A salute to Basque cinema, the 71st edition of the San Sebastian Festival has once again unfurled its Zinemira section, a brainchild conceived in collaboration with the Basque government’s Department of Culture. Serving as more than just a showcase, Zinemira comes wrapped in the financial backing of sponsors Irizar and EiTB, with collaborative support from Urbil, the Basque Film Archive, Epe/Apv, Ibaia, and Zineuskadi. The competition for the coveted Irizar Basque Film Award promises to be as strong as ever, drawing eligible feature films that meet a set criteria— namely, a 20% Basque production involvement, a Basque-language script, or a narrative focus on Basque communities. Not to be eclipsed, the section also lights up with the Kimuak programme, a curated selection of this year’s top Basque short films, giving them a passport to international acclaim. A rundown:
“Sultana’s Dream,” (“El sueño de la Sultana,” Isabel Herguera, Spain,...
“Sultana’s Dream,” (“El sueño de la Sultana,” Isabel Herguera, Spain,...
- 9/26/2023
- by Callum McLennan
- Variety Film + TV
Now that the dust has settled from the holiday season our focus can turn on this month's offerings from our friends at Arrow Video. This month kicks off on Friday with a currated collection from Adam Egypt Mortimer, director of Some Kind of Hate, Daniel Isn't Real and Archenemy. His program Adam Egypt Mortimer Selects will include titles such as Chema García Ibarra's The Sacred Spirit, Nabwana I.G.G.'s Bad Black, Miike's The Great Yokai War, and Brian Lonano's Gwilliam. The following week you can watch Reel Women "... a vintage program of interviews with women directors working in Hollywood and Europe in the early 1990s, exploring the opportunities and obstacles that face them". Subscribers in the U.S. and Canada will get to...
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- 1/3/2023
- Screen Anarchy
Variety has been given exclusive access to Mubi’s newly cut trailer for writer-director Carla Simón’s “Alcarrás,” Spain’s Oscar entry, which is scheduled to open on Jan. 6 at the Lincoln Center and Quad Cinema in New York.
The 2022 Berlin Golden Bear winner was picked up by Mubi earlier in the year and is also opening in the U.K. on the same date.
Produced by Maria Zamora, Stefan Schmitz and Tono Folguera, Simon’s follow up to “Summer 1993,” which itself won Berlin’s 2017 best first feature award.
It tells the story of a hard-working peach-farming family in Lleida, Catalonia, in rural north east Spain, whose livelihood and way of life are condemned to oblivion when an old verbal Spanish Civil War pact on the land rental is ignored and they are faced with eviction.
Inspired in atmosphere and setting by the experience of writer-director Carla Simón’s own grandparents and uncle and aunt,...
The 2022 Berlin Golden Bear winner was picked up by Mubi earlier in the year and is also opening in the U.K. on the same date.
Produced by Maria Zamora, Stefan Schmitz and Tono Folguera, Simon’s follow up to “Summer 1993,” which itself won Berlin’s 2017 best first feature award.
It tells the story of a hard-working peach-farming family in Lleida, Catalonia, in rural north east Spain, whose livelihood and way of life are condemned to oblivion when an old verbal Spanish Civil War pact on the land rental is ignored and they are faced with eviction.
Inspired in atmosphere and setting by the experience of writer-director Carla Simón’s own grandparents and uncle and aunt,...
- 12/12/2022
- by Douglas Wilson
- Variety Film + TV
Paris-based La Fabrica Nocturna Cinéma, producer of Chema García Ibarra’s 2021 Locarno winner “Sacred Spirit,” has boarded Gabriel Azorin’s “Last Night I Conquered the City of Thebes,” marking another financing milestone for his buzzy, poetic and time blending Spanish project.
A Locarno Match Me! hit. “Thebes” has been put through both San Sebastián’s Ikusmira Berriak and Madrid’s Ecam Incubator, rapidly consolidating as Spain’s foremost development labs which each attract about 270 applications a year.
La Fabrica Nocturna, whose credits also take in “The Heiresses,” joins Madrid’s Dvein Films, A Coruña’s Filmika Galaika (“They Carry Death”) and Lisbon’s Primeira Idade (“The Metamorphosis of Birds”) as a producer partner on “Thebes,” which won a Rtp Award, consisting of the pre-buy of rights from the Portuguese public broadcaster, at late 2020’s Seville European Film Festival.
“We’ve known Gabriel for a very long time and we have...
A Locarno Match Me! hit. “Thebes” has been put through both San Sebastián’s Ikusmira Berriak and Madrid’s Ecam Incubator, rapidly consolidating as Spain’s foremost development labs which each attract about 270 applications a year.
La Fabrica Nocturna, whose credits also take in “The Heiresses,” joins Madrid’s Dvein Films, A Coruña’s Filmika Galaika (“They Carry Death”) and Lisbon’s Primeira Idade (“The Metamorphosis of Birds”) as a producer partner on “Thebes,” which won a Rtp Award, consisting of the pre-buy of rights from the Portuguese public broadcaster, at late 2020’s Seville European Film Festival.
“We’ve known Gabriel for a very long time and we have...
- 9/19/2022
- by John Hopewell
- Variety Film + TV
Alauda Ruiz de Azúa’s “Lullaby” was described by Pedro Almodóvar as “undoubtedly the best debut in Spanish cinema for years.” Chema García Ibarra’s “The Sacred Spirit” was hailed by Variety as “one of the standouts of the 2021 Locarno Film Festival.” David Pérez Sañudo’s “Ane is Missing” won three Spanish Academy Goya Awards last year.
What these three Spanish movies, all first features, have in common is that they have passed through the Ecam Madrid Film School’s Incubator, a six-month producer mentorship initiative.
As its fifth edition rounds a final bend, Variety analyzes what its projects say about the state of cutting-edge young Spanish cinema and what the talent behind it says about the state of contemporary filmmaking.
Filmmakers With Attitude
On the face of it, the five projects developed this year could not be more different, in genre, tone and issues tackled. Gabriel Azorín’s “Last...
What these three Spanish movies, all first features, have in common is that they have passed through the Ecam Madrid Film School’s Incubator, a six-month producer mentorship initiative.
As its fifth edition rounds a final bend, Variety analyzes what its projects say about the state of cutting-edge young Spanish cinema and what the talent behind it says about the state of contemporary filmmaking.
Filmmakers With Attitude
On the face of it, the five projects developed this year could not be more different, in genre, tone and issues tackled. Gabriel Azorín’s “Last...
- 8/25/2022
- by Emilio Mayorga
- Variety Film + TV
Summer is around the corner, which means Rooftop Films is almost back. New York cinephiles can look forward to another season of film screenings from the longtime nonprofit, which screens independent films in a variety of outdoor locations throughout New York City. Over time, Rooftop Films has become an essential institution in the indie film world, helping top directors get their work seen while connecting undiscovered artists to the resources that they need.
Notable films on the year’s lineup include Chloe Okuno’s “Watcher,” a Sundance horror hit in the tradition of paranoid classics like “Rosemary’s Baby;” James Morosini’s “I Love My Dad,” a comedy that took the top prizes in the Narrative category at SXSW; and Andrew Semans’ “Resurrection,” a psychological thriller that earned high marks from critics and fans alike at Sundance this year.
Tickets for select upcoming screenings are on sale now via the Rooftop Films website,...
Notable films on the year’s lineup include Chloe Okuno’s “Watcher,” a Sundance horror hit in the tradition of paranoid classics like “Rosemary’s Baby;” James Morosini’s “I Love My Dad,” a comedy that took the top prizes in the Narrative category at SXSW; and Andrew Semans’ “Resurrection,” a psychological thriller that earned high marks from critics and fans alike at Sundance this year.
Tickets for select upcoming screenings are on sale now via the Rooftop Films website,...
- 5/2/2022
- by Christian Zilko
- Indiewire
The Seattle International Film Festival returned to its in-person format for the first time since 2019 this year, with many of the indie film world’s finest making their way to the Emerald City. The 11-day festival, which concluded this weekend, screened 263 films, including 28 world premieres, and ultimately honored a combination of domestic and foreign films with its awards.
The timely Ukrainian war drama “Klondike” from Maryna Er Gorbach won the Grand Jury Prize, with Zia Mohajerjasbi’s Seattle-set drama “Know Your Place” earning rave reviews from audiences and winning the festival’s New American Cinema Competition.
“As we celebrated our first in-person festival in three years, we were so thrilled to bring great films and new voices from across the globe,” said Beth Barrett, Siff Artistic Director. “Creating those experiences that bring audiences around film, both in cinema and hybrid, allowed us all to connect, to learn, and to make...
The timely Ukrainian war drama “Klondike” from Maryna Er Gorbach won the Grand Jury Prize, with Zia Mohajerjasbi’s Seattle-set drama “Know Your Place” earning rave reviews from audiences and winning the festival’s New American Cinema Competition.
