86th Academy Awards Animated Shorts Shortlist

A few days ago the Academy announced that from the fifty-six (56) films that qualified, ten (10) Animated Shorts will advance in the voting process.

After watching all available materials my first impression is that Feral and Mr. Hublot are the ones that absolutely call my attention for the story and the execution.

The following are the shortlisted films.

Feral, Daniel Sousa, director, and Dan Golden, music and sound design (Daniel Sousa), USA, 13 minutes
A wild boy is found in the woods by a solitary hunter and brought back to civilization. Alienated by a strange new environment, the boy tries to adapt by using the same strategies that kept him safe in the forest.



Get a Horse!, Lauren MacMullan, director, and Dorothy McKim, producer (Walt Disney Feature Animation), USA, 6 minutes
Get a Horse! begins traditionally enough: Mickey and friends are enjoying a ride through the great outdoors when they are waylaid by antagonist Peg-Leg Pete. Till this point, the picture mimics the look and feel of vintage, Steamboat Willie-era Disney: black and white, simple shapes, and a rubbery consistency to the limbs and movements of the characters. This portion of the short features hand-drawn animation supervised by veteran Eric Goldberg, who designed the Genie in 1992's Aladdin, and the picture is intentionally degraded with artifacts and filters to give it a vibe of authentically aged film stock. Completing the illusion is Walt Disney himself as the voice of Mickey Mouse, a feat accomplished by piecing together audio recordings from studio archives. Shortly after Pete arrives on the scene, the fourth wall is broken, and things really get interesting. As Mickey and his cohorts jump off the screen, out of their black-and-white world, they dive into a widescreen universe of color where they become fully realized as CG-animated characters. A series of chase scenes finds them quickly alternating between the two realities, with the hand-drawn and CG elements deftly mixing in a surprisingly seamless way.

Gloria Victoria, Theodore Ushev, director (National Film Board of Canada), Canada, 7 minutes
Recycling elements of surrealism and cubism, this animated short by Theodore Ushev focuses on the relationship between art and war. Propelled by the exalting “invasion” theme from Shostakovich’s Leningrad Symphony (No. 7), the film presents imagery of combat fronts and massacres, leading us from Dresden to Guernica, from the Spanish Civil War to Star Wars. It is at once a symphony that serves the war machine, that stirs the masses, and art that mourns the dead, voices its outrage and calls for peace.

Gloria Victoria par Theodore Ushev, Office national du film du Canada

Hollow Land (Terre d'écueil), Uri Kranot and Michelle Kranot, directors (Dansk Tegnefilm, Les Films de l’Arlequin and the National Film Board of Canada), Denmark, Canada and France, 14 minutes

With their old bathtub in tow, a displaced couple arrives in a new land, where all is not as they expected it to be. Awaiting the birth of their first child, and in their effort to adjust to an oddly oppressive environment, they are challenged by cultural/gender roles and customs. “Hollow Land” is a brilliant animated film that captures the disruptions, and corrosive anxieties that are part of daily life for so many immigrants, refugees and misfits around the world. Asburd, dark and awkardly playful; it is an insightful story about humans.




Watch full short here.

The Missing Scarf, Eoin Duffy, director, and Jamie Hogan, producer (Belly Creative Inc.), Ireland, 7 minutes

On a quest to find his missing scarf, Albert the squirrel unearths problems far beyond his own.


The Missing Scarf – Teaser from Eoin Duffy on Vimeo.

Mr. Hublot, Laurent Witz, director, and Alexandre Espigares, co-director (Zeilt Productions), Luxembourg and France, 11 minutes

Mr Hublot is a withdrawn, idiosyncratic character with OCD, scared of change and the outside world. Robot Pet's arrival turns his life upside down: he has to share his home with this very invasive companion...




「九十九」 Tsukumo (Possessions), Shuhei Morita, director (Sunrise Inc.), Japan, 14 minutes

One night in the 18th Century, deep in the mountains, a man loses his way and comes across a small shrine. As he enters, the space transforms into a room of a different world. (Short is part of Katsuhiro Otomo and Sunrise's anthology Short Peace at Annecy film Festival)



Requiem for Romance, Jonathan Ng, director (Kungfu Romance Productions Inc.), Canada, 8 minutes

A modern-day couple’s secret love affair comes to a bittersweet end during an evening phone call. Cell phone static creates distance between them as they anguish over details of their relationship. But the visuals of the film reveal something entirely different: the epic re-imagining of their relationship set in feudal China, where family influence, cultural pressures and their lust for adventure makes more sense. Coming this spring, love goes to war over art.



Room on the Broom, Max Lang and Jan Lachauer, directors (Magic Light Pictures), UK, 25 minutes

To the annoyance of her cat a kindly witch allows a dog,a bird and a frog who have helped her retrieve things she has lost to ride on her broomstick,making it top heavy. The broom is destroyed by a fire-breathing dragon who threatens to eat the witch but the creatures band together to impersonate a monster and save her. As a result she fashions a luxurious new broom with seats on which they can all ride comfortably.



Watch full short here.

Subconscious Password, Chris Landreth, director (National Film Board of Canada with the participation of Seneca College Animation Arts Centre and Copperheart Entertainment), Canada, 11 minutes

In this short animation, Oscar®-winning director Chris Landreth uses a common social gaffe - forgetting somebody’s name - as the starting point for a mind-bending romp through the unconscious. Inspired by the classic TV game show Password, the film features a wealth of animated celebrity guests who try (and try, and try) to prompt Charles to remember the name. Finally, he realizes he will simply have to surrender himself to his predicament.

Subconscious Password by Chris Landreth, National Film Board of Canada

Short Films and Feature Animation Branch members will now select three to five nominees from among the 10 titles on the shortlist. The 86th Academy Awards nominations will be announced live on Thursday, January 16, 2014, at 5:30 a.m. PT in the Academy’s Samuel Goldwyn Theater.

86th Academy Awards Foreign Language Film Submissions - Final

Yesterday the Academy published the final list and well, was a great surprise to find seventy-six (76) submissions to the foreign-language category which is a new record that believe will be hard to surpass. Nevertheless all three movies I was supposed to add yesterday are in list plus 2 more, one from Chad and another from Azerbaijan. No matter what category pundits say, it is a great honor for a film to be designed as the nation representative in the most popular/famous awards in the world and my wish is that awards TV show producers realize that a few extra minutes for the category will mean "something" to the millions that watch the show outside USA.

There are some significant changes from what was announced and what is in final AMPAS list. The first and most significant is Czech Republic submission is NO longer Agnieszka Holland's mini-series and has been substituted with a film by Jiri Menzel. The other is the film from Lebanon which is now by director Lara Saba. Post with female directors will be fixed by eliminating film from Czech Republic and adding film from Lebanon. Last I'm a bit surprised that the Swiss submission was accepted as had the impression that there was too much English but seems was just an impression.

The 86th Academy Awards nominations will be announced live on Thursday, January 16, 2014, at 5:30 a.m. PT in the Academy’s Samuel Goldwyn Theater. Academy Awards for outstanding film achievements of 2013 will be presented on Oscar Sunday, March 2, 2014, at the Dolby Theatre at Hollywood & Highland Center and televised live on the ABC Television Network.

We should expect that about eight days before the nominations (first/second week of January 2014) AMPAS will make the announcement of the shortlist of nine.

All festivals without a date are from 2013. Blue identifies female directors.

