38th César Awards - Short Films Official Selection

For the first time the French Academy has published a schedule of their activities for the 2012-2013 award season which makes me think that they are becoming more "online professional" as not only recently changed and improved their official site but also now they are sharing with the world information about all their activities, voting process and more. Very interesting and most welcomed by us that love French cinema of the great kind.

Most interesting is to discover that next year the César Awards ceremony will be on Friday, February 22, 2013 two days before the American Academy awards and one day before the Spirit Awards, so February last weekend will be very busy for many of us. Also, worth noting is that the press conference where the nominations will be announced will take place on Friday, January 25, 2013.

Now we officially know that the voting process includes two rounds, the first to select the nominees and the second to select the winners. The first round starts on Wednesday, January 2, 2013 and closes at midnight Thursday, January 24. The second round starts on Friday, February 1, 2013 and closes on Friday, February 22 at 4pm for online voting and Tuesday, February 19 for paper voting. Can't deny that is interesting to notice that online voting is closed the same day the award winners will be announced as suggests that the Academy has gone "full force" into believing in the power of the Internet. Great.

As the Academy becomes more tech savvy, covering these awards becomes more interesting for me as now information will be available and to start the more detailed coverage of a cinema I truly love, today I'm sharing the first available information regarding short films.

Short Films Official Selection

The Academy Short Films committee selected the following twelve (12) short films that will be screened to Academy members at Le Balzac in Paris from December 1 to 8, 2012. Screenings ALSO are open to the public, so if you are near Le Balzac theater I suggest you do not skip this great opportunity. Last, Academy members will receive the DVD will all the shorts at the end of December for private viewing. This is the voting first round that will select the five (5) nominees that will be announced on January 25, 2013

These are the short films

Ce n'est pas un film de cow-boys (It's Not a Cowboy Movie), Benjamin Parent, 12'
Ce qu'il restera de nous, Vincent Macaigne, 40'
Le cri du homard (The Lobster Cry), Nicolas Guiot, 30'
Cross, Maryna Vroda, 15'
Et ils gravirent la montagne, Jean-Sébastien Chauvin, 35'
Fais Croquer, Yassine Qnia, 35'
Jeunesses françaises (French Kids), Stéphan Castang, 19'
Les Meutes, Manuel Schapira, 14'
Oh Willy..., Emma de Swaef and Marc Roels, 17'
Sur la Route du Paraids, Houda Benyamina, 44'
La Vie Parisienne, Vincent Dietschy, 36'
Vilaine fille mauvais garçon (Two Ships), Justine Triet, 30'

As we can see the short films category includes short and medium-lenght films; worth noting that some short films come from famous festivals. Read films info and see trailer or photos @MOC

25th European Film Awards Discovery Award Nominations

The European Film Academy announced today the nominees for the EUROPEAN DISCOVERY 2012 – Prix FIPRESCI, an award presented annually as part of the European Film Awards to a young and upcoming director for a first full-length feature film.

This year’s nominations were determined by a committee comprised of EFA Board Members Helena Danielsson (Sweden) and Els Vandevorst (Netherlands), EFA Members Pierre-Henri Deleau (France) and Jacob Neiiendam (Denmark), as well as Alin Tasciyan (Turkey), Paulo Portugal (Portugal), and Mihai Chirilov (Romania) as members of FIPRESCI, the International Federation of Film Critics.

These are the five (5) nominated films

10 Timer Til Paradis (Teddy Bear), Mads Matthiesen, Denmark
Broken, Rufus Norris, UK
Kauwboy, Boudewijn Koole, Netherlands
Портрет в сумерках Portret V Sumerkhak (Twilight Portrait), Angelina Nikonova, Russia
Die Vermissten (Reported Missing), Jan Speckenbach, Germany

Among the nominees we find the 2012 Sundance Festival Directing Award to Mads Mathiensen for his film Teddy Bear about a 38-year-old bodybuilder Dennis would really like to find true love. He has never had a girlfriend and lives alone with his mother in a suburb of Copenhagen. When his uncle marries a girl from Thailand, Dennis decides to try his own luck on a trip to Pattaya, as it seems that love is easier to find in Thailand. He knows that his mother would never accept another woman in his life, so he lies and tells her that he is going to Germany. Dennis has never been out traveling before and the hectic Pattaya is a huge cultural shock for him. The intrusive Thai girls give big bruises to Dennis' naive picture of what love should be like, and he is about to lose hope when he unexpectedly meets the Thai woman Toi.

