We Have a Pope
(Habemus Papam)
drama, Italy, 2011, 102’
production companies: Sacher Film, Fandango, Le Pacte, France 3 Cinéma
producers: Jean Labadie, Nanni Moretti, Domenico Procacci
directed by: Nanni Moretti
written by: Nanni Moretti, Francesco Piccolo, Federica Pontremoli
starring: Michel Piccoli, Nanni Moretti, Jerzy Stuhr, Renato Scarpa, Margherita Buy, Franco Graziosi
cinematography: Alessandro Pesci
editing: Esmeralda Calabria
set design: Paola Bizzarri
costume design: Lina Nerli Taviani
music: Franco Piersanti
SUMMARY: Following the death of a pope, the conclave meets to elect his successor. Cardinal Melville is elected but he seems to be unable to bear the weight of the new position. Trying to solve the crisis, therapists are engaged too but the pope hides among the citizens of Rome…
DIRECTOR: Nanni Moretti (Brunico, Italija, 1953) made his first feature film I Am Self Sufficient (Io sono un autarchico) in 1978. He presented six of his films at the Cannes Film Festival: Ecce Bombo (1978), Dear Diary (Caro diario, 1993, Best Director Award), April (Aprile, 1998), The Son’s Room (La stanza del figlio, Golden Palm, 2001) and The Caiman (Il caimano, 2006). The film The Mass is Ended (La messa è finita, 1985) earned him the Silver Bear, Special Jury Prize. He won the same award for the film Golden Dreams (Sogni d’oro, 1981) at the Venice Film Festival, at which the film Red Lob (Palombella rossa, 1989) screened as well.
NTERNATIONAL PREMIERE: 2011 Cannes Film Festival
The Double Hour
(La doppia ora)
crime thriller, Italy, 2009, 95’
production companies: Medusa Film, Indigo Film
producers: Francesca Cima, Nicola Giuliano
directed by: Giuseppe Capotondi
written by: Alessandro Fabbri, Ludovica Rampoldi, Stefano Sardo
starring: Ksenia Rappoport, Filippo Timi, Antonia Truppo, Gaetano Bruno, Fausto Russo Alesi
cinematography: Tat Radcliffe
editing: Guido Notari
set design: Totoi Santoro
costume design: Roberto Chiocchi
music: Pasquale Catalano
SUMMARY: Guido, a former cop, now works as a security guard in a villa owned by a rich man from Turin. At a speed dating event he meets Slovenian immigrant Sonia, a chambermaid at a hotel. There is a spark between them and Guido invites her to the villa so they can get to know each other better. The pleasant night is interrupted when burglars brake in...
DIRECTOR: Giuseppe Capotondi (Corinaldo, Italia, 1968) studied philosophy in Milan from 1988 to 1990. In 1991 he moved to London where he worked as freelance photographer for different magazines and advertising agencies (Marie Claire, Vanity Fair, etc.). Since the mid-1990s he has been directing music videos (Zucchero, Natalie Imbruglia, Skunk Anansie, Kelis, Bush, Keane, Ms Dynamite, etc.) and commercials for big corporations (BMW, Vodafone, Toyota, etc), which brought him numerous awards. Since 2004 he has been living in Barcelona. The Double Hour is his feature length debut, presented at several major film festivals (Toronto, Karlovy Vary, Rome, etc).
INTERNATIONAL PREMIERE: 2009 Venice Film Festival (competition)
AWARDS: Volpi Cup award for Best Actress (Ksenia Rappoport), Premio Pasinetti award for Best Actor (Filippo Timi) and Young Cinema Award for Best Italian Film at the 2009 Venice International Film Festival
A Quiet Life
(Una vita tranquilla)
crime thriller, Italy, Germany, France, 2010,100’
production companies: Acaba Produzioni, EOS Entertainment, Babe Films
producer: Fabrizio Mosca
directed by: Claudio Cupellini
written by: Filippo Gravino, Guido Iuculano, Claudio Cupellini
starring: Toni Servillo, Marco D’Amore, Juliane Köhler,Francesco Di Leva, Leonardo Sprengler
cinematography: Gergely Pohárnok
editing: Giuseppe Trepiccione
set design: Erwin Prib
costume design: Mariano Tufano
music: Teho Teardo
SUMMARY: Living in fear after 32 jobs behind him, an Italian hitman abandons his family and disappears. For fifteen years everybody has believed him to be dead while he is in Germany with a new family. However, by a twist of faith he is faced with his Italian son who followed in his father’s footsteps…
DIRECTOR: Claudio Cupellini (Camposampiero, Padova, Italy, 1973) received a degree in directing from the Scuola Nazionale di Cinema – Centro Sperimentale di Cinematografia in the class of 2000-2003. From 1999 to 2005 he shot several short films, including Le diable au vélo (1999), Chi ci ferma più (2004) and La talpa (2005). In 2006 he directed the episode La donna del Mister of the omnibus 4-4-2 – Il gioco più bello del mondo. He made his feature length debut in 2007 with the comedy Lessons in Chocolate (Lezioni di cioccolato). A Quiet Life is his second feature-length film.
