FNC 2013: Bluebird

BLUEBIRD

Director:  Lance Edmands

Screenplay:  Lance Edmands 

Actors:  Amy Morton, John Slattery, Louisa Krause 

2013 | O.V. English | United States | 90min | colour

FNC Official Film SYNOPSIS :

"In a depressed logging town in northern Maine, a school bus driver’s world is turned upside down due to her own negligence. After her shift, Lesley forgets to check the back of the bus and leaves behind a sleeping child. Suffering from hypothermia, the little boy slips into a coma, leaving this already fragile community reeling. Bluebird deftly examines the profound consequences of this roadside tragedy and the psychological toll it takes on the residents of an isolated village. While the premise is reminiscent of The Sweet Hereafter (1997), Atom Egoyan’s adaptation of the Russell Banks novel, Lance Edmands successfully distinguishes his picture from the Canadian film by weaving in multiple storylines that subtly flesh out our understanding of the characters and plot. Understated and beautifully shot in 35mm, Bluebird is anchored by superb performances from Amy Morton, Louisa Krause, John Slattery and Emily Meade, who lend the film its near intolerable yet effective tension. Edmands has made a sensitive and realistic first feature, proving that he’s a talented newcomer to watch."

The Festival du Nouveau Cinema (FNC) presents this film in the International Competition Category - LOUVRE D’OR. The film is competing for the festival's most prestigious prize.

The film is about an unintentional human error, a moment of distraction when a bluebird flies into a school bus, a distracts the bus driver from her usual routine. This leads to grave consequences, and impacts all the characters in the film either directly or indirectly. They all take their individual paths to express their reactions to what had happened, and have to come to terms with that through examining their feelings and relationships.

The film will be shown:

Wednesday, October 14 at 16:00. at Cinéma Excentris

Thursday, October 12 at 21:30. at Cinéma Excentris

FNC webpage

Film Trailer: Bluebird

For more information on all the films shown during the festival, visit the festival’s website.

http://www.nouveaucinema.ca/en/2013/

Festival du Nouveau Cinéma 2013: 42nd Edition

Festival Du Nouveau Cinéma 2013

Ocotober 9 - 20, 2013 

This year the Montreal's film festival Festival du Nouveau Cinéma celebrates its 42nd Edition. 

This festival is dedicated to the dissemination and development of new trends in the field of cinema and new media. It offers a springboard for original and largely unseen works. It has welcomed Quebec, Canadian and international artists in an atmosphere that offers public and professional exchange. 

The festival has been a major presence within the Canadian cinematic landscape since 1971. It has demonstrated its ability to evolve and adapt to the cutting-edge audiovisual practices by incorporating the newest technologies of production and presentation into its programming, and in so doing, it has garnered international renown. The Festival also represents a unique opportunity for artists and their public to explore together the most innovative trends in cinema and new media. Over the course of eleven days, film, video, performance, multimedia work, interactive installations as well as other hybrid artistic forms will converge at the heart of one single even - the Festival du nouveau cinéma.

This year, 273 films will be shown (147 features and 124 shorts) from 47 countries, including 39 world premiers, 33 North American premiers, and 47 Canadian premiers.

To check out to festival's programming, visit the festival's website

http://nouveaucinema.ca/en/2013/

MWFF 2013: Best Screenplay - Ivan Son of Amir

IVAN SON OF AMIR
Best screenplay, Maksim Panfilov & Andrei Osipov (Russia)

The Montreal World Film Festival 2013 Prize for the Best Screenplay, or in other words for the best film's script, went to the Russian film Ivan Son of Amir. It is a remarkable film with a masterfully and very skilfully constructed and executed story line. The plot weaves through two different cultures and presents a human aspect of complex life situations and relationships.

The photos below show Mr. Maksim Panfilov, the Director and Scriptwriter of the film, on the stage at the Maisonneuve Theatre at Place-des-Arts just after having been awarded the Best Screenplay for his film Ivan Son of Amir. On the left, he is delivering his acceptance speech. On the right, he is posing in the middle of the stage for the photo shoot.

The photo below shows Maksim Pantilov at the Maisonneuve Theatre just before the Awards Ceremonies, sitting next to the Quebec actor Marcel Sabourin, who was also honoured that night by winning the Prize for the Best Actor. 

The following photo was taken on the red carpet just before the entry into the Maisonneuve Theatre. Here, Maksim Panfilov is posing with Richard Stark, the Director of a short film 30-LOVE that also received a prize that night - the Public Award for the Best Canadian Short Film.