The opening film of the 2012 Cannes Semaine de la Critique with a very interesting cast and story about a young girl in North London whose life changes after witnessing a violent attack, Broken by award-winning theatre director Rufus Norris. Synopsis: Skunk is 11, diabetic, and pretty cool. The summer holidays have just begun and her days are full of easy hopes. Then Mr. Oswald, the ugly man who lives opposite, beats up Rick, the sweet, but unstable boy next door after his daughter accuses the boy of rape, and Skunk's innocence begins to be drained away at a speed and in a way she cannot control. Her home, her neighborhood, her school - all become treacherous environments where the happy certainties of childhood give way to a fear-filled doubt, and a complex, broken world fills her future. Skunk seeks solace in the last remaining place where she knows she can find it - the unspoken friendship with sweet, damaged Rick - and falls into a chaos where suddenly, joyfully, she has choice thrust back into her hands. The choice to remain in this place she was never promised, or to leave it entirely - to live or to die. Film is currently in competition for Best British Newcomer Award at 2012 BFI London Film festival.

The 2012 Berlinale Deutsches Kinderhilfswerk Grand Prix winner and First Movie Award, Kawboy by Boudewijn Koole that also won 2012 EFA's Young Audience Award, is Netherlands' submission to Oscar, has more honors in the festival circuit and a story about a lively 10-year-old with a difficult home life marked by a volatile father and an absent mother, finds solace in an abandoned baby jackdaw. Through the special friendship he builds with the bird, the wall between him and his father will be brought down.

The winner of the Golden Puffin at the 2011 Reykjavik IFF, Golden Alexander and Hellenic Association of Film Critics Award at 2011 Thessaloniki Festival, Grand Prize winner of the 2011 Cottbus Film Festival of Young East European Cinema: Twilight Portrait by Angelina Nikonova with what seems has to be a hard to watch story about Marina, an upper-crust social worker with a doting husband and an enviable downtown apartment, is suddenly transformed into a bizarre twilight version of herself when she is raped by three policemen.

The 2012 Berlinale Perspektive Deutches Kino official selection Reported Missing by Jan Spekenbach with the following story synopsis: All of a sudden, 16-year-old Martha vanishes. Her father Lothar, who for years has had no contact with her or his ex-wife, sets off unwilling to find her. He soon realizes other young people are also vanishing from the city inexplicably. Lothar follows their trail across the country. He meets the occasional young person but the trail goes cold. In the next city he encounters militia groups and a reinforced police presence. Children are forbidden to be on the streets unless accompanied by adults. The world has changed...

As we can see nominees have quite impressive credentials, compelling stories (some surely not easy to watch) and debut directors with films that show their great master potential.

6th Annual Asia Pacific Screen Awards Nominations

As stated by organizers, an unprecedented total of 264 films were entered in this year's competition and 34 films from 18 Asia Pacific countries/areas were honored with a nomination.

The following are the nominated films.

Best Feature Film
Bumchoiwaui Junjaeng (Nameless Gangster: Rules of the Time), Jong-bin Yun, Korea
Khers (Bear), Khosro Masoumi, Iran
Орда Orda (The Horde), Andrei Proshkin, Russia
Tepenin Ardi (Beyond the Hill), Emin Alper, Turkey and Greece
Wu Xia (Dragon), Peter Chan, Hong Kong and China

Best Animated Feature Film
Happy Feet Two, George Miller, Gary Eck and David Peers, Australia and USA
Kokurikozaka Kara (From Up on Poppy Hill), Goro Miyazaki, Japan
Momo e no tegami (A Letter to Momo), Hiroyuki Okiura, Japan
Nijiiro Hotaru (Rainbow Fireflies), Kōnosuke Uda, Japan
Ookamikodomo no Ame to Yuki (Wolf Children), Mamoru Hosoda, Japan