INTERNATIONAL PREMIERE: 2010 Rome Film Festival
I Am Love
(Io somo l’amore)
ljubaromantic drama, Italy, 2010, 120'
production companies: First Sun Production, Mikado Film, Rai Cinema
producer: Luca Guadagnino, Tilda Swinton, Alessandro Usai, Francesco Melzi D’eril, Marco Morabito, Massimiliano Violante
directed by: Luca Guadagnino
written by: Barbara Alberti, Ivan Cotroneo, Walter Fasano, Luca Guadagnino
starring: Tilda Swinton, Flavio Parenti, Edoardo Gabbriellini, Alba Rohrwacher, Pippo Delbono
cinematography: Yorick Le Saux
editing: Walter Fasano
set design: Monica Sironi
costume design: Antonella Cannarozzi
music: John Adams
SUMMARY: After marrying to a wealthy man from Milan, Emma, a native Russian, moves to Italy. She is a trophy wife to a husband with whom she has two adult children. A friend of her son’s awakens suppressed passions in her…
DIRECTOR: Luca Guadagnino (Palermo, Italija, 1971) spent his childhood in Ethiopia. He got his university degree at La Sapienza in Rome and wrote his thesis on the work of Jonathan Demme. He is a film and theatre director. His feature-length debut The Protagonists screened at the 1999 Venice Film Festival. After that he made several documentaries (Cuoco contadino, Mundo civilizado, etc.) and in 2005 he adapted the controversial autobiographical novel One Hundred Strokes of the Brush Before Bed by Melissa Panarello turning it into the film Melissa P. He wrote screenplays for all his feature films.
INTERNATIONAL PREMIERE: 2009 Venice Film Festival
AWARDS: Golden Globe Best Foreign Film nomination, Academy Award Best Costume Design nomination
Come Undone
(Cosa voglio di più)
romantic drama, Italy, Switzerland, 2010, 126’
production companies: Lumière & CO., Vega Film, RSI - Radiotelevisione Svizzera
producer: Lionello Cerri
directed by: Silvio Soldini
written by: Doriana Leondeff, Angelo Carbone, Silvio Soldini
starring: Alba Rohrwacher, Pierfrancesco Favino, Giuseppe
Battiston, Teresa Saponangelo, Monica Nappo, Tatiana Lepore
cinematography: Ramiro Civita
editing: Carlotta Cristiani
set design: Paola Bizzarri
costume design: Silvia Nebiolo
music: Giovanni Venosta
SUMMARY: Anna has become everything that was expected of her. Perhaps the only thing missing is the courage to assume responsibility concerning her future. She is planning a baby with her partner Alessio but, when Domenico suddenly steps into her life, everything changes...
DIRECTOR: Silvio Soldini (Milan, Italy, 1958). From 1980 to 1982 he lived in New York where he studied Film at New York University. His directing credits include some thirty short films, documentaries and full-length feature films. Filmography (feature film): The Peaceful Air of the West (1990), A Soul Split in Two (1993), The Acrobat (1997), Bread and Tulips (2000, Best Script Award in Pula, among other awards), Burning in the Wind (2002, screened at Pula as well), Agata and the Storm (2004), Days and Clouds (2007).