“As we celebrated our first in-person festival in three years, we were so thrilled to bring great films and new voices from across the globe,” said Beth Barrett, Siff Artistic Director. “Creating those experiences that bring audiences around film, both in cinema and hybrid, allowed us all to connect, to learn, and to make...
- 4/24/2022
- by Christian Zilko
- Indiewire
The Seattle International Film Festival closed its 48th edition on Sunday by announcing its top honors, presenting awards at a ceremony at the Hyatt Regency Hotel in downtown Seattle.
“Klondike,” a film following a family that lives on the tumultuous border of Russia and Ukraine in 2014, was awarded the grand jury prize within the festival’s official competition.
“For a work both tragically prophetic and universal in its impact, a ferocious and formalist vision of war that fuses humanism, black comedy and horror into a searing and original vision, we award the Grand Jury Prize to Maryna Er Gorbach’s ‘Klondike,'” said the jury, composed of Angel An, senior director of acquisitions at Roadside Attraction; David Ansen, lead programmer at the Palm Spring International Film Festival; and Matthew Campbell, artistic director of the Denver Film Society and the Denver Film Festival.
“Know Your Place,” a drama following two teenage...
“Klondike,” a film following a family that lives on the tumultuous border of Russia and Ukraine in 2014, was awarded the grand jury prize within the festival’s official competition.
“For a work both tragically prophetic and universal in its impact, a ferocious and formalist vision of war that fuses humanism, black comedy and horror into a searing and original vision, we award the Grand Jury Prize to Maryna Er Gorbach’s ‘Klondike,'” said the jury, composed of Angel An, senior director of acquisitions at Roadside Attraction; David Ansen, lead programmer at the Palm Spring International Film Festival; and Matthew Campbell, artistic director of the Denver Film Society and the Denver Film Festival.
“Know Your Place,” a drama following two teenage...
- 4/24/2022
- by J. Kim Murphy
- Variety Film + TV
Spanish director Alauda Ruiz de Azúa, who swept the board at March’s Málaga Film Festival, has wrapped shooting on her sophomore feature, “Eres Tú,” a Netflix’ romantic comedy produced by Antonio Asensio and Paloma Molina at Zeta Studios – the Madrid-based company behind phenomenon “Elite.” Miriam Rodríguez executive produces.
After distributing Almodovar and signing up J.A. Bayona for real-life disaster drama “Society of the Snow,” Ruiz de Azúa’s attachment to “Eres tú” marks another association with a prestige director by Netflix in Spain.
Netflix Spain already accounts for three of the five most watched non-English Netflix movies ever: “The Platform,” “Below Zero” and “Through My Window.” It is, however, progressively diversifying its slate of series, movies, documentaries and TV shows by incorporating different creators profiles to create potential crowd-pleasers.
“Eres tú” follows Javier who, when 16 and kissing a girl for the first time, discovers that he had a gift of romantic clairvoyance.
After distributing Almodovar and signing up J.A. Bayona for real-life disaster drama “Society of the Snow,” Ruiz de Azúa’s attachment to “Eres tú” marks another association with a prestige director by Netflix in Spain.
Netflix Spain already accounts for three of the five most watched non-English Netflix movies ever: “The Platform,” “Below Zero” and “Through My Window.” It is, however, progressively diversifying its slate of series, movies, documentaries and TV shows by incorporating different creators profiles to create potential crowd-pleasers.
“Eres tú” follows Javier who, when 16 and kissing a girl for the first time, discovers that he had a gift of romantic clairvoyance.
- 4/11/2022
- by Emilio Mayorga
- Variety Film + TV
Considering many films premiering at the Locarno Film Festival can take years to get a release here in the United States—should they get any at all—Locarno in Los Angeles has been a welcome addition to the festival scene. Now in its fifth edition, the series (curated by Jordan Cronk and Robert Koehler) highlights the best of Locarno over four days, and kicks off this Thursday at 2220 Arts + Archives. Check out our recommendations for what to seek out this year below.
Belle (Mamoru Hosoda)
If a name can trigger nostalgia, don’t be surprised when the occasional sense of deja vu sets in while watching Belle, a dazzling near-future tech fantasia wrapped around a tale, yes, as old as time. Directed by Mamoru Hosoda and mostly set in a vast online world of sweeping musical numbers and weightless action sequences, it tells of Suzu, an awkward teenager (as if...
Belle (Mamoru Hosoda)
If a name can trigger nostalgia, don’t be surprised when the occasional sense of deja vu sets in while watching Belle, a dazzling near-future tech fantasia wrapped around a tale, yes, as old as time. Directed by Mamoru Hosoda and mostly set in a vast online world of sweeping musical numbers and weightless action sequences, it tells of Suzu, an awkward teenager (as if...
- 3/15/2022
- by The Film Stage
- The Film Stage
Rapidly emerging as one of Spain’s foremost hothouses for new producer and creative talent, the Ecam Madrid Film School’s Incubator program has chosen five titles for its 2022 program:
“Last Night I Conquered the City of Thebes,” “Disposable,” “Macrame,” “Festina Lente” and “Ripli.”
Launched to connect early career talent in Spain with Europe’s film industry, the 5th Incubator runs from Feb. 23 through July.
The program will be overseen by writer-director Rafa Alberola, who serves as the new manager of The Screen, Ecam’s industry initiative umbrella.
This year’s lineup announcements comes as one Incubator project, Alauda Ruiz de Azúa’s “Lullaby,” is set to world premiere in Berlin’s Panorama section later this week.
Chema García Ibarra’s “Sacred Spirit” proved a standout at August’s Locarno Festival, another Incubator debut, Javier Marco’s Javier Marco’s “Josefina” was for many the most notable Spanish feature debut...
“Last Night I Conquered the City of Thebes,” “Disposable,” “Macrame,” “Festina Lente” and “Ripli.”
Launched to connect early career talent in Spain with Europe’s film industry, the 5th Incubator runs from Feb. 23 through July.
The program will be overseen by writer-director Rafa Alberola, who serves as the new manager of The Screen, Ecam’s industry initiative umbrella.
This year’s lineup announcements comes as one Incubator project, Alauda Ruiz de Azúa’s “Lullaby,” is set to world premiere in Berlin’s Panorama section later this week.
Chema García Ibarra’s “Sacred Spirit” proved a standout at August’s Locarno Festival, another Incubator debut, Javier Marco’s Javier Marco’s “Josefina” was for many the most notable Spanish feature debut...
- 2/8/2022
- by Emilio Mayorga
- Variety Film + TV
Narrowing down the best Basque projects on the horizon has become increasingly difficult in recent years, as the region is experiencing a boom in both the quality and quantity of local production that has made prognostication more difficult than ever.
Below, Variety has picked 20 projects from that crowded field which we will be tracking in the coming years.
“Almanac” (Jorge Moneo Quintana)
A Berlinale Talents project, “Almanac” challenges the limits of documentary cinema by revisiting the solar eclipse of July 18, 1860 through photos and records, speculating on the truth of the past in collective memory. Currently in development, the feature is backed by Kalakalab and Kleinen Filmak.
“And Thus it Will Go On” (Marina Palacio)
Likely to appear on Basque project lists for some time, production on this exercise somewhere between fiction and reality is scheduled to last five years, following a group of children through their formative years in the...
Below, Variety has picked 20 projects from that crowded field which we will be tracking in the coming years.
“Almanac” (Jorge Moneo Quintana)
A Berlinale Talents project, “Almanac” challenges the limits of documentary cinema by revisiting the solar eclipse of July 18, 1860 through photos and records, speculating on the truth of the past in collective memory. Currently in development, the feature is backed by Kalakalab and Kleinen Filmak.
“And Thus it Will Go On” (Marina Palacio)
Likely to appear on Basque project lists for some time, production on this exercise somewhere between fiction and reality is scheduled to last five years, following a group of children through their formative years in the...
- 9/21/2021
- by Jamie Lang
- Variety Film + TV
Espíritu Sagrado Review — Espíritu sagrado (2021) Film Review from the 74th Annual Locarno Film Festival, a movie written and directed by Chema García Ibarra, starring Nacho Fernández, Llum Arques, Rocío Ibáñez, and Joanna Valverde. The universe is full of mysteries that intrigue and terrify us, and there are some who will do anything to seek those answers out [...]
Continue reading: Film Review: ESPÍRITU Sagrado: A Deadpan Dramedy That Never Ascends to the Proper Plane [Locarno 2021]...
Continue reading: Film Review: ESPÍRITU Sagrado: A Deadpan Dramedy That Never Ascends to the Proper Plane [Locarno 2021]...