Best Children's Feature film
Australia Sheli (My Australia), Ami Drozd, Poland and Israel
Gattu, Rajan Khosa, India
Kiseki (I Wish), Hirokazu Koreeda, Japan
Launt Bercemin (The Mirror Never Lies), Kamila Andini, Indonesia
Orchim Lerega (Off White Lies), Maya Kening, Israel

Achievement in Directing
Anurag Kashyap for Gangs of Wasseypur, India
Brillante Mendoza for Sinapupunan (Thy Womb), Philippines
Cheng Er for Bian jing feng yun (Lethal Hostage), China
Khosro Masoumi for Khers (Bear), Iran
Reis Çelik for Lal gece (Night of Silence), Turkey

Best Performance by an Actress
Cho Min-soo in Pieta, Kim Ki-duk, Korea
Darya Ekamasova in Жила-была одна баба Zila bila odna baba (Once Upon a Time There Lived a Simple Woman), Andrey Smirnov, Russia
Humaima Malick in Bol, Shoaib Mansoor, Pakistan
Nora Aunor in Sinapupunan (Thy Womb), Brillante Mendoza, Philippines
Vidya Balan in The Dirty Picture, Milan Luthria, India

Best Performance by an Actor
Choi Min-sik in Bumchoiwaui Junjaeng (Nameless Gangster: Rules of the Time), Jong-bin Yun, Korea
Lior Ashkenazi in Hearat shulayim (Footnote), Joseph Cedar, Israel
Manoj Bajpayee in Gangs of Wasseypur, Anurag Kashyap, India
Tamer Levent in Tepenin Ardi (Beyond the Hill), Emin Alper, Turkey and Greece
Wu Tianming in Fei Yue Lao Ren Yuan (Full Circle), Zhang Yang China

Achievement in Cinematography
Charin Pengpanich for Bunohan (Bunohan: Return to Murder), Dain Said, Malaysia
Chin Ting-Chang for Seediq Bale (Warriors of the Rainbow: Seediq Bale), Te-Sheng Wei, Taiwan
Jake Pollock and Lai Yiu-fai for Wu Xia, Peter Chan, Hong Kong and China
Touraj Aslani for Fasle Kargadan (Rhino Season), Bahman Ghobadi, Iraqi-Kurdistan and Turkey
Yury Raysky for Орда Orda (The Horde), Andrei Proshkin, Russia

Best Screenplay
Cheng Er for Bian jing feng yun (Lethal Hostage), Cheng Er, China
Chris Martinez for Ang Babae sa Septic Tank (The Woman in the Septic Tank), Marlon Rivera, Philippines
Emin Alper for Tepenin Ardi (Beyond the Hill), Emin Alper, Turkey and Greece
Reis Çelik for Lal gece (Night of Silence), Reis Çelik, Turkey
Shoaib Mansoor for Bol, Shoaib Mansoor, Pakistan

Best Documentary Feature Film
Hamesh Matzlemot Shvurot (Five Broken Cameras), Emad Burnat and Guy Davidi, Israel, Palestine and France
In My Mother's Arms, Atea Al Daradji and Mohamed Al Daradji, Iraq, UK and Netherlands
Negeri di Bawah Kabut (The Land Beneath the Fog), Shalahuddin Siregar, Indonesia and Germany
Planet of Snail, Yi Seung-jun, Korea, Japan and Finland
Shiton Hachok (The Law in These Parts), Ra'anan Alexandrowicz, Israel, USA and Germany

My first impression from those films I was not aware is that the one that really called my attention is the story of a female convict on death row with her last wish to tell her story to the media in Shoaib Mansoor's Bol. Also because of trailer and photos know that epic Andrei Proshkin's Orda (photo) has some breathtaking visuals.

A six-member International Jury headed by acclaimed Australian producer Jan Chapman will determine the winner of Best Feature Film as well as winners of the five major craft awards, the Screen International Jury Grand Prize and the UNESCO Award for outstanding contribution to the promotion and preservation of cultural diversity through film. APSA Academy members will determine the winners in the Best Children’s, Documentary and Animated Feature Film categories.