Afghanistan: ژمه Wajma (An Afghan Love Story), Barmak Akram (Sundance Screenwriting award)
Albania: Agon, Robert Budina
Argentina: Wakolda (The German Doctor), Lucía Puenzo (Cannes Un Certain Regard)
Australia: The Rocket, Kim Mordaunt (Berlinale Crystal Bear Generation Kplus and Tribeca)
Austria: Die Wand (The Wall), Julian Pölsler (Berlinale12)
Azerbaijan: Çölçü (Steppe Man), Shamil Aliyev

Bangladesh: টেলিভিশন (Television), Mostofa Sarwar Farooki
Belgium: The Broken Circle Breakdown, Felix van Groeningen (Berlinale)
Bosnia and Herzegovina: Epizoda u životu berača željeza (An Episode in the Life of an Iron Picker), Danisa Tanovića (Berlinale Jury Grand Prix winner)
Brazil: O Som ao Redor (Neighbouring Sounds), Kleber Mendonça Filho (Rotterdam 2012)
Bulgaria: Цветът на хамелеона Cvetat Na Hameleona (The Color of the Chameleon), Emil Hristov (Stockholm, Thessaloniki, Toronto FF)

Cambodia: L'image manquante (The Missing Picture), Rithy Panh (documentary) (Cannes Un Certain Regard winner)
Canada: Gabrielle, Louise Archambault (Locarno Audience Award)
Chad: GriGris, Mahamat-Saleh Haroun (Cannes)
Chile: Gloria, Sebastián Lelio (Berlinale)
China: 一九四二 Yi jiu si er (Back to 1942), Xiaogang Feng (Rome FF)
Colombia: La Playa DC, Juan Andrés Arango Garcia (Cannes 2012 Un Certain Regard)
Croatia: Halimin put (Halima's Path), Arsen A. Ostojic (2012 Tallinn and Pula)
Czech Republic: Donšajni (The Don Juans aka Skirt Chasers), Jirí Menzel (Montreal WFF)

Denmark: Jagten (The Hunt), Thomas Vinterberg (Cannes 2012)
Dominican Republic: ¿Quién manda? (Who's the Boss), Ronny Castillo

Ecuador: Mejor No Hablar (De Ciertas Cosas) (The Porcelain Horse), Javier Andrade (Warsaw IFF)
Egypt: الشتا إللى فات El sheita elli fat (Winter of Discontent), Ibrahim El-Batout (Stockholm and Dubai IFF 2012)
Estonia: Free range/Ballaad maailma heakskiitmisest (Free Range), Veiko Õunpuu

Finland: Lärjungen (The Disciple), Ulrika Bengts (Montreal World FF)
France: Renoir, Gilles Bourdos (Cannes 2012 Un Certain Regard)

Georgia: გრძელი ნათელი დღეები Grzeli nateli dgeebi (In Bloom), Nana Ekvtimishvili and Simon Groß (Won Heart of Sarajevo for Best Film at SarajevoFF, Berlinale, Hong Kong FF)
Germany: Zwei Leben (Two Lives), Judith Kaufmann and Georg Maas
Greece: Το αγόρι τρώει το φαγητό του πουλιού To Agori Troei to Fagito tou Pouliou (Boy Eating The Bird's Food) by Ektoras Lygtizos. (Karlovy Vary Festival)

Hong Kong: 一代宗师 Yi dai zong shi (The Grandmaster), Kar Wai Wong (Berlinale)
Hungary: A nagy füzet (The Notebook), János Szász, (Crystal Globe for Best Film at 2013 Karlovy Vary)

Iceland: Hross í oss (Of Horses and Men), Benedikt Erlingsson (San Sebastian IFF)
India: Gujarati (The Good Road), Gyan Correa (Biennale Venice Days)
Indonesia: Sang Kiai, Rako Prijanto
Iran: Le passé (The Past), Asghar Farhadi (Cannes)
Israel: בית לחם (Bethlehem), Yval Adler
Italy: La Grande Belleza (The Great Beauty), Paolo Sorrentino (Cannes)

Japan: 舟を編む Fune wo amu (The Great Passage), Yûya Ishii

Kazakhstan: Шал Shal (Old Man aka Shal), Ermek Tursunov

Latvia: Mammu, es tevi mīlu (Mother, I Love You), Janis Nords (Berlinale Grand Prix Generation Kplus)
Lebanon: قصة ثواني Blind Intersections, Lara Saba (Dubai FF)
Lithuania: Pokalbiai rimtomis temomis (Conversations on Serious Topics), Giedre Beinoriūte (documentary)
Luxembourg: Doudege Wénkel (Angle Mort) (Blind Spot), Christophe Wagner

Mexico: Heli, Amat Escalante (Cannes)
Moldova: Toti Copiii Domnului (All God's Children), Adrian Popovici
Montenegro: As pik – loša sudbina (Ace of Spades - Bad Destiny), Draško Đurović (Sarajevo FF)
Morocco: يا خيل الله Les chevaux de Dieu (Horses of God), Nabil Ayouch (Cannes 2012)

Nepal: सुनगाभा Soongava (Soongava: Dance of the Orchids), Subarna Thapa (Montreal World Film Festival)
Netherlands: Borgman, Alex van Warmerdam (Cannes)
New Zealand: Tuakiri Huna (White Lies), Dana Rotberg
Norway: Jeg er din (I Am Yours), Iram Haq

Pakistan: زندہ بھاگ Zinda Bhaag, Meenu Gaur and Farjad Nabi
Palestine: Omar, Hany Abu-Assad (Cannes Un Certain Regard Special Jury Prize winner)
Peru: El Limpiador (The Cleaner), Adrián Saba (San Sebastian IFF 2012)
Philippines: Transit, Hannah Espia (Pusan IFF)
Poland: Walesa. Czlowiek z nadziei (Walesa. Man of Hope), Andrzej Wajda (Biennale)
Portugal: Linhas de Wellington (Lines of Wellington), Valeria Sarmiento (Biennale 2012)

Romania: Poziţia Copilului (Child's Pose), Călin Peter Netzer, (Golden Bear for Best Film at 2013 Berlinale)
Russia: Сталинград (Stalingrad), Fedor Bondarchuk

Saudi Arabia: وجدة‎ Wadjda, Haifaa Al-Mansour (Biennale 2012 and Rotterdam IFF)
Serbia: Кругови Krugovi (Circles), Srdan Golubović (Berlinale and Sundance)
Singapore: 爸媽不在家 Ilo Ilo, Anthony Chen (Camera d'Or Cannes)
Slovakia: Môj pes Killer (My Dog Killer), Mira Fornay (Winner of Tiger Award at Rotterdam IFF)
Slovenia: Razredni sovražnik (Class Enemy), Rok Bicek (Biennale Critics' Week)
South Africa: Die Vier Hoeke (Four Corners), Ian Gabriel
South Korea: 범죄소년 Beom-joe-so-nyeon (Juvenile Offender), Yi-kwan Kang (Tokyo IFF)
Spain: 15 años y un día (15 Years and One Day), Gracia Querejeta (Malaga Golden Biznaga winner)
Sweden: Äta Sova Dö (Eat Sleep Die), Gabriella Pichler (Biennale12)
Switzerland: More Than Honey, Markus Imhoof (documentary) (Viennale)

Taiwan: 失魂 (Soul), Mong-Hong Chung
Thailand: เคาท์ดาวน์ (Countdown), Nattawut Poonpiriya
Turkey: Kelebeğin Rüyası (The Butterfly's Dream), Yilmaz Erdogan

UK: Metro Manila, Sean Ellis (Sundance FF)
Ukraine: Параджанов Paradjanov, Serge Avedikian and Olena Fetisova (Karlovy Vary IFF)
Uruguay: Anina, Alfredo Soderguit (Berlinale and BAFICI Audience Award winner)

Venezuela: Brecha en el Silencio (Breach in the Silence), Luis and Andrés Rodríguez

Watch trailers plus info @MOC

News

9/7/13 It's the second time that New Zealand sends a movie to Oscar.
9/13/13 It's the FIRST time ever that Saudi Arabia sends a movie to Oscar and more, it is directed by a woman. (last is sic from Twitter) By the way, there are NO movie theaters in Saudi Arabia, they are forbidden; so to watch film has to be only on TV or DVD.
9/18/13 According to today's news Vietnam is NOT sending film this year.
9/23/13 Macedonia is NOT sending film this year.
10/7 It's the FIRST time ever that Moldova sends a movie to Oscar and is the first time that Montenegro submits film as an independent country.

