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Festival Catalogue 2018 Flipbook PDF
Festival Catalogue 2018
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JioMAMI
Jio MAMI
25th October
1st November 2018
THANK YOU FOR YOUR SUPPORT
GOVERNMENT OF
MAHARASHTRA
RAJBHAVAN Malabar Hill Mumbai 400034
CH. Vidyasagar Rao GOVERNOR OF MAHARASHTRA
GOVERNOR OF MAHARASHTRA
CH. Vidyasagar Rao I am pleased to know that the Mumbai Academy of Moving Image (MAMI) will be organizing the 20th edition of the Mumbai Film Festival from the 25th October to 1st November, 2018. Over the years, the Mumbai Film Festival has emerged as an excellent platform bringing together the best of cinema and filmmaking talent. I wish and hope that the Festival becomes a medium of expression of filmmakers representing every generation, capturing the socio-economic, religious and ethnic diversity of the world. This will bring to the force the challenges faced by people in to day life and help in creating an egalitarian and a more caring society. I congratulate the Academy for its efforts in organizing the festival and convey my best wishes for the success of the 20th edition of the Mumbai Film Festival.
CHIEF MINISTER, MAHARASHTRA
Devendra Fadnavis The city of Mumbai — India’s financial and cultural pulse — has been home to varied needs and wants. It is where dreams are seen and nurtured, where they come to fruition. Mumbai, forever restless and hungry, never sleeps; it also never stops dreaming. The city derives its indefatigable spirit from cinema. The canvasses of theatres legitimise the aspiration of its people. The darkened spaces, telling the stories of both haves and have-nots, give them a new lease of life, provide new languages to fight their battles. Home to the Hindi and Marathi film industries, Mumbai is the film capital of the country. Its relationship with cinema has been long and unwavering — and one strengthened by the Jio MAMI Mumbai Film Festival with Star, which turns 20 this year. Facing and surmounting many challenges during its long run, MAMI, over the years, has become a metaphor for the city itself—it might have faced momentary setbacks, but it never gave up. The result is a rich feast of movies from around the world that ask elemental questions about the human condition. I hope this edition of MAMI, celebrating its landmark 20th year, will continue its strong engagement with cinema, showcasing its true power to move and inspire people. MAMI has been a significant cultural force, complementing the city in numerous ways, and this year will be no different. I’m certain that its 20th edition will bring a week-long celebration of cinema to the city, resembling a festival that is not just entertaining but also inclusive. On this momentous occasion, the government of Maharashtra pledges its unstinting support to the festival and to help it grow in the future.
CO - CHAIRPERSON, JIO MAMI
Nita M Ambani I am delighted to welcome you to Jio MAMI’s 20th Mumbai Film Festival. Just in two decades, it has emerged as one of India’s preeminent film festivals, a calendar event sought out by filmmakers and fans alike, and earning a reputation for showcasing the best films from India and from around the world. Today, Jio MAMI is widely acclaimed as a festival where ideas are born, where filmmakers meet film connoisseurs, where a spirit of bonhomie decorates the event and its proceedings! It is a matter of great pride that Mumbai now has a global film festival of its own. Mumbai is a melting pot of Indian cinema, music, visual arts, theatrical traditions, and many other cultural expressions. I am confident that in the years to come, the Jio MAMI Mumbai Film Festival will
only get bigger and better, mirroring the rise of Mumbai as a cultural, creative, and commercial hub of the world! Cinema is a reflection of society, and equally, it is an agent of change. It chronicles the journey of nations and civilizations; it manifests the hopes and journeys, tears and fears, and the commonalities and contradictions of humanity. It enriches our lives and the social cultural fabric of our planet! As the 20th Anniversary marks a watershed in our journey, we hope to carry on with even greater conviction and commitment, to celebrate the power and potential of cinema! Like every year, I am sure you will zealously join us in this carnival of cinema and enjoy it to the fullest.
CHAIRMAN & CEO, STAR
Uday Shankar Stories embody all that we are and all that we wish for. Through its association with the Mumbai Film Festival, Star once again dips into the treasure trove of stories from around the world, films that speak of diverse issues in myriad voices and inspire a billion imaginations. Right from the time when cinema entered India it has been a vehicle of artistic expression and reflected diverse realities. An extremely powerful medium with a reach that cuts across class structures and geographies, millions turn to films
for entertainment and illumination. The Mumbai Film Festival which curates the best of cinema from around the world, offers film buffs from India a taste of cinematic excellence at a global level. In the fifth year in succession, we join MAMI in celebrating the power and glory of cinema and bringing film-loving Mumbaikars the festival they eagerly look forward to. We wish the 20th edition of the Jio MAMI Mumbai Film Festival with Star a successful run.
Smriti Kiran
Kiran Rao
Anupama Chopra
Foreword
The Jio MAMI Mumbai Film Festival with Star turns 20 this year. We, as a team, turn four. We are, in many ways, still taking baby steps, learning, unlearning, stumbling. It has been overwhelming and exhausting but never not fun. The reason for that is simple: none of it was planned — like some of the best things in life. Four years ago, our inexperience was as complete as our conviction, and this journey began clocking miles, thanks to you, the festival patrons. The ones who get upset, complain, and jab us to change, the ones who become happy, compliment, and nudge us to stay. There are people who care, and so do we. In this age, where our lives have collapsed into our phones and laptops, where our unending options tire us, going to films isn’t just a leisurely activity; it’s a statement. A film festival magnifies that assertion. Because, for the seven days of the festival, people don’t just watch films — they bond over them, with friends and strangers, allowing small joys to find them again. In the long, snaking lines into the theatre and then, in the dark, we are one.
That is why the festival is important: it is a cultural hub that provides a sense of community. So, at this juncture, the best we can do is keep looking forward, fighting and defeating time. Because with the phasing away of celluloid, the death of films as a communal experience
is predicted with disturbing regularity. But when we see people queuing up hours before an anticipated film, year after year, we know that film is immortal. When we find out about the bonds forged at the festival, we marvel at its offshoots. When we hear unique MAMI stories from different festival attendees, we feel we’re part of a small resistance — one where victory is collective, not individual. That is why the festival must think of the future, for we continuously need to do things that unite us. And nothing unites people more than a common passion — and nothing rivals cinema in this regard, a medium where pleasures are not vicarious but personal. Then there are filmmakers, ensuring many joys at the festival, who, in the first place, make it happen. For them, especially the debutantes, MAMI shouldn’t be the end goal. We’re not the chequered flags at the end of the race; we’re small refilling stations in their journeys, rejuvenating and cheering them. We hope that you enjoy the 20th edition of the Festival. We’ll see you soon — as we always have, over the last several years — through the films you watch and enjoy, wishing that our weekly annual reunions only get better. Because we’re certain that you, like us, still remember the first time when images and sound played on screen, and you felt held, and then there was no going back.
B O T
Board of Trustees Kiran Rao Kiran Rao is a film director and producer based in Mumbai. She has worked on films such as Lagaan (2001), Monsoon Wedding (2001), and Swades (2004); and produced such films as Taare Zameen Par (2007), Peepli Live (2010), Delhi Belly (2011), the television show Satyamev Jayate (2012-2014), Dangal (2016), and Secret Superstar (2017) with Aamir Khan Productions. Her directorial debut feature, Dhobi Ghat (Mumbai Diaries), premiered at the Toronto International Film Festival in 2010 and had a worldwide theatrical release in 2011. Rao is also the co-founder of Paani Foundation, a non-profit that since 2015 has been working to alleviate drought in rural Maharashtra.
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Nita M Ambani Nita Ambani is an educationist, philanthropist, businesswoman, and a strong proponent of sports. She is the Founder and Chairperson of Reliance Foundation, which has impacted the lives of over 20 million people through its various initiatives. She provides leadership to 14 schools and is the Founder and Chairperson of Dhirubhai Ambani International School. She heads Mumbai’s Sir H.N. Reliance Foundation Hospital. She is a member of the International Olympic Committee, the architect of Mumbai Indians, and the Founder and Chairperson of Football Sports Development Limited that launched the Indian Super League, which is revolutionising football in India. Nita is committed to preserving and promoting India’s art, culture, and heritage. In 2016, Forbes listed her among the 50 most powerful businesswomen in Asia.
Ajay Bijli Ajay Bijli is the Chairman and Managing Director of PVR Limited. Since his passion for movies led him to set up PVR Cinemas in 1997, Bijli has established himself as the industry leader of Indian film exhibition. Today, with 711 screens across the length and breadth of the country, PVR operates the largest chain of multiplexes with 153 cinemas in 60 cities. Bijli is the founding member of FICCI (Federation of Indian Chambers of Commerce & Industry) Multiplex Association (India), a member of The Film and TV Producers Guild (India), Young Presidents’ Organization, and is associated with the Central Board of Film Certification, Government of India. Last year, Bijli was recognised as the International Exhibitor of the Year at the CineAsia Awards. In 2016, CNBC TV18 gave him the award for Asia Innovator of the Year at India Business Leader Awards.
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Board of Trustees Anand Mahindra Anand G. Mahindra is the Chairman of the Mahindra Group, one of India’s top industrial houses with a presence in varied sectors such as agri-business and aerospace. He secured an MBA from Harvard Business School in 1981. In 1991, he took over as the Deputy Managing Director of Mahindra & Mahindra and was later appointed as the Chairman and Managing Director. He was listed in Fortune magazine’s list of The World’s 50 Greatest Leaders in 2014. At last year’s ET Awards, Mahindra & Mahindra was awarded the Corporate Citizen of the Year for its social responsibility initiatives such as Project Nanhi Kali, which aims to keep girls from poor families in school.
Anupama Chopra Anupama Chopra is a noted film critic, television anchor, and a National Award-winning book author. Her work has appeared in publications such as The New York Times and Los Angeles Times. She has hosted and scripted film shows on NDTV 24/7 and Star World. She is currently the Festival Director of the Jio MAMI Mumbai Film Festival with Star and Founder and Editor of Film Companion.
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Anurag Kashyap Anurag Kashyap is a noted filmmaker and screenwriter. Having started his career as a screenwriter, he was first noticed for the screenplay of Satya (1998), which he co-wrote with Saurabh Shukla. His credits as a writer include Kaun (1999), Shool (1999), Yuva (2004), and Water (2005). He made his directorial debut with Paanch (2003) and has since directed films such as Black Friday (2007), Dev.D (2009), Gulaal (2009), Gangs of Wasseypur (2012), Ugly (2014), Raman Raghav 2.0 (2016), and Mukkabaaz (2017). His latest work includes Netflix’s first Indian original series, Sacred Games (2018), for which he was a co-director. His latest film, Manmarziyaan (2018), premiered at the Toronto International Film Festival.
Deepika Padukone Deepika Padukone is one of Bollywood’s most successful actors. In 2015, she received acting nominations for her performances in Bajirao Mastani and Piku across all Indian film awards. She made her Hollywood debut in 2016 with xXx: Return of Xander Cage. Her last film was Padmaavat, directed by Sanjay Leela Bhansali, which released earlier this year. Padukone is also the founder of The Live Love Laugh Foundation, which aims to destigmatise mental illness and raise awareness about mental health in India.
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Board of Trustees Farhan Akhtar Farhan Akhtar made his writing and directorial debut with Dil Chahta Hai (2001), which won the National Award for Best Feature Film in Hindi. In 2008, he debuted as an actor-singer in Rock On!! and has since given notable performances in films such as Zindagi Na Milegi Dobara (2011), Bhaag Milkha Bhaag (2013), and Lucknow Central (2017). As a producer, Akhtar co-founded Excel Entertainment with Ritesh Sidhwani. The company has produced films that notably include Lakshya (2004), Don (2006), Honeymoon Travels Pvt. Ltd. (2007), Fukrey (2013), and Dil Dhadakne Do (2015). As a producer and an actor, his current films are Gully Boy and The Sky is Pink respectively.
Isha M. Ambani As the Director at Reliance Jio and Reliance Retail, Isha Ambani has played a pivotal role in launching Jio, which is India’s largest 4G network. She has completed her MBA from Stanford University. Previously, Isha served as a business analyst at McKinsey and Company’s New York office and graduated from Yale University in 2013 with a double major in Psychology and South Asian Studies. At Yale, Isha also served as the President of the South Asian Society. She remains actively involved in South Asian issues, particularly in the field of art and education.
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Karan Johar Karan Johar made his directorial debut with Kuch Kuch Hota Hai (1998), which was a critical and commercial success. Following this, he has written and directed numerous feature films, including Kabhi Khushi Kabhie Gham... (2001), Kabhi Alvida Naa Kehna (2005), My Name is Khan, (2010), Ae Dil Hai Mushkil (2016), and a short each in Bombay Talkies (2013) and Lust Stories (2018). Besides being a celebrated director, he’s a costume designer, actor, and television anchor. He’s also the owner of Dharma Productions, a highly successful production house.
Kaustubh Dhavse Kaustubh Dhavse is the Joint Secretary in the Government of Maharashtra, designated as Officer on Special Duty to the Chief Minister. He runs the Chief Minister’s ‘War Room’, a unit to monitor and drive key infrastructure and technology projects in Maharashtra. Prior to joining the government, Dhavse had a successful stint in the corporate world where he worked in companies such as Solectron, Hewlett-Packard, and Frost and Sullivan. He is a known expert on technology, strategy, and management consulting. An electronics engineer from the Mumbai University, he holds an MBA from the SP Jain Institute of Management Studies. He was on the dean’s merit list and the graduating valedictorian. Dhavse also has a public policy degree from the John F. Kennedy School of Government, Harvard University.
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Board of Trustees Manish Mundra Manish Mundra is a producer and the founder of Drishyam Films. After a chance interaction with Rajat Kapoor on Twitter in 2013, he agreed to finance Ankhon Dekhi (2014). The film went on to win three Filmfare Awards and three Screen Awards. Since then, there has been no looking back for the corporate leader-turned-film producer. His Drishyam Films is a global motion-picture studio that has produced international award-winning films such as Masaan (2015), Umrika (2015), Waiting (2016), Dhanak (2016), Newton (2017), Rukh (2017), and Kadvi Hawa (2017). Newton won the National Award for Best Feature Film in Hindi, and was also selected as India’s official entry to the 90th Academy Awards. Mundra is also known for establishing the Drishyam–Sundance Institute Screenwriters Lab for aspiring Indian screenwriters. He was named as one of Variety magazine’s Top 10 Producers to Watch Out For in 2017.
Rana Daggubati Rana Daggubati is an actor and a producer. He made his acting debut with the Telugu film Leader (2010), which was a huge commercial success and garnered immense critical acclaim. He made his Bollywood debut with Dum Maaro Dum (2011) and has since appeared in movies such as Department (2012) and Baby (2015). Daggubati won many accolades for his performance as Bhallaladeva in the multi-lingual magnum opus Baahubali: The Beginning (2015) and Baahubali 2: The Conclusion (2017). The film won the National Award for Best Feature Film at the 63rd National Awards. As a producer, he received the National Award for co-producing Bommalata – A Bellyful of Dreams in 2006.
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Riteish Deshmukh Riteish Deshmukh debuted as an actor in 2003 with Tujhe Meri Kasam and has since starred in a diverse array of films such as Bluffmaster (2005), Darna Zaroori Hai (2006), Rann (2010), Housefull (2010), and Ek Villain (2014). He has also ventured into film production with Ravi Jadhav’s Balak Palak (2013), Lai Bhaari (2014), and Mahesh Limaye’s Yellow (2014), which are among the most acclaimed films of recent times.
Rohan Sippy Rohan Sippy is a director and producer based in Mumbai. He is best known for directing Bluffmaster (2005), Dum Maaro Dum (2011), and Nautanki Saala (2013). As a producer, Rohan’s credits include Taxi No. 9211 (2006) and The President Is Coming (2009).
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Board of Trustees Siddharth Roy Kapur Roy Kapur’s filmography as a producer includes some of the biggest blockbusters as well as some of the most acclaimed and path-breaking films of Indian cinema. Kapur is the President of the Producers Guild of India and the former Managing Director of The Walt Disney Company India. Roy Kapur Films, founded by Kapur in January 2017, produces movies and digital video content across scales and genres. He has been featured in Variety’s Top 500 list of influential people in entertainment in 2017 globally and The Hollywood Reporter’s Next Generation Asia Inaugural Class of Young Leaders, among numerous other accolades for his leadership and achievements.
Vikramaditya Motwane Vikramaditya Motwane is a writer, director, and producer (unfortunately not always in that order). His directorial debut, Udaan (2010), was selected to compete in Un Certain Regard at the Cannes Film Festival. He’s since directed Lootera (2013), Trapped (2017), Bhavesh Joshi Superhero (2018), and was the showrunner and co-director on Sacred Games (2018), Netflix’s first Indian original.
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Vishal Bhardwaj Vishal Bhardwaj is an Indian film director, writer, composer, and producer. He has directed 10 feature films, including Makdee (2002), The Blue Umbrella (2005), Kaminey (2009), 7 Khoon Maaf (2011), Matru Ki Bijli Ka Mandola (2013), Rangoon (2017), Pataakha (2018), as well as the Shakespeare trilogy of Maqbool (2003), Omkara (2006), and Haider (2014). Makdee won the Best Film award at the Chicago International Children’s Film Festival. Omkara received the Best Artistic Contribution in Cinema award at the Cairo International Film Festival, and Haider won the People’s Choice award at Rome Film Festival. He has also received seven National Awards. In 2014, Bhardwaj began his stage career by directing the opera A Flowering Tree by John Adams in the Théâtre du Châtelet, in Paris. He also composed music for the Broadway musical Monsoon Wedding (based on the feature film by Mira Nair).
Zoya Akhtar Zoya Akhtar studied filmmaking at New York University and later assisted directors such as Mira Nair and Dev Benegal. She worked as a casting director on Split Wide Open (1999) and Dil Chahta Hai (2001). She made her directorial debut with the critically acclaimed film Luck by Chance (2009) and followed it up with Zindagi Na Milegi Dobara (2011) and Dil Dhadakne Do (2015). In 2013, She contributed the segment ‘Sheila Ki Jawani’ to Bombay Talkies, an anthology of short films produced to mark the centenary of Indian cinema. Her recent work includes a short in Lust Stories (2018), which released on Netflix to an overwhelming response.
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Shyam Benegal started as a copywriter in advertising. Later he graduated to become the Creative and Accounts Group Head before becoming a full time filmmaker. He has lectured at many institutions in India and abroad as well as participated in seminars on subjects dealing with cinema, television, information technology and different aspects of social and cultural change. He has made 26 fiction features several documentaries and TV series, notably a 53 - hour TV series on the history of India called Bharat Ek Khoj and Samvidhaan on the making of the Indian Constitution for Rajya Sabha TV. Practically all his films have won national awards and several of them have been awarded internationally. Benegal was a Homi Bhabha fellow (1970-72) during
FILMS COURTESY:
which time, he studied Children’s Television with CTW (Children’s Television Workshop) in New York and worked as an Associate Producer with WGBH-TV, Boston. The Government of India has conferred on him two of its most prestigious awards – Padma Shri in 1976 and Padma Bhushan in 1991. He is also a recipient of the Indira Gandhi National Integration Award (2004), and the Dadasaheb Phalke Award for Lifetime Achievement Award (2005). In 2007, he was conferred with a D.Litt (Honoris Causa) from Jamia Millia University, New Delhi and from the University of Calcutta in 2011. Benegal runs a film production company in Mumbai and was a Rajya Sabha member from 2006 to 2012.
SHYAM BENEGAL
Shyam Babu: The Gentle Giant by Naseeruddin Shah I saw Shyam babu’s first film, Ankur (1974), in a theatre in Kanpur. My initial impression was that this filmmaker loves his actors — that he really cares for their performances. I hadn’t seen that in too many Indian movies. You see it in the works of Mr Satyajit Ray, especially when he’s dealing with children. You feel that while watching the films of Ingmar Bergman, Akira Kurosawa. Shyam babu similarly seemed to be trying to get to the core of his characters, and you could see that the story was deeply felt. And his knowledge of the ethos was just faultless. I was greatly encouraged. I felt I had a future. I thought this was a person I got to try and meet somehow. That meeting was set up by Girish Karnad, then the director of Film and Television Institute of India, where I was studying acting. Girish had seen me in a play called The Zoo Story, and he quite liked it. He spoke to Shyam and said, “There’s this troublesome guy” — I was leading the actors’ strike at the institute then — “but he’s a good actor.”
them, which I realise is the right thing to do. He chose actors whom he didn’t have to train and left them to do their thing. He was particularly watchful of me on set because of my bad reputation. He guided me in Nishant (1975) and gave me the most wonderful advice ever. Before we began shooting, I told him, “Sir, I’m very nervous. I’ve never acted in films, only done plays. Even in the institute, I’ve only acted in 10-minute films. So please help me, tell me what I should do.” He said, “You’ve to make contact with the camera in the same way you do with every person in the audience while performing on stage. Because the camera is the eye of every man in the audience.” That was enough for me. There was more. For instance, the first time I see Shabana Azmi in Nishant, she’s in a shop, and I’m wandering around her. I thought this
So I left from Pune by a passenger train at an unearthly hour, reaching Bombay at 6 in the morning! It was of course very early. I knew no one in the city, so I roamed around, killed time, and reached Shyam babu’s place at eight. Turns out even that was early! Mrs Benegal had opened the door, and she looked exasperated. Then after a while Shyam babu appeared. People often say about holy men like Rajneesh that when they enter a room there’s suddenly an aura that takes over the room. I feel that it’s faith that does these things: this ability to come to you in a sense, to make you feel that they are there for you. Shyam babu is one of those people. I was obviously very nervous. I was disheveled, wearing filthy clothes. But the moment I saw him, I became completely at ease. I walked up to him and shook his hands. I liked his voice very much — this lovely baritone and wonderful smile, and I felt totally comfortable in his presence. He asked me about myself, where I came from, what I did. He then told me about the part and said, “You’re right for it.” He hadn’t even auditioned me or asked me for a photograph. I asked, “Sir, do you want me to do a screen test?” He said, “No, no, Girish vouched for you.” So that was Shyam babu. He would always sum up the characters in a few words. He wouldn’t get on your case and go on psychoanalysing
is a big moment for me. I’m falling in love, so let me do something, which will convey that — let me act out falling in love! I don’t remember what I was doing, maybe stroking my moustache or some such nonsense, and Shyam babu said, “Don’t do that.” I said, “But can I…” And he said, “Just look at her. Turn your head slightly towards me and now look at her through your eyes.” I saw the shot and thought, “Fuck, he was right.” While shooting Nishant, I noticed that Shyam babu would be looking at me. It was flattering because I thought, “Maybe this guy finds me interesting.” And he obviously did — he was able to see the facets of my personality, which even I hadn’t seen. Like the guy I played in Bhumika (1977), who was very refined and pseudo, someone very different from my character in Manthan (1976). It was such a high to know that this person is casting me in film after film. He is challenging me each time. He’s giving me different parts. More importantly, he’s paying me! Words fail me while expressing
my gratitude. I remember another important advice of his — something that made sense only in retrospect. In Junoon (1978), I was trying to play a guy who was towering over everybody. He told me, “You’re playing the part as you’re seeing in your head. Play it as it is written.” That’s how he’d help you: by helping you concentrate, by giving you the time, by allowing you to rehearse. It wasn’t, “Accha karo, zor se karo [do it well, invest a lot of effort]” — the kind of stuff you’d hear at the National School of Drama, “Kuch baat nahin bani. Kuch aur! Kuch aur! [This doesn’t work. Something else! Something else!]” What sets Shyam babu apart from other directors is that he never compromised. He never gave into making song and dance spectacles. And he never made a big deal about it, either. He also didn’t consider himself a God’s gift to filmmaking. He made the movies he believed in, whether they brought him profits or not, whether they gave him audiences or not. He was always concerned with getting his point across, rather than proving himself a genius filmmaker. Moreover, our film industry has historically dumbed down the audiences by stating the obvious. So now they can’t understand something if you don’t overstate it. But Shyam babu never underestimated their intelligence. He tried to speak to them in the most simple and most powerful language. He’d set up a shot and ask, “How would you like to use this space?” There are too many filmmakers to whom composition means so much that they’ll create something beautiful at the cost of its truth. But Shyam babu would always go for the truth and then make a composition, and his compositions aren’t to be sneezed at. He makes some pretty neat ones. His contribution to Indian cinema has been to set a precedent for the filmmakers of the future. If there had been no Satyajit Ray, Mrinal Sen, or Khwaja Ahmad Abbas — or before them, Basu Chatterjee, Mrinal da, V Shantaram, Zia Sarhadi, or Guru Dutt — Shyam babu wouldn’t have been there in the ’70s. They formed a backdrop for him, for him to come and attempt something like Ankur, and take a risk like that. And if Shyam babu or Mrinal da hadn’t been there, then you wouldn’t have the promising filmmakers of today, making the kind of films they make, some of which are wonderful. So Shyam babu set an example. He’s a part of history.
Darren Aronofsky is the Academy Award-nominated filmmaker behind mother!, Noah, Black Swan, The Wrestler, The Fountain, Requiem for a Dream and Pi. He is executive producer of the virtual reality experience SPHERES: Songs of Spacetime and the series One Strange Rock for NatGeo. He is an ardent advocate of science and the environment and a board member of the Sierra Club Foundation and the School for Field Studies.
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Opening Film
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VASAN BALA
Mard Ko Dard Nahin Hota The Man Who Knows No Pain
134’
HINDI
2018
INDIA
FICTION
DIRECTOR Vasan Bala
A boy suffers from a rare disorder called congenital insensitivity to pain — the condition is life threatening but he tries to survive life by trying to fulfill his Kung Fu-VHS-filled day dreams.
STORY/SCREENPLAY Vasan Bala
CINEMATOGRAPHER Jay I. Patel
EDITOR Prerna Saigal
FESTIVALS AND AWARDS
TORONTO INTERNATIONAL FILM FESTIVAL (GROLSCH PEOPLE’S CHOICE MIDNIGHT MADNESS AWARD)
SOUND DESIGN Anthony B.J. Ruban
PRODUCER
Ronnie Screwvala Productions
Vasan Bala is an Indian screenwriter and filmmaker. His debut film, Peddlers (2012), was screened at the Cannes Film Festival’s International Critics’ Week and also played at the Toronto International Film Festival. He has worked as a screenwriter on Anurag Kashyap’s Bombay Velvet (2015) and Raman Raghav 2.0 (2016). He is also an awardwinning advertising filmmaker and Mard Ko Dard Nahi Hota is his second feature film.
CAST
FILMOGRAPHY: Peddlers (2012)
Ronnie Screwvala
PRODUCTION COMPANY
Abhimanyu Dassani, Radhika Madan, Mahesh Manjrekar, Gulshan Devaiah
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STEVE MCQUEEN
Widows 128’
ENGLISH
2018
USA, UK
FICTION
DIRECTOR Steve McQueen
STORY/SCREENPLAY
In debt because of their dead husbands’ criminal activities, four women take fate into their own hands and conspire to build a future on their own terms.
Gillian Flynn, Steve McQueen
CINEMATOGRAPHER Sean Bobbitt
EDITOR Joe Walker
SOUND DESIGN
FESTIVALS AND AWARDS
TORONTO INTERNATIONAL FILM FESTIVAL | BUSAN INTERNATIONAL FILM FESTIVAL
Alex Riordan
PRODUCERS Iain Canning, Emile Sherman, Steve McQueen, Arnon Milchan
PRODUCTION COMPANIES 20th Century Fox, Regency Enterprises, New Regency, See-Saw Films, Lammas Park Production, Arnon Milchan
Steven McQueen is a British film director, producer, screenwriter, and video artist. For his 2013 film, 12 Years a Slave, he won an Academy Award, BAFTA Award for Best Film, and the award for Best Director from the New York Film Critics Circle.
FILMOGRAPHY: Hunger (2008), Shame (2011), 12 Years a Slave (2013)
INDIAN DISTRIBUTOR Fox Star Studios, A Division of Star India Pvt. Ltd.
CAST Viola Davis, Michelle Rodriguez, Elizabeth Debicki, Cynthia Erivo, Daniel Kaluuya
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INDIA GOLD
REFLECTIONS OF A MAMI ALUMNA By Ruchika Oberoi As an indie filmmaker, you discover pretty quickly that the closer you try to get to the famed Mumbai infrastructure for production, funding, and distribution, the further it runs away from you. As we all know, the entire framework here is built around big budget, star-driven and studio-led films, giving little space to those who want to tell small, unconventional stories. That is why the Jio MAMI Mumbai Film Festival with Star is such a significant event in the Mumbai film calendar. In a world largely indifferent to the specific needs of the independent filmmakers, MAMI provides not just exposure and audiences, but also a sense of community. Moving to Mumbai is a disorienting change a lot of us have to consider for our filmmaking careers, and this is what I did as well, many years ago. I had lived in Mumbai earlier too, for a year, but had never gotten used to how it overwhelms you by its frenetic pace and total indifference. Leaving behind the film school days of watching three films a day, each day in the city became a struggle to find work — work that could sustain not just the body but perhaps a bit of soul, too. Amid this daily struggle for survival, the festival arrived annually with a bunch of beautiful films like welcome rain, soothing the spirit and serving as a reminder of what one’s true aspirations were when one moved here. Being an avid attendee of the festival since its inception, spending hours queuing up with other enthusiastic cinema lovers year after year, I had often wondered if I would be able to make the films I wanted and ever get to show them here. It was, therefore, certainly a special moment for me when my debut feature Island City, was selected in the India Gold section of the Festival in 2015. I was all the more excited to screen Island City here as it is very much a film about my experience of this city, and I was overjoyed to be in a hall in Mumbai for its first ever public screening in the country, sharing my film with the audience it was predominantly meant for: the denizens of this wonderful, scintillating little miserable city of ours.
Ruchika Oberoi’s debut feature, Island City, had its world premiere at the Venice Film Festival, where she won the FEDORA prize for the Best Young Director. The film had its India premiere at the 17 th Jio MAMI Mumbai Film Festival with Star.
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Programmers
Deepti DCunha
Ratheesh Radhakrishnan
Deepti DCunha is a Mumbai-based film programmer specialising in contemporary Indian cinema. She has been working with Indian and international film festivals for the past eight years. She has been the India Consultant to Marco Mueller since 2011 for the Venice Film Festival, Rome Film Festival, film festivals in China and is now the India and South Asia Programmer for the Pingyao International Film Festival, China. She has been sourcing and curating films for the National Film Development Corporation of India (NFDC) Film Bazaar’s Viewing Room section and Work-in-Progress Lab since 2011. DCunha also programs for the Chicago South Asian Film Festival. She is on the selection committee of Locarno Open Doors since 2016. She has recently been appointed as the India Correspondent for the Director’s Fortnight at Cannes Film Festival. Her earlier assignments include programming for the International Children’s Film Festival of India and Osian’s Cinefan Festival of Asian and Arab Cinema. This is her fourth year with the Jio MAMI Mumbai Film Festival with Star as a Programmer for the Indian selection.
Ratheesh Radhakrishnan teaches literature and film at the Department of Humanities and Social Sciences at IIT Bombay. He researches and writes on ‘region’ and cinema with a focus on cinema in Malayalam, film festivals, and film history. He writes in English and Malayalam, in academic journals and popular magazines. Apart from IIT Bombay, he has taught courses on cinema at Jawaharlal Nehru University, the University of Hyderabad and Rice University (Houston, Texas). He is the founder-curator of TITLES, an annual festival of experimental films from India, held at the historic Rice Cinema (Houston) between 2011 and 2014. Member, Selection Committee, India Programme
Programmer, India Programme
39
Jury
HEAD OF JURY
Lucrecia Martel Lucrecia Martel is an Argentinian filmmaker, screenwriter, and producer. She’s made four feature films — The Swamp (2001), The Holy Girl (2004), The Headless Woman (2008), and Zama (2017) — that have won acclaim at many international film festivals, including Cannes, Berlin, Venice, Toronto, New York, Sundance, and Rotterdam, among notable others. The retrospectives of her work have been widely exhibited in film festivals and prestigious institutions such as the University of Berkeley, Harvard University, and the London Tate Museum. She’s been part of the official juries of film festivals such as Berlin, Cannes, Venice, Sundance, Rotterdam, and has conducted numerous master classes around the world.
Jury
Martin Šulik Martin Šulík is a Slovak filmmaker. He made his first feature film, Tenderness, in 1991, which launched a successful and prolific decade. His 1995 film, The Garden, a poetic, philosophical, and humorous film, was highly acclaimed. Besides winning five Czech Film and Television Academy Lion Awards, it also received a number of awards at several international film festivals. After a long pause, Šulík returned to fiction features with the social comedy The City of the Sun (2006). Veering away from his typical poetic style, he deployed a realistic approach to depict contemporary life.
Subodh Gupta Subodh Gupta’s sculptures incorporate everyday objects that are ubiquitous throughout India, such as steel tiffin lunch boxes, thali pans, bicycles, and milk pails. From such ordinary items the artist produces sculptures that reflect the economic transformation of his homeland. His works investigate the sustaining and transformational powers of the everyday. Gupta has long explored the effects of cultural translation and dislocation through his work, demonstrating art’s ability to transcend cultural and economic boundaries. His ideas have taken shape in different forms: from film, video, and performance to steel, bronze, marble, and paint, which Gupta employs for both their aesthetic properties and as conceptual signifiers carrying a wealth of connotations.
Soudade Kaadan Soudade Kaadan is a Syrian filmmaker. She studied theater criticism at the Higher Institute of Dramatic Arts in Syria and graduated from Saint Joseph University (Institut des Etudes Scénique, Audiovisuelles et cinématographiques), Lebanon. She directed and produced documentaries for Al Jazeera Documentary Channel, UNICEF, and BBC Media Action. Her films have screened at several international film festivals and won prestigious awards. Her first feature film, The Day I Lost My Shadow, was awarded The Lion of the Future Award at the 2018 Venice Film Festival.
41
ERE GOWDA
Balekempa 103’
KANNADA
2018
INDIA
FICTION
DIRECTOR Ere Gowda STORY/SCREENPLAY Ere Gowda
A village bangle seller and his wife cannot conceive a child; the villagers gossip. In this close-knit patriarchal community in Karnataka, hidden desires and relationships find a way to exist. Will the husband’s secret ever come out?
CINEMATOGRAPHER Saumyananda Sahi EDITOR Saumyananda Sahi SOUND DESIGN Susmit ‘Bob’ Nath
FESTIVALS AND AWARDS
INTERNATIONAL FILM FESTIVAL ROTTERDAM (FIPRESCI PRIZE) | JEONJU INTERNATIONAL FILM FESTIVAL
PRODUCER Vivek Gomber PRODUCTION COMPANY Zoo Entertainment CAST Bhagya Shree, Jnanesh, Chandrashekar C.S., Nagaraju D.P.
Ere Gowda was born to a farming family in the Mandya district of Karnataka in 1981 and came to filmmaking much later in life. Before that he worked as a house servant, office boy, driver, security guard, and gardener. He entered movies with Thithi (2015), where he was the script writer, second unit director, line producer, and casting director. Balekampa is his first film.
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VINIT CHANDRASEKHARAN
Buddha Bodhi
100’
MARATHI
2018
INDIA
FICTION
DIRECTOR Vinit Chandrasekharan STORY/SCREENPLAY Vaibhav Ghodeswar, Ninad Mahajani CINEMATOGRAPHER Dezvyn Douglas Tinwalla EDITOR Shreejit M. Nair SOUND DESIGN Sampath Alwar PRODUCTION COMPANY Moshe Productions CAST Shashank Shende, Ninad Mahajani, Ketaki Narayan, Lucky Singh
In the drought stricken eastern part of Maharashtra where close to 23,000 farmers have committed suicide since 2009, the Christian missionaries decide to sell the land given to Dalits in exchange of their conversion to Christianity, a couple of decades ago. Father Benedict Deddario is entrusted with this task. His biggest roadblock is the poor local Dalit leader Vinya. Besides the land tussle, Benedict is shaken by Vinya’s resistance and unwillingness to convert to Christianity. Benedict will stop at nothing to not only sell the land but also get Vinya to convert — even if that means using Vinya’s power hungry wife against him.
Vinit Chandrasekharan is a director, screenwriter, and producer. He is best known for producing the Konkani art house film Juze (2017) and directing the critically acclaimed short Ajanm (2017). He has also written, produced, and directed many commercials for major Indian and international brands.
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RIMA DAS
Bulbul Can Sing 95’
ASSAMESE
2018
INDIA
FICTION
DIRECTOR Rima Das STORY/SCREENPLAY Rima Das CINEMATOGRAPHER Rima Das
Bulbul, a school-going teenage girl in rural Assam, falls in love. On the cusp of adolescence, a tragedy strikes her best friend. Bulbul — free spirited, rebellious, and stubborn — begins to question herself and her love life. Caught amid adolescence, love, and secrecy, mixed with passion and mindless societal dogma, Bulbul nevertheless strives for survival and freedom.
EDITOR Rima Das SOUND DESIGN Susmit ‘Bob’ Nath
FESTIVALS AND AWARDS
TORONTO INTERNATIONAL FILM | BUSAN INTERNATIONAL FILM FESTIVAL
PRODUCER Rima Das PRODUCTION COMPANY Flying River Films CAST Arnali Das, Manoranjan Das, BonitaThakuriya, Manabendra Das, Pakija Begum
Rima Das is a self-taught screenwriter, producer, and director. Her first feature, Antardrishti (2016), had its world premiere at the Jio MAMI 18th Mumbai Film Festival with Star and later screened at the Tallinn Black Nights Film Festival. Her second feature, Village Rockstars (2017), premiered at the Toronto International Film Festival and won the Golden Gateway Award at the Jio MAMI 19th Mumbai Film Festival with Star. Bulbul Can Sing is her latest film. FILMOGRAPHY: Antardrishti (2016), Village Rockstars (2017) 44
AADISH KELUSKAR
Jaoon Kahan Bata Ae Dil 105’
HINDI
2018
INDIA
FICTION
DIRECTOR Aadish Keluskar STORY/SCREENPLAY Aadish Keluskar CINEMATOGRAPHER Ameya Chavan EDITOR Anvay Shinde SOUND DESIGN Shishir Chousalkar PRODUCERS Vinay Mishra, Preety Ali, Pallavi Rohatgi, Raghavan Bharadwa PRODUCTION COMPANY Humara Medialabs CAST Rohit Kokate, Khushboo Upadhyay, Himanshu Kohli
Love. Romance. Sex. Any combination of this is a relationship. Watching a movie together, whispering sweet nothings, walking on the beach — other similar moments of intimacy, small things that define a happy couple. But what happens when the foundations are decaying, when what we cherish turn into moments of degradation? What do you do when your life becomes parasitic, feeding on love? What happens when you are not what you say you are and you don’t know? No one knows. Does this romance encounter reality? How does this encounter end?
Born in Konkan, Aadish Keluskar grew up in Mumbai. He graduated in journalism while working as a reporter in different news channels and newspapers. He later joined the Film and Television Institute of India (FTII), specialising in film direction and advanced screenwriting. During his final year, he made his first feature film, Kaul (2015), which won the Young Critics Award at the Jio MAMI 18th Mumbai Film Festival with Star, and dropped from the course before graduating. This is his second feature film. FILMOGRAPHY: Kaul (2015) 45
ADITYA VIKRAM SENGUPTA
Jonaki Fireflies
95’
BENGALI
2018
INDIA FRANCE SINGAPORE
FICTION
DIRECTOR Aditya Vikram Sengupta STORY/SCREENPLAY Aditya Vikram Sengupta
While Jonaki, an 80-year-old woman, searches for love in a strange world of decaying memories, her lover, now old and grey, returns to a world she is leaving behind.
CINEMATOGRAPHERS Aditya Vikram Sengupta, Mahendra Shetty EDITOR Aditya Vikram Sengupta SOUND DESIGN Hindole Chakraborty
FESTIVALS AND AWARDS
INTERNATIONAL FILM FESTIVAL ROTTERDAM |NEW HORIZONS INTERNATIONAL FILM FESTIVAL |INDIAN FILM FESTIVAL OF MELBOURNE
PRODUCER Samir Sarkar PRODUCTION COMPANY Magic Hour Films SALES AGENT The Festival Agency CAST Ratnabali Bhattacharjee, Lolita Chatterjee, Sumanto Chattopadhyay, Jim Sarbh
Aditya Vikram Sengupta tried his hand at many art forms throughout his youth: from music to theatre, studying literature, painting, and working as a graphic designer. Filmmaking, he says, united his various interests. His debut feature, Asha Jaoar Majhe (2014), was featured in over 70 international film festivals and won 13 awards. His second feature, Jonaki, premiered at the International Film Festival Rotterdam. FILMOGRAPHY: Asha Jaoar Majhe (2014)
46
RAHUL RIJI NAIR
Light in the Room Ottamuri Velicham
97’
MALAYALAM
2017
INDIA
FICTION
DIRECTOR Rahul Riji Nair STORY/SCREENPLAY Rahul Riji Nair CINEMATOGRAPHER Luke Jose EDITOR Appu N. Bhattathiri SOUND DESIGN Shefin Mayan PRODUCTION COMPANY First Print Studios CAST Vinitha Koshy, Deepak Parambol, Pouly Valsan, Rajesh Sharma, Renjit Shekar Nair
Set against the backdrop of a beautiful hilltop village, surrounded by a dense forest and a decaying tea plantation, is the story of Sudha, an underprivileged woman who reaches here after getting married to Chandran. They stay with Chandran’s brother and ageing mother in a confined single room house with a make shift separation to create space for the couple. The room has a strange light without a switch, which changes colours often. While Chandran calls the light his invention of a lifetime, it deprives Sudha of her privacy and begins to haunt her. Adding to her woes, Chandran physically exerts his dominance over Sudha. Amid deep trauma, Sudha realises that she doesn’t have any support and decides to fight. FESTIVALS AND AWARDS
NEW YORK INDIAN FILM FESTIVAL |INDIAN FILM FESTIVAL STUTTGART (BEST FEATURE FILM) |CHICAGO SOUTH ASIAN FILM FESTIVAL
Rahul Riji Nair is an award winning filmmaker, script writer, and producer based out of Kerala. His debut feature, Ottamuri Velicham (2017), centered on marital rape, won four awards in 2017 Kerala State Film Awards, including Best Feature Film. The film had its world premiere at the 2018 New York Indian Film Festival and won the prestigious German Star of India Award for Best Feature film at the Indian Film Festival of Stuttgart. 47
KABIR CHOWDHRY
Mehsampur 99’
PUNJABI HINDI
2018
INDIA
FICTION
DIRECTOR Kabir Chowdhry STORY/SCREENPLAY Akshay Singh CINEMATOGRAPHERS Rahat Mahajan, Devrath Joshi, Kabir Chowdhry EDITOR Sreejith Karanavar SOUND DESIGN Gautam Nair PRODUCERS Kabir Chowdhry, Akshay Singh PRODUCTION COMPANY Dark Matter Pictures SALES AGENT Alief CAST Lal Chand, Devrath Joshi, Navjot Randhawa
Filmmaker Devrath is on a mission to make a film about the lives and assassination of the controversial and legendary singers Chamkila and Amarjot, whose bawdy songs about village life and Punjabi culture found both keen admirers and vicious detractors. But Devrath panics when he discovers that another film crew, with far better resources than his, is also making a film on folk-singer Chamkila. Along the way, Devrath encounters an aspiring actress and an actual band member who survived the attack. The three of them then head to Mehsampur, the site of the assassination. With some of Chamkila and Amarjot’s associates playing versions of themselves, this provocative and sexually explicit film blurs the line between fiction and reality. FESTIVALS AND AWARDS
SYDNEY FILM FESTIVAL |LONDON INDIAN FILM FESTIVAL |INDIAN FILM FESTIVAL OF MELBOURNE
Kabir Chowdhry is a multi-disciplinary artist and filmmaker. He is better known as the creative producer of the award winning Mukti Bhawan (2016) that world premiered at the Venice Film Festival. In 2007, he won the Passion for Cinema award for his short Dolly. His 42-minute short, Good Morning, won the Grand Jury Award at the 2011 South Asian International Film Festival in New York. He was awarded the HT Youth Icon Award for young achievers in north India. 48
IVAN AYR
Soni 97’
HINDI
2018
INDIA
FICTION
DIRECTOR Ivan Ayr STORY/SCREENPLAY Ivan Ayr, Kimsi Singh, Kislay CINEMATOGRAPHER David Bolen EDITORS Ivan Ayr, Gurvinder Singh SOUND DESIGN Sylvain Bellemare PRODUCERS Kimsi Singh, Kartikeya Narayan Singh PRODUCTION COMPANY Jabberwockee Talkies CAST Geetika Vidya Ohlyan, Saloni Batra
The alliance between Soni, a young Delhi policewoman, and her superintendent, Kalpana, is tested to its limits when they suffer a major setback in their fight to curb the most serious social crisis of a generation
FESTIVALS AND AWARDS
VENICE FILM FESTIVAL |BFI LONDON FILM FESTIVAL |PINGYAO INTERNATIONAL FILM FESTIVAL
Ivan Ayr grew up in multiple cities across north India. After receiving a bachelor’s degree in electrical engineering, he studied English literature at Cañada College in Redwood City, California. He later enrolled for screenwriting and film direction courses at the San Francisco Film Society, where he wrote and directed his first short film, Lost and Found (2013), a eulogy to his stolen bicycle. Soni is Ayr’s feature directorial debut, which had its world premiere at 75th Venice Film Festival. 49
RIDHAM JANVE
The Gold-Laden Sheep and the Sacred Mountain Sona Dhwandi Bhed Te Sucha Pahaad
97’
GADDI
2018
INDIA
FICTION
DIRECTOR Ridham Janve STORY/SCREENPLAY Ridham Janve, Akshay Singh CINEMATOGRAPHER Saurabh Monga
After an Air Force jet crashes in the Himalayas, an old shepherd leaves his herd to find its pilot. But the mountain where the jet fell is sacred and the shepherd’s intentions are not. He struggles across dimensions of space and time as he treads on forbidden ground. The herd left behind disintegrates as predators roam around, and they are left headless.