All winners in the sixth annual Asia Pacific Screen Awards will be announced at a ceremony on Friday November 23 in Brisbane, Australia.

85th Academy Awards Documentary Short Subject Shortlist

AMPAS today announced that the field of Documentary Short Subject contenders for the 85th Academy Awards has been narrowed to eight films, of which three to five will earn Oscar nominations. A total of 31 films were submitted and the 8 films are the following.

Inocente, Sean Fine and Andrea Nix, USA, 42'
Kings Point, Sari Gilman, USA, 40'
Mondays at Racine, Cynthia Wade, USA, 39'
Open Heart, Kief Davidson, USA, 39'
Paraíso (Paradise), Nadav Kurtz, USA, 10'
Redemption, Jon Alpert and Matthew O'Neill, 35'
The Education of Mohammad Hussein, Heidi Ewing and Rachel Grady, USA, 38'
The Perfect Fit, Tali Yankelevich, UK, 9'

As noted before the nominations will be announced on Thursday, January 10, 2013 at 5:30 a.m. PT.

The above films tell stories about immigrants, retirees in Florida, ballet shoemakers and more; take a look at some info about each film.

Inocente: A personal and vibrant coming of age story about a young artist's determination never to surrender to the bleakness of her surroundings. At 15, Inocente refuses to let her dream of becoming an artist be caged by being an undocumented immigrant forced to live homeless for the last nine years. Color is her personal revolution and its sweep on her canvases creates a world that looks nothing like her own dark past. Both a timeless story about the transformative power of art and a timely snapshot of the new face of homelessness in America: children. The challenges are staggering, but the hope in her story proves that the hand she has been dealt does not define her, her dreams do.

Kings Point: In the 1970s and 80s, hundreds of thousands of senior citizens migrated from New York City to Kings Point, a typical retirement community, located just outside West Palm Beach, Florida. Lured by blue skies, sunshine, palm trees, and the promise of a rich social life, they bought their way to paradise for just a $1,500 down payment. Now, as an aging community faces its own mortality, paradise has begun to exact a higher price. Through the experiences of six longtime residents, 'Kings Point' captures both the allure and the darker complexities of living in a world where 'nobody gets too close.' Poignant, funny and dark, 'Kings Point' is a deeply empathetic portrait of the last act of the American Dream.

Mondays at Racine: Every third Monday of the month, two bold, brassy sisters open the doors of their Long Island hair salon to women diagnosed with cancer. As locks of hair fall to the floor, women gossip, giggle, weep, face their fears, and discover unexpected beauty

Open Heart: Eight Rwandan children leave their families behind to embark on a life or death journey seeking high-risk heart surgery in Sudan. Their hearts ravaged by a treatable disease from childhood strep throat, they have only months to live. Open Heart reveals the intertwined endeavors of Dr. Emmanuel, Rwanda’s lone government cardiologist as he fights to save the lives of his young patients and Italian Dr. Gino Strada, the Salam Center’s head surgeon, who must also fight to save his hospital, Africa’s only link to life-saving free cardiac surgery for the millions who need it.

Paraíso: Three immigrant window cleaners risk their lives every day rappelling down some of Chicago's tallest sky-scrapers. Paradise reveals the beauty and danger of their job and what they see on the way down.

Redemption: New York City's canners - the men and women who survive by redeeming bottles and cans they collect from curbs, garbage cans and apartment complexes

The Education of Mohammad Hussein: An intimate look at how the largest Muslim community in America responds to the provocations of an anti-Islamic preacher. Through the eyes of children, the film examines what it is like to come of age as a Muslim in the United States ten years post 9/11.

The Perfect Fit: Ballet shoes might be worn by delicate girls, but they are crafted by burly men, whose hands tell a different story. A perfectionist shoemaker pounds his soul out making each pair, as he tries to ease the burden on the dancers’ feet.

