Festival completes its 2023 programme.
Tallinn Black Nights Film Festival has unveiled the juries for its 27th edition, with jurors including Danish star Trine Dyrholm, and John Altman, who has worked on the music for Titanic, Life Of Brian and No Time To Die.
Jury head Dyrholm and English composer Altman are on the official selection competition jury, alongside filmmakers Xie Fei from China, Hilmar Oddson from Iceland, and Inna Sahakyan from Armenia.
The first feature competition jury consists of Mexican producer Nicolas Celis of Pimienta Films, who heads that jury, alongside Diana Ilijine, former Filmfest Munchen director; Chinese filmmaker Ran Huang...
Tallinn Black Nights Film Festival has unveiled the juries for its 27th edition, with jurors including Danish star Trine Dyrholm, and John Altman, who has worked on the music for Titanic, Life Of Brian and No Time To Die.
Jury head Dyrholm and English composer Altman are on the official selection competition jury, alongside filmmakers Xie Fei from China, Hilmar Oddson from Iceland, and Inna Sahakyan from Armenia.
The first feature competition jury consists of Mexican producer Nicolas Celis of Pimienta Films, who heads that jury, alongside Diana Ilijine, former Filmfest Munchen director; Chinese filmmaker Ran Huang...
- 10/27/2023
- by Ben Dalton
- ScreenDaily
Iranian filmmaking’s reliance on formal restrictions and secrecy are given new variations in Terrestrial Verses, co-directed by Ali Asgari and Alireza Khatami, who’ve both enjoyed previous festival success with their solo features. Chiming indirectly with the “Woman, Life, Freedom” protests last year––the largest civil unrest in Iran for a generation––Asgari and Khatami take a panoramic view of its urban citizenry through nine vignettes, observing confrontations with state brass behaving at their most paranoid and arbitrary.
Terrestrial Verses immediately impresses with its sense of focus and minimalism, yet struggles to generate a more complex thesis as it develops, falling into repetition and overstatement. Abbas Kiarostami and Mania Akbari’s Ten (a film now mired in retrospective accusations over the former’s alleged misconduct) is a notable precursor to its method, consigning ten sequences to its car interior and letting insights emerge organically, at least when we were...
Terrestrial Verses immediately impresses with its sense of focus and minimalism, yet struggles to generate a more complex thesis as it develops, falling into repetition and overstatement. Abbas Kiarostami and Mania Akbari’s Ten (a film now mired in retrospective accusations over the former’s alleged misconduct) is a notable precursor to its method, consigning ten sequences to its car interior and letting insights emerge organically, at least when we were...
- 6/3/2023
- by David Katz
- The Film Stage
Zar Amir Ebrahimi, who won best actress at Cannes for her performance in Ali Abassi’s “Holy Spider” is set to head the jury of the Nordic competition at the Göteborg Film Festival.
Ebrahimi is a celebrated Iranian actor, director, producer and casting director. Her credits include “Bride Price vs. Democracy,” “Teheran Tabu” and Noora Niasari’s film “Shayda” which is set to compete at Sundance. She currently stars in “White Paradise,” a contemporary western directed by Guillaume Renusson which just came out in France.
Ebrahimi will be joined on the jury by actress Sofie Gråbøl, director Antonio Lukich and composer Matti Bye.
“I am incredibly proud to be leading a jury of these impressive artists so that we may not only amplify the stellar work in the festival, but to also draw attention to the atrocities happening every day around us,” said Ebrahimi.
The actor fled from the Iranian...
Ebrahimi is a celebrated Iranian actor, director, producer and casting director. Her credits include “Bride Price vs. Democracy,” “Teheran Tabu” and Noora Niasari’s film “Shayda” which is set to compete at Sundance. She currently stars in “White Paradise,” a contemporary western directed by Guillaume Renusson which just came out in France.
Ebrahimi will be joined on the jury by actress Sofie Gråbøl, director Antonio Lukich and composer Matti Bye.
“I am incredibly proud to be leading a jury of these impressive artists so that we may not only amplify the stellar work in the festival, but to also draw attention to the atrocities happening every day around us,” said Ebrahimi.
The actor fled from the Iranian...
- 1/5/2023
- by Elsa Keslassy
- Variety Film + TV
Holy Spider breakout Zar Amir Ebrahimi will head the jury of the Nordic Competition at the 46th Göteborg Film Festival, running from January 27 – February 5.
Ebrahimi will be joined on the jury by Danish actress Sofie Gråbøl (The Killing), Ukrainian filmmaker Antonio Lukich, and composer Matti Bye. The jury hands out the gong for the Dragon Award for Best Nordic Film. Last year, the awards were handed out with a Sek 400 000 cash prize. Nine films will compete in the 2023 Nordic Competition. The nominees will be revealed on January 10.
“I am incredibly proud to be leading a jury of these impressive artists so that we may not only amplify the stellar work in the festival but to also draw attention to the atrocities happening every day around us,” said Amir Ebrahimi.
Ebrahimi picked up the Best Actress prize at the 2022 Cannes Film Festival for her leading role in Ali Abbasi’s Holy Spider.
Ebrahimi will be joined on the jury by Danish actress Sofie Gråbøl (The Killing), Ukrainian filmmaker Antonio Lukich, and composer Matti Bye. The jury hands out the gong for the Dragon Award for Best Nordic Film. Last year, the awards were handed out with a Sek 400 000 cash prize. Nine films will compete in the 2023 Nordic Competition. The nominees will be revealed on January 10.
“I am incredibly proud to be leading a jury of these impressive artists so that we may not only amplify the stellar work in the festival but to also draw attention to the atrocities happening every day around us,” said Amir Ebrahimi.
Ebrahimi picked up the Best Actress prize at the 2022 Cannes Film Festival for her leading role in Ali Abbasi’s Holy Spider.
- 1/5/2023
- by Zac Ntim
- Deadline Film + TV
Iranian actress Zar Amir Ebrahimi, the star of Ali Abbasi’s Oscar contender Holy Spider, will head up the Nordic competition jury at this year’s Goteborg Film Festival.
Ebrahimi, riding high following her star-making performance in Holy Spider, which won her the best actress honor in Cannes last year, will oversee the main competition section at Goteborg, Sweden’s leading film fest.