- 8/22/2021
- by Jacob Mouradian
- Film-Book
Vengeance is Mine, All Others Pay CashINTERNATIONAL Competition(Jury: Eliza Hittman, Kevin Jerome Everson, Philippe Lacôte, Leonor Silveira, Isabelle Ferrari)Golden Leopard: Vengeance is Mine, All Others Pay Cash (Edwin) | Read our reviewSpecial Jury Prize: A New Old Play (Jiongjiong Qiu) | Read our reviewBest Direction: Abel Ferrara (Zeros and Ones) | Read our reviewBest Actress: Anastasiya Krasovskaya (Gerda)Best Actor: Mohamed Mellali and Valero Escolar (The Odd-Job Men)Special Mention: Soul of a Beast (Lorenz Merz) and The Sacred Spirit (Chema García Ibarra) | Read our reviewFILMMAKERS Of The Present( Jury: Agathe Bonitzer, Mattie Do, Vanja Kaludjercic)Golden Leopard: Brotherhood (Francesco Montagner)Special Jury Prize: L'Été l'éternité (Émilie Aussel)Prize for Best Emerging Director: Hleb Papou (The Legionnaire) Best Actress: Saskia Rosendahl (No One's with the Calves) | Read our reviewBest Actor: Gia Agumava (Wet Sand)First Feature(Jury: Amjad Abu Alala, Karina Ressler, Katharina Wyss)Best First Feature: She Will (Charlotte Colbert...
- 8/16/2021
- MUBI
There’s a moment in “The Sacred Spirit,” Chema García Ibarra’s beguiling feature debut shot on 16mm, when viewers get uncomfortable wondering if the director realizes the playful tone he’s taking makes light of a deeply troubling situation. The concern is unwarranted — Ibarra fully understands what he’s doing — but the fact that the film keeps defying expectation while invariably hitting the right note is a testament to his flair for quirky storytelling combined with a terrific eye. Fascinated by the ways science fiction and the paranormal burrow inside people looking for meaning in an anarchic world, the filmmaker weaves an idiosyncratic story of a group of UFO believers oblivious to a darker element in their midst. A Locarno festival standout, the film should be snapped up by other festivals and showcases.
The tone is set right from the start when little Verónica (Llum Arqués) does an in-class...
The tone is set right from the start when little Verónica (Llum Arqués) does an in-class...
- 8/15/2021
- by Jay Weissberg
- Variety Film + TV
Welcome to the Ovni-Levante Ufology Association, please take a seat. It’s the 37th meeting for this band of alien-obsessed misfits from Elche, Spain, and the last to be chaired by president Julio before he’ll pass away and leave the helm to his second in command, “Cosmic Pharaoh” José Manuel (Nacho Fernández). Not exactly the best time for a cabinet reshuffling, considering the six-strong Ovni-Levante has spent the past few months (years?) gearing up for a cosmic event which, the President has promised, will change the world as we know it. The date is looming; there’s no time to lose. Is it an extraterrestrial sighting these drifters are bracing for? An invasion? And how, if at all, is the mystery related with the disappearance of José Manuel’s 10-year-old niece Vanessa, gone missing 25 days ago?
Darkly surreal, perched on the edge of comedy and drama, of social realism and the occult,...
Darkly surreal, perched on the edge of comedy and drama, of social realism and the occult,...
- 8/14/2021
- by Leonardo Goi
- The Film Stage
Given that, after its shuttered 2020 edition, the 74th Locarno Film Festival’s ident features a prowling, growling, resurgent leopard and the distinctly tumescent tagline “Cinema is Back” it’s somewhat ironic that the festival’s top prize should go to a film about erectile dysfunction.
In other ways, however, Indonesian director Edwin’s fabulously if nonsensically titled “Vengeance is Mine, All Others Pay Cash” is perhaps the ideal Golden Leopard winner, in what is a strange year for the world, and a strange year for the Swiss festival, which is finding its footing under the new artistic direction of Giona A. Nazzaro.
As an admixture of several distinctly populist genres that still, as Variety critic Jay Weissberg noted, uses impotence as a metaphor “to make a broader critique of a toxic culture that puts so much emphasis on virility,” the film is among the best exemplars of Nazzaro’s avowed...
In other ways, however, Indonesian director Edwin’s fabulously if nonsensically titled “Vengeance is Mine, All Others Pay Cash” is perhaps the ideal Golden Leopard winner, in what is a strange year for the world, and a strange year for the Swiss festival, which is finding its footing under the new artistic direction of Giona A. Nazzaro.
As an admixture of several distinctly populist genres that still, as Variety critic Jay Weissberg noted, uses impotence as a metaphor “to make a broader critique of a toxic culture that puts so much emphasis on virility,” the film is among the best exemplars of Nazzaro’s avowed...
- 8/14/2021
- by Jessica Kiang
- Variety Film + TV
New Locarno Film Festival artistic director Giona A. Nazzaro, who is the former head of the Venice Film Festival’s Critics’ Week, is starting to put his stamp on the Swiss fest dedicated to indie cinema with a lineup comprising comedies and genre films alongside more straightforward auteur cinema, driven by a desire to make the selection “more audience friendly,” as he puts it. Nazzaro spoke to Variety about some of the choices that reflect this new course. Excerpts.
Since taking the reins you’ve repeatedly talked about taking the fest in different directions. How is that reflected, now that the lineup is out?
My idea is that a festival can be quite highbrow and entertaining at the same time. That is why in this year’s lineup we have three comedies –– or sort of, it depends on your idea of humor –– we also have some “genre” films, and also some straightforward auteur films.
Since taking the reins you’ve repeatedly talked about taking the fest in different directions. How is that reflected, now that the lineup is out?
My idea is that a festival can be quite highbrow and entertaining at the same time. That is why in this year’s lineup we have three comedies –– or sort of, it depends on your idea of humor –– we also have some “genre” films, and also some straightforward auteur films.
- 8/6/2021
- by Nick Vivarelli
- Variety Film + TV
It has been some time since we've talked about Spanish director Chema García Ibarra. Fearing we have lost touch with Ibarra forever color us surprised when we find out that he has a feature film called Sacred Spirit and that it will have its world premiere at the Locarno Film Festival. García Ibarra’s awaited feature debut, “Sacred Spirit” blends local detail and dystopian surrealism, following José Manuel and the other members of a Spanish Ufology association -UFO-Levante- who meet weekly to exchange information about extra-terrestrial messages and alien abductions. Julio, their leader, dies unexpectedly, leaving José Manuel as the only person who knows about the cosmic secret that could change the future of humankind. Meanwhile, Spain searches for a girl who disappeared weeks...
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- 7/22/2021
- Screen Anarchy
Sales agency Heretic has picked-up worldwide sales rights to “The Sacred Spirit,” Spaniard Chema García Ibarra’s feature debut, which world premieres in the International Competition at the Locarno Film Festival.
Its teaser trailer is launching exclusively in Variety.
García Ibarra’s awaited feature debut, “Sacred Spirit” blends local detail and dystopian surrealism, following José Manuel and the other members of a Spanish Ufology association -UFO-Levante- who meet weekly to exchange information about extra-terrestrial messages and alien abductions.
Julio, their leader, dies unexpectedly, leaving José Manuel as the only person who knows about the cosmic secret that could change the future of humankind. Meanwhile, Spain searches for a girl who disappeared weeks ago.
“We are thrilled to be representing the debut of Chema García Ibarra, a fresh and talented voice, who will undoubtedly stand out in the new wave of films coming from Spain,” said Ioanna Stais, head of sales and acquisitions at Athens-based Heretic.
Its teaser trailer is launching exclusively in Variety.
García Ibarra’s awaited feature debut, “Sacred Spirit” blends local detail and dystopian surrealism, following José Manuel and the other members of a Spanish Ufology association -UFO-Levante- who meet weekly to exchange information about extra-terrestrial messages and alien abductions.
Julio, their leader, dies unexpectedly, leaving José Manuel as the only person who knows about the cosmic secret that could change the future of humankind. Meanwhile, Spain searches for a girl who disappeared weeks ago.
“We are thrilled to be representing the debut of Chema García Ibarra, a fresh and talented voice, who will undoubtedly stand out in the new wave of films coming from Spain,” said Ioanna Stais, head of sales and acquisitions at Athens-based Heretic.
- 7/20/2021
- by Emiliano De Pablos
- Variety Film + TV
Year after year a site par excellence for the most innovative premieres—in that respect an antithesis to the ensuing fall circuit—the Locarno Film Festival returns triumphant next month. Their 2021 lineup, per usual, mixes iconic names with complete unknowns and, admittedly, a head-scratcher or two. Abel Ferrara’s much-anticipated Zeros and Ones, sure. Gaspar Noé’s Vortex—makes sense. A new film from The Wild Boys director Bertrand Mandico? Great! But Shawn Levy and a Jennifer Hudson Aretha Franklin biopic?
However, new festival head Giona A. Nazzaro sees it as part of a steady influx, telling Variety “A festival can be quite highbrow and also entertaining at the same time. That is why for this year’s lineup we have selected several comedies and also some genre movies, as well as straightforward auteur films.” By that metric it’s more inclusive than almost any other major competition on the European circuit.