World Cinema Huge List

A while back was reading an article by Guy Lodge called "This year's foreign Oscar race reflects a growing global medium" which I found interesting because tells a brief history of how the category has evolved thru the years with the Academy modifying rules to more fairly accommodate country submissions. Not all cases are explained in the article, but I believe gives some good examples to support what he's talking about. You can check the article here.

The article left me thinking and my thinking evolved into something related but different. Started to wonder why the American Academy hasn't fully realized that the list generated by the country submissions to Oscar foreign film category is the ONLY list in the world that has what we can sometimes call the "best of the best" in world cinema. There is no other cinema related source or event that generates a similar list. You can say that big and famous festivals have films from all over the world; but none, not even Cannes, has 70 plus films from almost all the countries with an active cinema industry.

Then, assuming that the Academy knows, why they haven't made category more relevant within the awards show? The last becomes more interesting if we consider that the Oscar show is about the ONLY American television show that is broadcast live to huge world audiences. This issue has always puzzled me as know there is a huge opportunity in promoting the category to world audiences. Still also know that what show producers really care is about the American show ratings, so don't foresee any changes on how the category is promoted within the show. Which only makes me wish there was an organization that could capitalize this list into a true World Cinema event. Sigh.

This year, as has been happening with many other events, social media exploded with news, comments and yes, one remarkable controversy about country submissions. During September and only considering Twitter, Facebook and "new comer" Google+, we were swamped with information about this Oscar category. Never before, not even last year, there has been so much buzz, noise and hype about the category. This "new" media has become an impressive source that has expanded "old" word-of-mouth into unthinkable levels. But most relevant is that has become a major source of free unregulated publicity for films.

Not all films have marketing and/or advertising budgets to promote them to local audiences, much less to a world audience, and is precisely those that don't have who get their "15 minutes of fame" in local press and now, in world social media. If before selecting a film to this category gave film an opportunity to be known that exists, now perhaps becomes the most effective free source to gather audiences for a film on worldwide basis. But not only the film benefits as also directly or indirectly the local movie industry gets promoted. I believe that some countries have already figured out all this, so it is no surprise for me that the category got a record 71 films submitted, even when last year winner country called for a boycott this year.

Some of the 71 films submitted were unknown to me and surely for you too; but now we are aware of them and some called our attention enough to be interested in watching them. This is priceless for those films and is what really drives me to with full enthusiasm gather the list, gather videos and information about each film. In the end after all the work my viewing queue has increased exponentially and I really hope yours too, as there are some new non-festival films that seem to really deserve wider audiences, deserve to be seen.

For so many reasons maybe list has never been the "best of the best" but surely this year huge list gives us a great reason to continue loving World Cinema. Then wouldn't be just nice if a VOD service will give us the opportunity to be able to watch ALL films in the list? Alright if not all, maybe those from smaller cinema industry countries? There you have a great business opportunity that surely will please many, especially me.

Cheers!!!

2012 Nordic Council Film Prize Award Winner

Today, October 9, the Nordic Council announced the winner of this prestigious award and is none other than Play by Ruben Östlund.

The Film Prize's Adjudication Committee, which is made up of film experts from the five Nordic countries, give this motivation for their choice of this year's winner:

"Director Ruben Östlund once again confirms his position as one of today’s most original filmmakers in the Nordic countries. Through his ongoing artistic project - dissecting and analyzing human behavior, Ruben Östlund presents thought-provoking insights into social roles and role play.

The stylistic imagery, the relentless pace of the story and the astounding performances from non-professional actors make PLAY a gut wrenching drama that prompts us to reflect on important issues in modern western society."

Written/directed by Ruben Östlund and produced by Erik Hemmendorff film is an astute observation based on real cases of bullying set in central Gothenburg, where a group of 12-14 year-old boys, bullied other children on about 40 occasions between 2006 and 2008. They used an elaborate scheme called the ‘little brother trick’ or ‘brother trick’, involving advanced role-play and gang rhetoric rather than physical violence. On winning the award, filmmaker and producer said:

"At one and the same time it is both fantastic and incredibly flattering to win the Nordic Council's Film Prize. Even though we have toured with PLAY in four of the five Nordic countries in 2012, and have experienced fantastic reactions and receptions of the film, we never dared hope to win the prize this year when the competition has been so fierce.

