions that have forced thousands of women into a life defined by fear, shame and violence. With brutal honesty and courageous perseverance, these young women relate how they were bought, sold, and taken far from home to toil in brothels across Eastern and Western Europe and the Middle East. The culmination of an eight-year investigative journalism project that took Chakarova through Moldova, Bulgaria, Turkey, Greece and Dubai, The Price of Sex boldly brings this ever more pressing issue into stark relief, and was awarded Human Rights Watch International’s 2011 Nestor Almendros Award for Courage in Filmmaking.

Granito: How to Nail a Dictator   Dir: Pamela Yates

Thursday, March 8 at 8pm

Part political thriller, part memoir, Granito takes us through a haunting tale of genocide and delayed justice that spans four decades, two films, and director Pamela Yates’ own career. While filming in Guatemala, then under the harsh military dictatorship of General Efraín Ríos Montt, to make her 1982 documentary When the Mountains Tremble, Yates managed to capture the only known footage of the Guatemalan army as it carried out its genocidal campaign against the indigenous Mayan population. Twenty-five years later, this footage becomes evidence in an international war crimes case against the very army commander who permitted Yates to film. Conducting new interviews with activists, witnesses and forensic experts, Yates herself joins this disparate movement of truth-seekers, each of them contributing their own granito, or grain of sand, to the reconstruction of collective memory and the pursuit of justice.

The Island President    Dir: Jon Shenk

Friday, March 9 at 8pm *CLOSING NIGHT*

Cadillac People’s Choice Documentary Award, Toronto International Film Festival 2011

Mohamed Nasheed spent two decades leading a pro-democracy movement against a cruel dictatorship in the Maldives, suffering imprisonments and torture until groundswell support elected him president at age 41. Suddenly he found himself facing a new crisis: the possible extinction of his own country. If ocean levels continue to rise at their current rate, over a thousand coral islands of the Maldives will be submerged like a modern Atlantis. Obtaining remarkable access to Nasheed during his first year in office, director Jon Shenk offers both an inspiring personal story and an insider’s look at the dirty business of political deal-making during the 2009 climate change summit at Copenhagen. Featuring stunning cinematography and a haunting score by Radiohead, The Island President is one of the year’s most essential documentaries.

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Tropfest NY Film Festival is Looking For Short Films

[caption id="attachment_2163" align="alignnone"]Manhattan’s Bryant Park[/caption]

Tropfest, which describes itself as the world’s largest short film festival, announced it is calling for entries for Tropfest New York, which will take place at Manhattan’s Bryant Park on June 23rd. Filmmakers will have the opportunity to see their short film screened in front of a massive live and online audience, and judged by an industry and celebrity panel for a chance to win $20,000 cash and other prizes.

Founded 20 years ago in Sydney, Australia, Tropfest is supported by some of the biggest stars in the international film community, Tropfest New York Ambassadors include: Hugh Jackman, Russell Crowe, Nicole Kidman, Anthony Lapaglia, Liev Schreiber, Geoffrey Rush and Charles Randolph.

Dozens of successful directors, writers, actors and others got their start at Tropfest. Festival alumni include: Sam Worthington (Avatar, Last Night); Joel Edgerton (The Great Gatsby, Warrior, Animal Kingdom); Alister Grierson (director of the James Cameron-produced Sanctum); and Tony Rogers, whose Tropfest short, Wilfred, was the origin of the popular U.S. TV series of the same name starring Elijah Wood.

There are a few simple guidelines Tropfest entrants must follow: all short films must be produced specifically for the event and have their premiere at Tropfest New York; films cannot exceed seven minutes, including titles and credits; and each film must contain the Tropfest Signature Item (TSI), which changes each year. For the inaugural Tropfest New York, the chosen TSI is a staple of New York culinary culture, the “Bagel”. In Tropfest tradition, filmmakers can include the “Bagel” in their films in any manner they choose.

The Tropfest New York main event will be open to the public, free of charge. It will take place on Saturday June 23, 2012 at New York City’s Bryant Park, located in midtown on Sixth Avenue between West 40th and West 42nd Street. An industry and celebrity panel will judge the selected finalists live, under the stars. During the final awards ceremony, the panel will announce the 1st, 2nd, and 3rd place winners as well as awards for Best Actor and Best Actress and a People’s Choice award. Previous Tropfest judges have included some of the biggest names in the international film community

In addition to the short film competition that serves as the centerpiece for the 3 day-long event, other ticketed festivities will include musical performances and a filmmaker symposium.