However, new festival head Giona A. Nazzaro sees it as part of a steady influx, telling Variety “A festival can be quite highbrow and also entertaining at the same time. That is why for this year’s lineup we have selected several comedies and also some genre movies, as well as straightforward auteur films.” By that metric it’s more inclusive than almost any other major competition on the European circuit.
- 7/1/2021
- by Leonard Pearce
- The Film Stage
After Blue (Paradis sale)The lineup for the 2021 festival has been revealed, including new films by Bertrand Mandico, Axelle Ropert, Abel Ferrara and others, alongside retrospectives and tributes, and much more.Piazza GRANDEBeckett (Ferdinando Cito Filomarino)Free Guy (Shawn Levy)Heat (Michael Mann)Hinterland (Stefan Ruzowitzky)Ida Red (John Swab)Monte Verità (Stefan Jäger)National Lampoon's Animal House (John Landis)Respect (Liesl Tommy)Rose (Aurélie Saada)Sinkhole (Kim Ji-hoon)The Alleys (Bassel Ghandour)The Terminator (James Cameron)Vortex (Gaspar Noé)Yaya e Lennie — The Walking Liberty (Alessandro Rak)Tomorrow My Love (Gitanjali Rao)Lynx (Laurent Geslin)Zeros and OnesCONCORSO INTERNAZIONALEAfter Blue (Paradis sale) (Bertrand Mandico)Al Naher (The River) (Ghassan Salhab)Espíritu sagrado (The Sacred Spirit) (Chema García Ibarra)Gerda (Natalya Kudryashova)I giganti (The Giants) (Bonifacio Angius)Jiao ma teng hui (A New Old Play) (Jiongjiong Qiu)Juju StoriesLa Place d'une autre (Secret Name) (Aurélia Georges)Leynilögga (Cop Secret...
- 7/1/2021
- MUBI
With Cannes right around the corner, two more prominent European film festivals announced their official lineups for 2021 this week. The 2021 Locarno Film Festival (the 74th edition of the event) is taking place August 4-14 and will feature the world premiere of Abel Ferrara’s “Zeroes and Ones,” plus the Melissa Leo-Frank Grillo starring thriller “Ida Red” from director John Swab. Perhaps the most prominent U.S. title in the Locarno lineup is “Respect,” the Jennifer Hudson-starring Aretha Franklin biopic that has already caught the eye of Oscar pundits here in the states. The film will screen out of competition, as will Ryan Reynolds’ long-delayed Disney-Fox tentpole “Free Guy.”
“A festival can be quite highbrow and also entertaining at the same time,” Nazzaro told Variety in a statement. “That is why for this year’s lineup we have selected several comedies and also some genre movies, as well as straightforward auteur films.
“A festival can be quite highbrow and also entertaining at the same time,” Nazzaro told Variety in a statement. “That is why for this year’s lineup we have selected several comedies and also some genre movies, as well as straightforward auteur films.
- 7/1/2021
- by Zack Sharf
- Indiewire
The Locarno Film Festival has unveiled a promising lineup combining edgy new works by established auteurs such as Abel Ferrara alongside plenty of potential discoveries by emerging helmers and global newcomers for its upcoming 74th edition.
It will be the first one under new Artistic Director Giona A. Nazzaro, the former Venice Critics’ Week chief who is steering the Swiss fest known as an international incubator and indie cinema temple on a more audience-friendly course.
“A festival can be quite highbrow and also entertaining at the same time” Nazzaro told Variety. “That is why for this year’s lineup we have selected several comedies and also some genre movies, as well as straightforward auteur films,” he added.
As usual the bulk of Locarno’s crowdpleasers will launch from the Swiss lakeside town’s 8,000-seat Piazza Grande square which is Europe’s largest outdoor venue and this year has been approved...
It will be the first one under new Artistic Director Giona A. Nazzaro, the former Venice Critics’ Week chief who is steering the Swiss fest known as an international incubator and indie cinema temple on a more audience-friendly course.
“A festival can be quite highbrow and also entertaining at the same time” Nazzaro told Variety. “That is why for this year’s lineup we have selected several comedies and also some genre movies, as well as straightforward auteur films,” he added.
As usual the bulk of Locarno’s crowdpleasers will launch from the Swiss lakeside town’s 8,000-seat Piazza Grande square which is Europe’s largest outdoor venue and this year has been approved...
- 7/1/2021
- by Nick Vivarelli
- Variety Film + TV
Early September’s Venice Festival celebrated the restart of cinema theater attendance. Opening six days after Venice ended, as second-wave Covid-19 forced parts of Madrid back into semi-lockdown, 2020’s on-site San Sebastian Festival, normally a convivial, festive event, was a more sober affair as Europe’s industry calibrated the cost of the pandemic.
More bullishly, industry leaders talked up the fundamentals of Spanish-language production, TV and film, which remain strong. Following, six takeaways from San Sebastian, which wraps with a prize gala tomorrow, Saturday night.
San Sebastian: A ‘Miracle’ It Happened At All
By Sept. 10, Covid-19 cases in Spain ran at 260 infections per 100,000 of population, twice the level in France, the next worst ravaged territory in Europe. It was a “miracle” that San Sebastian happened at all, screening all its festival sections in cinema theaters, Maialen Beloki, San Sebastian Festival deputy director, told Variety. Sanitary protocols were enforced with firm politeness,...
More bullishly, industry leaders talked up the fundamentals of Spanish-language production, TV and film, which remain strong. Following, six takeaways from San Sebastian, which wraps with a prize gala tomorrow, Saturday night.
San Sebastian: A ‘Miracle’ It Happened At All
By Sept. 10, Covid-19 cases in Spain ran at 260 infections per 100,000 of population, twice the level in France, the next worst ravaged territory in Europe. It was a “miracle” that San Sebastian happened at all, screening all its festival sections in cinema theaters, Maialen Beloki, San Sebastian Festival deputy director, told Variety. Sanitary protocols were enforced with firm politeness,...
- 9/25/2020
- by John Hopewell, Elsa Keslassy and Emiliano De Pablos
- Variety Film + TV
In late July, “Ane,” a Basque Country mother-daughter social drama, scored one of the three-or-so berths reserved for Spanish titles at the New Directors sidebar of the San Sebastián festival, the most prestigious film event in the Spanish-speaking world.
It followed on “The Innocence,” a girl’s coming-of-age tale set in rural Spain, which made 2019’s New Directors’ cut. Selected for the TIFF Filmmakers Lab, in July Chema García Ibarra’s low-fi sci-fi drama “The Sacred Spirit” also secured financing from Eurimages, Europe’s biggest pan-regional production fund.
All three projects were put through the Madrid-based Incubator, a six-month producer mentorship initiative, which forms part of The Screen industry program at the Madrid Film and Audiovisual School (Ecam).
Increasingly, festival slots and film funding in Europe is going to feature titles which have performed an industry rites-of-passage, being put through a series of industry labs in both Europe and North America.
It followed on “The Innocence,” a girl’s coming-of-age tale set in rural Spain, which made 2019’s New Directors’ cut. Selected for the TIFF Filmmakers Lab, in July Chema García Ibarra’s low-fi sci-fi drama “The Sacred Spirit” also secured financing from Eurimages, Europe’s biggest pan-regional production fund.
All three projects were put through the Madrid-based Incubator, a six-month producer mentorship initiative, which forms part of The Screen industry program at the Madrid Film and Audiovisual School (Ecam).
Increasingly, festival slots and film funding in Europe is going to feature titles which have performed an industry rites-of-passage, being put through a series of industry labs in both Europe and North America.
- 8/18/2020
- by John Hopewell
- Variety Film + TV
Variety highlights a selection of Spanish titles being moved at this year’s Cannes Marché du Film.
All The Moons
(Arcadia Motion Pictures, Kowalski Films, Pris & Batty, Ilargia Films, Noodles Production)
A period drama about an orphan girl rescued by a mysterious woman who grants her immortality as a vampire.
Sales: Filmax
The August Virgin
(Los Ilusos Films)
A Karlovy Vary Fipresci Prize winner, film revolves around a woman who spends the summer in Madrid. Jonás Trueba’s latest movie, already bought for the U.S. by Outsider Films.
Sales: Bendita Film
Between Dog And Wolf
(El Viaje Films, Autonauta Films, Blond Indian Films)
Berlinale Forum player portrays soldiers from Castro’s Cuban Revolution still training, nearly 60 years later, in Cuba’s Sierra Maestra. Directed by Irene Gutiérrez.
Sales: Bendita Film
The Consequences
(Sin Rodeos, N279 Entertainment, Potemkino, Érase Una Vez)
Writer-director Claudia Pinto Emperador’s follow-up to her 2013 feature debut,...
