The Seattle International Film Festival (SIFF) announced the 2019 Golden Space Needle Audience and Juried Competition Awards and the top prizes – Golden Golden Space Needle Audience Award for Best Film went to Tel Aviv on Fire, directed by Sameh Zoabi, and We Are the Radical Monarchs won the Golden Space Needle for Best Documentary.
This Changes Everything, a pivotal documentary examining historic and contemporary gender inequity in the American film and television industries, will open the 36th edition of Miami Dade College’s acclaimed Miami Film Festival, on Friday, March 1st at the historic Olympia Theater. Appearing on camera are leading Hollywood women Meryl Streep, Geena Davis, Sandra Oh, Rosario Dawson, Zoe Saldana, Jessica Chastain, Taraji P. Henson, Cate Blanchett, Amandla Stenberg, Natalie Portman, Reese Witherspoon, Shonda Rhimes, Jill Soloway and many more advocating for meaningful change.
El Angel directed by Luis Ortega[/caption]
Eighty-seven countries have submitted films for consideration in the Foreign Language Film category for the 91st Academy Awards. Malawi and Niger are first-time entrants.
Nominations for the 91st Academy Awards will be announced on Tuesday, January 22, 2019.
The 91st Oscars will be held on Sunday, February 24, 2019, at the Dolby Theatre® at Hollywood & Highland Center in Hollywood, and will be televised live by the ABC Television Network. The Oscars also will be televised live in more than 225 countries and territories worldwide.
The 2018 submissions are:
Afghanistan, “Rona Azim’s Mother,” Jamshid Mahmoudi, director;
Algeria, “Until the End of Time,” Yasmine Chouikh, director;
Argentina, “El Ángel,” Luis Ortega, director;
Armenia, “Spitak,” Alexander Kott, director;
Australia, “Jirga,” Benjamin Gilmour, director;
Austria, “The Waldheim Waltz,” Ruth Beckermann, director;
Bangladesh, “No Bed of Roses,” Mostofa Sarwar Farooki, director;
Belarus, “Crystal Swan,” Darya Zhuk, director;
Belgium, “Girl,” Lukas Dhont, director;
Bolivia, “The Goalkeeper,” Rodrigo “Gory” Patiño, director;
Bosnia and Herzegovina, “Never Leave Me,” Aida Begić, director;
Brazil, “The Great Mystical Circus,” Carlos Diegues, director;
Bulgaria, “Omnipresent,” Ilian Djevelekov, director;
Cambodia, “Graves without a Name,” Rithy Panh, director;
Canada, “Family Ties,” Sophie Dupuis, director;
Chile, “…And Suddenly the Dawn,” Silvio Caiozzi, director;
China, “Hidden Man,” Jiang Wen, director;
Colombia, “Birds of Passage,” Cristina Gallego, Ciro Guerra, directors;
Costa Rica, “Medea,” Alexandra Latishev, director;
Croatia, “The Eighth Commissioner,” Ivan Salaj, director;
Czech Republic, “Winter Flies,” Olmo Omerzu, director;
Denmark, “The Guilty,” Gustav Möller, director;
Dominican Republic, “Cocote,” Nelson Carlo De Los Santos Arias, director;
Ecuador, “A Son of Man,” Jamaicanoproblem, director;
Egypt, “Yomeddine,” A.B. Shawky, director;
Estonia, “Take It or Leave It,” Liina Trishkina-Vanhatalo, director;
Finland, “Euthanizer,” Teemu Nikki, director;
France, “Memoir of War,” Emmanuel Finkiel, director;
Georgia, “Namme,” Zaza Khalvashi, director;
Germany, “Never Look Away,” Florian Henckel von Donnersmarck, director;
Greece, “Polyxeni,” Dora Masklavanou, director;
Hong Kong, “Operation Red Sea,” Dante Lam, director;
Hungary, “Sunset,” László Nemes, director;