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IFFR announces Spectrum 2012 line-up

SMALL ROADS, James Bennin

In its main section Spectrum, the International Film Festival Rotterdam screens films by experienced directors and maestros of artistic and experimental cinema. In total, Spectrum is made up of seventy-two features and documentaries from thirty-two countries, among which eight films supported by IFFR’s Hubert Bals Fund. The full Spectrum title list is available here.

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World Premiere of Period Drama Les Adieux à la reine to Open 2012 Berlin Fest

[caption id="attachment_2151" align="alignnone"]Les Adieux à la reine – – Farewell My Queen[/caption]

The 62nd Berlin International Film Festival will open on February 9, 2012 with the world premiere of the period drama Les Adieux à la reine (Farewell My Queen) starring as Diane Kruger (Inglourious Basterds), Léa Seydoux (Midnight in Paris) and Virginie Ledoyen (Army of Crime).

In a screen adaptation of Chantal Thomas’ prize-winning novel of the same name, French Director Benoît Jacquot (Tosca, Villa Amalia, Deep in the Woods, among others) portrays the first days of the French Revolution from the perspective of the servants at Versailles. With ironic overtones, a historical drama unfolds that also draws parallels to the present.

Versailles in July 1789. Unrest is growing in the court of King Louis the XVI. The people are rebelling – a revolution is imminent. Behind the facades of the royal palaces, everyone is thinking of fleeing, including Queen Marie Antoinette (Diane Kruger) and her entourage. Among her ladies-in-waiting is Sidonie Laborde (Léa Seydoux) who as the Queen’s reader has become quite intimate with her. With great amazement, Sidonie experiences the first hours of the French Revolution.

The French-Spanish co-production Les Adieux à la reine will participate in the competition of the 62nd Berlin International Film Festival.

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Director Peter Luisi to be honored with Independent Award at 5th San Joaquin International Film Festival

Swiss director and screenwriter, Peter Luisi, will be honored in person with the Film Society’s Independent Award at the Opening Night of the 5th San Joaquin International Film Festival (SJIFF). The Opening Night film is Mr. Luisi’s “The Sandman.”

The Independent Award honors a spirited innovator who empowers independent filmmaking through impactful creativity, exemplary talent and steadfast leadership.

Mr. Luisi was born in 1975 in Zurich, Switzerland. He studied film production in North Carolina and UC Santa Cruz in the United States of America. In 1999, he founded his own company, Spotlight Media Productions AG. He has since worked as an independent director and screenwriter. Mr. Luisi’s films have garnered eight nominations from the Swiss Film Prize, the national film award of Switzerland. His debut film “Crazy Love Crazy” (2004) won the Zurich Film Award. In early 2011, “The Sandman” won the Audience Award at Filmfestival Max Ophuels Prize in Saarbrücken, Germany; and was nominated for three Swiss Film Prizes, including Best Fiction Film.

History of the Award: Mr. Luisi will be the second honoree of this award. The first honoree was Jon Gunn, whose film “Like Dandelion Dust” was the Closing Night selection of SJIFF in 2009.

Swiss Cinema at SJIFF: “The Sandman” is the second film from Switzerland selected to open the San Joaquin International Film Festival: Denis Rabaglia’s “Marcello Marcello” opened the festival in 2009, and the film’s lead actor Francesco Mistichelli was honored with the San Joaquin Film Society’s Discovery Award.

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20 More Films Added to 2012 Berlin International Film Festival

[caption id="attachment_2142" align="alignnone"]Death For Sale by Faouzi Bensaïdi[/caption]

20 films have been confirmed for the Panorama section of the 2012 Berlin International Film Festival. The Panorama section with its Main Programme, Panorama Special and Panorama Dokumente series will screen some 50 films in all.

Two works by European directors are opening the Panorama Special:

Tony Gatlif is returning to Panorama with Indignados. Inspired by Stéphane Hessel’s bestseller “Time for Outrage!” this French film allows viewers, in both enacted scenes and real situations, to see the recent protests of our times through the eyes of an illegal woman immigrant. She experiences the Occupy movement, the poverty of those who share her fate, and the dissatisfaction of a young generation of European society in revolt. Previously, Gatlif presented in Panorama his films Rue du départ in 1987 and Swing in 2002.