INTERNATIONAL PREMIERE: 2010 Berlin Film Festival (Berlinale Special Gala)
Trophy Wife
(Potiche)
comedy, France, 2010, 103’
production companies: Mandarin Films, FOZ, France 2 Cinéma, Mars Films, Wild Bunch, Scope Pictures
producers: Eric Altmeyer, Nicolas Altmeyer
directed by: François Ozon
written by: François Ozon (po komediji / from the Plays by Pierre Barillet iand Jean-Pierre Grédy)
starring: Catherine Deneuve, Gérard Depardieu, Fabrice Luchini, Karin Viard, Jérémie Renier
cinematography: Yorick Le Saux
editing: Laure Gardette
set design: Katia Wyszkop
costume design: Pascaline Chavanne
music: Philippe Rombi
SUMMARY: In 1977 in a French provincial town, middleaged Suzanne Pujol is just a trophy housewife to a factory owner. After the workers go on strike and take her husband hostage, to everyone’s surprise, Suzanne proves herself a competent businesswoman…
DIRECTOR: François Ozon (Paris, France, 1967) holds a degree in Directing at the French film school La Fémis. Since 1988 he has directed short films. The 1998 film Sitcom marks his feature length directorial debut. After the film Water Drops on Burning Rocks (2000), which screened at the Berlin Film Festival, he became a favourite among world’s largest festival selectors. His film 8 Women (2002) became a huge international success. It screened at Berlinale, just like his first Englishlanguage production Angel (2007) as well as Ricky (2009). Swimming Pool (2003) screened at the Cannes Film Festival and 5x2 at Venice.
INTERNATIONAL PREMIERE: 2010 Venice Film Festival
Service Entrance
(Les femmes du 6e étage)
romantic comedy, France, 2010, 106’
production companies: Vendôme Production, France 2 Cinéma, SND
producers: Philippe Rousselet, Etienne Comar
directed by: Philippe Le Guay
written by: Philippe Le Guay, Jérôme Tonnerre
starring: Fabrice Luchini, Sandrine Kiberlain, Natalia Verbeke, Carmen Maura, Lola Dueñas, Berta Ojea
cinematography: Jean-Claude Larrieu
editing: Monica Coleman
set design: Pierre-François Limbosch
costume design: Christian Gasc
music: Jorge Arriagada
SUMMARY: Paris, 1960. Jean-Louis Joubert and his wife live a peaceful yet boring bourgeois existence that will be turned upside down by Spanish maids who move into the servant’s quarters on the sixth floor of their building, especially Maria, who is young, pretty and full of joy…
DIRECTOR: Philippe Le Guay (Paris, 1956) studied film at the Parisian film school IDHEC (Institut des hautes etudes cinématographiques) where he now teaches (in 1986 the school changed its name to La Fémis). Beginning his career as a screenwriter in 1983, he wrote some twenty scripts for short subjects, television films and full-length features. He made his directorial debut in 1989 with Les deux Fragonard. He wrote or co-authored all of his feature films. Filmography: Les deux Fragonard (1989), L’année Juliette (1995), Nightshift (Trois huit, 2001), The Cost of Living (Le coût de la vie, 2003), Du jour au lendemain (2006) and Service Entrance.
INTERNATIONAL PREMIERE: 2011 Berlin Film Festival
Carlos
crime thriller, France, Germany, 2010, 165’
production companies: Films en Stock
producer: Daniel Leconte
directed by: Olivier Assayas
written by: Olivier Assayas, Dan Franck (based on an original idea by Daniel Leconte)
starring: Edgar Ramirez, Alexander Scheer, Nora Von Waldstatten, Ahmad Kaabour, Christoph Bach
cinematography: Yorick Le Saux, Denis Lenoir
editing: Luc Barnier, Marion Monnier
set design: François-Renaud Labarthe
costume design: Jurgen Doering
SUMMARY: Ilich Ramírez Sánchez, alias Carlos, was one of the most wanted terrorists on the planet for two decades. He was successful at avoiding the police from 1974, when he tried to assassinate a British businessman in London, up to 1994, when he was finally arrested in Khartoum.
DIRECTOR: Olivier Assayas (Parizs, 1955) studied at the ENSBA School of Fine Arts in Paris. During the 1980s he wrote for the Cahiers du cinéma. He wrote or co-authored five books on film (Hong Kong Cinéma, Conversation avec Bergman, etc.). He started his film career writing scripts and directing short films. After the script for Rendezvous (1985) by André Téchiné, he made his directorial debut with Disorder (Désordre) in 1986. He has also directed documentaries and television series. He served as jury member at Venice in 1994 and at Cannes in 2011. Filmography (feature film, selection): Paris s’éveille (1991), Irma Vep (1996), Late August, Early September (Fin août, début septembre, 1999), Les destinées sentimentales (2000), Demonlover (2002), Clean (2004), an episode in the omnibus Paris, je t’aime (2006), Boarding gate (2007), Summer Hours (L’heure d’été, 2008).