Iceland, “Woman at War,” Benedikt Erlingsson, director;
India, “Village Rockstars,” Rima Das, director;
Indonesia, “Marlina the Murderer in Four Acts,” Mouly Surya, director;
Iran, “No Date, No Signature,” Vahid Jalilvand, director;
Iraq, “The Journey,” Mohamed Jabarah Al-Daradji, director;
Israel, “The Cakemaker,” Ofir Raul Graizer, director;
Italy, “Dogman,” Matteo Garrone, director;
Japan, “Shoplifters,” Hirokazu Kore-eda, director;
Kazakhstan, “Ayka,” Sergey Dvortsevoy, director;
Kenya, “Supa Modo,” Likarion Wainaina, director;
Kosovo, “The Marriage,” Blerta Zeqiri, director;
Latvia, “To Be Continued,” Ivars Seleckis, director;
Lebanon, “Capernaum,” Nadine Labaki, director;
Lithuania, “Wonderful Losers: A Different World,” Arunas Matelis, director;
Luxembourg, “Gutland,” Govinda Van Maele, director;
Macedonia, “Secret Ingredient,” Gjorce Stavreski, director;
Malawi, “The Road to Sunrise,” Shemu Joyah, director;
Mexico, “Roma,” Alfonso Cuarón, director;
Montenegro, “Iskra,” Gojko Berkuljan, director;
Morocco, “Burnout,” Nour-Eddine Lakhmari, director;
Nepal, “Panchayat,” Shivam Adhikari, director;
Netherlands, “The Resistance Banker,” Joram Lürsen, director;
New Zealand, “Yellow Is Forbidden,” Pietra Brettkelly, director;
Niger, “The Wedding Ring,” Rahmatou Keïta, director;
Norway, “What Will People Say,” Iram Haq, director;
Pakistan, “Cake,” Asim Abbasi, director;
Palestine, “Ghost Hunting,” Raed Andoni, director;
Panama, “Ruben Blades Is Not My Name,” Abner Benaim, director;
Paraguay, “The Heiresses,” Marcelo Martinessi, director;
Peru, “Eternity,” Oscar Catacora, director;
Philippines, “Signal Rock,” Chito S. Roño, director;
Poland, “Cold War,” Pawel Pawlikowski, director;
Portugal, “Pilgrimage,” João Botelho, director;
Romania, “I Do Not Care If We Go Down in History as Barbarians,” Radu Jude, director;
Russia, “Sobibor,” Konstantin Khabensky, director;
Serbia, “Offenders,” Dejan Zecevic, director;
Singapore, “Buffalo Boys,” Mike Wiluan, director;
Slovakia, “The Interpreter,” Martin Šulík, director;
Slovenia, “Ivan,” Janez Burger, director;
South Africa, “Sew the Winter to My Skin,” Jahmil X.T. Qubeka, director;
South Korea, “Burning,” Lee Chang-dong, director;
Spain, “Champions,” Javier Fesser, director;
Sweden, “Border,” Ali Abbasi, director;
Switzerland, “Eldorado,” Markus Imhoof, director;
Taiwan, “The Great Buddha+,” Hsin-Yao Huang, director;
Thailand, “Malila The Farewell Flower,” Anucha Boonyawatana, director;
Tunisia, “Beauty and the Dogs,” Kaouther Ben Hania, director;
Turkey, “The Wild Pear Tree,” Nuri Bilge Ceylan, director;
Ukraine, “Donbass,” Sergei Loznitsa, director;
United Kingdom, “I Am Not a Witch,” Rungano Nyoni, director;
Uruguay, “Twelve-Year Night,” Álvaro Brechner, director;
Venezuela, “The Family,” Gustavo Rondón Córdova, director;
Vietnam, “The Tailor,” Buu Loc Tran, Kay Nguyen, directors;
Yemen, “10 Days before the Wedding,” Amr Gamal, director.
The Front Runner[/caption]
The Virginia Film Festival returns to Charlottesville from November 1 to 4, with a deep and diverse program of more than 150 films and special guests including legendary actor, writer, and filmmaker Peter Bogdanovich; director and producer Allen Hughes, noted activist Martin Luther King III; and more than 100 filmmakers from around the world.