All The Moons
(Arcadia Motion Pictures, Kowalski Films, Pris & Batty, Ilargia Films, Noodles Production)
A period drama about an orphan girl rescued by a mysterious woman who grants her immortality as a vampire.
Sales: Filmax
The August Virgin
(Los Ilusos Films)
A Karlovy Vary Fipresci Prize winner, film revolves around a woman who spends the summer in Madrid. Jonás Trueba’s latest movie, already bought for the U.S. by Outsider Films.
Sales: Bendita Film
Between Dog And Wolf
(El Viaje Films, Autonauta Films, Blond Indian Films)
Berlinale Forum player portrays soldiers from Castro’s Cuban Revolution still training, nearly 60 years later, in Cuba’s Sierra Maestra. Directed by Irene Gutiérrez.
Sales: Bendita Film
The Consequences
(Sin Rodeos, N279 Entertainment, Potemkino, Érase Una Vez)
Writer-director Claudia Pinto Emperador’s follow-up to her 2013 feature debut,...
- 6/23/2020
- by Carole Horst
- Variety Film + TV
Barcelona – Spain’s Chema García Ibarra is hardly a stranger to big fest selection: His shorts have played Cannes Directors’ Fortnight (“Attack From the Robots From Nebula 5”), Sundance, Berlin (“Mystery”) and San Sebastian (“The Disco Shines”).
Now, championed by the Ecam Madrid Film School’s Incubator program, and having been put through Greece’s Oxbelly Screenwriter’s Lab, “ García Ibarra’s first feature project, “The Sacred Spirit,” has made it to Toronto, as part of its 2019 Filmmakers Lab. In his debut, half of Spain sets out in search of a missing girl, while a Spanish ufology assn. holds a night sightings session. One of its members, the weight challenged José Manuel, will determine the fate of humanity.
Mixing costumbrismo – local social detail – with touches of cinéma-verité and low-fi sci-fi, seasoned with a singular sense of surreal humor, García Ibarra, highlighted by Variety as a talent to track, has been described...
Now, championed by the Ecam Madrid Film School’s Incubator program, and having been put through Greece’s Oxbelly Screenwriter’s Lab, “ García Ibarra’s first feature project, “The Sacred Spirit,” has made it to Toronto, as part of its 2019 Filmmakers Lab. In his debut, half of Spain sets out in search of a missing girl, while a Spanish ufology assn. holds a night sightings session. One of its members, the weight challenged José Manuel, will determine the fate of humanity.
Mixing costumbrismo – local social detail – with touches of cinéma-verité and low-fi sci-fi, seasoned with a singular sense of surreal humor, García Ibarra, highlighted by Variety as a talent to track, has been described...
- 8/6/2019
- by Emilio Mayorga
- Variety Film + TV
Further titles include Belén Funes’ debut ’A Thief’s Daughter’.
Alejandro Amenábar’s While At War is one of 15 Spanish films selected for the various strands of the 2019 San Sebastian International Film Festival (Ssiff) which will run from September 20 -28 this year.
The historical drama is about writer Miguel de Unamuno’s involvement in the Spanish Civil War and stars Karra Elejalde. Amenabar was last at San Sebastian with Regression which opened the festival out of competition in 2015.
It has not been announced if the film is having its world premiere at Ssiff, suggesting an earlier debut at either Venice...
Alejandro Amenábar’s While At War is one of 15 Spanish films selected for the various strands of the 2019 San Sebastian International Film Festival (Ssiff) which will run from September 20 -28 this year.
The historical drama is about writer Miguel de Unamuno’s involvement in the Spanish Civil War and stars Karra Elejalde. Amenabar was last at San Sebastian with Regression which opened the festival out of competition in 2015.
It has not been announced if the film is having its world premiere at Ssiff, suggesting an earlier debut at either Venice...
- 7/19/2019
- by Ben Dalton
- ScreenDaily
Barcelona – Paris-based production house La Fabrica Nocturna, a co-producer on Marcelo Martinessi’s Berlin prize winner “The Heiresses,” has boarded Spaniard Chema García Ibarra’s awaited feature debut “Sacred Spirit,” Variety learnt during the closing events at top Spanish development program The Incubator, run by the Madrid Ecam Madrid Film School.
Produced by San Sebastian’s Apellániz y de Sosa and Alicante’s Jaibo Films, “Sacred Spirit” moves between local detail and dystopic surrealism, in which half of Spain sets out in search of a missing girl while a Spanish Ufology association— UFO-Levante— prepares for a night of sightings. The fate of humanity depends on one of its members: the morbidly obese José Manuel, who hides a secret.
Chosen by Variety as a Spanish talent to track, Chema García Ibarra’s shorts – “The Attack of the Robots from Nebula-5,” “Protoparticles,” “Mystery” – have been screened and awarded at festivals such as Cannes,...
Produced by San Sebastian’s Apellániz y de Sosa and Alicante’s Jaibo Films, “Sacred Spirit” moves between local detail and dystopic surrealism, in which half of Spain sets out in search of a missing girl while a Spanish Ufology association— UFO-Levante— prepares for a night of sightings. The fate of humanity depends on one of its members: the morbidly obese José Manuel, who hides a secret.
Chosen by Variety as a Spanish talent to track, Chema García Ibarra’s shorts – “The Attack of the Robots from Nebula-5,” “Protoparticles,” “Mystery” – have been screened and awarded at festivals such as Cannes,...
- 7/3/2019
- by Emilio Mayorga
- Variety Film + TV
Athina Rachel Tsangari serves as artistic director for Labs, previously run in partnership with Sundance.
The Oxbelly Screenwriters and Directors Labs have selected 10 first or second feature projects and fellows for 2019.
Christos V. Konstantakopoulos’ Faliro House has launched this new incarnation of the lab via its educational arm, Oxbelly. Faliro House had for the past three years run the Mediterranean Screenwriters Workshop in partnership with Sundance Institute; that Sundance partnership has now ended.
Greek filmmaker Athina Rachel Tsangari, whose credits include Chevalier, and Attenberg, co-founded the Mediterranean Screenwriters Workshop and now stays on as artistic director of the Oxbelly Lab.
The Oxbelly Screenwriters and Directors Labs have selected 10 first or second feature projects and fellows for 2019.
Christos V. Konstantakopoulos’ Faliro House has launched this new incarnation of the lab via its educational arm, Oxbelly. Faliro House had for the past three years run the Mediterranean Screenwriters Workshop in partnership with Sundance Institute; that Sundance partnership has now ended.
Greek filmmaker Athina Rachel Tsangari, whose credits include Chevalier, and Attenberg, co-founded the Mediterranean Screenwriters Workshop and now stays on as artistic director of the Oxbelly Lab.
- 6/14/2019
- by Wendy Mitchell
- ScreenDaily
Photo courtesy of Pablo Ocqueteau and Berlinale 2019Below you will find our favorite films of the 69th Berlin International Film Festival, as well as an index of our coverage.AwardsFAVORITE Filmsdaniel KASMANHeimat Is a Space in Time (Thomas Heise)Just Don’t Think I’ll Scream (Frank Beauvais)Fourteen (Dan Sallitt)I Was at Home, But... (Angela Schanelec)Synonyms (Nadav Lapid)The Plagiarists (Peter Parlow)Delphine and Carole (Callisto McNulty)Holy Beasts Years of Construction (Heinz Emigholz)Bait (Mark Jenkins)Giovanni Marchini CAMIASynonyms (Nadav Lapid)I Was at Home, But... (Angela Schanelec)The Plagiarists (Peter Parlow)Just Don't Think I'll Scream (Frank Beauvais)The Blue Flower of Novalis (Gustavo Vinagre & Rodrigo Carneiro)The Portuguese Woman (Rita Azevedo Gomes)The Last to See Them (Sara Summa)Earth (Nikolaus Geyrhalter)Heimat Is a Space in Time (Thomas Heise)Ms Slavic 7 (Sofia Bohdanowicz & Deragh Campbell)Jordan Cronki Was at Home, But... (Angela Schanelec...
- 2/28/2019
- MUBI
Barcelona — “Sacred Spirit,” “Five Little Wolves” and “Ane” are among five feature projects to be put through development at the Ecam Madrid Film School’s pioneering Incubator development program.
The Incubator forms part of The Screen, Ecam’s umbrella initiative aimed at nurturing on the rise Spain-based talent kinks with Europe’s film and TV industries.
Selected by Variety as a Spanish talent to track, Chema García Ibarra will direct “Spirit,” from Basque production house Apellániz & De Sosa, which has half of Spain searching for a missing girl as a Spanish Ufology association plans a night studying the heavens. The fate of humanity depends on one of its members, the morbidly obese José Manuel, who hides a secret.
García Ibarra’s debut short “Attack From the Robots From Nebula 5,” was selected for Cannes’ Directors’ Fortnight in Cannes and took the 2010 Meliès d’Or Short Film Award. His newest film, co-directed with Ion de Sosa,...
