The Museum of Modern Art’s festival of film preservation, To Save and Project, "feels like a yearly miracle," writes R. Emmet Sweeney in an overview of this year's edition for Film Comment. Among the highlights: Otto Rippert's Homunculus, Norman Foster's Woman on the Run, Ewald André Dupont's Verieté, Michel Brault's Les Ordres, Helma Sanders-Brahm's Germany, Pale Mother, Mário Peixoto's Limite, William K. Howard's The Trial of Vivienne Ware, Chantal Akerman's I, You, He, She, Ebrahim Golestan's The Brick and the Mirror, Orson Welles's The Deep and Ahmed El Maanouni's Oh the Days!. » - David Hudson...
- 11/5/2015
- Fandor: Keyframe
The Museum of Modern Art’s festival of film preservation, To Save and Project, "feels like a yearly miracle," writes R. Emmet Sweeney in an overview of this year's edition for Film Comment. Among the highlights: Otto Rippert's Homunculus, Norman Foster's Woman on the Run, Ewald André Dupont's Verieté, Michel Brault's Les Ordres, Helma Sanders-Brahm's Germany, Pale Mother, Mário Peixoto's Limite, William K. Howard's The Trial of Vivienne Ware, Chantal Akerman's I, You, He, She, Ebrahim Golestan's The Brick and the Mirror, Orson Welles's The Deep and Ahmed El Maanouni's Oh the Days!. » - David Hudson...
- 11/5/2015
- Keyframe
Section to also include celebrations of Ingrid Bergman and Orson Welles as well as screenings of The Terminator and Jurassic Park 3D.
Costa-Gavras has been named guest of honour at this year’s Cannes Classics section of the Cannes Film Festival (May 13-24).
The Greek-French film director and producer won the Palme d’or with Missing in 1982, was member of the jury in 1976 that crowned Taxi Driver and picked up the award for best director with Section spéciale in 1975.
The filmmaker will be present for a screening of Z, which won the jury prize in 1969, and has had the original negative scanned in 4k and restored frame by frame in 2K, supervised by Costa-Gavras.
Orson Welles
Marking 100 years since the birth of Orson Welles, Cannes will screen restorations of films from the legendary Us actor, director, writer and producer, who died in 1985.
The titles include his staggering debut Citizen Kane (1941), which has received a 4k restoration completed...
Costa-Gavras has been named guest of honour at this year’s Cannes Classics section of the Cannes Film Festival (May 13-24).
The Greek-French film director and producer won the Palme d’or with Missing in 1982, was member of the jury in 1976 that crowned Taxi Driver and picked up the award for best director with Section spéciale in 1975.
The filmmaker will be present for a screening of Z, which won the jury prize in 1969, and has had the original negative scanned in 4k and restored frame by frame in 2K, supervised by Costa-Gavras.
Orson Welles
Marking 100 years since the birth of Orson Welles, Cannes will screen restorations of films from the legendary Us actor, director, writer and producer, who died in 1985.
The titles include his staggering debut Citizen Kane (1941), which has received a 4k restoration completed...
- 4/29/2015
- by [email protected] (Michael Rosser)
- ScreenDaily
Goin’ Down the Road
Written by William Fruet and Donald Shebib
Directed by Donald Shebib
Canada, 1970
Donald Shebib’s landmark 1970 drama Goin’ Down the Road was a watershed moment in Canadian national cinema, in part because it proved that there could be one. The very notion of a Canadian national cinema was relatively new when the film was released. Though the National Film Board (Nfb) was establish in the late 1930s, it was only in the 1950s that its focus shifted from war-effort propaganda to a very specific form of national soul-searching, wondering aloud who we were and what our place in the world was. The collective attempt at pinpointing Canada’s national identity would reach a fever pitch with the Centennial just around the corner, but ended up yielding precious few concrete answers (though it wasn’t for lack of trying, as Nfb-produced works like Helicopter Canada, commissioned specifically for Canada’s 100th birthday,...
Written by William Fruet and Donald Shebib
Directed by Donald Shebib
Canada, 1970
Donald Shebib’s landmark 1970 drama Goin’ Down the Road was a watershed moment in Canadian national cinema, in part because it proved that there could be one. The very notion of a Canadian national cinema was relatively new when the film was released. Though the National Film Board (Nfb) was establish in the late 1930s, it was only in the 1950s that its focus shifted from war-effort propaganda to a very specific form of national soul-searching, wondering aloud who we were and what our place in the world was. The collective attempt at pinpointing Canada’s national identity would reach a fever pitch with the Centennial just around the corner, but ended up yielding precious few concrete answers (though it wasn’t for lack of trying, as Nfb-produced works like Helicopter Canada, commissioned specifically for Canada’s 100th birthday,...
- 4/7/2015
- by Derek Godin
- SoundOnSight
Beating Schrader’s Hardcore to the punch by a matter of months, Robin Spry’s grim and gritty gutter-level drama is driven by a not-dissimilar premise, that of a man searching the seedy urban underbelly for his drug-addicted prostitute daughter. Rather astonishing that it was made for TV – the remarkably bleak opening indicates that no punches are going to be pulled, as we first see Peter Brennan (Don Francks), before the credits have even finished rolling, nodding out in a grimy cafe toilet, the needle still sticking out of his arm. This is followed by howling hospital cold turkey, as a borderline sadistic cop plays Peter a slide show of a drug-addicted girl forced into sex work, before revealing that said girl is Peter’s own daughter. We then get to see said slide show again in harrowing close-up, while Peter wails ever louder. So, once recovered, and with regular...