She’s joined on the 2023 Goteborg jury by Danish actress Sofie Grabol (The Killing), Ukrainian director Antonio Lukich (Luxembourg, Luxembourg) and Swedish film composer Matti Bye (The Hundred-Year-Old Man Who Climbed Out of the Window and Disappeared). The jury will pick the best films from this year’s festival from the Nordic regions. The nine films in the 2023 Nordic Competition lineup will be announced Jan. 10.
In Holy Spider, Ebrahimi plays an Iranian journalist trying to find a serial killer who has been targeting sex workers in Iran’s holy city of Mashhad.
Ebrahimi, riding high following her star-making performance in Holy Spider, which won her the best actress honor in Cannes last year, will oversee the main competition section at Goteborg, Sweden’s leading film fest.
She’s joined on the 2023 Goteborg jury by Danish actress Sofie Grabol (The Killing), Ukrainian director Antonio Lukich (Luxembourg, Luxembourg) and Swedish film composer Matti Bye (The Hundred-Year-Old Man Who Climbed Out of the Window and Disappeared). The jury will pick the best films from this year’s festival from the Nordic regions. The nine films in the 2023 Nordic Competition lineup will be announced Jan. 10.
In Holy Spider, Ebrahimi plays an Iranian journalist trying to find a serial killer who has been targeting sex workers in Iran’s holy city of Mashhad.
- 1/5/2023
- by Scott Roxborough
- The Hollywood Reporter - Movie News
The 35th edition of the International Documentary Film Festival Amsterdam, will open with the world premiere of Iranian-Dutch filmmaker Niki Padidar’s “All You See.”
The festival has also revealed the titles in its competition lineups. In all, 277 titles will be screened at the in-person festival.
Artistic director Orwa Nyrabia said: “Here’s an eclectic lineup that is united only by originality. Through the subjectivities of these filmmakers, an image of a world in pain emerges – a humanity that is trying hard, that is vulnerable and sincere, that is complex and persistent. The diversity of artistic forms is astonishing, and there are no boundaries when it comes to tackling the biggest powers or inventing new grammar.”
“The Envision Competition introduces artistically and politically courageous films, memorable journeys, and new questions. The International Competition brings together profound films that will tour the world and inspire audiences for years to come. IDFA...
The festival has also revealed the titles in its competition lineups. In all, 277 titles will be screened at the in-person festival.
Artistic director Orwa Nyrabia said: “Here’s an eclectic lineup that is united only by originality. Through the subjectivities of these filmmakers, an image of a world in pain emerges – a humanity that is trying hard, that is vulnerable and sincere, that is complex and persistent. The diversity of artistic forms is astonishing, and there are no boundaries when it comes to tackling the biggest powers or inventing new grammar.”
“The Envision Competition introduces artistically and politically courageous films, memorable journeys, and new questions. The International Competition brings together profound films that will tour the world and inspire audiences for years to come. IDFA...
- 10/20/2022
- by Naman Ramachandran
- Variety Film + TV
The 35th edition of the International Documentary Film Festival Amsterdam (IDFA) will open with Iranian-Dutch filmmaker Niki Padidar’s All You See.
The feature explores themes of exclusion and being an outsider through Padidar’s own experiences in the Netherlands, which are interwoven with the stories of three other immigrants who have made a life in the country.
The festival, which will showcase 277 titles this year, has also unveiled the selections for its main Envision and International Competitions.
A total of 13 titles will play in the International Competition line-up.
Highlights include Mila Turajlić’s Non-Aligned: Scenes from the Labudović Reels, which will be presented as a diptych and performance and explores the never-before-seen footage of Tito’s cameraman documenting his trips to Africa and Asia to promote a third way amidst the Cold War.
Further competition titles include Paradise by Alexander Abaturov, which enters the heart of a raging forest fire in northeastern Siberia,...
The feature explores themes of exclusion and being an outsider through Padidar’s own experiences in the Netherlands, which are interwoven with the stories of three other immigrants who have made a life in the country.
The festival, which will showcase 277 titles this year, has also unveiled the selections for its main Envision and International Competitions.
A total of 13 titles will play in the International Competition line-up.
Highlights include Mila Turajlić’s Non-Aligned: Scenes from the Labudović Reels, which will be presented as a diptych and performance and explores the never-before-seen footage of Tito’s cameraman documenting his trips to Africa and Asia to promote a third way amidst the Cold War.
Further competition titles include Paradise by Alexander Abaturov, which enters the heart of a raging forest fire in northeastern Siberia,...
- 10/20/2022
- by Melanie Goodfellow
- Deadline Film + TV
The Sheffield DocFest has unveiled its line-up for its 2021 programme that includes the World Premiere of the first instalment of Academy Award winner Steve McQueen’s new series for the BBC, ‘Uprising’.
For the first time, Sheffield DocFest goes nationwide with five premiere screenings showing in up to 16 partner cinemas in cities around the UK, and online, followed by pre-recorded Q&As. It also includes the previously announced Retrospective: Films belong to those who need them – fragments from the history of Black British Cinema.
The celebration of Black British screen culture – curated by guest curators including David Olusoga. Films of all lengths will all be presented as part of the retrospective including titles such as ‘Burning An Illusion’ by Menelik Shabazz, ‘It Ain’t Half Racist’, ‘Mum’ by Stuart Hall, ‘Looking for Langston’ by Isaac Julien, ‘Second Coming’ by Debbie Tucker Green, ‘The Black Safari’ by Colin Luke, ‘Baby Mother...
For the first time, Sheffield DocFest goes nationwide with five premiere screenings showing in up to 16 partner cinemas in cities around the UK, and online, followed by pre-recorded Q&As. It also includes the previously announced Retrospective: Films belong to those who need them – fragments from the history of Black British Cinema.
The celebration of Black British screen culture – curated by guest curators including David Olusoga. Films of all lengths will all be presented as part of the retrospective including titles such as ‘Burning An Illusion’ by Menelik Shabazz, ‘It Ain’t Half Racist’, ‘Mum’ by Stuart Hall, ‘Looking for Langston’ by Isaac Julien, ‘Second Coming’ by Debbie Tucker Green, ‘The Black Safari’ by Colin Luke, ‘Baby Mother...