As in her second feature film, Ono (Stranger), which screened in Panorama in 2005, Polish director Malgoska Szumowska once again radically probes gender relations. With Juliette Binoche in the lead, Elles leaves much room for contemplation and in a masterly fashion reveals the underlying longing that apparently every notion of relationship, and especially that of the nuclear family, attempts to conceal.

Alongside renowned names such as Hou Hsiao-Hsien (who with 10+10 is presenting a survey of works from Taiwan by ten well-known and ten new directors), Volker Schlöndorff, Cao Hamburger, Pen-ek Ratanaruang and Teona Strugar Mitevska, this year’s feature films include new works by Ira Sachs, Kirsten Sheridan and Srdjan Dragojevic as well as by newly discovered filmmakers such as Umut Dag from Austria, Helena Klotz from France, Faouzi Bensiada from Morocco and Ngoc Dang Vu from Vietnam.

Feature films to date:

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, France
With Fehd Benchemsi, Fouad Labiad, Mouhcine Malzi, Imane Elmechrafi, Faouzi Bensaïdi

Die Wand (The Wall) by Julian Roman Pölsler, Austria/Germany
With Martina Gedeck

Dollhouse by Kirsten Sheridan, Ireland
With Seana Kerslake, Jonny Ward, Ciaran McCabe, Kate Brennan, Shane Curry

Elles by Malgoska Szumowska, France/Poland/Germany
With Juliette Binoche, Anais Demoustier, Joanna Kulig

Fon Tok Kuen Fah (Headshot) by Pen-Ek Ratanaruang, Thailand/France
With Nopachai Jayanama, Sirin Horwang, Chanokporn Sayoungkul, Apisit Opasaimlikit, Krerkkiat Punpiputt

From Seoul To Varanasi by Kyuhwan Jeon, Republic of Korea
With Donghwan Yoon, Wonjung Chio

Hot boy noi loan – cau chuyen ve thang cuoi, co gai diem va con vit (Lost In Paradise) by Vu Ngoc Dang, Vietnam
With Luong Manh Hai, Ho Vinh Khoa, Linh Son, Phuong Thanh, Hieu Hien

Indignados by Tony Gatlif, France
With Isabel Vendrell Cortès

Keep The Lights On by Ira Sachs, USA
With Thure Lindhardt, Zachary Booth, Julianne Nicholson, Souleymane Sy Savane, Paprika Steen

Kuma by Umut Dag, Austria
With Nihal Koldas, Begüm Akkaya, Vedat Erincin, Murathan Muslu, Alev Irmak

La mer à l’aube (Calm At Sea) by Volker Schlöndorff, France/Germany
With Léo Paul Salmain, Ulrich Matthes, Martin Loizillon, Jacob Matschenz, André Jung, Harald Schrott, Thomas Arnold, Christopher Buchholz

L’âge atomique by Héléna Klotz, France
With Eliott Paquet, Dominik Wojcik

Leave It On The Floor by Sheldon Larry, USA/Canada
With Ephraim Sykes, Miss Barbie-Q, Phillip Evelyn, Andre Myers, James Alsop

Mei-wei (My Way) by Kang Je-kyu, Republic of Korea
With Jang Dong-gun, Odagiri Joe, Fan Bingbing

Mommy Is Coming by Cheryl Dunye, Germany
With Esther Maria Ufer, Maggie Tapert, Ignacio Rivera

Parada (The Parade) by Srdjan Dragojevic, Serbia/Republic of Croatia/ Macedonia/Slovenia
With Nikola Kojo, Milos Samolov, Hristina Popovic, Goran Jevtic, Toni Mihailovski

The Woman Who Brushed Off Her Tears by Teona Strugar Mitevska, Macedonia/Germany/Slovenia/Belgium
With Victoria Abril, Labina Mitevska, Jean Marie Galey, Arben Bajraktaraj

Wilaya by Pedro Pérez Rosado, Spain
With Nadhira Mohamed, Memona Mohamed, Aziza Brahim, Ainina Sidameg, Ahmed Molud

Xingu by Cao Hamburger, Brazil
With João Miguel, Felipe Camargo, Caio Blat, Maria Flor

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56 Films To Screen at 2012 Derby City Film Festival

[caption id="attachment_2139" align="alignnone"]Wid Winner and the Slipstream[/caption]

56 films have been selected to screen during the three day Derby City Film Festival held February 17th – 19th, 2012. The lineup includes 24 International films representing 16 countries as well as 8 World Premieres, 5 US Premieres, and 28 KY Premieres. Eight films were produced in the Bluegrass State and another 5 have ties to Kentucky.