The 2018 Virginia Film Festival will open with Green Book, the powerfully dramatic feature debut for director Peter Farrelly, inspired by a true friendship that transcended race, class, and the 1962 Mason-Dixon Line. The film is the story of world-class black pianist Don Shirley (Mahershala Ali), who hires New York bouncer Tony Lip (Viggo Mortensen) to drive him on a concert tour from Manhattan to the Deep South. The pair must rely on the “Green Book” to guide them to the few establishments that were safe for African-Americans. Confronted with racism and danger – as well as unexpected humanity – they are forced to set aside differences to survive and thrive on the journey of a lifetime.
The Festival will present Roma as the Centerpiece Film. Perhaps the most acclaimed and discussed film on the 2018 major film festival scene, Roma is director Alfonso Cuarón’s (Gravity) most personal work to date – a loving and lovely tribute to the unsung woman who raised him and to so many domestic workers like her. Both intimate in emotion and epic in scope, Roma follows Cleo, a domestic worker in Mexico City in the 1970s, and the upper-middle class family that she cares for. As her personal life and the political climate of Mexico City grow more and more tumultuous, Cleo remains on the sidelines, observing and absorbing the chaos and pain around her. First time actor, Yalitza Aparicio, plays Cleo with a quiet sensitivity. Vanity Fair has said of Roma, “Cuarón shows us wonders to remind us of the aching wonder of it all, how careless we are to not stop and assess everything, to not madly ask every stranger the detail of their lives, because in each may be a story we might come to bitterly regret not knowing.”
From director Jason Reitman comes the Closing Night Film, The Front Runner, a look back at a story that in so many ways set the stage for the political climate we live in today. Gary Hart (Hugh Jackman) came into the 1988 presidential election season as a can’t-miss prospect, combining boyish good looks and an easy charm with a political set of skills honed by a surprisingly successful 1984 campaign. When accusations of an extramarital affair set off an unprecedented media investigation of Hart’s personal life, a new era was born that changed the parameters of what is personal, what is public, and what it means for the way we choose our leaders. The film boasts a stellar cast including Vera Farmiga as Hart’s wife Lee, J.K. Simmons as his embattled campaign manager, and Alfred Molina as Ben Bradlee in this highly-touted adaptation of campaign veteran Matt Bai’s memoir All the Truth is Out.
L-R: Michelle Rodriguez, Viola Davis, and Elizabeth Debicki star in Twentieth Century Fox’s WIDOWS. Photo Credit: Courtesy Twentieth Century Fox.[/caption]
Widows – From visionary director Steve McQueen (12 Years a Slave) comes Widows. After their criminal husbands die in an explosion, a group of women, led by Academy Award winner Viola Davis, must pull off their spouses’ next planned heist in order to pay off the crime boss that their recently departed partners owe.
Science Fair directed by Cristina Costantini and Darren Foster[/caption]
The Festival will present a trio of heralded documentaries from National Geographic. They include: Science Fair, which follows nine high school students from disparate corners of the globe as they navigate rivalries, setbacks, and hormones on their quest to win the international science fair; Free Solo, a stunning, intimate and unflinching portrait of free soloist climber Alex Honnold, as he prepares to achieve his lifelong dream: climbing the face of the world’s most famous rock, Yosemite’s 3,000-foot El Capitan, without a rope; and Into the Okavango, the directorial debut of National Geographic photographer Neil Gelinas, who accompanied researchers on this stunning expedition down the Okavango River to discover how or why the river — which is the source of Africa’s wildlife lifeline — is drying up.
Divide and Conquer: The Story of Roger Ailes[/caption]
Divide and Conquer – Alexis Bloom delivers this tale of the long rise and sudden fall of the late, disgraced media industry giant Roger Ailes, from his days in the Nixon and Bush White Houses to his time at the helm of Fox News, and his ignominious ouster at the dawn of the Me Too movement.
Karenina and I -Norwegian actress Gørild Mauseth is challenged by the almost impossible task of playing Anna Karenina in a language she never spoke and in the author’s home country. She embarks on a journey throughout Russia to discover the real reasons why Tolstoy (Liam Neeson) wrote the novel. What Gørild does not know is that Anna Karenina will become the role of her life and change her forever.