- 4/2/2015
- by Tom Newth
- SoundOnSight
Tu dors Nicole
Written and directed by Stéphane Lafleur
Canada, 2014
Tu dors Nicole is the newest feature film from Quebec filmmaker Stéphane Lafleur. The film premiered at the Director’s Fortnight at Cannes, a section specifically focused on emerging auteurs of the screen. Nicole (Julianne Côté) is 22 years old and is house-sitting while her parents are on vacation. She spends most of her days wandering aimlessly with her friend, Veronique. The atmosphere of ennui, though, is loudly interrupted when her brother and his band arrive, setting up shop in the family living room. The film explores the aimless summers of youth and the seemingly directionless future that awaits the young Nicole. She is withdrawn and sullen, but through a quiet surrealism Lafleur peels back the layers, evoking a sense of phantasmagoria, where reality and dream exist simultaneously.
Intentionally or not, Lafleur’s film quickly harkens back to another Quebec film...
Written and directed by Stéphane Lafleur
Canada, 2014
Tu dors Nicole is the newest feature film from Quebec filmmaker Stéphane Lafleur. The film premiered at the Director’s Fortnight at Cannes, a section specifically focused on emerging auteurs of the screen. Nicole (Julianne Côté) is 22 years old and is house-sitting while her parents are on vacation. She spends most of her days wandering aimlessly with her friend, Veronique. The atmosphere of ennui, though, is loudly interrupted when her brother and his band arrive, setting up shop in the family living room. The film explores the aimless summers of youth and the seemingly directionless future that awaits the young Nicole. She is withdrawn and sullen, but through a quiet surrealism Lafleur peels back the layers, evoking a sense of phantasmagoria, where reality and dream exist simultaneously.
Intentionally or not, Lafleur’s film quickly harkens back to another Quebec film...
- 9/8/2014
- by Justine Smith
- SoundOnSight
The Guadalajara International Film Festival (also known as FICG29 or Festival International of Cine in Guadalajara) is on my regular beat, but this year my work with the Talents will include an introduction to the book I am writing on Iberoamerican Film Financing.
The festival's inception occurred in 1986 during Mexican cinema's worst crisis in terms of production (only 12 features were made that year), and it was held with the help of the University of Guadalajara. This small showcase was curated by filmmaker Jaime Humberto Hermosillo and researcher/professor Emilio García Riera. It consisted of 5 features, 7 shorts, 2 documentaries, and a selection of Jaime Humberto Hermosillo's work. During this edition a young Guillermo del Toro stood out as one of the most outstanding volunteers.
A few years after in 1992, the festival premiered Alfonso Cuaron's Love in the Time of Hysteria (Solo con tu pareja), the film that launched his Hollywood career, this year he won the Academy Award as Best Director for his film Gravity. The next year, Guillermo del Toro presented his feature debut Cronos, which would go on to be selected for the Critic's Week at the Cannes Film Festival. From the beginning this film showcase became a required stop for Mexican filmmakers and programmers from various international film festivals.
In 1999 a selection of Iberoamerican films was added to the program and a section highlighting Canadian cinema was included, from the 7-selection 3 were from Quebec (Streetheart by Charles Binamé; The Red Violin by François Girard and 2 Seconds by Manon Briand). During the 23rd edition of the festival a selection of 7 features and 7 shorts was presented. Added to this Patrick Bouchard held a workshop on animation at the University of Guadalajara. This year the festival will have the pleasure to present the latest works from Léa Pool, Anaïs Barbeau-Lavalette, and of course, Patrick Bouchard.The results of the 2008 workshop are visible in the constant production of animation in Guadalajara.
Starting in its 15th edition, in 2000, the showcase became a competitive contest for Mexican films. Two years after all iberoamerican films began taking part in the competition. From that year on, the impact of the Guadalajara program reached the entire iberoamerican region and became the premier meeting point for the region's cinema. In 2003 the initiative know as Iberoamerican Market (Mercano Iberoamericano) was launched bringing together over 170 industry professionals dedicated to selling, buying, and distributing films internationally.
In 2005 the showcase became the Guadalajara International Film Festival (Ficg) with the clear goal of having a space for Mexican and Latin American films, as well as a to expose the public and the industry professionals to international works. In 2013 the festival screened 254 films, 102 of which were in competition. The festival received over 800 journalist, and 817 companies in the industry section. Throughout the years the festival has honored artists such as Pedro Almodóvar, the Taviani brothers, Patricio Guzmán, Theo Angelopoulos, Álex de la Iglesia, Agnès Varda, and more recently Werner Herzog and Mike Leigh, among many other great filmmakers. In terms of actors John Malkovich, Marisa Paredes, Andy Garcia and Ángela Molina have also been recognized at the Ficg.
The festival is divided in 3 competitive sections: Iberoamerican Dramatic Features, Iberoamerican Documentaries, and Iberoamerican Shorts. In total Ficg hands out 16 Official Awards and 5 parallel others though different sections.
Among the array of awards the one dedicated to the Best Mexican Film stands out -The Mezcal Award (Premio Mezcal)
This year the third edition of the Maguey Award (Read more Here) will take place. It brings together, promotes, and recognizes cinema focused on sexual diversity around the world
In total there are more than 200 works programmed and there will be over 500 screenings in Guadalajara and the surroundings areas. Throughout the last 29 years Mexican cinema has changed deeply. From the crisis it suffered in 1986 to its current state there is a notable contrast. From 12 films a year, the average number of films produced currently a year is 120. During the 20 years the Mexican Cinema Showcase and the Ficg have been protagonists in the promotion of Mexican cinema, specially in the last decade.
It is also revelatory to see how influential has Mexican cinema been in the emergence of other film industries in the region such as in Guatemala, Costa Rica, Paraguay, as well as the great period that the cinema of of Chile, Colombia, and Uruguay are experiencing.
Withing the Ficg there are also other sections dedicated to international cinema, which are not competitive, but allow for the festival to be a meeting point for many cinematic voices.