- 5/17/2021
- by Zehra Phelan
- HeyUGuys.co.uk
Thai-German title Santikhiri Sonata won in the international competition, while Pedro Felipe Marques' Breeding Ground triumphed in the Portuguese section. The 17th Doclisboa International Film Festival (17 - 27 October) wrapped with the triumph of Santkihiri Sonata, a Thai-German co-production directed by Thunska Pansittivorakul. The experimental, associative docu-fiction hybrid about the eponymous region in the north of Thailand and the rule of General Prem Tinsulanonda and its consequences, received the City of Lisboa Award worth €8,000 from the jury composed of Billy Woodberry, Carlos Almeida, Jérôme Bel, Juliano Gomes, Leonor Silveira and Mania Akbari. The film had its world premiere at Doclisboa. The Portuguese Authors Society International Competition Jury Award worth €2,000 went to French filmmaker Frank Beauvais's Berlinale Forum title Just Don't Think I'll Scream, while Brazilian director Jo Serfaty received a special mention for Sun Inside, which had its international premiere at Doclisboa. In the Portuguese Competition, the...
- 10/28/2019
- Cineuropa - The Best of European Cinema
With his epic fourteen-hour documentary “Women Make Film: A New Road Movie Through Cinema,” writer/director Mark Cousins doesn’t skimp in his continuing pursuit to celebrate female filmmakers. Set to finally screen at its full-length (in five parts) next month at the Toronto International Film Festival, the movie is narrated by an eclectic list of voices.
UK actresses Adjoa Andoh and Thandie Newton, New Zealander Kerry Fox, India icon Sharmila Tagore, and Hollywood star Debra Winger all join previously announced narrators Jane Fonda and Tilda Swinton, who is an executive producer. Swinton narrates the first four hours of the film, which debuted at Venice 2018.
“We have 11 decades of women making films,” Swinton told IndieWire. “Another slight tweak of the goalpost is talking about women filmmakers. Women have made films since Mary Pickford onwards in incredible numbers. We know who made Hitchcock’s films with him (Alma Reville), but we don’t focus on it.
UK actresses Adjoa Andoh and Thandie Newton, New Zealander Kerry Fox, India icon Sharmila Tagore, and Hollywood star Debra Winger all join previously announced narrators Jane Fonda and Tilda Swinton, who is an executive producer. Swinton narrates the first four hours of the film, which debuted at Venice 2018.
“We have 11 decades of women making films,” Swinton told IndieWire. “Another slight tweak of the goalpost is talking about women filmmakers. Women have made films since Mary Pickford onwards in incredible numbers. We know who made Hitchcock’s films with him (Alma Reville), but we don’t focus on it.
- 8/14/2019
- by Anne Thompson
- Thompson on Hollywood
With his epic fourteen-hour documentary “Women Make Film: A New Road Movie Through Cinema,” writer/director Mark Cousins doesn’t skimp in his continuing pursuit to celebrate female filmmakers. Set to finally screen at its full-length (in five parts) next month at the Toronto International Film Festival, the movie is narrated by an eclectic list of voices.
UK actresses Adjoa Andoh and Thandie Newton, New Zealander Kerry Fox, India icon Sharmila Tagore, and Hollywood star Debra Winger all join previously announced narrators Jane Fonda and Tilda Swinton, who is an executive producer. Swinton narrates the first four hours of the film, which debuted at Venice 2018.
“We have 11 decades of women making films,” Swinton told IndieWire. “Another slight tweak of the goalpost is talking about women filmmakers. Women have made films since Mary Pickford onwards in incredible numbers. We know who made Hitchcock’s films with him (Alma Reville), but we don’t focus on it.
UK actresses Adjoa Andoh and Thandie Newton, New Zealander Kerry Fox, India icon Sharmila Tagore, and Hollywood star Debra Winger all join previously announced narrators Jane Fonda and Tilda Swinton, who is an executive producer. Swinton narrates the first four hours of the film, which debuted at Venice 2018.
“We have 11 decades of women making films,” Swinton told IndieWire. “Another slight tweak of the goalpost is talking about women filmmakers. Women have made films since Mary Pickford onwards in incredible numbers. We know who made Hitchcock’s films with him (Alma Reville), but we don’t focus on it.
- 8/14/2019
- by Anne Thompson
- Indiewire
Eurimages Award goes to ’Four Brothers’ directed by Belgium’s Pieter-Jan de Pue.
Greta Vs Climate, a film about teenage climate change activist Greta Thunberg, was one of the hottest projects pitched at Danish documentary festival Cph:dox’s Forum event this week.
The Forum team had invited Swedish director Nathan Grossman and producer Fredrik Heining of B-Reel to pitch the film several months ago, and it became even more topical on March 14 when Thunberg, 15, was nominated for the Nobel Peace Prize. Greta Vs Climate is already backed by the Swedish Film Institute and Svt.
Other projects stirring a lot of...
Greta Vs Climate, a film about teenage climate change activist Greta Thunberg, was one of the hottest projects pitched at Danish documentary festival Cph:dox’s Forum event this week.
The Forum team had invited Swedish director Nathan Grossman and producer Fredrik Heining of B-Reel to pitch the film several months ago, and it became even more topical on March 14 when Thunberg, 15, was nominated for the Nobel Peace Prize. Greta Vs Climate is already backed by the Swedish Film Institute and Svt.
Other projects stirring a lot of...
- 3/30/2019
- by Wendy Mitchell
- ScreenDaily
A Moon For My Father, Dark Suns also among winners.
This year’s Cph:dox festival in Copenhagen has handed out its main prize, the Dox:Award, to John Skoog’s Ridge. The film is an artistic hybrid documentary portrait of the Swedish summer, featuring visual art, abstract fiction and documentary material from Skåne, the country’s southernmost county.
The jury, consisting of producer Katrin Pors, critic and curator Eric Hynes, filmmaker Soudade Kaadan, filmmaker Frederic Tcheng, and Berlinale Panorama programme director Paz Lazaro, also gave a special mention to Pia Hellenthal’s feminist doc Searching Eva about a young woman living in Berlin.