EDITOR Kratika Adhikari SOUND DESIGN Bigyna Dahal PRODUCERS Akshay Singh, Ridham Janve PRODUCTION COMPANY Dark Matter Pictures SALES AGENT Alief CAST Arjun Pant, Lokendra Gurung
Ridham Janve is a graduate in film from the National Institute of Design. His short documentaries and fiction films have been screened at various international film festivals. His short film Kanche Aur Postcard (2013) was an official selection at the International Film Festival of India and represented the country in the 2015 SAARC Film Festival in Colombo. His debut feature, Sona Dhwandi Bhedte Sucha Pahaad (2018), blends fiction with real-life elements and transports the audience into the world of gaddi folklores.
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FOREVER CINEMA by Rashid Irani It’s a cinephile’s dream come true. Every year for the past decade I have been privileged to view and deliberate on hundreds of foreign films ranging from the sublime to the ridiculous. The ongoing selection process has been both a learning and a humbling experience. As with most major film festivals, agony commingles with ecstasy. If in one year the opening segment of The Turin Horse (2012) was screened in the wrong aspect ratio, then in another we had 42 films in honour of “Celebration of Japanese Cinema”. Brief encounters with celebrated auteurs such as the late Theo Angelopoulos, Jerzy Skolimowski, and Miguel Gomes (who even graciously gifted me a DVD of his Our Beloved Month of August (2008)) have been as valuable as lengthier interactions with promising young talents such as Julia Murat (Brazil), Behtash Sanaeeha (Iran), and Carla Simon (Spain). Another memorable event was a scintillating conversation between critic-historian Ian Birnie and the maverick French director Leos Carax who seemed overwhelmed by the number of delegates
turned up to hear him speak. The problems of scheduling persist (after all, films unspool at far flung auditoria across the metropolis), emphasising the need for an all-purpose festival complex of our own. If I were to single out a personal highlight (one that shattered my long-standing assumption that the current lot of cineastes is obsessed with the new) it would be the screening of Dziga Vertov’s Man With The Movie Camera a couple of years ago. The screening of the 1929 silent classic was accompanied with live music by a jazz quartet from Ukraine. As I ambled into the auditorium, I was pleasantly surprised to note that not a single seat was unoccupied and then elated when the audience accorded the film an extended standing ovation when the houselights were switched on at the end of the show. How heartening to discover a new generation of festival-goers extoling the undiminished power of cinema. Powers that enlighten and astonish. Forever.
THE MANY MOMMIES OF MAMI by Anu Rangachar As we approach the 20th anniversary of the Mumbai Film Festival or, as it is affectionately known as, MAMI, I’m going through a range of emotions, since my association with the festival reaches a landmark period as well: a decade. On this occasion, I’d like to leave you with a small story — one that succinctly encapsulates the festival and my perception of it. A few years ago, one of the foreign delegates came up to me after the closing ceremony saying she was impressed by the filmmakers thanking their “mommies” in their speeches. I did blink for a few seconds before realising what this was all about, and how it came
full circle, albeit metaphorically. The Indian filmmakers were, of course, thanking “MAMI” (“mommy” for that foreign delegate) for the training, exposure, and recognition. Although a phonetic slip-up, the interchangeability of “Mommy” and MAMI made sense. Because just like a mother nurtures and cares, MAMI is an institution that showcases the works of not just the masters but also encourages and promotes young talents, both Indian and international. I truly hope the Festival continues to be blessed by several “mommies” for many more decades to come.
Selection Committee
Anu Ahmed Rangachar Shawky Anu Rangachar is passionate about cinema. Originally an engineer, she has been with the Jio MAMI Mumbai Film Festival with Star for the last six years and has facilitated many international collaborations for the festival. Before that, she went to a film school in New York City, worked with Rituparno Ghosh on two of his films, and Ashim Ahluwalia’s Miss Lovely (2012). Consultant, International Programme
Ahmed Shawky is an Egyptian film critic, programmer, and script supervisor who has been writing frequently on cinema since 2009. He’s published weekly articles in the Al Kahera newspaper and Filfan website, besides contributing to other outlets, including the GoetheInstitute’s magazine. He has published five books about Egyptian cinema, including Conversations with Daoud Abdel Sayed, Taboo in Egyptian 80s Generation Cinema, and Conversations with Yousry Nasrallah. Consultant, Cinema from the Middle East
Dennis Lim
Paolo Bertolin
Rashid Irani
Dennis Lim is the Director of Programming at the Film Society of Lincoln Center, where he also serves on the selection committee for the New York Film Festival, as the co-director of New Directors/New Films. The film editor at The Village Voice from 2002 to 2006, and a contributor to The New York Times from 2006 to 2013, he has also written for Artforum, Cinema Scope, and The Los Angeles Times.
Paolo Bertolin is a festival programmer, film critic, and producer. He is a member of the selection committee of the Cannes Film Festival’s Directors’ Fortnight. For the past 10 years, he’s worked for the Venice Film Festival as a member of the selection committee and regional correspondent. Bertolin has producer credits on the Berlinale competition entries Big Father, Small Father and Other Stories (2015), Chitrashala (2015), and A Lullaby for the Sorrowful Mystery (2016).
Rashid Irani currently contributes film reviews to The Hindustan Times. He has served on the jury of the film festivals at Pune and Bengaluru and at the International Children’s Film Festival in Lucknow and has been a programmer at the Jio MAMI Mumbai Film Festival with Star for 10 years.
Member, International Programme
Member, Selection Committee, International Programme
Programmer, International Programme
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Jury
HEAD OF JURY
Sean Baker Sean Baker is the director of The Florida Project (2017), which premiered at the Cannes Film Festival. The film was nominated for the Independent Spirit Awards for Best Feature and Best Director, a Gotham Award for Best Feature, and Baker was awarded the Best Director of the Year by the New York Film Critics Circle. His 2015 film, Tangerine, premiered at the Sundance Film Festival and was released by Magnolia Pictures. It was nominated for four Independent Spirit Awards including Best Feature and Best Director, and four Gotham Awards including Best Feature. His Take Out (2008) and Prince of Broadway (2009) were both nominated for the John Cassavetes Independent Spirit Award, and Starlet (2012) was the recipient of the Robert Altman Independent Spirit Award.
Jury
Jacqueline Lyanga
Thom Noble
Vishal Bhardwaj
Jacqueline Lyanga is the Guest Director of the VR and Immersive Storytelling Showcase at the LA Film Festival. She was the Director of AFI FEST, the American Film Institute’s (AFI) annual international film festival in Los Angeles for eight years, from 2010 to 2018. She has been a panelist and moderator at the Berlinale, the Cannes Film Festival, the Forbes Women’s Summit, the Toronto International Film Festival, and has reviewed grants for the National Endowment for the Arts. Lyanga has been on the jury for the Edinburgh International Film Festival, the Sundance Film Festival, and the Toronto International Film Festival. In 2014, she was featured on the Essence magazine’s list of the 75 most powerful black women in Hollywood, and in Variety’s Women’s Impact Report as one of the female entertainment industry leaders in Hollywood deemed a game-changer and innovator.
Thom Noble is a British film editor who began his career as an assistant editor, working on several features, before getting his big break with Francois Truffaut’s Fahrenheit 451 (1966). He has since edited numerous films, including The Apprenticeship of Duddy Kravitz (1974), Red Dawn (1984),Thelma & Louise (1991), The Hudsucker Proxy (1994), The Mask of Zorro (1998), and The Time Traveller’s Wife (2009), among many others. In a career spanning more than five decades, Noble has worked with many renowned filmmakers around the world, such as Ridley Scott, Joel and Ethan Coen, Peter Weir. He was nominated for an Academy Award for Thelma & Louise. He won it for Witness (1985).
Vishal Bhardwaj is an Indian film director, writer, composer, and producer. He has directed 10 feature films, including Makdee (2002), The Blue Umbrella (2005), Kaminey (2009), 7 Khoon Maaf (2011), Matru Ki Bijli Ka Mandola (2013), Rangoon (2017), Pataakha (2018), as well as the Shakespeare trilogy of Maqbool (2003), Omkara (2006), and Haider (2014). Makdee won the Best Film award at the Chicago International Children’s Film Festival. Omkara received the Best Artistic Contribution in Cinema award at the Cairo International Film Festival, and Haider won the People’s Choice award at Rome Film Festival. He has also received seven National Awards. In 2014, Bhardwaj began his stage career by directing the opera A Flowering Tree by John Adams in the Théâtre du Châtelet, in Paris. He also composed music for the Broadway musical Monsoon Wedding (based on the feature film by Mira Nair).
57
HU BO
An Elephant Sitting Still Da Xiang Xi Di Er Zuo
234’
MANDARIN
2018
CHINA
FICTION
DIRECTOR Hu Bo STORY/SCREENPLAY Hu Bo CINEMATOGRAPHER Fan Chao EDITOR Hu Bo SOUND DESIGN Ren Timing PRODUCER Dongyan Fu SALES AGENT Rediance CAST Zhang Yu, Peng Yuchang, Wang Yuwen, Liu Congxi
The story links together the lives of a number of protagonists, narrating the course of one single, tension-filled day from dawn to dusk, and along the way, painting a portrait of a society marked by selfishness.
FESTIVALS AND AWARDS
BERLINALE (BEST FIRST FEATURE AWARD (SPECIAL MENTION), FIPRESCI PRIZE) | LOCARNO INTERNATIONAL FILM FESTIVAL | TORONTO INTERNATIONAL FILM FESTIVAL
Hu Bo was a Chinese novelist and director. He graduated from the Beijing Film Academy in 2014 with a Bachelor of Fine Art in direction. His debut feature, An Elephant Sitting Still, was selected by the FIRST International Film Festival Financing Forum in 2016. He wrote two novels, Huge Crack and Bullfrog, both published in 2017. He committed suicide after finishing An Elephant Sitting Still.
58
ÍSOLD UGGADÓTTIR
And Breathe Normally Andið eðlilega
100’
CREOLE ENGLISH ICELANDIC
2018
SWEDEN BELGIUM ICELAND FICTION
DIRECTOR Ísold Uggadóttir STORY/SCREENPLAY Ísold Uggadóttir CINEMATOGRAPHER Ita Zbroniec-Zajt EDITOR Frédérique Broos SOUND DESIGN Frédéric Meert, Emmanuel de Boissieu PRODUCER Skúli Malmquist PRODUCTION COMPANIES Zik Zak Filmworks, Entre Chien et Loup, Cinenic Film, Pegasus Pictures, Skot Productions SALES AGENT The Match Factory CAST Kristín Thóra Haraldsdóttir, Babetida Sadjo, Patrik Nökkvi Pétursson
At the edge of Iceland’s Reykjanes peninsula, two women’s lives will intersect — for a brief moment — while being trapped by unforeseen circumstances. Between a struggling single Icelandic mother and a political asylum seeker from Africa, an intimate bond will form as both fight to get their lives back on track.
FESTIVALS AND AWARDS
SUNDANCE FILM FESTIVAL (THE DIRECTING AWARD: WORLD CINEMA DRAMATIC) | KARLOVY VARY INTERNATIONAL FILM FESTIVAL
Ísold Uggadóttir is a scriptwriter and director from Iceland. She holds a master’s degree in film direction from Columbia University in New York, where she was awarded the Best Female Director. Her award-winning short films have screened at over 100 festivals, including Telluride, the Museum of Modern Art, and the Film Society of Lincoln Center.
59
TIAGO MELO
Azougue Nazaré 82’
PORTUGUESE
2018
BRAZIL
FICTION
DIRECTOR Tiago Melo STORY/SCREENPLAY Jeronimo Lemos, Tiago Melo CINEMATOGRAPHER Gustavo Pessoa EDITOR André Sampaio SOUND DESIGN Guga S. Rocha, Marina Silva PRODUCER Leonardo Sette PRODUCTION COMPANIES Lucinda Filmes, Urânio Filmes CAST Valmir do Côco, Joana Gatis, Mestre Barachinha, Mohana Uchôa, Edilson Silva
In a vast field, the sugarcanes dance to the wind. Pai Nani, an Afro-Brazilian spiritual leader, carries out a religious act with five caboclos de lança — costumed vibrant dancers of the Maracatu rural. As the caboclos acquire supernatural powers, they embody entities and disappear. The city of Nazaré da Mata witnesses mysterious events. Catita plays parts in the local Maracatu, but hides it from his wife Darlene, an avid follower of pastor Barachinha, a former Maracatu master who is now on a mission to cast the devil out of the Maracatu. Sister Darlene discovers that Catita is involved with Maracatu and compels him to meet the pastor and convert him to Evangelicalism. FESTIVALS AND AWARDS
INTERNATIONAL FILM FESTIVAL ROTTERDAM (BRIGHT FUTURE AWARD) | BUENOS AIRES INTERNATIONAL INDEPENDENT FILM FESTIVAL (BEST DIRECTOR AWARD) | VISIONÄR FILM FESTIVAL
Tiago Melo was born in Recife in 1984. He’s worked on several short films and more than 20 feature films. He’s worked as a producer on such noteworthy films as Heartless (2014), which won the Illy Prize for the Best Short Film at the Cannes Film Festival; Neon Bull (2015) that won festival awards in Venice, Toronto, Hamburg, Warsaw, and Rio de Janeiro; and Aquarius (2016), which premiered at Cannes Film Festival’s official selection and was awarded in up to 20 festivals. 60
GABRIELLE BRADY
Island of the Hungry Ghosts 94’
CANTONESE ENGLISH FRENCH FARSI HOKKIEN MANDARIN
2018
GERMANY UK AUSTRALIA DOCUMENTARY
DIRECTOR Gabrielle Brady STORY/SCREENPLAY Gabrielle Brady CINEMATOGRAPHER Michael Latham EDITOR Katharina Fiedler SOUND DESIGN Leo Dolgan PRODUCERS Alexander Wadouh, Samm Haillay, Alex Kelly, Gizem Acarla, Gabrielle Brady PRODUCTION COMPANIES Chromosom Film, Third Films, Echotango, Various Films CAST Poh Lin Lee, Arthur Floret, Poppy Floret, Albertine Floret, Christine Cummins
On an isolated island in the Indian Ocean, land crabs migrate in millions from the jungle to the sea. The same jungle hides a high-security Australian detention centre where thousands of asylum seekers have been locked away indefinitely. Their only connection to the outside world is trauma counsellor Poh Lin Lee.
FESTIVALS AND AWARDS
TRIBECA FILM FESTIVAL (BEST DOCUMENTARY FEATURE) | EDINBURGH INTERNATIONAL FILM FESTIVAL (SPECIAL MENTION) | VISIONS DU RÉEL (BUYENS-CHAGOLL AWARD)
Gabrielle Brady, born in 1984, is an Australian filmmaker who makes documentary and hybrid films. She studied documentary filmmaking at Cuban International Film School. Brady has lived nomadically for the past 10 years, traveling between Cuba, Mongolia, Indonesia, the Australian central desert, and Europe. Her short film The Island (2017) was commissioned as part of the Guardian documentary series and premiered at the Sheffield International Documentary Festival. Island of the Hungry Ghosts is her first feature film.
61
DOMINIC SANGMA
MA•AMA 123’
GARO
2018
INDIA CHINA FICTION
DIRECTOR Dominic Sangma STORY/SCREENPLAY Dominic Sangma CINEMATOGRAPHER Venu Madhavan EDITOR Hira Das SOUND DESIGN Julius Basaiawmoit
Philip, 85, has been living in hope, over the last 30 years, that one day he will be reunited with his wife in afterlife. But his yearning is jeopardised by the dream he had about her — in which he searched for her among a crowd of women in a barren landscape, but he could not recognise her face no matter how much he struggled. Tormented by the doubt whether dead people too grow old like us — or whether their appearance changes with time — he puts all efforts to ensure his reunion with his wife and to do whatever it takes to retain the fading memories of her face from his mind. But this quest demands Philip to face the things he has avoided for 30 years, and at this stage it’s no longer a choice but the only gate available.
PRODUCERS Xu Jianshang, Dominic Sangma PRODUCTION COMPANY Anna Films CAST Philip Sangma
Dominic Sangma’s first feature film — MA•AMA (2018), an Indo-China production — was presented in the National Film Development Corporation (NFDC) Film Bazaar, Work in Progress Lab, in 2017. He is a graduate from the Satyajit Ray Film and Television Institute. He worked in NFDC as a filmmaker and script writer for two years before opening his production company, Anna Films. He also teaches direction and screenwriting at the Film and Television Institute, Itanagar.
62
PHUTTIPHONG AROONPHENG
Manta Ray Kraben Rahu
105’
THAI
2018
THAILAND FRANCE CHINA FICTION
DIRECTOR Phuttiphong Aroonpheng STORY/SCREENPLAY Phuttiphong Aroonpheng CINEMATOGRAPHER Nawarophaat Rungphiboonsophit EDITORS Lee Chatametikool, Harin Paesongthai SOUND DESIGN Chalermrat Kaweewattana, Arnaud Rolland, Charles Bussienne PRODUCERS Mai Meksawan, Philippe Avril PRODUCTION COMPANIES Diversion, Youku Pictures, Les Films de l’Étranger SALES AGENT Jour2Fete CAST Wanlop Rungkumjad, Aphisit Hama, Rasmee Wayrana
Near a coastal village of Thailand, by the sea where thousands of Rohingya refugees have drowned, a local fisherman finds an injured man lying unconscious in the forest. He rescues the stranger, who does not speak a word, offers him his friendship and names him Thongchai. But when the fisherman suddenly disappears at sea, Thongchai slowly begins to take over his friend’s life — his house, his job, and his ex-wife.
FESTIVALS AND AWARDS
VENICE FILM FESTIVAL (ORIZZONTI PRIZE) | TORONTO INTERNATIONAL FILM FESTIVAL | SAN SEBASTIÁN INTERNATIONAL FILM FESTIVAL
Phuttiphong Aroonpheng is a Thai filmmaker who studied fine arts at Bangkok’s Silpakorn University and filmmaking at New York’s Digital Film Academy. He has directed several experimental shorts and mid-length films including We All Know Each Other (2007), Our Monument (2008), and Ferris Wheel (2015).
63
CHRISTINA CHOE
Nancy 86’
ENGLISH
2018
USA
FICTION
DIRECTOR Christina Choe STORY/SCREENPLAY Christina Choe CINEMATOGRAPHER Zoë White EDITOR David Gutnik PRODUCERS Amy Lo, Michelle Cameron, Andrea Riseborough PRODUCTION COMPANY Nancy The Film SALES AGENT Cercamon CAST Andrea Riseborough, J. Smith-Cameron, Steve Buscemi, Ann Dowd, John Leguizamo
Nancy is a provocative psychological thriller about love, intimacy, and trust — and what happens when lies become truth. Craving connection with others, Nancy creates elaborate identities and hoaxes under pseudonyms on the Internet. When she meets a couple whose daughter went missing 30 years ago, fact and fiction begin to blur in Nancy’s mind, and she becomes increasingly convinced these strangers are her real parents. As their bond deepens, reasonable doubts give way to willful belief — and the power of emotion threatens to overcome all rationality. FESTIVALS AND AWARDS
SUNDANCE FILM FESTIVAL (THE WALDO SALT SCREENWRITING AWARD: US DRAMATIC) | DEAUVILLE FILM FESTIVAL
Christina Choe’s short films have screened at dozens of festivals, including the Telluride Film Festival and SXSW Film Festival, as well as the Slamdance Film Festival, where her short I Am John Wayne (2012) won the Grand Jury Prize for Best Short Film. Choe’s honours also include an HBOAccess® Directing Fellowship; an artist residency at The MacDowell Colony; a Sundance Institute Fellowship; and a Roger and Chaz Ebert Foundation Fellowship, which was awarded at the Film Independent Spirit Awards.
64
ALIREZA MOTAMEDI
Reza 94’
FARSI
2018
IRAN
FICTION
DIRECTOR Alireza Motamedi STORY/SCREENPLAY Alireza Motamedi CINEMATOGRAPHER Ali Tabrizi EDITOR Maysam Molaie SOUND DESIGN Amir - Hossein Ghasemi PRODUCERS Kiumars Pourahmad, Alireza Motamedi SALES AGENT Iranian Independents CAST Alireza Motamedi, Sahar Dolatshahi, Setareh Pesiani, Reza Davoudnezhad, Afsar Asadi
Reza and Fati separate after nine years of marriage. According to Islamic law they have three months and 10 days to revoke their divorce if they change their minds. Reza, who still loves Fati, attempts to start a new life, but Fati will not leave his life, or his mind, so easily. Reza, an author, starts writing a story about his ancestors who years ago immigrated to the historic holy city of Isfahan. That story begins with a 100-year-old man, abandoned by his family and left to die in the desert.
FESTIVALS AND AWARDS
FAJR INTERNATIONAL FILM FESTIVAL
Alireza Motamedi was born in Isfahan in 1978. A Persian literature graduate, he’s been a writer, poet, film critic, and scriptwriter for 20 years. He’s written scripts for more than 20 feature films and TV series, and Reza is his debut.
65
ETIENNE KALLOS
The Harvesters Die Stropers
104’
AFRIKANEER ENGLISH
2018
FRANCE GREECE POLAND SOUTH AFRICA FICTION
DIRECTOR Etienne Kallos STORY/SCREENPLAY Etienne Kallos CINEMATOGRAPHER Michal Englert EDITOR Muriel Breton SOUND DESIGN Leandros Ntounis, Thomas Robert, Jean-Guy Veran PRODUCERS Sophie Erbs, Tom Dercourt, Thembisa Cochrane, Michael Auretm, Giorgos Karnavas, Konstantinos Kontovrakis, Mariusz Wlodarski PRODUCTION COMPANIES Cinema Defacto, Spier Films, Heretic, Lava Films SALES AGENT Pyramide International CAST Brent Vermeulen, Alex van Dyk, Juliana Venter, Morne Visser
South Africa, the Free State region, an isolated stronghold of the Afrikaans white ethnic minority culture. In this conservative farming territory obsessed with strength and masculinity, Janno is different, secretive, and emotionally frail. One day his mother, fiercely religious, brings home Pieter, a hardened street orphan she wants to save, and asks Janno to accept this stranger as his brother. The two boys start a fight for power, heritage, and parental love.
FESTIVALS AND AWARDS
CANNES FILM FESTIVAL (UN CERTAIN REGARD)
Etienne Kallos is an award-winning Greek-South African screenwriter and filmmaker. In 2009, his thesis film, Firstborn, was the first Afrikaans-language film to win the Corto Cortissimo Lion for the Best Short Film at the Venice Film Festival. His documentaries have been screened at the Berlinale, the Public Broadcasting Service, and the Montreal World Film Festival. The Harvesters is his feature film debut.
66
MARCELO MARTINESSI
The Heiresses Las Herederas
95’
SPANISH
2018
BRAZIL URUGUAY NORWAY FRANCE PARAGUAY GERMANY FICTION
DIRECTOR Marcelo Martinessi STORY/SCREENPLAY Marcelo Martinessi CINEMATOGRAPHER Luis Arteaga EDITOR Fernando Epstein SOUND DESIGN Rafael Alvarez PRODUCERS Sebastian Pena Escobar, Christoph Friedel, Fernando Epstein, Agustina Chiario, Julia Murat, Hilde Berg, Marina Perales, Xavier Rocher PRODUCTION COMPANIES Companies: La Babosa Cine, Pandora Film Produktion, Esquina Producoes Artisticas, Mutante Cine, Norsk Filmproduksjon, La Fábrica Nocturna SALES AGENT Luxbox CAST Ana Brun, Margarita Irún, Ana Ivanova, Nilda Gonzalez, María Martins
Chela and Chiquita, both descendants from wealthy families in Asunción, Paraguay, have been together for over 30 years. But their financial situation has recently worsened, and they have begun selling off their inherited possessions. When their debts lead to Chiquita being imprisoned on fraud charges, Chela is forced to face a new reality. Driving for the first time in years, she begins to provide a local taxi service to a group of elderly wealthy ladies. As Chela settles into her new life, she encounters the much younger Angy, forging a fresh and invigorating new connection. Chela finally begins to break out of her shell and engage with the world, embarking on her own personal, intimate revolution. FESTIVALS AND AWARDS
BERLINALE (SILVER BEAR-ALFRED BAUER PRIZE, SILVER BEAR FOR BEST ACTRESS (ANA BRUN), FIPRESCI PRIZE)
Marcelo Martinessi studied communication at Catholic University of Asunción and cinema at London Film School. His short films, revolving around literature and memory, have been shown at the Berlinale, Clermont Ferrand, and Kinoforum, among other festivals. He was the executive director of the first public TV in his country from the beginning of the project in 2010 until the coup d’état of June 2012. Capturing his nation’s trauma during that political chaos, he wrote and directed The Lost Voice (2016), which won the Best Short Film at Venice Film Festival. 67
ADINA PINTILIE
Touch Me Not 125’
ENGLISH GERMAN
2018
ROMANIA GERMANY FRANCE BULGARIA CZECH REPUBLIC
FICTION
DIRECTOR Adina Pintilie STORY/SCREENPLAY Adina Pintilie CINEMATOGRAPHER George Chiper-Lillemark EDITOR Adina Pintilie SOUND DESIGN Dominik Dolejší PRODUCERS Bianca Oana, Philippe Avril PRODUCTION COMPANIES Manekino Film, Rohfilm Productions, Les Films de l’Etranger, Agitprop, Pink SALES AGENT Doc & Film International CAST Laura Benson, Tómas Lemarquis, Christian Bayerlein, Grit Uhlemann, Adina Pintilie
A filmmaker and her characters venture into a personal research on intimacy. On the fluid border of reality and fiction, Touch Me Not follows the emotional journeys of Laura, Tómas, and Christian, offering a deeply empathetic insight into their lives. Craving for intimacy yet also deeply afraid of it, they work to overcome old patterns, defense mechanisms, and taboos, to cut the cord and finally be free. Touch Me Not looks at how we can find intimacy in the most unexpected ways and at how to love another without losing ourselves. FESTIVALS AND AWARDS
BERLINALE (GOLDEN BEAR)
Adina Pintilie graduated from National University of Drama and Film Bucharest in 2008. She is a young Romanian filmmaker and visual artist, often awarded in prestigious international film festivals. Lying at the border of fiction, documentary, and visual art, her work is very particular in the new Romanian cinema landscape, standing out through a highly personal visual style, the courage to experiment in cinematic language, and an uncompromising exploration of human psyche.
68
PAUL DANO
Wildlife 104’
ENGLISH
2017
USA
FICTION
DIRECTOR Paul Dano STORY/SCREENPLAY Paul Dano, Zoe Kazan CINEMATOGRAPHER Diego Garcia EDITORS Matt Hannam, Louise Ford SOUND DESIGN Jacob Ribicoff PRODUCERS Alex Saks, Paul Dano, Oren Moverman, Ann Ruark, Jake Gyllenhaal, Riva Marker PRODUCTION COMPANY IFC Films SALES AGENT FilmNation Entertainment INDIAN DISTRIBUTOR Sony Pictures Entertainment India CAST Bill Camp, Jake Gyllenhaal, Carey Mulligan, Ed Oxenbould
Fourteen-year-old Joe is the only child of Jeanette and Jerry — a housewife and a golf pro — in a small town in 1960s Montana. Nearby, an uncontrolled forest fire rages close to the Canadian border, and when Jerry loses his job, and his sense of purpose, he decides to join the cause of fighting the fire, leaving his wife and son to fend for themselves. Suddenly forced into the role of an adult, Joe witnesses his mother’s struggle as she tries to keep her head above water.
FESTIVALS AND AWARDS
SUNDANCE FILM FESTIVAL | CANNES FILM FESTIVAL (CRITICS’ WEEK) | TORONTO INTERNATIONAL FILM FESTIVAL
Paul Dano was born in New York City and made his Broadway acting debut at the age of 12. His many acting credits include Looper (2012), Prisoners (2013), 12 Years a Slave (2013), Youth (2015), and Okja (2017). Wildlife (2018) is his feature directorial debut.
69
MINIMUM CITY
There’s something unique about the way young filmmakers look at Mumbai. It’s not only the energy or the curiosity of their gaze. It’s not only the willingness to look past locations as more than mere backdrops. A majority of these voices seem to recognise that “Dimensions Mumbai” is not just a competition title. As is evident from this year’s finest, they have identified its essence. Mumbai is, after all, a cinema of spaces. The city is a story of varying dimensions.
From local trains and taxis to pavements and cramped flats, from dug-up streets and editing suites to crowded crematoriums and heritage cafes, this year’s selected short films have expertly used space as the language of urban expression. What’s remarkable is that the makers have allowed the inherent economy of this medium to inform, rather than limit, this distinct spatial dynamic. The themes are diverse: love stories, documentaries, satires, tragedies, and even a thriller. The density of humanity in this city is so compelling that a rolling camera is perhaps all that distinguishes the storytellers from the observers. Maybe it’s no coincidence then that this list has no less than three films about filmmaking! It goes to show that the craft remains just as important as the thinking, no matter how young the minds are. Put together, these little snapshots of conflicting cultures are emblematic of the variety a global film festival such as this should offer. The selection process has felt less like a job and more like an exclusive walk down the isle of Indian cinema’s future. It has been refreshing for our jaded eyes to notice the world through these untainted perspectives. It has been a privilege to meet these filmmakers through their work. And it has been most encouraging to note that the creators today have begun to treat short filmmaking as more than just a stepping-stone to bigger things. It is its own beast and has acquired the dimensions of a separate medium: one that is used to tell stories, rather than simply suggest them. We thank the participants for their best efforts. And we wish them the very best of luck for their “space” on the big screens of the Jio MAMI Mumbai Film Festival with Star.
Selection Committee
Amrita Pandey
Rahul Desai
Amrita Pandey is the Regional Head (Media Distribution and OTT, South Asia) for The Walt Disney Company.T, she leads Disney Media Distribution for the region which involves distributing film and television content and channels from the company across platforms encompassing television, video-on-demand services, Direct-to- Home (DTH), and mobile.
Rahul Desai critiques everything from fulllength Hindi films, short films, and web shows for Anupama Chopra’s Film Companion. He is also a fortnightly columnist for The Hindu. He spends his spare time travelling to obscure countries to identify little-known movie locations and dreams about writing a Pulitzer-winning Roger Federer feature. 72
Jury
HEAD OF JURY
Rajkumar Hirani Rajkumar Hirani, a graduate of the Film and Television Institute of India, has the distinction of writing and directing some of India’s most loved films in recent times. His debut, Munna Bhai M.B.B.S (2003), is a humane and humorous rendering of a lovable gangster’s attempt at becoming a doctor. His second film, Lage Raho Munna Bhai (2006), was instrumental in reviving interest in Mahatma Gandhi among the Indian youth. His third film, 3 Idiots (2009), was a box office blockbuster, one of the biggest ever in Hindi cinema, inspiring academicians and lay people to rethink about the rat race prevalent in the Indian educational system. His next film, PK (2014), a satire on human customs, raised the bar set by his three previous films in terms of box office success worldwide. His recent film, Sanju (2018), based on the life of actor Sanjay Dutt, is a hilarious and heartbreaking exploration of one man’s battle against his own wild self and the formidable external forces trying to crush him.
Jury
Bejoy Nambiar
Parvathy Renuka Thiruvothu Shahane
Shirley Abraham
Bejoy Nambiar is an Indian director, screenwriter, and producer, who made his debut with Shaitan (2011). Nambiar has assisted the veteran Indian filmmaker Mani Ratnam on films such as Guru (2007), Raavan (2010), and Kaatru Veliyidai (2017) as an associate director, line producer, and creative producer. Shaitan, made under his banner Getaway Films, was praised for its gripping, disturbing, yet realistic, depiction of India’s urban youth. The film won him the Most Promising Director of the Year at the 18th Annual Colors Screen Awards. Nambiar has since directed three other features: two in Hindi, David (2013) and Wazir (2016), and a Tamil-Malayalam bilingual, Solo (2017).
Parvathy Thiruvothu made her acting debut in the 2006 Malayalam film Out of Syllabus. She shot to fame with her performances in critically and commercially successful films including Notebook (2006), Poo (2008), City of God (2011), Mariyan (2013), Bangalore Days (2014), Uttama Villain (2015), Ennu Ninte Moideen (2015), Charlie (2015), Take Off (2017), and My Story (2018). Thiruvothu recently made her Hindi feature debut with Qarib Qarib Single (2017) opposite actor Irrfan Khan. She is one of the founding members of the Women in Cinema Collective (WCC), a nonprofit organisation focused on working towards the welfare of women in Malayalam film industry.
Shirley Abraham is a Cannes prize-winning documentary filmmaker. The Cinema Travellers (2016) is her debut film, codirected with Amit Madheshiya. The film premiered as an Official Selection at Cannes Film Festival, winning the Special Jury Prize for L’Oeil d’or: Le Prix du documentaire. It has played at 120 film festivals worldwide and won 19 awards, including the National Film Award in India. Abraham and Madheshiya have also made a short documentary, Searching for Saraswati (2018), India’s first Op Doc for The New York Times.
Renuka Shahane has been an actress in Indian theatre, television, and film for the last 31 years. Her work includes critically acclaimed and popular TV serials such as Circus (1989), Surabhi (1990), Closeup Antakshari (1993), Imtihaan (1994), Sailaab (1995), and Kora Kaagaz (1998). She won the Filmfare Award for Best Actress for the Marathi film Aboli in 1996. Her directorial debut, Rita (2010), was screened at the Munich International Film Festival. Her screenplay “Tribhanga” was selected for the Mumbai Mantra Sundance Screenwriter’s workshop in 2013 and the National Development Film Corporation Co-Production Market in 2016.
74
ARYAN DESAI
Ajal – Hour of Death 5’
2018
HINDI
DOCUMENTARY
Ajal – Hour of Death documents the life of Pappu, a crematorium worker who burns bodies for a living, and his perspective on life and, more importantly, death.
Aryan Desai, a recent BMM graduate from the Usha Pravin Gandhi College of Management, Mumbai, aspires to be a cinematographer.
TUHIN BASU
Amar Niwas 5’
HINDI
2018
FICTION
Wanting to start his business, Sanjeev tries to convince his father, Rajendra, to take a loan by putting their house as collateral. Rajendra refutes the idea, leading to an argument between the father and son.
Tuhin Basu is currently a student of filmmaking at Whistling Woods International and aspires to become a feature filmmaker.
KARAN SHARMA
Exist
3’15”
HINDI
2018
FICTION
Exist showcases the life of a man in his late20s. As time progresses we see a monotonous structure to his life, which surrounds his daily chores at home and work.
Karan Sharma, just out of college, is an editor and a cinematographer and has made three films as part of his college projects.
75
AISHWARYA GANDHE
Formula Number… 4’58”
HINDI
2018
FICTION
An aspiring director decides to shoot a film for a short film competition. He studies award winning films from the past years to search for a formula for success.
Aishwarya Gandhe holds a master’s degree in mass communication. She has worked as an assistant director for TV commercials and worked as a social media executive for ABP Weddings - Marathi.
SAHIL D. GADA
Frames 4’50”
HINDI, ENGLISH
2018
FICTION
An editor in the 80s is editing a documentary — in the process he discovers some unsettling footage.
Sahil D. Gada, born in Jamnagar, bred in Nairobi, has made several short fiction and non-fiction films that have screened in several local African film festivals.
AMI BHANSALI, SAHIL PATEL
Gajra 5’
HINDI
2018
FICTION
When an upper middle-class working woman, boards a Taxi after a regular day at work, she has no idea that the ride would be a life-changing one...
Ami Bhansali and Sahil Patel, students of Mithibai College, are 19-year-old aspiring filmmakers. Gajra is their first short film.
76
VIDAR JOSHI
In Space Without a Spaceship 5’
HINDI
2018
FICTION
Arun’s daughter, Nabha, wanted to go to Mars, but he lost her at a young age. This film is about an unlikely union that transcends death.
Vidar Joshi is an engineering dropout and the founder of Semicolon Films, which makes fiction and non-fiction short films.
SHRADDHA SAWANT
Local Story 4’59”
HINDI
2018
FICTION
Local Story shows the journey of a father and his friend in a local train, slowly unraveling the thoughts he had kept locked in his mind about his daughter whom he hasn’t spoken to in ages.
Shraddha Sawant is a theatre artist who has participated in many oneact play competitions and directed college plays.
GILROY RODRIGUES
Metaphor 4’39”
HINDI
2018
FICTION
Metaphor is about a man who thinks that this world is not perfect and something is missing.
Gilroy Rodrigues is a Mumbai-based filmmaker who was inspired to make films after watching Christopher Nolan’s Memento (2000).
77
AAYUSH GAUR
Mumbai Dreams 4’58”
HINDI
2018
FICTION
Aman Raina, an aspiring actor, dreams of stardom. Mumbai Dreams follows his personal journey through a series of auditions.
Aayush Gaur, a former software engineer, arrived in Mumbai to pursue filmmaking. Like the character in his film, Gaur wants to make it big in Mumbai.
KUSHZRAJ MEHRA
New Bombay Café 3’20”
ENGLISH, HINDI
2018
FICTION
Boy loves girl. The girl doesn’t reciprocate his feelings. Fifty years later, their paths cross once more.
Kushzraj Mehra is assisting directors of ad and feature films. A recent college graduate, he’s currently writing a web series.
KUSHAGRA SHARMA
Pawan Kumar Ki Suhagarat 5’
HINDI
2018
FICTION
Pawan Kumar, recently married, lives in a Mumbai chawl with his family. Due to lack of space, he’s unable to consummate his marriage. Worried that his wife is upset with him, Pawan resolves to find a way to sexually please her.
Kushagra Sharma has been directing short films for the last four years. He wants to make films, with optimistic messages, that connect with a large audience.
78
KARAN ASNANI
Sheher Ya Tum The City or You
5’
HINDI
2018
FICTION
A poet has been contemplating an important life decision since the last two months. He has to choose between the city that has given him everything and the love of his life.
Karan Asnani has been making short films since the last five years, two of which — Jashn-e-Daawat (2013) and Majha Honeymoon (2014) — have been screened at the Jio MAMI Mumbai Film Festival with Star.
ARITRO MUKHERJEE
Stories From the Night 3’
ENGLISH, HINDI
2018 DOCUMENTARY
Stories From the Night is a short documentary that explores the challenges of not having a roof over your head in a city that never sleeps...
Aritro Mukherjee is a student filmmaker who has worked on short films, corporate videos, and web series. He enjoys and is influenced by the mockumentary style of filmmaking.
GUNDEEP KAUR
The News 5’
ENGLISH, HINDI
2017
FICTION
Radhika is worried when she tells her husband, Vinay, that she’s pregnant. He understands her concerns but encourages her to inform her family. When she reluctantly calls them, the complexity of their relationship is revealed.
Gundeep Kaur is currently studying filmmaking at Whistling Woods International Institute. She has written and directed many short films.
79
NISHTHA SADWELKAR
Yadav Ji 5’
HINDI
2018
DOCUMENTARY
Yadav ji, from Benaras, came to Mumbai at the age of 18 and stayed in search of a better livelihood. He found much more: joys in hardship, friends, and local popularity.
Nishtha Sadwelkar, an aspiring documentary filmmaker, has worked as a costume assistant in films such as Besharam (2013), Bang Bang! (2014), and PK (2014).
20
81
Jury
HEAD OF JURY
Radhika Apte
Marten Rabarts
Devashish Makhija
Yami Gautam
Radhika Apte is one of the most credible figures in Indian cinema today. She has a vast body of critically and commercially acclaimed work to her credit. She has recently taken Netflix by storm, giving one stellar performance after another. Her distinctive personality along with her passion for acting has made her a household name in cinema.
Marten Rabarts, after heading the Binger Filmlab as Artistic Director for 12 years, moved to Mumbai in 2012 as the Head of Development and Training at the National Film Development Corporation of India, helping projects such as The Lunchbox (2013), Titli (2014), Island City (2015), and Lipstick Under My Burkha (2017). He returned to Amsterdam in 2015 as the Head of EYE international for the promotion of Dutch cinema and film culture in global film festivals and markets.
Devashish Makhija has written Tulika Books’ Why Paploo Was Perplexed (2011) and When Ali became Bajrangbali (2012); written a Harper-Collins collection of short stories Forgetting (2014) and a book of poems, Disengaged (2017). He has written and directed multiple award-winning short films such as Rahim Murge Pe Mat Ro (2008), Agli Baar (2015), El’ayichi (2015), Absent (2016), Taandav (2016), and the feature films Ajji (2017), and Bhonsle (2018).
Yami Gautam is an Indian model and actress who predominantly appears in Hindi films. Making her debut in the Kannada film Ullasa Utsaha (2009), she has given noted performances in films such as Vicky Donor (2012), Kaabil (2017), and Batti Gul Meter Chalu (2018). Gautam’s also a passionate humanitarian who has helped set up libraries in small towns across Maharashtra.
82
Laddoo
World Premiere
SAMEER SADHWANI, KISHOR SADHWANI 12’30”
As per Hindu rituals, it is believed an offering made to ancestors on their death anniversary reaches them through the Pandit (Hindu Priest). But seven-yearold Rahul can’t understand how. He asks many pertinent questions — how do we know that the food actually reaches our ancestors? Why don’t we feed the Pandit everyday? Even as he struggles to comprehend this concept, he is entrusted with the task of delivering lunch to the Pandit on his grandfather’s death anniversary.
Sameer Sadhwani has worked as an assistant director, on films such as Sarkar Raj (2008), London Dreams (2009), Action Replayy (2010), among others, for a decade. Kishor Sadhwani has developed content for Indian TV channels such as Star TV (Sher-e-Punjab: Maharaja Ranjit Singh (2017)), Discovery Jeet (21 Sarfarosh (2018)), and MTV. He heads a script shop under the banner SCRITPEase, which has written scripts for popular Indian cartoons such as Chor Police (2007), Chhota Bheem (2008), and Krishna Balram (2008). .
Maya
ANIRUDDHA ROY CHOWDHURY 17’30”
Anjan, a lower middle-class Bengali guy, in his late 20s, takes piano lessons from Mr. Srinivasan. His young daughter, Maya, a happy-go-lucky extrovert, befriends Anjan in no time, and develops a deep admiration for her. Slowly, he figures out that Maya is way beyond his league. Meanwhile, Maya strikes a great “conversational” friendship over telephone with a guy she’s never met, and eventually falls in love. But she doesn’t know that that ‘stranger’ is no one else but Anjan.
Aniruddha Roy Chowdhury is an Indian filmmaker. He has directed multiple Bengali films and received a National Film Award in the Best Film category for his 2008 movie Antaheen. He also made a cameo appearance in the 2015 movie Piku.
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Rogan Josh SANJEEV VIG 16’5”
Celebrated chef Vijay Kapoor of Taj Hotel has invited his family and friends for dinner at his home on the night of his birthday. The dinner table conversation meanders to the shared experience of a nightmarish night, on 26/11. They joke how much worse the night could have become and question the quality of their existence after that life-changing event.
Sanjeev Vig, an erstwhile electronics engineer, resigned from his desk job and came to Mumbai to become a filmmaker. He has assisted filmmakers such as David Dhawan, Neeraj Pandey, Raj, Dk, among others.