Map works perfectly in Chrome. Other browsers might not show the trailer -sometimes-.  With all new Google changes I can confirm that if you have Windows 8 you will NOT see anything embed to Google Maps, no matter what browser you use.  Shame, but will finish map with all the info and seems will be the last one I make.


View 86th Academy Awards Foreign Language Film Submissions in a larger map

My Comments

September 26
Next Tuesday at 5pm PT is the category deadline and less than one week before we already have fifty-eight (58) films submitted to Oscar 2014. There are a few countries that still have to announce their submission like China, Israel, Uruguay, Iran, Estonia, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Lithuania, Azerbaijan, Albania, Algeria, Armenia, Indonesia, Malaysia and maybe more countries. But in my opinion the Oscar winner finally was submitted today as is the movie that I am giving My Oscar this year, Thomas Vinterberg's The Hunt.

I am as passionate about The Hunt as was last year with Amour but my passion is not blind and know that Academy members tend to prefer less controversial story subjects; but if they wish to reward an excellent director that created a tense true masterpiece with out of the ordinary actors' performances -which is what movies should be all about- then they have to recognize that this film fits their high standards no matter the story it tells.

There are a few movies that have already seen and from those my huge surprise comes from a territory that decided to submit a film by a master filmmaker, Wong Kar-wai. The Grandmaster is a beautiful to watch movie that absolutely has Wong Kar-wai's particular visual style but unfortunately in story was missing a romance (any romance like love for martial arts) so to be honest film is not 100% excellent Wong Kar-wai nor is 100% "regular" martial arts film -which disappointed many viewers that enjoy the genre. Nevertheless is good to see a great director in the competition and I'm curious to find if film makes it to the shortlist of 9 and gets a nod.

Sometimes I wish the category will be more prominent within the televised show as imagine the possibility that in one "red carpet", in one venue at the same time you are able to see so many non-American outstanding actors together. Well, this year if a couple of films get nominated and reality was different, we could see together Liv Ullmann, Catherine Deneuve and Isabel Huppert. Wow! And of course, what I still consider the best actor in the world: Tony Leung. Still there is one actor that before did not care much about him but lately his interpretations have become quite outstanding, Mads Mikkelsen and as many of you know, I'm truly crazy about Toni Servillo performances. Can you imagine all these people together in one place at the same moment? Fantastic dream.

As most of the blog loyal readers know I like everything by Ashghar Farhadi and was hoping that France could submit his latest film, The Past. Unfortunately France went with a very "safe" bet when decided to send a film that tells the story of the Renoir father and son -if you do not know who is Auguste Renoir (the painter) son then let me tell you that Jean Renoir is one the most famous "Hollywood" directors of all times. Nevertheless today news tell us that Iran is considering 12 films and seems that The Past is being considered; as film has an Iranian strong intellectual property -the director- then perhaps qualifies.

Know that movie has to be extremely hard to watch because ALL Amat Escalante's previous films are but have seen all his movies and definitively I am looking forward to see his latest, Heli that in Mexico has been called "treason to the nation" -that's a sample of how unconventional film is.

So which movies have made me excited up to this moment? Jagten, Gloria, Zwei Leben, La Grande Belleza, Heli, Pozitia Copilului and well, yes, because trailer Stalingrad. From this list suspect that four will make the shortlist and only two will get a nod.

This is my last update, the next will be Final after the list is announced by the Academy at their official site which usually happens within the next fifteen days after deadline.

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September 10
As of today, Tuesday September 10th there are twenty two (22) countries that have announced films that will be consider for Foreign Language Film category in the 2014 Oscars edition. Out the 22 submissions only 3 films are by female directors and 2 are co directed by a woman; that is about one fourth of films made by women directors -which is about the average in festivals and general awards-. Let see if percentage remains the same, goes up or drops as more films are announced. As you can see in the list now female directors are highlighted in light orange for easier identification.

During the past week -after my first update- the most exciting, most expected and most not-a-surprise announcement came from Chile that is sending Belinale 2013 main competition nominated Gloria that gave lead actress, Paulina García, the Silver Bear for Best Actress plus director, Sebastián Lelio, the Ecumenical Jury Prize and the Prize of the Guild of German Art House Cinemas. Can't wait to see this film by Lelio that I'm sure will be as good if not better as his previous films.

Yesterday Spain's Academy announcedt their short list that usually has three films but this year there are four; have not seen any of the four films -and really do not call my attention- so have no idea of which could be their selection. But most annoying was the message that English-media sent to the world in which they announced that Almodovar's latest film was NOT in the shortlist. Seems that those that wrote article plus the many that in social media reacted to the news in a non-positive way, have NOT seen Almodovar's latest oeuvre which in my opinion is a great funny film that is very, very far away from Oscar material. I enjoyed a lot film as a dramedy that made me recall Almodovar's early work but being very objective film is not awards material but great plain old fashion entertainment.

That's it for this week let's hope that during the next day's more (interesting) films will be submitted to Oscar 2014.

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September 3
Up to the third day of September there are 16 countries that have already announced their official submission to Oscar 2014 in the category of Foreign Language Film. Last year a record was established when 71 countries submitted films and we know that have not been for the Iranian boycott then surely more submissions could have appeared.

This year there are early signs that a new record could be established as for the first time ever Montenegro submitted a film, Nepal submitted film after 15 years of absence, and has been announced that after a 50-year hiatus Pakistan will re-enter the race.

Not surprisingly the list contains movies that I have not seen yet but I'm looking forward to seen them during the next -not- calendar year. From the 16 already announced Nepal submission has become must be seen for me as well as the one from Turkey that from trailer seems to have the most beautiful cinematography; but also Germany's submission with Liv Ullmann is must be seen plus Austria's submission that has a story quite similar to the Summer TV hit Under The Dome, but in this story seems is one lonely women instead of a whole village isolated from the rest of the world.

For my regular readers is no surprise that up to this moment the film that I'm dying to see is the Romanian submission that won the Golden Bear at 2013 Berlinale. Talking about festivals this year decided to include in list the festival (s) were film was more successful so now is a bit easier to see how many festival movies are sent to Oscar.

Unfortunately seems that this year the 2013 Cannes Palme d'Or winner will NOT be screened in France before October 1st, 2013 so unless French distributor change their mind, film will NOT qualify for this year. The only chance film has is to qualify next year but with so many excellent films that France produces each year I wonder if film really would have an opportunity. Still the most incredible news were released the past week by the US Distributor, Sundance Selects, who plans to do an Oscar campaign as believes is a strong contender in categories other than best foreign language film. So, Adèle Exarchlopoulos and Léa Seydoux could be promoted for best and supporting actress categories but the biggest challenge within the Academy's acting branch is the conservative-leaning tastes that will not appreciate a NC-17 rated film with several graphic and extended sex scenes (lol). No film rated NC-17 has received an Oscar nomination in a major category, except Midnight Cowboy but that was rated X (LOL). Of course I'm talking about La Vie d'Adèle chapitres 1 & 2 also known as Le Bleu est une Couleur Chaude (Blue is the Warmest Color) by visual extraordinary and excellent/very peculiar storyteller Abdellatif Kechiche (remember La graine et le mulet and/or Vénus noire?).