INTERNATIONAL PREMIERE: 2010 Cannes Film Festival
AWARDS: Golden Globe for Best Mini-Series or Motion Picture Made for Television, Edgar Ramirez nominated for the Golden Globe for Best Actor, the European Film Academy (EFA) nomination of Olivier Assayas for Best Director
Made in Dagenham
humorous drama, UK, 2010, 113’
production companies: BBC Films, UK Film Council, Number 9 Films
producers: Stephen Woolley, Elizabeth Karlsen
directed by: Nigel Cole
written by: William Ivory
starring: Sally Hawkins, Bob Hoskins, Miranda Richardson, Geraldine James, Rosamund Pike
cinematography: John de Borman
editing: Michael Parker
set design: Andrew McAlpine
costume design: Louise Stjernsward
music: David Arnold
SUMMARY: The year is 1968. Thousands of men and 187 women work at the Ford Dagenham plant. Not willing to accept lower salaries than men for the same job, female workers walk out in protest led by Rita O’Grady...
DIRECTOR: Nigel Cole (1959) began his career in the 1980s directing television shows and documentaries. In the 1990s he also directed several episodes of the popular TV series Peak Practice and Cold Feet. His first feature-length film Saving Grace (2000) brought hima lot of attention (audience award at the Sundance Film Festival and a nomination for Best Director at that year’s British Independent Film Awards). He is also the author of several episodes of the documentary series In the Wild, starring great Hollywood stars (Julia Roberts, Meg Ryan, etc.). He also directed the films A Lot Like Love (2005) and $5 a Day (2008).
INTERNATIONAL PREMIERE: 2010 Toronto Film Festival
Mothers
(Majki)
fiction-documentary, Macedonia, France, Bulgaria, 2011, 123’
production companies: Banana Film Production, Ciné-Sud Promotion, Element Films
producer: Christina Kallas
directed by: Milčo Mančevski
written by: Milčo Mančevski
starring: Ana Stojanovska, Dimitar Gjorgjievski, Vladimir Jacev, Ratka Radmanović, Salaetin Bilal
cinematography: Vladimir Samoilovski
editing: Žaklina Stojčevska
set design: David Munns
costume design: Elisabetta Montaldo
music: Igor Vasilev Novogradska
SUMMARY: A triptych of stories from Macedonia, two narratives and a documentary one. Two nine-yearolds report a flasher to the police even though they never saw him; film crew shoots a documentary in an almost deserted village; a serial killer killing women spreads panic... Where is the line between reality and imagination?
DIRECTOR: Milčo Mančevski (Skopje, Macedonia, 1959) wrote and directed four feature films: Before the Rain (Pred dozdot, 1994), Dust (Dust, 2001), Shadows (Senki, 2008) and Mothers and since 1978 he has directed more than fifty short forms (experimental and short films, music videos, etc.). The film Before the Rain received the Golden Lion in Venice, Academy Award nominations for Best Foreign-Language Film and thirty different awards. His films have screened at more than a hundred film festivals around the world and have been distributed in more than fifty countries (theatres, video, television and/or cable).
INTERNATIONAL PREMIERE: 2011 Berlin Film Festival
Silent Sonata
(Circus Fantasticus)
drama, Slovenia, Ireland, Sweden, Finland, 2010, 75’
production companies: Staragara, Fastnet Films, The Chimney Pot Group, Film i Väst, Fortissimo Films
producer: Jožko Rutar, Petra Bašin, Morgan Bushe
directed by: Janez Burger
written by: Janez Burger
starring: Leon Lučev, Rene Bazinet, Pauliina Räsänen, Ravil Sultanov, Luna Zimić Mijović
cinematography: Diviš Marek
editing: Miloš Kalusek
set design: Vasja Kokelj
costume design: Alan Hranitelj
music: Drago Ivanuša
SUMMARY: A man stays alone with his children in a half demolished house in the middle of a desolate field. The house was hit by a grenade and he is expecting a new attack. Instead, a wandering caravan called Circus Fantasticus stops by his house...
DIRECTOR: Janez Burger (Kranj, Slovenia, 1965) studied at the Faculty of Economics in Ljubljana. In 1989 he enrolled at the FAMU in Prague, from which he received a degree in Film and Television Directing in 1996. After that he moved to Ljubljana. He made his debut with the low-budget Idle Running (V leru, 1999), a film that achieved great success at box office and won some twenty awards at Slovene and international film festivals. After filming Ruins (2004), produced by Staragara production company, which Burger co-founded, he produced the film Gravehopping (Odgrobadogroba, 2005) by Jan Cvitkovič. Silent Sonata is his third film.