Industry and Market
In order to encourage a productive agenda for filmmakers, producers, distributors, and sales agents during the festival, the Market oriented department will hold the following events:
IX Iberoamerican Conference of Iberoamerican Co-productions
the 7ª edition of the "Guadalajara Builds" program
Bilateral Conference: Quebec-Mexico
Over 800 film-related companies will be in attendance
Organization
During the last edition of the Ficg, the different events taking place at the festival were the product of strenuous labors by the organizers. They included the 5th edition of Talents Guadalajara, an experience in which 70 filmmakers from Mexico, Central America and the Caribbean participated, as well as the the 5th edition of the Doculab where several Iberoamerican documentaries in post-production were evaluated. Aiming to take advantage of the important figures present, the festival also hosted the 9th Creators Conference on Writing with Light.
Relationships with International Festivals
Throughout its development the Ficg has formed working relationships of support with many of the most important festival in the world. With the Marché du Film at Cannes the two festivals have developed the Guadalajara Film Market Producers Network, which is a window for the exchange of knowledge and ideas among professionals interested in the Iberoamerican cinematic spectrum. Talents Guadalajara is organized with the collaboration of the Berlinale Talents from the Berlin Film Festival, which supports filmmakers from the region. In addition with the help of the San Sebastian Film Festival, Ficg presents the program known as New European Trends : San Sebastian-Guadalajara, allowing for the discovery of new European directors. It is important to mention that Ficg has a close relationship with the Montreal World Film Festival, which allows for films of the region to screen at the Canadian event.
Special Guest
Since 2001 the festival hascdesignated a country or region to be the guest of honor
Germany, 16, 2001
Switzerland, 17, 2002
Chile, 18, 2003
Italy, 19, 2004
Greece, 20, 2005
Spain, 21, 2006
Brazil, 22, 2007
Argentina, 23, 2008
Colombia, 24, 2009
France, 25, 2010
Israel, 26, 2011
U.K., 27, 2012
Scandinavia : Finland, Iceland, Sweden, Norway, Denmark, 28. 2013
Besides screening a selection of films from the selected nation, the Ficg always tries to have some of their most notable filmmakers present at the festival. After a decade of its inception the Special Guest section has become one of the most anticipated ones. It allows attendees the opportunity to see the most recent works from that national cinema as well as to have a direct conversation with the filmmakers, actors, and other representatives of that country's film industry.
Quebec 2014
The selection of films was made possible thanks to the support of the Quebecois Delegation in Mexico, the Sodec, the International Documentary Conference in Montreal, the Onf, among other institutions, companies, and filmmakers. This offers the possibility to be confronted with visions that explore the world and its conflicts, it's cinema without borders.On the other hand this can also be a very intimate cinema that captures the multicultural richness of contemporary Quebec with its diverse contradictions. This selection also represents the audiovisual expression of several generations, there are films from filmmakers with a careers that expand over 4 decades who interact with directors who have just finished their debut features.
The selection of films is divided into 4 sections
Narrative Features
Conformed of 16 features completed between 2012 and 2013. Each one of these films has had acclaimed international exposure and have played at festivals such as Cannes, Berlin, Venice, San Sebastian, among others. Together these films have received more than 23 international awards and 30 awards in Canada.
Ridm - Documentaries
Counting with 15 years of experience the Montreal International Documentary Festival (Ridm) is one of the most important events for documentary filmmaking. The rigorous selection process of this festival gives validation to the 5 films that will be shown at the Ficg, which will definitely be a center piece within the Quebecois program in Guadalajara. The Ficg will also have a special screening of a very important work in the history of film, For Those Who Will Follow (Pour la suite du monde) by Michel Brault, who past away last year.
Denis Côté
Denis Côté's career as a filmmaker began in 2005. Since then, he has created a short film, 3 documentaries, and 5 narrative features. Via his intense working rhythm this artist has demonstrated his abilities, rigor, and creativity. A look into his work will easily confirm that he has a profoundly original vision that takes storytelling to its radical limits.
The Short Films
Quebecois short films show an incredible imaginative freedom. Given the fact that in recent years several shorts, including animation, have been produced in Guadalajara, this will be an enriching exchange of perspectives.
Women in Film and TV Quebec-Mexico
Finally, aiming to strengthen the friendship that exists between the associations for Women in Film and TV both in Quebec and Mexico, the Ficg will host a second panel, which will be paired with a selection of documentaries that deal with the contemporary female experience.
David K. Ross
David K. Ross (1966, Canada) works in various mediums including film, video, photography, and art installations. Ross' formal training in architecture and great experience in photography of large scale and film have resulted in a great variety of projects in which he investigates the history of optical technology and geodesic practices, as well as many urban structures. His work has been exhibited in the most important institutions in the Americas and Europe, they also form part of many public and private collections, including the National Gallery of Canada, the Contemporary Art Museum of Montreal and the Canadian Center for Architecture. The artist will be present at the Ficg screening his work to expose the audience to his particular style.
Quebecois Presence in the Different Juries
Prominent members of the Quebecois film industry will be part of the diverse juries which will evaluate the films in competition.
Narrative Feature: Denise Robert's experience as a producer expands over 51 projects including narrative features, documentaries, shorts, and television.
Documentary: Roxanne Sayegh, who has worked with Ambulante, the most ambitious project to promote documentary distribution in Mexico. She is currently the Executive Director of the Ridm.
Short Films: Danièle Cauchard, Executive Director of the Montreal World Film Festival.
Maguey Award to Support Sexual Diversity in Film: Katharine Setzer, in charge of programming at the Image+Nation festival, which is in its 26th edition.
Fipresci: Montreal based critic Jorge Gutman
Mezcal Award for Best Mexican Film: Alisi Telengut, a student from Concordia University, whose film Tears of Inge was honored at the World Film Festival.
For more information on Ficg 29 and its different sections visit Here...
The festival's inception occurred in 1986 during Mexican cinema's worst crisis in terms of production (only 12 features were made that year), and it was held with the help of the University of Guadalajara. This small showcase was curated by filmmaker Jaime Humberto Hermosillo and researcher/professor Emilio García Riera. It consisted of 5 features, 7 shorts, 2 documentaries, and a selection of Jaime Humberto Hermosillo's work. During this edition a young Guillermo del Toro stood out as one of the most outstanding volunteers.