As film producers we have to be able to constantly challenge, examine and maintain the special Nordic expression in our films, even though it can be difficult at times to pinpoint specific Nordic characteristics. In both PLAY and our earlier film INVOLUNTARY, we touch on our boundless fear of losing face and this is described as typically Nordic by many people outside the Region. Maybe they are right?

For us a good film is marked by constantly posing important questions to and about people, in relation to the society we live in. And precisely the society that Nordic films stem from helps to give the films a specific tone and character. Perhaps that is what is particularly characteristic of films which come from the Nordic film environments? It is certainly something we have to strive to achieve given the dominance and influence of Hollywood films on our area of expression."

In my opinion, is a very hard to watch film but believe highly deserves the honor. The prize will be awarded during the Nordic Council Session in Helsinki on October 31st.

9/5
Yesterday organizers announced the five nominated films for this award that was created to honor Nordic films embedded to a significant degree in Nordic culture.

Denmark: En kongelig affære (A Royal Affair), Nikolaj Arcel

Finland: Kovasikajuttu (The Punk Syndrome), Jukka Kärkkäinen and Jani-Petteri Passi

Iceland: Á annan veg (Either Way), Hafsteinn Gunnar Sigurdsson,

Norway: Kompani Orheim (The Orheim Company), Arild Andresen

*Sweden: Play, Ruben Östlund

The winner of the Nordic Council Film Prize 2012 will be announced in October and presented with the prize at the Nordic Council‘s Session in Helsinki on October 31st. Have seen only one movie that was too-hard-to-watch for me. Sigh. To read the announcement go here.

85th Academy Awards Foreign Language Film Submissions - Final

Today the Academy published the list with a RECORD 71 countries that have submitted films for consideration in the Foreign Language Film category. The post has become final.

Most amazing is that with only one exception, Bangladesh, all films have trailers or videos in the original language, many with English subtitles; so have an idea of what each film could be to better guess their possibilities beyond the favorites.

Was reading again Rule Thirteen: Special Rules for the Foreign Language Film Award and the only date clearly stated is the deadline for the second print, which is due the same day the nominations will be announced, Thursday, January 10, 2013 at 5 p.m. PT. So I have to assume that they have to give at least 2 or 3 days before the deadline to have the print shipped and this gives me the estimate that Friday, January 4th the shortlist of nine (9) films should be announced. If is not that day then has to be on Monday, January 7th.

This is a long list with many, many great films. Enjoy!