Shame
ANUSHA BOSE 21’17”
“These people walk the same corridors as us and forget where they come from, who they are...” It is with this harsh reminder that Sumer Seth, a guest at a posh hotel, fires the housekeeping staff, Fanny Lobo, when she’s caught trying on his girlfriend’s lingerie. However, when Fanny slips and crosses the forbidden line in a moment of temptation, she confronts both the wrath of her employers and the demon within. Shame is the twisted journey of a meek, vulnerable woman who emerges from the background to unapologetically reclaim her dignity, confidence and her right to desire
After a decade of producing news and lifestyle features at NDTV, Anusha Bose moved to non-fiction programming, conceptualising shows for Star Plus, Life OK, Channel V, Jalsa, and Pravah. She went on to head business development and create fiction programming for a production house, Rowdy Rascal, before starting to write screenplays for film and the web. Shame is her directorial debut. 84
Adwaita MANWAR RANA
Badhir 18’26”
8’19”
Dhund (The Fog)
Bhishma PARTH R
SATYAM MISHRA
7’33”
SUDEEP KANWAL
23’53”
Face It CHANDRASISH RAY
2’56”
9’
Hasmukh Sadan
Forbidden VIBHA GULATI
ADITYA PAWAR
20’35”
HAIDER ALI
11’24” 85
Khatoon Ki Khidmat SAHEEM KHAN
25’
Neel on Wheels ABHILAASH SAHU
6’14”
20’
8’6”
PRANAV BHASIN
8’50”
Roop Ki Rani ROHIT MITTAL
19’40”
Sangharsh
Sambhavtaha GAURAV MADAN
ANUSHA RAO
New Years Eve
Pesum Por Chithirame SABARIVASAN SHANMUGAM
Left Behind
23’
SATYARTH SHAURYA SINGH
11’56” 86
Satyadhar Coaching DR. KRISHNENDU CHATTERJEE
25’
7’20”
10’21”
RAJEEV
4’22”
Tyson
Tu RAHUL NANGIA
ABBAS JALALI YEKTA
The Hungry Stones
The Crossroads ALIASGHAR BEHBOODI
Son of the Sea
7’
SANJAY BHATIA
12’59”
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Oxfam India, a leading non-profit organisation, in partnership with Jio MAMI 20th Mumbai Film Festival with Star has instituted an award: Oxfam India — Best Film on Gender Equality. The Indian film industry is one of the most influential platforms in Indian society. Films are also an important route to break stereotypes about women and girls, and challenge social norms that devalue them. Through this award, we aim to recognise and encourage professional filmmakers who are making cinema that inspires people to work towards a future in which women are empowered and violence against them no longer exists. This award category focusses on films that challenge gender-based social norms perpetuating gender inequality, and hence to the global pandemic of violence against women and girls. 88
89
Jury
PHOTO BY BRIGITTE LACOMBE
HEAD OF JURY
Rima Das Rima Das is a self-taught film writer, producer, and director. Born and raised in a small village in Assam, she is now based in Mumbai and Assam. Her debut feature, Antardrishti (2016), had its world premiere at the Jio MAMI 18th Mumbai Film Festival with Star and later screened at the Tallinn Black Nights Film Festival. Village Rockstars (2017), her second feature, premiered at the Toronto International Film Festival. Since then it has traveled to more than 70 film festivals around the world and is India’s official selection for the 91st Academy Awards. Her latest feature, Bulbul Can Sing (2018), had its world premiere at the Toronto International Film Festival in the Contemporary World Cinema section.
Fatma Al Remaihi
Anjali Menon
Fatma Al Remaihi, the CEO of the Doha Film Institute in 2014, is responsible for overseeing the strategic direction of the Institute, maintaining its focus on promoting film culture in Qatar, and establishing its presence on the international stage. She was recently ranked among the 500 most influential business leaders shaping the global entertainment industry by Variety and was also profiled in the 50 women leaders in Variety’s first International Women’s Impact Report for 2018. Born and raised in Doha, Al Remaihi graduated from Qatar University with a degree in English Literature. She resides in her hometown and is a mother of four.
Anjali Menon is an established writer & director who has won a place in the hearts of Malayali audience with her films Manjadikuru, Ustad Hotel & Bangalore Days. Her work has received commercial success as well as critical acclaim among the youth as well as family audiences. Her themes usually touch family, migration and freedom which resound powerfully with the youth and family audiences alike. Her latest film Koode was one of this year’s most celebrated films
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WE THE KEEPERS by Parvathy Thiruvothu The objectives of gender diversity in arts, especially in cinema, are quite simple: to ensure that everyone has access to the same opportunities and is treated fairly. However, we’ve historically failed to understand the urgency of these objectives, which is key to revitalise a malnourished industry. A society cannot flourish, let alone function, without the equal participation and representation of its citizens. Art is an integral part of this political equation even as it wears the garb of entertainment — its commercial nature cannot exempt its socio-political responsibility. Cinema has enjoyed a steady increase in popularity over the decades. That is where the stakes become high. In terms of content as well as inclusivity in the workforce, we are constantly moulding the collective psyche of our society.
disbeliefs walking into theatres. We know that it is not real — that it is a setup, that the actors are performing. Yet we start believing. We feel with, and feel for, their characters. We empathise, we laugh, we judge, we cry — a whole spectrum of emotional dynamics comes into play.
Visual storytelling takes two broad paths of influence: realistic and larger than - life narratives. The former leads the audience to ponder the subjects (or themselves), while the latter provides an aspirational endorphin boost; the rush of hope and possibilities. These, however, aren’t the only visual narrative influences, yet they play a huge part in shaping the realities of gender inclusivity through commercial cinema.
There is an equally urgent need to include professionals from all genders in various filmmaking crafts. Why do we still lack inclusivity? The issues of safety, acceptance, confidence, as well as fair treatment play a huge part in answering this question. Women in Cinema Collective (WCC), of which I am a core committee member, was officially formed on November 1, 2017, following the ghastly sexual assault on our colleague, leading us to hundreds of unreported cases of violation and harassment at workplace. This coming together marked the making of a think
Visual narratives strongly impact our subconscious minds. We suspend our
Our minds trust and accept what comes on screen as the norm — the good, the bad, and the ugly. The generalisation or glorification of matters reflecting our daily lives cannot have a deficit in representation. By allowing this, we risk normalising inequality, validating the abuses and letting the perspectives to be monotonous and monopolised. I’m not suggesting censoring — that is neither the question nor the answer. Then what is? Gender inclusive perspectives would help us eradicate this destructive polarity in cinema.
tank of diverse film professionals, who sought to stand by each other’s struggles, such as the lack of work opportunities and representation, arising due to gender bias. Further probing revealed that working conditions for women as well as transsexuals in various film industries in India are indecent to an unfathomable degree.
arteries that keep these tides of change alive. There aren’t many that can come forward with facts and evidences without facing repercussions: the possibility of losing jobs or facing online abuse. I know it’s true because I’ve seen my colleagues being deprived of work, and I’ve myself received rape and death threats for pointing out the glorification of misogyny in a movie.
At the request made by the WCC, the Chief Minister of Kerala appointed The Hema Commission, led by Justice Hema, to make rules protecting the dignity of film professionals whose creative services hugely benefit the economy. The WCC is the beginning of an education: of unlearning what was mindlessly accepted and learning to question everything that deny women their dignity, their right to livelihood and creativity.
Moreover, we need the privileged individuals to use their power instead of indulging in comfortable silence, as if their lack of participation doesn’t add to the injustice. Bertolt Brecht’s thought on political illiteracy is incredibly valid here: “The worst illiterate is the political illiterate. He doesn’t hear, doesn’t speak, nor participates in the political events. He doesn’t know that the cost of life, the price of the bean, of the fish, of the flour, of the rent, of the shoes and of the medicine, all depends on political decisions. The political illiterate is so stupid that he is proud and swells his chest saying that he hates politics. The imbecile doesn’t know that, from his political ignorance is born the prostitute, the abandoned child, and, the worst thieves of all, the bad politician, corrupted and flunky of the national and multinational companies.”
Discussions, dissection, and debates are crucial to this study. Calls to mobilise support such as #Avalkoppam (#WithHer), #MeToo, #TimesUp, #BelieveSurvivors, and many more hashtag movements, are required to build a community support system because, as was the case decades ago, we’re still staring at atavistic values that only serve a convenient majority. We have to go up in arms against power politics that continues to squash our interests and voices by intimidating and depriving us of work opportunities. Like the WCC, Indian Women Cinematographers’ Collective (IWCC), formed on March 8, 2018, showcases, encourages, and celebrates the work of Indian women cinematographers. Support systems like these are the
Don’t we have the responsibility for the impact our choices and actions have on one another? For those who actively choose this illiteracy, here is a thought worth considering: Don’t all good works of art address the question, “Am I my brother’s keeper?” Would the answer to this wake them up from their self-induced slumber?
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THE PLEASURES OF NEW INDIAN HORROR Even though I’ve been a programmer at a genre film festival for quite some time, my knowledge of Indian genre films was mostly limited to Bollywood and its big-budget action and sci-fi films and comedies with songs and dance. Films such as Om Shanti Om (2007), 3 Idiots (2009), Ra.One (2011), Baahubali (2015), and Dangal (2016) popped up on my radar, but it was only when I saw Rohit Mittal’s Autohead in 2016, that I began to look further into less familiar Indian genre films — the ones not just in Hindi but also Tamil, Telugu, Malayalam, and Kannada. My discovery was that not all Indian films are about songs and dance! The five Indian genre films, in recent times, that impressed me the most are as follows: Garbage (2018) by Qaushiq Mukherjee (Q): Ever since watching Ludo at the 2015 Sitges Film Festival, I was intrigued by Q’s style, and the screening of Garbage at this year’s Berlinale further solidified my interest in his films. It is great to know that a global over-the-top (OTT) platform like Netflix is making this film available for the global audience. Ezra (2017) by Jay K.: Jay’s directorial debut, a supernatural horror-thriller with a background on the Jewish culture in Kerala, gives an excellent glimpse on the future of Malayalam horror. Vikram Vedha (2017) by Pushkar-Gayathri: This Tamil crime thriller, a moral play between a cop and a Chennai mobster, is one of my absolute favourites of last year, with its impressive storytelling, relying on smart flashback and excellent chemistry between the two leads, where R. Madhavn plays Vikram, and Vijay Sethupathi Vedha. Pari (2018) by Prosit Roy: This is a Bollywood supernatural horror film, starring superstar Anushuka Sharma, which has an abundance of gore and violence. Amazon Prime has picked up this title to have it available in the majority of global territories. Awe (2018) by Prasanth Varma: This directorial debut is a progressive, kaleidoscopic Tollywood film, which is unlike anything mainstream Indian cinema has to offer. This female-centric tale — with nine different characters, whose viewpoints are unique and intertwined — is both intriguing and challenging.
Jongsuk Thomas Nam
Jongsuk Thomas Nam graduated from the University of Maryland at College Park with a Bachelor of Arts in Communication Arts in 1993. He returned to South Korea and joined the Busan International Film Festival (BIFF), in 1997, as a curator. He joined the Bucheon International Fantastic Film Festival (BiFAN) in 2007 as the festival consultant and, since 2009, is the Managing Director of Network of Asian Fantastic Films (NAFF), and BiFan Programmer of English-language territories since 2016. Curator, After Dark.
PETER STRICKLAND
In Fabric 118’
ENGLISH
2018
UK FICTION
FESTIVALS AND AWARDS
TORONTO INTERNATIONAL FILM FESTIVAL | LONDON FILM FESTIVAL | CPH:PIX
DIRECTOR Peter Strickland
SOUND DESIGN Martin Pavey
SALES AGENT Bankside Films
STORY/SCREENPLAY Peter Strickland
PRODUCERS Andrew Starke
CINEMATOGRAPHER Ari Wegner
PRODUCTION COMPANY Rook Films
CAST Gwendoline Christie, Marianne Jean-Baptiste, Hayley Squires, Leo Bill
EDITOR Matyas Fekete
HEATH C. MICHAELS
The World Over
In Fabric is set against the backdrop of a busy winter sales period in a department store and follows the life of a cursed dress as it passes from person to person, with devastating consequences.
UK born writer-director Peter Strickland’s first feature film, Katalin Varga (2009) which was also screened in the International Competition section at Jio MAMI Mumbai Film Festival with Star in 2009, was funded and produced independently over a four-year period. The micro-budget rural revenge drama went on to win numerous awards including a Silver Bear at the Berlinale. His films have since screened at many prestigious film festivals around the world. FILMOGRAPHY: Katalin Varga (2009), Björk: Biophilia Live (2014), The Duke of Burgundy (2014), The Film That Buys the Cinema (2014), The Field Guide to Evil (2018, the segment “The Cobblers’ Lot”)
17’30” ENGLISH
USA
2018
FICTION
When a reclusive mother-to-be discovers a door leading to a parallel world, her husband goes snooping inside and never returns. Fearing the worst, she goes in search of him, but instead finds herself embroiled in a dangerous game of mistaken identity after coming face-to-face with a mirror image of herself. Heath C. Michaels is an American filmmaker whose first film, Yeardley (2010), was nominated for the Best Feature in many prestigious film festivals around the world.
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PANOS COSMATOS
Mandy 121’
ENGLISH
2018
USA BELGIUM
FICTION
FESTIVALS AND AWARDS
SUNDANCE FILM FESTIVAL | CANNES FILM FESTIVAL | FANTASIA INTERNATIONAL FILM FESTIVAL
DIRECTOR Panos Cosmatos
SOUND DESIGN Yair Elazar Glotman
SALES AGENT Park Circus Limited
STORY/SCREENPLAY Panos Cosmatos, Aaron Stewart-Ahn
PRODUCERS Nate Bolotin, Daniel Noah, Adrian Politowski, Josh C. Waller, Elijah Wood
CAST Nicolas Cage, Andrea Riseborough, Linus Roache, Bill Duke, Richard Brake
CINEMATOGRAPHER Benjamin Loeb EDITOR Brett W. Bachman
PRODUCTION COMPANIES SpectreVision, Umedia, Legion M, XYZ Films
Mandy is set in the primal wilderness of 1983 where Red Miller, a broken and haunted man, hunts an unhinged religious sect who slaughtered the love of his life.
Panos Cosmatos is an Italian-Canadian filmmaker. Exposure to the global interpretations of American pop culture had a profound effect on his creative life. He likes to obsess over the minutiae of heavy metal, fantasy art, science fiction, and horror films.
FILMOGRAPHY: Beyond the Black Shadow (2010)
ILJA RAUTSI
Helsinki Mansplaining Massacre
15’ FINLAND
FINNISH
2018
FICTION
A horror comedy about one woman’s desperate struggle to survive a pack of men who just want to explain everything to her. Ilja Rautsi is a Finnish writer and filmmaker who
loves to play with genres, especially horror.
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DEMIÁN RUGNA
Terrified Aterrados
87’
SPANISH
2017
ARGENTINA FICTION
FESTIVALS AND AWARDS
MORBIDO FILM FESTIVAL (CINÉPOLIS AWARD)| FANTASTIC FILM FESTIVAL (BEST HORROR FILM)| FANTASPOA (BEST FILM)
DIRECTOR Demián Rugna
SOUND DESIGN Pablo Isola
SALES AGENT Aura Films
STORY/SCREENPLAY Demián Rugna
PRODUCERS Fernando Diaz, Andrea Kluger
CAST Ariel Chavarría, Maximiliano Ghione, Norberto Gonzalo, Elvira Onetto, Julieta Vallina
CINEMATOGRAPHER Mariano Suarez EDITOR Lionel Cornistein
PRODUCTION COMPANY Machaco Films
People who disappear, dead people who return from their graves, voices in the water drainages. Commissioner Maza tries explaining these events, which hit a neighborhood of Buenos Aires. With the paranormal investigators Allbreck, Jano, and Rosentock, Maza tries to unveil the mystery before evil destroys the existence of human society as we know it. Demián Rugna is an Argentenian filmmaker. He
directed his first feature, The Last Gateway, in 2007, which was chosen as one of the 10 best horror films by the Buried website. His second film as director was Malditos Sean!, co written and co-directed with Fabián Forte, which commercially released in national cinemas in 2013. He followed that up with the black comedy You Do Not Know Who You’re Talking To (2016). Terrified is his latest film. FILMOGRAPHY: The Last Gateway (2007), You Don’t Know Who You’re Talking To (2016)
BENJAMIN SWICKER
A/S/L
8’ USA
ENGLISH
2018
FICTION
A married man gets invited to a young teenage girl’s house over AIM and things aren’t as they seem. Benjamin Swicker is a writer, director, father of two, and a traditional horror enthusiast whose films have played to audiences all over the world.
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ANTHOLOGY FILM
The Field Guide to Evil 103’
GERMAN, GREEK, HINDI, HUNGARIAN, POLISH, TURKISH
2018
AUSTRIA, GERMANY, GREECE, HUNGARY, INDIA, POLAND, TURKEY, USA FICTION
FESTIVALS AND AWARDS
SXSW | FANTASIA INTERNATIONAL FILM FESTIVAL
DIRECTOR Ashim Ahluwalia, Can Evrenol, Severin Fiala and Veronika Franzt, Katrin Gebbe, Calvin Lee Reeder, Agnieszka Smoczynska, Peter Strickland, Yannis Veslemest,
SOUND DESIGN Yair Elazar Glotman PRODUCERS Robert Dehn, Can Evrenol, Nia Kingsley, Christos V. Konstantakopoul SALES AGENT The Festival Agency
PRODUCTION COMPANIES Timpson Films, Moviebar Productions, Legion M, Faliro House Productions, EchoWolf Productions, Aurum Film
A feature-length anthology film made by nine directors around the world, The Field Guide to Evil explores myths, lore, and folktales, which were created to give logic to mankind’s darkest fears, laying the foundation for what we know as the horror genre
Veronika Franz’s first feature, Goodnight Mommy (2015), alongside The Field Guide to Evil partner Severin Fiala, have made the duo sought out filmmakers in the horror scene. Severin Fiala and Veronika Franz’s mutual taste in film have made them a formidable directorial pair known for unsettling the audiences. Peter Strickland’s first feature, Katalin Varga (2009), was filmed over just 17 days in Romania. Agnieszka Smoczynska, a Polish filmmaker, often draws on her own childhood experiences of Communist-era Poland and her love of the bleak fairy tales of Hans Christian Andersen. Katrin Gebbe is a German director who began her filmmaking career with experimental pieces while she was a student of liberal arts and communications at the Academy of Visual Arts. Can Evrenol, a Turkish director, draws on his childhood memories while incorporating elements of modern and pop art and fairy tales. Calvin Reeder dropped out of the Seattle Film Institute and went on to direct many feature and short films. Ashim Ahluwalia is an acclaimed Indian filmmaker whose previous features, John and Jane (2005) and Miss Lovely (2012), have screened at prestigious international film festivals and won awards. Yannis Veslemes, a Greek director and composer, directed his first feature, Norway (2014), which defined his style as eclectic and dramatic.
MAI NAKANISHI
Hana
13’ KOREAN
SOUTH KOREA, JAPAN
2018
FICTION
A student has a job as a part-time babysitter. But when she is left alone with the little girl she’s supposed to look after, strange things start to happen. Mai Nakanishi is a Japanese filmmaker who has worked on a variety of international projects including working as an assistant director for one of Asia’s prominent arthouse auteurs, Eric Khoo.
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SHIN’ICHIRÔ UEDA
One Cut of the Dead Kamera o tomeru na!
96’
ENGLISH
2017
UK
FICTION
DIRECTOR Shin’ichirô Ueda STORY/SCREENPLAY Shin’ichirô Ueda CINEMATOGRAPHERS Tsuyoshi Sone EDITOR Shin’ichirô Ueda SOUND DESIGN Kokichi Komoda PRODUCER Koji Ichihashi PRODUCTION COMPANY Enbu Seminar SALES AGENT Third Window Films CAST Takayuki Hamatsu, Mao, Harumi Shuhama, Kazuaki Nagaya
The film opens to a run-down, abandoned warehouse where a film crew is making a zombie film. Yet this is no ordinary warehouse. It’s known to be the site where military experiments took place. Out of nowhere, the real zombies arrive and terrorise the crew. This may sound like the plot of a clichéd zombie film, but One Cut of the Dead is something completely different. Starting off with a one-take 37-minute shot, the film then switches direction and turns the zombie genre upside down into a charming, audience-friendly comedy. FESTIVALS AND AWARDS
FANTASIA INTERNATIONAL FILM FESTIVAL | KARLOVY VARY INTERNATIONAL FILM FESTIVAL | FANTASTIC FEST
As a junior high school student, Shin’ichirô Ueda used to make short films with his classmates and after graduating he continued to hone his skills and passion. In 2010, he formed the film company Panpokopina and to date his films have received 20 grand-prize awards at various film festivals. Wanting to make films that are still fun even after 100 years, he strives to make entertaining films and his latest, One Cut of the Dead (2017), is a perfect example of that.
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PAUL RASCHID
White Chamber 89’
ENGLISH
2017
UK
FICTION
DIRECTOR Paul Raschid STORY/SCREENPLAY Paul Raschid CINEMATOGRAPHER Glen Warrillow EDITOR Alex Martin PRODUCER Neville Raschid PRODUCTION COMPANY Aviary Films CAST Shauna Macdonald, Oded Fehr, Amrita Acharia, Candis Nergaard, Sharon Maughan
The United Kingdom. A Civil war rages. A woman wakes up in a futuristic white cuboid cell. Using its sophisticated functionality, her captor tortures her for information — information she claims not to have: or does she?
FESTIVALS AND AWARDS
INTERNATIONAL FILM FESTIVAL ROTTERDAM | NEW HORIZONS FILM FESTIVAL | EDINBURGH INTERNATIONAL FILM FESTIVAL
Paul Raschid is a British filmmaker. In 2015, his first produced screenplay, Unhallowed Ground, in which he also acted, received awards at the London Independent Film Festival and the British Independent Film Festival. In 2016, his directorial debut, Servants’ Quarters, which he also wrote and acted in, had its world premiere at the Raindance Film Festival in London. FILMOGRAPHY: Servants’ Quarters (2016)
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For four years now, the Jio MAMI Mumbai Film Festival with Star has been celebrating writing on film via the Book Award for Excellence in Writing on Cinema. The inception and growing prestige of this award mirrors the exciting acceleration in interest among authors as well as publishers in writing and publishing on cinema, as both an art form and a popular culture industry, which seems to have grown incrementally over these years. We like to believe that this award, supported every year by eminent jury members who have a nuanced understanding both of writing and film, has played a role in this growing interest among publishers to commission and acquire more works on cinema as well as look for new genres of writing in this regard. Indeed the Book Award aims to do both, encourage more writing as well as empower both writers and publishers to explore new ways of writing in the field. The Book Award team at MAMI were also clear from the very beginning that the task at hand would remain incomplete if we did not also widen the ambit of the award’s spotlight to cover writing on film in Indian languages. Indian cinema has many sparkling editions geographically and in all these parts of the country, there is also a vibrant culture of film criticism and writing on cinema. Keeping this in mind, the Book Award had a second prize for Excellence in Writing on Cinema in Hindi during its last two editions. Tthis year, we turn the spotlight to Malayalam for the Language in Focus section of the Book Award. Malayalam Cinema is going through a splendid period of experimentation, innovation, and commercial success. With a vibrant writing culture and publishing industry to boot, it is but natural that there is some excellent writing on cinema being published in the Malayalam language as well. The entries that we received bear out this fact entirely. With a terrific jury making the shortlist selection and ready to enter deliberations about the winners, we have two exciting award decisions coming our way again this year, in English and Malayalam. Let the best book win it!
Arpita Das Curator Arpita Das runs the award-winning independent publishing house called Yoda Press. She is the Course Leader at the Tejeshwar Singh College of Publishing and, in 2017, was shortlisted for the Bookseller magazine’s Future Book Leader of the Year Award in Frankfurt. Over the last four years she has been curating the Mumbai Film Festival’s Book Award for Excellence in Writing on Cinema and the Word to Screen Market. She has taught the MA in Publishing programme as Adjunct Faculty at Ambedkar University, New Delhi, and set up and run the Word Lab at the Indian Institute of Human Settlements, Bangalore. Das writes regularly on publishing, the book industry and book culture, popular culture and gender for leading periodicals and platforms.
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Jury
Aveek Sen Aveek Sen writes on, and teaches, literature, art, cinema, and music. He was associate editor (editorial pages) of The Telegraph, Calcutta, and lecturer in English at St Hilda’s College, Oxford. He studied English literature as a Rhodes Scholar at the University College, Oxford, and won the 2009 Infinity Award for writing on photography given by the International Center of Photography, New York.
Nisha Susan Nisha Susan is a writer and editor. She is the co-founder of the feminist online magazine The Ladies Finger and the award-winning indie media organisation Grist Media.
K. Jayakumar
K.R. Meera
K. Jayakumar is a poet, lyricist, author, and painter. He was the founder and Vice Chancellor of Thunchath Ezhuthachan Malayalam University at Tirur, Kerala. Jayakumar has authored 30 books in Malayalam and English, including seven anthologies of poems. He has translated works of Rabindranath Tagore, Kahlil Gibran, Rumi, and Omar Khayyam into Malayalam. He’s written over 400 songs in Malayalam, which have been used in nearly 100 films. He’s also directed a children’s film in Malayalam, Varnachirakukal (1999), and scripted a few documentaries, television serials, and an English film. A self trained painter, he’s had 17 solo exhibitions in India and abroad.
K.R. Meera is a multi-award-winning writer and journalist who has published more than a dozen books including short stories, novels, and essays, winning some of the most prestigious literary prizes including the Kendra Sahitya Akademi Award for her novel Aaraachaar (2012), Kerala Sahitya Akademi Awards for short story and novel, the Vayalar Award, and the Odakkuzhal Award. The translation of Aaraachaar is published by Penguin Books India as Hangwoman (2016) and was short listed for the DSC prize. Her other translated works include Yellow is the Colour Of Longing (2016), The Gospel of Yudas (2016), The Poison Of Love (2017), The Unseeing Idol Of Light (2018) (all from Penguin Books), and And Slowly Forgetting That Tree (2015) (Oxford University Press). 107
My Adventures with Satyajit Ray: The Making of Shatranj Ke Khilari Shatranj Ke Khilari (1977) is filmmaker Satyajit Ray’s only feature film in Hindi-Urdu and also his most expensive, employing lavish stage design and stars from both Mumbai and Western cinema. A period piece set in 19th century Lucknow, capital of the state of Oudh, the film revolves around the court of the flamboyant artistking Wajid Ali Shah against the backdrop of the East India Company’s avaricious annexation of Oudh in 1856. Suresh, Ray’s young and artistically committed producer of Shatranj Ke Khilari, looks back on the gripping story of how Ray came to direct the film despite his unequivocal declaration that he would never write and direct a film that was not in Bengali. Quoting extensively from Ray’s fascinating unpublished letters to Jindal, My Adventures with Satyajit Ray: The Making of Shatranj Ke Khiladi evokes the driving passion, original historical research, and trademark devotion to detail that Ray brought to every aspect of the production. Language: English Author: Suresh Jindal Publisher - HarperCollins Publishers India Price: INR 350
Hema Malini: Beyond the Dream Girl Hema Malini wears many hats with admirable ease. In an industry where the male star has traditionally driven the commercial success of films, Malini was an exception, with her name alone sufficing to ensure a film’s box-office glory. She was, arguably, India’s first female superstar. Apart from starring in super-hits such as Johny Mera Naam (1970), Andaz (1971), Seeta Aur Geeta (1972), Jugnu (1973), and Sholay (1975), she received critical acclaim for her performances in Lal Patthar (1971), Khushboo (1975), Kinara (1977), Meera (1979), Razia Sultan (1983), and Ek Chadar Maili Si (1986). But there is much more to her than just her Bollywood journey. From her efforts at reviving and sustaining classical dance to her graceful handling of her personal life and the controversies that have plagued her in her political avatar, from her relationships to her religious beliefs, Hema Malini: Beyond the Dream Girl covers it all. Language: English Author: Ram Kamal Mukherjee Publisher: HarperCollins Publishers India Price: INR 599
The Crazy Untold Story of Bollywood’s Bad Boy, Sanjay Dutt In the early 1980s, it was not uncommon to see Sanjay Dutt passed out over the steering wheel of his car on a suburban road of Mumbai from a night of drugs and alcohol. Dutt’s open love for guns and hard partying and many glamorous girlfriends, including the top actress of that time, was well known. But underneath the toughguy image there were genuine struggles too: His mother and wife both died tragically young of cancer, and Dutt had to go through long and painful periods of de-addiction therapy. In this book, Yasser Usman tells the uncensored story of Dutt’s roller-coaster life that is stranger than any — from the time he smuggled heroin into the United States and went on a drunken shooting spree at his Pali Hill home after his breakup with Tina Munim to his curious phone calls to gangster Chhota Shakeel and his embroilment in the 1993 Mumbai serial blasts. Today, however, Dutt is more with the character he played in his most memorable film, Munna Bhai M.B.B.S (2003) — that of a reformed goon. Language: English Author: Yasser Usman Publisher: Juggernaut Price: INR 499 108
Start...Action: Musings of a Movie Maker Balachandra Menon is a household name in Malayalam Cinema. As a writer, director, actor, editor, music composer, singer, producer and distributor, his contribution has been significant. Menon enjoys the rare distinction of directing the maximum number of hits. His memorable films include Karyam Nissaram (1983), April 18 (1984), Chiriyo Chiri (1982), Oru Painkilikkatha (1984), Ammayane Sathyam (1993), Njaan Samvidhaanam Cheyyum (2015) to name a few. He created a family audience of his own that enjoyed value-based meaningful cinema, making him known as the favourite family filmmaker of the masses. His 1998 film, Samantharangal, where he handled 10 departments, fetched him the National Awards for the Best Feature Film on Family Welfare as well as for Best Actor. Menon was honoured with the Padma Shri in 2007. Start...Action: Musings of a Movie Maker is an autobiographical book by one of India’s most significant filmmaking minds. Language: English Author: Balachandra Menon Publisher: Konark Publishers Pvt Ltd Price: INR 1999 Price: INR 350
The Perils of Being Moderately Famous What is it like to be known as Mansoor Ali Khan Pataudi’s daughter? Or to have a mother as famous as Sharmila Tagore? Or to be recognised as Saif Ali Khan’s sister? Or as Kareena Kapoor’s sister-in-law? And where does Soha Ali Khan stand among them? Actor Soha Ali Khan’s debut book is at heart a brilliant collection of personal essays where she recounts with self-deprecating humour what it was like growing up in one of the most illustrious families of the country. With never before published photos from her family’s archives, The Perils of Being Moderately Famous takes us through some of the most poignant moments of Soha’s life: from growing up as a modern-day princess and her days at Balliol College to life as a celebrity in the times of social media culture and finding love in the most unlikely of places — all with refreshing candour and wit Language: English Author: Soha Ali Khan Publisher: Penguin Random House Price: INR 299
Zakir Hussain: A Life in Music Zakir Hussain is an international music phenomenon. His masterful dexterity and creative genius led to him becoming one of the most sought-after accompanists to the very best of Hindustani classical musicians and dancers. Hussain is equally recognised as one of the foremost contemporary jazz and world music percussionists; he has performed at innumerable concerts both as a solo artist and with renowned jazz musicians on the grand stages of the world. He has acted in James Ivory’s Heat and Dust (1983), Sai Paranjpye’s Saaz (1998), and scored music for directors such as Bernardo Bertolucci (Little Buddha (1993)), Aparna Sen (Mr. and Mrs. Iyer (2002)), and Ismail Merchant (In Custody (1993), The Mystic Masseur (2001)). A born storyteller, Hussain speaks with humour and humility of his understanding of music, his relationship with his students, his dedication and love for the tabla, and the way he negotiates life as an acclaimed celebrity living in both America and India. Zakir Hussain: A Life in Music is a brilliant introduction to the life and times of a huge music star, a revered role model and a visionary world musician. Language: English Author: Nasreen Munni Kabir Publisher: HarperCollins Publishers India Price: INR 599
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Athijeevanathinte Chalachithra Bashyangal
(An In-depth Study of Films Based on Human Survival and Hope) V.K. Joseph, the recipient of National Award for Best Film Critic, takes the readers through 20 eminent works from world cinema. The book, a collection of essays, introduces readers to such classics as La Strada (1954), Cinema Paradiso (1988), Dancer in the Dark (2000), City Lights (1931), An Occurrence at Owl Creek Bridge (1964), Children of Heaven (1997), Seven Samurai (1954), Madadayo (1993), Last Train, Red Beard (1965), Getting Home (2007), A Separation (2011), The Syrian Bride (2004), The Color of Paradise (1999), Where Do We Go Now (2011), Le Havre (2011), Mirch Masala (1987), Amour (2012), In Darkness (2018), and Spring Summer Fall Winter… and Spring (2003). Language: Malayalam Author: V.K. Joseph Publisher: Chintha Publishers Price: INR
Cinema Talkies Cinema Talkies is a collection of essays on cinema written by C.S.Venkiteswaran, an Indian film critic, professor, and documentary filmmaker, who writes predominantly in English and Malayalam. He was the recipient of the National Award for Best Film Critic in 2009 and Kerala State Award for Best Article on Cinema (2003). Cinema Talkies has 27 pieces, dealing with such diverse topics as Hollywood, film festivals, television and cinema, and film criticism, among notable others. The text also analyzes the social context in Nirmalyam (1973) and Kerala Varma Pazhassiraja (2009), cinema in the postcelluloid age of the digital TV and DVD, the home and the outside world in Malayalam cinema, and the ideological underpinnings of the cinematic experience. Author: C.S. Venkiteswaran Language: Malayalam Publisher: DC Books Price: Rs 85
Indian Cinema: 100 Varsham 100 Cinemakal
Enlivened by a gamut of elements such as story, dance, song, thrills, comedy, and pathos, Indian Cinema is a significant means of mass communication. Madhu Eravankara gives us a panoramic view of the industry, through his book, starting with the 1932 Bengali film Chandidas and concluding with another Bengali film Chitrangada (2012). Indian Cinema: 100 Varsham 100 Cinemakal explores films made in regional languages, noting the historical milestones in Indian cinema, and highlighting the movies with unexpected critical and commercial successes. Author of a dozen books on cinema, Eravankara is a recipient of the National Award and the President’s Gold Medal for the Best Book on Cinema. He is a fellow of the National Film Archive of India and the Department of Culture, Government of India. Author: Madhu Eravankara Language: Malayalam Publisher: DC Books Price: Rs 495
New Generation Cinema Malayalam Cinema has carved a niche for itself. Often called the ‘New generation L
cinema’, it has introduced new faces and digital innovations, giving a whole new dimension to mainstream films. With plot-twists, quirky dialogues, and never-seenbefore camera movements, it has added a whole new chapter to the art form. A medium for telling unusual stories without relying on the pre-1990s school of thought, Malayalam Cinema has given us stories that have always struck a chord with audiences. New Generation Cinema, written by Jose K. Manuel, is about the new wave Malayalam filmmakers, ready to experiment even with limited resources. Author: Jose K. Manuel Language: Malayalam Publisher: DC Books Price: Rs 90
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Well-known actress Behnaz Jafari is distraught by a provincial girl’s video plea for help — oppressed by her family to not pursue her studies at the Tehran drama conservatory. Behnaz abandons her shoot and turns to filmmaker Jafar Panahi to help solve the mystery of the young girl’s troubles. They travel by car to the rural northwest where they have amusing encounters with the charming folks of the girl’s mountain village. But the city visitors soon discover that the protection of age-old traditions is as generous as local hospitality.
JAFAR PANAHI
3 Faces Se Rokh 100’
AZERI, FARSI
IRAN
2018 FICTION
DIRECTOR Jafar Panahi
SOUND DESIGN Amireza Alavian
STORY/SCREENPLAY Jafar Panahi
PRODUCER Jafar Panahi
CINEMATOGRAPHER Amin Jafari
PRODUCTION COMPANIES Celluloid Dreams, Jafar Panahi Film Production
EDITOR Panah Panahi
INDIAN DISTRIBUTOR Alliance Media and Entertainment CAST Jafar Panahi, Behnaz Jafari, Marziyeh Rezaei, Maedeh Erteghaei, Narges Del Aram
SALES AGENT Celluloid Dreams
FESTIVALS AND AWARDS
Jafar Panahi directed his first feature, The White Balloon (1995), for which he won the Caméra d’Or at the Cannes Film Festival. Among other awards, he has garnered the Golden Lion in Venice and the Fipresci Grand Prix in San Sebastian for The Circle (2000), the Jury Grand Prix in Berlin for Offside (2006), the Best Screenplay Silver Bear for Closed Curtain (2012) in Berlín, and the Golden Bear and Fipresci Prize for Taxi (2015) at the Berlinale.
CANNES FILM FESTIVAL (BEST SCREENPLAY AWARD) | TORONTO INTERNATIONAL FILM FESTIVAL
FILMOGRAPHY: The White Balloon (1995), Crimson Gold (2003), This Is Not A Film (2011), Closed Curtain (2013), Taxi (2015)
AMOS GITAI
A Tramway in Jerusalem 90’
HEBREW, ARABIC, FRENCH, ITALIAN, YIDDISH, GERMAN, LADIN
ISRAEL, FRANCE
Light-hearted and dramatic fare on a tramway that connects several of Jerusalem’s neighborhoods from East to West, bringing together a mosaic of people from different religious and ethnic backgrounds.
2017 FICTION
DIRECTOR Amos Gitai
EDITOR Yuval Orr
STORY/SCREENPLAY Amos Gitai, Marie-José Sanselme
SOUND DESIGN Stéphane Thiébaut, Alex Claude, Oded Ringel
CINEMATOGRAPHER Eric Gautier
FESTIVALS AND AWARDS
VENICE FILM FESTIVAL 2018
PRODUCERS Laurent Truchot, Catherine Dussart, Amos Gitai
PRODUCTION COMPANIES Agav Films, CDP CAST Noa Ahinoamam Nini, Mathieu Amalric, Hana Laslo, Yael Abecassis, Pippo Delbono, Yuval Scharf, Karen Mor, Lamis Amar, Mustafa Mazi
Amos Gitai’s work has been presented in several major retrospectives in Pompidou Center Paris, the Museum of Modern Art (MoMA) New York, Lincoln Center New York, and the British Film Institute London. To date Amos Gitai has created over 90 works of art throughout 38 years. Between 1999 and 2017 ten of his films were entered in the Cannes Film Festival for the Palme d’Or as well as The Venice International Film Festival for the Golden Lion award. He was awarded the Excellence in Cinema Award by the festival in 2015. FILMOGRAPHY: Kippur (2000), Eden (2001), Lullaby to My Father (2012), Letter to A Friend in Gaza (2018)
114
ÁLVARO BRECHNER
A Twelve-Year Night La noche de 12 años 123’
SPANISH
SPAIN, ARGENTINA, URUGUAY, FRANCE
1973. Uruguay is governed by a military dictatorship. One autumn night, three Tupamaro prisoners are taken from their jail cells in a secret military operation. The order is precise: “As we can’t kill them, let’s drive them mad.” The three men will remain in solitary confinement for 12 years. Among them is Pepe Mujica — later to become president of Uruguay.
2018 PRODUCERS Mariela Besuievsky, Vanessa Ragone, Fernando Sokolowicz, Birgit Kemner, Mariana Secco
DIRECTOR Álvaro Brechner
FICTION
STORY/SCREENPLAY Álvaro Brechner CINEMATOGRAPHER Carlos Catalán EDITOR Irene Blecua, Nacho Ruiz Capillas SOUND DESIGN Nacho Royo-Villanova, Martín Touron, Eduardo Esquide
FESTIVALS AND AWARDS
PRODUCTION COMPANIES Tornasol Films, Haddock Films, Aleph Media, Manny Films, Salado
SALES AGENT Latido Films CAST Antonio de la Torre, Chino Darín, Alfonso Tort, Soledad Villamil, Silvia Pérez Cruz, César Troncorso, Mirella Pascual
Álvaro Brechner is a Uruguayan director, writer, and producer. His debut feature film, Bad Day to Go Fishing (2009), has been exhibited in several prestigious film festivals such as Cannes’ Critics Week, and his second feature, Mr. Kaplan (2014), was the Uruguayan nomination for the Academy Award for Best Foreign Language Film.
VENICE FILM FESTIVAL
FILMOGRAPHY: Bad Day to Go Fishing (2009), Mr. Kaplan (2014)
YEO SIEW HUA
A Land Imagined 95’
MANDARIN, ENGLISH, BENGALI
FRANCE, NETHERLANDS, SINGAPORE
After forming a virtual friendship with a mysterious gamer, Wang, a lonely construction worker from China, goes missing at a Singapore land reclamation site. Lok, a police investigator, has to uncover the truth in order to find him.
2018 FICTION DIRECTOR Yeo Siew Hua
SOUND DESIGN Damien Guillaume
SALES AGENT Visit Films
STORY/SCREENPLAY Yeo Siew Hua
PRODUCER Fran Borgia
CINEMATOGRAPHER Hideho Urata
PRODUCTION COMPANIY Akanga Film Asia Pte
CAST Peter Yu Xiaoyi Liu Luna Kwok Jack Tan Ishtiaque Zico
EDITOR Daniel Hui
FESTIVALS AND AWARDS
LOCARNO INTERNATIONAL FILM FESTIVAL (GOLDEN LEOPARD) | PINGYAO INTERNATIONAL FILM FESTIVAL
Yeo Siew Hua, a member of the 13 Little Pictures film collective, is a Singaporean filmmaker. He wrote and directed the experimental film In the House of Straw (2009). He participated in the 2015 edition of Talents Tokyo and pitched at Autumn Meeting 2016, where he won the Grand Prix for his second fiction feature, A Land Imagined (2018). FILMOGRAPHY: In the House of Straw (2009)
115
IAN LAGARDE
All You Can Eat Buddha 85’
FRENCH
At an all-inclusive resort in the Carribean, Mike’s arrival complicates the normal flow of operations. His voracious appetite, mysterious magnetism, and unexpected miracles transform him into a curiosity. His new friends, who include a jealous salsa teacher and an enamoured octopus, accompany him in an extraordinary adventure.
2017 FICTION
CANADA
DIRECTOR Ian Lagarde STORY/SCREENPLAY Ian Lagarde CINEMATOGRAPHER John Londono EDITOR Mathieu Grondin
FESTIVALS AND AWARDS
SOUND DESIGN Jean-Sébastien Beaudoin-Gagnon, Sylvain Bellemare, Hans Laitres
PRODUCTION COMPANY Voyelles Films
PRODUCER Gabrielle la Tougas-Fréchette, Ménaïc Raoul
CAST Ludovic Berthillot, Sylvio Arriola, Yaite Ruiz, David La Haye, Alexander Guerrero
SALES AGENT Stray Dogs
Ian Lagarde entered films, at a young age, as an actor. He then directed several short films and a documentaries on America’s obsession with lush green lawns. Lagarde made his featurefilm debut with the surrealistic social satire All You Can Eat Buddha (2017). Besides his awardwinning work as a filmmaker and a screenwriter, he also works as a cinematographer.
INTERNATIONAL FILM FESTIVAL OF ROTTERDAM | TORONTO INTERNATIONAL FILM FESTIVAL
SUPPORTED BY:
MOHAMED SIAM
Amal 83’
ARABIC
LEBANON, EGYPT, FRANCE, GERMANY, NORWAY, DENMARK, QATAR
2017 DOCUMENTARY
Amal is 14 years old when she ends up on Tahrir Square during the Egyptian revolution, after the death of her boyfriend in the Port Said Stadium riot. During the protests, she is beaten by police and dragged across the square by her hair. This coming-of-age film follows her over the years after the revolution. As the film cuts between the current events and Amal’s rapidly changing life and appearance, we see her searching for her own identity in a country in transition.
DIRECTOR Mohamed Siam STORY/SCREENPLAY Mohamed Siam CINEMATOGRAPHER Mohamed Siam
FESTIVALS AND AWARDS
KARLOVY VARY INTERNATIONAL FILM FESTIVAL | INTERNATIONAL DOCUMENTARY FILM FESTIVAL AMSTERDAM | SHEFFIELD DOC/FEST 2018 (YOUTH JURY AWARD)
EDITOR Véronique Lagoarde-Ségot SOUND DESIGN Jocelyn Robert PRODUCERS Myriam Sassine, Mohamed Siam
PRODUCTION COMPANIES Abbout Productions, Artkhana SALES AGENT Doc & Film International
Mohamed Siam is an Egyptian documentary and a fiction filmmaker and a cinematographer who has received several international grants and prizes in support of his films, including the the Sundance Institute, World Cinema Fund, Doha Film Institute and Hot Docs Blue Ice Fund. His films have screened at many prestigious international film festivals around the world.