The Last Race – The last surviving stock car track on Long Island, once home to over thirty, is the weekend retreat to many working-class stock car racers and enthusiasts. Director Michael Dweck documents the local enthusiasts as outside land developers begin to encroach.
Revolutionizing Dementia Care – Directed by Mason Williams and produced by the Community Idea Stations, this film reveals innovative approaches in memory care communities that are improving the well-being of patients and allowing them to live full and meaningful lives based on their abilities rather than their disabilities.
Run While You Can – Sam Fox attempts to run the Pacific Crest Trail, spanning from the Canadian to the Mexican border, in sixty days, beating the previous record. As the trail begins to take its toll on his mind and body, Fox begins to understand what his mother, who has Parkinson’s disease, goes through on a daily basis.
[caption id="attachment_28858" align="aligncenter" width="1200"]
Studio 54[/caption]
Studio 54 – Using footage from its heyday and interviews with two of the original owners, Studio 54 takes a look at the quick rise and fall of the most famous night club in the world. The club would usher in a new era of celebrity culture and glamour, while highlighting the legendary excesses of the era.
I AM NOT A WITCH[/caption]
I Am Not a Witch (United Kingdom) – In Rungano Nyoni’s directorial debut, a young girl in Zambia is sent to witch camp. Threatened that she will turn into a goat if she attempts escape, she must decide if freedom is worth the risk.
Never Look Away (Germany) – Directed by Academy Award winner, Florian Henckel von Donnersmarck, Never Look Away tracks an artist’s career and relationships during the rise and fall of Nazi occupied Germany.
No Date, No Signature (Iran) – A forensic pathologist, Dr. Nariman, hits a motorcycle carrying a family in an accident. He urges them to take their son to a hospital, but they refuse and disappear into the night. When Dr. Nariman sees the boy has arrived deceased at his hospital and the cause of death ruled as food poisoning, he goes on a hunt for the truth.
Sunset (Hungary) – From László Nemes, the director of Son of Saul, comes this story of a woman searches for a connection to her family in 1913 Budapest and finds little help along the way.
Woman at War (Iceland) – An environmental activist plans her final demonstration after learning that she will soon become a mother.
Other films include our Centerpiece Film Roma (Mexico), and Spotlight Films,Birds of Passage (Colombia), El Angel (Argentina).
Antonio Lopez 1970: Sex Fashion & Disco[/caption]
Antonio Lopez 1970: Sex, Fashion and Disco – A native of Puerto Rico and raised in the Bronx, Antonio Lopez gained international recognition as one of the most influential fashion illustrators of his time. His artistic vision and commitment to diversity revolutionized the fashion world, and his natural charisma allowed him to help launch the careers of icons like Grace Jones, Jessica Lange, and Jerry Hall.
Coby – When a 23-year-old transgender Ohio woman transitions, his physical and spiritual transformation affects the lives of all who love him, and inspires them to change their perspectives.
El Angel (Argentina) – Based on the true story of Argentina’s most infamous serial killer, Carlos Rubedo Puch, who began his life of crime at seventeen. The extremity of his crimes is a stark contrast with his handsome, charming demeanor.
Jason and Shirley – A fictional retelling of the making of the influential documentary, Portrait of Jason, from the perspective of the film’s subject, hustler and cabaret performer, Jason Holliday.
Good Manners – A Brazilian fairytale that finds two women from different classes coming together over the impending birth of a supernatural child under a full moon.
Narcissister Organ Player – Through her unabashedly erotic and often humorous performances, Narcissister showcases her approach to explorations of race, gender, and sexuality. From growing up as a mixed-race child, to her complex relationship with her mother, she addresses how these circumstances compelled her to create her performance character.
[caption id="attachment_29915" align="aligncenter" width="1199"]
Rafiki[/caption]
Rafiki – Two women fall in love in Kenya, despite their father’s political rivalry, and Kenya’s laws against homosexuality.
Sauvage – 22-year-old Leo works in Strasbourg as a prostitute. Working mostly on a quiet road in a wooded area, he belongs to a group of men that service the motorist clientele. Leo seems to not know or desire any other kind of life, despite friends and doctors questioning his lifestyle. Leo prizes his freedom and never lets go of his ability to love and be loved.