This year’s Cph:dox festival in Copenhagen has handed out its main prize, the Dox:Award, to John Skoog’s Ridge. The film is an artistic hybrid documentary portrait of the Swedish summer, featuring visual art, abstract fiction and documentary material from Skåne, the country’s southernmost county.
The jury, consisting of producer Katrin Pors, critic and curator Eric Hynes, filmmaker Soudade Kaadan, filmmaker Frederic Tcheng, and Berlinale Panorama programme director Paz Lazaro, also gave a special mention to Pia Hellenthal’s feminist doc Searching Eva about a young woman living in Berlin.
- 3/29/2019
- by Tom Grater
- ScreenDaily
Mania Akbari reaches for the sublime with a dreamlike film that tries to join the dots between past and present
This is a deeply intimate, personal and moving work from the Iranian film-maker Mania Akbari, whose movies have often been meditations on beauty and body image. Akbari has made this in collaboration with her partner, the artist and sculptor Douglas White, and the result is a form of digressive-poetic cinema, connecting images and ideas in a dream-associative logic.
It is loosely structured around the idea of letters written between Akbari and White, alternating voiceovers as they muse on how what is happening to them to now relates to their family and childhood. Akbari speaks in (subtitled) Farsi on these occasions, but in English to everyone else. The film opens with material shot about five years ago: a very candid scene of Akbari being photographed in a hospital suite after a...
This is a deeply intimate, personal and moving work from the Iranian film-maker Mania Akbari, whose movies have often been meditations on beauty and body image. Akbari has made this in collaboration with her partner, the artist and sculptor Douglas White, and the result is a form of digressive-poetic cinema, connecting images and ideas in a dream-associative logic.
It is loosely structured around the idea of letters written between Akbari and White, alternating voiceovers as they muse on how what is happening to them to now relates to their family and childhood. Akbari speaks in (subtitled) Farsi on these occasions, but in English to everyone else. The film opens with material shot about five years ago: a very candid scene of Akbari being photographed in a hospital suite after a...
- 3/21/2019
- by Peter Bradshaw
- The Guardian - Film News
Ai Weiwei film is a companion piece to Human Flow.
Copenhagen-based documentary festival Cph:dox (March 20-31) has revealed its line-up of competition titles for 2019.
Notable world premieres include The Rest, the latest feature from Chinese artist and activist Ai Weiwei. His previous feature, refugee crisis doc Human Flow, premiered at Venice in 2017 and won multiple awards.
The Rest is a parallel work to Human Flow, again focusing on the refugee crisis, but this time in line with the voice and experience of an individual refugee. Edited down from 900 hours of footage, the film depicts those living in political limbo in Europe,...
Copenhagen-based documentary festival Cph:dox (March 20-31) has revealed its line-up of competition titles for 2019.
Notable world premieres include The Rest, the latest feature from Chinese artist and activist Ai Weiwei. His previous feature, refugee crisis doc Human Flow, premiered at Venice in 2017 and won multiple awards.
The Rest is a parallel work to Human Flow, again focusing on the refugee crisis, but this time in line with the voice and experience of an individual refugee. Edited down from 900 hours of footage, the film depicts those living in political limbo in Europe,...
- 2/22/2019
- by Tom Grater
- ScreenDaily
New titles from Petra Costa, Guido Hendrikx and Mila Turajlic.
Cph:forum, the co-production and financing strand of Denmark’s Cph: Dox, has unveiled the 33 projects it will showcase in Copenhagen from March 26-28.
The projects include Brazilian director Petra Costa’s new work Fatherland, about a daughter’s investigation into her father’s memories as he attempts to change the system in a country shaped by slavery. Costa’s most recent film, The Edge Of Democracy, made its world premiere at the Sundance Film Festival last month.
Also selected is Guido Hendrikx’s A Wonderful Horrible Story, which blends archive footage,...
Cph:forum, the co-production and financing strand of Denmark’s Cph: Dox, has unveiled the 33 projects it will showcase in Copenhagen from March 26-28.
The projects include Brazilian director Petra Costa’s new work Fatherland, about a daughter’s investigation into her father’s memories as he attempts to change the system in a country shaped by slavery. Costa’s most recent film, The Edge Of Democracy, made its world premiere at the Sundance Film Festival last month.
Also selected is Guido Hendrikx’s A Wonderful Horrible Story, which blends archive footage,...
- 2/6/2019
- by Ben Dalton
- ScreenDaily
New titles from Petra Costa, Guido Hendrikx and Mila Turajlic.
Cph:forum, the co-production and financing strand of Denmark’s Cph: Dox, has unveiled the 32 projects it will showcase in Copenhagen from March 26-28.
The projects include Brazilian director Petra Costa’s new work Fatherland, about a daughter’s investigation into her father’s memories as he attempts to change the system in a country shaped by slavery. Costa’s most recent film, The Edge Of Democracy, made its world premiere at the Sundance Film Festival last month.
Also selected is Guido Hendrikx’s A Wonderful Horrible Story, which blends archive footage,...
Cph:forum, the co-production and financing strand of Denmark’s Cph: Dox, has unveiled the 32 projects it will showcase in Copenhagen from March 26-28.
The projects include Brazilian director Petra Costa’s new work Fatherland, about a daughter’s investigation into her father’s memories as he attempts to change the system in a country shaped by slavery. Costa’s most recent film, The Edge Of Democracy, made its world premiere at the Sundance Film Festival last month.
Also selected is Guido Hendrikx’s A Wonderful Horrible Story, which blends archive footage,...
- 2/6/2019
- by Ben Dalton
- ScreenDaily
In among Venice’s typically stellar documentary line-up was Northern Irish director Mark Cousins’ next film: Women Make Film: A New Road Movie Through Cinema.
More details are emerging today about the episodic 16-hour documentary, whose first four hours will debut on the Lido and be narrated by Tilda Swinton. The film will celebrate female directors from around the world.
The project is produced by Hopscotch Films, with Dogwoof handling world sales. Swinton will also serve as an executive producer on the movie, which is debuting in Venice’s Classics strand.
Cousins writes and directs, with John Archer from Hopscotch producing. Four years in the making and still in production, the finished film will be ready in spring 2019.
The epic undertaking is made up of forty chapters to be narrated by Swinton and other leading women in cinema who have yet to be announced. According to the production, “using almost...