Afghanistan: سنگ صبور Syngue Sabour (The Patience Stone), Atiq Rahimi
Albania: Pharmakon, Joni Shanaj
Algeria: !زبانا Zabana!, Saïd Ould Khelifa
Argentina: Infancia Clandestina (Clandestine Childhood), Benjamín Ávila
Armenia: Եթե բոլորը (If Only Everyone), Nataliya Belyauskene
Australia: Lore, Cate Shortland
Austria: Amour (Love), Michael Haneke
Azerbaijan: Buta, Ilgar Najaf
Bangladesh: ঘেটুপুত্র কমলা Ghetuputra Komola (Pleasure Boy Kamola), Humayun Ahmed
Belgium: À perdre la raison (Our Children), Joachim Lafosse
Bosnia and Herzegovina: Djeca (Children of Sarajevo), Aida Begic
Brazil: O Palhaço (The Clown), Selton Mello
Bulgaria: Кецове Kecove (Sneakers), Ivan Vladimirov and Valeri Yordanov
Cambodia: ឃ្លាត​ទៅ​សែន​ឆ្ងាយ (Lost Loves), Chhay Bora
Canada: Rebelle (War Witch), Kim Nguyen
Chile: No, Pablo Larraín
China: 搜索 (Caught in the Web), Chen Kaige
Colombia: El Cartel de los Sapos (The Snitch Cartel), Carlos Moreno
Croatia: Ljudožder vegetarijanac (Vegetarian Cannibal), Branka Schmidta
Czech Republic: Ve stínu (In The Shadow of the Horse), David Ondříček
Denmark: En Kongelig Affære (A Royal Affair), Nikolaj Arcel
Dominican Republic: Jaque Mate (Check-Mate), José María Cabral
Estonia: Seenelkäik (Mushrooming), Toomas Hussar
Finland: Puhdistus (Purge), Antti Jokinen
France: Intouchables (The Intouchables), Olivier Nakache and Eric Toledano
Georgia: Keep Smiling, Rusudan Chkonia
Germany: Barbara, Christian Petzold
Greece: Άδικος Κόσμος Adikos kosmos (Unfair World), Filippos Tsitos
Greenland: Inuk, Mike Magidson
Hong Kong: 奪命金 Duo Mingjin (aka Dyut Ming Gam) (Life Without Principle), Johnnie To
Hungary: Csak a szél (Just the Wind), Benedek Fliegauf
Iceland: Djúpið (The Deep), Baltasar Kormákur
India: बर्फी Barfi!, Anurag Basu
Indonesia: Sang Penari (The Dancer), Ifa Isfansyah
Israel: למלא את החלל Lemale Et Ha'Chalal (Fill The Void), Rama Burshtein
Italy: Cesare deve morire (Caesar Must Die), Paolo and Vittorio Taviani
Japan: かぞくのくに Kazoku no kuni (Our Homeland), Yong-hi Yang
Kazakhstan: Жаужүрек мың бала Zhau Zhurek Myn Bala (Myn Bala: Warriors of the Steppe), Akan Satayev
Kenya: Nairobi Half Life, David Tosh Gitonga
Kyrgyzstan: Pustoi Dom (The Empty Home), Nurbek Egen
Latvia: Golfa straume zem ledus kalna (aka Golfstrim pod aysbergom)(Gulf Stream Under the Iceberg), Yevgeny Pashkevich
Lithuania: Ramin, Audrius Stonys
Macedonia: Трето полувреме Treto poluvreme (The Third Half), Darko Mitrevski
Malaysia: Bunohan, Dain Iskandar Said
Mexico: Después de Lucía (After Lucia), Michel Franco
Morocco: موت للبيع Mort à vendre (Death for Sale), Faouzi Bensaïdi
Netherlands: Kauwboy, Boudewijn Koole
Norway: Kon-Tiki by Joachim Rønning and Espen Sandberg
Palestine: لما شفتك Lamma Shoftak (When I Saw You), Annemarie Jacir
Peru: Las Malas Intenciones (The Bad Intentions), Rosario García-Montero
Philippines: Bwakaw, Jun Robles Lana
Poland: 80 milionów (80 Millions), Waldemar Krzystek
Portugal: Sangue do meu Sange (Blood of My Blood), João Canijo
Romania: După dealuri (Beyond the Hills), Cristian Mungiu
Russia: Белый тигр Belyy Tigr (White Tiger), Karen Shakhnazarov
Serbia: Кад сване дан Kad svane dan (When Day Breaks), Gorana Paskaljevića
Singapore: Already Famous, Michelle Chong
Slovakia: Až do mesta Aš (Made in Ash), Iveta Grófová
Slovenia: Izlet (A Trip), Nejc Gazvoda
South Africa: Umfaan (Little One), Darrell Roodt
South Korea: 피에타 Pieta, Kim Ki-Duk
Spain: Blancanieves, Pablo Berger
Sweden: Hypnotisören (The Hypnotist), Lasse Hallström
Switzerland: L'enfant d'en haut (Sister), Ursula Meier
Taiwan: 逆光飛翔 (Touch of the Light), Chang Rong-ji (aka Chang Jung-chi)
Thailand: ฝนตกขึ้นฟ้า Fon Tok Kuen Fah (Headshot), Pen-Ek Ratanaruang
Turkey: Ateş'in Düştüğü Yer (Where the Fire Burns), İsmail Güneş
Ukraine: ТойХтоПройшовКрізьВогонь (Firecrosser), Mykhailo Illienko
Uruguay: La Demora (The Delay), Rodrigo Plá
Venezuela: Piedra, Papel o Tijera (Rock, Paper, Scissors), Hernán Jabes
Vietnam: Mùi cỏ cháy (The Scent of Burnt Grass), Nguyễn Hữu Mười