Opening night includes two feature films shot in Kentucky. At 7:00 PM on February 17th “Wid Winner and the Slipstream” will open the fest. “Winner”, which was directed by Kentucky native Alex O Gaynor, tells the story of two men who embark on a cross-country journey to face the past, change the future, and collect enough used-auto parts to build a time machine. The 8:00 PM film, “Sam Steele and the Crystal Chalice” is from New Albany filmmaker Tom Whitus and was shot in Downtown Louisville. The film stars Jacob Hays, Kevin Sorbo, Katherine McNamara & Dee Wallace. “Crystal Chalice” is the sequel to “Sam Steel and the Jr. Detective Agency” which screened at DCFF in 2010. The final film on Friday is the suspense film “Johnny’s Gone” from writer and actress LaDon Drummond. “Johnny’s Gone” tells the story of the unsettling but heartfelt relationship between Sarah and a two year-old she calls Johnny. Sarah hides a dark secret that will take them on a road trip across five states from California to Louisiana.

A full slate of workshops, panels, shorts, docs, and features also happen all day Saturday. Highlights include the world premieres of the feature films “Frames” & “Blind Turn”, Producer and Louisville native John Paul Rice’s latest film “Mother’s Red Dress”, the road trip documentary “Bailout”, four short film groups, and 2 International features, “Znikniecie” and “Meherjaan”. Saturday afternoon there will also be a Filmmaker Symposium and Awards Presentation at Clifton’s Pizza from 5:00 PM – 7:30 PM.

Saturday night features 3 more films with Kentucky roots. Louisville natives, and Ballard High graduates, Scooter Downey & Sean Elliot bring the feature “It’s in the Blood” to their hometown. Featuring Lance Henriksen, Elliot & Rose Sirna, “Blood” tells the tale of a father and son who become stranded in the wild and must confront the horrors of their past to escape with their lives. However, this wilderness is not what it seems, and as they deteriorate, so to does their concept of reality: horrifying creatures, ghostly apparitions, is it all in their heads, or could the truth be far more terrible? “It’s in the Blood” screens at 8:00 PM with the short film “Endless”.

At 10:00 PM on Saturday audiences will receive a double treat from Louisville filmmakers. First Kristofer Rommel premieres the short “Wireface: In the Beginning” starring Josh Loren, Cindy Maples & Joe Chrysler. “Wireface…” is a prequel film which details the slow decent into madness that turns a loving family man into the serial killer known as “Wireface”. Following the short is Matt Niehoff & Brian Cunningham’s feature film “Overtime”, which was shot in Louisville and features Al Snow, John Wells & Sebrina Siegel. “Overtime” follows two hitmen who find themselves caught up in a conspiracy they never imagined which includes alien zombies. Both films are included on one ticket.

Sunday February 19th features, among other films; the World Premiere of “Smells Like Community Spirit” from Cincinnati filmmaker Isaac Stambaugh, the controversial documentary “Israel vs. Israel” and “Legendary: When Baseball Came to the Bluegrass” from Lexington filmmaker Michael Crisp.

The closing film of the festival will be the Edward Furlong film “Below Zero”, which will screen at 6:00 PM on Sunday. “Zero” follows screenwriter Jack “The Hack” (Furlong) who, facing writer’s block and a crucial deadline, decides to remove himself from all distractions by locking himself in the freezer of an abandoned slaughterhouse, where fiction and reality blur. Inspired by true events, method writer Signe Olynyk’s BELOW ZERO is a twisty story within a story, within a real-life story. The film also stars Kristin Booth and Michael Berryman. “Zero” was directed by Justin Thomas Ostensen who’s film “By the Wayside” screened at the inaugural DCFF in 2008.