More details are emerging today about the episodic 16-hour documentary, whose first four hours will debut on the Lido and be narrated by Tilda Swinton. The film will celebrate female directors from around the world.
The project is produced by Hopscotch Films, with Dogwoof handling world sales. Swinton will also serve as an executive producer on the movie, which is debuting in Venice’s Classics strand.
Cousins writes and directs, with John Archer from Hopscotch producing. Four years in the making and still in production, the finished film will be ready in spring 2019.
The epic undertaking is made up of forty chapters to be narrated by Swinton and other leading women in cinema who have yet to be announced. According to the production, “using almost...
- 7/31/2018
- by Andreas Wiseman
- Deadline Film + TV
★★★★☆ Two Edinburgh regulars, Mark Cousins and Mania Akbari, have collaborated to produce an insightful film-essay exchange, their differing filmmaking styles bursting with ideas and inspiring new thought in each other in Life May Be (2014). The project was conceived when the distributor, Second Run asked Cousins to write something in response to Akbari's One. Two. One (2011) for their release last year. Rather than the usual essay, Cousins instead wrote a letter that begins, "Dear Mania Akbari, I'm sitting in a pub in Edinburgh, Scotland. It's a cold May day..." and goes on to imagine a journey taken by the two filmmakers from Sweden to London, via Rome, Tehran, and Hungary.
- 6/27/2015
- by CineVue UK
- CineVue
The real magic of the I for Iran series in Toronto lies in curation: the talent they have recruited to present and contextualize the various films screened is a testament to their commitment to offering the best possible cinematic experience. More so than not, each film is accompanied by a presenter – a variety of filmmakers, writers and scholars – who offer invaluable insight and context. While this has always been the case, the I for Iran series has been particularly rich.
Presenting the opening screening was Roya Akbari, who participated with Abbas Kiarostami on the film Ten and is a filmmaker in her own right. Her poetic short Only Image Remains was the opening film of the series, and featured her own reminiscence as well as interviews with many top Iranian filmmakers. This set the tone for presenters like Shahram Tabe, Hamid Naficy, Amir Soltani and, perhaps most notably, acclaimed Iranian...
Presenting the opening screening was Roya Akbari, who participated with Abbas Kiarostami on the film Ten and is a filmmaker in her own right. Her poetic short Only Image Remains was the opening film of the series, and featured her own reminiscence as well as interviews with many top Iranian filmmakers. This set the tone for presenters like Shahram Tabe, Hamid Naficy, Amir Soltani and, perhaps most notably, acclaimed Iranian...
- 3/27/2015
- by Justine Smith
- SoundOnSight
A couple of years ago, at a different film festival in a different country, I had a terrific time with Mark Cousins' engagingly/exhaustingly self-indulgent doodle, "What Is This Film Called Love?" and a tough time trying to marshall my scattered and immensely, consciously subjective impressions into the semblance of a coherent review. So at the Göteborg International Film Festival, I was looking forward to "Life May Be," a similarly personal, intimate, lo-fi filmic essay that Cousins co-directed with Iranian director Mania Akbari, perhaps hoping it would have the same pleasantly discombobulating effect. But "Life May Be," here benefitting from the added interest of a new point of view from Akbari, while just as erudite and idiosyncratic as we might expect from Cousins (seriously, if you are not already a fan, this will not be the film to convince you), felt cooler, less generous with its sensation of wrapping the audience up in.
- 2/2/2015
- by Jessica Kiang
- The Playlist
It started with an infographic. Then more infographics. And some think pieces. And some brief TwitterRage. Over the last year and a half, women’s role in cinema, specifically Hollywood cinema, has become a lightning rod for discussion and debate, and more so than any time in the past, people are approaching film a little more critically in regards to how women are portrayed. The statistics are mind-numbingly bleak, with women representing a fraction of the work force behind the camera, from director to CEO to the best boy. Women in front of the camera rarely fair much better, with roles such as “beautiful and always understanding girlfriend/wife to the hilarious schlub” and “girl with cleavage that shoots guns in tight clothes”.
Last week I happened across a piece about the Best Actress race for the upcoming Academy Award Ceremony and the author talked about how the Actress race...
Last week I happened across a piece about the Best Actress race for the upcoming Academy Award Ceremony and the author talked about how the Actress race...
- 12/11/2014
- by Jae K. Renfrow
- SoundOnSight
Hyena
The full line-up has been announced for this year’s Edinburgh International Film Festival, which runs from Wednesday 18th to Sunday 29th June. In total, 156 features from 47 countries will be screened, with 11 world premieres, 7 European premieres and 95 UK premieres.
The festival opens with the world premiere of British drug trafficking thriller Hyena from writer-director Gerard Johnson, starring Peter Ferdinando, Stephen Graham, Neil Maskell, and MyAnna Buring. The closing night gala is the international premiere of romantic comedy We’ll Never Have Paris, directed by husband and wife team Jocelyn Towne and Simon Helberg (best known for The Big Bang Theory). Written by and also starring Helberg, it features Melanie Lynskey, Maggie Grace, Zachary Quinto, and Alfred Molina in its cast.
We’ll Never Have Paris
The American Dreams strand highlights cutting-edge new works from American independent cinema. Sofia Coppola’s The Bling Ring featured last year, and now Gia Coppola...
The full line-up has been announced for this year’s Edinburgh International Film Festival, which runs from Wednesday 18th to Sunday 29th June. In total, 156 features from 47 countries will be screened, with 11 world premieres, 7 European premieres and 95 UK premieres.
The festival opens with the world premiere of British drug trafficking thriller Hyena from writer-director Gerard Johnson, starring Peter Ferdinando, Stephen Graham, Neil Maskell, and MyAnna Buring. The closing night gala is the international premiere of romantic comedy We’ll Never Have Paris, directed by husband and wife team Jocelyn Towne and Simon Helberg (best known for The Big Bang Theory). Written by and also starring Helberg, it features Melanie Lynskey, Maggie Grace, Zachary Quinto, and Alfred Molina in its cast.
We’ll Never Have Paris
The American Dreams strand highlights cutting-edge new works from American independent cinema. Sofia Coppola’s The Bling Ring featured last year, and now Gia Coppola...