116
JIA ZHANGKE
Ash is Purest White Jiang Hu Er Nv 136’
2018
MANDARIN
CHINA, FRANCE
Qiao lives in a town descending into economic decline. Her boyfriend, a dashing gangster, works for a corrupt property developer. During a fight between rival gangs, she fires a gun to protect him and goes in jail for five years. She emerges from prison to find that her former mafia associates have moved into legitimate business, and Bin has found another moll. Qiao seeks revenge but, more importantly, she searches for a new identity in this changing China.
FICTION DIRECTOR Jia ZhangKe
SOUND DESIGN Zhang Yang
SALES AGENT Celluloid Dreams
STORY/SCREENPLAY Jia ZhangKe
PRODUCER Ichiyama Shozo
CINEMATOGRAPHER Eric Gautier
PRODUCTION COMPANIES Shanghai Film Group, Xstream Pictures, Huanxi Media Group, MK
INDIAN DISTRIBUTOR In2 Infotainment India
EDITORS Matthieu Laclau, Lin Xudong
FESTIVALS AND AWARDS
CAST Zhao Tao, Liao Fa
Jia Zhangke’s features have regularly played in competition sections at renowned film festivals such as Berlin, Cannes, and Venice. His film Still Life (2006) won the Golden Lion Award at the Venice Film Festival and his A Touch of Sin (2013) won the Best Screenwriter Award at the Cannes Film Festival. He was awarded the Excellence in Cinema prize at the Jio MAMI 18th Mumbai Film Festival with Star.
CANNES FILM FESTIVAL | TORONTO INTERNATIONAL FILM FESTIVAL
FILMOGRAPHY: Platform (2000), The World (2004) Still Life (2006), A Touch of Sin (2013), Mountains May Depart (2015)
CRISTINA GALLEGO, CIRO GUERRA
Birds of Passage Pájaros de verano 125’
SPANISH, ENGLISH, WAYUNIKEE
COLOMBIA, DENMARK, MEXICO, FRANCE
2018 FICTION
In the 70s, as the American youth embraces hippie culture, a marijuana bonanza hits Colombia, quickly turning farmers into seasoned businessmen. In the Guajira desert, a Wayuu indigenous family takes a leading role in this new venture, and discovers the perks of wealth and power. But when greed, passion, and honour blend together, a fratricidal war breaks out, putting their family, their lives, and their ancestral traditions at stake. DIRECTORS Cristina Gallego, Ciro Guerra STORY/SCREENPLAY Jacques Toulemonde, Maria Camila Arias CINEMATOGRAPHER David Gallego EDITOR Miguel Schverdfinger
FESTIVALS AND AWARDS
CANNES FILM FESTIVAL | TELLURIDE FILM FESTIVAL | TORONTO INTERNATIONAL FILM FESTIVAL
SOUND DESIGN Claus Lynge, Carlos Garcia, Marco Salavaria PRODUCER Cristina Gallego, Katrin Pors CAST Carmiña Martínez, Jhon Narváez, José Acosta, Natalia Reyes, José Vicente Cotes
SALES AGENT Films Boutique PRODUCTION COMPANIES Ciudad Lunar Producciones, Blond Indian, Snowglobe, Pimenta, Films Boutique, Bord Cadre Films
Cristina Gallego studied film and television at the National University of Colombia. She has produced numerous films including Embrace of the Serpent (2015). Birds of Passage (2018) is her directorial debut. Ciro Guerra, born in Rio de oro, has directed such films as Alma (2000), Wandering Shadows (2004), and Embrace of The Serpent (2015). FILMOGRAPHY: Alma (2000), Intento (2001), Wandering Shadows (2004), Embrace of the Serpent (2015)
117
SPIKE LEE
BlacKkKlansman 135’ USA
ENGLISH
2018
It’s the early 1970s, a time of great social upheaval as the struggle for civil rights rages on. Ron Stallworth becomes the first African-American detective on the Colorado Springs Police Department, but his arrival is greeted with skepticism and open hostility. Undaunted, Stallworth sets out on a dangerous mission: infiltrate and expose the Ku Klux Klan.
FICTION PRODUCERS Spike Lee, Sean McKittrick, Jason Blum, Raymond Mansfield, Jordan Peele, Shaun Redick
DIRECTOR Spike Lee STORY/SCREENPLAY Spike Lee, Charlie Wachtel, David Rabinowitz, Kevin Willmott CINEMATOGRAPHER Chayse Irvin EDITOR Barry Alexander Brown
FESTIVALS AND AWARDS
PRODUCTION COMPANIES Blumhouse Productions, Monkeypaw Productions, Legendary Entertainment
INDIAN DISTRIBUTOR NBCUniversal CAST John David Washington, Adam Driver, Topher Grace, Corey Hawkins, Laura Harrier, Ryan Eggold, Jaspar Pääkkönen, Ashlie Atkinson
American director, writer and producer, Spike Lee has created an iconic body of storytelling during his career with such films as Do the Right Thing (1989), Jungle Fever (1991), Malcolm X (1992), 25th Hour (2002), Inside Man (2006) and Chi-Raq (2015). BlacKkKlansman won the Jury Grand Prize in Cannes this year.
CANNES FILM FESTIVAL (JURY GRAND PRIZE) |
LOCARNO INTERNATIONAL FILM FESTIVAL
FILMOGRAPHY: Chi-Raq (2015), Sweet Blood of Jesus (2014), Old Boy (2013), Red Hook Summer (2012), Passing Strange (2009)
ALI ABBASI
Border
A mysterious traveller awakens something deep within the customs officer Tina. This inspires a journey, which throws her entire existence up in the air, eventually revealing her true self.
Gräns
108’
SWEDISH
SWEDEN, DENMARK
2018 FICTION DIRECTOR Ali Abbasi STORY/SCREENPLAY Ali Abbasi, Isabella Eklöf, John Ajvide Lindqvist CINEMATOGRAPHER Nadim Carlsen
EDITORS Olivia NeergaardHolm, Anders Skov
PRODUCTION COMPANY Meta Films
SOUND DESIGN Christian Holm
SALES AGENT Films Boutique
PRODUCERS Nina Bisgaard, Piodor Gustafsson, Petra Jonsson
CAST Eva Melander, Eero Milonoff, Jögen Thorsson, Ann Petrén, Sten Ljungren
Ali Abbasi is an Iranian-born Swedish director. His previous films include the short M for Markus (2011) and the feature film Shelley (2016). FILMOGRAPHY: Shelley (2016)
FESTIVALS AND AWARDS
CANNES FILM FESTIVAL | TORONTO INTERNATIONAL FILM FESTIVAL
118
JOEL EDGERTON Boy Erased tells the story of Jared, the son of a Baptist pastor in a small American town, who is outed to his parents at age 19. Jared is faced with an ultimatum: attend a conversion therapy program — or be permanently exiled and shunned by his family, friends, and faith.
Boy Erased 115’
ENGLISH
USA
2018 FICTION DIRECTOR Joel Edgerton
SOUND DESIGN Jacob Ribicofft
STORY/SCREENPLAY Joel Edgerton (Based on the memoir Boy Erased by Garrard Conley)
PRODUCERS Kerry KohanskyRoberts, Steve Golin, Joel Edgerton, David Joseph Craig
CINEMATOGRAPHER Eduard Grau EDITOR Jay Rabinowitz
FESTIVALS AND AWARDS
PRODUCTION COMPANIES Focus Features, NBCUniversal INDIAN DISTRIBUTOR NBCUniversal CAST Lucas Hedges, Nicole Kidman, Joel Edgerton, Russell Crowe
Joel Edgerton is an Australian actor and filmmaker. He attended the Nepean Drama School at the University of Western Sydney. His acting credits include Black Mass (2015) and Loving (2016). His feature films as writerdirector are The Gift (2015) and Boy Erased (2018)
TELLURIDE FILM FESTIVAL | TORONTO INTERNATIONAL FILM FESTIVAL
FILMOGRAPHY: The Gift (2015)
Deliveryman Jongsu is out on a job when he runs into Haemi, a girl who once lived in his neighborhood. She asks him if he’d mind looking after her cat while she’s away on a trip to Africa. On her return she introduces Jongsu to Ben, an enigmatic young man she met during the trip. And one day Ben tells Jongsu about his most unusual hobby...
LEE CHANG-DONG
Burning
Beo-Ning 148’
KOREAN
SOUTH KOREA
2018 FICTION
DIRECTOR Lee Chang-dong STORY/SCREENPLAY Oh Jung-mi, Lee Chang-dong (Based on the short story Barn Burning by Haruki Murakami) CINEMATOGRAPHER Hong Kyung-pyo
EDITORS Kim Hyun, Kim Da-won
PRODUCTION COMPANY Pinehousefilm
SOUND DESIGN Lee Seung-chul
SALES AGENT Finecut
PRODUCER Lee Joon-dong
CAST Ah-in Yoo, Steven Yeun, Jong-seo Jun
Lee Chang-dong made his debut with Green Fish (1997), a Korean noir that was an exploration of genre conventions and the real world. In his next, Peppermint Candy (2000), he experimented with a narrative using flashbacks and followed it up with Oasis (2002), where he questioned the nature of true communication between people. It was with these two films that he received critical acclaim, popular success, and international accolades. CANNES FILM FESTIVAL (FIPRESCI PRIZE) | FESTIVALS LOCARNO INTERNATIONAL FILM FESTIVAL | AND AWARDS TORONTO INTERNATIONAL FILM FESTIVAL
FILMOGRAPHY: Green Fish (1997), Peppermint Candy (2000), Oasis (2002), Secret Sunshine (2007), Poetry (2010)
119
RON MANN
Carmine Street Guitars 80’
ENGLISH
CANADA
2018 DOCUMENTARY
Once the centre of the New York bohemia, Greenwich Village is now home to lux restaurants, and buzzer door clothing stores catering to the nouveau riche. But one shop in the heart of the Village remains resilient to the encroaching gentrification: Carmine Street Guitars. Featuring a cast of prominent musicians and artists, the documentary captures five days in the life of Carmine Street Guitars, while examining an all-too-quickly vanishing way of life.
DIRECTOR Ron Mann
SOUND DESIGN Michael Guggino
SALES AGENT The Match Factory
STORY/SCREENPLAY Len Blum
PRODUCER Ron Mann
CINEMATOGRAPHER John M Tran, Becky Parsons
PRODUCTION COMPANY Sphinx Productions
CAST Rick Kelly, Cindy Hulej, Dorothy Kelly
EDITOR Robert Kennedy
FESTIVALS AND AWARDS
Ron Mann is one of Canada’s foremost documentary filmmakers. He established his international reputation in his 20s with a series of award-winning theatrical documentaries, including Imagine the Sound (1981), Poetry in Motion (1982), Comic Book Confidential (1988), Twist (1992), and Grass (1999). He was on the jury of the Jio MAMI Mumbai Film Festival with Star’s International Competition section in 2016.
VENICE FILM FESTIVAL | TORONTO INTERNATIONAL FILM FESTIVAL
FILMOGRAPHY: Imagine the Sound (1981), Twist (1992), Go Further (2003), Know Your Mushrooms (2008), Altman (2014)
SUPPORTED BY:
JAVIER FESSER
Champions 120’ SPAIN
SPANISH
2018 FICTION
A disgraced basketball coach is given the chance to coach Los Amigos, a team of players who are intellectually disabled, and soon realises that they just might have what it takes to make it to the national championships.
DIRECTOR Javier Fesser STORY/SCREENPLAY David Marqués, Javier Fesser CINEMATOGRAPHER Chechu Graf EDITOR Javier Fesser SOUND DESIGN Arman Ciudad, Charly Schmukler
PRODUCERS Luis Manso, Álvaro Longoria, Javier Fesser, Gabriel AriasSalgado PRODUCTION COMPANIES Películas Pendelton, Morena Films, Rey de Babia AIE, Movistar, RTVE
SALES AGENT Latido Films CAST Javier Gutierrez, Sergio Olmos, Julio Fernandez, Jesus Lago, Jesus Vidal
Raised in a family of artists ranging from musicians to journalists, Javier Fesser graduated in Image Sciences from the University of Madrid and began his own production company, Linea Films, in 1986. In the next decade he produced over 150 advertisements, then moved into short and feature length films.
FESTIVALS AND AWARDS
SEATTLE INTERNATIONAL FILM FESTIVAL
FILMOGRAPHY: The Miracle of P Tinto (1998), Mortadelo & Filemon: The Big Adventure (2003), Camino (2008)
120
Cold War is a passionate love story between two people of different backgrounds and temperaments, who are fatally mismatched and yet fatefully condemned to each other. Set against the background of the Cold War in the 1950s in Poland, Berlin, Yugoslavia, and Paris, the film depicts an impossible love story in impossible times.
PAWEŁ PAWLIKOWSKI
Cold War Zimna Wojna 90’
POLISH, FRENCH
2018
POLAND, FRANCE, UK
FICTION
DIRECTOR Paweł Pawlikowski STORY/SCREENPLAY Paweł Pawlikowski, Janusz Glowacki, Piotr Borkowski CINEMATOGRAPHER Lukasz Zal EDITOR Jaroslaw Kaminski
FESTIVALS AND AWARDS
SOUND DESIGN Maciej Pawlowski, Miroslaw Makowski
SALES AGENT Protagonist Pictures, MK2 Films
PRODUCER Ewa Puszczyńska, Tanya Seghatchian
INDIAN DISTRIBUTOR Cinestaan Film Company
PRODUCTION COMPANIES Opus Film, Apocalypso Pictures, MK2 Productions
CAST Joanna Kulig, Tomasz Kot, Borys Szyc, Agata Kulesza
PawełPawlikowski was born in Warsaw. He has directed several acclaimed documentaries for the BBC including Dostoevsky’s Travels (1991) and Tripping with Zhirinovsky (1995). He has also written and directed such features as Last Resort (2000), My Summer of Love (2004), The Woman in the Fifth (2011), and Ida (2013). Cold War (2018) is his latest film.
CANNES FILM FESTIVAL (BEST DIRECTOR AWARD) | TORONTO INTERNATIONAL FILM FESTIVAL
FILMOGRAPHY: Tripping with Zhirinovsky (1995), Last Resort (2000), My Summer of Love (2004), The Woman in the Fifth (2011), Ida (2013)
WASH WESTMORELAND
Colette 111’ UK, USA
ENGLISH
Colette is pushed by her husband to write novels under his name. Upon their success, she fights to make her talents known, challenging gender norms. 2018 FICTION
DIRECTOR Wash Westmoreland
EDITOR Lucia Zucchetti
STORY/SCREENPLAY Richard Glatzer, Wash Westmoreland, Rebecca Lenkiewicz
PRODUCER Elizabeth Carlsen
CINEMATOGRAPHER Giles Nuttgens
FESTIVALS AND AWARDS
SUNDANCE FILM FESTIVAL | TORONTO INTERNATIONAL FILM FESTIVAL
SALES AGENT Hanway Films
INDIAN DISTRIBUTOR Impact Films CAST Keira Knightley, Dominic West, Eleanor Tomlinson, Fiona Shaw
Wash Westmoreland is a British filmmaker. His last film, Still Alice (2014), saw Julianne Moore win nearly every acting award including a BAFTA and her first Oscar. In 2015, Westmoreland was awarded the Humanitas Prize in the feature film category for the movie. FILMOGRAPHY: Quinceanera (2006), The Last of Robinhood (2013), Still Alice (2014)
121
SHIVENDRA SINGH DUNGARPUR
CzechMate – In Search of Jiří Menzel 429’
CZECH
INDIA
2018
Filmed over a period of seven years, CzechMate explores the deceptively whimsical comic films of Jiří Menzel and discovers the fascinating world of the Czechoslovakian New Wave, a movement peopled by brilliant artists paradoxically making films funded by an oppressive regime but beautifully disguising their subversiveness through humour and artistry. Dungarpur travelled extensively for the documentary, interviewing filmmakers, historians, and critics who had been touched by the New Wave.
DOCUMENTARY EDITOR Irene Dhar Malik
DIRECTOR Shivendra Singh Dungarpur CINEMATOGRAPHERS David Čálek, Ranjan Palit, K.U. Mohanan, Jonathan Bloom
SOUND DESIGN V. P. Mohandas PRODUCER Shivendra Singh Dungarpur
PRODUCTION COMPANY Dungarpur Films CAST Jiří Menzel, Miloš Forman, Věra Chytilová, Jan Němec, Andrzej Wajda, Woody Allen
Shivendra Singh Dungarpur’s first feature documentary, Celluloid Man (2012), highlighted the urgent need to preserve Indian cinema’s cinematic heritage. His second documentary, The Immortals (2015), won the Special Jury Award at the 2016 Mumbai International Film Festival. Dungarpur is the founder director of Film Heritage Foundation, a not-for-profit organisation dedicated to the preservation and restoration of India’s cinematic heritage. FILMOGRAPHY: Celluloid Man (2012), The Immortals (2015)
GABRIEL ABRANTES, DANIEL SCHMIDT
Diamantino 92’
PORTUGUESE
PORTUGAL, FRANCE, BRAZIL
2018 FICTION
Diamantino, the world’s premiere soccer star, loses his special touch and ends his career in disgrace. Searching for a new purpose, the international icon sets out on a delirious odyssey where he confronts neo-fascism, the refugee crisis, genetic modification, and the hunt for the source of genius. An oddball comedy — and a whimsical, giddy political satire about a footballer manipulated by his crazy twin-sisters — Diamantino is an evocative depiction of modern existential crisis. DIRECTOR Gabriel Abrantes, Daniel Schmidt STORY/SCREENPLAY Gabriel Abrantes, Daniel Schmidt CINEMATOGRAPHER Charles Ackley Anderson EDITOR Raphaëlle Martin-Holger
FESTIVALS AND AWARDS
CANNES FILM FESTIVAL (CRITICS WEEK) | KARLOVY VARY INTERNATIONAL FILM FESTIVAL
SOUND DESIGN Olivier Blanc, David Turini, Fernando Henna, Benjamin Viau PRODUCERS Justin Taurand, Maria Joao Mayer, Daniel Van Hoogstraten
SALES AGENT Charades CAST Carloto Cotta, Cleo Tavares, Anabela Moreira, Margarida Moreira, Carla Maciel
PRODUCTION COMPANIES Les Films du Bélier, Maria & Mayer, Syndrome Films Gabriel Abrantes is an American director whose short films have premiered at the Berlinale, Locarno International Film Festival, and the Toronto International Film Festival. Daniel Schmidt earned his Bachelor of Fine Arts in film at New York University’s Tisch School of the Arts. His films have premiered at the Venice Film Festival, International Film Festival Rotterdam, and the Berlinale.
122
GUS VAN SANT
Don’t Worry, He Won’t Get Far On Foot 113’
ENGLISH
USA
After Portland slacker John Callahan nearly loses his life in a car accident, the last thing he intends to do is give up drinking. But when he reluctantly enters treatment — with encouragement from his girlfriend and a charismatic sponsor — Callahan discovers a gift for drawing edgy, irreverent newspaper cartoons that develop a national following and grant him a new lease of life.
2017 FICTION
DIRECTOR Gus Van Sant
SOUND DESIGN Leslie Shatz
STORY/SCREENPLAY Gus Van Sant, John Callahan
PRODUCERS Charles-Marie Anthonioz, Mourad Belkeddar, Nicholas Lhermitte, Steve Golin
CINEMATOGRAPHER Christoper Blauvelt EDITORS Gus Van Sant, David Marks
PRODUCTION COMPANIES Iconoclast, Anonymous Content, Amazon Studios
SALES AGENT FilmNation Entertainment CAST Joaquin Phoenix, Rooney Mara, Jonah Hill, Jack Black, Mark Webber
Gus Van Sant is an American filmmaker and screenwriter. His notable films include Drugstore Cowboy (1989), My Own Private Idaho (1991), To Die For (1995), Good Will Hunting (1997), Finding Forrester (2000), Elephant (2003), and Milk (2008). He lives in in Portland, Oregon.
FESTIVALS AND AWARDS
FILMOGRAPHY: Good Will Hunting (1997), Elephant (2003), Milk (2008), Promised Land (2012), The Sea of Trees (2015)
SUNDANCE FILM FESTIVAL | BERLINALE
MICHAEL MOORE
Fahrenheit 11/9 120’ USA
ENGLISH
2018 DOCUMENTARY
Filmmaker Michael Moore predicted that Donald Trump would become the 45th president of the United States. Traveling across the country, Moore interviews American citizens to get a sense of the social, economic, and political impact of Trump’s victory. Moore also takes an in-depth look at the media, the Electoral College, the government agenda and his hometown, Flint, Michigan.
DIRECTOR Michael Moore STORY/SCREENPLAY Michael Moore CINEMATOGRAPHER Luke Geissbühler, Jayme Roy
EDITORS Doug Abel, Pablo Proenza
PRODUCTION COMPANY Midwestern Films
PRODUCERS Michael Moore, Carl Deal, Meghan O’Hara
INDIAN DISTRIBUTOR PVR Pictures
Michael Moore worked as a journalist before turning to documentary filmmaking. His Fahrenheit 9/11 (2004) won the Palme d’Or and Fipresci Prize at the Cannes Film Festival. His 2002 film, Bowling for Columbine, won the Academy Award for Best Documentary Feature.
FESTIVALS AND AWARDS
TORONTO INTERNATIONAL FILM FESTIVAL | LONDON FILM FESTIVAL
FILMOGRAPHY: Roger & Me (1989), Bowling for Columbine (2002), Slacker Uprising (2007), Capitalism: A Love Story (2009), Where to Invade Next (2015)
123
PAUL SCHRADER
First Reformed 114’
ENGLISH
USA
An ex-military chaplain, wrecked by grief over the death of his son, counsels a young parishioner and her radical environmentalist husband. He rediscovers his sense of purpose and embarks on a mission to right the wrongs done to so many. DIRECTOR Paul Schrader
2017
STORY/SCREENPLAY Paul Schrader
FICTION
CINEMATOGRAPHER Alexander Dynan EDITOR Benjamin Rodriguez Jr. SOUND DESIGN Ruy Garcia
FESTIVALS AND AWARDS
PRODUCERS Jack Binder, Greg Clark, Gary Hamilton, Victoria Hill, David Hinojosa, Frank Murray, Deepak Sikka, Mick Southworth PRODUCTION COMPANIES Killer Films, Fibonacci Films, Arclight Films, Big Indie Pictures, Omeira Studio Partners
SALES AGENT Park Circus CAST Ethan Hawke, Amanda Seyfried, Cedric the Entertainment, Victoria Hill, Philip Ettinger
Paul Schrader is an award-winning screenwriter and filmmaker. He has written screenplays for four Martin Scorsese films: Taxi Driver (1976), Raging Bull (1980), The Last Temptation of Christ (1988), and Bringing Out the Dead (1999). He has also directed 18 feature films, which have screened at numerous film festivals around the world. Schrader was on the International Competition jury of the 2009 Mumbai Film Festival.
VENICE FILM FESTIVAL (GREEN DROP AWARD) | LOCARNO INTERNATIONAL FILM FESTIVAL
FILMOGRAPHY: Blue Collar (1978), American Gigolo (1980), The Comfort of Strangers (1990), Auto Focus (2002), Dog Eat Dog (2016)
NAZIHA AREBI
Freedom Fields 97’
ARABIC, ENGLISH
LIBYA, UK, NETHERLANDS, USA, QATAR, LEBANON, CANADA
2018 DOCUMENTARY
Filmed over five years, Freedom Fields follows three women and their football team in post-revolution Libya, as the country descends into civil war and the utopian hopes of the Arab Spring begin to fade. Through the eyes of these accidental activists, we see the reality of a country in transition, where the personal stories of love and aspirations collide with history.
DIRECTOR Naziha Arebi STORY/SCREENPLAY Naziha Arebi CINEMATOGRAPHER Amin Jafari
SOUND DESIGN Giovanni Buccomino PRODUCERS Sonja Henrici, Noe Mendelle, Flore Cosquer
PRODUCTION COMPANIES SDI Productions, HuNa Productions SALES AGENT Wide House
EDITORS Ling Lee, Alice Powell
FESTIVALS AND AWARDS
TORONTO INTERNATIONAL FILM FESTIVAL
Naziha Arebi is a Libyan-British artist and filmmaker who returned to Libya after the revolution to work and explore her father’s homeland. Arebi worked as a writer and production manager with BBC Media Action and her short documentaries are now being shown in festivals worldwide. Freedom Fields is her directorial debut.
SUPPORTED BY:
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AGNIESZKA SMOCZYŃSKA
Fugue Fuga
100’
POLISH
POLAND, CZECH REPUBLIC, SWEDEN
2018
Alicja has no memory and no knowledge about how she lost it. In two years, she manages to build a new, independent self away from home. She doesn’t want to remember the past. So when her family finds her, she is forced to fit into the roles of a mother, daughter, and wife, surrounded by what seem to be complete strangers. What remains once you forget that you loved someone? Is it necessary to remember the emotion of love in order to feel happiness?
FICTION EDITOR Jarosław Kamińsk
DIRECTOR Agnieszka Smoczyńska STORY/SCREENPLAY Gabriela Muskała
SOUND DESIGN Niklas Skarp, Marcin Lenarczyk
CINEMATOGRAPHER Jakub Kijowski
PRODUCER Agnieszka Kurzydło
PRODUCTION COMPANY MD4 SALES AGENT Alpha Violet CAST Gabriela Muskała, Łukasz Simlat
Agnieszka Smoczyńska graduated from Krzysztof Kieślowski Film School in Katowice, Poland. Her first feature film, The Lure (2015), experimented with the musical and horror genres and was recognised as the best debut at the Polish Film Festival in Gdynia.
FESTIVALS AND AWARDS
CANNES FILM FESTIVAL (CRITICS’ WEEK) | TORONTO INTERNATIONAL FILM FESTIVAL
LAUREN GREENFIELD
Generation Wealth 108’ USA
ENGLISH
FILMOGRAPHY: The Lure (2015)
Lauren Greenfield’s postcard from the edge of the American Empire captures a portrait of a materialistic, image-obsessed culture. Both a personal journey and a historical essay, the film bears witness to the global boom–bust economy, the corrupted American Dream, and the human costs of late stage capitalism, narcissism, and greed.
2018 DOCUMENTARY
EDITORS Aaron Wickenden ACE, Michelle Witten, Victor Livingston, Dan Marks
DIRECTOR Lauren Greenfield STORY/SCREENPLAY Lauren Greenfield CINEMATOGRAPHERS Robert Chappell, Lauren Greenfield, Shana Hagan, Jerry Risius, Lars Skree
FESTIVALS AND AWARDS
SUNDANCE FILM FESTIVAL | SXSW | BERLINALE | SHEFFIELD DOC/FEST | DOCVILLE
SOUND DESIGN Peter Albrechtsen
PRODUCTION COMPANIES Amazon Studios, Evergreen Pictures SALES AGENT Dogwoof
PRODUCERS Frank Evers, Lauren Greenfield, Wallis Annenberg
Lauren Greenfield is an American documentary filmmaker. From her earliest photo studies on the seemingly privileged lives of Los Angeles high school students to the examination of the pitfalls of extreme wealth in The Queen of Versailles (2012) to more recent images of conspicuous consumption in Russia and China, Greenfield’s work is a cautionary morality tale about our unquenchable desire for more. FILMOGRAPHY: Thin (2006), The Queen of Versailles (2012)
125
HONG SANG-SOO
Grass Pul-lip-deul 66’
KOREAN
SOUTH KOREA
2017
Down an alley where one wouldn’t expect to find such a place, there is a coffeehouse where people sit here and there talking among themselves. Opposite the coffeehouse, the owner of a small grocery has planted various kinds of vegetables that sprout inside large rubber basins. As time passes, the people sitting at different tables grow familiar with each other and start to mix. One woman observes the others and writes down her thoughts. Even as the night grows late, they all remain in the coffeehouse.
FICTION DIRECTOR Hong Sang-soo
EDITOR Son Yeon-ji
SALES AGENT Finecut
STORY/SCREENPLAY Hong Sang-soo
SOUND DESIGN Seo Ji-Hoon
CINEMATOGRAPHER Kim Hyung-ku
PRODUCTION COMPANY Jeonwonsa Film
CAST Kim Min-hee, Jung Jin-young, Ki Joo-bong, Seo Young-hwa, Kim Sae-byuk
Hong Sang-soo made his debut in 1996 with the feature The Day a Pig Fell Into the Well. Since then, he’s written and directed 21 films. Renowned for his unique cinematographic language and unprecedented aesthetics in filmmaking, Sang-soo is considered one of the most established auteurs in contemporary Korean cinema.
FESTIVALS AND AWARDS
BERLINALE | NEW YORK FILM FESTIVAL
HONG SANG-SOO
Hotel by the River Gangbyun Hotel 96’
FILMOGRAPHY: The Day a Pig Fell Into the Well (1996), Woman is the Future of Man (2004), Hahaha (2010), Right Now, Wrong Then (2015), The Day After (2017)
KOREAN
SOUTH KOREA
An ageing poet is holed up in a modest provincial hotel. His adult sons visit after years of estrangement. Meanwhile, a young woman, after having just fled a destructive relationship, gets a room at the same hotel and calls for a friend. They nap, take walks, and talk about everything, drawing the attention of the poet, who finds in the pair a beauty and fascination sufficient to inspire new verse.
2018 FICTION
DIRECTOR Hong Sang-soo
SOUND DESIGN Kim Mir
SALES AGENT Finecut
STORY/SCREENPLAY Hong Sang-soo
PRODUCER Hong Sang-soo
CINEMATOGRAPHER Kim Hyung-koo
PRODUCTION COMPANY Jeonwonsa Film Co.
CAST Ki Joo-bong, Kim Min-hee, Song Seon-mi, Kwon Hae-hyo, Yu Junsang
EDITOR Son Yeon-ji
Hong Sang-soo made his debut in 1996 with the feature The Day a Pig Fell Into the Well. Since then, he’s written and directed 21 films. Renowned for his unique cinematographic language and unprecedented aesthetics in filmmaking, Sang-soo is considered one of the most established auteurs in contemporary Korean cinema.
FESTIVALS AND AWARDS
LOCARNO INTERNATIONAL FILM FESTIVAL | TORONTO INTERNATIONAL FILM FESTIVAL
FILMOGRAPHY: The Day a Pig Fell Into the Well (1996), Woman is the Future of Man (2004), Hahaha (2010), Right Now, Wrong Then (2015), On the Beach at Night Alone (2017)
126
SUBA SIVAKUMARAN
House of My Fathers Mouna Kaandam 94’
TAMIL, SINHALA
SRI LANKA
2018
Two Sri Lankan villages — one Tamil, one Sinhala — have been at war with each other for decades. When, on both sides, villagers become infertile, they receive a message from the gods. A Sinhala man and a Tamil woman are to be sent to an isolated place where they will find the secret to renew life. But only one of them will return. In the Forest of the Dead, Asoka and Ahalya will have to confront the secrets of their villages and their personal pasts.
FICTION DIRECTOR Suba Sivakumaran
SOUND DESIGN Phil Lee
SALES AGENT Asian Shadows
STORY/SCREENPLAY Suba Sivakumaran
PRODUCERS Suba Sivakumaran, Dominique Welinski
CAST Bimal Jayakodi, Pradeepa, Steve De La Zilwa
CINEMATOGRAPHER Kalinga Deshapriya EDITOR Nse Asuquo
FESTIVALS AND AWARDS
In My Room 120’
Suba Sivakumaran is a self-taught director who was born in Jaffna, Sri Lanka. Her first short film, I Too Have a Name (2012), was in competition at the 2012 Berlinale and was selected in competition at over 25 film festivals worldwide. Her second short film, L’Oiseau Bleu, as a codirector, was shown out of competition at the Cannes Film Festival’s Directors’ Fortnight as part of the anthology Tunisia Factory. House of My Fathers is her first feature film.
BUSAN INTERNATIONAL FILM FESTIVAL | BFI LONDON FILM FESTIVAL | FILMFEST HAMBURG
ULRICH KÖHLER
GERMAN, ENGLISH
GERMANY, ITALY
Armin is getting too old for his nightlife habits and the woman he likes. He’s not really happy but can’t picture living a different life. One morning he wakes up: the world looks the same as always, but mankind has disappeared. In My Room is a film about the frightening gift of maximum freedom.
2018 FICTION
DIRECTOR Ulrich Köhler STORY/SCREENPLAY Ulrich Köhler CINEMATOGRAPHER Patrick Orth EDITOR Laura Lauzemis SOUND DESIGN Andreas Hildebrandt
FESTIVALS AND AWARDS
PRODUCTION COMPANY Palmyrah Talkies
CANNES FILM FESTIVAL | NEW YORK FILM FESTIVAL | TORONTO INTERNATIONAL FILM FESTIVAL
PRODUCERS Christoph Friedel, Claudia Steffen PRODUCTION COMPANIES Pandora Film Production, Echo Film, Komplizen Film, ARTE Deutschland, WDR Westdeutscher Rundfunk
SALES AGENT The Match Factory CAST Hans Löw, Elena Radonicich, Antonia Putiloff
Ulrich Köhler, one of Germany’s biggest contemporary filmmakers, belongs to the Berlin School collective, a new movement in German cinema that has emerged in the early 21st century. His multi-award-winning feature film debut, Bungalow (2002), premiered at the Berlinale. He won the Silver Bear for Sleeping Sickness at the 2011 Berlinale. FILMOGRAPHY: Bungalow (2002), Windows on Monday (2006), Sleeping Sickness (2011)
127
Christian is new to the superstore. Bruno, from the beverage aisle, takes him under his wing and quickly becomes a fatherly friend to him. In the aisles Christian meets “Sweets”-Marion. He is instantly smitten by her mysterious charm. But Marion is married and Christian’s feelings for her seem to remain unrequited, especially when Marion does not return to work one day. Christian falls into a deep hole, so deep in fact, that his miserable old life threatens to engulf him once more.
THOMAS STUBER
In the Aisles In den Gängen 125’
GERMAN
GERMANY
2018 FICTION
DIRECTOR Thomas Stuber
SOUND DESIGN Kai Tebbel
SALES AGENT Beta Cinema
STORY/SCREENPLAY Clemens Meyer, Thomas Stuber
PRODUCERS Jochen Laube, Fabian Maubach
CINEMATOGRAPHER Peter Matjasko
PRODUCTION COMPANY Sommerhaus Filmproduktion Production
CAST Franz Rogowski, Sandra Hüller, Peter Kurth
EDITOR Kaya Inan
FESTIVALS AND AWARDS
Thomas Stuber is a German filmmaker. His first feature film, Teenage Angst (2008), premiered at the Berlinale. His next feature film, A Heavy Heart (2015), won the German Film Award in Silver in 2016. His latest film, In the Aisles, premiered in Competition at the Berlinale.
BERLINALE | BUSAN INTERNATIONAL FILM FESTIVAL
FILMOGRAPHY: Teenage Angst (2008), A Heavy Heart (2015)
HEATHER LENZ
Kusama – Infinity 80’ USA
JAPANESE, ENGLISH
2018 DOCUMENTARY
Kusama – Infinity explores Yayoi Kusama’s fierce determination to become a world-renowned artist. Kusama was born into a conservative family in rural Japan, and she made her way to America on the heels of World War II. There, without connections and speaking only broken English, she devoted herself to her true love: making art. On her first day in New York, she climbed to the top of the Empire State Building, looked at the city below, and made a decision to stand out: by becoming a star.
DIRECTOR Heather Lenz CINEMATOGRAPHERS Hart Perry, Hide Itaya SALES AGENT Dogwoof
FESTIVALS AND AWARDS
SUNDANCE FILM FESTIVAL | DOCAVIV FILM FESTIVAL | TORONTO INTERNATIONAL FILM FESTIVAL
EDITORS Keita Ideno, Shinpei Takeda, Carl Pfirman, Heather Lenz, Sam Karp, John Northrup, Nora Tennessen
PRODUCERS Dan Braun, David Koh, Karen Johnson, Heather Lenz PRODUCTION COMPANY Tokyo Lee Productions
Heather Lenz is passionate about documentaries and biographical films. She is drawn to stories of people with creative minds who have not walked the beaten path (such as Yayoi Kusama). Her first short documentary about a bicycle inventor, Back to Back (2001), was nominated for the Student Academy Award and screened in film festivals worldwide.
128
DEBRA GRANIK
Leave No Trace 109’
ENGLISH
2018 SOUND DESIGN Christian Dolan, Roberto Fernandez, Damian Volpe
DIRECTOR Debra Granik
FICTION
USA
For years, a teenage girl and her veteran father have lived undetected in Forest Park, a vast woods on the edge of Portland, Oregon. When a careless mistake catches the attention of the authorities, the pair is removed from the park, forcing them to confront their conflicting desire to be part of a community and their fierce need for independence.
STORY/SCREENPLAY Debra Granik, Anne Rosellini
PRODUCERS Anne Harrison, Linda Reisman, Anne Rosellini
CINEMATOGRAPHER Michael McDonough EDITOR Jane Rizzo
FESTIVALS AND AWARDS
Long Day’s Journey Into Night
INDIAN DISTRIBUTOR
Sony Pictures Entertainment India
Debra Granik is a director and screenwriter whose 2010 film, Winter’s Bone, starred Jennifer Lawrence and was nominated for four Oscars, including Best Picture. Her first film, Down to the Bone (2004), won Granik the Best Director prize at the 2004 Sundance Film Festival.
SUNDANCE FILM FESTIVAL | CANNES FILM FESTIVAL | TORONTO INTERNATIONAL FILM FESTIVAL
BI GAN
CAST Ben Foster, Thomasin Harcourt McKenzie, Jeff Korber, Dale Dickey
PRODUCTION COMPANIES Bron Studios, Harrison Productions, Reisman Productions, Still Rolling Productions
FILMOGRAPHY: Down to the Bone (2004), Winter’s Bone (2010), Stray Dog (2014)
Luo Hongwu returns to Kaili, his hometown, from where he fled several years ago. He begins the search for the woman he loved, and whom he has never been able to forget. She said her name was Wan Quiwen...
Di qiu zui hou de ye wan 140’
GUIZHOU DIALECT
CHINA, FRANCE, TAIWAN
2018 FICTION
DIRECTOR Bi Gan
SOUND DESIGN Li Danfeng
SALES AGENT Wild Bunch
STORY/SCREENPLAY Bi Gan
PRODUCERS Shan Zuolong, Charles Gillibert, Jufeng Yeh, Xiaonan Li, Guanren Zhang
CAST Tang Wei, Sylvia Chang, Huang Jue, Lee Hong-Chi
CINEMATOGRAPHERS Yao Hung-I, Jingsong Dong, David Chizallet EDITOR Qin Yanan
FESTIVALS AND AWARDS
CANNES FILM FESTIVAL (UN CERTAIN REGARD) | TORONTO INTERNATIONAL FILM FESTIVAL
PRODUCTION COMPANY Dangmai Films
Writer-director Bi Gan was born in Kaili City, Guizhou Province, People’s Republic of China, in 1989. His critically acclaimed debut feature, Kaili Blues (2015), won the Best Emerging Director Award at the 2015 Locarno International Film Festival. His second feature, Long Day’s Journey Into Night, made its premiere in Un Certain Regard at the 71st Cannes Film Festival. FILMOGRAPHY: Kaili Blues (2015)
129
Nuria, 12, Fabio, 9, and their mother, Amparo, arrive in a small island in the middle of Amazonia, at the border of Brazil, Colombia, and Peru. They ran away from the Colombian armed conflict in which their father disappeared. One day, he reappears in their new house. The family is haunted by this strange secret and discovers the island is peopled with ghosts.
BEATRIZ SEIGNER
Los Silencios 89’
SPANISH, PORTUGUESE
BRAZIL, FRANCE, COLOMBIA
2018 FICTION
DIRECTOR Beatriz Seigner STORY/SCREENPLAY Beatriz Seigner CINEMATOGRAPHER Sofia Oggioni EDITORS Renata Maria, Jacques Comets SOUND DESIGN Gustavo Nascimento, Fernando Henna, Daniel Turini, Jean-Guy Véran
FESTIVALS AND AWARDS
SALES AGENT Phramide International PRODUCERS Beatriz Seigner, Leonardo Mecchi, Thierry Lenouvel, Daniel Garcia INDIAN DISTRIBUTOR Pyramide
PRODUCTION COMPANIES Miriade Filmes, Enquadramento Produçoes, Ciné-sud Promotion, Diafragma CAST Marleyda Soto, Enrique Diaz, Maria Paula Tabares Peña, Adolfo Savilvino
Beatriz Seigner is a Brazilian screenwriter and filmmaker. In 2009, she directed Bollywood Dream, the first coproduction between Brazil and India, which has been selected in over 20 international film festivals. Los Silencios is her second feature.
CANNES FILM FESTIVAL (DIRECTORS’ FORTNIGHT)
FILMOGRAPHY: Bollywood Dream (2010)
JOSEPHINE DECKER
Madeline’s Madeline 94’ USA
ENGLISH
Madeline gets the lead role in a play. Strangely, the character looks just like her. And has a cat just like her. And is holding a steaming hot iron next to her mother’s face... like Madeline is.
2018 FICTION DIRECTOR Josephine Decker
SOUND DESIGN Guido Berenblum
SALES AGENT Visit Films
STORY/SCREENPLAY Josephine Decker, Donna Di Novelli
PRODUCERS Krista Parris, Elizabeth Rao
CINEMATOGRAPHER Ashley Connor
PRODUCTION COMPANY Parris Pictures
CAST Helena Howard Molly Parker, Miranda July, Okwui Okpokwasili, Felipe Bonilla
EDITORS Josephine Decker, Harrison Atkins
Josephine Decker was born in London in 1981. After earning a degree in comparative literature and creative writing, she studied film studies and political science. She works as a screenwriter, director, editor, actor, and producer.
FESTIVALS AND AWARDS
SUNDANCE FILM FESTIVAL | BERLINALE | TORONTO INTERNATIONAL FILM FESTIVAL
FILMOGRAPHY: Bi the Way (2008), Butter on the Latch (2013), Thou Wast Mild and Lovely (2014)
130
STEVE LOVERIDGE
MATANGI/ MAYA/ M.I.A. 95’
ENGLISH, TAMIL
SRI LANKA, UK, USA
2018 DOCUMENTARY
MATANGI / MAYA / M.I.A. is drawn from a cache of personal tapes shot by Maya Arulpragasm and her closest friends over the last 22 years, capturing her remarkable journey from an immigrant teenager in London to the international popstar M.I.A. Inspired by her roots, M.I.A. created a mashup, cut-and-paste identity that incorporated different parts of her journey — a sonic sketchbook that blended Tamil politics, art school punk, hip-hop beats, and the voice of multicultural youth. Never compromising, Maya kept her camera rolling through her battles with the music industry and mainstream media as her success and fame grew, and she rose to become one of the most provocative and divisive artists working in music today.
DIRECTOR Steve Loveridge EDITORS Marina Katz, Gabriel Rhodes
FESTIVALS AND AWARDS
Memories of My Body Kucumbu Tubuh Indahku 105’ INDONESIA
INDONESIAN, JAVANESE
2018
PRODUCTION COMPANIES Cinereach, Hard Working Movies
Juno is just a kid when his father leaves him in their village of Center Java. Abandoned and alone, he joins a Lengger dance centre where men transform assuming feminine appearance and movements. But the sensuality and sexuality that come from dance and bodies, mixed with the violent social and political situation of Indonesia, force Juno to move from village to village. Though on his journey Juno gets attention and love from his dance teachers, his weird aunty, his old uncle, a handsome boxer and a Warok, he still has to face alone the battlefield that his body is becoming.
FICTION DIRECTOR Garin Nugroho STORY/SCREENPLAY Garin Nugroho CINEMATOGRAPHER Teoh Gay Hian EDITOR Greg Arya
FESTIVALS AND AWARDS
SALES AGENT Dogwoof
Steve Loveridge was born in Surrey and met Maya Arulpragasm at St. Martin’s College in the mid ’90s while attending school for fine art. Although Loveridge went on to work in animation, graphics, and illustration, and Arulpragasm moved towards music, the two continued to collaborate, with Loveridge still working on her albums even as her fame skyrocketed.