Every year the most passionate film lovers come from India and Philippines and this year is no exception as they have already started to complain and loudly express their preferences about the film that each country will submit. Surely no matter what film will be chosen there will be a controversy.

This is it for this update, next week we will have more films to comment and more fresh news about this category in the Oscar race. Great.

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August15

Seems that I'm back with my favorite post which will start today, August 15. As we know the list will become the longest with (mostly) the best of each country cinema. Enjoy!

86th Academy Awards Foreign Language Film Submissions - Meet the Female Directors

October 12, 2013

The Academy published the list with 76 films that qualified to be considered for the foreign-language category and there are seventeen (17) female directors as even when one film by a film director was disqualified (Czech Republic) another film by a female director qualified (Lebanon). But as there are a record 76 submitted films, the proportion of female versus male directors goes down to 22% which is slightly lower than what usually goes on in most international cinema related events.

October 2, 2013
One day after the deadline we know that sixty-eight (68) films were announced as submission from a specific nation or territory; we still do not know if all films are going to be accepted but while we wait for the official AMPAS announcement let's review some relevant data. For starters there are seventeen (17) female directors that directed or co directed films that were submitted which "surprisingly" reflects the same proportion male-female from many festivals and cinema related events as 25% is about the ongoing average ratio.

Most interesting is to discover that several of the feature films are director's debut film or feature film, which is quite unusual as not many films/directors have the high honor of representing a nation in the most famous awards in the world. But more important is that several female directors are just beginning their career and we can expect them to become more masterful in the future.

No matter if they are starting their career or already have an established career almost all films have premiered in international festivals and some already have collected awards even when they are still traveling the festival circuit. So I would not be surprised if some will collect more honors in the few festivals that will close the year 2013.

These are the filmmakers that in 2013 are honored by having their film selected to represent a nation.

Haifaa Al-Mansour

Born in Saudi Arabia. Women in Saudi Arabia cannot drive, vote or work with men but one woman has become the country's first filmmaker to direct a film in her homeland, a Kingdom that does not have movie theaters. The success of her short films in the Gulf and around the world has inspired a new movement of independent filmmaking in the Kingdom. Al Mansour is well known for penetrating the wall of silence surrounding the sequestered lives of Saudi women and providing a platform for their voices. Her debut feature film Wadja, besides surprisingly becoming Saudi Arabia's submission to 2014 Oscar, already has collected many international awards including several collateral awards at 2012 Biennale, the Dioraphte Award from 2013 Rotterdam fest and more. Many are predicting film could get a nomination but I'm thinking predictions come more from the story behind film than from the film itself.

Louise Archambault

Studied film production at Concordia University in Montreal, where she also completed a Master of Fine Arts degree in film. She cut her teeth as a sound trainee on the popular Quebec TV series “Lance et compte” and went on to work as a line producer on commercials before joining Roger Frappier’s Max Films, where she worked on such films as Manon Briand’s 2 secondes (1998). After continuing to work her way through the industry as a producer, assistant director, writer, cinematographer, on-set photographer and costume designer, she directed her third short film, Atomic Sake (1999), which won the 2000 Prix Jutra for Best Short Film and screened at more than one hundred film festivals worldwide.

Her first feature, Familia, opened the Canada First! programme at the 2005 Toronto fest and went on to share the Best Canadian First Feature Film award with Michael Mabott’s. Familia won the Claude Jutra Genie Award for Best Direction of a First Feature Film and earned seven other nominations, including Best Motion Picture, Direction and Screenplay. It was also named one of Canada’s Top Ten of 2005 by an independent, national panel of filmmakers, programmers, journalists and industry professionals.  Her second feature film, Gabrielle, won the Audience Award at Locarno and is Canada's 2014 Oscar entry.

Giedre Beinoriūte

Born in Vilnius, Lithuania and went to Lithuanian Academy of Music and Theater, Film and TV. Her work consists mainly of award winning short films and documentaries with perhaps her most international work being Gyveno senelis ir bobutė (Grandpa and Grandma) that collected honors all over the world. I am highly impressed with what I saw in Conversations on Serious Topics trailer which made me sure that documentary will be very interesting to see. Film is Lithuania submission to 2014 Oscar.

Ulrika Bengts

Studied film at the Dramatic Institute in Stockholm, Sweden. She is a Finnish film and theater director that has directed dozens of short films, TV series an documentaries. Iris is her feature film debut and The Disciple is her second feature that premiered at 2013 Montreal World Film Festival, a film that became Finland's submission to 2014 Oscar.

Nana Ekvtimishvili

Born in Tbilisi, Georgia (then USSR). She studied screen-writing and dramaturgy at the University of Film and Television “Konrad Wolf” in Potsdam, Germany. In Bloom is her feature debut as a director but she has been writing and co-writing screenplays for other films including Simon Groß's Fata Morgana. Simon Groß is the film co director and co writer along Ekvtimishvili. Film has already collected an impressive amount of awards including CICAE Award at 2013 Berlinale and FIPRESCI Prize plus Golden Firebird Award at 2013 Hong Kong fest. It is Georgia's submission to 2014 Oscar.


Hannah Espia

A graduate of the University of the Philippines Film Institute, Hannah Espia started as an editor. As a director, she participated in the Tokyo Talent Campus in 2012 and the Berlinale Talent Campus in 2013. Espia’s debut short film Ruweda won the Audience Award at the Cinemalaya Philippine Independent Film Festival. Transit is her debut feature film that became Philippines 2014 Oscar entry and already won several awards at 2013 Cinemalaya Independent Festival but film is just starting the festival circuit.

Olena Fetisova

Born in Kiev, Ukraine. She graduated from the Moscow Film School VGIK, 1987. She has been working in the film industry without interruption ever since as a producer, writer and director. Is the European Documentary Network and Ukrainian Filmmakers Union Member, 2009 Ukrainian State Film Award Winner, 2009 EAVE graduate. She has directed mainly award winning documentaries and Paradjanov is her debut feature film as a director along with co director Serge Avedikian. Film is Ukraine submission to 2014 Oscar and premiered in competition for 2013 Karlovy Vary's East of West Award.


Mira Fornay

Born in Bratislava, Czechoslovakia (now Slovakia). Attended the FAMU in Prague and the National Film and Television School in Beaconsfield, UK, earning her diploma in 2004. In 2005 she was selected for the workshop of Iranian Director Abbas Kiarostami. Foxes (2009), her feature film debut, premiered at the Venice Film Festival and was also shown in Rotterdam. My Dog Killer is her second feature that went to win the 2013 Rotterdam Tiger Award and was submitted by Slovakia to Oscar 2014.

Meenu Gaur

Gaur is originally from Kolkata, India and moved to Pakistan four years ago; she is married to Mazhar Zaidi who produced Zinda Bhaag, Pakistan's Oscar submission. Film is co directed by Farjad Nabi. Meenu Gaur completed her PhD in Film and Media Studies from the University of London in 2010. She received the Felix scholarship and Charles Wallace Scholarship for the same. She is the co-editor of the book ‘Indian Mass Media and the Politics of Change’, published by Routledge 2011 and distributed by OUP Pakistan. She has been associated as Faculty of the Institute of Womens Studies Lahore (IWSL) under the aegis of Feminist Institute and Publishing House ASR (Applied Social Research Resource Centre). She is also the co-director of the award winning documentary film, ‘Paradise On a River of Hell’.Presently, she is working on a documentary film on Karachi and has received the ‘Jan Vrijman Fund’ and ‘Göteborg Film Fund’ for the same.