- 5/28/2014
- by Josh Slater-Williams
- SoundOnSight
Highlights include Anton Corbijn’s A Most Wanted Man, starring the late Philip Seymour Hoffman, and Abel Ferrara’s controversial Dsk feature Welcome To New York.
The full line-up of the 68th Edinburgh International Film Festival (Eiff) has been revealed this morning by artistic director Chris Fujiwara at Edinburgh’s Filmhouse.
This year’s festival, which runs from June 18-29, will comprise 156 features from 47 countries, including 11 world premieres, eight international premieres, seven European premieres and 95 UK premieres.
New titles announced today include Anton Corbijn’s A Most Wanted Man, starring the late Philip Seymour Hoffman in one of his final performances that was first shown at Sundance in January.
Straight from its lively premiere in Cannes is Abel Ferrara’s controversial title Welcome To New York, inspired by the case of former Imf managing director Dominique Strauss-Kahn, starring Gérard Depardieu, which will receive its UK premiere at Eiff.
Other new titles added to the line-up include [link=nm...
The full line-up of the 68th Edinburgh International Film Festival (Eiff) has been revealed this morning by artistic director Chris Fujiwara at Edinburgh’s Filmhouse.
This year’s festival, which runs from June 18-29, will comprise 156 features from 47 countries, including 11 world premieres, eight international premieres, seven European premieres and 95 UK premieres.
New titles announced today include Anton Corbijn’s A Most Wanted Man, starring the late Philip Seymour Hoffman in one of his final performances that was first shown at Sundance in January.
Straight from its lively premiere in Cannes is Abel Ferrara’s controversial title Welcome To New York, inspired by the case of former Imf managing director Dominique Strauss-Kahn, starring Gérard Depardieu, which will receive its UK premiere at Eiff.
Other new titles added to the line-up include [link=nm...
- 5/28/2014
- by michael.rosser@screendaily.com (Michael Rosser)
- ScreenDaily
Mark Cousins is a man who knows his cinema. His impressive encyclopaedic knowledge of cinema makes his films a must see for any cinephile. HeyUGuys spoke to Mark ahead of the release of A Story of Children and Film, a study of the relationship between children and cinema.
A Story of Children and Film is very similar to The Story of Film in style. What made you decide to choose children as a subject matter?
Well I didn’t intend to choose children to be honest, I was determined not to make another film about cinema, because A Story of Film had taken 6 years and I was tired. But even to relax, I have a little camera and I shoot stuff, and I was shooting stuff with my niece and nephew in my flat, and you know sometimes when you switch off, that’s when you’re brain starts to go,...
A Story of Children and Film is very similar to The Story of Film in style. What made you decide to choose children as a subject matter?
Well I didn’t intend to choose children to be honest, I was determined not to make another film about cinema, because A Story of Film had taken 6 years and I was tired. But even to relax, I have a little camera and I shoot stuff, and I was shooting stuff with my niece and nephew in my flat, and you know sometimes when you switch off, that’s when you’re brain starts to go,...
- 4/4/2014
- by Nia Childs
- HeyUGuys.co.uk
London – A retrospective of Iranian cinema from 1933 to 2006 will be jointly mounted by the Fribourg International Film Festival (Fiff) in Switzerland and Scotland's Edinburgh International Film Festival (Eiff). The two events are collaborating on the retrospective called "The History of Iranian Cinema by Its Creators." Fiff will launch the retrospective program at its 28th edition, for which 14 major Iranian directors have named 27 titles, from 1933 to 2006. The 14 directors picking titles are Mania Akbari, Kaveh Bakhtiari, Bahram Beyzaie, Asghar Farhadi, Sepideh Farsi, Mahmoud Ghaffari, Bahman Ghobadi, Mohsen Makhmalbaf, Shahram Mokri, Amir Naderi, Jafar
read more...
read more...
- 12/6/2013
- by Stuart Kemp
- The Hollywood Reporter - Movie News
Catch up with the last seven days in the world of film
The big story
When Forbes magazine published its list of the film industry's top male earners this week, a collective "Wha?" rose from the planet's movie lovers. Could Robert Downey Jr, that noted human disaster area of 15 years back, really have become shot to the number one spot, with $75m to his name in the last calendar year?
Yes, would be the answer, cementing one of the most extraordinary turnarounds in Hollywood history.
It's having the good sense to have a profit share in The Avengers that appears to be primarily responsible, as well as presiding over the massive success of Iron Man 3. The script for the movie adaptation is writing itself as we speak.
In the news
Fruitvale Station: film based on 2008 killing echoes Trayvon Martin case
Johnny Depp to star in Alice in Wonderland...
The big story
When Forbes magazine published its list of the film industry's top male earners this week, a collective "Wha?" rose from the planet's movie lovers. Could Robert Downey Jr, that noted human disaster area of 15 years back, really have become shot to the number one spot, with $75m to his name in the last calendar year?
Yes, would be the answer, cementing one of the most extraordinary turnarounds in Hollywood history.
It's having the good sense to have a profit share in The Avengers that appears to be primarily responsible, as well as presiding over the massive success of Iron Man 3. The script for the movie adaptation is writing itself as we speak.
In the news
Fruitvale Station: film based on 2008 killing echoes Trayvon Martin case
Johnny Depp to star in Alice in Wonderland...
- 7/18/2013
- The Guardian - Film News
Cancer, arrests and exile from Tehran haven't stopped Mania Akbari from making her politicised, potent films. Tom Seymour meets Iran's iron lady
Among the laptops and the lattes in the foyer of London's BFI Southbank sits a dissident and exile. Film-maker Mania Akbari fled her native Tehran last summer. She is determined to examine marriage, abortion, infidelity and lesbianism at home in Iran. She has explored what it's like to lose your breasts to cancer. She has made films that have upset and shocked the religious establishment. Now, after 15 years of censorship, "of living in fear and frustration", Akbari is finally seeing her films screened commercially for the first time.
The 39-year-old actor, writer and director is not in the UK by choice. During production of her latest film, From Tehran to London (originally titled Women Do Not Have Breasts), members of her crew were arrested by Iranian authorities for supposedly filming without official permission.