SUNDANCE FILM FESTIVAL (WORLD CINEMA DOCUMENTARY SPECIAL JURY AWARD)
GARIN NUGROHO
PRODUCERS Steve Loveridge, Lori Cheatle, Andrew Goldman, Paul Mezey
VENICE FILM FESTIVAL | BUSAN INTERNATIONAL FILM FESTIVAL
SOUND DESIGN Khikmawan Santosa, Dicky Permana PRODUCER Ifa Isfansyah PRODUCTION COMPANIES Fourcolours Films, Go-Studio
SALES AGENT Asian Shadows CAST Muhammad Khan, Raditya Evandra, Rianto, Randy Pangalila, Whani Darmawan
Garin Nugroho is an acclaimed Indonesian filmmaker. He was selected as the Best Young Director at the Asia Pacific International Film Festival in Seoul in 1992. His film Leaf On a Pillow (1998) won the Special Jury Prize at the Tokyo International Film Festival. Nugroho’s other accolades include the Best Director Award at the Pyongyang International Film Festival, Young Filmmakers Jury Award at the Berlinale, among notable others. FILMOGRAPHY: And the Moon Dances (1995), Leaf on a Pillow (1998), A Poet: Unconcealed Poetry (2000), Under the Tree (2008), Soegija (2012)
131
MAŁGORZATA SZUMOWSKA
Mug
Jacek loves heavy metal, his girlfriend, and his dog. When an accident disfigures him completely, all eyes in his hometown are on him as he undergoes the first facial transplant in the country.
Twarz
91’
POLISH
POLAND
2017 DIRECTOR Małgorzata Szumowska
FICTION
STORY/SCREENPLAY Małgorzata Szumowska, Michał Englert CINEMATOGRAPHER Michał Englert
SOUND DESIGN Kacper Habisiak, Marcin Kasinski, Marcin Jachyra PRODUCER Jacek Drosio PRODUCTION COMPANY Nowhere SP. Z.O.O
EDITOR Jacek Drosio
FESTIVALS AND AWARDS
SALES AGENT Memento Films International CAST Mateusz Kościukiewicz, Agnieszka Podsiadlik, Małgorzata Gorol, Roman Gancarczyk, Dariusz Chojnacki
Born in Krakow, a graduate of the film school in Łódź, Małgorzata Szumowska is a director, screenwriter, and producer. Her films have screened, and won awards, at many film festivals around the world, including Cannes, Berlin, and Locarno.
BERLINALE (JURY GRAND PRIZE) | BUSAN INTERNATIONAL FILM FESTIVAL Born in Krakow, a graduate of the film school in Łódź, Małgorzata Szumowska is a director, screenwriter, and producer. Her films have screened, and won awards, at many film festivals around the world, including Cannes, Berlin, and Locarno.
FILMOGRAPHY: Stranger (2004) , Nothing to be Afraid of (2006), 33 Scenes from Life (2008) , Elles (2011), Body (2015)
MICHIEL VAN ERP
Open Seas Niemand in de Stad 102’
DUTCH
NETHERLANDS, BELGIUM
2018
Three young friends stumble towards maturity during their student days in Amsterdam. The sudden death of one of them serves to concentrate their minds. In the course of this turbulent period they try to break free from their parents and their backgrounds, experience the meaning of friendship and find out who they really are.
FICTION DIRECTOR Michiel van Erp
SOUND DESIGN Nardi van Dijk
STORY/SCREENPLAY Philip Huff, Marnie Blok
PRODUCERS Monique Busman, Petra Goedings, Peter Bouckaertr
CINEMATOGRAPHER Jasper Wolf EDITOR Axel Skovdal Roelofs
FESTIVALS AND AWARDS
NETHERLANDS FILM FESTIVAL
SALES AGENT De Familie Film and TV CAST Oi Mundo, Rebecca van Unen
PRODUCTION COMPANY NIDS Filmproductie VOF
Michiel van Erp is a Dutch filmmaker. His documentary series Long Live (1996), about the hopes and desires of Dutch people, ran for seven years on Dutch Television, winning national and international awards. His other notable films include Don’t Forget Me (2002), Funfair Behind the Dikes (2007), Stuck (2008), and I Am a Woman Now (2011), among notable others. FILMOGRAPHY: Steve + Sky (2004), With Friends Like These (2007), The Misfortunates (2009), The Broken Circle Breakdown (2012), Belgica (2016)
132
A family lives in the Mexican countryside raising fighting bulls. Esther is in charge of running the ranch, while her husband Juan, a world-renowned poet, raises and selects the beasts. When Esther becomes infatuated with a horse trainer named Phil, the couple struggles to stride through the emotional crisis.
CARLOS REYGADAS
Our Time Nuestro Tiempo 173’
SPANISH, ENGLISH
MEXICO, FRANCE, GERMANY, DENMARK, SWEDEN
2018 FICTION
PRODUCERS Jaime Romandia, Carlos Reygadas
DIRECTOR Carlos Reygadas STORY/SCREENPLAY Carlos Reygadas
PRODUCTION COMPANIES Mantarraya, NoDream Cinema, Snowglobe, Luxbox, ZDF, FOPROCINE, MER FILM, Film i Väst, Detalle Films, Bord Cadre Films, CNC
CINEMATOGRAPHER Diego García EDITOR Carlos Reygadas SOUND DESIGN Raúl Locatelli
FESTIVALS AND AWARDS
SALES AGENT The Match Factory CAST Carlos Reygadas, Natalia López, Eleazar Reygadas, Rut Reygadas, Phil Burgers
Carlos Reygadas is a Mexican filmmaker. Influenced by existentialist art and philosophy, Reygadas’ movies feature spiritual journeys into the inner worlds of his main characters, through which themes of love, suffering, death, and life’s meaning are explored. Reygadas has been described as “the one-man third wave of Mexican cinema”, and his works are known for their expressionistic cinematography, long takes, and emotionally charged stories.
VENICE FILM FESTIVAL | TORONTO INTERNATIONAL FILM FESTIVAL
FILMOGRAPHY: Japón (2002), Battle in Heaven (2005), Silent Light (2007), Serenghetti (2009), Post Tenebras Lux (2012)
BABIS MAKRIDIS
Pity
This is the story of a man who feels happy only when he is unhappy: addicted to sadness, with such need for pity, that he’s willing to do everything to evoke it from others. This is the life of a man in a world not cruel enough for him.
Oiktos 99’
GREEK
GREECE, POLAND
2018 FICTION
DIRECTOR Babis Makridis
SOUND DESIGN Leandros Ntounis
STORY/SCREENPLAY Efthimis Filippou, Babis Makridis
PRODUCERS Amanda Livanou, Christos V. Konstantakopoulos, Klaudia Śmieja, Beata Rzeźniczek
CINEMATOGRAPHER Konstantinos Koukoulios EDITOR Yannis Chalkiadakis
FESTIVALS AND AWARDS
SUNDANCE FILM FESTIVAL | INTERNATIONAL FILM FESTIVAL ROTTERDAM
PRODUCTION COMPANY Neda Film
SALES AGENT New Europe Film Sales CAST Yannis Drakopoulos, Evi Saoulidou, Nota Tserniafski, Makis Papadimitriou, Georgina Chryskioti
Babis Makridis started working as a director in 2000 and has since directed numerous commercials and video clips. His short film The Last Fakir (2005) won the Newcomer’s Prize at the Drama International Short Film Festival, Greece. His debut film, L, was screened in the International Competition section at the Jio MAMI Mumbai Film Festival with Star in 2012. FILMOGRAPHY: L (2012)
133
WANURI KAHIU
Rafiki 82’
ENGLISH, SWAHILI
KENYA, SOUTH AFRICA, FRANCE, LEBANON, NORWAY, NETHERLANDS, GERMANY, USA
2018
“Good Kenyan girls become good Kenyan wives,” but Kena and Ziki long for something more. Despite the political rivalry between their families, the girls resist and remain close friends, supporting each other to pursue their dreams in a conservative society. When love blossoms between them, the two girls will be forced to choose between happiness and safety.
FICTION DIRECTOR Wanuri Kahiu
SOUND DESIGN Frederic Salles
SALES AGENT MPM Premium
STORY/SCREENPLAY Wanuri Kahiu, Jenna Bass
PRODUCER Steven Markovitz
CINEMATOGRAPHER Christopher Wessels
PRODUCTION COMPANY Big World Cinema
CAST Samantha Mugatsia, Sheila Munyiva
EDITOR Isabelle Dedieu
Born in Nairobi, Wanuri Kahiu is part of the new generation of African storytellers. Her stories and films have received international acclaim. Rafiki is her second feature film.
FESTIVALS AND AWARDS
ALFONSO CUARÓN
Roma 135’ MEXICO
FILMOGRAPHY: A Whisper (2008)
CANNES FILM FESTIVAL | TORONTO INTERNATIONAL FILM FESTIVAL
SPANISH, MIXTECO
2018 FICTION
Roma follows a young domestic worker Cleo from Mixteco heritage descent and her co-worker Adela, also Mixteca, who works for a small family in the middleclass neighborhood of Roma. While trying to construct a new sense of love and solidarity in a context of a social hierarchy where class and race are perversely intertwined, Cleo and Sofia quietly wrestle with changes infiltrating the family home in a country facing confrontation between a government-backed militia and student demonstrators. DIRECTOR Alfonso Cuarón STORY/SCREENPLAY Alfonso Cuarón CINEMATOGRAPHER Alfonso Cuarón EDITORS Alfonso Cuarón, Adam Gough
FESTIVALS AND AWARDS
VENICE FILM FESTIVAL (GOLDEN LION) | TORONTO INTERNATIONAL FILM FESTIVAL
SOUND DESIGN Sergio Díaz, Skip Lievsay, Craig Henighan, José Antonio García PRODUCERS Gabriela Rodríguez, Alfonso Cuarón, Nicolás Celis
PRODUCTION COMPANIES Esperanto Filmoj, Participant Media INDIAN DISTRIBUTOR Netflix India CAST Gabriela Rodríguez, Alfonso Cuarón, Nicolás Celis
Alfonso Cuarón has written and directed a wide range of acclaimed films. He most recently won two Academy Awards® for directing and editing Gravity(2013). His directorial credits also include Great Expectations (1998), Y Tu Mamá También (2001) for which he received an Academy Award® nomination for Best Original Screenplay, Harry Potter And The Prisoner Of Azkaban (2003) and Children Of Men (2006), which earned him two Academy Award® nominations. Cuarón is currently preparing for the release of Roma. FILMOGRAPHY: A Little Princess (1995), Great Expectations (1998), Y Tu Mamá También (2001), Children of Men (2006), Gravity (2013)
134
MILORAD KRSTIĆ
Ruben Brandt, Collector 94’ HUNGARY
ENGLISH, FRENCH, ITALIAN, RUSSIAN, GERMAN, SPANISH, HUNGARIAN
2018
Famous psychotherapist Ruben Brandt is forced to steal 13 of the world’s most famous works of art in order to stop the terrible nightmares that haunt him. Accompanied by four patients and a killer team, he robs the Louvre, the Tate Gallery, the Museum of Modern Art, and the Hermitage, becoming the most famous criminal in the world. Pursued by the police, gangsters, and bounty hunters, Brandt has to deal with a formidable adversary: Mike Kowalski, a private investigator hired by insurance companies.
FICTION
STORY/SCREENPLAY Milorad Krstić, Radmila Roczkov
PRODUCERS Péter Miskolczi, János Kurdy-Fehér, Milorad Krstić, Hermina Roczkov, Radmila Roczkov
ANIMATION Milorad Krstić, Marcell László
PRODUCTION COMPANY Ruben Brandt
DIRECTOR Milorad Krstić
SALES AGENT Hungarian National Film Fund CAST Gabriella Hámori, Iván Kamarás, Zalán Makranczi
SOUND DESIGN Danijel Daka Milošević
FESTIVALS AND AWARDS
LOCARNO INTERNATIONAL FILM FESTIVAL
STEFANO SAVONA
Samouni Road La strada di Samouni 129’
Milorad Krstić was born in Slovenia, in 1952, and graduated from the University of Novi Sad, Serbia, with a law degree. Since 1990, he has worked in Budapest as a painter and multimedia artist. In 1995, he won the Silver Bear Jury Prize Award at the Berlinale for his first animated short, My Baby Left Me. Ruben Brandt, Collector is his first feature.
ARABIC, HEBREW
ITALY, FRANCE
2018
In the rural outskirts of Gaza City, a small community of farmers, the Samouni extended family, is about to celebrate a wedding. It’s going to be the first celebration since the last war. Amal, Fuad, their brothers and cousins have lost their parents, their houses, and their olive trees. The neighbourhood where they live is being rebuilt. As they replant trees and plow fields, they face their most difficult task: piecing together their own memory.
DOCUMENTARY DIRECTOR Stefano Savona
SOUND DESIGN Stefano Savona
STORY/SCREENPLAY Stefano Savona, Léa Mysius, Penelope Bortoluzzi
PRODUCERS Penelope Bortoluzzi, Marco Alessi, Cécile Lestrade
CINEMATOGRAPHER Stefano Savona
PRODUCTION COMPANIES Picofilms, Alter Ego Production, Dugong Films
EDITOR Luc Forveille
SALES AGENT Doc & Film International
Stefano Savona is an Italian documentary filmmaker. His features have screened and won awards at, among notable others, the Locarno International Film Festival, the Cinéma du Réel Festival, and Cannes Film Festival.
FESTIVALS AND AWARDS
CANNES FILM FESTIVAL
FILMOGRAPHY: Notes from a Kurdish Rebel (2006), Cast Lead (2009), Spezzacatene (2010), Palazzo delle Aquile (2011), Tahrir: Liberation Square (2011)
135
LAV DIAZ
Season of the Devil Ang Panahon ng Halimaw 234’
TAGALOG
PHILIPPINES
In the late 70s, a gang of militias, under the control of the military, terrorises a remote village in the Philippines. The poet-teacher-activist Hugo Haniway decides to find out the truth about the disappearance of his wife. A love story and an unconventional musical set in the darkest period of Philippine history, the Marcos Dictatorship, Season of the Devil is based on real events and real characters.
2018 FICTION
DIRECTOR Lav Diaz STORY/SCREENPLAY Lav Diaz CINEMATOGRAPHER Larry Manda EDITOR Lav Diaz
SOUND DESIGN Corinne De San Jose PRODUCERS Balbuena, Bradley Liew PRODUCTION COMPANIES Epicmedia Productions
SALES AGENT Films Boutique CAST Piolo Pascual, Shaina Magdayao, Pinky Amador, Bituin Escalante, Hazel Orencio
Lav Diaz is a Filipino filmmaker. His five-anda-half-hour opus, From What is Before (2014), won the Golden Leopard at the Locarno International Film Festival. In 2016, A Lullaby to the Sorrowful Mystery, which he identifies as his most important film to date, screened at the Berlinale and won the Alfred Bauer Prize.
FESTIVALS AND AWARDS
FILMOGRAPHY: Naked Under the Moon (1999), Evolution of a Filipino Family (2004), Melancholia (2008), From What is Before (2014), A Lullaby to the Sorrowful Mystery (2016)
BERLINALE
ZHANG YIMOU
Shadow Ying
115’ CHINA
CHINESE
2018 FICTION
Using Chinese ink brush paintings that lend the film a unique perspective, Shadow tells the story of a powerful King and his people who have been displaced from their homeland and long to win it back. The king is wild and ambitious, but his motives and methods are mysterious. His great general is a visionary who longs to win the ultimate battle, but needs to lay his plans in secret. The women of the palace are tragic figures, caught between being treated as goddesses and pawns. And then there is the “everyman” around whom the inexorable forces of history swirl, always ready to swallow him up. DIRECTOR Zhang Yimou
SOUND DESIGN Yang Jiang, Zhao Nan
STORY/SCREENPLAY Li Wei, Zhang Yimou
PRODUCER Ellen Eliasoph
CINEMATOGRAPHER Zhao Xiaoding
PRODUCTION COMPANIES Perfect Village Entertainment HK, Le Vision Pictures, Tencent Pictures
EDITOR Zhou Xiaolin
FESTIVALS AND AWARDS
VENICE FILM FESTIVAL | TORONTO INTERNATIONAL FILM FESTIVAL
SALES AGENT CMC Pictures, Bloom CAST Deng Chao, Jing Sun Li , Zheng Kai, Wang Qianyuan, Wang Jingchun
Zhang Yimou’s films include intimate personal stories set in the Chinese countryside such as Red Sorghum (1988), Raise the Red Lantern (1991), The Road Home (1999); martial arts dramas such as Hero (2002) and House of Flying Daggers (2004); and works such as To Live (1994) and Coming Home (2014) that movingly chronicle China’s 20th century social traumas. FILMOGRAPHY: To Live (1994), The Road Home (1999), Hero (2002), Under the Hawthorn Tree (2010), Coming Home (2014)
136
HIROKAZU KORE-EDA
Shoplifters Manbiki Kazoku 121’
JAPANESE
JAPAN
2018
A Japanese couple stuck with part-time jobs and inadequate incomes avail themselves of the fruits of shoplifting to make ends meet. They are not alone in this behaviour. The young and the old of the household are in on the act. This unusual routine is about to change from carefree and matter-of-fact to something more dramatic, as the couple opens their doors to a beleaguered teenager. The reasons for the family and friends’ habits and motivations, as a result, come under the microscope.
FICTION DIRECTOR Hirokazu Kore-eda
SOUND DESIGN Kazuhiko Tomita
SALES AGENT Wild Bunch
STORY/SCREENPLAY Hirokazu Kore-eda
PRODUCERS Kaoru Matsuzaki, Akihiko Yose, Hijiri Taguchi
INDIAN DISTRIBUTOR In2 Infotainment India
PRODUCTION COMPANIES AOI Promotion, Fuji Television Network, GAGA
CAST Kirin Kiki, Lily Franky, Sôsuke Ikematsu, Sakura Andô, Jyo Kairi
CINEMATOGRAPHER Ryûto Kondô EDITOR Hirokazu Kore-eda
FESTIVALS AND AWARDS
CANNES FILM FESTIVAL (PALME D’OR)
BOOTS RILEY
Sorry to Bother You 112’ USA
Hirokazu Kore-eda is an acclaimed Japanese filmmaker who has directed numerous awardwinning fiction films, television documentaries and, as a producer, supported budding Japanese filmmakers. The main themes of his oeuvre include memory, loss, death, and the intersection of documentary and fictive narratives.
ENGLISH
2017 FICTION
FILMOGRAPHY: Still Walking (2008), I Wish (2011), Like Father, Like Son (2013), After the Storm (2016), The Third Murder (2017)
In an alternate present-day version of Oakland, telemarketer Cassius Green discovers a magical key to professional success, propelling him into a macabre universe.
DIRECTOR Boots Riley STORY/SCREENPLAY Boots Riley CINEMATOGRAPHER Doug Emmett EDITOR Terel Gibson SOUND DESIGN Mitsuko Alexandra Yabe
PRODUCERS Nina Yang Bongiovi, Forest Whitaker, Charles King, George Rush, Jonathan Duffy, Kelly Williams PRODUCTION COMPANIES Cinereach, Significant Productions, MACRO, MNM Creative, The Space Program Network
INDIAN DISTRIBUTOR NBCUniversal CAST Lakeith Stanfield, Tessa Thompson, Steven Yeun, Jermaine Fowler, Armie Hammer, Omari Hardwick
Boots Riley was born on April Fools’ Day, but he is no damn fool. He studied film at San Francisco State University before ending his studies in favor of a major-label recording deal for his band, The Coup. Sorry To Bother You is his directorial debut.
FESTIVALS AND AWARDS
SUNDANCE FILM FESTIVAL | BFI LONDON FILM FESTIVAL
137
LIKARION WAINAINA
Supa Modo 74’
ENGLISH, KIKUYU, SWAHILI
This is the story of a young girl whose dream of becoming a superhero is threatened by terminal illness, inspiring her village to rally together to make her dream come true. 2018
GERMANY, KENYA
FICTION
DIRECTOR Likarion Wainaina
SOUND DESIGN Florian Holzner
STORY/SCREENPLAY Silas Miami, Mugambi Nthiga, Wanjeri Gakuru, Marie Steinmann-Tykwer
PRODUCERS Sarika Hemi Lakhani, Mugambi Nthiga, Guy Wilson, Marie Steinmann-Tykwer
CINEMATOGRAPHER Enos Olik
PRODUCTION COMPANY One Fine Day Films GmbH
EDITOR Charity Kuria
FESTIVALS AND AWARDS
SALES AGENT Rushlake Media GmbH CAST Stycie Waweru, Marrianne Nungo, Nyawara Ndambia, Johnson Gitau Chege, Humphrey Maina
Likarion Wainaina is a Kenyan director who started making films before moving to theatre as an actor. As a cinematographer, he has also worked on a number of documentaries and commercials and has directed TV shows — both drama and sitcoms — that are currently playing in local TV stations in Kenya. Supa Modo is his debut feature.
BERLINALE (CRYSTAL BEAR - SPECIAL MENTION) | TORONTO INTERNATIONAL FILM FESTIVAL
ETHAN COEN, JOEL COEN
The Ballad of Buster Scruggs 132’ USA
ENGLISH
2018 FICTION
The Ballad of Buster Scruggs is a six-part Western anthology film, a series of tales about the American frontier told through the unique and incomparable voice of Joel and Ethan Coen. Each chapter tells a distinct story about the American West. DIRECTOR Ethan Coen, Joel Coen STORY/SCREENPLAY Len Blum CINEMATOGRAPHER Bruno Delbonnel EDITOR Roderick Jaynes
FESTIVALS AND AWARDS
VENICE FILM FESTIVAL (GOLDEN OSELLA AWARD FOR BEST SCREENPLAY)
SOUND DESIGN Skip Lievsay PRODUCERS Joel Coen, Ethan Coen, Megan Ellison, Sue Naegle, Robert Graft PRODUCTION COMPANIES Netflix, Annapurna Pictures, Mike Zoss Production
INDIAN DISTRIBUTOR Netflix India CAST Tim Blake Nelson, James Franco, Liam Neeson, Tom Waits, Bill Heck
Ethan and Joel Coen have been making movies for 35 years. They have won the Academy Award four times, for Best Picture, Director, Original and Adapted Screenplay. Other awards include The National Board of Review, The Golden Globes, BAFTA, The WGA and The DGA. At Cannes they have won The Best Director award—three times, the Grand Prix and the Palme D’Or. The Ballad Of Buster Scruggs is their 18th feature film. FILMOGRAPHY: Barton Fink (1991), Fargo (1996), The Big Lebowski (1998), No Country for Old Men (2007), Inside Llewyn Davis (2013)
138
SOUDADE KAADAN
The Day I Lost My Shadow Yom Adaatou Zouli 94’
ARABIC
2018
SYRIA, LEBANON, FRANCE, QATAR
FICTION
Syria, 2012. During the coldest winter the country has witnessed, all Sana dreams of is cooking gas to prepare a meal for her son. She takes a day off from her job to search for a gas cylinder and suddenly finds herself stuck in the besieged area. It is then that she discovers that people lose their shadows during the war. DIRECTOR Soudade Kaadan STORY/SCREENPLAY Soudade Kaadan CINEMATOGRAPHER Eric Devin EDITORS Pierre Deschamps, Soudade Kaadan
FESTIVALS AND AWARDS
The Eyes of Orson Welles 115’ UK
ENGLISH
2018 DOCUMENTARY
PRODUCERS Amira Kaadan, Soudade Kaadan, Claire Lajoumard
CAST Sawsan Arsheed, Reham Al Kassar, Samer Ismael, Oweiss Moukhallalati, Ahmad Morhaf Al Ali
PRODUCTION COMPANIES KAF Production, Acrobates Film, Metaphora Production
Soudade Kaadan was born in France and is of Syrian descent. She studied theatre criticism at the Higher Institute of Dramatic Arts in Syria, and filmmaking at the Saint Joseph University in Lebanon. Her work includes the documentaries Damascus Roof and Tales of Paradise (2010) and Obscure (2017). The Day I Lost My Shadow (2018) is her first narrative feature.
VENICE FILM FESTIVAL | TORONTO INTERNATIONAL FILM FESTIVAL | BFI LONDON FILM FESTIVAL 2018
MARK COUSINS
SOUND DESIGN Dominik Schleier, Martin Steyer
FILMOGRAPHY: Damascus Roof and Tales of Paradise (2010) , Obscure (2017), The Day I Lost My Shadow (2018)
Granted exclusive access to hundreds of private drawings and paintings by Orson Welles, filmmaker Mark Cousins delves deep into the visual world of this legendary director and actor to reveal a portrait of the artist as he’s never been seen before — through his own eyes, sketched with his own hand, painted with his own brush. Executive produced by Michael Moore, The Eyes of Orson Welles brings vividly to life the passions, politics, and power of this brilliant 20th-century showman, and explores how the genius of Welles still resonates today in the age of Donald Trump, more than 30 years after his death. DIRECTOR Mark Cousins
SOUND DESIGN Ali Murray
STORY/SCREENPLAY Mark Cousins
PRODUCERS Mary Bell, Adam Dawtrey
CINEMATOGRAPHER Mark Cousins EDITOR Timo Langer
SALES AGENT Dogwoof
PRODUCTION COMPANIES Creative Scotland/Bofa Mark Cousins is an Irish filmmaker and a writer who lives in Edinburgh. His work as a director includes The Story of Film: An Odyssey (2011), an epic 15-hour documentary which won a Peabody Award; A Story of Children and Film (2013), a documentary feature which had its world premiere at Cannes Film Festival; I Am Belfast (2015), a lyrical essay film about his home town.
FESTIVALS AND AWARDS
CANNES FILM FESTIVAL (SPECIAL DISTINCTION IN THE GOLDEN EYE DOCUMENTARY COMPETITION) | SHEFFIELD DOC/FEST
FILMOGRAPHY: The Psychology of NeoNazism: Another Journey by Train to Auschwitz (1993), The New Ten Commandments (2008), The Story of Film: An Odyssey (2011), The Film That Buys the Cinema (2014), I Am Belfast (2015)
139
ADILKHAN YERZHANOV
The Gentle Indifference of the World Laskovoe bezrazlichie mira 100’
KAZAKH, RUSSIAN
2018
KAZAKHSTAN, FRANCE
After her father’s untimely death, Saltanat is forced to trade her idyllic countryside life for the cruel city. She has to find money to pay off the large family debt that her father left behind, in order to save her mother from jail. Friends since their village childhood, her loyal, but penniless admirer Kuandyk follows her just to make sure his sweetheart is safe. Although life keeps dealing them bad hands, Saltanat and Kuandyk never give up, no matter what the odds.
FICTION DIRECTOR Adilkhan Yerzhanov
SOUND DESIGN Yermek Utegenov
SALES AGENT Beta Cinema
STORY/SCREENPLAY Roelof Minneboo, Adilkhan Yerzhanov
PRODUCERS Olga Khlasheva, Serik Abishev, Akan Sataiev, Ernar Kurmashev, Aliya Mendygozhina
CAST Dinara Baktybayeva, Kuandyk Dyussembaev
CINEMATOGRAPHER Aidar Sharip EDITORS Adilkhan Yerzhanov, Yedige Nessipbekov
FESTIVALS AND AWARDS
The House That Jack Built 155’
Adilkhan Yerzhanov is a filmmaker and screenwriter. His feature film include The Owners (2014), which was an official selection for Cannes Film Festival; The Plague at Karatas Village (2015), History of Kazakh Cinema (2015), and Night God (2018).
CANNES FILM FESTIVAL (UN CERTAIN REGARD) | BUSAN INTERNATIONAL FILM FESTIVAL | KARLOVY VARY INTERNATIONAL FILM FESTIVAL
LARS VON TRIER
ENGLISH
DENMARK, SWEDEN, FRANCE, GERMANY
2018 FICTION
FILMOGRAPHY: The Owners (2014), The Plague at Karatas Village (2015), History of Kazakh Cinema (2015), Night God (2018)
The USA in the 1970s. We follow the highly intelligent Jack through five incidents and are introduced to the murders that define his development as a serial killer. He views each murder as an artwork in itself, even though his dysfunction gives him problems in the outside world.
DIRECTOR Lars von Trier STORY/SCREENPLAY Lars von Trier CINEMATOGRAPHER Manuel Alberto Claro EDITOR Molly Malene Stensgaard
FESTIVALS AND AWARDS
PRODUCTION COMPANIES Astana Film Fund, Short Brothers, Arizona Productions
SOUND DESIGN Kristian Eidnes Andersen PRODUCER Louise Vesth PRODUCTION COMPANIES Zentropa Entertainment, Zentropa Sweden, Slot Machine, Zentropa France, Zentropa Köln
SALES AGENT TrustNordisk CAST Matt Dillon, Uma Thurman, Sofie Gråbøl, Bruno Ganz, Siobhan Fallon Hogan, Riley Keough
Lars von Trier co-founded both the Danish production company Zentropa and the Dogma movement in the 1990s. His films have won prizes worldwide including many major awards at the Cannes Film Festival: the Palme d’Or for Dancer in the Dark (2000), the Grand Jury Prize for Breaking the Waves (1996), and the Best Actress prize for Antichrist (2009) and Melancholia (2011). CANNES FILM FESTIVAL
FILMOGRAPHY: Dancer in the Dark (2000), Dogville (2003), Antichrist (2009), Melancholia (2011), Nymphomaniac (2012)
140
JEAN-LUC GODARD
The Image Book
With characteristic disregard for the conventional rules of filmmaking, Jean-Luc Godard’s latest cine-essay is a distinctive discourse on life, art, war, and cinema itself.
Le Livre d’Image 85’
ARABIC, ENGLISH, FRENCH, ITALIAN
SWITZERLAND, FRANCE
2018 CINE-ESSAY
DIRECTOR Jean-Luc Godard STORY/SCREENPLAY Jean-Luc Godard CINEMATOGRAPHER Fabrice Aragno EDITORS Jean-Luc Godard, Fabrice Aragno
FESTIVALS AND AWARDS
CANNES FILM FESTIVAL (SPECIAL PALME D’OR)
92’ USA
ENGLISH
2018 FICTION
Cameron Post looks the part of a perfect high school girl. But after she’s caught with another girl in the back seat of a car on prom night, Cameron is quickly shipped off to a conversion therapy centre that treats teens “struggling with same-sex attraction”. At the facility, Cameron is subjected to outlandish discipline, dubious “de-gaying” methods, and earnest Christian rock songs — but this unusual setting also provides her with an unlikely gay community. For the first time, Cameron connects with peers, and she’s able to find her place among fellow outcasts. DIRECTOR Desiree Akhavan
SOUND DESIGN Ryan Billia
SALES AGENT Elle Driver
STORY/SCREENPLAY Desiree Akhavan, Cecilia Frugiuele
PRODUCERS Michael B. Clark, Alex Turtletaub, Cecilia Frugiuele, Jonathan Montepare
CAST Chloë Grace Moretz, Sasha Lane, Forrest Goodluck, John Gallagher Jr., Jennifer Ehle
CINEMATOGRAPHER Ashley Connor EDITOR Sara Shaw
FESTIVALS AND AWARDS
SUNDANCE FILM FESTIVAL (GRAND JURY PRIZE) | TRIBECA FILM FESTIVAL
CAST Jean-Luc Godard (narrator, voiceover)
FILMOGRAPHY: Breathless (1960), Pierrot le Fou (1965), Passion (1982), For Ever Mozart (1996), Goodbye to Language (2014)
SUPPORTED BY:
The Miseducation of Cameron Post
PRODUCTION COMPANIES Casa Azul Films, Ecran Noir Productions
INDIAN DISTRIBUTOR In2 Infotainment India
Jean-Luc Godard is a Franco-Swiss filmmaker and a leading member of the “French New Wave”. His works reflect a fervent knowledge of film history, a comprehensive understanding of existential and Marxist philosophy, and a profound insight into the fragility of human relationships.
| TORONTO INTERNATIONAL FILM FESTIVAL
DESIREE AKHAVAN
PRODUCERS Fabrice Aragno, Mitra Farahani
PRODUCTION COMPANIES Beachside Films, Parkville Pictures
Desiree Akhavan is the writer, director, and star of Appropriate Behavior (2014), which premiered at the Sundance Film Festival and was nominated for the Best First Screenplay at the Film Independent Spirit Awards. The co-creator and star of the short TV series The Slope (2010-2012), she is currently filming a series for Hulu and Channel 4 that was developed at the Sundance Institute Episodic Story Lab. FILMOGRAPHY: Appropriate Behavior (2014)
141
DEREK DONEEN
The Price of Free 92’
ENGLISH
USA
2018 DOCUMENTARY
The Price of Free tells the story of countless children, hidden inside overcrowded factories around the world, who are forced into slave labour due to rising global demands for cheap goods. With the help of a covert network of informants, Nobel Prize winner Kailash Satyarthi and his dedicated team carry out daring raids to rescue and rehabilitate imprisoned children. Using hidden cameras and playing the role of buyers at the factory to gain access, Satyarthi takes on one of his most challenging missions to date: finding Sonu, a young boy trafficked to Delhi for work who has been missing for eight months. DIRECTOR Derek Doneen
SOUND DESIGN Jussi Tegelman
SALES AGENT Park Circus Limited
STORY/SCREENPLAY Davis Guggenheim, Derek Doneen
PRODUCER Davis Guggenheim
CINEMATOGRAPHERS Zachary Shields, Lars Skree
PRODUCTION COMPANIES Concordia Studio, Participant Media
CAST Asmita, Swati Jha, Sumedha Kailash, Arshad Mehdi, Bhuwan Ribhu, Kailash Satyarthi
EDITORS Joshua Altman, Brian David Lazarte
FESTIVALS AND AWARDS
Derek Doneen is an American documentary filmmaker. He has worked closely with Davis Guggenheim, creating content for his documentary Waiting for “Superman” (2010) while working at Participant Media. Before directing The Price of Free, Doneen directed the documentary short Spent: Looking for Change (2013) and produced the documentaries The Dream is Now (2013) and Shot in the Dark (2017).
SUNDANCE FILM FESTIVAL (GRAND JURY PRIZE)
NURI BILGE CEYLAN
The Wild Pear Tree
Sinan is passionate about literature and has always wanted to be a writer. Returning to the village where he was born, he pours his heart and soul into scraping together the money he needs to be published, but his father’s debts catch up with him.
Ahlat Ağacı 188’
TURKISH
2018
FICTION
TURKEY, FRANCE, GERMANY, BULGARIA,MACEDONIA, THE FORMER YUGOSLAV REPUBLIC OF, BOSNIA AND HERZEGOVINA, SWEDEN
DIRECTOR Nuri Bilge Ceylan STORY/SCREENPLAY Nuri Bilge Ceylan, Akin Aksu CINEMATOGRAPHER Gökhan Tiryaki EDITOR Nuri Bilge Ceylan SOUND DESIGN Andreas Mücke Niesytka, Thomas Robert, Thomas Gauder
FESTIVALS AND AWARDS
CANNES FILM FESTIVAL | TORONTO INTERNATIONAL FILM FESTIVAL
CAST Aydin Dogu Demirkol, Murat Cemcir, Bennu Yildirmlar, Hazar Ergüçlü, Serkan Keskin SALES AGENT Memento Films International PRODUCER Zeynep Atakan
INDIAN DISTRIBUTOR Alliance Media and Entertainment PRODUCTION COMPANIES ZeynoFilm, Memento Films Production, DETAiLFILM, RFF International, Sisters and Brother Mitevski Production, 2006 Produkcija Sarajevo, The Chimney Pot, Film i Väst
Nuri Bilge Ceylan is a Turkish filmmaker. Debuting in 1998 with the feature Small Town, his films have won numerous awards at different prestigious film festivals of the world, including the Fipresci Prize, Best Director, and Palme d’Or at the Cannes Film Festival. FILMOGRAPHY: Small Town (1998), Distant (2002), Three Monkeys (2008), Once Upon a Time in Anatolia (2011), Winter Sleep (2014)
142
TIM WARDLE
Three Identical Strangers 96’
ENGLISH
DOCUMENTARY
USA
FESTIVALS AND AWARDS
2017
New York, 1980. Three complete strangers accidentally discover that they are identical triplets, separated at birth. Their joyous reunion catapults the 19-year-old brothers to international fame, but it also reveals an extraordinary and disturbing secret with an indeterminate number of victims at play.
DIRECTOR Tim Wardle
SOUND DESIGN Chad Orororo
CINEMATOGRAPHER Tim Cragg
PRODUCER Becky Read
EDITOR Michael Harte
PRODUCTION COMPANY Raw TV
London-based documentarian Tim Wardle has previously directed the Channel 4 documentary, Lifers (2012), studying murderers confined to prison for the rest of their lives, and One Killer Punch (2016), exploring the lingering impact of single acts of assault. Wardle is Executive Producer at Raw TV, and has also worked as head of development for companies such as Century Films and BBC Documentaries.
SUNDANCE FILM FESTIVAL 2018 | TORONTO INTERNATIONAL FILM FESTIVAL
FILMOGRAPHY: Lifers: Channel 4 Cutting Edge [Documentary] (2012)
JIM CUMMINGS
Thunder Road 92’ USA
FESTIVALS AND AWARDS
ENGLISH
2018
As Thunder Road opens, we meet Officer Jim Arnaud, preparing to address the mourners at his beloved mother’s memorial service. However, his eulogy doesn’t go quite as rehearsed. He’s continually on the verge of tears, of course, but also keeps making bizarre, confessional digressions, and, worst of all, his 10-year-old daughter’s pink boombox won’t play his mother’s favourite Bruce Springsteen song. This scene sets the tone for the narrative that follows — a singular blend of cringe-inducing laughs punctuated by moments of profound sentiment.
FICTION
SXSW FILM FESTIVAL (GRAND JURY AWARD)
| CANNES FILM FESTIVAL
DIRECTOR Jim Cummings
SOUND DESIGN Danny Madden
SALES AGENT Vanishing Angle
STORY/SCREENPLAY Jim Cummings CINEMATOGRAPHER Lowell A. Meyer
PRODUCERS Natalie Metzger, Zack Parker, Benjamin Wiessner, Matt Miller
EDITORS Brian Vannucci, Jim Cummings
PRODUCTION COMPANY Vanishing Angle
CAST Jim Cummings, Kendal Farr, Nican Robinson, Macon Blair, Chelsea Edmundson
Jim Cummings was a freelance line producer for a comedy website until he transitioned into filmmaking full-time. After his short film, Thunder Road (2016), won the Grand Jury Prize at the Sundance Film Festival, he landed a subscription deal with a streaming company, Fullscreen, to shoot six more shorts. He also plays the lead in Thunder Road. FILMOGRAPHY: No Floodwall Here (2010)
143
DOMINGA SOTOMAYOR
Too Late to Die Young Tarde para morir joven 110’
SPANISH
CHILE, BRAZIL, ARGENTINA, NETHERLANDS, QATAR
Democracy comes back to Chile during the summer of 1990. In an isolated community, Sofía (16), Lucas (16) and Clara (10), face their first loves and fears, while preparing for New Year’s Eve. They may live far from the dangers of the city, but not from those of nature.
2018 FICTION DIRECTOR Dominga Sotomayor STORY/SCREENPLAY Dominga Sotomayor CINEMATOGRAPHER Inti Briones EDITOR Catalina Marín
FESTIVALS AND AWARDS
SOUND DESIGN Claudio Vargas, Julia Hubermanr PRODUCERS IRodrigo Teixeira, Dominga Sotomayor
SALES AGENT Stray Dogs CAST Demian Hernández, Antar Machado, Magdalena Tótoro
PRODUCTION COMPANIES Cinestación, RT Features, Ruda Cine, Circe Films
Dominga Sotomayor is a Chilean filmmaker. Her first feature, Thursday Till Sunday (2012), won the Tiger Award in Rotterdam, a prize also given to her next short, La Isla (2013), which she co-directed with Katarzyna Klimkiewicz. In 2015, she premiered Mar at the Berlinale. Too Late to Die Young is her latest film.
LOCARNO INTERNATIONAL FILM FESTIVAL (GOLDEN LEOPARD FOR BEST DIRECTOR) | TORONTO INTERNATIONAL FILM FESTIVAL
FILMOGRAPHY: Thursday Till Sunday (2012), Mar (2015)
CHRISTIAN PETZOLD
Transit 101’
GERMAN, FRENCH
GERMANY, FRANCE
2018
When a man flees France after the Nazi invasion, he assumes the identity of a dead author whose papers he possesses. Stuck in Marseilles, he meets a young woman desperate to find her missing husband — the very man he’s impersonating.
FICTION DIRECTOR Christian Petzold STORY/SCREENPLAY Christian Petzold CINEMATOGRAPHER Hans Fromm EDITOR Bettina Böhler
FESTIVALS AND AWARDS
SOUND DESIGN Dominik Schleier, Martin Steyer PRODUCERS Florian Koerner von Gustorf, Michael Weber PRODUCTION COMPANIES Schramm Film Koerner & Weber, Neon Productions
SALES AGENT The Match Factory CAST Franz Rogowski, Paula Beer, Godehard Giese, Lilien Batman, Maryam Zaree
Christian Petzold is a German director who made his filmmaking debut in 1995. His 2000 film, The State I Am In, won the German Film Award in Gold. After having presented his films Ghosts (2005) and Yella (2007) at the Berlinale, he won the Silver Bear for Best Director for Barbara in 2012. BERLINALE
FILMOGRAPHY: The State I Am In (2000), Ghosts (2005), Yella (2007), Barbara (2012), Phoenix (2014)
144
NAOMI KAWASE
Vision 109’
Jeanne, a French journalist, comes to Japan in search of Vision, a rare medicinal herb said to strip away all spiritual anguish and weakness in human beings.
ENGLISH, JAPANESE, FRENCH
JAPAN, FRANCE
2018 FICTION DIRECTOR Naomi Kawase
SOUND DESIGN Roman Dymny
SALES AGENT Elle Driver
STORY/SCREENPLAY Naomi Kawase
PRODUCERS Marianne Slot, Satoshi Miyazaki
CAST Juliette Binoche, Masatoshi Nagase
CINEMATOGRAPHER Arata Dodo
PRODUCTION COMPANY Slot Machine Production
EDITORS François Gedigier, Yoichi Shibuya
FESTIVALS AND AWARDS
TORONTO INTERNATIONAL FILM FESTIVAL | SAN SEBASTIÁN INTERNATIONAL FILM FESTIVAL
BENEDIKT ERLINGSSON
Woman at War Kona Fer I Strid 100’
Naomi Kawase is a Japanese filmmaker who has won international recognition for her films such as Suzaku (1997), The Mourning Forest (2007), Hanezu (2011), Still the Water (2014), and Radiance (2017).
ICELANDIC
FRANCE, ICELAND, UKRAINE
2018
FILMOGRAPHY: Suzaku (1997), The Mourning Forest (2007), Hanezu (2011), Still the Water (2014), Radiance (2017)
Halla is a 50-year-old independent woman. But behind the scenes of a quiet routine, she secretly wages a one-woman war on the local aluminium industry. As Halla’s actions grow bolder, from petty vandalism to outright industrial sabotage, she succeeds in pausing the negotiations between the Icelandic government and the corporation building a new aluminium smelter in the mountains. But right as she begins planning her biggest and boldest operation yet, she receives an unexpected letter that changes everything.
FICTION SOUND DESIGN François de Morant
DIRECTOR Benedikt Erlingsson STORY/SCREENPLAY Benedikt Erlingsson, Ólafur Egill Egilsson CINEMATOGRAPHERS Serge Lavrenyuk, Bergsteinn Björgúlfsson, Birgitta EDITOR Davíð Þór Jónsson
FESTIVALS AND AWARDS
CANNES FILM FESTIVAL | BUSAN INTERNATIONAL FILM FESTIVAL | TORONTO INTERNATIONAL FILM FESTIVAL
PRODUCERS Marianne Slot, Carine Leblanc, Benedikt Erlingsson PRODUCTION COMPANY Slot Machine
SALES AGENT Beta Cinema CAST Halldóra Geirharðsdóttir, Davíð Þór Jónsson, Magnús Tryggvason Eliasen, Ómar Guðjónsson
Benedikt Erlingsson is an Icelandic director, author, and actor. Of Horses and Men (2013), Erlingsson’s first feature film as a writer-director, won over 20 international awards including the New Directors prize at the San Sebastián International Film Festival and the 2014 Nordic Council Film Prize. FILMOGRAPHY: Of Horses and Men (2013)
145
DEVASHISH MAKHIJA
Bhonsle 133’
HINDI
2018
INDIA
FICTION
DIRECTOR Devashish Makhija STORY/SCREENPLAY Devashish Makhija, Sharanya Rajgopal, Mirat Trivedi CINEMATOGRAPHER Jigmet Wangchuk EDITOR Shweta Venkat Matthew SOUND DESIGN Kaamod Kharade PRODUCERS Shabana Raza Bajpayee, Sandiip Kapur, Piiyush Singh, Saurabh Gupta, Abhayanand Singh PRODUCTION COMPANIES Manoj Bajpayee Productions, Promodome Motion Pictures, Indie Muviz, Golden Ratio Films CAST Manoj Bajpayee, Santosh Juvekar, Ipshita Chakraborty Singh, Virat Vaibhav FESTIVAL AGENT Sanjay Ram (Festivals - Basil Content Media)
At a time when politicians use violence to rid Maharashtra of Bihari migrants, a dying Maharashtrian cop, Bhonsle, finds unlikely companionship in 23-year-old Bihari Sita as the raging conflict reaches his doorstep, giving him a last battle worth fighting.