The Incubator forms part of The Screen, Ecam’s umbrella initiative aimed at nurturing on the rise Spain-based talent kinks with Europe’s film and TV industries.
Selected by Variety as a Spanish talent to track, Chema García Ibarra will direct “Spirit,” from Basque production house Apellániz & De Sosa, which has half of Spain searching for a missing girl as a Spanish Ufology association plans a night studying the heavens. The fate of humanity depends on one of its members, the morbidly obese José Manuel, who hides a secret.
García Ibarra’s debut short “Attack From the Robots From Nebula 5,” was selected for Cannes’ Directors’ Fortnight in Cannes and took the 2010 Meliès d’Or Short Film Award. His newest film, co-directed with Ion de Sosa,...
- 2/4/2019
- by Emilio Mayorga
- Variety Film + TV
Debuts The Winter and The Giant, share the special jury prize; Hong Sang-soo wins Silver Shell for best director.
The San Sebastián International Film Festival (Sept 16-24) awards ceremony had a marked Asian flavour last night [24].
Feng Xiaogang’s I Am Not Madame Bovary - the social satire about a woman seeking to restore honour after a bitter divorce - won the Golden Shell for best film at the 64th edition of the festival.
I Am Not Madame Bovary, which had previously won the fipresci prize in Toronto, also earned Chinese star Fan Bingbing the Silver Shell in San Sebastián for best actress.
South Korea’s director Hong Sang-soo won the Silver Shell for best director for the love story Yourself And Yours.
The Special Jury Prize was shared between the Argentinian-French coproduction The Winter, a contemporary western set in a remote area in Patagonia by first time director Emiliano Torres, and the Swedish-Danish...
The San Sebastián International Film Festival (Sept 16-24) awards ceremony had a marked Asian flavour last night [24].
Feng Xiaogang’s I Am Not Madame Bovary - the social satire about a woman seeking to restore honour after a bitter divorce - won the Golden Shell for best film at the 64th edition of the festival.
I Am Not Madame Bovary, which had previously won the fipresci prize in Toronto, also earned Chinese star Fan Bingbing the Silver Shell in San Sebastián for best actress.
South Korea’s director Hong Sang-soo won the Silver Shell for best director for the love story Yourself And Yours.
The Special Jury Prize was shared between the Argentinian-French coproduction The Winter, a contemporary western set in a remote area in Patagonia by first time director Emiliano Torres, and the Swedish-Danish...
- 9/25/2016
- ScreenDaily
The 64th San Sebastian Film Festival, which ran from September 16 to 24, closed out its celebrations by announcing its winners on Saturday night. The top prize, known as the Golden Shell, was awarded to Feng Xiaogang’s drama “I Am Not Madame Bovary.” Its lead, Fan Bingbing, also took home the Best Actress award that night.
“I have a lot of experience and a lot of habits. These habits can cage you. When I started this film, I tried to set these habits aside and try to work as if it were my directorial debut and do something courageous. I knew it was very risky,” Feng said, per The Hollywood Reporter. “I didn’t know if it was the right thing to do, but today the San Sebastian Film festival gave me the answer with this prize for the best film.”
Read More: Critics Pick the Best Films From the Toronto...
“I have a lot of experience and a lot of habits. These habits can cage you. When I started this film, I tried to set these habits aside and try to work as if it were my directorial debut and do something courageous. I knew it was very risky,” Feng said, per The Hollywood Reporter. “I didn’t know if it was the right thing to do, but today the San Sebastian Film festival gave me the answer with this prize for the best film.”
Read More: Critics Pick the Best Films From the Toronto...
- 9/24/2016
- by Liz Calvario
- Indiewire
The festival’s Zabaltegi strand is introducing a competition for the first time.
The 64th San Sebastian Film Festival (Sept 16-24) has completed the line-up for its Zabaltegi-Tabakalera strand, which will be competitive for the first time.
New additions include sci-fi Midnight Special from Us filmmaker Jeff Nichols (Take Shelter, Mud), which premiered at the Berlinale in February.
Todd Solondz comedy-drama Wiener-Dog, first seen at Sundance in January, has also been selected for the strand. It marks the third time the Us writer/director has been chosen for Zabaltegi, after presenting Happiness in 1998 and Storytelling in 2001.
As previously announced, Bertrand Tavernier’s Voyage A Travers Le Cinema Francais (A Journey Through French Cinema) will open the strand.
Other highlights include Gimme Danger, Jim Jarmusch’s documentary about Iggy Pop and The Stooges, which premired at Cannes in May.
Also in the line-up is Portuguese director João Pedro Rodrigues’s fifth feature O Ornitólogo (L’Ornithologue), playing in competition...
The 64th San Sebastian Film Festival (Sept 16-24) has completed the line-up for its Zabaltegi-Tabakalera strand, which will be competitive for the first time.
New additions include sci-fi Midnight Special from Us filmmaker Jeff Nichols (Take Shelter, Mud), which premiered at the Berlinale in February.
Todd Solondz comedy-drama Wiener-Dog, first seen at Sundance in January, has also been selected for the strand. It marks the third time the Us writer/director has been chosen for Zabaltegi, after presenting Happiness in 1998 and Storytelling in 2001.
As previously announced, Bertrand Tavernier’s Voyage A Travers Le Cinema Francais (A Journey Through French Cinema) will open the strand.
Other highlights include Gimme Danger, Jim Jarmusch’s documentary about Iggy Pop and The Stooges, which premired at Cannes in May.
Also in the line-up is Portuguese director João Pedro Rodrigues’s fifth feature O Ornitólogo (L’Ornithologue), playing in competition...
- 8/11/2016
- ScreenDaily
Mubi will be exclusively showing El Futuro April 11 - May 10 and Androids Dream April 12 - May 11, 2016 . From this very moment, I want to appeal to the political forces, the institutions, the autonomous regions, provincial and local councils, unions, business corporations, the media, and to every sector of national daily life so they feel integrated and support this collective mission: to consolidate democracy in Spain and to overcome the economic crisis… No citizen should feel alienated by this beautiful mission of modernization, progress, and solidarity.—Felipe González, Spanish general election victory speech, 1982 Silence. It flashed from the woodwork and the walls; it smote him with an awful, total power, as if generated by a vast mill. It rose from the floor, up out of the tattered gray wall-to-wall carpeting. It unleashed itself from the broken and semi-broken appliances in the kitchen, the dead machines which hadn’t worked in all the time Isidore had lived here.
- 4/11/2016
- by Michael Pattison
- MUBI
Ion de Sosa: "We chose Benidorm because the architecture seemed very good for us" Set in an eerily-empty Benidorm, the experimental sci-fi Androids Dream (Sueñan los Androides) was one of the stand-out films at the 5th edition of D’A Festival and a key part of its (Im)Possible Futures strand. We spoke to director Ion de Sosa and co-writer Chema García Ibarra (a director in his own right) in Barcelona about the elements that fed into their onscreen dystopia, the strangeness of Benidorm, and why so many Spanish films are finding success on the festival circuit.
You said during the Q&A after the screening that one starting point for the film was the idea of implanted memories [an idea sparked by a line in Blade Runner] - and what it might mean for an android to have your memories. Were there other inspirations, or did the project develop from that initial idea?
IdS: Yes, there were other inspirations at the start.
You said during the Q&A after the screening that one starting point for the film was the idea of implanted memories [an idea sparked by a line in Blade Runner] - and what it might mean for an android to have your memories. Were there other inspirations, or did the project develop from that initial idea?
IdS: Yes, there were other inspirations at the start.
- 5/22/2015
- by Rebecca Naughten
- eyeforfilm.co.uk
A re-energised Pula Film Festival, the biggest film festival in Croatia, will welcome top guests including Roger Michell, Fridrik Thor Fridriksson, Gyorgi Palfi, Tudor Giurgiu and Mike Cahill.
Fridriksson [pictured] will serve on a jury and be the subject of a retrospective including his films Rock in Reykjavik, Children of Nature, Devil’s Island, Angels Of The Universe, and Falcons.
The Pula Pro Industry section will include masterclasses from PR expert Charles MacDonald, marketing veteran John Durie, sound expert Ray Gillon of G-Minor and Nik Powell of the UK’s National Film and Television School (Nfts).
The festival boasts a new artistic team of Mike Downey, Hrvoje Puksec and Tanja Milicic, who took over in April.
The Pula Cinematheque section, under special advistor Rajko Grlic, will focus on the year 1965.
One new strand at the festival will be Dizalica, aimed at cinephiles aged 16-21; selections include We Are The Best! and Bitch Hug. This is added...
Fridriksson [pictured] will serve on a jury and be the subject of a retrospective including his films Rock in Reykjavik, Children of Nature, Devil’s Island, Angels Of The Universe, and Falcons.