Among the laptops and the lattes in the foyer of London's BFI Southbank sits a dissident and exile. Film-maker Mania Akbari fled her native Tehran last summer. She is determined to examine marriage, abortion, infidelity and lesbianism at home in Iran. She has explored what it's like to lose your breasts to cancer. She has made films that have upset and shocked the religious establishment. Now, after 15 years of censorship, "of living in fear and frustration", Akbari is finally seeing her films screened commercially for the first time.
The 39-year-old actor, writer and director is not in the UK by choice. During production of her latest film, From Tehran to London (originally titled Women Do Not Have Breasts), members of her crew were arrested by Iranian authorities for supposedly filming without official permission.
- 7/15/2013
- The Guardian - Film News
Breathe In
After an excellent start to the tenure of new artistic director Chris Fujiwara in 2012, the Edinburgh International Film Festival returns this June with a similarly promising, extremely eclectic line-up. Last summer I provided Sound on Sight’s first ever coverage of the event, the world’s longest continuously running film festival, and shall be continuing to do so in a few weeks time; the festival runs from June 19th to 30th.
Things kick off with the European premiere of Breathe In, following its debut at Sundance earlier this year. Drake Doremus’ follow-up to Like Crazy stars Guy Pearce, Felicity Jones, Amy Ryan and Kyle MacLachlan, and concerns the change in a family’s relationship dynamics when a foreign exchange student comes to stay. The closing gala film is romantic comedy Not Another Happy Ending, which receives its world premiere at the festival. The Glasgow-set film stars Doctor Who...
After an excellent start to the tenure of new artistic director Chris Fujiwara in 2012, the Edinburgh International Film Festival returns this June with a similarly promising, extremely eclectic line-up. Last summer I provided Sound on Sight’s first ever coverage of the event, the world’s longest continuously running film festival, and shall be continuing to do so in a few weeks time; the festival runs from June 19th to 30th.
Things kick off with the European premiere of Breathe In, following its debut at Sundance earlier this year. Drake Doremus’ follow-up to Like Crazy stars Guy Pearce, Felicity Jones, Amy Ryan and Kyle MacLachlan, and concerns the change in a family’s relationship dynamics when a foreign exchange student comes to stay. The closing gala film is romantic comedy Not Another Happy Ending, which receives its world premiere at the festival. The Glasgow-set film stars Doctor Who...
- 5/30/2013
- by Josh Slater-Williams
- SoundOnSight
Justine Smith
Bright Star, Jane Campion
Orlando, Sally Potter
Trouble Every Day, Claire Denis
Cleo 5 a 7, Agnes Varda
A New Leaf, Elaine May
The Night Porter, Liliana Cavani
American Psycho, Mary Harron
Anatomy of Hell, Catherine Breillat
Point Break, Kathryn Bigelow
Everyone Else, Maren Ade
Ricky D
Connection, Shirley Clarke
Wuthering Heights, Andrea Arnold
35 Shots of Rhum, Claire Denis
Meshes of the Afternoon, Maya Derin
Seven Beauties, Lina Wertmuller
The Hitch-Hiker, Ida Lupino
Lina Wertmuller- Swept Away
Meek’s Cutoff, Kelly Reichardt
Headless Woman, Lucrecia Martel
Xxy, Lucía Puenzo
Special mention:
Skyscraper – Shirley Clarke
Wasp – Andrea Arnold
On Dangerous Ground – Ida Lupino (uncredited)
Wanda
Chris Clemente
Little Miss Sunshine, Valerie Faris
American Psycho, Mary Harron
Lost in Translation, Sofia Coppola
We Need to Talk About Kevin, Lynne Ramsay
Fish Tank, Andrea Arnold
Monster, Patty Jenkins
A League of Their Own, Penny Marshall
Wayne’s World, Penelope Spheeris
Clueless, Amy Heckerling
Point Break,...
Bright Star, Jane Campion
Orlando, Sally Potter
Trouble Every Day, Claire Denis
Cleo 5 a 7, Agnes Varda
A New Leaf, Elaine May
The Night Porter, Liliana Cavani
American Psycho, Mary Harron
Anatomy of Hell, Catherine Breillat
Point Break, Kathryn Bigelow
Everyone Else, Maren Ade
Ricky D
Connection, Shirley Clarke
Wuthering Heights, Andrea Arnold
35 Shots of Rhum, Claire Denis
Meshes of the Afternoon, Maya Derin
Seven Beauties, Lina Wertmuller
The Hitch-Hiker, Ida Lupino
Lina Wertmuller- Swept Away
Meek’s Cutoff, Kelly Reichardt
Headless Woman, Lucrecia Martel
Xxy, Lucía Puenzo
Special mention:
Skyscraper – Shirley Clarke
Wasp – Andrea Arnold
On Dangerous Ground – Ida Lupino (uncredited)
Wanda
Chris Clemente
Little Miss Sunshine, Valerie Faris
American Psycho, Mary Harron
Lost in Translation, Sofia Coppola
We Need to Talk About Kevin, Lynne Ramsay
Fish Tank, Andrea Arnold
Monster, Patty Jenkins
A League of Their Own, Penny Marshall
Wayne’s World, Penelope Spheeris
Clueless, Amy Heckerling
Point Break,...
- 9/26/2012
- by Ricky
- SoundOnSight
One.Two.One
Written by Mania Akbari and Majid Eslami
Directed by Mania Akbari
Iran, 2011
Iranian actress-director Mania Akbari’s latest film is a hypnotising mood piece, rooted in both experimental and theatrical styles. Composed entirely of less than fifteen long takes of varying lengths, the film presents a series of vignette conversations and encounters concerning people connected to a specific young woman named Ava. The film follows her journey to regain self confidence after her face is disfigured via an acid attack courtesy of her husband, in a society that elevates the importance of female physical beauty. In addition to the theme of self-worth rejuvenation, the film also concerns the complications inherent in relationships.
As each vignette unfolds, more of Ava is revealed in both figurative and literal senses. Her time in the film begins with her in a spa, where her damaged face is covered by a mask.
Written by Mania Akbari and Majid Eslami
Directed by Mania Akbari
Iran, 2011
Iranian actress-director Mania Akbari’s latest film is a hypnotising mood piece, rooted in both experimental and theatrical styles. Composed entirely of less than fifteen long takes of varying lengths, the film presents a series of vignette conversations and encounters concerning people connected to a specific young woman named Ava. The film follows her journey to regain self confidence after her face is disfigured via an acid attack courtesy of her husband, in a society that elevates the importance of female physical beauty. In addition to the theme of self-worth rejuvenation, the film also concerns the complications inherent in relationships.