Iram Haq

Norwegian-Pakistani actress, writer, singer and director. Sudied Art Direction at Westerdals School of Communication in Oslo. She has acted in the features Import-Export (05), Fallen Angels (08), and Tomme tønner (10). Her short film Trofast (Faithful) was a selection at 2004 Venice Film Festival. She wrote and directed the short film Little Miss Eyeflap (09) which won The Ellen Award at Aspen Shortsfest in 2010. I Am Yours (13) is her debut feature and Norway's submission to 2014 Oscar.

Judith Kaufmann

Born in Stuttgart, Germany. After graduating from the National College of Optics and Photographer in Berlin, she apprenticed as a photographer until in 1982 she focused on film. Kaufmann is the co director of Germany's submission to 2014 Oscar Two Lives along with Georg Maas and she's also the film cinematographer. It is her debut as a director but she is very well-known as a cinematographer and I'm sure many of you have seen perhaps one of her best works Four Minutes as well as extraordinary Die Fremde (When We Leave), Vivere and fantastic Fremde Haut (Unveiled).

Gabriella Pichler

Born in Huddinge, Sweden, left her job at the cookie factory to attend the School of Film Directing in Gothenburg. Her graduation project, short film Scratches went to win many local and international awards and her debut feature film Eat Sleep Die already won Best Direction and Best Screenplay at the 2013 Guldbagge Awards plus the Audience Award at 2013 Biennale. Have seen her debut film and found it with a very mesmerizing minimalist/realistic style that engages your attention slowly but once you are engaged does not release you even after film is over as you will think about story and film for a long while. Her film is Sweden's submission to 2014 Oscar.

Lucía Puenzo

Born in Buenos Aires, Argentina and is the daughter of AMPAS nominated director Luis Puenzo but in my opinion she has already establish herself as a great director in her own right with her debut feature film 2007 Cannes Critics Week winner excellent XXY, and with her second film puzzling The Fish Child. So it is no surprise -for me- that her third film The German Doctor was 2013 Cannes Official Selection in the Un Certain Regard section but can't deny that was kind of a (big) surprise that the Argentinean Academy opted to send for Oscar consideration a film by a female director. Her latest film is one that I'm really looking forward to watch as highly enjoy her particular storytelling style.

Gracia Quejereta

Born in Madrid, Spain. Studied Ancient History at the a Universidad Complutense de Madrid but her father is well-known producer Elías Querejeta. Her first film related work was as director assistant to Carlos Saura. Perhaps her best known work is Siete Mesas de Billar Francés that collected many local awards, including Best Screenplay at 2007 San Sebastian Film Festival. Her latest feature film 15 años y un día not only is Spain's submission to 2014 Oscar but already won the Golden Biznaga for Best Film and the Silver Biznaga for Best Screenplay at Malaga Spanish Film Festival.


Dana Rotberg

Born in Mexico City and went to Mexico's Centro de Capacitación Cinematográfica. She currently lives in Auckland, New Zealand after living in Sarajevo, Bosnia and Herzegovina. She has worked in the three countries and perhaps her best known Mexican work is Angel of Fire that was the opening film in 1992 Cannes Directors' Fortnight; her best known Bosnian work is MGM Sarajevo. Man, God and The Monster a documentary that also was the opening film of the Cannes Directors' Fortnight but in 1994 and The Perfect Circle that took the same opening spot in 1997. Her first work in New Zealand is White Lies that the country submitted to 2014 Oscar.

Lara Saba

After graduating in 1994 with a degree in audio-visual [communications] from the Jesuit University in Beirut, worked as an assistant director on feature films with the directors Joanna Hadjithomas, Khalil Greig, Merzak Allouache, the English director Sally Potter and Jean-Claude Maqdisi. After 1998, I got to know documentary filmmaking and did several documentaries, including "Suspended Return", which was screened solely for the media. [ won an award for this film from the United Nations Development Programme]. Then, I traveled to France and worked on producing Egyptian films and children's films for the Al-Jazeera Children's Channel as well as French television channels. After returning to Lebanon, I did several documentary films, some about Lebanon's television archives and others about people who fought in the Lebanese war. Blind Intersections is her first feature film and Lebanon's submission to Oscar 2014.


Valeria Sarmiento

Chilean writer-director and editor who studied philosophy and filmmaking at the University of Chile in the 1960s. Based in Paris since 1974, her documentaries and feature films tend to address Latin American gender politics but she is probably best known as the regular editor and collaborator of her late husband Raoul Ruiz (1941-2011) with whom she shared the Chilean Art Critics Circle's Bicentennial Award for cinema in 2010. She was awarded a Guggenheim Fellowship in 1988 and is often cited alongside Angelina Vásquez and Marilú Mallet as a key woman filmmaker of Chilean exile. A retrospective of her work as director was held at Stanford University in May 2008.

Lines of Wellington is an epic war film and television series that was conceived by her husband and after his dead she completed the film which was premiered in competition at 2012 Biennale and became Portugal submission to 2014 Oscar.

26th European Film Awards - Long List

As the European Film Academy just announced in Berlin, there are 46 films in this year’s EFA Selection, the list of films recommended for a nomination for the European Film Awards 2013. With 32 countries represented, from Austria to United Kingdom, the list once again illustrates the great diversity in European cinema. The selected films also cover a wide range of genres and themes from comedies to family, political and historical dramas, from thrillers to literature and theatre adaptations.

In the coming weeks, the 2,900 members of the European Film Academy will vote for the nominations in the categories European Film, Director, Actor, Actress and Screenwriter. The nominations will then be announced on 9 November at the Seville European Film Festival in Spain. A 7-member jury will decide on the awards recipients in the categories European Cinematographer, Editor, Production Designer, Costume Designer, Composer and Sound Designer.

The 26th European Film Awards with the presentation of the winners will take place in Berlin on 7 December.