The Pula Pro Industry section will include masterclasses from PR expert Charles MacDonald, marketing veteran John Durie, sound expert Ray Gillon of G-Minor and Nik Powell of the UK’s National Film and Television School (Nfts).
The festival boasts a new artistic team of Mike Downey, Hrvoje Puksec and Tanja Milicic, who took over in April.
The Pula Cinematheque section, under special advistor Rajko Grlic, will focus on the year 1965.
One new strand at the festival will be Dizalica, aimed at cinephiles aged 16-21; selections include We Are The Best! and Bitch Hug. This is added...
- 7/2/2014
- by wendy.mitchell@screendaily.com (Wendy Mitchell)
- ScreenDaily
The 52nd annual Ann Arbor Film Festival will be a jam-packed experimental feature and short film screening event running for six days and nights, this time on March 25-30.
Opening Night will feature a reception and an after-party, and stuffed between those will be a block of nine short films, including new ones by Bryan Boyce, Michael Robinson, Jennifer Reeder and Martha Colburn, as well as a never-before-released work by the legendary Bruce Baillie called Little Girl in which Baillie captured scenes of natural beauty.
Special Events scattered throughout the festival include a retrospective of indie filmmaker Penelope Spheeris that will feature her rock ‘n’ roll-based work, including the original The Decline of Western Civilization, plus The Decline of Western Civilization Part III, her influential punk film Suburbia (screening twice) and a collection of short films.
There will also be several films and presentations by filmmaking scholar Thom Andersen, such...
Opening Night will feature a reception and an after-party, and stuffed between those will be a block of nine short films, including new ones by Bryan Boyce, Michael Robinson, Jennifer Reeder and Martha Colburn, as well as a never-before-released work by the legendary Bruce Baillie called Little Girl in which Baillie captured scenes of natural beauty.
Special Events scattered throughout the festival include a retrospective of indie filmmaker Penelope Spheeris that will feature her rock ‘n’ roll-based work, including the original The Decline of Western Civilization, plus The Decline of Western Civilization Part III, her influential punk film Suburbia (screening twice) and a collection of short films.
There will also be several films and presentations by filmmaking scholar Thom Andersen, such...
- 3/18/2014
- by Mike Everleth
- Underground Film Journal
Chicago – The 2013 49th Annual Chicago International Film Festival and Michael Kutza – Festival Founder and Artistic Director – announced the competition award winners at a ceremony in the ‘W’ Hotel City Center on October 18th. The Gold Hugo for Best Film went to “My Sweet Pepper Land,” from Iraq, France and Germany.
Kutza made the announcements along with Mimi Plauché, Head of Programming, Programmers Alex Kopecky and Penny Bartlett, plus members of the various juries who worked evaluating the competition. The W Hotel City Center is near Chicago’s financial district and the Sears (now Willis) Tower. The Festival’s highest honor is the Gold Hugo, named for the mythical God of Discovery.
International Feature Film Competition
’My Sweet Pepper Land’
Photo Credit: © Chicago International Film Festival
The Gold Hugo for Best Film: “My Sweet Pepper Land” (Iraq/France/Germany), directed by Hiner Saleem
The Silver Hugo – Special Jury Prize: “The Verdict...
Kutza made the announcements along with Mimi Plauché, Head of Programming, Programmers Alex Kopecky and Penny Bartlett, plus members of the various juries who worked evaluating the competition. The W Hotel City Center is near Chicago’s financial district and the Sears (now Willis) Tower. The Festival’s highest honor is the Gold Hugo, named for the mythical God of Discovery.
International Feature Film Competition
’My Sweet Pepper Land’
Photo Credit: © Chicago International Film Festival
The Gold Hugo for Best Film: “My Sweet Pepper Land” (Iraq/France/Germany), directed by Hiner Saleem
The Silver Hugo – Special Jury Prize: “The Verdict...
- 10/20/2013
- by adam@hollywoodchicago.com (Adam Fendelman)
- HollywoodChicago.com
The features that make their premiere at Fantastic Fest tend to get much of the attention, but don’t forget that you’re likely to see some great short films at the event as well. Fantastic Fest is known for their extensive short film selection and this year is no different:
“Fantastic Fest is excited to announce the short film lineup for the ninth edition of Fantastic Fest, happening September 19th- 26th in Austin, Texas at Alamo Drafthouse Lakeline. Short films provide an outlet for filmmakers to showcase their genre talents in a format with fewer restraints, making them a Fantastic Fest favorite. Fantastic Fest is wildly excited that longtime festival comrade Kier-la Janisse is now our lead shorts programmer. Kier-la created the notorious CineMuerte Film Festival in Canada, and was the first full-time film programmer for the Alamo back in the “wild west” days. She has since gone on...
“Fantastic Fest is excited to announce the short film lineup for the ninth edition of Fantastic Fest, happening September 19th- 26th in Austin, Texas at Alamo Drafthouse Lakeline. Short films provide an outlet for filmmakers to showcase their genre talents in a format with fewer restraints, making them a Fantastic Fest favorite. Fantastic Fest is wildly excited that longtime festival comrade Kier-la Janisse is now our lead shorts programmer. Kier-la created the notorious CineMuerte Film Festival in Canada, and was the first full-time film programmer for the Alamo back in the “wild west” days. She has since gone on...
- 9/4/2013
- by Jonathan James
- DailyDead
Browse all the sections of the 57th London Film Festival (Oct 9-20) including the galas, competition titles and individual sections.
Alphabetical list of titles by section including feature premiere status
Wp = Wp
Ep = European Premiere
IP = International Premiere
UK = UK Premiere
Gala’s
Opening Night
Captain Phillips, Paul Greengrass (Us) Ep
Closing Night
Saving Mr Banks, John Lee Hancock (Us/UK) Ep
Philomena, Stephen Frears (UK) UK12 Years A Slave, Steve Mcqueen (UK) EPGravity, Alfonso Cuaron (Us) UKInside Llewyn Davis, Ethan Coen, Joel Coen (Us) UKLabor Day, Jason Reitman (Us) EPThe Invisible Woman, Ralph Fiennes (UK), EPThe Epic Of Everest, John Noel (UK) WPBlue Is The Warmest Colour, Abdellatif Kechiche (France) UKNight Moves, Kelly Reichardt (Us) UKStranger By The Lake, Alain Guiraudie (France) UKDon Jon, Joseph Gordon-Levitt (Us) UKMystery Road, Ivan Sen (Australia) UKOnly Lovers Left Alive, Jim Jarmusch (Us) UKNebraska, Alexander Payne (Us) UKWe Are The Best!, Lukas Moodysson (Sweden) EPFoosball 3D, Juan Jose Campanella (Argentina...
Alphabetical list of titles by section including feature premiere status
Wp = Wp
Ep = European Premiere
IP = International Premiere
UK = UK Premiere
Gala’s
Opening Night
Captain Phillips, Paul Greengrass (Us) Ep
Closing Night
Saving Mr Banks, John Lee Hancock (Us/UK) Ep
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- 9/4/2013
- ScreenDaily
Liv Mjönes, Ruth Vega Fernandez, With Every Heartbeat Breakthrough Selections Expecting: In Chile, a young girl and her boyfriend wait for a black-market drug to take effect in this tense and insightful examination of teen pregnancy. Dir/Scr Francisca Fuenzalida. Chile. U.S. Premiere. Light Of Mine: Rapidly going blind, photographer Owen and his wife Laura take a life-changing trip to Yellowstone National Park where they experience a beauty that rivals their tragedy. Dir Brett Eichenberger. Scr Jill Remensnyder. USA. Three And A Half: Three women risk everything and travel to the northwest Iranian border in hopes of escaping prison and reuniting with their comrades. Dir/Scr Naghi Nemati. Cast Samaneh Vafaiezadeh, Shooka Karimi, Negar Hassanzadeh, Mehdi Poormoosa. Iran. U.S. Premiere. With Every Heartbeat: In this Swedish romantic drama, uptight Mia attends her father’s engagement party and not only gains a stepmother, but also a new lover,...
- 10/23/2011
- by Andre Soares
- Alt Film Guide
The 49th annual Ann Arbor Film Festival is an epic celebration of experimental media that runs for six days on March 22-27. There’s so much great stuff screening this year, it makes one wonder what they’ll have left for their 50th anniversary next year!
A couple of the highlights include the highly anticipated feature-length documentary The Ballad of Genesis and Lady Jaye by Marie Losier, which chronicles the pandrogynous love story between industrial music pioneer Genesis P-Orridge and his late wife. The film already made a big splash at the Berlinale earlier in the year and looks to be a major hit on the festival circuit this year.
Also not to be missed is a special retrospective of one of this year’s festival jury members, Vanessa Renwick, a longtime favorite on Bad Lit: The Journal of Underground Film. Renwick will screen 10 of her quirky and artistic documentary portraits,...