INTERNATIONAL PREMIERE: 2011 Rotterdam Film Festival
Montevideo, Taste of a Dream
(Montevideo, Bog te video)
drama, Serbia, 2010, 135’
production company: Intermedia Network
producer: Dejan Petrović
directed by: Dragan Bjelogrlić
written by: Srđan Dragojević, Ranko Božić, Dragan Bjelogrlić
starring: Miloš Biković, Milutin Karadžić, Viktor Savić, Nikola Đuričko, Nina Janković, Petar Strugar
cinematography: Goran Volarević
editing: Marko Glusac
set design: Nemanja Petrović
costume design: Dragica Laušević, Dragica Pavlović
music: Magnifico
SUMMARY: The Yugoslav national football team wants to go to the 1930 Football World Cup in Uruguay. Young football players face preparations and a lot of events that will strengthen their friendship…
DIRECTOR: Dragan Bjelogrlić (Opovo, Serbia, 1963) made his acting debut with the film Bosko Buha in 1978. In 1989 he received a degree in Acting from the Academy of Dramatic Art in Belgrade. He has played in more than sixty films and TV series which received a number of awards at festivals in Serbia and abroad. Montevideo, Taste of a Dream marks his directorial debutand it was seen by more than half a million people at Serbian theatres. Bjelogrlić is shooting a sequel at the moment. Filmography (selection): Pretty Village, Pretty Flame, The Wounds, The Red Coloured Grey Truck, Natasha, the series The Storks Will Come Back, A Better Life, Theatre in the House.
INTERNATIONAL PREMIERE: 2011 Moscow Film Festival
AWARDS: Audience Award at the Moscow Film Festival
Skinning
(Šišanje)
crime, Serbia 2010, 98'
production companies: Hypnopolis Film
producer: Branislav Jević
directed by: Stevan Filipović
written by: Stevan Filipović, Dimitrije Vojnov
starring: Nikola Rakočević, Viktor Savić, Nikola Kojo, Nataša Tapušković, Bojana Novaković
cinematography: Mihajlo Savić
editing: Nataša Vranješ
set design: Nenad Marković
costume design: Maja Mirković, Biljana Tegeltija
music: Ryan Leach
SUMMARY: Novica is a young maths genius who believes that all his childhood dreams will come true once he joins a group of football supporters. The charisma of the hooligan leader Relja and love for his neighbour Mina drive Novica into becoming one of the skinheads...
DIRECTOR: Stevan Filipović (Belgrade, Serbia, 1981) holds a degree in Film and Television Editing from the Faculty of Dramatic Art in Belgrade. His directing and editing credits include several documentaries, short films and commercials and music videos. He wrote the screenplays for his full-length features Shaitan’s Warrior (2006) and Skinning, seen in Serbia by more than two hundred thousand spectators.
Leaving
(Odcházení)
humorous drama, Czech Republic, 2011, 94’
production company: Buc Film s.r.o.
producer: Jaroslav Bouček
directed by: Václav Havel
written by: Václav Havel (after his play)
starring: Josef Abrhám, Dagmar Havlová Veškrnová, Barbora Seidlová, Tatiana Vilhelmová
cinematography: Michal Pavlíček
editing: Jiří Brožek
set design: Ondrej Nekvasil
costume design: Zuzana Ježková
music: Michal Pavlíček
SUMMARY: Vilém Rieger held the office of Chancellor for many years and now can’t come to terms with the fact he has been ousted. He is counting his last day in the government villa that has become home for himself and his family. While he is packing his belongings, his world is collapsing…
DIRECTOR: Václav Havel (Prague, the Czech Republic, 1936) was prevented from studying at FAMU due to his bourgeois origins. He established himself as an author and playwright (The Garden Party, The Memorandum, The Conspirators, Largo desolato, Audience, The Beggar’s Opera, etc). He wrote a number of books of essays, studies and feuilletons. After the Soviet armed intervention in 1968, he became the leader of the dissident movement and therefore ended up in jail and on the list of banned authors, which hindered public performance of his works until 1989. Heading the Civil Forum, he participated in the 1989 Velvet Revolution that saw the overthrow of the communist regime. He was elected as the President of Czechoslovakia the same year and from 1993 to 2003 he was the President of the Czech Republic.