Spider Mites of Jesus: The Dirtwoman Documentary – Richmond, Virginia natives recount their experiences with Donnie “Dirtwoman” Corker, a drag queen and pillar of the counterculture, and their influence on the community.
Sorry Angel – Arthur, an eager 22-year-old student, meets 35-year-old Jacques, a writer living in Paris with his young son. Embracing his sexual awakening, Arthur wishes to throw himself into their relationship without reservations. Jacques is hesitant to invest himself, as he struggles to come to terms with an AIDS diagnosis. The physical reality of Jacques’ illness complicates the fate of their romance, as both men realize that Arthur’s journey is just beginning as Jacques’ starts to close.
Birds of Passage (Pájaros de verano)[/caption]
Miami Film Festival unveiled the full line-up of the GEMS 2018, the Fall edition of the annual festival, opening with Colombia’s Oscar submission Birds of Passage (Pájaros de Verano) and closing with Spain’s Oscar submission Champions (Campeones).
Miami Film Festival GEMS takes place October 11 to 14, at MDC’s Tower Theater Miami.
Bárbara Lennie, the acclaimed and much in-demand Goya-winning Spanish actress, will accept the Festival’s Precious Gem Award prior to the presentation of her newest film, Petra, directed by Jaime Rosales. Lennie also joins Penélope Cruz, Javier Bardem and Ricardo Darín in Oscar-winner Asghar Farhadi’s Everybody Knows (Todos lo saben), which will also play at GEMS. Lennie’s other recent roles are well-known to Miami Film Festival audiences – her 2018 film A Sort of Family won the Festival’s Knight Competition Grand Prize, and her 2017 film Maria (And Everybody Else) won the Festival’s HBO Ibero-American Feature Film Award.
Cinematographer Diego García, touted as a strong contender for his first Oscar nomination for shooting Paul Dano’s directorial debut, Wildlife, starring Cary Mulligan and Jake Gyllenhaal, will receive the Festival’s Art of Light Award and participate in a conversation about his craft prior to the Florida premiere of Wildlife. Garcia’s previous credits include his Fenix Award-winning work on Gabriel Mascaro’s Neon Bull, and previous Miami Film Festival selections Cemetery of Splendor (2015) and The Darkness (2017). García will additionally lead a Master Class on Cinematography for attending local industry members and film students.
Returning for a second consecutive year to Miami Film Festival GEMS is the virtual reality (VR) sidebar Virtual Escape, in partnership with MDC’s Miami Animation & Gaming International Complex (MAGIC). Festivalgoers will experience five projects of 360°, VR and Alternative Gaming available through the entire GEMS weekend.
This year’s edition of GEMS will feature two distinct sections. The Spotlight Stage will feature high-profile, major-interest films from internationally renowned directors, many of which are in strong contention for Academy Award nominations. The Discovery Stage will feature new filmmakers creating some of the year’s most interesting debut work, breaking out into international prominence.
Green Book[/caption]
The Mill Valley Film Festival (MVFF) will showcase a diverse lineup of 204 films with 45% of all film directed by women, for the 41st edition of the festival, from October 4 to 14, 2018. The Festival will open with a double header – the U.S. Premiere of A Private War, starring Rosamund Pike, and Green Book starring Mahershala Ali.
Look at Me[/caption]
The Toronto International Film Festival will spotlight 48 films from international filmmakers in this year’s 2018 Contemporary World Cinema roster with a strong presence from Latin America and Eastern Europe — telling stories of identity, depicting family dynamics, and making bold political statements.
Several of the the impressive 27 World Premieres in the program are from TIFF veterans, including Belmonte from Uruguay’s Federico Veiroj, The Other Story from Israel’s Avi Nesher, Stupid Young Heart from Finnish Academy Award nominee Selma Vilhunen, Quién te Cantará from Spain’s Carlos Vermut, and Look at Me from Tunisia’s Nejib Belkadhi.