The EFA Selection 2013

8-PALLO (8-BALL), Aku Louhimies, Finland, 108 min
TΟ ΑΓΟΡΙ ΤΡΩΕΙ ΤΟ ΦΑΓΗΤΟ ΤΟΥ ΠΟΥΛΙΟΥ - TO AGORI TROI TO FAGITO TOU POULIOU (BOY EATING THE BIRD’S FOOD), Ektoras Lygizos, Greece, 80 min
Η ΑΙΏΝΙΑ ΕΠΙΣΤΡΟΦΉ ΤΟΥ ΑΝΤΏΝΗ ΠΑΡΑΣΚΕΥΆ - I AIONIA EPISTROFI TOU ANTONI PARASKEUA (THE ETERNAL RETURN OF ANTONIS PARASKEVAS), Elina Psykou,Greece, 88 min
LOS AMANTES PASAJEROS (I'M SO EXCITED!), Pedro Almodóvar, Spain, 90 min
ANNA KARENINA, Joe Wright, UK, 124 min
ARAF (ARAF- SOMEWHERE IN BETWEEN), Yeşim Ustaoğlu, Turkey/France/Germany, 124 min
ÄTA SOVA DÖ (EAT SLEEP DIE), Gabriela Pichler, Sweden, 104 min
BERBERIAN SOUND STUDIO, Peter Strickland, UK, 92 min
THE BEST OFFER, Giuseppe Tornatore, Italy, 130 min
BLANCANIEVES, Pablo Berger, Spain/France, 104 min
BORGMAN, Alex van Warmerdam, The Netherlands/Belgium/Denmark, 113 min
THE BROKEN CIRCLE BREAKDOWN, Felix van Groeningen, Belgium, 100 min
THE CONGRESS, Ari Folman, Israel/Germany/Poland/Luxembourg/France/Belgium, 120 min
ЦВЕТЬТ НА ХАМЕЛЕОНА - CVETAT NA HAMELEONA (THE COLOUR OF THE CHAMELEON), Emil Christov, Bulgaria, 111 min
DANS LA MAISON (IN THE HOUSE), François Ozon, France, 105 min
DJÚPIÐ (THE DEEP), Baltasar Kormákur, Iceland/Norway, 92 min
ДОЛГАЯ СЧАСТЛИВАЯ ЖИЗНЬ - DOLGAYA SCHASTLIVAYA ZHIZN (A LONG AND HAPPY LIFE), Boris Khlebnikov, Russia, 77 min
DOM ÖVER DÖD MAN (THE LAST SENTENCE), Jan Troell, Sweden, 120 min
EPIZODA U ZIVOTU BERACA ZELJEZA (AN EPISODE IN THE LIFE OF AN IRON PICKER), Danis Tanović, Bosnia & Herzegovina/France/Slovenia, 74 min
LA GRANDE BELLEZZA (THE GREAT BEAUTY), Paolo Sorrentino, Italy/France , 140 min
GRENZGÄNGER (CROSSING BOUNDARIES), Florian Flicker, Austria, 88 min
GRZELI NATELI DGEEBI (IN BLOOM), Nana Ekvtimishvili & Simon Gross, Germany/Georgia/France, 104 min
HANNAH ARENDT, Margarethe von Trotta, Germany/Luxembourg/France/Israel, 110 min
HOŘÍCÍ KEŘ (BURNING BUSH), Agnieszka Holland, Czech Republic, 234 min
IMAGINE, Andrzej Jakimowski, Poland/France/Portugal, 105 min
LO IMPOSIBLE (THE IMPOSSIBLE), Juan Antonio Bayona, Spain, 114 min
L'INCONNU DU LAC (STRANGER BY THE LAKE), Alain Guiraudie, France, 110 min
ИЗМЕНА - IZMENA (BETRAYAL), Kirill Serebrennikov, Russia, 115 min
KAPRINGEN (A HIJACKING), Tobias Lindholm, Denmark, 99 min
KON-TIKI, Joachim Rønning & Espen Sandberg, Norway/Denmark/UK/Germany/Sweden, 113 min
KRUGOVI (CIRCLES), Srdan Golubović, Serbia/Germany/France/Croatia/Slovenia, 112 min
החלל את לאםל - LEMALE ET HA’HALAL (FILL THE VOID), Rama Burshtein, Israel, 90 min
הגבעה מעל - MEHAL HAGIVA (A STRANGE COURSE OF EVENTS). Raphaël Nadjari, Israel/France, 98 min
MÔJ PES KILLER (MY DOG KILLER), Mira Fornay, Slovakia/Czech Republic, 90 min
OH BOY!, Jan Ole Gerster, Germany, 83 min
OIKOPEDO 12 (BLOCK 12), Kyriacos Tofarides, Cyprus/Greece, 94 min
ONLY GOD FORGIVES, Nicolas Winding Refn, Denmark/France, 90 min
PARADIES: GLAUBE (PARADISE: FAITH), Ulrich Seidl, Austria/Germany/France, 113 min
POZITIA COPILULUI (CHILD’S POSE), Călin Peter Netzer, Romania, 112 min
ROSIE, Marcel Gisler, Switzerland, 106 min
THE SELFISH GIANT, Clio Barnard, UK, 90 min
SOM DU SER MEG (I BELONG), Dag Johan Haugerud, Norway, 112 min
SVECENIKOVA DJECA (THE PRIEST'S CHILDREN), Vinko Brešan, Croatia/Serbia, 93 min
SYNGUÉ SABOUR, PIERRE DE PATIENCE (THE PATIENCE STONE), Atiq Rahimi, France/Germany/Afghanistan, 102 min
W IMIĘ (IN THE NAME OF), Małgośka Szumowska, Poland, 96 min
WHAT RICHARD DID, Lenny Abrahamson, Ireland, 87 min

To read info about each film go here. Have seen quite a few but the best is that was reminded about many that I have forgotten. Great! But perhaps what calls more my attention is that there are not many films by "established" directors as with a few remarkable exceptions, most directors with films in the list are still building their careers.

70th Venice International Film Festival Award Winners

The post has become final and if you wish to read the top awards at the official site please go here while most of the other awards can be found here.

Was not able to watch live the closing ceremony which is annoying as did see the opening ceremony but perhaps what called my attention are the many twitter comments about the low press coverage of the awards which indeed suggests that this year fest was less "interesting" than let's say, last year. If you consider what I just commented then is NO Big surprise that top award went to a documentary, an Italian documentary. Still there are a couple of films that definitively are great must be seen for me: Philomena and Via Castellana Bandiera. Great.

VENEZIA70

Golden Lion for Best Film: Sacro Gra, Gianfranco Rosi, Italy and France (documentary)

Grand Jury Prize: Jiaoyou (Stray Dogs), Tsai Ming-liang, Taiwan and France

Silver Lion for Best Director: Alexandros Avranas for Miss Violence, Greece

Volpi Cup for Best Actress: Elena Cotta in Via Castellana Bandiera, Emma Dante, Italy and Switzerland
Volpi Cup for Best Actor: Themis Panou in Miss Violence, Alexandros Avranas, Greece
Marcello Mastroianni Award for Best New Young Actor or Actress: Tye Sheridan in Joe, David Gordon Green, USA

Osella for Best Screenplay: Steve Coogan and Jeff Pope for Philomena, Stephen Frears, UK, USA and France

Special Jury Prize: Die Frau des Polizisten, Philip Gröning, Germany

Lion of the Future – Luigi de Laurentiis Award for Best Debut Film: White Shadow, Noaz Deshe, Tanzania, Italy and Germany (from Settimana Internazionale della Critica)

Orrizzonti Awards
Best Film: Eastern Boys, Robin Campillo, France
Best Director: Uberto Pasolini for Still Life, UK and Italy
Special Jury Prize: Ruin, Michael Cody and Amiel Courtin-Wilson, Australia
Special Jury Prize for Innovation: Mahi Va Gorbeh, Shahram Mokri, Iran
Best Short Film: Kush, Shubhashish Bhutiani, India

Venezia Classici Awards
Best Documentary: Double Play: James Benning and Richard Linklater, Gabe Klinger, France, Portugal and USA
Best Restored Film: La proprietà non è più un furto, Elio Petri, 1973

European Short Film Award: Houses With Small Windows, Bülent Öztürk, Belgium

Autonomous Sections

10th Giornate degli Autori - Venice Days
Europa Cinemas Label: La Belle Vie (The Good Life), Jean Denizot, France
Special Mention: Alienation, Milko Lazarov, Bulgaria
Premio al Film evento delle Giornate degli Autori 2013 (International Award): Kill Your Darlings, John Krokidas, USA

28th Settimana Internazionale Della Critica - Venice International Film Critics Week
Raro Video Audience Award: Zoran, il mio nipote scemo (Zoran, My Nephew the Idiot), Matteo Oleotto, Italy and Slovenia