INTERNATIONAL PREMIERE: 2011 Karlovy Vary Film Festival
Melancholia
drama, Denmark, Sweden, France, Germany,2011, 130’
production companies: Zentropa Entertainments, Memfis Film, Slot Machine, Liberator Productions
producers: Meta Louise Foldager, Louise Vesth
directed by: Lars von Trier
written by: Lars von Trier
starring: Kirsten Dunst, Charlotte Gainsbourg, Kiefer Sutherland, John Hurt, Alexander Skarsgård
cinematography: Manuel Alberto Claro
editing: Molly M. Stensgaard
set design: Jette Lehmann
costume design: Manon Rasmussen
SUMMARY: Justine becomes estranged from her family at her lavish wedding with Michael. She grows close to her sister Claire again as the end of the world looms near. Planet Melancholia threatens to collide into the Earth…
DIRECTOR: Lars von Trier (Kongens Lyngby, Denmark, 1956) graduated from the National Film School in Denmark in 1983. His feature length debut The Element of Crime (Forbrydelsens element, 1984) screened at the Cannes Film Festival and received the Technical Grand Prize. After that he made Epidemic (1987) and Europa (1991, Cannes Jury Prize). He is one of the authors of the Dogma 95 Manifesto. The film Breaking the Waves (1996) earned him the Grand Jury Prize at Cannes and the European Film Academy Best Film award, and Dancer in the Dark (2001) the Golden Palm at Cannes. Other notable films: Dogville, Manderlay, Antichrist.
INTERNATIONAL PREMIERE: 2011 Cannes Film Festival
Three
(Drei)
romantic drama, Germany, 2010, 119’
production company: X Filme Creative Pool
producer: Stefan Arndt
directed by: Tom Tykwer
written by: Tom Tykwer
starring: Sophie Rois, Sebastian Schipper, Devid Striesow, Annedore Kleist, Angela Winkler
cinematography: Frank Griebe
editing: Mathilde Bonnefoy
set design: Kai Koch
costume design: Polly Matthies
music: Tom Tykwer, Johnny Klimek, Reinhold Heil, Gabriel Mounsey
SUMMARY: Hanna and Simon live in Berlin. They have been married for twenty years. They are modern, mature and childless. They have put a lot behind them, but even more things are ahead of them. Adam, an energetic and charming man, will stir their marriage...
DIRECTOR: Tom Tykwer (Wuppertal, Germany, 1965) made his first short film entitled Because in 1990. His first full-length feature is Deadly Maria (Die tödliche Maria) from 1993. He often writes scripts and music for his films. In 1994, he co-founded the production company X Filme Creative Pool. With Winter Sleepers (Winterschläfer), his subsequent film, he attracted the attention of film festivals while the film Run Lola Run (Lola rennt, 1998) brought him international success. What followed was The Princess and the Warrior (Der Krieger und die Kaiserin, 2000), the film that, among other awards, also won the Golden Arena in Pula. The 2000 film Heaven, writtenby Krzysztof Kieślowski, confirmed his reputation as one of the most respectable European filmmakers. He participated in the 2006 omnibus Paris, je t’aime and he directed the big-budget adaptation Perfume: The Story of a Murderer in 2006. The International opened the 2009 Berlin Film Festival.
INTERNATIONAL PREMIERE: 2010 Venice Film Festival
AWARDS: German Film Award to Sophie Rois for Best Actress in a Leading Role, Tom Tykwer for Best Director and Mathilde Bonnefoy for Best Film Editing
Nader and Simin,a Separation
(Jodaeiye Nader az Simin)
drama, Iran, 2011, 123’
production companies: Asghar Farhadi
producer: Asghar Farhadi
directed by: Asghar Farhadi
written by: Asghar Farhadi
starring: Peyman Moadi, Leila Hatami, Shahab Hosseini, Sareh Bayat, Sarina Farhadi
cinematography: Mahmood Kalari
editing: Hayedeh Safiyari
set design: Keyvan Moghadam
costume design: Keyvan Moghadam
music: Sattar Oraki
SUMMARY: Having separated from his wife Simin, Nader hires Razieh, a pregnant woman, to look after his seriously ill father. After he comes home from work one day to find his father alone on the floor, he begins a heated row with Razieh which ends in tragedy and shatters his life…
DIRECTOR: Asghar Farhadi (Isfahan, Iran, 1972) received a degree in Film Directing from Tehran University in 1996. He worked as playwright and stage director; he wrote radio plays and directed television programmes. In 2004 he made his directorial debut with Dancing in the Dust (Raghs dar ghobar). Very soon he gained recognition in Iran and abroad, which is best evidenced by numerous awards and festivals that screened his films. Filmography: The Beautiful City (Shah-re ziba, 2004), Fireworks Wednesday (Chaharshanbe-soori, 2006), About Elly (Darbareye Elly, 2009, Silver Bear for Best Director at the Berlin Film Festival).