FESTIVALS AND AWARDS
BUSAN INTERNATIONAL FILM FESTIVAL
Devashish Makhija researched and assisted on Black Friday (2004) and has written numerous screenplays, notably Anurag Kashyap’s Doga. He has written bestselling children’s books Why Paploo was Perplexed (2011) and When Ali Became Bajrangbali (2012); a collection of short stories, Forgetting (2014), and a forthcoming book of poems, Disengaged. He has also written and directed the multiple award winning short films Rahim Murge Pe Mat Ro (2008), El’ayichi (2015), Agli Baar (2015), Taandav (2016), Absent (2016), and the feature film Ajji (2017), which played in India Gold at the Jio MAMI 19th Mumbai Film Festival with Star FILMOGRAPHY: Oonga (2013), Ajji (2017) 148
VINU KOLICHAL
Bilathikuzhal 103’
MALAYALAM
2018
INDIA
FICTION
DIRECTOR Vinu Kolichal STORY/SCREENPLAY Vinu Kolichal CINEMATOGRAPHER Ram Raghav EDITOR Shiju Nostalgia SOUND DESIGN B.R. Aravind PRODUCER COMPANY VJ Cinemas PRODUCER Joseph Abraham CAST Balettan, Sanjay, Imbichiyamma, Haridas, Aneesh
For Kunjambu, Chindan Muthapan is a legendary hero — a figure in his grandmother’s fairytales. Chindan is a hunter, the only man in the village who knows how to use an English barrel. As a kid, Kunjambu dreamt about Chindan, where the man with the gun rescued him from his nightmares. When Chindan walked into the forest holding the gun, the young Kunjambu followed him. Even after becoming an adult, Kunjambu remains fascinated with the gun. Then, one day, Kunjambu has to turn in his gun at the local police station, as part of a mandatory requirement during elections — an act that changes his life.
Vinu Kolichal is an independent filmmaker from Kerala. He joined the Filmocracy Foundation of Kerala, a non-profit intended to democratise Malayalam cinema, as a camera assistant, working on two films, Vith (2017) and the forthcoming Avalkoppam. Kolichal has explored the mundane life of a north Malabar village in his first film, Bilathikuzhal.
149
SANGEETA DATTA
Bird of Dusk Shondher Pakhi
97’
ENGLISH BENGALI
2018
INDIA
DOCUMENTARY
DIRECTOR Sangeeta Datta STORY/SCREENPLAY Sangeeta Datta CINEMATOGRAPHERS Subhajit Prasad, Souvid Datta, Subhadip Sarkar EDITOR Subhajit Prasad SOUND DESIGN Ayan Bhattacharya PRODUCTION COMPANY Stormglass Productions
Indian writer-director Rituparno Ghosh is a larger than life cultural icon whose influence spread far beyond his films. This documentary is pegged on the director’s own interviews and conversations (from archives) and his personal memoirs called First Person. The documentary includes interviews of his close collaborators discussing his filmmaking style and the international film festival curators who endorse the filmmaker’s position in the world. Ghosh lived and worked in the city of Kolkata, which he loved dearly. His life and works are products of his city and its culture. The story of Ghosh is interrelated to the changing cityscape of Kolkata as the film is shot over the course of a year. FESTIVALS AND AWARDS
NEW YORK INDIAN FILM FESTIVAL, LONDON INDIAN FILM FESTIVAL |CHICAGO SOUTH ASIAN FILM FESTIVAL |BAY AREA SOUTH ASIAN FILM FESTIVAL
Sangeeta Datta is a writer-director-musician working between India and the UK. Her award winning films include Life Goes On (2011) and The Way I See It (2001), and the stage musicals The Dying Song and Giitanjali. Her recent documentary, Shondher Pakhi (2018), has had international premieres and is currently in the festival circuit.
FILMOGRAPHY: The Way I See It (2001), Life Goes On (2011) 150
ANUPAM KAUSHIK BORAH
Bornodi Bhotiai Love, By the River
132’
ASSAMESE
2018
INDIA
FICTION
DIRECTOR Anupam Kaushik Borah STORY/SCREENPLAY Anupam Kaushik Borah CINEMATOGRAPHER Prayash Sharma Tamuly EDITOR Rantu Chetia SOUND DESIGN Debajit Gayan PRODUCER Anupam Kaushik Borah CAST Dorothi Bhardwaj, Anupam Kaushik Borah, Sonmoni Sarma, Kaushik Nath, Himanshu Gogoi
Four boys from Majuli, the biggest river island of the world, love the same girl. Each one of them knows about the other three’s feelings. But jealousy is a thing they do not know of. All they know is to dream of a beautiful life with the girl. However, they are all plans and no action. Another boy catches a rather peculiar ‘cold’ which remains with him for the hotter half of the year — the same period of time in which flood from the ‘Bornodi’, the Brahmaputra, looms on the horizon all the time. Finally his childhood companion, the same girl the other four love, cures him. In the process, both realise that they have been in love all the time. Two of the four migrate out of the island searching for a better life. The others surrender to the ordinary. Meanwhile, the ‘cold’ of Majuli, flood, awaits a treatment. Anupam Kaushik Borah, born in 1985 in Majuli (Assam), started working in theatre at the age of seven in Bhaona. He graduated from the National School of Drama (NSD) in 2011, completing his theatre training with an acting specialisation. After NSD, he returned to Assam and started his own group, Bhawariya — The TPositives. He was awarded the prestigious Chandra Prasad Saikia Award in 2012 for his short story Dutokia. He has acted in several feature films including the award winning Bokul (2015).
151
ANAMIKA HAKSAR
Ghode Ko Jalebi Khilane Le Ja Riya Hoon Taking the Horse to Eat Jalebis
122’
HINDI
2018
INDIA
FICTION
DIRECTOR Anamika Haksar STORY/SCREENPLAY Anamika Haksar, Lokesh Jain CINEMATOGRAPHER Saumyananda Sahi
Fusing documentary-realism with magic-realism, and true and fictionalised stories with poetry and dreams, Ghode Ko Jalebi Khilane Le Ja Riya Hoon is a love letter to the syncretic culture of Old Delhi, to its history which is slowly losing itself amid concrete and smog.
EDITOR Paresh Kamdar SOUND DESIGN Gautam Nair PRODUCER Anamika Haksar PRODUCTION COMPANY Gutterati Productions CAST Raghubir Yadav, Ravindra Sahu, K Gopalan, Lokesh Jain
Anamika Haksar is an Indian theatre director. Having first trained under Badal Sarcar and then with B.V. Karanth at the National School of Drama (NSD), she later went to the State Institute of Theatre Arts, Moscow. She won the Sanskriti Award for developing a new theater language in India in 1995. In 2016, she was invited to the Kochi Biennale to exhibit an acclaimed theatre installation.
152
AIJAZ KHAN
Hamid 108’
HINDI URDU
2018
INDIA
FICTION
DIRECTOR Aijaz Khan STORY/SCREENPLAY Ravinder Randhawa CINEMATOGRAPHER John Wilmor
Eight-year-old Hamid learns that 786 is God’s number and decides to try and reach out to Him by dialing it. He wants to talk to his father who, his mother tells him, has gone to Allah. One day the phone call is answered, and two lives shattered in the strife of Kashmir find a way to be complete again.
EDITOR Afzal S. Shaikh SOUND DESIGN Subash Sahoo PRODUCERS Vikram Mehra, Siddharth Anand Kumar PRODUCTION COMPANY Saregama India CAST Talha Arshad Reshi, Rasika Dugal, Vikas Kumar, Sumit Kaul
Aijaz Khan’s debut, The White Elephant (2009), premiered at the International Film Festival of India and eventually travelled to more than 10 film festivals including New York Film Festival and the UK Film Festival. He has been active in the advertising industry, directing and producing ads for over a decade. He recently directed Baankey Ki Crazy Baraat (2015), which was well received at the box office. FILMOGRAPHY: The White Elephant (2009), Baankey Ki Crazy Baraat (2015) 153
KARAN CHAVAN, VIKRAM PATIL
Imago 97’
MARATHI
2018
INDIA
FICTION
DIRECTORS Karan Chavan, Vikram Patil STORY/SCREENPLAY Karan Chavan, Vikram Patil CINEMATOGRAPHER Vikram Patil EDITORS Nikhil Thakar, Karan Chavan, Vikas Dige, Vikram Patil SOUND DESIGN Raj Jadhav PRODUCERS Dasharath Yadav, Vikas Dige, Paras Oswal PRODUCTION COMPANY Aviraj Productions CAST Aishwarya Ghaidhar, Amol Deshmukh, Adarsh Kurne
Namrata, a shy teenage girl living in a small village, is suffering from leucoderma (a skin disorder). The white spots on her dark skin have set her aside from others. Pitiful and penetrating looks from ‘normal’ people have made her feel guilty and embarrassed for who she is and how she looks. One day a young teacher joins her school. A firm believer in freedom and self-pride, he creates space for Namrata to breathe freely. She finds solace in his gaze, relief in his presence. Her isolated bubble begins to dissolve. Romance starts kindling teenage desires. But there’s too much at stake, too much to lose. Her destination seems far away, but the journey continues — her taboos and inner conflicts are about to resolve, transforming her completely.
Karan Chavan is a painter and a filmmaker. He has six years of experience in filmmaking, video commercials, and contemporary art. He has written and directed five short films, which have won prestigious awards. Vikram Patil is a painter, cinematographer, and filmmaker. He has six years of experience in filmmaking, video Commercials, and contemporary art. He’s directed one short film and, as a cinematographer, shot four short films, which went on to win prestigious awards.
154
PAWAN K SHRIVASTAVA
Life of an Outcast 80’
HINDI
2018
INDIA
FICTION
DIRECTOR Pawan K. Shrivastava STORY/SCREENPLAY Pawan K. Shrivastava CINEMATOGRAPHER Vikas Sinha EDITOR Dhrubo Das
Life of an Outcast is about an outcast family that has been a victim of caste discrimination over the last three decades. The family is thrown out of the village as the bride refuses to sleep with the landlord on her wedding night. Their struggle doesn’t end there; the son is stopped from attending English classes because he’s Dalit. When he grows up to become a Mathematics teacher, the upper caste villagers cannot digest this and get him arrested for hurting religious sentiments. His father, meanwhile, struggles to procure the bail money.
SOUND DESIGN Sabyasachi Pal PRODUCER Pawan K Shrivastava PRODUCTION COMPANY Studio Sarvahara CAST Ravi Sah, Siddarth Bhardwaj, Jai Shanker Pandey, Shalini Mohan, Bhaskar Jha
Pawan K. Shrivastava was born in Bihar’s Chhapra district in 1982. He has directed two documentaries, two short films, one feature film, and written and directed more than 200 street plays. His first film, Naya Pata (2014), made on a budget of Rs 8 lakhs, was crowdfunded. In 2012, The Telegraph selected him as one of the 13 young innovators from Bihar. FILMOGRAPHY: Naya Pata (2014)
155
MANSORE
Nathicharami 113’
KANNADA
2018
INDIA
FICTION
DIRECTOR Mansore STORY/SCREENPLAY Mansore, Sandhya Rani CINEMATOGRAPHER Guruprasad Narnad EDITOR Nagendra K. Ujjani SOUND DESIGN Mahavir Sabannavar
Nathicharami is about Gowri, a modern, well-educated, independent widow, working in the IT sector. Her mundane world sways between her physical desires and her conscience. The film narrates the protagonist’s struggle in a society that believes physical desires should only lead to marriage. Living a solitary life, Gowri is surrounded by narrow minded people whose views are very different from her personal beliefs. Then there’s a traditional homemaker who has a strained relationship with her husband. Finally, it is also the story of Suresh who leads an unhappy married life, where there are sexual desires without any intimacy. However that doesn’t dissuade him from trying to find the love of his life.
PRODUCER Ramesh M. PRODUCTION COMPANY Tejaswini Enterprises CAST Sruthi Hariharan, Sanchari Vijay, Sharanya, Balaji Manohar
Mansore holds a Postgraduate Diploma in Visual Arts from the College of Fine Arts, Bangalore. Since 2014 he has been active in theatre, television programs, and filmmaking as a scriptwriter and art director. His debut, Harivu (2014), won the National Award for Best Feature Film in Kannada. FILMOGRAPHY: Harivu (2014)
156
SUBASH SAHOO
The Sound Man Mangesh Desai 122’
HINDI
2017
INDIA
DOCUMENTARY
DIRECTOR Subash Sahoo STORY/SCREENPLAY Suprava Sahoo, Subash Sahoo CINEMATOGRAPHERS Prashantanu Mohapatra, Indraneel Lahiri, Vimal Mishra EDITOR Lipika Singh Darai
Mangesh Desai was a freedom fighter, a nationalist, a patriot, and a gifted sound technician. He fought the British, smuggled revolvers, and made bombs. The New York Times rated him among the top ten sound mixing engineers of the world. He influenced directors across generations such as Yash Chopra, Randhir Kapoor, and Vidhu Vinod Chopra. He achieved the impossible through his aesthetics even with technological limitations. He moulded himself according to the subject, film, and director. He was legendary by all definition.
SOUND DESIGN Subash Sahoo PRODUCERS B.N. Tiwari, Suprava Sahoo PRODUCTION COMPANIES Wimptsea, GRAAS Entertainment
Subash Sahoo is a National Award-winning sound designer who has worked in such films as Tumhari Sulu (2017), Neerja (2016), NH10 (2015), among notable others. An electronics engineer and a graduate from the Film and Television Institute of India, he has worked in the Mumbai film industry over the last 24 years. The Sound Man Mangesh Desai is his first film as a director.
157
SWATI DANDEKAR
True Blue Neeli Raag
85’
TELUGU TAMIL KANNADA ENGLISH HINDI GUJARATI
2018
INDIA DOCUMETARY
DIRECTOR Swati Dandekar STORY/SCREENPLAY Swati Dandekar CINEMATOGRAPHER Srikanth Kabothu EDITOR Rikhav Desai SOUND DESIGN Vipin Bhati PRODUCER Swati Dandekar PRODUCTION COMPANY Films Division
It is elusive, emerging after a long process. It is deep and unfading. It demands a commitment from all those who engage with it. This is the story of indigo, India’s most precious natural dye, which was lost to the events and the processes of history. A century later, as the world begins to seek natural dyes once more, it is back in the spotlight. Neeli Raag tells the story of the stubborn dreamers who kept it alive through the years of oblivion. Their true-blue faith in the craft is vindicated, yet crafting indigo requires body-knowledge and patience that seem to belong to another time. The world that once nurtured this difficult and elusive colour is no longer the same. Can true blue colour survive our own life and times and live to tell its tale to the future? Swati Dandekar is a documentary filmmaker based in Bangalore with a special interest in creating visual narratives of the living history of people, places, ideas, traditions, and practices. Her current interest is the study of textile crafts and the relationship between craftspersons and their craft, resulting in her most recent work, the feature length documentary Neeli Raag. She also teaches film at the Srishti Institute of Art, Design and Technology, Bangalore.
158
UNNIKRISHNAN AVALA
Udalazham Body Deep
119’
MALAYALAM
2018
INDIA
FICTION
DIRECTOR Unnikrishnan Avala STORY/SCREENPLAY Unnikrishnan Avala CINEMATOGRAPHER Muhamed A EDITOR Appu Bhattathiri
Gulikan, born and brought up as a boy in a tribal settlement, has the body and soul of a girl. Dark skinned, fragile, introvert, and vulnerable, he struggles to balance his life working as a coolie in the city. Displaced by drought, poverty and addiction, humiliated and abused in a racist society, his tribe is on the run. Udalazham, the story of a tribal transgender, discusses how skin colour, and not the depth of one’s heart, is an approved identity in a ruthless and cold-blooded society.
SOUND DESIGN Renganaath Ravee PRODUCER Rajeshkumar M.P., Manojkumar K.T., Sajish M. PRODUCTION COMPANY Doctors’ Dilemma CAST Mani, Remya Valsala, Vettilakolli Mathi, Indrans, Anumol
Unnikrishnan Avala is a documentary filmmaker, author, teacher, and a freelance journalist. His documentaries have been well received in film festivals and won coveted awards at the Kerala State level. He’s authored three books, one of which was on the life and works of the renowned Malayalam filmmaker Kamal. FILMOGRAPHY: Womenses (2016)
159
Spotlight: An Anthology of Shorts TANUJA CHANDRA
A Monsoon Date 21’
HINDI
2018
FICTION
On a rainy, monsoon evening, a young woman is on her way to see a young man she is dating. Along the way, she experiences a series of bittersweet moments with strangers. As a storm brews inside her, she reveals a heartbreaking truth about her past.. DIRECTOR Tanuja Chandra
SOUND DESIGN Hemant Rao
STORY/SCREENPLAY Gazal Dhaliwal
PRODUCER Ridhima Lulla, Rakesh Singh
CINEMATOGRAPHER Saurabh Goswami EDITOR Akshara Prabhakar
CAST Konkona Sen Sharma, Chitranjan Tripathi, Priyanshu Painyuli, Prasad Reddy
PRODUCTION COMPANIES Eros Pictures, ITOP Express
Known for making films with female protagonists, Tanuja Chandra was among a handful of women directors when she first started out. Even now, with 20 years in the industry, as a director of seven feature films, she continues to champion stories of women, by women, for women, and she hopes to be a part of this genre of filmmaking for a long time FILMOGRAPHY: Dushman (1998), Sangharsh (1999), Sur (2002), Zindaggi Rocks (2006), Qarib Qarib Singlle (2017)
NAGRAJ MANJULE
An Essay of the Rain Pavsacha Nibanha 25’41”
HINDI
2018
FICTION
On a rainy, monsoon evening, a young woman is on her way to see a young man she is dating. Along the way, she experiences a series of bittersweet moments with strangers. As a storm brews inside her, she reveals a heartbreaking truth about her past...
DIRECTOR Nagraj Manjule
EDITOR Kutub Inamdar
STORY/SCREENPLAY Nagraj Manjule
SOUND DESIGN Avinash Sonavane
CINEMATOGRAPHER Sudhakar Yakkanti Reddy
PRODUCER Balkrishna Manjule Sheshraj Manjule, Gargi Kulkarni
PRODUCTION COMPANY Aatpat CAST Meghraj Shinde, Gargi Kulkarni, Sheshraj Manjule, Rahi Manjule
Nagraj Manjule is a director and a screenwriter of highly acclaimed Marathi feature films and shorts, which have cumulatively won 4 National Awards (Manjule winning three of them). His last feature, Sairat (2016), premiered at the Berlinale, and broke box-office records when it released in India. He’s published a book of poetry in Marathi, titled Unhachya Katavirudhha (2015), which won the Bhairuratan Damani Sahitya Puraskar. FILMOGRAPHY: Fandry (2013), Sairat (2016)
162
KABIR MEHTA
BUDDHA.MOV 70’
ENGLISH
2017
INDIA ITALY
DOCU- FICTION
DIRECTOR Kabir Mehta STORY/SCREENPLAY Kabir Mehta CINEMATOGRAPHER Reebok Singh EDITOR Henry Lawer SOUND DESIGN Udit Duseja PRODUCERS Aakash Bhatia, Kabir Mehta, Massimiliano Nardulli PRODUCTION COMPANIES Rescuers Film, Meta Film
Lured by the chance of being the protagonist of a documentary film, Buddha Dev, a 27-year-old flamboyant cricketer from Goa, starts authorising unrestricted access into the most private aspects of his life.
FESTIVALS AND AWARDS
TALLINN BLACK NIGHTS FILM FESTIVAL |DOCUMENTA MADRID
Kabir Mehta’s first film, Sadhu in Bombay (2015), a short docu-fiction, had its north American premiere at the Slamdance Film Festival and subsequently won the award for Best Narrative Film at the 55th Ann Arbor Film Festival. Kabir’s first feature length project, Buddha.mov, had its world premiere at 2017 Tallinn Black Nights Film Festival in the First Features Competition.
163
VASANTH S. SAI
Sivaranjani and Two Other Women Sivaranjaniyum Innum Sila Pengallum 123’
TAMIL
2018
INDIA
FICTION
DIRECTOR Vasanth S. Sai STORY/SCREENPLAY Vasanth S. Sai, Ashokamitran, B. Jeyamohan, Aadhavan CINEMATOGRAPHERS Ravi Shankaran. N. K. Ekhambaram EDITOR Sreekar Prasad SOUND DESIGN Anand Krishnamoorthi PRODUCER Vasanth S. Sai PRODUCTION COMPANY Shree Chithra Talkies CAST Parvathy Anand Krishnamoorthi
Home, considered the safest space for women, is where casual sexism and entrenched misogyny play out in everyday routines of countless women across the world. Sivaranjani and Two Other Women captures the micro awakenings of identity, space, and self-worth when family dynamics, early marriage, and pregnancy threaten to usurp the individuality of three different women, unfolding across three different time periods.
Vasanth S. Sai is an Indian filmmaker and screenwriter, working in the Tamil film industry. He made his directorial debut with Keladi Kanmani (1990), which was a major critical and box office success. He followed it up with such films as Aasai (1995), Rhythm (2000), Sathum Podathey (2007), and Visaranai Commission based on Tamil writer Sa. Kandasamy’s Sahitya Academy-winning novel of the same name. His latest film, Sivaranjaniyum Innum Sila Pengalum, is based on the short stories of iconic Tamil writers Ashokamitran, Jayamohan, and Aadavan. FILMOGRAPHY: Keladi Kanmani (1990), Aasai (1995), Rhythm (2000), Satham Podathey (2007), Moondru Per Moondru Kaadhal (2013)
164
BUDDHADEB DASGUPTA
The Flight Urojahaj
82’
BENGALI
2018
INDIA
FICTION
DIRECTOR Buddhadeb Dasgupta STORY/SCREENPLAY Buddhadeb Dasgupta CINEMATOGRAPHER Asim Bose EDITOR Amitava Dasgupta SOUND DESIGN Anirban Sengupta PRODUCER Buddhadeb Dasgupta PRODUCTION COMPANY Buddhadeb Dasgupta Productions SALES AGENT Auteur Films and Production CAST Chandan Roy Sanyal, Parno Mitra, Sudipto Chatterjee
A village mechanic dreams of flying. After discovering the crash site of a World War II Japanese plane, Bachchu Mondal decides to rebuild it. His project doesn’t go unnoticed by the ghosts that haunt the place, all victims of broken dreams. The authorities begin investigating Mondal as a life threatening series of bizarre events conspire
Buddhadeb Dasgupta is an acclaimed Indian director who is a recipient of 27 National Awards, the Best Director Award at the Venice Film Festival, and the Lifetime Achievement Award at the Athens International Film Festival. Five of his films have won the National Award for Best Feature Film: Bagh Bahadur (1989), Charachar (1994), Lal Darja (1997), Mondo Meyer Upakhyan (2002), and Kaalpurush (2005). FILMOGRAPHY: Bagh Bahadur (1989), Charchar (1994), Lal Darja (1997), Uttara (2000), Kaalpurush (2005), Anwar Ka Ajab Hissa (2013)
165
166
A LONGING LOOK AT HOME In the early days of the Mumbai Film Festival, I recall being on its selection committee with Aruna Vasudev, Maithili Rao, Srinivasan Narayanan, and, of course, the late P. K. Nair. At the outset, I felt the need to highlight a neglected aspect of Indian films in the changing landscape of world cinema. More filmmakers in India were making films in English. And in a larger sense, more filmmakers of Indian origin were emerging from across the world, especially from the UK, the USA, Canada, parts of Europe, and even Australia. Those filmmakers’ stories invariably harked back to their homeland, making films on and about India that were imbued with another hue and heartbeat. At the same time, India was fast becoming a favourite for many international filmmakers, in terms of both stories and settings. Some films resonated widely, such as Richard Attenborough’s Gandhi (1982), while others impacted in different ways. It was that third eye, resulting from the lure of India, that intrigued me, causing me to curate a film section around it. In 1999, I named it ‘Films from West with an Indian Theme’. Then, in 2005, I called it ‘Film India Worldwide’. And finally, in 2015, it became ‘Discovering India’. In recent years, Discovering India’ has presented films made by directors living abroad, both international as well as of Indian origin, covering a vast spectrum of the country’s regions and languages. It is gratifying to note that with the help of the National Film Development Corporation, its Film Bazaar, and with the combined efforts of wellwishers like me, Indian cinema now has an international aura and reach. Now new Indian titles frequently feature at different film festivals and co-production ma kets, leading to more sales agents, culminating in Indian talent getting global recog nition and access. With each year, the canvas gets bigger, more varied, and more exciting – an obsessive one for a film junkie like me!
Uma da Cunha Curator, Discovering India
Uma Da Cunha left advertising to make her career in cinema with the Directorate of Film Festivals, Government of India. From 1978 she has worked independently, organising film festivals in India and abroad, writing for leading newspapers and publications, casting for films such as Dev Benegal’s English, August (1994); Mira Nair’s Kamasutra (1996); Jane Campion’s Holy Smoke! (1999); Ashutosh Gowariker’s Lagaan (2001); and Deepa Mehta’s Water (2005). She has assisted major festivals such as those at Cannes, Berlin, and Venice and, more recently, Toronto and Busan. She has also held Indian film sessions at New York’s Museum of Modern Art, The Lincoln Center, and the Museum of Modern Image. In 1966 she edited Montage, a monograph on Satyajit Ray. In 2009, she served on the International jury for Cannes Film Festival’s Un Certain Regard. She currently edits the journal Film India Worldwide and writes for the online daily newspaper thecitizen.in. She’s recently launched her website, Film India Global.
171
SAFDAR RAHMAN
Chippa 90’
HINDI
2018
INDIA
FICTION
DIRECTOR Safdar Rahman STORY/SCREENPLAY Safdar Rahman CINEMATOGRAPHER Ramanuj Dutta EDITOR Manas Mittal SOUND DESIGN Sukanta Majumdar PRODUCERS Celine Loop, A.V.T. Shankardass, Sushilkumar Agrawal, Rajat Agrawal PRODUCTION COMPANY Travelling Light Pictures CAST Sunny Pawar
On the eve of his 10th birthday, when he is handed a letter written to him by his longabsent father, Chippa decides to leave his pavement abode to find out more. What follows is a journey he takes into an enchanting world he creates for himself through one wintry night in Kolkata.
Safdar Rahman is a 27-year-old film practitioner based out of Calcutta, Mumbai, and Brussels. After having directed a few plays in school and college, Safdar landed up as a class teacher in a school in Delhi, handling a class of forty kids for two years. Consequently, he founded and runs a non-profit called Red Lorry Yellow Lorry, which works in the sphere of education and the arts. In 2014, he started working with the maverick film company, Oddjoint, where he has worn many hats over the years before recently venturing out on his own, and partnering with his wife Celine, to found Travelling Light Pictures. Chippa is his directorial debut. 172
ANN S. KIM, PRIYA GIRI DESAI
Lovesick 74’
ENGLISH
2017
USA
DOCUMENTARY
DIRECTORS Ann S. Kim, Priya Giri Desai STORY/SCREENPLAY Ann S. Kim, Priya Giri Desai CINEMATOGRAPHERS Ann S. Kim, Fowzia Fatima, Jane Gilooly, Monic Kumar G. EDITORS R. Acosta, B. Anderson, P. Rhodes SOUND DESIGN Steve “Major” Giammaria PRODUCERS Ann S. Kim, Priya Giri Desai PRODUCTION COMPANY Oh Auntie Films SALES AGENT Limonero Films CAST Dr. Suniti Solomon, Manu, Karthik
Dr. Suniti Solomon discovered HIV in India, helping thousands manage the disease. Through the stories of two of her patients, Lovesick explores the next phase of her illustrious career: a matchmaker for HIV+ patients, living in a society where AIDS in unspeakable.
FESTIVALS AND AWARDS
INDIAN FILM FESTIVAL OF LOS ANGELES (AUDIENCE CHOICE AWARD — BEST DOCUMENTARY)
Ann S. Kim is an independent filmmaker who has reported on a range of science global health issues for public television and radio. Priya Giri Desai’s work in print and broadcast media spans two decades and includes work for outlets such as Life magazine, Public Broadcasting Service, and several independent film projects. FILMOGRAPHY: Ann S. Kim: Today the Hawk Takes One Chick (2008), Secrecy (2008), The Mosque in Morgantown (2009) Priya Giri Desai: Enlighten Up! (2008), Unnatural Causes (2008), Forgotten Ellis Island (2008) 173
DAR GAI
Namdev Bhau: In Search of Silence Namdev Bhau 84’
HINDI MARATHI
2018
INDIA
FICTION
DIRECTOR Dar Gai STORY/SCREENPLAY Dar Gai CINEMATOGRAPHER Aditya Varma EDITOR Shounok Ghosh SOUND DESIGN Rakshit Thantry, Verdiana Saint Amour PRODUCER Dheer Momaya PRODUCTION COMPANY Jugaad Motion Pictures FESTIVAL AGENT Sanjay Ram (Festivals Basil Content Media) CAST Namdev Gurav, Aarya Dave, Zoya Hussain
A 65-year-old chauffeur, who is tired of the noises in the obstreperous Mumbai and has completely stopped speaking, decides to leave everything in search of “Silent Valley”, which boasts of a naturally occurring phenomena that has an almost zero decibel sound level. On this journey he chances upon an exasperating 12-year-old boy, who happens to be on his own solo expedition to the mystical “Red Castle”.
FESTIVALS AND AWARDS
BUSAN INTERNATIONAL FILM FESTIVAL | BFI LONDON FILM FESTIVAL FESTIVAL
After obtaining a bachelor’s and master’s degree in Philosophy with a minor in film and theatre from Kiev, Dar Gai moved to India to teach screenwriting at Whistling Woods International. Her first narrative feature, Teen Aur Aadha (2017), was coproduced and presented by noted Indian filmmaker Anurag Kashyap. It has been selected in over 35 international festivals, winning, in total, 12 awards. Gai’s second film, Namdev Bhau, had its world premiere at the Busan International Film Festival and had its U.K. premiere at the BFI London Film Festival. FILMOGRAPHY: Teen Aur Aadha (2017) 174
LEENA YADAV
Rajma Chawal 118’
HINDI
2018
INDIA
FICTION
DIRECTOR Leena Yadav STORY/SCREENPLAY Vivek Anchalia, Manurishi Chadha, Leena Yadav CINEMATOGRAPHER Donald McAlpine EDITOR Thom Noble SOUND DESIGN Bishwadeep Dipak Chatterjee PRODUCERS Gulab Singh Tanwar, Leena Yadav, Aseem Bajaj, Swati Shetty (Netflix) PRODUCTION COMPANY Saarthi Entertainment SALES AGENT Netflix CAST Rishi Kapoor, Anirudh Tanwar, Amyra Dastur, Aparshakti Khurana, Harish Khanna
A technologically challenged father creates havoc in order to reach out to his noncommunicative son. After many failed attempts and constantly increasing distance, his desperation leads him to take a slightly questionable route to mend their relationship. Amid all this confusion, love has its own twists and turns, and everyone ends up finding their true selves against the crowded streets of Old Delhi.
FESTIVALS AND AWARDS
BFI LONDON FILM FESTIVAL
Leena Yadav is an independent filmmaker based in Mumbai and Los Angeles, known for dealing with unconventional themes in her films and international collaborations with artists. Her last feature, Parched (2016), had its world premiere at The Toronto International Film Festival. Parched since travelled to 57 film festivals across the world and won 31 international awards. The film had a historic theatrical run in French theatres, playing for 43 consecutive weeks, making it the longest running Indian film ever in France. FILMOGRAPHY: Shabd (2005), Teen Patti (2010), Parched (2016) 175
JEAN PAUL CIVEYRAC
A Paris Education Mes provinciales
136’
FRENCH
2018
FRANCE
FICTION
DIRECTOR Jean Paul Civeyrac STORY/SCREENPLAY Jean Paul Civeyrac CINEMATOGRAPHER Pierre-Hubert Martin EDITOR Louise Narboni SOUND DESIGN François Méreu, Philippe Grivel PRODUCERS Frédéric Niedermayer, Michèle, Laurent Pétin PRODUCTION COMPANIES Moby Dick Films, ARP SALES AGENT Les Films Du Losange CAST Andranic Manet, Corentin Fila, Gonzague Van Bervesselès, Diane Rouxel, Jenna Thiam, Sophie Verbeeck
Etienne comes to Paris to study filmmaking at the Sorbonne. He meets Mathias and Jean-Noël who share his passion for films. But as they spend the year studying, they have to face friendship and romantic challenges as well as choose their artistic battles. Shot in black and white, with many scenes dedicated to extended discussions about movies, A Paris Education is both a coming-of-age drama and an ode to cinephilia.
FESTIVALS AND AWARDS
BERLINALE
Jean Paul Civeyrac studied philosophy at Jean Moulin University Lyon 3, where he wrote a thesis on the opera film. He then became a student in film direction at La Fémis. Later, from 1999 to 2010, he, along with Claire Simon, led the department of film direction of this school and has since been teaching cinema at the University of Paris 8. FILMOGRAPHY: Neither Eve Nor Adam (1997), Man’s Gentle Love (2002), Through the Forest (2005), Young Girls in Black (2010), My Friend Victoria (2014)
178
GASPAR NOÉ
Climax 96’
FRENCH
2018
FRANCE
FICTION
DIRECTOR Gaspar Noé STORY/SCREENPLAY Gaspar Noé CINEMATOGRAPHER Benoit Debie EDITOR Denis Bedlow, Gaspar Noé SOUND DESIGN Ken Yasumoto PRODUCERS Edouard Weil, Vincent Maraval, Brahim Chioua PRODUCTION COMPANIES Rectangle Productions, Wild Bunch, Eskwad, KNM, Arte France Cinema, Artemis Productions, Les Cinemas De La Zone, Vice International CAST Sofia Boutella, Romain Guillermic, Souheila Yacoub, Kiddy Smile, Claude Gajan Maull SALES AGENT Wild Bunch
From director Gaspar Noé comes a hypnotic, hallucinatory, and ultimately hair-raising depiction of a party that descends into delirium over the course of one wintry night. In Climax, a troupe of young dancers gathers in a remote and empty school building to rehearse. Following an unforgettable opening performance, lit by cinematographer Benoît Debie and shot by Noé himself, the troupe begins an all-night celebration that turns nightmarish as the dancers discover they’ve been pounding cups of sangria laced with potent LSD. Tracking their journey from jubilation to chaos to full-fledged anarchy, Noé observes crushes, rivalries, and violence amid a collective psychedelic meltdown. FESTIVALS AND AWARDS
CANNES FILM FESTIVAL (ART CINEMA AWARD) | TORONTO INTERNATIONAL FILM FESTIVAL
After studying cinema at the Louis Lumière School in Paris, Gaspar Noé directed the medium-length film Carne (1991), produced Lucile Hadzihalilovic’s medium-length film La Bouche de Jean-Pierre (1996), and directed the feature films I Stand Alone (1998), Irréversible (2002), Enter the Void (2009), and Love (2015). FILMOGRAPHY: I Stand Alone (1996), Irréversible (2002), Enter the Void (2009), Love (2015) 179
GERMINAL ROAUX
Fortuna 106’
FRENCH
2018
SWITZERLAND, BELGIUM FICTION
DIRECTOR Germinal Roaux STORY/SCREENPLAY Germinal Roaux CINEMATOGRAPHER Colin Lévêque EDITOR Sophie Vercruysse SOUND DESIGN Jürg Lempen PRODUCER Ruth Waldburger PRODUCTION COMPANY Vega Production SALES AGENT Loco Films CAST Kidist Siyum Beza, Bruno Ganz, Patrick D’Assumcao, Assefa Zerihun Gudeta, Yoann Blanc
Fortuna, a 14-year-old Ethiopian girl, has had no news of her parents since they crossed the Mediterranean Sea. Along with other refugees, she is given shelter for the winter in a Swiss catholic monastery. While she waits for her fate to be decided by the Swiss authorities, Fortuna finds out she is pregnant. Her choice and the arrival of refugees will jolt the religious community and challenge their concept of Christian charity. FESTIVALS AND AWARDS
BERLINALE (CRYSTAL BEAR AND GRAND PRIX)
Born in Lausanne, Switzerland, in 1975, Germinal Roaux is a self-taught photographer and filmmaker working exclusively in black-and-white. As a photo journalist he has been contributing to various magazines since 1996, and he made his first documentary, Des tas de choses, in 2003. His debut feature, Left Foot Right Foot (2014), won numerous prizes including the Swiss Film Award in three categories. He received the Filmmaker Award at the 2016 Zurich Film Festival for Fortuna. FILMOGRAPHY: Left Foot Right Foot (2014)
180
CLAIRE DENIS
High Life 110’
ENGLISH
2018
GERMANY, FRANCE, USA, UK, POLAND FICTION
DIRECTOR Claire Denis STORY/SCREENPLAY Claire Denis, Jean-Pol Fargeau, Geoff Cox CINEMATOGRAPHER Yorick Le Saux EDITOR Guy Lecorne SOUND DESIGN Andreas Hildebrandt PRODUCERS Claudia Steffen, Christoph Friedel, Laurence Clerc, Olivier Thery Lapiney, Andrew Lauren, Oliver Dungey, Klaudia Smieja, D.J. Gugenheim PRODUCTION COMPANIES Pandora Film Produktion, Alcatraz Films, Andrew Lauren Productions, The Apocalypse Films Company, Madants CAST Robert Pattinson, Juliette Binoche, Mia Goth, Andre Benjamin, Lars Eidinger SALES AGENT Wild Bunch
Deep space. Beyond our solar system. Monte and his infant daughter Willow live together aboard a spacecraft, in complete isolation. A solitary man, whose strict selfdiscipline is a protection against desire – his own and that of others – Monte fathered the girl against his will. Once the member of a crew of prisoners, Monte was a guinea pig sent on a mission to the black hole closest to Earth. Now only he and his daughter remain. But Monte’s changed. Through his daughter, for the first time, he experiences the birth of an all-powerful love.
FESTIVALS AND AWARDS
TORONTO INTERNATIONAL FILM FESTIVAL | SAN SEBASTIAN INTERNATIONAL FILM FESTIVAL
Claire Denis is a French filmmaker. Her first feature film, Chocolat (1988), premiered at the Cannes Film Festival. She won the Golden Leopard for Nenette and Boni at the Locarno International Film Festival in 1996. She competed at the Venice Film Festival with The Intruder (2004) FILMOGRAPHY: Chocolat (1988), Nenette and Boni (1996), The Intruder (2004), White Material (2010), Bastards (2013) 181
YANN GONZALEZ
Knife+Heart Un Couteau Dans Le Coeur
102’
FRENCH
2018
FRANCE, SWITZERLAND, MEXICO FICTION
DIRECTOR Yann Gonzalez STORY/SCREENPLAY Yann Gonzalez, Cristiano Mangione CINEMATOGRAPHER Simon Beaufils EDITOR Raphaël Lefèvre SOUND DESIGN Jean-Barthélémy Velay, Damien Boitel, Xavier Thieulin PRODUCER Charles Gillibert PRODUCTION COMPANY CG Cinéma SALES AGENT Kinology CAST Vanessa Paradis, Nicolas Maury, Kate Moran
The summer of 1979, Paris. Anne produces third-rate gay porn. After her editor and lover, Lois, leaves her, she tries to win her back by shooting her most ambitious film yet with her trusted, flaming sidekick Archibald. But one of her actors is brutally murdered, and Anne gets caught up in a strange investigation that turns her life upside down. A hilarious film with many campy elements, Knife + Heart calls to mind Brian De Palma’s signature flourishes.
FESTIVALS AND AWARDS
CANNES FILM FESTIVAL | SITGES FILM FESTIVAL | BFI LONDON FILM FESTIVAL | PRIX JEAN VIGO AWARD
Yann Gonzalez was born in 1977 in Nice, France. Between 2006 and 2012, he directed six short films before turning to full-length features with Encounters After Midnight (2013), which was presented during the Critics’ Week at the Cannes Film Festival and released in theatres in November 2013. His second full-length feature, Knife+Heart (2018), was theatrically released in France in June 2018. FILMOGRAPHY: Encounters After Midnight (2013)
182
MIA HANSEN-LØVE
Maya 107’
ENGLISH
2018
FRANCE,
FICTION
DIRECTOR Mia Hansen-Løve STORY/SCREENPLAY Mia Hansen-Løve CINEMATOGRAPHER Hélène Louvart EDITOR Marion Monnier SOUND DESIGN Vincent Vatoux PRODUCERS Philippe Martin, David Thion PRODUCTION COMPANY Les Films Pelléas SALES AGENT Orange Studio CAST Roman Kolinka, Aarshi Banerjee
Gabriel is a 30-year-old war correspondent whose beat is the Middle East. Recently taken hostage while on the job in Syria and then released, he believes he may be suffering from post-traumatic stress disorder. On the advice of a psychiatrist, he travels to India to visit his godfather. There, he encounters Maya, his godfather’s college-aged daughter, and a relationship gradually begins to stir, despite a decade of age difference between them. As Gabriel slowly adjusts to safety and society in India, he also reintegrates into normal life — and back into parts of his past that resurface during his trip. FESTIVALS AND AWARDS
TORONTO INTERNATIONAL FILM FESTIVAL
Mia Hansen-Løve was born in Paris, where she studied at the Conservatory of Dramatic Arts. Her films as a director include All is Forgiven (2007), Father of My Children (2009), which won a Special Jury Prize at the Cannes Film Festival; and Things To Come (2016), which won her the Silver Bear for Best Director at the Berlinale. In the past, she has also reviewed for the film magazine Cahiers du cinéma. FILMOGRAPHY: All Is Forgiven (2007), Father of My Children (2009), Goodbye First Love (2011), Eden (2014), Things to Come (2016 183
OLIVIER ASSAYAS
Non-Fiction Double Vies
106’
FRENCH
2018
FRANCE
FICTION
DIRECTOR Olivier Assayas STORY/SCREENPLAY Olivier Assayas CINEMATOGRAPHER Yorick Le Saux EDITOR Simon Jacquet SOUND DESIGN Nicolas Cantin, Daniel Sobrino, Aude Baudassé PRODUCERS Charles Gillibert, Sylvie Barthe PRODUCTION COMPANIES CG Cinema, Vortex Sutra, Arte France Cinéma SALES AGENT Playtime Group CAST Guillaume Canet, Juliette Binoche, Vincent Macaigne, Christa Théret, Nora Hamzawi
Alain, a successful Parisian publisher struggling to adapt to the digital revolution, has major doubts about the new manuscript of Léonard, one of his long-time authors – another work of auto-fiction recycling his love affair with a minor celebrity. Selena, Alain’s wife, a famous stage actress, is of the opposite opinion.
FESTIVALS AND AWARDS
VENICE FILM FESTIVAL | TORONTO INTERNATIONAL FILM FESTIVAL
Olivier Assayas is a French filmmaker, screenwriter, and film critic. His first film, Disorder (1986), which won an award at the Venice Film Festival, established him as one of the most significant filmmakers of his generation. His reputation was enhanced with Cold Water (1994) and Irma Vep (1996), which premiered at the Cannes Film Festival. He has been nominated for the Palme d’Or, the top prize at the Cannes Film Festival, four times. FILMOGRAPHY: Disorder (1986), Cold Water (1994), Sentimental Destinies (2000), Clouds of Sils Maria (2014), Personal Shopper (2016) 184
VALERIA BRUNI TEDESCHI
The Summer House Les Estivants
127’
FRENCH ITALIAN
2018
FRANCE, ITALY
FICTION
DIRECTOR Valeria Bruni Tedeschi STORY/SCREENPLAY Valeria Bruni Tedeschi, Agnès De Sacy, Noémie Lvovsky CINEMATOGRAPHER Jeanne Lapoirie EDITOR Anne Weil SOUND DESIGN Sandy Notarianni PRODUCERS Alexandra Henochsberg, Patrick Sobelman, Angelo Barbagallo PRODUCTION COMPANIES Ad Vitam, Ex Nihilo, BiBi Film, Rai Cinema SALES AGENT Playtime Group CAST Valeria Bruni Tedeschi, Pierre Arditi, Valeria Golino, Noémie Lvovsky, Yolande Moreau
A large and beautiful property on the French Riviera. A place that seems out of time and sheltered from the rest of the world. Anna goes there with her daughter for a few days of vacation. Amidst her family, friends, and the house staff, Anna has to handle her recent break-up and the process of writing her next film.