Collateral Awards

FIPRESCI
Best Film from Venezia70: Tom à la ferme (Tom at the Farm), Xavier Dolan, Canada and France
Best Film from Orizzonti and International Critics' Week: Anna Odell for Återträffen (The Reunion), Sweden

CICAE Award: Still Life, Uberto Pasolini, UK and Italy

SIGNIS Award: Philomena, Stephen Frears, UK, USA and France
Special Mention: Ana Arabia, Amos Gitai, Israel and France

FEDEORA Awards (Federation of Film Critics of Europe and the Mediterranean)
Venezia70
Best Euro-Mediterranean Film: Miss Violence, Alexandros Avranas, Greece
Giornate Degli Autori
Best Film: Bethlehem, Yuval Adler, Israel, Belgium and Germany
Best Young Director: Milko Lazarov for Alienation, Bulgaria
Special Mention: La Belle Vie (The Good Life), Jean Denizot, France
Settimana Internazionale della Critica
Best Film: Razredni sovražnik (Class Enemy), Rok Biček, Slovenia
Best Cinematography: Inti Briones for Las Niñas Quispe (The Quispe Girls), Sebastián Sepúlveda, Chile, France and Argentina
Special Mention: Anna Odell for Återträffen (The Reunion), Sweden

Online Critics Award
Mouse d'Oro for Best Film in Competition: Philomena, Stephen Frears, UK, USA and France
Special Mention: Jiaoyou (Stray Dogs), Tsai Ming-liang, Taiwan
Mouse d'Argento for Best Film out of competition: At Berkeley, Frederick Wiseman, USA (documentary)
Special Mention: Die andere heimat – Cronik einer sehnsucht, Edgar Reitz, Germany and France

Francesco Pasinetti Award
Best film: Still life, Uberto Pasolini, UK and Italy
Best Actors: Elena Cotta, Alba Rohrwacher e Antonio Albanese
Special Mention: Maria Rosaria Omaggio in Walesa. Man of Hope, Andrzej Wajda, Poland
Special Mention: Il terzo tempo, Enrico Maria Artale, Italy

Leoncino d'Oro Agiscuola Award: Sacro Gra, Gianfranco Rosi, Italy (documentary)
Cinema for Unicef Award: Philomena, Stephen Frears, UK, USA and France
La Navicella - Venezia Cinema Award:
Queer Lion: Philomena, Stephen Frears, UK, USA and France

ArcaCinemaGiovani Award
Best Film Venezia70: Miss Violence, Alexandros Avranas, Greece
Best Italian Film Venezia70: L'Arte della Felicità, Alessandro Rak, Italy

FEDIC Award: Zoran, il mio nipote scemo (Zoran, My Nephew the Idiot), Matteo Oleotto, Italy and Slovenia
Special Mention: The Zero Theorem, Terry Gilliam, USA and Romania

Lina Mangiacapre Award: Via Castellana Bandiera, Emma Dante, Italy and Switzerland
Special Mention: Traitors, Sean Gullette, USA and Morocco
Special Mention: All female cast in Ukrania Ne Bordel (Ukraine is Not a Brothel), Kitty Green, Australia and Ukraine

Future Digital Award: Gravity, Alfonso Cuarón, USA and UK
Special Mention: The Zero Theorem, Terry Gilliam, USA and Romania

UK-Italy Creative Industries Award - Best Innovative Budget
Il Terzo Tempo, Enrico Maria Artale, Italy
Medeas, Andrea Pallaoro, Italy, Mexico and USA
Kush, Shubhashish Bhutiani, India (short)

Vittorio Veneto Film Festival Youth Jury Award: Philomena, Stephen Frears, UK, USA and France
Special Mention: Via Castellana Bandiera, Emma Dante, Italy and Switzerland

Soundtrack Stars Award
Best Sound: Via Castellana Bandiera, Emma Dante, Italy and Switzerland
Special award Best Contemporary Actor: Ryuichi Sakamoto

Ambiente WWF Award: Amazonia, Thierry Ragobert, Brazil and France (documentary)
Brian Award: Philomena, Stephen Frears, UK, USA and France
CICT-UNESCO Enrico Fulchignoni Award: Joe, David Gordon Green, USA
Cinema for Unicef Award: Philomena, Stephen Frears, UK, USA and France
Christopher D. Smithers Foundation Award: Joe, David Gordon Green, USA
Civitas Vitae Award: Still Life, Uberto Pasolini, UK and Italy
Fondazione Rotella Award: Gianni Amelio for L'Intrepido, Italy
Gillo Pontecorvo Arcobaleno Latino Award: Con Il Fiato Sospeso, Costanza Quatriglio, Italy (short)
Green Drop Award: Ana Arabia, Amos Gitai, Israel and France
INTERFILM Award: Philomena, Stephen Frears, UK, USA and France
Lanterna Magica Award (GCS): L'Intrepido, Gianni Amelio, Italy
Open Award: Venezia Salva, Serena Nono, Italy
Padre Nazareno Taddei Award: Philomena, Stephen Frears, UK, USA and France
Schermi di qualità Award: Zoran, il mio nipote scemo (Zoran, My Nephew the Idiot), Matteo Oleotto, Italy and Slovenia

Career Golden Lion: William Friedkin
Fondazione Ente dello Spettacolo Robert Bresson Award: Amos Gitai
Jaeger-LeCoultre Glory to the Filmmaker 2013 prize: Ettore Scola
L'Oreal Paris per il Cinema Award: Eugenia Costantini
Persol Award: Andrzej Wajda
Premio Bianchi: Enzo d’Alò
Premio Gillo Pontecorvo Arte e Industria: Walter Veltroni

7th Queer Lion Lineup and Winner

A few minutes ago the winner was announced and to my surprise this year Queer Lion winner is a film that I'm really looking forward to watch, which is highly unusual!

... and the winner is:

Philomena, Stephen Frears, UK, USA and France (G)

The jury, headed by Angelo Acerbi and composed by Queer Lion founder Daniel N. Casagrande and Marco Busato, general delegate of cultural association CinemArte, unanimously awarded the prize "For the ability of giving proper relevance to issues such as homosexuality, AIDS and homophobia in a movie focused on the painful topic of a 50 years long search for a son, and for emphasizing, with the light touch of a comedy, how an humble woman with a deep Catholic faith can show outright and loving acceptance for the essential, important aspects of the sexual identity and same-sex family of a 'just re-discovered' son."

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8/21
Today finally was published the list of the nine (9) films that will compete for the 2013 Queer Lion and here they are with a small summary for each film.

Venezia 70 (Main Competition)
Philomena, Stephen Frears, UK, USA and France (G)
Falling pregnant as a teenager in Ireland in 1952, Philomena was sent to the convent of Roscrea to be looked after as a “fallen woman.” When her baby was only a toddler, he was taken away by the nuns for adoption in America. Philomena spent the next fifty years searching for him but with no success. Then she met Martin Sixsmith, a world-weary political journalist who happened to be intrigued by her story. Together they set off to America on a journey that would not only reveal the extraordinary story of Philomena’s son (who had become a great lawyer, front-man for the Republican Party under Reagan’s and Bush Sr.’s administrations; but who was also gay, forced by his party’s homophobic views to lead a double life, until his tragic departure, at 43, due to AIDS), but also create an unexpectedly close bond between Philomena and Martin. The film is a compelling narrative of human love and loss that ultimately celebrates life.