A few years after in 1992, the festival premiered Alfonso Cuaron's Love in the Time of Hysteria (Solo con tu pareja), the film that launched his Hollywood career, this year he won the Academy Award as Best Director for his film Gravity. The next year, Guillermo del Toro presented his feature debut Cronos, which would go on to be selected for the Critic's Week at the Cannes Film Festival. From the beginning this film showcase became a required stop for Mexican filmmakers and programmers from various international film festivals.
In 1999 a selection of Iberoamerican films was added to the program and a section highlighting Canadian cinema was included, from the 7-selection 3 were from Quebec (Streetheart by Charles Binamé; The Red Violin by François Girard and 2 Seconds by Manon Briand). During the 23rd edition of the festival a selection of 7 features and 7 shorts was presented. Added to this Patrick Bouchard held a workshop on animation at the University of Guadalajara. This year the festival will have the pleasure to present the latest works from Léa Pool, Anaïs Barbeau-Lavalette, and of course, Patrick Bouchard.The results of the 2008 workshop are visible in the constant production of animation in Guadalajara.
Starting in its 15th edition, in 2000, the showcase became a competitive contest for Mexican films. Two years after all iberoamerican films began taking part in the competition. From that year on, the impact of the Guadalajara program reached the entire iberoamerican region and became the premier meeting point for the region's cinema. In 2003 the initiative know as Iberoamerican Market (Mercano Iberoamericano) was launched bringing together over 170 industry professionals dedicated to selling, buying, and distributing films internationally.
In 2005 the showcase became the Guadalajara International Film Festival (Ficg) with the clear goal of having a space for Mexican and Latin American films, as well as a to expose the public and the industry professionals to international works. In 2013 the festival screened 254 films, 102 of which were in competition. The festival received over 800 journalist, and 817 companies in the industry section. Throughout the years the festival has honored artists such as Pedro Almodóvar, the Taviani brothers, Patricio Guzmán, Theo Angelopoulos, Álex de la Iglesia, Agnès Varda, and more recently Werner Herzog and Mike Leigh, among many other great filmmakers. In terms of actors John Malkovich, Marisa Paredes, Andy Garcia and Ángela Molina have also been recognized at the Ficg.
The festival is divided in 3 competitive sections: Iberoamerican Dramatic Features, Iberoamerican Documentaries, and Iberoamerican Shorts. In total Ficg hands out 16 Official Awards and 5 parallel others though different sections.
Among the array of awards the one dedicated to the Best Mexican Film stands out -The Mezcal Award (Premio Mezcal)
This year the third edition of the Maguey Award (Read more Here) will take place. It brings together, promotes, and recognizes cinema focused on sexual diversity around the world
In total there are more than 200 works programmed and there will be over 500 screenings in Guadalajara and the surroundings areas. Throughout the last 29 years Mexican cinema has changed deeply. From the crisis it suffered in 1986 to its current state there is a notable contrast. From 12 films a year, the average number of films produced currently a year is 120. During the 20 years the Mexican Cinema Showcase and the Ficg have been protagonists in the promotion of Mexican cinema, specially in the last decade.
It is also revelatory to see how influential has Mexican cinema been in the emergence of other film industries in the region such as in Guatemala, Costa Rica, Paraguay, as well as the great period that the cinema of of Chile, Colombia, and Uruguay are experiencing.
Withing the Ficg there are also other sections dedicated to international cinema, which are not competitive, but allow for the festival to be a meeting point for many cinematic voices.
Industry and Market
In order to encourage a productive agenda for filmmakers, producers, distributors, and sales agents during the festival, the Market oriented department will hold the following events:
IX Iberoamerican Conference of Iberoamerican Co-productions
the 7ª edition of the "Guadalajara Builds" program
Bilateral Conference: Quebec-Mexico
Over 800 film-related companies will be in attendance
Organization
During the last edition of the Ficg, the different events taking place at the festival were the product of strenuous labors by the organizers. They included the 5th edition of Talents Guadalajara, an experience in which 70 filmmakers from Mexico, Central America and the Caribbean participated, as well as the the 5th edition of the Doculab where several Iberoamerican documentaries in post-production were evaluated. Aiming to take advantage of the important figures present, the festival also hosted the 9th Creators Conference on Writing with Light.
Relationships with International Festivals
Throughout its development the Ficg has formed working relationships of support with many of the most important festival in the world. With the Marché du Film at Cannes the two festivals have developed the Guadalajara Film Market Producers Network, which is a window for the exchange of knowledge and ideas among professionals interested in the Iberoamerican cinematic spectrum. Talents Guadalajara is organized with the collaboration of the Berlinale Talents from the Berlin Film Festival, which supports filmmakers from the region. In addition with the help of the San Sebastian Film Festival, Ficg presents the program known as New European Trends : San Sebastian-Guadalajara, allowing for the discovery of new European directors. It is important to mention that Ficg has a close relationship with the Montreal World Film Festival, which allows for films of the region to screen at the Canadian event.
Special Guest
Since 2001 the festival hascdesignated a country or region to be the guest of honor
Germany, 16, 2001
Switzerland, 17, 2002
Chile, 18, 2003
Italy, 19, 2004
Greece, 20, 2005
Spain, 21, 2006
Brazil, 22, 2007
Argentina, 23, 2008
Colombia, 24, 2009
France, 25, 2010
Israel, 26, 2011
U.K., 27, 2012
Scandinavia : Finland, Iceland, Sweden, Norway, Denmark, 28. 2013
Besides screening a selection of films from the selected nation, the Ficg always tries to have some of their most notable filmmakers present at the festival. After a decade of its inception the Special Guest section has become one of the most anticipated ones. It allows attendees the opportunity to see the most recent works from that national cinema as well as to have a direct conversation with the filmmakers, actors, and other representatives of that country's film industry.