A couple of the highlights include the highly anticipated feature-length documentary The Ballad of Genesis and Lady Jaye by Marie Losier, which chronicles the pandrogynous love story between industrial music pioneer Genesis P-Orridge and his late wife. The film already made a big splash at the Berlinale earlier in the year and looks to be a major hit on the festival circuit this year.
Also not to be missed is a special retrospective of one of this year’s festival jury members, Vanessa Renwick, a longtime favorite on Bad Lit: The Journal of Underground Film. Renwick will screen 10 of her quirky and artistic documentary portraits,...
- 3/7/2011
- by Mike Everleth
- Underground Film Journal
Mostly I've been just motoring along, not too sad about having missed Sundance this year until it occurred to me what a jump start it gave me on this current Oscar race -- not too mention my own rooting interests at the film bitch awards. Whoa unto us who cannot afford a week in the snowy Utah mountains. I'm dying to see Vera Farmiga's directorial debut but otherwise I have poured over precious few Sundance articles. There was too much Oscar noise this week to give it much thought. But here's what Sundance went for with a passion.
Vera Farmiga, Dr. Nner and America Ferrara (photo from Zimbio)
The Sundance 2011 Awards broke down like so...
Juried
Grand Prize Dramatic Like Crazy
Grand Prize Documentary How To Die in Oregon
World Cinema Dramatic Happy, Happy
World Cinema Documentary Hell and Back Again
Like CrazyThe big breakout of the festival was Like Crazy,...
Vera Farmiga, Dr. Nner and America Ferrara (photo from Zimbio)
The Sundance 2011 Awards broke down like so...
Juried
Grand Prize Dramatic Like Crazy
Grand Prize Documentary How To Die in Oregon
World Cinema Dramatic Happy, Happy
World Cinema Documentary Hell and Back Again
Like CrazyThe big breakout of the festival was Like Crazy,...
- 1/30/2011
- by NATHANIEL R
- FilmExperience
The 2011 Sundance Film Festival awards have been announced.
Drake Doremus‘ Like Crazy and Peter D. Richardson‘s documentary How to Die in Oregon won the grand jury prizes for American films at the 2011 Sundance Film Festival awards ceremony.
Jason Reitman presented the grand jury prize for U.S. dramatic film to Drake Doremus’ Like Crazy, one of the big sales of the fest . Doremus also wrote the script with Ben York Jones.
The movie starring Felicity Jones, Anton Yelchin and Jennifer Lawrence follows young American guy and a young British girl meet in college and fall in love. Their love is tested when she is required to leave the country and they must face the challenges of a long-distance relationship.
Felicity Jones of Like Crazy also won a special jury award for acting. Producer Jonathan Schwartz and writer-director Drake Doremus accepted the award for the British actress, who was working in England.
Drake Doremus‘ Like Crazy and Peter D. Richardson‘s documentary How to Die in Oregon won the grand jury prizes for American films at the 2011 Sundance Film Festival awards ceremony.
Jason Reitman presented the grand jury prize for U.S. dramatic film to Drake Doremus’ Like Crazy, one of the big sales of the fest . Doremus also wrote the script with Ben York Jones.
The movie starring Felicity Jones, Anton Yelchin and Jennifer Lawrence follows young American guy and a young British girl meet in college and fall in love. Their love is tested when she is required to leave the country and they must face the challenges of a long-distance relationship.
Felicity Jones of Like Crazy also won a special jury award for acting. Producer Jonathan Schwartz and writer-director Drake Doremus accepted the award for the British actress, who was working in England.
- 1/30/2011
- by Fiona
- Filmofilia
Tim Blake Nelson hosted the awards ceremony tonight for the 2011 Sundance Film Festival. Taking the top prize was Drake Doremus‘ Like Crazy, with Winter’s Bone winning grand jury prize (dramatic) last year. We weren’t too hot on the film, and surprised something great like Sean Durkin‘s Martha Marcy May Marlene or Mike Nichols‘ Take Shelter didn’t grab it. You can check out the rest of the winners below and our complete Sundance 2011 coverage here.
Grand Jury Prize, Dramatic:
Like Crazy
Grand Jury Prize, Documentary:
How To Die In Oregon
World Cinema Jury Prize, Dramatic:
Happy, Happy
World Cinema Jury Prize, Documentary:
Hell and Back Again
Dramatic Audience Award:
Circumstance
Documentary Audience Award:
Buck
World Cinema Dramatic Audience Award:
Kinyarwanda
World Cinema Documentary Audience Award:
Senna
The Best of Next Audience Award:
to.get.her
Directing Award, Dramatic:
Martha Marcy May Marlene, directed by Sean Durkin
Directing Award,...
Grand Jury Prize, Dramatic:
Like Crazy
Grand Jury Prize, Documentary:
How To Die In Oregon
World Cinema Jury Prize, Dramatic:
Happy, Happy
World Cinema Jury Prize, Documentary:
Hell and Back Again
Dramatic Audience Award:
Circumstance
Documentary Audience Award:
Buck
World Cinema Dramatic Audience Award:
Kinyarwanda
World Cinema Documentary Audience Award:
Senna
The Best of Next Audience Award:
to.get.her
Directing Award, Dramatic:
Martha Marcy May Marlene, directed by Sean Durkin
Directing Award,...
- 1/30/2011
- by Jordan Raup
- The Film Stage
Writer-director Matt Piedmont’s “Brick Novax — Part 1 and 2” won the Jury Prize in Short Filmmaking at the Sundance Film Festival, while writer-director Ariel Kleiman’s “Deeper Than Yesterday” won for international short filmmaking.
The filmmakers will be honored at Saturday night’s awards ceremony, hosted by Sundance alum Tim Blake Nelson.
Piedmont’s “Novax” is the story about an international super legend who records his amazing tales as an astronaut, movie star, corporate CEO, and famous musician to preserve his legacy as the coolest guy in the history of the world.
In Kleiman’s “Yesterday,” a submarine crew becomes savages after three months submerged underwater in a submarine. One of the men, Oleg, fears that losing perspective may mean losing himself.
In addition, the Shorts Jury awarded Honorable Mentions in Short Filmmaking to:
“Choke” Canada (Drector and screenwriter: Michelle Latimer
“Diarchy” / Italy (Director and Screenwriter: Ferdinando Cito Filmomarino
“The External World” / Germany,...
The filmmakers will be honored at Saturday night’s awards ceremony, hosted by Sundance alum Tim Blake Nelson.
Piedmont’s “Novax” is the story about an international super legend who records his amazing tales as an astronaut, movie star, corporate CEO, and famous musician to preserve his legacy as the coolest guy in the history of the world.
In Kleiman’s “Yesterday,” a submarine crew becomes savages after three months submerged underwater in a submarine. One of the men, Oleg, fears that losing perspective may mean losing himself.
In addition, the Shorts Jury awarded Honorable Mentions in Short Filmmaking to:
“Choke” Canada (Drector and screenwriter: Michelle Latimer
“Diarchy” / Italy (Director and Screenwriter: Ferdinando Cito Filmomarino
“The External World” / Germany,...
- 1/26/2011
- by admin
- Moving Pictures Network
Writer-director Matt Piedmont’s “Brick Novax — Part 1 and 2” won the Jury Prize in Short Filmmaking at the Sundance Film Festival, while writer-director Ariel Kleiman’s “Deeper Than Yesterday” won for international short filmmaking.
The filmmakers will be honored at Saturday night’s awards ceremony, hosted by Sundance alum Tim Blake Nelson.
Piedmont’s “Novax” is the story about an international super legend who records his amazing tales as an astronaut, movie star, corporate CEO, and famous musician to preserve his legacy as the coolest guy in the history of the world.
In Kleiman’s “Yesterday,” a submarine crew becomes savages after three months submerged underwater in a submarine. One of the men, Oleg, fears that losing perspective may mean losing himself.
In addition, the Shorts Jury awarded Honorable Mentions in Short Filmmaking to:
“Choke” Canada (Drector and screenwriter: Michelle Latimer
“Diarchy” / Italy (Director and Screenwriter: Ferdinando Cito Filmomarino
“The External World” / Germany,...
The filmmakers will be honored at Saturday night’s awards ceremony, hosted by Sundance alum Tim Blake Nelson.
Piedmont’s “Novax” is the story about an international super legend who records his amazing tales as an astronaut, movie star, corporate CEO, and famous musician to preserve his legacy as the coolest guy in the history of the world.
In Kleiman’s “Yesterday,” a submarine crew becomes savages after three months submerged underwater in a submarine. One of the men, Oleg, fears that losing perspective may mean losing himself.
In addition, the Shorts Jury awarded Honorable Mentions in Short Filmmaking to:
“Choke” Canada (Drector and screenwriter: Michelle Latimer
“Diarchy” / Italy (Director and Screenwriter: Ferdinando Cito Filmomarino
“The External World” / Germany,...
- 1/26/2011
- by admin
- Moving Pictures Magazine
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