INTERNATIONAL PREMIERE: 2011 Berlin Film Festival
AWARDS: Golden Bear for Best Film, Silver Bear for Best Actress (ensemble cast), Silver Bear for Best Actor (ensemble cast), Prize of the Ecumenical Jury – 2011 Berlin Film Festival.
Last Night
romantic drama, USA, France, 2010, 92’
production companies: Nick Wechsler Productions, Gaumont
producers: Nick Wechsler, Massy Tadjedin, Sidonie Dumas
directed by: Massy Tadjedin
written by: Massy Tadjedin
starring: Keira Knightley, Sam Worthington, Guillaume Canet, Eva Mendes, Daniel Eric Gold
cinematography: Peter Deming
editing: Susan E. Morse
set design: Tim Grimes
costume design: Ann Roth
music: Clint Mansell
SUMMARY: A young married couple in New York face temptation on the night when they are not together. While Michael feels lonely on a business trip with an attractive new colleague, Joana encounters the other great love of her life...
DIRECTOR: Massy Tadjedin (Tehran, Iran, 1978) is a screenwriter, director and producer. She grew up in California (Orange County) and currently lives in Los Angeles. She studied English Literature at Harvard. She wrote the screenplay for the films Leo (directed by Mehdi Norowzian, 2002), The Jacket (directed by John Maybury, 2005) and the short film California Romanza (directorial debut by Eva Mendes, 2011). Tadjedin’s directorial debut is Last Night. She produced all the films she worked on except The Jacket.
FESTIVAL PREMIERE: 2010 Rome Film Festival (opening film)
The Kids Are All Right
comedy, USA, 2010, 106’
production companies: Gilbert Films, Antidote Films, Plum Pictures Production, Mandalay Vision, Artist International, 10th Hole Productions, Saint Aire Production, UGC PH
producers: Gary Gilbert, Jeffrey Levy-Hinte, Celine Rattray, Jordan Horowitz, Daniela Taplin Lundberg, Philippe Hellmann
directed by: Lisa Cholodenko
written by: Lisa Cholodenko, Stuart Blumberg
starring: Annette Bening, Julianne Moore, Mark Ruffalo, Mia Wasikowska, Josh Hutcherson
cinematography: Igor Jadue-Lillo
editing: Jeffrey M. Werner
set design: James Pearse Connelly
costume design: Mary Claire Hannan
music: Craig Wedren & Nathan Larson
SUMMARY: Teenagers Laser and Joni were conceived by artificial insemination and they grew up in a home with a pair of lesbian mothers. 16-year-old Laser asks his 18-year-old sister to find their biological father who they later bring to their home…
DIRECTOR: Lisa Cholodenko (Los Angeles, California, SAD, 1964) started her career in the film industry in the early 1990s as assistant editor on several films (Boyz n the Hood, Used People). She then enrolled at Columbia University School of Arts, earning a degree in Directing and Screenwriting. After several acclaimed short films, she made her feature film directorial debut with the 1998 film High Art. Her directing credits include the films Laurel Canyon (2002) and Cavedweller (2004) as well as several episodes of popular television series (Six Feet Under, Hung, etc.).
INTERNATIONAL PREMIERE: 2010 Berlin Film Festival
AWARDS: Golden Globe for Best Musical or Comedy, Golden Globe for Best Actress in a Leading Role (Annette Bening), four Academy Award nominations, including Best Picture
Casino Jack
crime comedy, Canada, 108’
production companies: Art Takes Over, Rollercoaster Entertainment, Hannibal Pictures, Trigger Street Productions, MCG, Vortex Words + Pictures Production, An Olive Branch
producers: Gary Howsam, Bill Marks, George Zakk
directed by: George Hickenlooper
written by: Norman Snider
starring: Kevin Spacey, Barry Pepper, Kelly Preston, Jon Lovitz, Rachelle Lefevre, Maury Chaykin
cinematography: Adam Swica
editing: William Steinkamp
set design: Matthew Davies
costume design: Debra Hanson
music: Jonathan Goldsmith
SUMMARY: Jack Abramoff was a powerful lobbyist whose bribery and fraud system performed well until the moment when he and his partner Michael Scanlon teamed up with a man with mob ties and found themselves in a crime whirlwind…
DIRECTOR: George Hickenlooper (St. Louis, Missouri, USA, 1963 – Denver, Colorado, USA, 2010) graduated from Yale University with a B.A. in History and Film Studies. Beginning his career as a documentary filmmaker (short film on Dennis Hooper, 1988, and the notable full-length documentary Hearts of Darkness: A Filmmaker’s Apocalypse, 1991), in 1993 he made his feature length directorial debut with Grey Knight. Making documentaries and narrative films of all formats, he created an opus comprising some twenty films, feature films The Man from Elysian Fields (2001) and Factory Girl (2006) being his most notable achievements.