Quebec 2014
The selection of films was made possible thanks to the support of the Quebecois Delegation in Mexico, the Sodec, the International Documentary Conference in Montreal, the Onf, among other institutions, companies, and filmmakers. This offers the possibility to be confronted with visions that explore the world and its conflicts, it's cinema without borders.On the other hand this can also be a very intimate cinema that captures the multicultural richness of contemporary Quebec with its diverse contradictions. This selection also represents the audiovisual expression of several generations, there are films from filmmakers with a careers that expand over 4 decades who interact with directors who have just finished their debut features.
The selection of films is divided into 4 sections
Narrative Features
Conformed of 16 features completed between 2012 and 2013. Each one of these films has had acclaimed international exposure and have played at festivals such as Cannes, Berlin, Venice, San Sebastian, among others. Together these films have received more than 23 international awards and 30 awards in Canada.
Ridm - Documentaries
Counting with 15 years of experience the Montreal International Documentary Festival (Ridm) is one of the most important events for documentary filmmaking. The rigorous selection process of this festival gives validation to the 5 films that will be shown at the Ficg, which will definitely be a center piece within the Quebecois program in Guadalajara. The Ficg will also have a special screening of a very important work in the history of film, For Those Who Will Follow (Pour la suite du monde) by Michel Brault, who past away last year.
Denis Côté
Denis Côté's career as a filmmaker began in 2005. Since then, he has created a short film, 3 documentaries, and 5 narrative features. Via his intense working rhythm this artist has demonstrated his abilities, rigor, and creativity. A look into his work will easily confirm that he has a profoundly original vision that takes storytelling to its radical limits.
The Short Films
Quebecois short films show an incredible imaginative freedom. Given the fact that in recent years several shorts, including animation, have been produced in Guadalajara, this will be an enriching exchange of perspectives.
Women in Film and TV Quebec-Mexico
Finally, aiming to strengthen the friendship that exists between the associations for Women in Film and TV both in Quebec and Mexico, the Ficg will host a second panel, which will be paired with a selection of documentaries that deal with the contemporary female experience.
David K. Ross
David K. Ross (1966, Canada) works in various mediums including film, video, photography, and art installations. Ross' formal training in architecture and great experience in photography of large scale and film have resulted in a great variety of projects in which he investigates the history of optical technology and geodesic practices, as well as many urban structures. His work has been exhibited in the most important institutions in the Americas and Europe, they also form part of many public and private collections, including the National Gallery of Canada, the Contemporary Art Museum of Montreal and the Canadian Center for Architecture. The artist will be present at the Ficg screening his work to expose the audience to his particular style.
Quebecois Presence in the Different Juries
Prominent members of the Quebecois film industry will be part of the diverse juries which will evaluate the films in competition.
Narrative Feature: Denise Robert's experience as a producer expands over 51 projects including narrative features, documentaries, shorts, and television.
Documentary: Roxanne Sayegh, who has worked with Ambulante, the most ambitious project to promote documentary distribution in Mexico. She is currently the Executive Director of the Ridm.
Short Films: Danièle Cauchard, Executive Director of the Montreal World Film Festival.
Maguey Award to Support Sexual Diversity in Film: Katharine Setzer, in charge of programming at the Image+Nation festival, which is in its 26th edition.
Fipresci: Montreal based critic Jorge Gutman
Mezcal Award for Best Mexican Film: Alisi Telengut, a student from Concordia University, whose film Tears of Inge was honored at the World Film Festival.
For more information on Ficg 29 and its different sections visit Here...
- 3/21/2014
- by Sydney Levine
- Sydney's Buzz
French-Canadian director and cinematographer who pioneered handheld camera techniques
Michel Brault, who has died of a heart attack aged 85, was one of the great unsung heroes of cinema. The French-Canadian director and cinematographer could have claimed, in all modesty, to have pioneered handheld camera techniques, leading to cinéma vérité in France (and thus to the Nouvelle Vague) and Direct Cinema in the Us.
It all began in 1958 with Les Raquetteurs (The Snowshoers), which Brault co-directed with Gilles Groulx and shot in 35mm with a relatively lightweight camera carried on his shoulder. The 15-minute film, which explores life in rural Quebec, was seen by Jean Rouch, the French anthropologist film-maker, who invited Brault to France to be chief camera operator on Chronicle of a Summer (1960), in which a cross-section of Parisians are asked to respond to the question: "Are you happy?"
Rouch and his co-director, the sociologist Edgar Morin, were not...
Michel Brault, who has died of a heart attack aged 85, was one of the great unsung heroes of cinema. The French-Canadian director and cinematographer could have claimed, in all modesty, to have pioneered handheld camera techniques, leading to cinéma vérité in France (and thus to the Nouvelle Vague) and Direct Cinema in the Us.
It all began in 1958 with Les Raquetteurs (The Snowshoers), which Brault co-directed with Gilles Groulx and shot in 35mm with a relatively lightweight camera carried on his shoulder. The 15-minute film, which explores life in rural Quebec, was seen by Jean Rouch, the French anthropologist film-maker, who invited Brault to France to be chief camera operator on Chronicle of a Summer (1960), in which a cross-section of Parisians are asked to respond to the question: "Are you happy?"
Rouch and his co-director, the sociologist Edgar Morin, were not...
- 10/10/2013
- by Ronald Bergan
- The Guardian - Film News
News.
Michel Brault, one of the great Canadian filmmakers, passed away at the age of 85. Our community has started a couple of threads to commemorate the acclaimed artist in our forum. The Mill Valley Film Festival kicks off tomorrow and runs until the 13th. We've written on a few of the highlights: 12 Years a Slave; Gloria; Like Father, Like Son; The Missing Picture; and The Wind Rises. Also make sure to check out the digital restoration of My Neighbor Totoro (one of this author's all-time favorites). Martin Scorsese's The Wolf of Wall Street currently clocks in at three hours, much to the chagrin of Warner Bros. Its slated November release date is reportedly unlikely to hold as the distributors are asking the filmmaker to make some cuts. Rumors say Scorsese may not bend so easily, making a 2013 release uncertain at this point. Iranian filmmaker Mohammad Rasoulof was detained upon...