The program also highlights film selections that have already captivated audiences worldwide this year, including “I Do Not Care If We Go Down In History As Barbarians” by Radu Jude, Birds of Passage by directing duo Cristina Gallego and Ciro Guerra, and Border by Ali Abbasi.
BlacKkKlansman[/caption]
Ten new films including the latest by Damien Chazelle, Alfonso Cuarón, and Spike Lee will compete for the City of Donostia / San Sebastian Audience Award at the San Sebastian International Film Festival. A Star Is Born, the directorial debut of Bradley Cooper will bring the section to a close.
Jacques Audiard (Paris, 1962), the author of Un prophète / A Prophet (2009), Academy Award nominee for Best Foreign Language Film, will present The Sisters Brothers, to have its premiere at the Venice Festival. This western based on the novel of the same name by Patrick deWitt stars Jake Gyllenhaal, Joaquin Phoenix and John C. Reilly, who is also involved in its production.
The latest film from the winner of last year’s Academy Award for Best Director, Damien Chazelle (Providence, USA, 1985), once again directs Ryan Gosling in First Man as Neil Armstrong, the first astronaut to walk on the Moon. The film by the creator of La La Land, in which Claire Foy (The Crown) also has a part, will open the Venice Festival.
Alfonso Cuarón (Mexico City, 1968) competed in the Official Selection at San Sebastian with his second film, A Little Princess (1995). Since then, he has won a Best Director Academy Award for Gravity, while his films Y tu mamá también (And Your Mother Too) and Children of Men have enjoyed widespread international success. With Roma, to have its premiere in Venice, he portrays the life of a maid working in a middle-class district of Mexico City in the early 70s.
In this new take on the iconic love story, A Star Is Born, Bradley Cooper (Philadelphia, USA, 1975) makes his directorial debut and portrays seasoned musician Jackson Maine, who discovers and falls in love with struggling artist Ally, played by Lady Gaga. Ally has given up on her dream to become a successful singer until she meets Jack, who immediately sees her raw talent. This intimate story takes us on a journey through the beauty and challenges of a relationship struggling to survive. After its premiere in Venice, A Star Is Born will bring Perak to a close in San Sebastian.
Lukas Dhont (Belgium, 1991) will also present his first feature in San Sebastian, Girl, winner of the Caméra d’Or for Best First Film in Cannes and Fipresci Prize in Un Certain Regard. Dhont tells the story of a young girl born as a boy and who dreamt of becoming a ballerina.
Ciro Guerra (Río de Oro, Colombia, 1981) shares the helm of Pájaros de verano (Birds of Passage) with Cristina Gallego (Bogotá, 1978), producer of his earlier films. Guerra started his career in Films in Progress, where he won a prize in 2003 for his first work, La sombra del caminante. His third film, El abrazo de la serpiente (Embrace of the Serpent) screened in Horizontes Latinos, was nominated for Best Foreign Language Film Academy Award. In Pájaros de verano, which premiered at the Cannes Directors’ Fortnight, he uses a true story to explain the origins of drug trafficking in Colombia.
The first animated film to compete in San Sebastian’s Official Selection was Bakemono no ko / The Boy and the Beast (2015), by Mamoru Hosoda (Nakaniikawa, Japan, 1967). The author of Toki wo kakeru shojo (The Girl Who Leapt Through Time, 2006) and Okami Kodomo no Ame to Yuki (Wolf Children, 2012) now presents in San Sebastian Mirai, which premiered at the Cannes Directors’ Fortnight.
The participations of Nadine Labaki (Beirut, 1974) in San Sebastian are counted in awards. In 2007, with her directorial debut Sukkar banat / Caramel, she landed the Audience and Youth Awards, and in 2011, with her second film, Et maintenant on va où? / Where Do We Go Now?, she earned the spectators’ vote as Best European Film. With Capharnaüm, winner of the Jury Prize in Cannes, she once again competes for the City of Donostia / San Sebastian Audience Award.