Watch trailers @MOC

My Comments from Updates

9/29
As of this moment ALL countries with large cinema industry have announced their submissions. Until next Monday, October 1st deadline maybe there could be announcements from smaller cinema industry countries.
This is the last update until AMPAS announces the official list with accepted submissions and post becomes final. Usually list is published between one/two weeks after the deadline. So expect final list before October 15.
Think this year will do a brief analysis of all submitted and accepted films, but until then can share that this year there are many submitted films from the major three festivals and as of this moment, most come from the Berlinale, second place is Cannes and third is Venice. Top award winners at these three festivals: Golden Bear, Palme d'Or and Golden Lion were all submitted to Oscar this year.
Up to this moment have been able to identify nine (9) films by female directors, which I believe could be a record, but have to confirm it. My spontaneous impression is that there are quite a few films about or related to "old age" and also to "children" stories. There is one film with some lesbian interest and one with clear gay interest.
But most interesting is that list has many films that are must be seen for me, most come from festivals but there are a few that don't. My viewing queue has become larger but have a whole year to try to see films I'm interested in watching. Great!
9/18
Was hoping for Audiard, would not have mind Leos Carax, but France sending a mainstream movie?! Not pleased, as there were so many great movies. Still I know selection is a crowd-pleaser and maybe will charm older Academy members in the committee. Not good news for me. Sigh. Besides, don't be surprised if this film ALSO makes it to the Best Film category as "Beyond the Foreign Language Oscar race, US distributor Harvey Weinstein has also stated he would like to enter Intouchables for Best Picture Oscar." We all know what happens when Weinstein is behind a film. Double Sigh.
9/16
Pulled post up as for the next two weeks we will learn most if not all the submissions. The "experiment", or the map at bottom of post, is getting many views since yesterday. I'm still learning how to add more info to each country, so expect that each will have more info soon. Thanks for visiting.
9/13
Category getting very complicated for me as has more GREAT (well, my favorite) directors. Today Kim Ki-duk joined Haneke and Mungiu. Now let see if list grows to include Audiard and Reygadas... that could make this year competition very interesting, just imagine a festival with these directors competing for one top award. Not even Cannes can do it, so maybe Oscar.
9/9
Pulled up post. Was thinking if wouldn't be interesting if this year the category will have Haneke, Mungiu plus Jacques Audiard all competing for one award? Also think that Audiard was robbed in the same year as Haneke. If France sends Rust & Bone then my thinking will be real, but there is another film that everyone is betting will be this year France Oscar entry. Soon we will see what happens.
9/6
List is growing fast and I'm pulling post up. Most are commenting that the winner is already in this list. Yes, Amour has ALL the right credentials to appeal Academy foreign-language committee members, that tend to be NOT young. I do not mind at all that Michael Haneke gets an Oscar as he should have one by now (Remember Caché controversy? and/or The White Ribbon?).
Then today Romania announced their submission and Cristian Mungiu joined the competition, he ALSO should have one by now (remember the controversy that changed the rules in the category?). Mungiu was robbed then and maybe now they will give him the Oscar for both films, why not?
But truth is that nothing is predictable in this category thanks to the voting process.
9/1
As September begins is time to do the first update to bring the post up and get it ready to go very busy as is during September when most countries publish their official announcements. As many like to say and I modify for this category, the "World Race to Oscar" has started and one of the most iconic lists of great world films is in process to be final by early October when the Academy publishes the official list. Five films have been already announced and estimate that at least 55 more will be added soon. Cheers!
P.S. Thank You for the email with Poland tip! Much appreciated. The tally is up to six films.
8/15
Today decided to do some predictions for this category and got the pleasant surprise that one country already has announced their submission which makes today a good day to start this traditional post that will have multiple updates until the Academy announces the official list.

An experiment

Have to thank each and everyone that saw the experiment (map) and I'm pleased to announce that will do it next year as map had twice the visits of this post.


View 85th Academy Awards Foreign Language Film Submissions in a larger map