Michel Brault, one of the great Canadian filmmakers, passed away at the age of 85. Our community has started a couple of threads to commemorate the acclaimed artist in our forum. The Mill Valley Film Festival kicks off tomorrow and runs until the 13th. We've written on a few of the highlights: 12 Years a Slave; Gloria; Like Father, Like Son; The Missing Picture; and The Wind Rises. Also make sure to check out the digital restoration of My Neighbor Totoro (one of this author's all-time favorites). Martin Scorsese's The Wolf of Wall Street currently clocks in at three hours, much to the chagrin of Warner Bros. Its slated November release date is reportedly unlikely to hold as the distributors are asking the filmmaker to make some cuts. Rumors say Scorsese may not bend so easily, making a 2013 release uncertain at this point. Iranian filmmaker Mohammad Rasoulof was detained upon...
- 10/2/2013
- by Adam Cook
- MUBI
Reel-Important People is a monthly column that highlights those individuals in or related to the movies who have left us in recent weeks. Below you'll find names big and small and from all areas of the industry, though each was significant to the movies in his or her own way. Michel Brault (1928-2013) - Pioneer of the Direct Cinema style in Canada, specifically Quebec, who codirected the classic documentaries Les Raquetteurs [watch below], Pour la Suite de Monde and L'acadie, l'Acadie as well as the historical drama Les Ordres, for which he was named Best Director at Cannes in 1975. As a cinematographer, he also shot Jean Rouch's landmark documentary Chronicles of a Summer and the dramas Mon Oncle Antoine and No Mercy. He appears in the documentary...
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- 10/1/2013
- by Christopher Campbell
- Movies.com
1961’s Chronicle of a Summer is generally credited with inspiring what became known as Cinéma-vérité; a style of narrative filmmaking that both copied and utilized techniques of documentary production to create films of heightened realism. Of course, documentaries have been around as long as motion picture cameras but in the first half of the 20th century the genre’s chief subjects were exotic travelogues and political propaganda. Chronicle of a Summer was one of the first documentaries with the stated aim of capturing the lives and interactions of “real people,” and gaining a clearer understanding of the public mood through random sampling.
Not surprisingly, Chronicle of a Summer was conceived by two men who valued science over aesthetics: sociologist Edgar Morin and anthropologist Jean Rouch. While Rouch had spent a decade documenting tribal life in Africa through a series of influential short films, Morin was a novice at filmmaking. Their innocent,...
Not surprisingly, Chronicle of a Summer was conceived by two men who valued science over aesthetics: sociologist Edgar Morin and anthropologist Jean Rouch. While Rouch had spent a decade documenting tribal life in Africa through a series of influential short films, Morin was a novice at filmmaking. Their innocent,...
- 2/26/2013
- by David Anderson
- IONCINEMA.com
Geneviève Bujold is back: Canadian Screen Awards 2013 [See previous post: "Canadian Screen Awards: Oscar-Nominated War Witch Tops."] In addition to War Witch‘s Rachel Mwanza, the Canadian Screen Awards 2013 Best Actress nominees are Evelyne Brochu for Inch’allah, Marilyn Castonguay for L’Affaire Dumont, Suzanne Clément for Laurence Anyways, and Geneviève Bujold for Still Mine. In the Michael McGowan-directed drama based on real-life events, the veteran Bujold plays farmer James Cromwell tough-but-ailing wife whose physical frailty sets in motion the film’s plot: Cromwell’s desire to build a better, more comfortable house for Bujold pits him against government inspector Jonathan Potts. (Photo: Geneviève Bujold, James Cromwell Still Mine.) The Montreal-born Geneviève Bujold is best known for her Hollywood movies: Charles Jarrott’s Best Picture Academy Award nominee Anne of the Thousand Days (1969), which earned Bujold a Best Actress Academy Award nomination and a Golden Globe for her portrayal of Anne Boleyn; Mark Robson’s Earthquake, playing Charlton Heston...
- 1/16/2013
- by Andre Soares
- Alt Film Guide
Journal de France – Claudine Nougaret & Raymond Depardon
Buzz: In many ways, Depardon is to French cinema and cinéma vérité what Michel Brault is to Quebec’s Direct Cinema movement. While Depardon isn’t a pioneer of the essayistic vérité style the way Brault is for Direct Cinema, he’s still seen as a huge player in the field, having contributed major works that have helped to define it (Les années déclic, 10e chambre). Depardon’s legacy won’t solely be from his cinema; he’s perhaps even more dedicated to his practice in photography, for which he won a Pulitzer Prize in 1977. This collaborative autobiographical survey of Depardon looks to be the ultimate culmination of his two passions.
The Gist: Travelling alone, internationally acclaimed photographer and filmmaker Raymond Depardon spent six years capturing his home country with a large format camera. This long, solitary road trip provided fertile ground for...
Buzz: In many ways, Depardon is to French cinema and cinéma vérité what Michel Brault is to Quebec’s Direct Cinema movement. While Depardon isn’t a pioneer of the essayistic vérité style the way Brault is for Direct Cinema, he’s still seen as a huge player in the field, having contributed major works that have helped to define it (Les années déclic, 10e chambre). Depardon’s legacy won’t solely be from his cinema; he’s perhaps even more dedicated to his practice in photography, for which he won a Pulitzer Prize in 1977. This collaborative autobiographical survey of Depardon looks to be the ultimate culmination of his two passions.
The Gist: Travelling alone, internationally acclaimed photographer and filmmaker Raymond Depardon spent six years capturing his home country with a large format camera. This long, solitary road trip provided fertile ground for...