Although his films have been programmed in different retrospectives –When the Levees Broke: A Requiem in Four Acts in .doc – New paths of non-fiction and Summer of Sam in American Way of Death: American Film Noir 1990-2010– and the collective film Ten Minutes Older – The Trumpet screened as part of the Zabaltegi-Specials selection, this is the first time that Spike Lee (Atlanta, USA, 1957) will have competed for an award in San Sebastian. The author of Malcolm X, winner of honorary Academy and César awards, will compete for the Audience Award with BlacKkKlansman, a dramatic comedy about an Afro-American policeman who infiltrates the Ku Klux Klan, winner of the Jury Grand Prix at Cannes and the Audience Award at Locarno.
Jia Zhangke (Fenyang, China, 1970), however, has enjoyed wide presence at the Festival in recent years. In 2013 he won the Best Screenplay Award at Cannes for Tian zhu ding / A Touch of Sin (2013), screened as part of Perlak, the same section which saw the selection in 2015 of Shan he gu ren (Mountains May Depart), winner of the Audience Award for Best European Production. His short film The Hedonists was screened in Zabaltegi-Tabakalera in 2016, the same year as he sat on the official jury presided by Bille August, which gave the Golden Shell to Wo bu shi pan jinlian / I Am Not Madame Bovary by Xiaogang Feng. Now he will endeavour to win the spectators’ award for a second time with Ash is Purest White, a film selected for the Cannes official competition, in which he describes the changes transforming his country through a violent love story.
These films join those already announced in Perlak: El ángel (Luis Ortega), Petra (Jaime Rosales), Leto / Summer (Kirill Serebrennikov), Zimna wojna / Cold War (Pawel Pawlikowski), Un día más con vida / Another Day of Life (Raúl de la Fuente and Damian Nenow), Netemo Sametemo / Asako I & II (Ryusuke Hamaguchi) and 3 Rokh / Three Faces (Jafar Panahi).
A STAR IS BORN
BRADLEY COOPER (USA)
Cast: Bradley Cooper, Lady Gaga, Andrew Dice Clay, Dave Chappelle, Sam Elliott
CLOSING NIGHT FILM
Not in competition
In this new take on the tragic love story, a seasoned musician discovers—and falls in love with— a struggling artist. She has just about given up on her dream to make it big as a singer… until Jack coaxes her into the spotlight. But even as Ally’s career takes off, the personal side of their relationship is breaking down, as Jack fights an ongoing battle with his own internal demons.
ASH IS PUREST WHITE
JIA ZHANGKE (CHINA – FRANCE – JAPAN)
Cast: Zhao Tao, Liao Fan
Qiao is in love with Bin, a local mobster. During a fight between rival gangs, she fires a gun to protect him. Qiao gets five years in prison for this act of loyalty. Upon her release, she goes looking for Bin to pick up where they left off. A story of love, betrayal and loyalty set in China’s underworld.
BLACKKKLANSMAN
SPIKE LEE (USA)
Cast: John David Washington, Adam Driver, Topher Grace, Laura Harrier
Spike Lee helms the true story of the first Afro-American cop to infiltrate the Ku Klux Klan at its highest levels in the ‘60s, with the help of a colleague who passed himself off as a radical racist.
CAPHARNAÜM
NADINE LABAKI (LEBANON)
Cast: Zain Al Rafeea, Yordanos Shiferaw, Boluwatife Treasure Bankole, Kawthar Al Haddad, Fadi Kamel Youssef, Cedra Izam, Alaa Chouchnieh, Nadine Labaki
International Courtroom
Zain, a 12 year-old boy, faces the judge.
Judge: Why are you suing your own parents?
Zain: For giving me life.
FIRST MAN
DAMIEN CHAZELLE (USA)
Cast: Ryan Gosling, Claire Foy, Jason Clarke
The film tells the story of the most dangerous mission in the history of Humanity to date. A tale of how NASA sent Neil Armstrong to the Moon and the sacrifices and the cost it represented for many.
GIRL
LUKAS DHONT (BELGIUM – NETHERLANDS)
Cast: Victor Polster, Arieh Worthalter, Katelijne Damen, Valentijn Dhaenens
Lara, aged 15, dreams of becoming a ballerina. With her father’s help, she pushes herself to the limit in the interminable endeavour. But her body doesn’t lend itself easily to the discipline imposed upon it, because in fact she was born a boy.