As each vignette unfolds, more of Ava is revealed in both figurative and literal senses. Her time in the film begins with her in a spa, where her damaged face is covered by a mask.
- 7/16/2012
- by Josh Slater-Williams
- SoundOnSight
Cannes is now over which means it’s time to move to Britain as the Edinburgh Film Festival kicks off!
We’ve just been sent the full line-up for the 2012 Edinburgh Film Festival which is now in it’s 66th year. We have our people (Jamie, Steven and Emma) on the ground at the event right now ready to catch as many films as they possible can throughout the next wee or two as we get to see 121 new features and 19 world premieres.
I’ll let the full press release below do the talking but let us know what you’re looking forward to in the comments section below.
World Premieres:
Berberian Sound Studio Borrowed Time Day Of The Flowers Exit Elena Flying Blind Fred Future My Love Guinea Pigs Here, Then Leave It On The Track The Life And Times Of Paul The Psychic Octopus Life Just Is Mnl...
We’ve just been sent the full line-up for the 2012 Edinburgh Film Festival which is now in it’s 66th year. We have our people (Jamie, Steven and Emma) on the ground at the event right now ready to catch as many films as they possible can throughout the next wee or two as we get to see 121 new features and 19 world premieres.
I’ll let the full press release below do the talking but let us know what you’re looking forward to in the comments section below.
World Premieres:
Berberian Sound Studio Borrowed Time Day Of The Flowers Exit Elena Flying Blind Fred Future My Love Guinea Pigs Here, Then Leave It On The Track The Life And Times Of Paul The Psychic Octopus Life Just Is Mnl...
- 5/30/2012
- by David Sztypuljak
- HeyUGuys.co.uk
The full programme for the 66th edition of the Edinburgh International Film Festival (Eiff), which runs from 20 June to 1 July, has been officially announced and will feature nineteen World premieres and thirteen International premieres.
The Festival will showcase one hundred and twenty-one new features from fifty-two countries, including eleven European premieres and seventy-six UK premieres in addition to the World and International premieres. Highlights include the World premieres of Richard Ledes’ Fred; Nathan Silver’s Exit Elena and Benjamin Pascoe’s Leave It On The Track and European premieres of Lu Sheng’s Here, There and Yang Jung-ho’s Mirage in the maiden New Perspectives section; and the International premiere of Benicio Del Toro, Pablo Trapero, Julio Medem, Elia Suleiman, Gaspar Noé, Juan Carlos Tabio and Laurent Cantet’s 7 Days In Havana and the European premiere of Bobcat Goldthwait’s God Bless America in the Directors’ Showcase. In addition to the new features presented,...
The Festival will showcase one hundred and twenty-one new features from fifty-two countries, including eleven European premieres and seventy-six UK premieres in addition to the World and International premieres. Highlights include the World premieres of Richard Ledes’ Fred; Nathan Silver’s Exit Elena and Benjamin Pascoe’s Leave It On The Track and European premieres of Lu Sheng’s Here, There and Yang Jung-ho’s Mirage in the maiden New Perspectives section; and the International premiere of Benicio Del Toro, Pablo Trapero, Julio Medem, Elia Suleiman, Gaspar Noé, Juan Carlos Tabio and Laurent Cantet’s 7 Days In Havana and the European premiere of Bobcat Goldthwait’s God Bless America in the Directors’ Showcase. In addition to the new features presented,...
- 5/30/2012
- by Phil
- Nerdly
MADRID -- Crossover artists from the TV world, complete unknowns and directors with just one feature under their belt are some of the 16 filmmakers competing for the €90,000 ($110,000) Altadis-New Directors Award at the 55th annual San Sebastian International Film Festival, organizers said Friday.
The Zabaltegi sidebar, which sports a hefty dose of English-language films this year, weaves together films from first-time directors, pearls from previous festivals and special documentary screenings that will be shown Sept. 20-29.
First- and second-time directors screening in the Official Section will be announced separately, though they also will be entitled to compete for the cash prize. Three Spanish films running in Zabaltegi and competing for the award previously were announced.
Threes Anna's family drama "The Bird Can't Fly", starring Barbara Hershey; Eric Nazarian's "The Blue Hour"; and Sarah Gavron's multiracial love story "Brick Lane", an adaptation of the Monica Ali novel "Seven Seas, Thirteen Rivers", represent three directorial debuts in the competition.
German helmer Felix Randau's "The Calling Game", which follows up on his "Northern Star"; Salvatore Stabile's second feature, the homeless drama "Where God Left His Shoes"; and "10+4," Mania Akbari's sequel to Abbas Kiarostami's "Ten", also will compete.
The Zabaltegi sidebar, which sports a hefty dose of English-language films this year, weaves together films from first-time directors, pearls from previous festivals and special documentary screenings that will be shown Sept. 20-29.
First- and second-time directors screening in the Official Section will be announced separately, though they also will be entitled to compete for the cash prize. Three Spanish films running in Zabaltegi and competing for the award previously were announced.
Threes Anna's family drama "The Bird Can't Fly", starring Barbara Hershey; Eric Nazarian's "The Blue Hour"; and Sarah Gavron's multiracial love story "Brick Lane", an adaptation of the Monica Ali novel "Seven Seas, Thirteen Rivers", represent three directorial debuts in the competition.
German helmer Felix Randau's "The Calling Game", which follows up on his "Northern Star"; Salvatore Stabile's second feature, the homeless drama "Where God Left His Shoes"; and "10+4," Mania Akbari's sequel to Abbas Kiarostami's "Ten", also will compete.
- 8/18/2007
- The Hollywood Reporter - Movie News
IMDb.com, Inc. takes no responsibility for the content or accuracy of the above news articles, Tweets, or blog posts. This content is published for the entertainment of our users only. The news articles, Tweets, and blog posts do not represent IMDb's opinions nor can we guarantee that the reporting therein is completely factual. Please visit the source responsible for the item in question to report any concerns you may have regarding content or accuracy.