The following includes the full list of selected films for the 2012 Derby City Film Festival. Country and premiere status in ( ).

US Features:
Below Zero (KY Premiere)
Blind Turn (World Premiere)
Frames (World Premiere)
It’s in the Blood (KY Premiere)
Johnny’s Gone (KY Premiere)
Mother’s Red Dress (KY Premiere)
Overtime
Sam Steel and the Crystal Chalice (KY Premiere)
Smells Like Community Spirit (World Premiere)
Wid Winner and the Slipstream

International Features
Meherjaan (Bangladesh)
Znikniecie (Poland – US Premiere)

Documentary Features
Bailout (USA – KY Premiere)
Israel vs. Israel (Israel – KY Premiere)
Legendary: When Baseball Came to the Bluegrass (USA)
The Book of Vaudeville (Canada – US Premiere)

US Shorts
20th Century Man (World Premiere)
A Finger, Two Dots Then Me (KY Premiere)
Ambiguous Figure (KY Premiere)
Bizarnival: Tuxedos in the Attic
Blue Highway (KY Premiere)
Easy Street (KY Premiere)
Grounded (World Premiere)
Just for Today (World Premiere)
Love’s Got My Goat (KY Premiere)
Penny
Please Try Again (World Premiere)
The Eater (KY Premiere)
The Scream of the Screaming Screamer! (World Premiere)
Wireface: In The Beginning… (World Premiere)

International Shorts
108.1 FM Radio (Italy – KY Premiere)
A Fable About Beauty (Canada – KY Premiere)
Air (UK – KY Premiere)
Donkey (UK – KY Premiere)
Employee of the Month (Switzerland – KY Premiere)
Endless (UK – KY Premiere)
Protect the Nation (South Africa/Germany)
The Anchor (UK – KY Premiere)
The Unicorn (New Zealand – KY Premiere)
Tocaia para Tuco Valente (Brazil – US Premiere)

Student Shorts
Balls (USA – KY Premiere)
Closed (Australia – KY Premiere)
GoldenBox (USA)
Live Outside the Box (Taiwan – KY Premiere)
Look to the Cookie (USA)
Made in China (USA – World Premiere)
My Avatar (USA/Singapore – KY Premiere)
Normal People (Poland – KY Premiere)
The Birds Upstairs (USA)
Thin Air (USA – World Premiere)
Will & The Worry Dolls (UK – US Premiere)
Wonderland (Kuwait – KUY Premiere)
Workers Leaving the Factory (Germany – KY Premiere)

Documentary Shorts
As Time Goes By (Germany – KY Premiere)
Hey Rube! (Canada – KY Premiere)
Holding the Line (Libya/UK – US Premiere)
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Meryl Streep to be honored at 62nd Berlin International Film Festival

[caption id="attachment_2137" align="alignnone"]Meryl Streep as Maragret Thatcher in The Iron Lady[/caption]

Actress Meryl Streep will be awarded an Honorary Golden Bear at the 62nd Berlin International Film Festival.

“We are delighted to be able to award the Honorary Golden Bear to such a terrific artist and world star. Meryl Streep is a brilliant, versatile performer who moves with ease between dramatic and comedic roles,” says Berlinale Director Dieter Kosslick.

On February 14, 2012, Meryl Streep will be awarded the Honorary Golden Bear for Lifetime Achievement at a screening of her latest film The Iron Lady at the Berlinale Palast in Berlin. In The Iron Lady she portrays Great Britain’s former Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher. The film imagines how Margaret, at the end of her life, might look back through fragmented memories to weigh-up the personal cost of her decisions. The film is not so much about politics as about power and the loss of power.

Meryl Streep has been invited to the Berlin International Film Festival several times: in 1999, she was awarded the Berlinale Camera; and in 2003, Julianne Moore, Nicole Kidman and she shared a Silver Bear for their performances in The Hours. In 2006, she could again be seen in the Berlinale Competition in Robert Altman’s ensemble comedy A Prairie Home Companion.