- 5/15/2012
- by Blake Williams
- IONCINEMA.com
With filmmakers everywhere suffering from budget cuts, our latest World Cinema column provides some handy tips for cash-strapped directors...
Cuts. More cuts. France is on strike again. Demonstrations. It's pretty depressing right now out there. And if it's bad for us, think what it must be for those poor struggling Hollywood filmmakers!
The Spider-Man reboot is a prime example, which has had its budget cut from Spider-Man 3's bloated $258 million to a paltry $80 million. How will they even feed themselves on set?! Maybe there will no longer be a choice between the salmon and the crab?
But take heart, and don't despair, as filmmakers have for years been creative and, indeed, crafty at squeezing maximum product out of budgets that, to be honest, probably couldn't even pay for a port-a-loo in Hollywood...
Shoot on location
Can't afford to build expensive sets? Why bother? The world will provide. This has...
Cuts. More cuts. France is on strike again. Demonstrations. It's pretty depressing right now out there. And if it's bad for us, think what it must be for those poor struggling Hollywood filmmakers!
The Spider-Man reboot is a prime example, which has had its budget cut from Spider-Man 3's bloated $258 million to a paltry $80 million. How will they even feed themselves on set?! Maybe there will no longer be a choice between the salmon and the crab?
But take heart, and don't despair, as filmmakers have for years been creative and, indeed, crafty at squeezing maximum product out of budgets that, to be honest, probably couldn't even pay for a port-a-loo in Hollywood...
Shoot on location
Can't afford to build expensive sets? Why bother? The world will provide. This has...
- 10/20/2010
- Den of Geek
Toronto -- Veteran directors David Cronenberg, John Waters and Peter Bogdanovich, film editor Walter Murch and "Dexter" creator Jeff Lindsay, will help launch the new home of the Toronto International Film Festival this fall, organizers said Monday.
Also giving guest talks at Bell Lightbox this fall is actor/director Isabella Rossellini, film critic Molly Haskell, actor Michael Murphy and Quebec cinematographer and director Michel Brault.
Bell Lightbox on Monday also unveiled a fall film lineup heavy on foreign-language arthouse titles and film print restorations to follow Tiff's upcoming Sept. 9 to 19 installment.
The festival's year-round home and its five cinema screens will launch Sept. 23 with screenings of Apichatpong Weerasethakul's Oscar winner "Uncle Boonmee Who Can Recall His Past Lives," Israeli director Yael Hersonski's "A Film Unfinished," which grabbed the best international feature award at the recent Hot Docs Canadian International Documentary Festival in Toronto, and Quebec filmmaker Xavier Dolan's "Les Amours imaginaires.
Also giving guest talks at Bell Lightbox this fall is actor/director Isabella Rossellini, film critic Molly Haskell, actor Michael Murphy and Quebec cinematographer and director Michel Brault.
Bell Lightbox on Monday also unveiled a fall film lineup heavy on foreign-language arthouse titles and film print restorations to follow Tiff's upcoming Sept. 9 to 19 installment.
The festival's year-round home and its five cinema screens will launch Sept. 23 with screenings of Apichatpong Weerasethakul's Oscar winner "Uncle Boonmee Who Can Recall His Past Lives," Israeli director Yael Hersonski's "A Film Unfinished," which grabbed the best international feature award at the recent Hot Docs Canadian International Documentary Festival in Toronto, and Quebec filmmaker Xavier Dolan's "Les Amours imaginaires.
- 8/16/2010
- by By Etan Vlessing
- The Hollywood Reporter - Movie News
The National Film Board of Canada has produced a documentary called Capturing Reality: The Art of the Documentary, and the website is incredible, featuring over 160 interview clips. Here's their description of the doc: Capturing Reality: The Art of Documentary is a film about contemporary documentary cinema and features some rock stars of the genre, including Albert Maysles, Errol Morris, Alanis Obomsawin, Michel Brault, Nick Broomfield, Kim Longinotto and Werner Herzog. Thirty-three filmmakers from 14 countries share their passion for documentary and talk about the artistic and ethical choices they make in their craft. Capturing Reality premiered at the International Documentary Festival Amsterdam and has been making the rounds on the...
- 7/7/2009
- by Scott Macaulay
- Filmmaker Magazine - Blog
The 70th anniversary of the National Film Board of Canada is being celebrated @ downtown Toronto's Nfb Mediatheque with a free screening of Pepita Ferrari.s Capturing Reality: The Art of Documentry, Tuesday, June 9 and Wednesday June 10. Ferrari will be in attendance, joined by filmmakers Jennifer "Act Of God" Baichwal, Velcrow "Fierce Light" Ripper, Manfred "Fatherland" Becker and producer Michelle van Beusekom for a post-screening discussion. "...This feature film investigates the genre of documentaries through encounters with some of its most influential practitioners. Over 30 luminaries Â. including Albert Maysles, Errol Morris, Alanis Obomsawin, Michel Brault, Nick Broomfield, Kim Longinotto and that great iconoclast Werner Herzog Â. offer insight into their craft while reflecting on the nature of representation and the perennially contested status of the 'truth'. More than 50 clips from landmark films enliven the discussion, offering a panoramic overview of contemporary documentary cinema..." The Nfb is also offering Free on-demand digital viewing,...
- 6/2/2009
- HollywoodNorthReport.com
- Cédric Klapisch’s Les Poupées Russes (the follow-up to L'Auberge Espagnole) opened the inaugural New Montreal Film Festival. Here are some red-carpet pics from Pierre-Alexandre Despatis. Hommage & Retrospective: Michel Brault: Cinematographer and Filmmaker Best known for his documentaries films and work with director Gilles Groulx. Alain Simard (Festival President) & Cédric Klapisch Cédric Klapisch Director: Les Poupées Russes, L'Auberge Espagnole Moritz de Hadeln: Program Director Famed director of the Berlin Film Festival for almost 20 years Michel Côté Actor: C.R.A.Z.Y. Perhaps one of Quebec’s most versatile actors. Jury member : Chang Chen Actor 2046, Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon Look for our interview with him this week! Jury member (President): Claude Lelouche Director: Un homme et une femme, too many other films to count {Note: This page gets updated several times daily.}...