FESTIVALS AND AWARDS
VENICE FILM FESTIVAL
Valeria Bruni Tedeschi is an Italian-French actress, screenwriter, and filmmaker. Her debut directorial feature, It’s Easier for a Camel (2003) received several awards at the Tribeca Film Festival. Her 2007 film, Actresses, received the Special Jury Prize in Un Certain Regard at the Cannes Film Festival, and, in 2013, A Castle in Italy was nominated for the Palme d’Or. FILMOGRAPHY: It’s Easier for a Camel (2003), Actresses (2007), A Castle in Italy (2013) 185
MARATHI TALKIES:
A WORLD WITHIN A WORLD by Sandeep Modi It was sometime in September last year that the news came in: Chumbak (2017) had been selected as the opening film of the Marathi Talkies section. With the exhilaration of my debut film making it to a reputed film festival — one just an auto ride away — little did I realise the barrage of questions about to come my way. “What do you mean by the Marathi Talkies section?” “Does it even mean you are at the festival?” “Why not the main festival or competition?” My writer and closest collaborator, Saurabh Bhave, quipped, “Are you sure it’s a good idea? You know MAMI is like a thali. There is so much to see, so much variety, the best from the world each year. Playing in Marathi Talkies, I hope we don’t get lost.” I soothed his nerves, allaying all fears with the smooth guile of a director who has learnt to keep his flock together. But in a way, I agreed with him. With some 200 films from 49 countries, and masters such as Abbas Kiarostami, Emir Kusturica, Richard Linklater, and Darren Aronofsky at work, my little Marathi film could disappear without a trace or tweet. But then the screenings happened — and they were jam-packed. The ushers used the word, “Housefull”. And before we knew, we had an extra show on public demand, prime time, in one of the biggest auditoriums on a Sunday. It was surreal. The show before ours was Mother! (2017) by Aronofsky; the one after On the Milky Road (2016) by Kusturica. And yet for this little known local film that played right in between, the audiences turned up in huge numbers. My fears now felt so misplaced. The audiences craved stories from the homeland as much, as it did from across the seas. It craved Killa (2014), Chumbak (2017), and Court (2014) as much as it did Boyhood (2014) and Mother! (2017) It is only now I realise that MAMI may very well be a thali, but Marathi cinema will always be its aamras. Here’s to this aamras called Marathi cinema and the brave new voices it presents year after year. Congratulations to all the filmmakers for the wonderful line-up of films at this edition of Marathi Talkies. And to the audiences, who make MAMI a unique and eclectic annual celebration of cinema that is now part of our cultural heritage. Sandeep Modi’s debut feature, Chumbak (2017), played in Marathi Talkies at the Jio MAMI 19th Mumbai Film Festival with Star
Amol Parchure
Curator, Marathi Talkies Amol Parchure is an award-winning journalist who, after 17 years of television journalism, decided to shift to the web. His experience and long association with the film and theatre industry has made him a known and trusted name in the fraternity. His film review show, ‘Box Office’, with IBN Lokmat was very popular among the viewers. Now with Adbhoot Creatives Private Limited, Parchure heads Films and Entertainment Division and hosts ‘Popcorn Pe Charcha’, the first film review and interview show online in Marathi.
SUHAS DESALE
Amaltash 125’
MARATHI
2018
INDIA
FICTION
DIRECTOR Suhas Desale STORY/SCREENPLAY Suhas Desale, Mayuresh Wagh CINEMATOGRAPHERS Rushikesh Tambe, Bhushan Mate EDITOR Suhas Desale SOUND DESIGN Avinash Sonawane, Piyush Shah PRODUCERS Rushikesh Tambe, Shrikant Desai, Rahul Deshpande, Akshay Phatak PRODUCTION COMPANIES Darshan Films Productions, Medium Strong Production, One Fine Day CAST Rahul Deshpande, Pallavi Paranjape, Deepti Mate, Pratibha Padhye, Trisha Kunte, Bhushan Marathe, Bhushan Mate, Jacob Panicker
A beam of early morning sun, a warm cup of tea, a tune of sonata. Rahul, a musician, lives a content life with his near and dear ones, tucked away in the singular charms of his little world. A delightful serendipity smiles on him, and he meets a sweet and spontaneous girl, Keerti. She is drawn to him and his music. But things are not what they seem, as Rahul is cursed by a demon from his past.
FESTIVALS AND AWARDS
ONIROS FILM AWARD (BEST ROMANCE)
Suhas Desale trained to be a computer engineer but later chose to explore his love for the lens. In 2011, he co-founded the photography institute Shutter School. His photos have been featured in such magazines and journals as National Geographic Traveller and Nature Geoscience. Leveraging his experience in still photography, Suhas turned his attention to moving images. Having made a few short films, he ventured into feature films with Amaltash.
189
ALOK RAJWADE
Ashleel Udyog Mitra Mandal Vulgar
115’
MARATHI
2017
INDIA
FICTION
DIRECTOR Alok Rajwade STORY/SCREENPLAY Dharmakirti Sumant CINEMATOGRAPHER Satyajeet Shobha Shreeram EDITOR Makarand Dambhare SOUND DESIGN Shishir Chousalkar PRODUCER Ambarish Darak PRODUCTION COMPANY RRP Corp CAST Abhay Mahajan, Parna Pethe, Sayalee Phatak, Akshay Tanksale, Ruturaj Shinde, Sai Tamhankar
When the epitome of female sexuality, the iconic Savita Bhabhi, comes in 21-yearold Aatish’s dreams, he invites her to be the chief guest of the local dahi handi festival. Aatish, spellbound by the magical lady who has seen it all, drives himself and those around him into a state of frenzy.
Alok Rajwade plays an active part in the Marathi experimental theatre and cinema for the last 10 years. As an actor, he has performed in plays such as Bed Ke Neeche Renewali (2008), Dalan (2007), Ashadhatil Ek Diwas (2013), among many others. Rajwade has also acted in feature films such as Vihir (2009), Bokya Satbande (2009), Rama Madhav (2014), Rajwade and Sons (2015), and the National Award-winning Kaasav (2016) as the protagonist. In 2017 he was listed in the Forbes 30 Under 30 list as one of the country’s most promising talents.
190
BHIMRAO MUDE
Bardo 125’
MARATHI
2018
INDIA
FICTION
DIRECTOR Bhimrao Mude STORY/SCREENPLAY Bhimrao Mude, Shweta Pendse CINEMATOGRAPHER Vinayak Jadhav EDITORS Prathamesh Patkar, Sanil Kokate SOUND DESIGN Shantanu Arekar, Dinesh Uchil PRODUCERS Ritu Bajaj, Anil Gaikwad, Nishad Chimote, Rohan Gokhale, Rohan Pradhan PRODUCTION COMPANIES Ritu Films Cut LLP, Paanchjanya Productions CAST Anjali Patil, Makarand Deshpande, Girish Pardeshi, Ashok Samartha, Gautam Joglekar, Sandesh Jadhav, Jaggannath Nivangune, Shweta Pendse, Varsha Dhandle
Bardo, set in an extremely small and remote village of Dhanor, tells the story of how the dreams of villagers are realised as Ashalata, a schoolteacher, enters their lives. The two best swimmer kids in the village, Babu and Pintya, attract Ashalata’s attention, and she sees her own dreams in them. Meanwhile, Theory, an aspiring researcher and the smartest person around, gets agitated yet excited by Ashalata’s arrival and tries finding out the reason behind every move of hers.
Bhimrao Mude has been working in the Marathi film industry for the last 18 years as a writer and director. He’s also directed Hindi and Marathi TV shows such as Lakshya (2015), Rudram (2017), and Phir Ye Nadaniyaan (2017), among many others. He’s also directed short films, documentaries, corporate films, and plays. Before Bardo, he directed two feature films: Davpech (2010) and Kaul Manacha (2016). FILMOGRAPHY: Davpech (2010), Kaul Manacha (2016)
191
NIPUN AVINASH DHARMADHIKARI
Dhappa Howzzat
115’
MARATHI
2017
INDIA
FICTION
DIRECTOR Nipun Avinash Dharmadhikari STORY/SCREENPLAY Girish Pandurang Kulkarni, Nipun Avinash Dharmadhikari CINEMATOGRAPHER Swapnil Sonawane EDITOR Suchitra Sathe SOUND DESIGN Anthony B Jayaruban PRODUCERS Sumatilal Shah, Girish Pandurang Kulkarni, Umesh Vinayak Kulkarni PRODUCTION COMPANIES Ink Tales, Arbhaat Films CAST Akash Kamble, Sharavi Kulkarni, Akshay Yadav, Vrushali Kulkarni, Shrikant Yadav
In a Pune housing society, Anuradha is busy directing a play for children for the Ganesh festival, which highlights the issues of environment with the messages of Jesus Christ and Sant Tukaram. Children are enjoying the rehearsal, which is suddenly disrupted by a political group, threatening everyone that Jesus Christ cannot be a part of a play during the festival of Lord Ganesha. The elders in the society relent, but the children are confused, as they don’t find anything offensive in the play. In school too, they are taught about India’s “unity in diversity”. Caught between their school lessons and reality, they try asking their elders but find no acceptable answers. FESTIVALS AND AWARDS
GOA MARATHI FILM FESTIVAL | NARGIS DUTT AWARD FOR BEST FEATURE FILM ON NATIONAL INTEGRATION
Nipun Avinash Dharmadhikari is an Indian filmmaker, screenwriter, and playwright. In 2009, co-founded a theatre group named Natak Company to produce plays especially for the youth. In 2011, he was awarded the Damu Kenkre Award, given to a promising director from the state of Maharashtra. He co-wrote a Hindi film, Nautanki Saala, in 2013. He was listed in Forbes 30 Under 30 India in 2015 and Forbes 30 Under 30 Asia in 2016. In 2017, he wrote and directed a Marathi film, Baapjanma. FILMOGRAPHY: Baapjanma (2017) 192
ADITYA RATHI, GAYATRI PATIL
Photo Prem Smile Please
93’
MARATHI
2018
INDIA
FICTION
DIRECTOR Aditya Rathi, Gayatri Patil STORY/SCREENPLAY Aditya Rathi, Gayatri Patil CINEMATOGRAPHER Kedar Phadke EDITORS Mahanteshwar Bhosage, Rohan Sarode SOUND DESIGN Avinash Sonawane PRODUCERS Mehul Shah, Aditya Rathi, Gayatri Patil PRODUCTION COMPANY Nirmaan Studios CAST Neena Kulkarni, Amita Khopkar
While attending a funeral, Sunanda, a housewife, realises that in such a situation people often look for a photo of the deceased that can be put up in remembrance. But given that she’s photophobic, she doesn’t have a good picture, one that can be left with people after her death. This leads her to think that, without a good picture, she might just be forgotten by the future generations, as they will not be able to relate to her. Worried, she sets out on a quest to overcome her fears and get a good picture. But will she be able to get a picture that defines her? And will people be able to relate to it?
After assisting a few filmmakers, Aditya Rathi co-founded Nirmaan Studios, which produces TV commercials and corporate films. His one act play, Koti, was critically acclaimed. Gayatri Patil entered filmmaking by directing a short film, Maktub (2010). Later, she co-founded Nirmaan Studios with Rathi. Photo Prem is Rathi and Patil’s debut feature.
193
CINEMA FOR CHILDREN, CINEMA FOR EVERYONE Cinema for children was recognised as an important area of production in India in the 1950s, when the Children’s Film Society of India (CFSI) and the National Film Award for Best Children’s Film were instituted. Some early films from the CFSI were sometimes personally steered by Prime Minister Jawaharlal Nehru and resulted in films such as Jaldeep that won the Best Children’s Film Award at the Venice Film Festival in 1957. In those early decades of independence, while the need for good storytelling, playfulness, and a child’s perspective were recognised, the purpose was largely weighted in favour of education, and instilling in children values considered critical for the nation-building project. Today, the market, far more significant to cultural production than the state, reinforces this strain of instrumentality in children’s content. The popular perception is that if it is for kids, then there has to be a “moral of the story” nugget, often resulting in films that patronise children, over-simplify complex issues, and prevent a real engagement with ideas. But art finds a way. Imaginative filmmakers have focused on translating ideas into visual narratives with layered meanings, on the cinematic craft rather than merely on target audience. Filmmakers successful in mainstream cinema such as Sai Paranjape, Santosh Sivan, and Vishal Bhardawaj have chosen to make films that have looked at the world through children’s eyes. There have been films that have allowed children to experience cinematic art while creating representations of modern childhood at the same time: Children from marginalised communities in Kutch embark an adventure in Mujhse Dosti Karoge (1992); the city becomes a site of fantasy for poor urban children in Karamati Coat (1993); village children run free in the Himalayas in Kaphal, and small town children pursue pleasures and ambitions in Gattu (2011). In the last two decades, changes in technology and the growing presence of the Internet have opened up new possibilities in the form of short films as well as animation. This needs to be encouraged, and cinema for children should be seen as cinema for everyone. As the celebrated children’s writer Maurice Sendak said, “I don’t write for children. I write. And somebody says, that’s for children.”
Samina Mishra Curator, Half Ticket
Samina Mishra is a documentary filmmaker, writer, and teacher based in New Delhi, with a special interest in media for and about children, and in the ways that the arts can be included in education. Her work includes Stories of Girlhood (2001), three films on growing-up as a girl-child in India; Home and Away, a multi-media exhibition on immigrant children; Nehru’s Children, a research project on the archive of the Children’s Film Society of India; and My Sweet Home: Childhood Stories from a Corner of the City, a book that came out of a creative writing and art workshop designed to encourage self-expression and creative practice in children. She is the co-curator of Soundphiles, an experimental listening experience at the Asian Women’s Film Festival; and is currently teaching a Film Studies programme at the Pathways World School, Noida; and collaborating on Torchlight, a web journal on libraries and bookish love.
Jury Akshita Kiran Vyas Akshita Kiran Vyas, a seventh grade student at Billabong High International School, has been a die-hard fan of movies since the age of two. Her favourite genres are science fiction, comedy, and mystery. Her favourite film is Despicable Me 3 (2017), which taught her several crucial lessons: to love your siblings, to not be evil, and to cherish the present.
Ananya Mittal Ananya Mittal, a ninth grade student in Dhirubhai Ambani International School, loves playing football. She recently captained the Mumbai and Maharashtra teams in national level tournaments. She also enjoys playing basketball, debating in Model United Nations, and writing essays. In her free time, she likes playing the piano and reading books.
Arnav Pandit Sixteen-year-old Arnav Pandit is passionate about script writing, photography, and filmmaking. He usually likes all kinds of movies but comedy and thrillers hold a special place in his heart.
Jury Falak Shah Falak Shah, a seventh grade student at the Dhirubhai Ambani International School, began watching and enjoying movies at the age of three. She watched her favourite films, Star Wars (1977) and Pirates of the Carribean (2003), when she was eight. When she grows up, she wants to become a travel photographer or an animator.
Mihit Chindarkar Fourteen-year-old Mihit Chindarkar, from Akshara High School, is passionate about gaming and movies. He is a popular virtual personality among gamers and at the age of 10 made his first movie, shooting with the only device he had: a mobile camera. He also enjoys reading funny novels and playing volleyball.
Vihaan Shilov Vihaan Shilov, 12 years old, is a student at Billabong High International School. He is obsessed with books, cars, and, of course, movies. In his spare time he likes to fiddle around with 3D visualisation and stop motion animation. He hates badly edited movies, insects that sting, and very salty cheese.
PRIYA RAMASUBBAN
Chuskit 89’
LADAKHI
2018
INDIA
FICTION
DIRECTOR Priya Ramasubban STORY/SCREENPLAY Priya Ramasubban CINEMATOGRAPHER Arvind Kannabiran EDITOR Jabeen Merchant SOUND DESIGN P. M. Satheesh, Manoj Goswami PRODUCERS Priya Ramasubban, Namrata Goyal, A.V.T. Shankardass, Gulab Singh Tanwar, Syed Sultan Ahmed, Hassan Kannu, Abhishek Goyal, Amber Dalal, Ravi Machani, Gesu Kaushal, Anshulika Dubey, Priyanka Agarwal PRODUCTION COMPANY Kaavya Films CAST Jigmet Dewa Lhamo, Morup Namgyal
Chuskit’s dream of going to school is cut short when she is rendered paraplegic after an accident. She’s confined to indoors in the company of her strict grandfather, Dorje. Chuskit continues to harbour hopes of school, but Dorje tries to make her understand that school can’t handle her needs. As life at home gets harder for Chuskit, she fights more fiercely and as a result comes dangerously close to losing her family. Will Chuskit succumb to her grandfather’s wishes and lead a life of unfulfilled dreams? Or will she get him to yield? AGE ELIGIBILITY: 8+
FESTIVALS AND AWARDS
GIFFONI FILM FESTIVAL (AMNESTY INTERNATIONAL AWARD) | SOUTH FILM AND ARTS ACADEMY (BEST YOUNG ACTRESS IN A FEATURE FILM)
Priya Ramasubban has, over the last 15 years, made films for National Geographic, Discovery, History Channel, and other major international broadcasters. She has written and directed Lost Kings of Israel, Divine Delinquents, several episodes on the long-running series Digging for the Truth, episodes on the series Into the Unknown, episode on Monster Fish, and several others notable productions.
199
KASPAR JANCIS
Captain Morten and The Spider Queen 79’
ENGLISH
2018
IRELAND ESTONIA
FICTION
DIRECTOR Kaspar Jancist STORY/SCREENPLAY Mike Horelick CINEMATOGRAPHER Ragnar Neljandi EDITOR Keith Ó Gairbhín PRODUCERS Kerdi Oengo, Robin Lyons, Mark Mertens, Paul Cummins PRODUCTION COMPANIES Nukufilm, Grid Animation, Telegael Teoranta, Calon SALES AGENT Sola Media GmbH CAST Ciarán Hinds, Brendan Gleeson, Michael McElhatton, Susie Power
A young boy learns to take control of his life when he is shrunk to the size of an insect and has to sail his own toy boat through a flooded café. Morten has to be shrunk down before he can grow up. .
AGE ELIGIBILITY: 5+ FESTIVALS AND AWARDS
CINEKID | FILEM’ON | LÜBECK NORDIC FILM DAYS
Kaspar Jancis is an Estonian filmmaker, animator, and musician. He studied animation at Finnish Turku Art and Media School, Finland, and later directed, and composed music for, several animated short films. Captain Morten and the Spider Queen is his first stop motion feature film.
200
DENIS DO
Funan 107’
FRENCH
2018
FRANCE BELGIUM LUXEMBOURG
FICTION
DIRECTOR Denis Do STORY/SCREENPLAY Denis Do, Magali Pouzol CINEMATOGRAPHER Denis Do EDITOR Laurent Prim SOUND DESIGN Michel Schillings
Funan is the story of a young woman who, under the Khmer Rouge regime, has to learn how to fight back and exist. To survive. To find her son who was taken from her during the exile from Phnom Penh.
AGE ELIGIBILITY: 13+ FESTIVALS AND AWARDS
ANNECY INTERNATIONAL ANIMATION FILM FESTIVAL (CRISTAL FOR A FEATURE FILM)
PRODUCERS Sébastien Onomo PRODUCTION COMPANY Les Films d’ici SALES AGENT Bac Films Distribution
Through Funan, his directorial debut, Do pays tribute to Cambodia and its people, who lost everything, yet through determination and faith in life, traverse their own shadows.
201
LIKARION WAINAINA
Supa Modo 74’
ENGLISH KIKUYU SWAHILI
2018
GERMANY KENYA FICTION
DIRECTOR Likarion Wainaina STORY/SCREENPLAY Silas Miami, Mugambi Nthiga, Wanjeri Gakuru, Marie Steinmann-Tykwer CINEMATOGRAPHER Enos Olik
This is the story of a young girl whose dream of becoming a superhero is threatened by terminal illness, inspiring her village to rally together to make her dream come true. The film presents a child’s perspective on the interplay between reality and fantasy, and reaffirms the importance of community and how it takes a village to raise a child. AGE ELIGIBILITY: 5+
EDITOR Charity Kuria SOUND DESIGN Florian Holzner PRODUCERS Sarika Hemi Lakhani, Mugambi Nthiga, Guy Wilson, Marie Steinmann-Tykwer PRODUCTION COMPANY One Fine Day Films GmbH SALES AGENT Rushlake Media GmbH CAST Stycie Waweru, Marrianne Nungo, Nyawara Ndambia, Johnson Gitau Chege, Humphrey Maina
FESTIVALS AND AWARDS
BERLINALE (CRYSTAL BEAR - SPECIAL MENTION) | EDINBURGH INTERNATIONAL FILM FESTIVAL | TORONTO INTERNATIONAL FILM FESTIVAL
Likarion Wainaina is a Kenyan director who started making films before moving to theatre as an actor. As a cinematographer, he has also worked on a number of documentaries and commercials and has directed TV shows — both drama and sitcoms — that are currently playing in local TV stations in Kenya.
202
MARÍA NOVARO
Tesoros 96’
SPANISH
2017
MEXICO
DOCU-REALIST
DIRECTOR María Novaro STORY/SCREENPLAY María Novaro CINEMATOGRAPHERS Gerardo Barroso, Lisa Tillinger EDITOR María Novaro SOUND DESIGN Valeria Mancheva, Nerio Barberis PRODUCERS Pamela Guinea, Maria Novaro PRODUCTION COMPANY Cine Ermitaño SALES AGENT FiGa Films CAST Dylan Sutton-Chávez, Jacinta Chávez de León, Andrea Sutton-Chávez, Aranza Bañuelos, Michel Lucas
Sandy beaches as far as the eye can see, palm groves and mangrove forests: While the baby turtles have just hatched on the Pacific coastal village of Barra de Potosí in Mexico, the schoolchildren are talking about the whales they’ve seen locally. This tropical idyll captivated the British privateer Sir Francis Drake who landed on its coast 400 years ago. Seven-year-old Dylan, who has just moved there with his family, believes he can find Drake’s treasure. Staying close to the children, and using documentary imagery, the film joins Dylan and his friends on an enchanting voyage of discovery that ends with a find far more precious than a lost pirate’s treasure trove. AGE ELIGIBILITY: 11+ FESTIVALS AND AWARDS
BERLINALE (GENERATION KPLUS)
María Novaro became well known with her second film, Danzón (1991), at the Cannes Film Festival. Her other notable features include El Jardín del Edén (1994); Leaving No Trace (2000), which won at the Sundance Film Festival; and The Good Herbs (2010). One of her first shorts, Una Isla Rodeada de Agua (1984), was acquired by the Museum of Modern Art in New York. Tesoros (2017) is her first film for children and had its world premiere at the Berlinale. FILMOGRAPHY: Lola (1989), Danzón (1991), Leaving No Trace (2000), The Good Herbs (2010) 203
TILDA COBHAM-HERVEY
A Field Guide to Being a 12-Year-Old Girl
20’
ENGLISH
2017
AUSTRALIA
DOCUMENTARY
This is a film about 12-year-old girls, made by 12-year-old girls, for 12-year-old girls, or anyone who has been a 12- year-old girl, or will be a 12-year-old girl, or wishes they were 12-yearold girls. AGE ELIGIBILITY: 10+ FESTIVALS AND AWARDS
BERLINALE | ADELAIDE FILM FESTIVAL | KYOTO INTERNATIONAL CHILDREN’S FESTIVAL
Tilda Cobham-Hervey is an Australian director and actor who has played major roles in American and Australian feature films.
MARIBETH ROMSLO, CRISTINA PIPPA
Amelia
ENGLISH
11’
2017
USA
FICTION
A girl with polio hears Amelia Earhart’s distress calls on her shortwave radio and proceeds to build a ham radio transceiver in an effort to communicate Amelia’s message. AGE ELIGIBILITY: 8+ FESTIVALS AND AWARDS
TIFF KIDS INTERNATIONAL FILM FESTIVAL
Maribeth Romslo is a director, cinematographer, and producer whose feature film Dragonfly (2016) premiered at the Los Angeles Women’s International Film Festival and was selected for “Best of the Fest” at the Minneapolis St. Paul International Film Festival.
NATHALIE CRUM
Andy’s Promise De Belofte Van Slek
16’
DUTCH ENGLISH
2017
NETHERLANDS DOCUMENTARY
If the 13-year-old Andy doesn’t find any new members for his local army troupe, it will come to an end. But the children from his village prefer other hobbies. Yet he is determined to save the troupe, as he promised his grandpa and mother who have both passed away. AGE ELIGIBILITY: 10+ FESTIVALS AND AWARDS
LIMBURG FILM FESTIVAL (BEST SHORT FILM)
Nathalie Crum is a documentary filmmaker who has worked as a photographer and a supervisor of people with intellectual disabilities.
204
ALIK TAMAR
Antouni Homeless
ARMENIAN
11’
2017
ARMENIA
FICTION
A Syrian-Armenian girl living in Armenia, Lori, believes her father is taking her on a summer trip. When she learns her family is really leaving Armenia after already fleeing the war in Syria, she tries whatever she can to stay in a place that has great meaning for her. AGE ELIGIBILITY: 13+ FESTIVALS AND AWARDS
TIFF KIDS INTERNATIONAL FILM FESTIVAL
Alik Tamar is an Armenian-American filmmaker. She is currently developing a feature script set in modern-day rural Armenia.
JEREMY COLLINS, KELLY DILLON
Belly Flop
5’
ENGLISH
2018
SOUTH AFRICA
FICTION
Persistence pays off when a confident young girl learning to dive is unperturbed by a talented diver who steals the spotlight. AGE ELIGIBILITY: 5+ FESTIVALS AND AWARDS
ANNECY INTERNATIONAL ANIMATION FILM FESTIVAL | BUSAN INTERNATIONAL KIDS AND YOUTH FILM FESTIVAL
Jeremy Collins is a freelance animation director and producer, specialising in short-form animation and motion graphics projects. Kelly Dillon is a content creator with a particular interest in producing positive and uplifting stories for girls.
VALENTIN RIEDL, FRÉDÉRIC SCHULD
Carlotta’s Face
5’
GERMAN
2018
GERMANY
DOCUMENTARY
Carlotta uses art to cope with a rare brain condition that prevents her from recognising faces. AGE ELIGIBILITY: 13+ FESTIVALS AND AWARDS
SAN FRANCISCO INTERNATIONAL FILM FESTIVAL | RIVERRUN FILM FESTIVAL | HOT DOCS
Valentin Riedl is a physician and neuroscientist studying the complexity of the human brain. Frédéric Schuld studied at the Academy of Media Arts in Cologne and mainly works as an animator on short films and documentaries.
205
MATTHEW SANDAGER
Dear Henri,
ENGLISH
12’38”
2017
USA
FICTION
Nine-year-old Henri searches for ways to communicate with her beloved grandfather after he is gone. She sends him a series of letters in an unconventional way. Will she ever receive a response? AGE ELIGIBILITY: 10+ FESTIVALS AND AWARDS
NEW YORK SHORTS FEST | SAN DIEGO INTERNATIONAL KIDS FILM FESTIVAL
Matthew Sandager is a filmmaker, animator and photographer based in New York. His work has been widely published and exhibited in galleries and film festivals, in New York and around the world.
ANDY NEWBERY
Elen
WELSH
15’14”
2018
WALES
FICTION
“The smile you send out comes back to you”. Elen is a story of friendship and acceptance, from inside the mind of a 10-yearold girl with epilepsy and a vivid imagination. AGE ELIGIBILITY: 10+ TORONTO INTERNATIONAL FILM FESTIVAL, PRIX JEUNESSE
FESTIVALS AND AWARDS
Andy Newbery is a TV drama and a film director with an extensive range of credits, including directing a range of long running series and stand-alone dramas.
KIM BRAND
Hello Salaam Hallo Salaam
15’
DUTCH CANADIAN ENGLISH FARSI
2017
NETHERLANDS
DOCUMENTARY
While their mothers work as volunteers at a camp for migrants and refugees on the Greek island of Lesbos, Merlijn and Sil discover what life is like there for boys their own age. AGE ELIGIBILITY: 13+ FESTIVALS AND AWARDS
TIFF KIDS INTERNATIONAL FILM FESTIVAL
Kim Brand is a Dutch documentary filmmaker. Her short documentaries have played at several prestigious film festivals.
206
AJITPAL SINGH
Rammat-Gammat My Best Friend’s Shoes
GUJARATI
18’31”
2018
INDIA
FICTION
One is a better footballer; the other is richer. All is well until a new pair of shoes strains their friendship. AGE ELIGIBILITY: 8+ FESTIVALS AND AWARDS
OBERHAUSEN INTERNATIONAL SHORT FILM FESTIVAL (SPECIAL MENTION) | PALM SPRINGS SHORT FEST | BUSAN CHILDREN FILM FESTIVAL
Ajitpal Singh is an Indian filmmaker who was an associate director of Gurgaon (2017) and wrote Hindi dialogues for Once Again (2018).
ASTRID BUSSINK
Listen Luister
15’
DUTCH
2017
NETHERLANDS
DOCUMENTARY
Sometimes all you need is a listening ear. The Child Helpline has one for you, but what will you tell a complete stranger? AGE ELIGIBILITY: 10’+
FESTIVALS AND AWARDS
IDFA SPECIAL JURY AWARD FOR CHILDREN’S DOCUMENTARY
Astrid Bussink has directed several children’s documentaries, which have won many international awards, most notably at the Berlinale, IDFA, and Full Frame.
ALDO SOTELO LÁZARO
Stardust Polvo de Estrellas
14’31”
SPANISH
2018
MEXICO
FICTION
Adan lives day-to-day helping his father, Hilario, to collect garbage. An unexpected visit to the school will reconfigure Adan’s whole universe. AGE ELIGIBILITY: 8+ FESTIVALS AND AWARDS
TIFF KIDS INTERNATIONAL FILM FESTIVAL | ANN ARBOR FILM FESTIVAL
Aldo Sotelo Lázaro is a Mexican filmmaker who has also worked as a journalist.
207
THE LOOKING GLASS FANTASY & FILM by Samina Mishra
Everybody needs fantasy. For children, it is especially important because in fantasy lies the roots of imagining yourself — who you want to become and the world you want to inhabit. Cinema began by documenting reality, but its very existence seemed fantastical — a play of light bringing alive other worlds, other people. When viewers fled from the Lumiere Brothers’ first screening of a train arriving at a station, it was a moment that marked cinema’s ability to move between fantasy and reality, almost like stepping through a looking glass. Half Ticket’s The Looking Glass presents explorations of this play between fantasy and reality through the imagination of filmmakers from diverse cultures and reminds us that fantasy is critical — both to create and to live.
210
AVA DUVERNAY
A Wrinkle in Time 110’
ENGLISH
2018
USA
FICTION
DIRECTOR Ava DuVernay STORY/SCREENPLAY Jennifer Lee, Jeff Stockwell (Based on a Novel by Madeleine L’Engle) CINEMATOGRAPHER Tobias Schliessler EDITOR Spencer Averick PRODUCERS Jim Whitaker, Catherine Hand PRODUCTION COMPANIES Walt Disney Pictures, Whitaker Entertainment CAST Storm Reid, Oprah Winfrey, Reese Witherspoon, Mindy Kaling, Levi Miller
After the disappearance of her scientist father and following the discovery of a new form of space travel, Meg, her brother, and her friend must join three magical beings — Mrs. Whatsit, Mrs. Who, and Mrs. Which — to travel across the universe to rescue him from a terrible evil.
AGE ELIGIBILITY: 10+
Ava DuVernay is an American writer, producer, director, and distributor of independent cinema. Nominated for the Academy Award for Best Picture, her film Selma (2014) chronicled the historic 1965 voting rights campaign, which was led by Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. She wrote, produced, and directed the dramatic feature Middle of Nowhere (2012), which earned her the Sundance Film Festival Best Director Award. She is the founder of ARRAY, a community-based distribution collective dedicated to increasing mainstream exposure to films by women and people of colour. FILMOGRAPHY: I Will Follow (2010), Middle of Nowhere (2012), Selma (2014), 13th (2016) 211
AJAY KARTIK
Karamati Coat The Miraculous Coat
90’
HINDI
1993
INDIA
FICTION
DIRECTOR Ajay Kartik STORY/SCREENPLAY Ajay Kartik CINEMATOGRAPHER Hari Nair EDITOR Chakradhar Sahu SOUND DESIGN Manoj Sikha PRODUCTION COMPANY Children’s Film Society, India CAST Om Raut, Prachi Save, Swapnesh Sawant, Vikram Acharya, Irrfan Khan
Raju is a poor rag picker. One day a magical stranger gifts him a red coat. Raju discovers that whenever he puts his hand in the coat’s pocket, a rupee appears. He and his friends have a good time with this endless supply of one-rupee coins. A gang of three and his brother-in-law discover the secret of the coat and try to steal it. Raju tries hard to protect both himself and his magical coat even as he realises an important lesson: that easy money comes with its own problems and cannot be enjoyed for long. AGE ELIGIBILITY: 5+ FESTIVALS AND AWARDS
LUCAS INTERNATIONAL CHILDREN’S FILM FESTIVAL (LAUDABLE MENTION)
Following a three-year diploma course in direction from the National School of Drama in Delhi, Ajay Kartik started writing scripts for popular TV serials such as Yeh Jo Hai Zindagi (1984), Wagle Ki Duniya (1988), and Sara Jahan Hamara (1994). Kartik is active in theatre and has directed more than 20 plays in Hindi. He is also involved with children’s theatre and has conducted many theatre workshops while also writing and directing several musicals for children. FILMOGRAPHY: Havai Dada (2011) 212
HAYAO MIYAZAKI
Ponyo
Gake no ue no Ponyo
101’
JAPANESE
2008
JAPAN
FICTION
DIRECTOR Hayao Miyazaki STORY/SCREENPLAY Hayao Miyazaki CINEMATOGRAPHER Atsushi Okui EDITORS Hayao Miyazaki, Takeshi Seyama PRODUCERS Steve Alpert, Kathleen Kennedy, Frank Marshall, Toshio Suzuki PRODUCTION COMPANY Studio Ghibli CAST Tomoko Yamaguchi, Kazushige Nagashima, Yûki Amami, George Tokoro, Yuria Nara
During a forbidden excursion to see the surface world, a goldfish princess encounters a human boy named Sosuke, who gives her the name Ponyo. Ponyo longs to become human, and as her friendship with Sosuke grows, she becomes more humanlike. Ponyo’s father brings her back to their ocean kingdom, but so strong is Ponyo’s wish to live on the surface that she breaks free, and in the process, spills a collection of magical elixirs that endanger Sosuke’s village. AGE ELIGIBILITY: 8+ FESTIVALS AND AWARDS
VENICE FILM FESTIVAL
Hayao Miyazaki is a Japanese film director, producer, screenwriter, animator, author, and manga artist. Through a career that has spanned five decades, Miyazaki has attained international acclaim as a masterful storyteller and as a maker of anime feature films and, along with Isao Takahata, co-founded Studio Ghibli, a film and animation studio. In November 2014, Miyazaki was awarded an Honorary Academy Award for his impact on animation and cinema. He is the second Japanese filmmaker to win this award, after Akira Kurosawa, in 1990. FILMOGRAPHY: My Neighbor Totoro (1988), Princess Mononoke (1997), Spirited Away (2001), Howl’s Moving Castle (2004), The Wind Rises (2013). 213
ANDREW RUHEMANN, SHAUN TAN
The Lost Thing
16’
ENGLISH
2010
AUSTRALIA
FICTION
A boy discovers a bizarre-looking creature at the beach. He’s intrigued by it and decides to find a home for it in a world where everyone believes there are far more important things to pay attention to than a lost thing. AGE ELIGIBILITY: 8+ FESTIVALS AND AWARDS
2011 ACADEMY AWARD (BEST ANIMATED SHORT), MELBOURNE INTERNATIONAL FILM FESTIVAL, PALM SPRINGS INTERNATIONAL FILM FESTIVAL
Andrew Ruhemann is the owner and executive producer of Passion Pictures, a production company supplying animation and special effects. Shaun Tan currently works as a full-time freelance artist and author in Melbourne.
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The New Medium III Multi-Screen Cinema
Shaina Anand
Shaina Anand (1975, Bombay) is a filmmaker and artist who has been working independently in film and video since 2001, and since 2007 as CAMP, which she co-founded with Ashok Sukumaran. Her films and artworks both individually and as CAMP have exhibited worldwide including at Skulptur Project Munster 2017, Documenta 13 and 14, MoMA and New Museum, and Tate Modern and in the Biennials of Gwangju, Taipei, Shanghai, Sharjah and Kochi-Muziris. Her works have screened at film venues such as the Flaherty Seminar and Anthology Film Archives, the London Film Festival, FID Marseille and the Viennale, amongst others festivals, museums, and platforms. From CAMP’s home base in Chuim village, Mumbai, they host the online archives Pad.ma and Indiancine.ma. Shaina is also founding trustee of The Indian Cinema Foundation. She conceptualized THE NEW MEDIUM which she curates again in its third year. The New Medium was conceptualised by Shaina.
The New Medium has been committed to bringing you transformative cinematic experiences, with its program of formally innovative film works, and also by changing our experience of the cinema hall itself. In its inaugural programme, live jazz by the Vitaliy Tkachuk Quartet accompanied the restored Man with a Movie Camera (1929). Nearby, a cinema was converted into a sonic environment with light and fog, for Lis Rhodes’ feminist intervention, Light Music (1976), with screens both at the front and back of the hall. Last year, live images played on the IMAX screen at PVR Phoenix, where a 200-year history of Parel and the city unfurled via live video and speaking voices, in CAMP’s CCTV Landscape from Lower Parel. These were among 28 other genre-defying moving-image works and live events, that we brought to Mumbai cinemas. This year, Auditorium 1 of the PVR in Citi Mall Andheri will be transformed into a multi-screen cinema. You will enter not a building with many screens but a single hall with many screens and projections. If cinema has got multiplexed, can the multiplex in turn embrace many types of cinema? Over the course of two days, Audi 1 will show films especially made to be shown on multiple screens, in a play with the architecture of the cinema, allowing audiences to be surrounded by and immersed in images, rather than looking at them singly and frontally. It has been obvious to many filmmakers and artists that there is no reason to use only one screen. Such early experiments were part of the Expanded Film movement of the 1960s, and in the use of multiple live feeds by performance artists since the advent of video. Today there are various multi-channel approaches, ranging from immersive VR-like panoramas, to combinations of images and text, to those in which each screen is a
counterpoint to the others as if having an argument. As these formats didn’t fit into the logic of mainstream cinema or its infrastructure, they found a home in museums and exhibitions. Today it is not unusual to see feature-length film works made for say, four projections on loop in a museum or biennial. But this has created another condition, a dilution of experience and narrative power, a culture of people casually entering and leaving at any time, and generally non-optimal seating and viewing conditions. This year’s The New Medium has a proposal that, to our knowledge, has never been done inside a cinema hall: to have a festival program of multi-screen films in a specially designed environment of modular screens and projections, retaining the intimate, engulfing feeling of installations but pushing for the cinema effect with timed shows, seated audiences, and wrap-around audio. The program brings together acclaimed film works that have premiered in the last two years, as well as some classics from the past two decades. It includes exciting young filmmakers also working in multiscreen format (Salome Lamas), senior video artists of the genre (Isaac Julien), new renderings of a master filmmaker’s oeuvre (Iti, from Mani Kaul), and two nominees of this year’s Turner Prize. A full program and more details can be found in a separate guide to The New Medium 2018. Over the course of two days the cinema hall might look a bit different every time you step back into it. The world will be let in via a multitude of great artists and their work, who encourage us to take nothing, not even the experience of cinema, for granted.
DJIBRIL DIOP MAMBÉTY
Hyenas Hyènes
110’
WOLOF
1992
SWITZERLAND, FRANCE, SENEGAL FICTION
DIRECTOR Djibril Diop Mambéty STORY/SCREENPLAY Djibril Diop Mambety (adapted from the play The Visit by Friedrich Dürrenmatt) CINEMATOGRAPHER Matthias Kälin EDITOR Loredana Cristelli PRODUCERS Pierre-Alain Meier, Alain Rozanes PRODUCTION COMPANY Zoo Entertainment SALES AGENT Thelma Film AG CAST Mansour Diouf, Ami Diakhate
In Colobane, people expect the return of Linguère Ramatou, a former local girl now rumoured to be richer than the World Bank. But her generosity has its conditions: she offers a check of 10 billion for the death of Dramaan Drameh who refused to admit that he was the father of her child 30 years ago. “Life made me a whore, now I’m turning the world into a brothel,” she tells the citizens of Colobane.
FESTIVALS AND AWARDS
CANNES FILM FESTIVAL | NEW YORK FILM FESTIVAL
Djibril Diop Mambéty was a Senegalese film director, actor, orator, composer, and poet. Though he made only two feature films and five short films, they received international acclaim for their original and experimental cinematic technique and non-linear, unconventional narrative style. FILMOGRAPHY: Touki Bouki (1973)
220
HÉCTOR BABENCO
Pixote, Survival of the Weakest Pixote, a Lei do Mais Fraco
125’
PORTUGUESE
1981
BRAZIL
FICTION
DIRECTOR Héctor Babenco STORY/SCREENPLAY Jorge Duran, Hector Babenco CINEMATOGRAPHER Rodolfo Sanchez EDITOR Luiz Elias SOUND DESIGN Hugo Gama PRODUCERS Sylvia Naves, Paulo Francini, Jose Pinto PRODUCTION COMPANIES Companies: H.B. Filmes, Embrafilme CAST Fernando Ramos Da Silva, Jorge Juliao, Gilberto Moura, Marilia Pera SALES AGENT Cineteco di Bologna
Pixote is one of three million cast-off children who is forced to survive unspeakable squalor by unspeakable means. He and his three friends escape to Rio, where they take up with Sueli, a prostitute whose customers are captive prey for the boys who rob them at gunpoint. In a pitiable caricature of family life, Sueli and the boys lead a continually dehumanising existence. The leader of the little gang is Lilica, a 17-yearold homosexual fearful of reaching his 18th birthday, since children under 18 are protected from prosecution for crime by Brazilian law.
FESTIVALS AND AWARDS
1981, LOCARNO INTERNATIONAL FILM FESTIVAL (SILVER LEOPARD) |RESTORED VERSION: 2018 (IL CINEMA RITOVATO, BFI LONDON FILM FESTIVAL)
Héctor Eduardo Babenco was a Brazilian filmmaker, screenwriter, producer and actor. He worked in several countries including Argentina, Brazil, the United States and is known for his socially conscious films that examine the lives of those on the margins of society. FILMOGRAPHY: Pixote (1980), Kiss of the Spider Woman (1985), Ironweed (1987), At Play in the Fields of the Lord (1990) Carandiru (2003) 221
JAMES IVORY
Shakespeare Wallah 122’
ENGLISH HINDI
1965
INDIA USA
FICTION
DIRECTOR James Ivory STORY/SCREENPLAY Ruth Pawar Jhabvala, James Ivory CINEMATOGRAPHER Subrata Mitra EDITOR Amit Bose PRODUCER Ismail Merchant PRODUCTION COMPANY Merchant Ivory Productions SALES AGENT Cohen Media Group CAST Felicity Kendal, Madhur Jaffrey, Shashi Kapoor
In 1960s post-colonial India, Tony Buckingham and his wife, Carla, are the British actor-managers of a troupe of English, Irish, and Indian actors who travel the country mounting performances of Shakespeare’s works. The Buckinghams find themselves grappling with a diminishing demand for their craft as the English theatre on the subcontinent is supplanted by the emerging Bollywood film movement. The Buckinghams must weigh their devotion to their craft against their concern over their daughter’s future in a country, which, it seems, no longer has a place for them. FESTIVALS AND AWARDS
BERLINALE (SILVER BEAR AWARD FOR BEST ACTRESS (MADHUR JAFFREY))
James Ivory is an American film director, producer, and screenwriter. For many years he worked extensively with Indian-born film producer Ismail Merchant and with screenwriter Ruth Prawer Jhabvala. All three were principals in Merchant Ivory Productions, whose films have won six Academy Awards; Ivory himself has been nominated for four Oscars. Earlier this year, he received the Oscar for Best Adapted Screenplay for Call Me By Your Name (2018). FILMOGRAPHY: The Householder (1963), The Wild Party (1975), A Room With a View (1985), A Soldier’s Daughter Never Cries (1998), The City of Your Final Destination (2009) 222
DARIO ARGENTO
Suspiria 97’
ENGLISH
1977
ITALY FICTION
DIRECTOR Dario Argentot STORY/SCREENPLAY Dario Argento, Daria Nicolodi CINEMATOGRAPHER Luciano Tovoli EDITOR Franco Fraticelli SOUND DESIGN Luciano Anzellotti, Mario Dallimonti, Federico Savina PRODUCERS Claudio Argento, Salvatore Argento PRODUCTION COMPANIES Companies: H.B. Filmes, Embrafilme CAST Jessica Harper, Alida Valli, Flavio Bucci, Eva Axén SALES AGENT Videa S.p.A.