Tom à la ferme (Tom at the Farm), Xavier Dolan, Canada and France (G)
Tom, a young advertising copywriter, travels to the country for a funeral. There, he’s shocked to find out no one knows who he is, nor who he was to the deceased, whose brother soon sets the rules of a twisted game. In order to protect the family’s name and grieving mother, Tom now has to play the peacekeeper in a household whose obscure past bodes even greater darkness for his “trip” to the farm. Stockholm syndrome, deception, grief and secretive savageries pervade this brief and brutal pilgrimage through the warped and ugly truth.

Via Castellana Bandiera (A Street in Palermo),Emma Dante, Italy, Switzerland and France (L)
It’s a Sunday afternoon. The sirocco is blowing pitilessly in Palermo when Rosa and Clara, a lesbian couple, lose their way in the streets of the city and end up in a sort of alley: Via Castellana Bandiera. At the same moment, another car driven by Samira, crammed with members of the Calafiore family, arrives from the opposite direction and enters the same street. Neither Rosa at the wheel of her Multipla, nor Samira, the old and stubborn woman driving a Punto, is willing to give way to the other. A wholly female duel punctuated by the refusal to drink, eat and sleep; more obstinate than the sun of Palermo and more stubborn than the ferocity of the men who surround them. For, as in every duel, it is a question of life or death.

Orizzonti
Eastern Boys, Robin Campillo, France (G)
They come from all over Eastern Europe: Russia, Ukraine, Moldova... The oldest ones appear no more than 25; as for the youngest, there is no way of telling their age. They spend all their time hanging around the Gare du Nord train station in Paris. They might be male prostitutes. Daniel, a discreet man in his early fifties, has his eye on one of them, Marek. Gathering his courage, he speaks to him. The young man agrees to come and visit Daniel the following day at his place, with wholly unpredictable consequences. Daniel will have to learn to fight to defend himself and the youth from the violent reaction of the group, led by a brutal man who is determined not to loosen his grip.

Piccola Patria, Alessandro Rossetto, Italy (L)
Two young women, a hot and stifling summer, the desire to get away from a small provincial town. Luisa is full of life, uninhibited, unconventional; Renata is dark, angry, in need of love. The lives of the two women tell a story of blackmail, of betrayed love, of violence: Luisa uses Bilal, her Albanian boyfriend, Renata uses Luisa’s body to pull the strings of her vendetta. Both want to leave the small community that raised them, among local festivals and nationalist rallies, exhausted families and new generations of migrants targeted by those still feeling threatened. Luisa, Renata and Bilal will run the risk of losing themselves, of losing a precious part of themselves, of losing the people they love, of losing their life.

Giornate degli Autori
3 Bodas de Más (Three Many Weddings), Javier Ruiz Caldera, Spain (G)
Is there anything worse than being invited to your ex-boyfriend´s wedding? Sure! When it happens three times in one month, when you don´t know how to say no, when you are an awkward 30-something who loses it after a couple drinks, when the only person you can convince to be your date is the new intern, and when at one of the weddings you are up for a huge surprise, when it comes to the sentence “you may now kiss the bride”.

Gerontophilia, Bruce LaBruce, Canada (G)
18-year-old Lake has a sweet activist girlfriend, but one day discovers he has an unusual attraction for the elderly. Fate conspires to land him a summer job at a nursing home where he develops a tender relationship with Mr. Peabody. Discovering that the patients are being over-medicated to make them easier to manage, Lake decides to wean him off his medication and help him escape, resulting in a humorous and heartfelt road trip that strengthens their bond.

Julia, J. Jackie Baier, Germany and Lithuania (documentary) (T)
A story of faith and disbelief. Of uprootedness and affiliation. What makes a boy from art school decide to leave home and live as a girl on the streets of Berlin selling her body for money? For more than ten years, photographer and filmmaker J. Jackie Baier followed transsexual Julia K. from her birthplace, Klaipeda in Lithuania, to her tough life on the streets as a hooker, outlaw and nonconformist who never signed any social contract.

Kill Your Darlings, John Krokidas, USA (G)
Kerouac. Burroughs. Ginsberg. Who were they, though, before they became virtual icons of the counterculture movement? In 1944, Jack Kerouac was a washed-up college running back who had lasted all of eight days in the U.S. Navy. William S. Burroughs was a medical school dropout, former door-to-door insect exterminator and budding drug addict, hanging on the fringes of the New York bohemian scene after following a pair of friends from his native St. Louis, Lucien Carr and David Kammerer, to Manhattan. Allen Ginsberg was a nervous, straitlaced freshman at Columbia University, easy prey of Carr’s seduction games and his obsession with the charismatic Kammerer. This is the story of three future beats who fell in with each other, and a brutal murder that capped off their youthful partnership.

Settimana della Critica
L’Armée du salut (Salvation Army), Abdellah Taïa, France (G)
In Casablanca, the young Abdellah spends his days at home, living a relationship of conflicts and complicity with his father. In the city streets, he has occasional sexual intercourses with men. During a holiday, his older and venerated brother Slimane abandons him. Ten years later. Abdellah lives with his Swiss lover, Jean. He leaves Morocco and goes to Geneva, where he decides to break up and to start a new life alone. He takes shelter in a house of the Salvation Army, where a Moroccan man sings a song of his idol Abdel Halim Hafez for him.

Furthermore, NOT competing, but worthy of being mentioned for their secondary LGBT contents, are Stephen Frears’s Philomena (Venezia 70), Paul Schrader’s The Canyons (Out of Competition), Cherien Dabis’s May in the Summer (Venice Days), Moisés Sepúlveda’s Las Analfabetas (International Critics’ Week). And we cannot  forget mentioning the restored version of Nagisa Ôshima’s masterpiece Merry Christmas, Mr. Lawrence.

As usual, during the Festival the jury might decide to include in the competition movies not mentioned in this list.

On Saturday, September 7th, at Cinema Astra in Lido, Special Event with the screening of Il rosa nudo by Giovanni Coda, the Queer Lion 2013 award ceremony, and the debate Lotta all’omofobia: quali strumenti? (Fighting Homophobia: How?) at the presence of Sen. Josefa Idem, M.P. Alessandro Zan, and president of Gaynet Franco Grillini.

Up to this moment the jury has three members Angelo Acerbi (president), Daniel N. Casagrande and Marco Busato.

Here is a recently published document that has a bit of the award history plus several award winners in past editions. Available only in Italian.

2013 European Film Awards - People's Choice Award

This year the 26th European Film Awards will go back to Berlin and will take place on December 7th. The most interesting and often must be watch longlist of European films is scheduled to be unveiled in "the beginning of September" so I assume that will be soon.

As always the nominations will be announced on November 9th at the Seville European Film Festival. This is the schedule for the coming months but today the list of nominated films for the People's Choice Award was announced and there are some great films in it, still I'm totally biased towards Searching for Sugar Man a doc that absolutely gets my vote, yay!

IF you vote you will get a chance to win a trip to the awards in Berlin. Good Luck!

These are the 11 nominated films:

Anna Karenina, Joe Wright, UK
Los Amantes Pasajeros (I'm So Excited!), Pedro Almodóvar, Spain
The Best Offer, Giuseppe Tornatore, Italy
The Broken Circle Breakdown, Felix van Groeningen, Belgium
La Cage Dorée (The Gilded Cage), Ruben Alves, Portugal
Djúpið (The Deep), Baltasar Kormákur, Iceland and Norway
Lo Imposible (The Impossible), J. A. Bayona, Spain
Kon-Tiki, Joachim Rønning and Espen Sandberg, Norway, Denmark, UK, Germany and Sweden
Oh Boy!, Jan Ole Gerster, Germany
Searching for Sugar Man, Malik Bendjelloul, UK and Sweden
Den Skaldede Frisør (Love is All You Need), Susanne Bier, Denmark

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