- 9/19/2005
- IONCINEMA.com
Film review - 'A Paper Wedding' By JEFF MENELLNEW YORK -- A much sweeter, subtler and more credible version of ''Green Card,'' ''A Paper Wedding'' does contain many scenes similar to the Andie MacDowell-Gerard Depardieu hit, but here each one is more elegantly played.
This charming Canadian gem, starring the lovely Genevieve Bujold, should prove to be a compatible mate to the art-house crowd. Its simplicity and gentle humor make it one of the few truly heartwarming films out there, almost guaranteeing it a warm reception.
Bujold has never looked more comfortable in a role, nor has she ever looked so naturally beautiful as she appears here. It's not simply that all brides are beautiful, or that director of photography Sylvain Brault's camera is in love with her (which it obviously is). It's that Bujold's inner beauty, and her character's, are in full bloom on the screen.
She plays Claire, a 39-year-old college professor who, though she's in love with her lover, Milosh (Teo Spychalski), is unhappy being just a mistress. She would love to do something with him while ''fully dressed.''
Her inner loneliness sets the stage for her willingness, after initial reluctance, to marry Pablo (Manuel Aranguiz), a Chilean political refugee whose visa has expired. Immigration is after him, but if he is sent back to his home country he is sure to be tortured, imprisoned or worse. His lawyer happens to be Claire's sister, Annie (Dorothee Berryman), whose bright idea it was for this seemingly mismatched pair to get married.
Naturally, there is an overzealous immigration official, Bouchard (Gilbert Sicotte), out to prove that their marriage is a farce, who keeps them under observation 24 hours a day. This necessitates that they live together in order to fool Bouchard. However, they need only stay under one roof for three days until they take the immigration exam, which will determine if the government considers them legally married.
In that time, they slowly reveal themselves to one another, peeling off layer after protective layer. An unspoken bond develops between them. Their emotions speak louder than their words, but each pretends not to hear. Their future, whether together or apart, is as much a mystery to them as it to us.
Again, the plot will sound quite familiar to anyone who saw ''Green Card, '' yet many films with similar plots are quite different in quality and effectiveness. ''A Paper Wedding'' is its own film entirely. There is nothing broad or predictable about it. And there is a natural, believable chemistry between Bujold and Aranguiz that keeps the film in the realm of reality. Director Michel Brault allows the story to build at a necessarily even pace, which enables the viewer to absorb all the dynamics that take place between the different characters.
''A Paper Wedding'' is a tender no comma here julie little ceremony you'll be happy to attend.
A PAPER WEDDING
A Capitol Entertainment Release
Director Michel Brault
Writers Jefferson Lewis, Andree Pelletier
Director of photography Sylvain Brault
Editor Jacques Gagne
Music supervisorMartin Fournier
Color
In French and Spanish with subtitles
Cast:
Claire Genevieve Bujold
Pablo Manuel Aranguiz
Annie Dorothee Berryman
Milosh Teo Spychalski
Gaby Monique Lepage
Bouchard Gilbert Sicotte
Running time - 90 minutes
No MPAA Rating
(c) The Hollywood Reporter...
Bujold has never looked more comfortable in a role, nor has she ever looked so naturally beautiful as she appears here. It's not simply that all brides are beautiful, or that director of photography Sylvain Brault's camera is in love with her (which it obviously is). It's that Bujold's inner beauty, and her character's, are in full bloom on the screen.
She plays Claire, a 39-year-old college professor who, though she's in love with her lover, Milosh (Teo Spychalski), is unhappy being just a mistress. She would love to do something with him while ''fully dressed.''
Her inner loneliness sets the stage for her willingness, after initial reluctance, to marry Pablo (Manuel Aranguiz), a Chilean political refugee whose visa has expired. Immigration is after him, but if he is sent back to his home country he is sure to be tortured, imprisoned or worse. His lawyer happens to be Claire's sister, Annie (Dorothee Berryman), whose bright idea it was for this seemingly mismatched pair to get married.
Naturally, there is an overzealous immigration official, Bouchard (Gilbert Sicotte), out to prove that their marriage is a farce, who keeps them under observation 24 hours a day. This necessitates that they live together in order to fool Bouchard. However, they need only stay under one roof for three days until they take the immigration exam, which will determine if the government considers them legally married.
In that time, they slowly reveal themselves to one another, peeling off layer after protective layer. An unspoken bond develops between them. Their emotions speak louder than their words, but each pretends not to hear. Their future, whether together or apart, is as much a mystery to them as it to us.
Again, the plot will sound quite familiar to anyone who saw ''Green Card, '' yet many films with similar plots are quite different in quality and effectiveness. ''A Paper Wedding'' is its own film entirely. There is nothing broad or predictable about it. And there is a natural, believable chemistry between Bujold and Aranguiz that keeps the film in the realm of reality. Director Michel Brault allows the story to build at a necessarily even pace, which enables the viewer to absorb all the dynamics that take place between the different characters.
''A Paper Wedding'' is a tender no comma here julie little ceremony you'll be happy to attend.
A PAPER WEDDING
A Capitol Entertainment Release
Director Michel Brault
Writers Jefferson Lewis, Andree Pelletier
Director of photography Sylvain Brault
Editor Jacques Gagne
Music supervisorMartin Fournier
Color
In French and Spanish with subtitles
Cast:
Claire Genevieve Bujold
Pablo Manuel Aranguiz
Annie Dorothee Berryman
Milosh Teo Spychalski
Gaby Monique Lepage
Bouchard Gilbert Sicotte
Running time - 90 minutes
No MPAA Rating
(c) The Hollywood Reporter...
- 6/24/1991
- The Hollywood Reporter - Movie News
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