Suzy Bannion travels to Germany to perfect her ballet skills. She arrives at the Tanz dance academy in the pouring rain and is refused admission after another woman is seen fleeing the school. She returns the next morning and this time is let in. She learns that the young woman she saw fleeing the previous evening, Pat Hingle, has been found dead. Strange things soon begin to occur. Suzy becomes ill and is put on a special diet; the school becomes infested with maggots; odd sounds abound; and Daniel, the pianist, is killed by his own dog. A bit of research indicates that the ballet school was once a witches’ coven — and as Suzy learns, still is. FESTIVALS AND AWARDS
VENICE FILM FESTIVAL
Dario Argento is an Italian director, producer, film critic, and screenwriter. He is best known for his work in the horror film genre during the 1970s and 1980s, particularly in the subgenre known as giallo, and for his influence on modern horror films. FILMOGRAPHY: The Bird with the Crystal Plumage (1970), Inferno (1980), Trauma (1993), Sleepless (2001), Giallo (2009)
223
AMAZON PRIME ORIGINAL SERIES
Mirzapur HINDI
2018
INDIA
FICTION
PRIME ORIGINAL SERIES SOON TO STREAM ON: AMAZON PRIME VIDEO CREATORS/ SHOWRUNNERS Karan Anshuman, Puneet Krishna DIRECTOR Gurmmeet Singh STORY/SCREENPLAY Buddhadeb Dasgupta CINEMATOGRAPHER Sanjay Kapoor EDITOR Manan Ashwin Mehta SOUND DESIGN Vivek Sachidanand PRODUCTION COMPANY Excel Media and Entertainment
PRODUCERS Ritesh Sidhwani, Farhan Akhtar, Abbas Raza Khan, Karan Anshuman, Kassim Jagmagia, Vikesh Bhutani CAST Ali Fazal, Vikrant Massey, Pankaj Tripathi, Divyenndu, Shweta Tripathi, Shriya Pilgaonkar, Kulbhushan Kharbanda, Rasika Dugal
The iron-fisted Akhandanand Tripathi is a millionaire carpet exporter and the Don of Mirzapur. His son, Munna, is an unworthy, power hungry heir who will not stop at anything to inherit his father’s legacy. An incident at a wedding procession forces him to cross paths with Ramakant Pandit, an upstanding lawyer, and his sons, Guddu and Bablu. What follows is a game of ambition, power, and greed.
226
231
The 28 Avatars of Sridevi
By Kamal Haasan
I still remember the first time I saw Sridevi. I was doing a film with Mr. K. Balachander, shooting in my house. He wanted to do a quick screen test with a girl. It was 1976 — the role was of an adult woman who, in the second half, plays a mother. But this girl was young, only 13 years old. I had, of course, known of her, because she was a famous child actor, and I had seen her on posters. She got the part, and that became our first film, Moondru Mudichu (1976). By then, I had done five films with Mr. Balachander. I was his blue-eyed boy, his assistant, and, probably, the class pupil leader. So when Sridevi joined, I was given the responsibility of rehearsing with her. Since people have seen us romancing each other on screen, they’ve assumed that we were on a firstname basis, but the fact is, till the day she died, she called me sir — something that is rare in a heroheroine equation. We were very similar. We were both child actors who became successful. Hollywood has a long tradition of child actors becoming big stars, but that wasn’t the case in the Tamil, or the Indian, film industry. I sometimes thought she’d never make it. But she was a fast learner, and we ended up doing 27 films together. So, in a sense, I’ve seen 27 steps of her, of her remarkable rise. Even after she became a star, hardly anything changed between us. She always kept that corner for me: when we were alone, I could still recognise, locate, and find that Sridevi. So that was our relationship. With Mr. Balachander around, like a godfather, we almost behaved like siblings. We liked each other. Her mother liked me a lot. She used to tell me, “Why don’t you marry
her?” And I’d say, “Oh no! It’d be like marrying within the family.” In my early days of knowing Sridevi, she was so young that I’d often make fun of her. She’d be sitting in her mother’s lap and eating. I used to tell her mother, “What nonsense is this? You’re spoiling her.” Then I’d turn to Sridevi and say, “Is this what you’ll do even after getting married: have dinner in your mum’s lap?” She was unparalleled as an actress. You can’t equate her to Shabana-ji or Meena Kumari-ji, and I admired that. She was her own thing, always willing to perform for the audience. That’s what made her a star as well. You could see the glint in her eyes when she was acting. She never hesitated in playing to the gallery: something considered inferior by many actors. But that’s what made her great. That’s what made Charlie Chaplin great. For her, the audience mattered. She wasn’t too concerned with sweating the small stuff, which, I thought, was fantastic. She didn’t learn classical dance, for instance. A conventional dancer would concentrate on the posture, the beat, the rhythm, the position and co-ordination of the leg, hand, and eye: it is complicated. But she’d concentrate on what was in the frame — out of mind, out of sight — and yet, she was able to bring it all together in a piece. That was her forte, her magic. She understood the medium like no other. When we met for an award function, at the Yash Raj studio last year, we hugged. It was unusual, because we never did the filmi-style hugging in real life. But that day we did — I don’t know why. And that hug lasted more than the usual podium hugs last. That was the last time I hugged her. That was the last I saw of her.
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232
100 Years of Bergman The Man, The Myth, The Master
By Dheeraj Akolkar I cannot write about Ingmar Bergman as a film scholar, because I am not a film scholar. I cannot write about him as a filmmaker, because that is too limiting. I cannot write about him as an audience member, because that is definitely inadequate. So I’ll write about Ingmar Bergman as a human being.. There is nothing more or nothing less he will demand of me. That is the best I can offer to him, for that is the best he has offered to me. I met him through Liv Ullmann, or, more specifically, through Liv’s book, Changing. I am grateful because I met the man before the myth — and the child before the master. Liv helped me make sense of him and know him in ways that cannot be explained and must never be analysed. And then I had an extraordinary opportunity to make a film about him and her. So I travelled all the way to a tiny little island in the middle of the Baltic Sea, between Sweden and Russia, an island where he made his home and did a lot of work. I had a chance to be surrounded by the space he once inhabited, sit on his chair, walk through his rooms, touch his books, and feel him. Like his films, this too was a part of getting to know him — all pieces of a mighty puzzle.
It is impossible to meet Bergman, the filmmaker, without knowing Ingmar, the person. To me, his life’s work is rooted in the crevices of his soul that he ruthlessly dissected and sourced his words and silences from. He helped us glimpse what it means to be a human being and that was his biggest achievement. Not only are his films and plays centred on profound ideas, not only are they brutally honest and fearlessly naked — but they also hold a mirror in which we see our truest selves, confront uncomfortable questions, and discover unexpected answers. In a world full of compromised, adulterated, and shameless products of manipulation, Bergman must not be ignored and must necessarily be witnessed and experienced, for thankfully, purity and integrity in art has been sculpted and immortalised in the works he made. Bergman is not to be explained or to be revered — he is to be lived. If he were alive today, he’d have been 100 years old. But we know his films will always stay with us, because cinema, in the most magical ways possible, escapes the rules of life. I hope, on this occasion, you enjoy some of his finest films gracing the festival.
Dheeraj Akolkar’s directorial debut, Liv & Ingmar (2012), told the story of a remarkable 42-year-old bond — between the filmmaker Ingmar Bergman and actress Liv Ullmann — that included a live-in relationship, a child, and 11 memorable films. 234
Ernst
Ingmar
Bergman
(1918-2007) was a Swedish filmmaker, theatre director, screenwriter, dramatist, and author. He wrote and directed more than 60 films and 170 theatrical productions, and authored over 100 books and articles. Among his most celebrated works are films such as The Seventh Seal (1957), Wild Strawberries (1957), and Persona (1966), and his autobiography, The Magic Lantern (2008). Throughout Bergman’s oeuvre, the variations of a central theme are constantly present: dysfunctional families, failed artists, and an absent Almighty — all becoming manifestations of our collective inability to communicate with each other.
Summer With Monika Sommaren med Monika 97’
SWEDISH
1953
SWEDEN
FICTION
Monika, a restless, sexually harassed vegetable seller, and her bourgeois boyfriend, Harry, take off in his father’s boat for the islands. There she teaches him how to dance, make love, steal vegetables — and they dream of a family. All seems perfect until Monika’s true nature is revealed. DIRECTOR Ingmar Bergman
PRODUCER Allan Ekelund
STORY/SCREENPLAY Ingmar Bergman, Per Anders Flogelström
PRODUCTION COMPANY Svensk Filmindustri
CINEMATOGRAPHER Gunnar Fischer
CAST Harriet Andersson, Lars Ekborg, Dagmar Ebbesen, Åke Grönberg, Naemi Briese,
EDITORS Tage Holmberg, Gösta Lewin
The Seventh Seal Det Sjunde Inseglet 96’
SWEDISH
1957
SWEDEN
FICTION
When Antonius Block, a disillusioned Swedish knight, returns home from the Crusades, he finds his country, Denmark, ravaged by the plague. Block challenges Death for a chess match, hoping he can forestall his ultimate fate as long as the game continues. Tormented by the belief that God doesn’t exist, the knight sets off on a journey, becoming determined to commit a final redemptive act as long as he is alive. DIRECTOR Ingmar Bergman
PRODUCER Allan Ekelund
STORY/SCREENPLAY Ingmar Bergman
PRODUCTION COMPANY Svensk Filmindustri
CINEMATOGRAPHER Gunnar Fischer EDITOR Lennart Wallén
CAST Gunnar Björnstrand, Bengt Ekerot, Nils Poppe, Max von Sydow, Bibi Andersson
236
Persona 84’
SWEDISH
1966
SWEDEN
FICTION
Elisabeth Vogler, a famous stage actress, blanks out during a performance and lapses into complete silence the next day. Advised by her doctor to rest, she goes to a beach house on the Baltic Sea with only Anna, a nurse, as company. Over the next few weeks, as Anna struggles to reach her mute patient, the two women find themselves experiencing a strange emotional communion DIRECTOR Ingmar Bergman
PRODUCER Ingmar Bergman
STORY/SCREENPLAY Ingmar Bergman, Kerstin Berg
PRODUCTION COMPANIES American International Pictures, Svensk Filmindustri
CINEMATOGRAPHER Sven Nykvist EDITOR Ulla Ryghe
CAST Bibi Andersson, Liv Ullmann, Margaretha Krook, Gunnar Björnstrand, Jörgen Lindström
Saraband 110’
SWEDISH, ENGLISH, GERMAN
2003
SWEDEN, DENMARK, NORWAY, ITALY, FINLAND, GERMANY, AUSTRIA
FICTION
Marianne, some 30 years after divorcing Johan, decides to visit her ex-husband at his summer home. She arrives in the middle of a family drama between Johan’s son (from another marriage) and his granddaughter. DIRECTOR Ingmar Bergman
PRODUCER Pia Ehrnvall
STORY/SCREENPLAY Ingmar Bergman, Kerstin Sundberg
PRODUCTION COMPANIES Svensk Filmindustri
CINEMATOGRAPHERS Raymond Wemmenlöv, Sofi Stridh, Stefan Eriksson, Per-Olof Lantto, Jesper Holmström
CAST Liv Ullmann, Erland Josephson, Börje Ahlstedt, Julia Dufvenius, Gunnel Fred Producer: Pia Ehrnvall
EDITOR Sylvia Ingemarsson SOUND DESIGN Ulf Olausson, Carl Edström, Anders Degerberg, Per Nyström
237
MARGARETHE VON TROTTA
Searching for Ingmar Bergman 94’
GERMAN
2018
GERMANY
DOCUMENTARY
DIRECTOR Margarethe von Trotta STORY/SCREENPLAY Margarethe von Trotta, Felix Moeller CINEMATOGRAPHER Börres Weiffenbach EDITOR Bettina Böhler SOUND DESIGN Helge Haack PRODUCER Benjamin Seikel PRODUCTION COMPANIES C-Films, Mondex et Cie SALES AGENT Cinema Management Group CAST Liv Ullmann, Daniel Bergman and Ingmar Bergman, Jr., OIivier Assayas, Ruben Östlund, Stig Björkman, Mia Hansen-Løve
Filmmaker Margarethe von Trotta examines Ingmar Bergman’s life and work with a circle of his closest collaborators as well as a new generation of filmmakers. This documentary presents key components of his legacy, as it retraces themes that recurred in his life and art and takes us to the places that were central to Bergman’s creative achievements.
Margarethe von Trotta was born in Berlin and began her acting career in the theatres of Dusseldorf. In 1960 she moved to Paris and immersed herself in the cinephile circles of the time discovering filmmakers such as Ingmar Bergman. In 1978, she directed her first feature, The Second Awakening of Christa Klages, and went on to make such films as Marianne and Juliane (1981), Rosa Luxemburg (1986), Love and Fear (1988), and Hannah Arendt (2012), among many others. FILMOGRAPHY: Marianne and Juliane (1981), The African Woman (1990), The Promise (1995), I Am the Other Woman (2006), Hannah Arendt (2012)
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ACTOR (Aruvi)
Watching Aditi Balan in Aruvi (2017) feels like opening a window in a room that was sealed for months. Balan is so fiery and unrestrained — and yet almost always in control — that you experience a range of emotions watching her performance. First, there’s intrigue: Who is she? (A lawyer by training and a complete outsider to Tamil cinema, she made her debut in Aruvi.) Then there’s surprise, followed by admiration. In a film industry and country historically dominated by hyper-masculine stars, Balan made huge dents to the perceptions of Indian film hero, unfurling a series of firsts. Playing the role of a recent college graduate, infected with HIV, abandoned by parents, Balan’s Aruvi has no patience for pity or help. She charts her own course, takes her own decisions, some of which involve a gun and threats. Balan plays Aruvi in a language so unique — slow anger rising to her eyes, a smile when you least expect it, a hint of tenderness amid boiling tension — that it fills you with wonderment and quiet awe, hoping that the Indian filmmakers are up for a new challenge that has socked their jaws.
ACTOR (Aruvi)
Watching Aditi Balan in Aruvi (2017) feels like opening a window in a room that was sealed for months. Balan is so fiery and unrestrained — and yet almost always in control — that you experience a range of emotions watching her performance. First, there’s intrigue: Who is she? (A lawyer by training and a complete outsider to Tamil cinema, she made her debut in Aruvi.) Then there’s surprise, followed by admiration. In a film industry and country historically dominated by hyper-masculine stars, Balan made huge dents to the perceptions of Indian film hero, unfurling a series of firsts. Playing the role of a recent college graduate, infected with HIV, abandoned by parents, Balan’s Aruvi has no patience for pity or help. She charts her own course, takes her own decisions, some of which involve a gun and threats. Balan plays Aruvi in a language so unique — slow anger rising to her eyes, a smile when you least expect it, a hint of tenderness amid boiling tension — that it fills you with wonderment and quiet awe, hoping that the Indian filmmakers are up for a new challenge that has socked their jaws.
ACTOR (Aruvi)
Lists are boring — and they’re tedious without cat GIFs. Lists about Indian cinema, in particular, run the risk of being redundant, because they usually feature familiar names, adding nearly nothing of significance. Some people — due to their nature of work and the proximity to ‘national’ media — get more attention than others, giving the lopsided impression that Indian cinema is clustered in select pockets. But we know that, like the country, its cinema is varied and complex, deserving a wider view. We need new names, because we need new stories. We need new ways to think about — and de-Hindify — Indian cinema. So, over the next 25 pages, you’ll find 25 individuals who share the following commonalities: They’ve set new standards of excellence. They’re relatively new to the world of films, recently rising to prominence. They’re known for path-breaking choices — either professional (creating inventive, pioneering work) or personal (standing for their values and, as a result, making their film industries more inclusive or circumventing institutional, financial, and social roadblocks to create stunning pieces of art). They’re known for more than one significant piece of work (this exception has been made for only two individuals, because their other contributions outweigh this criterion). They’re, in the truest sense of the word, disruptors. The last, and somewhat mystical, factor in this list-making involved you, the patrons of the Festival: cinephiles who, largely living in Mumbai, are familiar with ‘Hindies’ and world cinema, but due to challenges of access haven’t been able to look in their own backyards; this resulted in dropping some names that have, for good reasons, already received enough attention. But a country cannot be encapsulated in a list (or a book), and the same holds true for its cinema — especially a country as multicultural, as contradictory, and as batshit nuts, as ours. So this isn’t a definitive list by any means. It is a mere guideline, a chance to meet the new architects of Indian cinema — the ones making mirrored façades, where observation is reflection, where we watch something and end up recogonising ourselves, where our desires and despair find unique Indian expressions, liberating the isolates in us. Watching Aditi Balan in Aruvi (2017) feels like opening a window by Tanul Thakurin a room that was sealed for months. Balan is so fiery and unrestrained — and yet almost always in control — that you experience a range of emotions watching her performance. First, there’s intrigue: Who is she? (A lawyer by training and a complete outsider to Tamil cinema, she made her debut in Aruvi.) Then there’s surprise, followed by admiration. In a film industry and country historically dominated by hyper-masculine stars, Balan made huge dents to the perceptions of Indian film hero, unfurling a series of firsts. Playing the role of a recent college graduate, infected with HIV, abandoned by parents, Balan’s Aruvi has no patience for pity or help. She charts her own course, takes her own decisions, some of which involve a gun and threats. Balan plays Aruvi in a language so unique — slow anger rising to her eyes, a smile when you least expect it, a hint of tenderness amid boiling tension — that it fills you with wonderment and quiet awe, hoping that the Indian filmmakers are up for a new challenge that has socked their jaws.
ACTOR (Aruvi)
Watching Aditi Balan in Aruvi (2017) feels like opening a window in a room that was sealed for months. Balan is so fiery and unrestrained — and yet almost always in control — that you experience a range of emotions watching her performance. First, there’s intrigue: Who is she? (A lawyer by training and a complete outsider to Tamil cinema, she made her debut in Aruvi.) Then there’s surprise, followed by admiration. In a film industry and country historically dominated by hyper-masculine stars, Balan made huge dents to the perceptions of Indian film hero, unfurling a series of firsts. Playing the role of a recent college graduate, infected with HIV, abandoned by parents, Balan’s Aruvi has no patience for pity or help. She charts her own course, takes her own decisions, some of which involve a gun and threats. Balan plays Aruvi in a language so unique — slow anger rising to her eyes, a smile when you least expect it, a hint of tenderness amid boiling tension — that it fills you with wonderment and quiet awe, hoping that the Indian filmmakers are up for a new challenge that has socked their jaws.
DIRECTOR
(Lipstick Under My Burkha)
For an indie director, one failure — especially when it’s critical and commercial — signals farewell to future filmmaking dreams. Alankrita Shrivastava’s debut, Take Off (2011), was the kind of film that destroys careers. But she stayed, making her next, Lipstick Under My Burkha (2016), which eventually premiered at the Jio MAMI 18th Mumbai Film Festival with Star, creating a quiet stir. A few months later, the film ran into the regressive censor board, which refused to grant it certification because it was, well, too “lady oriented”. Shrivastava challenged the censors, publicly berated it, and won. Her film — a funny, heartfelt drama on the stifled desires of four women across faiths and classes — told a story of everyday rebellion that had traditionally struggled to find space on Indian screens. One segment in particular, centered on the libidinous cravings of a woman in her late-50s, made the audiences distinctly uncomfortable, as evidenced by their giggles and squirms. Shrivastava had done her job: showing a day in the life of Indian patriarchy and taking it apart with each passing hour.
DIRECTOR
(Manjadikuru, Bangalore Days, Koode)
SCREENWRITER (Ustad Hotel)
Anjali Menon, in her six-year-old directorial career, has restored some much-needed dignity to popular cinema. Her filmmaking lexicon and tools are fairly mainstream — relatable characters and themes, well-paced plots, the clever deployment of stars and songs — but none of them are used at the expense of storytelling or filmmaking vision. Debuting with a keen-eyed poignant drama, Manjadikuru (2012), Menon delivered one of the biggest hits of Malayalam cinema with her next, Bangalore Days (2014). The film told a story so common — of regular software engineers and bankers, of directionless young (and old) people battling ennui — and yet one so deeply felt that it was impossible to resist its charms. Her debut as a feature film screenwriter, Ustad Hotel (2012), like Bangalore Days, glittered with vintage Menon touches: a simple story glowing with humour, laced with love. Menon’s films never posture or pretend, and they’re always alive with quiet progressive politics. Besides, the fact that her films have been huge commercial successes is a crucial reminder of something we’ve known all along: that we, the movie-going audiences, are much smarter than we get credit for.
DIRECTOR
(Maheshinte Prathikaaram, Thondimuthalum Driksakshiyum)
If the Malayalam filmmaker Dileesh Pothan were a prose writer, he’d have been known for breezy and profound novellas, because what most say in pages, he conveys in a line. Both his films, Maheshinte Prathikaaram (2016) and Thondimuthalum Driksakshiyum (2017), observe life so closely — in all its minute mundaneness and bare vagaries — that they don’t let it escape, distill it with refreshing precision. Humour is a constant natural presence in his stories, pervading his films with a reassuring caresss, delivering moments of quiet liberation. His movies are also structurally inventive — the central plot point in Maheshinte Prathikaaram kicks in quite late; the narrative focus slyly shifts in Thondimuthalum Driksakshiyum — making an understated statement about the politics of stories. Malyalayam films, of late, have been fast setting new standards of excellence in Indian cinema, and Pothan’s work — humane, humourous, and always laced with grace — proves that there are enough varying ripples in the backwaters to keep the entire country enraptured.
DIRECTOR (Balekempa)
SCREENWRITER (Thithi, Balekempa)
Before Ere Gowda entered films, he had held vastly different jobs, none of them remotely related to filmmaking: He was an office boy, a driver, a security guard, and a gardener. Gowda’s mother was ill, and he needed money for her treatment. His financial condition was so dire at one point that he slept in an ATM booth for a year. Much later, while working as a security guard in the office of the Kannada film producer Prathap Reddy, Gowda met his son, Raam, and they struck a friendship. That resulted in Raam’s debut, Thithi (2015) — a tender, hilarious, and unsparing drama — which won top awards at many prestigious film festivals, marking Gowda’s debut as a screenwriter, casting director, and line producer. And he didn’t stop there. Two years later, he was presenting his own directorial debut, Balekempa (2018), at the International Film Festival Rotterdam, where he won the Fipresci Prize. Movies gave Gowda something he had craved his entire life: dignity. Indian cinema is as grateful.
DIRECTOR
(AFSPA, 1958; Loktak Lairembee)
Haobam Paban Kumar’s cinema is the cinema of dissent; it is the cinema of anger. His first movie, AFSPA, 1958 (2006), which won the Fipresci Prize at the Mumbai International Film Festival, was a 58-minute documentary on the atrocities committed by the Indian army on the people of Manipur. Featuring footage of self-immolation, extrajudicial killings, and bare-breasted protests, AFSPA, 1958 is a chilling account of the transgressions of the state — a documentary not devoid of rough edges, proudly displaying its open wounds. But Kumar’s most impressive directorial achievement is Loktak Lairembee (2016), which, again, is a political piece, although fictional. Kumar’s core concerns as a filmmaker remain the same — the conflict between the Manipuris and the central government, the slow lure of violence, the sense of emasculation — but the film sees its people, and their land, from a distance, with minimal embellishment. This is observational filmmaking at its finest, simmering with discontent and sorrow — one so assured in its telling that it blurs the line between fact and fiction — yet hiding in its heart measured hope.
ART DIRECTOR
(Charlie, Jacobinte Swargarajyam)
Jayashree Lakshminarayanan is an art director, but her work in the Malayalam movie Charlie (2015) was so masterful and inventive that she doubled up as an unintended screenwriter. The hero of the film, Charlie (Dulquer Salman), a joyous vagabond, doesn’t enter the story for a good 20 minutes. We, and the heroine (Parvathy Thiruvothu), find out about him through his once rented room, which consists of pieces of art and installation made from junk. That’s all the information you need to know about someone like Charlie: one who sees beauty in the ordinary — a motif that informed the film as well, and did so using the oft-quoted axiom “show don’t tell”. Lakshminarayanan’s work garnered much praise for the film, winning her the Kerala State Award for Best Art Director. That recognition was crucial because it helped dispel a widely held belief: that art direction, like cinematography, is the domain of men, for it is labour intensive. But Lakshminarayanan who, after Charlie, has worked in Tamil cinema and a mini-TV series documentary, is making a slow mockery of that misconception.
SCREENWRITER (Vicky Donor, Piku, October)
Earlier this year when the trailer of October (2018) went live, the first credit on screen was the director’s, but what followed next, the name of the screenwriter — even before the name of the producer or the star — was quite unusual. In an industry where screenwriters are routinely short-changed, a “Juhi Chaturvedi film” has become its own thing, a badge of honour. A successful advertising professional before venturing into screenwriting, Chaturvedi entered Bollywood and shook things from ground up. She writes mainstream films, but their central ideas set them apart, making them sound too outlandish for even art-house cinema. Her first two movies, Vicky Donor (2012) and Piku (2015), were, at least on surface, about sperm donation and sluggish bowel movements. Chaturvedi’s attention there was centered on the banalities of modern urban life, expertly examining unique Indian eccentricities, balancing humour with pathos. Her latest, October, was purportedly a love story, where the leads do not share even a moment of intimacy — a drama that challenged the straightjacketed notions of romance in Bollywood. Chaturvedi, comfortably experimenting with different storytelling styles, has, in no small measure, restored the dignity of Indian screenwriters denied to them for long.
DIRECTOR
(Mor Mann Ke Bharam, Ralang Road)
Karma Takapa is one of the most sly, deceptive Indian filmmakers. Watching his films feel like an exercise in cinematic oneupmanship, designed in a way to make Takapa win, and his audiences flummoxed. None of this, though, feels like how it sounds. Because watching a Takapa film — which walks with you till a point, then suddenly leaps in front, and continues to dart ahead with blinding velocity — you don’t mind the defeat. You’re in fact intrigued by it, obsessively wanting to connect the dots, which have minds of their own, spawning nested sentences with numerous punctuation marks — talking, teasing, always eluding. In a three-year-old filmmaking career, Takapa has made two movies, spotlighting the parts of India — Chhattisgarh and Sikkim — traditionally not associated with experimental film form. His debut, Mor Mann Ke Bharam (2015), co-directed with Heer Ganjwala and Abhishek Varma, entered the mind of a novelist, struggling to balance his artistic wish with readers’ demands. His last, Ralang Road (2017), a solo directorial project, was an atmospheric piece, liberating Sikkim (his home) from its touristey clichés, telling a gradually haunting story of the tussle between the natives and the outsiders and the easy loss of innocence in a land, perpetually blanketed in mist, that hides more than it reveals.
DIRECTOR
(Pizza, Jigarthanda, Iraivi, Mercury)
Karthik Subbaraj has a child-like fascination with movies — or, more appropriately, with storytelling. His main characters, like South Korean auteur Hong Sang-soo’s, are either yarn-spinners or filmmakers. Subbaraj’s heart, though, beats for movies of all kinds — Tamil, American, Hindi — and he often references cinema (or literature) to convey a deeper, heartwarming message about the medium. In Subbaraj’s world, art is a life-altering force: it can elevate the financial fortunes of a wily couple, make a bloodthirsty gangster humane, ruin relationships. Subbaraj’s style is very ‘mass-ey’, but it never becomes a money-making enterprise — instead it becomes a means to question the thin, often blurring, line between life and cinema; to subvert and critique the formulaic tropes of Tamil movies; and to, above all, play pranks on the audiences. To watch Subbaraj’s films is to hang out with a movie-drunk friend telling you a long but tightly-wound story — the unfurling of information is fast and relentless, and he looks in no mood to stop. You don’t mind; you came for the entertainment but stayed for the unexpected profundity.
DIRECTOR
(Fandry, Sairat)
Nagraj Manjule entered the Marathi film industry, quietly yet confidently, with Fandry (2014), a bildungsroman about a Dalit boy falling in love. Funny and deeply rooted, Fandry exemplified the rebirth of Marathi art cinema, which had produced a slew of impressive movies in the last few years. But even in that filmmaking culture, the work of Manjule, a Dalit, stood out, as it was both personal and political, drawing from his own experience of being an outcaste. Then, two years later, Manjule, still a quasi-outsider, stormed open the gates of the Marathi film industry with Sairat (2016), a movie climaxing with the ferocity of a hard slap. A film about the unending vileness of the caste system, Sairat didn’t rely on its motifs alone. It was mainstream cinema stretched to its most satisfying conclusion — the film had a love story; it had chartbuster songs; it ruled the box office. Sairat shook not just the Marathi film industry but also Bollywood, domains historically dominated by caste Hindus, whose angry reverberations feel as urgent and as essential, as they did two-and-a-half years ago.
DIRECTOR
(Attakathi, Madras, Kabali, Kaala)
Most Indian filmmakers use the popularity of stars for commerical gains. Their films, as a result, lack imagination and bite, existing solely to serve the egos of actors, who rehash their on-screen images on auto-pilot. But Pa. Ranjith — whose first two films, Attakathi (2012) and Madras (2014), subtly dealt with caste — began changing the rules of the game with Kabali (2016), where he got Rajnikanth to tell an alternative history of Dalit politics in Tamil Nadu. Ranjith’s filmmaking prowess, however, reached its crescendo in Kaala (2018), whose climax — a subversion of the holy epic Ramayana making a powerful statement about the subaltern triumph — has to be one of the most memorable segments in Indian cinema in the last decade. It’d be myopic and insulting to discuss Kaala only in cinematic terms, for the film feels like a clarion call, referencing B.R. Ambedkar’s “educate, agitate, organise”, depicting Dalit resistance in its own language — using the colour black and blue, squashing the popular notions of upper-caste ‘purity’ — and using cinema to claim joys that life had denied.
ACTOR
(Maryan, Bangalore Days, Charlie, Take Off)
Parvathy Thiruvothu, an outsider to the Malayalam film industry, began her career by appearing in supporting roles — one of which, Notebook (2006), came by outdoing 5,000 applicants. But she slowly gained a reputation reserved for few male stars: breaking free from straightjacketed romantic parts, taking risks, disappearing in her personas. The last five years of her career, beginning from Bharath Bala’s Maryan (2013), have been the most striking, where she’s acted in different film industries (Malayalam, Tamil, Hindi), including the 2017 thriller Take Off, which ruled the box office, garnered critical acclaim, won awards. But Thiruvothu’s cumulative contribution to the country’s cinema transcends acting. In Indian film industries, where silence is respected and rewarded, Thiruvothu has broken the omertà. During a panel discussion at the International Film Festival of Kerala, in December 2017, she singled out the Mammootty-starrer Kasaba (2016) for glorifying misogyny. She was trolled, received rape and death threats but remained unfazed. Last year, she was instrumental in creating the Women in Cinema Collective, following the abduction and sexual assault of her colleague, which seeks to counter gender bias and misogyny in the Malayalam film industry. Unlike Hollywood, Indian cinema is yet to see a full-blown #MeToo movement, but Thiruvothu, at the forefront of a disruptive clarion call, has begun giving voice to historically ignored grievances.
DIRECTOR, SCREENWRITER, PRODUCER (Antardrishti, Village Rockstars, Bulbul Can Sing)
Rima Das came to Mumbai to become an actress, to make the city her home. None of that happened. Not knowing Hindi, she struggled for eight years to get good parts — she appeared in a few plays, did movies so inconsequential that she doesn’t even remember them — and then, dejected and defeated, returned to Assam, where she hails from. A few years later, she produced and directed her first feature, Antardrishti (2016), which had its world premiere at the Jio MAMI 18th Mumbai Film Festival with Star. The next year, she toured the international film festivals with her feature Village Rockstars (2017), where she was the writer, director, producer, editor, cinematographer, production designer, and casting director. The film — centered on a pre-teen girl in an Assamese village who, owning a thermocol guitar, wants to form a rock band — is, in a crucial way, the story of Das herself: of desire defeating despair. That small indie, besides winning numerous awards, found another memorable recognition last month: It became India’s official entry for the 91st Academy Awards. This is the kind of story we grew up listening and the kind of story we want to retell ourselves — that our dreams don’t need sanction or approval; that they, like us, our enough in themselves.
DIRECTOR
(The Lunchbox, The Sense of an Ending, Our Souls at Night)
Ritesh Batra made his debut with the charming lyrical drama The Lunchbox (2013). An examination of urban alienation and a succinct comment on the different identities of Mumbai, The Lunchbox signalled the arrival of a rooted directorial voice. But his next step — making films with foreign crews in the UK and US — set him apart from his contemporaries. He gave himself tough challenges and succeeded: adapting a looping complicated Julian Barnes novel; directing such stalwarts as Jim Boradbent and Charlotte Rampling (in The Sense of an Ending (2016)) and Robert Redford and Jane Fonda (in Our Souls at Night (2017)); exploring different filmmaking cultures and exhibition platforms (Our Souls at Night premiered on Netflix). Batra’s five-year-old filmmaking career has taken different forms, made him travel to three countries, but all his movies are united by one poignant motif: the pain and yearning of loners struggling to find their centres.
COSTUME DESIGNER
(Pranayam, Iyobinte Pusthakam, Mayaanadhi)
Sameera Saneesh entered films by accident. In any case, it was just going to be one movie, White Elephant (2008), and then she’d return to her main interest and forte: designing costumes for corporate ads. But soon, she was the most sought-after costume designer in the Malayalam film industry, having worked in 50 features in five years. But numbers can’t do justice to her work, for her costumes have changed the way people dress in Kerala. Her 2011 movie, Pranayam, got jute and pashmina silks in pastel shades back in fashion. She then made the state’s heartthrob, Dulquer Salman, even more liked and emulated, dressing him up in printed half kurtas and harem pants in Charlie (2015) and in warm coloured shirts in 100 Days of Love (2015). Saneesh’s most praised work, however, came last year, in Aashiq Abu’s Mayaanadhi (2017), where the gown worn by Aishwarya Lekshmi in the climax was praised for its elegance and simplicity. That film is special to Saneesh for another reason: She worked on it till two days before her delivery. When she had entered Malayalam cinema, there were only two female costumers in the industry; now that number exceeds 10. Saneesh, who considers herself an introvert, has allowed her work to do all the talking.
MUSIC DIRECTOR
(Attakathi, Jigarthanda, Irudhi Suttru, Mercury)
It’s rare to come across a composer whose filmography can encapsulate the changing pulse of a film industry. But Santhosh Narayanan — who has frequently collaborated with such filmmakers as Pa. Ranjith, Karthik Subbaraj, and Nalan Kumarsamy (the young, leading voices of Tamil cinema) — defies that exception. Debuting with Ranjith’s Attakathi (2012), largely responsible for the resurgence of the gaana genre in Tamil cinema, Narayanan’s scores are slowly changing the way Tamil films sound. He never shies away from experimenting or taking risks. Mixing two or more distinct musical forms, his soundtracks and background scores often add new dimensions to films. Soodhu Kaavum (2013), for instance, had a gana-rap; Jigarthanda (2014) combined folk, hip-hop, and electro; Irudhi Suttru (2016) blended kuthu beats with blues. His latest, Mercury (2018), was a movie without dialogues, where Narayanan’s background score — eclectic, alive, and atmospheric — performed exemplary narrative work, giving voice to a voiceless film. A career-defining work for many was Narayanan’s another day at office.
CINEMATOGRAPHER
(Anhey Ghorey Da Daan, Chauthi Koot, Aligarh)
Satya Rai Nagpaul’s first film as a cinematographer, Anhey Ghorey Da Daan (2011), came nearly seven years ago. Since then he’s shot just six more features. This may seem like a markedly low output, but Nagpaul’s work cannot be measured in numbers, because his frames, always pushing the boundaries of Indian cinematography, have lived lives of their own. His most celebrated collaboration has come with director Gurvinder Singh, whose first two films — Anhey Ghorey Da Daan and Chauthi Koot (2015) — both set in Punjab, were sparse, winding fares, with minimal dialogues, where Nagpaul’s evocative compositions did the most talking. But, one presumes, his most personal work was Hansal Mehta’s Aligarh (2016). Nagpaul, a trans man, must have identified with the film’s central character, professor Ramchandra Siras, who was discriminated against on the grounds of his identity. Despite the recent squashing of Article 377, India still remains a country ruled by parochial views on sexual orientation and gender, but Nagpaul — the founder of Sampoorna, a collective for, and by, trans and intersex Indians — has repeatedly spoken about the transgender rights, doing his part to dispel pervasive misconceptions and prejudices, urging others to remove their lids of shame.
DIRECTOR
(Ek Main Aur Ekk Tu, Kapoor & Sons)
Mainstream Hindi cinema often gets a lot of flak for being lazy and simplistic. But filmmakers like Shakun Batra — who has collaborated with some of the biggest names in Bollywood — offer hope. Batra’s debut, Ek Main Aur Ekk Tu (2012), was a subversive romantic comedy, depicting the whims and confusions of modern Indian love. His next, Kapoor & Sons (2016), a searing drama, located itself at the centre of a family frequently breaking into ugly disagreements. Stories centered on Indian families have long been a staple diet of Bollywood filmmakers, but it took someone like Batra to recogonise their true complexities, embracing uncomfortable, everyday truths and doing justice to them. Comfortably lying in the realm of Bollywood — his films have stars and songs and (relatively) high budgets — Batra’s movies are a significant reminder that mainstream need not be a synonym for mediocrity.
DIRECTORS
(The Cinema Travellers, Searching for Saraswati)
Documentary filmmakers Shirley Abraham and Amit Madheshiya funnel facts through the aesthetics of fiction, rendering them luminous and stimulating. Their debut, The Cinema Travellers (2016), told a poignant story of the owners and professionals of travelling cinemas, quietly asking a pertinent question: How should the old respond to the new? Five years in making, the documentary paid tribute to the magic of movies and detailed the woes of people stuck in time. They next made a short documentary for The New York Times, Searching for Saraswati (2018), which interrogated the beliefs of the villagers of Haryana seeking solace in the discovery of the mythical Saraswati River. In a country where documentary filmmaking is still largely polemic, the works of Abraham and Madheshiya, fine specimens of narrative journalism, have given it a new lease of life.
DIRECTOR
(Celluloid Man, Immortals, CzechMate: In Search of Jirí Menzel)
FILM ARCHIVIST AND RESTORER
Film preservation has been historically ignored in this country, because cinema hasn’t gotten the respect it deserves. Our collective indifference also ensured that there was no conversation around it. All of that changed in the summer of 2012, when Shivendra Singh Dungarpur’s Celluloid Man (2012), a documentary on the life of noted film archivist P.K. Nair, began screening at film festivals around the world. Art can elevate activism, help dignify it, and Dungarpur has mastered that fine balance. Even after Celluloid Man had done the festival rounds, he kept stressing the importance of film preservation, culminating in opening a non-profit, the Film Heritage Foundation, in 2014, dedicating himself to the cause. The foundation has since led the conversation about film preservation, holding annual workshops, publishing books, conducting talks. Dungarpur’s been fighting a battle, over the last several years, which many didn’t even know about. In a country known for the complacent “chalta hai (anything goes)” attitude, he’s made us care.
COLOURIST, POST PRODUCTION SUPERVISOR (Ship of Theseus, Court, Trapped, Newton)
PHOTO BY SWAPNIL S. SONAWANE
Colours in cinema can hide in plain sight. They can set the mood, shape our perceptions, subvert our expectations — but, above all, colours can help tell a story. Sidharth Meer, a prolific colourist, is an unlikely storyteller whose work suceeds if it doesn’t call attention to itself — perhaps a reason that makes him indispensable to filmmakers, invisible to the audiences. Besides being a colourist, Meer’s also a post production supervisor, getting involved early in the process, discussing the film with the director and the cinematographer, out of which emerge key decisions: the kind of camera to be used, the amount of VFX required, shooting options. His work, as a colourist and a post production supervisor, include some of the most notable Indian films of the decade: Ship of Theseus (2013), The Lunchbox (2013), Court (2015), Trapped (2017), Newton (2017). There are several reasons for this: his refined sense of aesthetics, his complete devotion to a project (he’s one of the few colourists who factors in both visuals and sound while colour grading a movie), his one-man-studio capabilities that save production houses a lot of money. It’s a testament to his remarkable skill that 12 of his films (including two shorts) will be playing at this year’s Festival, spanning an astonishing range: four in India Gold, four in Spotlight, two in Marathi Talkies, one in India Story, one in Discovering India. Only five years old in the industry, Meer — a mini-film-festival-on-two-legs — has just begun.
PRODUCER
(Bangalore Days, Kaadu Pookkunna Neram, Munthirivallikal Thalirkkumbol)
Sophia Paul has been around for less than five years in the Malayalam film industry, but she’s changing the way producers approach and, more importantly, think about their movies — one blockbuster at a time. She entered film production with Anjali Menon’s Bangalore Days (2014), which benefitted from a smart business strategy — releasing the film with English subtitles — making it one of the highest-grossing Malayalam films of all time. Paul’s production house, Weekend Blockbusters, changed tracks next and produced an intense political drama, Kaadu Pookkunna Neram (2016), centered on the marginalisation of Dalits and Adivasis, which played at more than half a dozen international film festivals. Weekend Blockbusters’ next production, Mohanlal-starrer Munthirivallikal Thalirkkumbol (2017), released in a record 337 screens across the country, emerging as one of the most profitable Malayalam films of all time, cementing Paul’s place as a powerful film producer in the industry. Producers wield a lot of clout, but Paul has used that power responsibly, giving the best film industry in the country unfettered ambition.
ACTOR
(Baby, Pink, Mulk, Manmarziyaan)
PHOTO BY TEJINDER SINGH
Taapsee Pannu was a software engineer, designed an iPhone app, rejected an Infosys job, launched a wedding planner company, acted in 14 Tamil and Telugu films before effecting a slow (but unceasing) disruption in Bollywood, starting with her second movie, Baby (2015). Playing the role of an undercover agent — breaking doors, landing punches — she out-Akshay-Kumared in an Akshay Kumar film. The two collaborated again in Naam Shabana (2016), where the roles were reversed. Now Pannu was the hero, and Kumar had a much smaller role. That is Pannu in short: a heroine who steals the thunder from the hero, makes it rain, and tells him to hold the umbrella. Like her role in Manmarziyaan (2018) where, amid Vicky Kaushal and Abhishek Bachchan’s fine performances, she owned the film. But more importantly, her choice of films stands out, such as Pink (2016) and Mulk (2018), which have been instrumental in generating pertinent, impassioned conversations. In these movies, she’s acted opposite Bollywood giants — Amitabh Bachchan and Rishi Kapoor — giving impressive, nuanced performances, but even in these big, already-defined canvasses, Pannu’s managed to leave her own imprints.
ACTOR
(Court, Sir)
PRODUCER
(Court, Balekempa)
Before garnering accolades at international film festivals, and stunning critics and audiences, Chaitanya Tamhane’s Court (2015) needed rescuing, and it did so in the most middle-class way possible: it needed money. Stepped in Vivek Gomber, a trained actor who took a chance on the first-time director, pooling in his own money — Rs 3.5 crore — when the film got no buyers at the Film Bazaar’s co-production market. Gomber similarly rescued another indie last year — Ere Gowda’s Balekempa (2018), which premiered at the International Film Festival Rotterdam, winning the Fipresci Prize — when the director fell out with his original producer. But Gomber would rather be known as an actor than a rescuer. After appearing in several acclaimed plays, he is slowly finding his space on the big screen. Playing the role of a suave, affluent lawyer who, despite his best intentions, can only be an observer in India’s many class and caste tussles, Gomber was instrumental to Court’s success. His latest as an actor, Sir (2018), which premiered at the Cannes Film Festival’s Critics’ Week, sees him in a role where he, playing the role of a rich South Mumbai builder, starts forging an unlikely bond with his maid — a performance that has garnered impressive critical acclaim. Producing Tamhane’s next, and hoping to act in equally challenging projects, Gomber’s greed is good for Indian cinema.
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