INTERNATIONAL PREMIERE: 2010 Toronto Film Festival
AWARDS: Golden Globe nomination for Best Performance by an Actor in a Motion Picture – Musical or Comedy (Kevin Spacey)
The Housemaid
(Hanyo)
erotic thriller, South Korea, 2010, 106’
production company: Mirovision
producer: Jason Chae
directed by: Sang-soo Im
written by: Sang-soo (after the film of Ki-young Kima)
starring: Do-yeon Jeon, Jung-Jae Lee, Seo Woo, Yeo-jeong Yoon, Yeo-Jong Yun
cinematography: Hyung Deok Lee
editing: Eun-soo Lee
set design: Ha-jun Lee
costume design: Se-yeon Choi
music: Hong-jip Kim
SUMMARY: Eun-yi’s marriage has fallen apart and she starts working as a housemaid in a house of a rich man and his pregnant wife. Drawing the attention of her employer, his visits become more frequent, which does not go unnoticed…
DIRECTOR: Sang-soo Im (Seoul, South Korea, 1962) graduated with a degree in History and went on to study at the Korean Academy of Film Arts. Beginning his career in film as assistant director to Chong-won Park and Young-bin Kim, he made his directorial debut in 1998 with Girls’ Night Out (Chunyudleui jeonyuksiksah). What followed were the films Tears (Nunmul, 2000), A Good Lawyer’s Wife (Baramnan gajok, 2003), the film that competed for best picture at the Venice Film Festival, the controversial The President’s Last Bang (Geuddae geusaramdeul, 2005) and The Old Garden (Orae-doen jeongwon, 2006).
FESTIVAL PREMIERE: 2010 Cannes Film Festival
Sacrifice
(Zhao Shi Gu Er)
history crime drama, China, 2010, 127’
production companies: 21 Century Shengkai Film, Stellar Megamedia
producers: Chen Hong, Qin Hong
directed by: Chen Kaige
written by: Chen Kaige
starring: Ge You, Wang Xue Qi, Fan Bing Bing, Huang Xiao Ming, Hai Qing, Zhang Feng Yi
cinematography: Yang Shu
editing: Derek Hui
set design: Liu Qing
costume design: Chen Tong Xun
music: Shang You Ma
SUMMARY: In ancient China cruel Tu’an Gu slaughters all the members of the powerful Zhang family but a physician Cheng Ying manages to save the newborn baby Wu. Gu goes in search of Wu and Ying’s wife and son get killed. Cheng Ying seeks vengeance...
DIRECTOR: Chen Kaige (Beijing, China, 1952) is the son of film director Chen Huaiai. During the Cultural Revolution he worked as a rural labourer and served five years in the army before becoming one of the first students to join the Beijing Film Academy in 1978. He made his directorial debut with Yellow Earth (Huang tu di) in 1985 and attracted attention of international critics and film lovers. The same success was repeated with as many as five of his subsequent films, presented in competition at Cannes from 1989 to 1998. His most successful film was Farewell My Concubine (Ba wang bie ji), winner of the Palme d’Or in 1993. Chen Kaige is one of the most interesting authors of contemporary Asian film. Filmography (selection): King of the Children (Hai zi wang, 1987), Life on a String (Bian zou bian chang, 1991), Temptress Moon (Feng yue, 1997), The Emperor and the Assassin (Jing Ke ci Qin Wang, 1999), Killing Me Softly (2002), Together With You (He ni zai yi qi, 2002), The Promise (Wu ji, 2005), Forever Enthralled (Mei Lanfang, 2008).
INTERNATIONAL PREMIERE: 2011 Berlin Film Festival