During the Berlinale’s Homage series for Meryl Streep, audiences will have the opportunity to see the following films:

Kramer vs. Kramer (1979)
By Robert Benton
With Meryl Streep, Dustin Hoffman, Justin Henry

Sophie’s Choice (1982, Oscar for Best Actress in a Leading Role)
By Alan J. Pakula
With Meryl Streep, Kevin Kline, Peter MacNicol, Günther Maria Halmer

Out of Africa (1985)
By Sidney Pollack
With Meryl Streep, Robert Redford, Klaus Maria Brandauer

The Bridges of Madison County (1995)
By Clint Eastwood
With Meryl Streep, Clint Eastwood, Victor Slezak

A Prairie Home Companion (2006)
By Robert Altman
With Meryl Streep, Woody Harrelson, Kevin Kline, John C. Reilly

The Iron Lady (Great Britain 2011)
By Phyllida Lloyd
With Meryl Streep, Jim Broadbent, Olivia Coman, Roger Allam

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Venice International Film Festival Names New Directors

[caption id="attachment_2133" align="alignnone"]David Chipperfield was named Director of the Architecture Sector[/caption]

The new Board of La Biennale di Venezia, the organization behind the Venice International Film Festival, chaired by Paolo Baratta and composed of Giorgio Orsoni (Vice-President), Luca Zaia, Francesca Zaccariotto and Emmanuele Francesco Maria Emanuele, met for the first time on 27th December 2011 in the Biennale offices at Ca’ Giustinian and appointed the Directors of the Architecture and Cinema sectors.

David Chipperfield was named Director of the Architecture Sector with the specific responsibility of curating the 13th International Architecture Exhibition, which will be held in Venice, at the institutional venues of Giardini and Arsenale, from August 29th to November 25th 2012 (preview on August 27th-28th).

Alberto Barbera was named Director of the Cinema Sector for a four-year term. The 69th Venice International Film Festival will be held at the Lido di Venezia from August 29th to September 8th 2012.

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Variety Will Honor actress Charlize Theron and 10 Directors to Watch at Palm Springs International Film Festival

[caption id="attachment_2123" align="alignnone"]Charlize Theron in Young Adult[/caption]

Variety will present actress Charlize Theron with the Indie Impact Award, at the 2012 Palm Springs International Film Festival (PSIFF). The Indie Impact Award celebrates a performer and filmmaker for her outstanding contributions to the art and business of cinema.

“Charlize Theron continues to make an impact by committing herself to films that exemplify the best in independent cinema,” stated Variety Executive Editor Steven Gaydos. “She notably won an Academy Award, Golden Globe Award, SAG Award and Independent Spirit Award for the independent film ‘Monster,’ and contributed unforgettable performances to films such as ‘The Burning Plain,’ ‘In the Valley of Elah’ and ‘North Country.’ Her recent acclaimed work in ‘Young Adult,’ for which she was recently nominated for a Golden Globe® Award, demonstrates Theron’s characteristic edge and verve.”

Previous recipients of the Indie Impact Award include Philip Seymour Hoffman and Mark Wahlberg.

“Young Adult” will also be honored the evening before at the Palm Springs International Film Festival’s Awards Gala with the prestigious Vanguard Award, recognizing its outstanding creative ensemble.

Variety will also honor its “10 Directors to Watch” spotlighting the most exciting new talents in the fields of directing, writing, producing, acting, cinematography and comedy. This year’s “10 Directors to Watch” include: Zal Batmanglij (“Sound of My Voice”); Valerie Donzelli (“Declaration of War”); Gareth Evans (“The Raid”); Philippe Falardeau (“Monsieur Lazhar”); Mike “Mouse” McCoy & Scott Waugh (“Act of Valor”); Gerardo Naranjo (“Miss Bala”); Matt Piedmont (“Casa de mi Padre”); Michael Roskam (“Bullhead”); Lynn Shelton (“Your Sister’s Sister”); and Benh Zeitlin (“Beasts of the Southern Wild”). “Sound of My Voice,” “Declaration of War,” “Monsieur Lazhar,” “Miss Bala” and “Bullhead” will be shown at the Palm Springs International Film Festival.

Past “10 Directors to Watch” honorees have included Ben Affleck (“Gone Baby Gone”), Wes Anderson (“Bottle Rocket”), Scott Cooper (“Crazy Heart”), Marc Webb (“500 Days of Summer”), Catherine Hardwicke (“Thirteen”) and Christopher Nolan (“Memento”), among others.

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