MIRAI
MAMORU HOSODA (JAPAN)
A spoiled and pampered little 4 year-old who finds himself being ignored on the birth of his little sister Mirai. Kun struggles to cope with the new situations thrown at him in his home. But suddenly the teenage version of his sister travels back in time from the future to share with Kun an extraordinary adventure of unimaginable proportions.
PÁJAROS DE VERANO
CIRO GUERRA, CRISTINA GALLEGO (COLOMBIA)
Cast: Carmiña Martínez, Jose Acosta, Natalia Reyes, Jhon Narváez, José Vicente Cote, Juan Bautista Martínez, Greider Meza
Based on a true story explaining the origin of drug trafficking in Colombia, the film takes place in the ‘70s when North American youths are embracing the hippie culture and, with it, marijuana. The upshot is that the local farmers almost instantly morph into “entrepreneurs”. In the Guajira desert, a Wayuu Native American family finds itself forced to assume a role of leadership in this new enterprise. Wealth and power combine with a war between brothers which will seriously endanger their family, their lives and their ancestral traditions.
ROMA
ALFONSO CUARÓN (MEXICO)
Cast: Yalitza Aparicio, Marina de Tavira
The most personal project to date from Academy Award®-winning director and writer Alfonso Cuarón (Gravity, Children of Men, Y Tu Mamá Tambien), Roma follows Cleo, a young domestic worker for a family in the middle-class neighborhood of Roma in Mexico City. Delivering an artful love letter to the women who raised him, Cuarón draws on his own childhood to create a vivid and emotional portrait of domestic strife and social hierarchy amidst political turmoil of the 1970s.
THE SISTERS BROTHERS
JACQUES AUDIARD (FRANCE – BELGIUM – ROMANIA – SPAIN)
Cast: John C. Reily, Joaquin Phoenix, Jake Gyllenhaal, Riz Ahmed
Charlie and Eli Sisters live in a wild and hostile world. They have blood on their hands: the blood of criminals and innocent people alike… They have no scruples about killing. It’s their job. Charlie, the younger brother, was born to kill. Eli, however, dreams of living a normal life. They are hired by the Commodore to find and kill a man. From Oregon to California, a ruthless hunt begins, an initiatory journey that will test this insane bond between the two brothers. A path that leads to their humanity?
The Argentinian film El Angel directed by Luis Ortega that screened earlier this year at the 2018 Cannes Film Festival, and next at the upcoming 2018 Toronto International Film Festival, will open in theaters in November. The film, starring Lorenzo Ferro, Chino Darin, Mercedes Morán, Daniel Fanego, Luis Gnecco, Peter Lanzani, and Cecilia Roth, is inspired by the true story of Carlos Robledo Puch, known as “the black angel”, a thief who killed eleven people in the early 1970s in Argentina.
The Orchard will release El Angel in Los Angeles at the NuArt on November 9th, as well as in New York in early November and rolling out to other US cities in November and December 2018.
Buenos Aires, 1971. Carlitos (Lorenzo Ferro) is a seventeen-year-old youth with movie star swagger, blond curls and a baby face. As a young boy, he coveted other people’s things, but it wasn’t until his early adolescence that his true calling—to be a thief—manifested itself. When he meets Ramon (Chino Darin) at his new school, Carlitos is immediately drawn to him and starts showing off to get his attention. Together they will embark on a journey of discoveries, love and crime. Killing is just a random offshoot of the violence, which continues to escalate until Carlitos is finally apprehended. Because of his angelic appearance, the press dubs Carlitos “The Angel of Death.” Showered with attention because of his beauty, he becomes an overnight celebrity. Altogether, he is believed to have committed over forty thefts and eleven homicides. Today, after more than forty-five years in jail, Carlos Robledo Puch is the longest-serving prisoner in the history of Argentina.
The Cannes Film Festival yesterday announced the Official Selections of the 71st edition of the festival. The titles include the feature films in Competition, at Un Certain Regard, Out of Competition, in Midnight Screenings and in Special Screenings.
The 71st Cannes Film Festival will take place May 8 to 19, 2018.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0swRBkl11rI