Read more about Maksim Pantilov's film Ivan Son of Amir in an earlier post in this blog

World Film Festival 2013: Ivan Son of Amir

Click on images to enlarge them.

All photos in this article by Nadia Slejskova.

©2013 Nadia Slejskova

MWFF 2013: Best Actress

Tuesday, September 03, 2013

JÖRDIS TRIEBEL
Best Actress, film WESTEN (WEST)

The Montreal World Film Festival 2013 Prize for the Best Actress was awarded to JÖRDIS TRIEBEL for her lead role in the film WESTEN (WEST) by Christian Schwochow (Germany). The prize is well deserved since her acting in this film is quite remarkable and very powerful. It is well appreciated to honour an actress who can interpret a character with such intensity and edginess required for the part.

Below are photos of Jordis Triebel during the Montreal World Film Festival. The two pictures just below were taken before the press conference at the Hyatt Hotel on August 25, 2013. 

Below on the left is a photo of Jordis Triebel at the press conference. On the right Jordis Triebel relaxes at the Hyatt Hotel's terrace.

Here is the Official Synopsis of the Westen:

"Two suitcases, a schoolbag, a plush toy – that’s all Nelly Senff and her son Alexei take with them to begin their new life. A Volkswagen stops in front of their house in East Berlin. Nelly is nervous. The year is 1978. It’s summer, three years after Wassilly’s death. Nelly’s boyfriend and Alexei’s father died in a car accident in Russia. Since he is dead, Nelly wants to leave too. Away from the GDR, to leave the grief and the memories behind. To get a fresh start. That should be possible in the West, or so Nelly believes. When she leaves, when she gets into the car, she is wearing a floral dress, But over there in the West, she doesn’t know anybody. The first place of refuge for immigrants from the East is Marienfelde, a cramped emergency camp in West Berlin. Marienfelde is a hotspot between two political systems. And the place where her past catches up to her. The West German secret police take her aside for interrogation; they ask her about Wassily. Nelly has to decide whether she will let the trauma of the past destroy the future she had in mind for her and her son."

Information about the film's production team:

Director : Christian Schwochow

Screenwriter : Heide Schwochow. D'après le roman/Based on the novel: Lagerfeuer. De/By: Juli Franck

Cinematographer : Frank Lamm

Editor : Jens Klüber

Cast : Jördis Triebel, Tristan Göbel, Alexander Scheer, Jacky Ido

Music : Lorenz Dangel

Film production and Sales : Thomas Kufus, Katrin Schlösser, Christoph Friedel, Zero One Film GmbH, Lehrterstr. 57, 10557 Berlin (Allemagne), tél.: (+49-30) 390 66 30, office@zeroone.de 

Click on images to enlarge them.

Image at the top courtesy of MWFF.

All photos in this article by Nadia Slejskova.

© 2013 Nadia Slejskova

MWFF 2013: Tribute to Kathleen Turner

Tuesday, September 03, 2013

Ttribute TO KATHLEEN TURNER AT THE Montreal World Film Festival 2013

The celebrated American star of the screen and stage Kathleen Turner was honoured by the Montreal World Film Festival this year. Ms Turner received a Special Grand Prix (Prize) of the Americas.

The honour included a prestigious Award presentation preceded by an onstage interview covering her illustrious career. Screenings of several of her films also took place during the course of the Festival. "We are very pleased to welcome Kathleen Turner to Montreal,” said Serge Losique, president of the MWFF. “Her presence here honours us and reflects the Festival’s reputation in the international film community.”

The photos below show the American Actress Kathleen Turner posing in front of the official Montreal World Film Festival poster alone and also with her daughter Rebecca just before the Press Conference at the Hyatt Hotel in Montreal on August 29, 2013.

The two photos below show Kathleen Turner at the cocktail party on the terrace of the Hyatt Hotel. This event preceded the Closing Ceremony of the Montreal World Film Festival 2013.

Click on images to enlarge them.

All photos in this article by Nadia Slejskova.

©2014 Nadia Slejskova

MWFF 2013: Awards

Tuesday, September 03, 2013

AWARDS  2013

MONTREAL WORLD FILM FESTIVAL

AWARDS OF THE WORLD FILM FESTIVAL – Montréal 2013

Jury

President : JIRI MENZEL, director (Czech Republic)

CAROLINE DHAVERNAS, actress (Canada)

MICHAEL KUTZA, festival director (USA)

PEDRO OLEA, director, scriptwriter, producer (Spain)

DAI SIJIE, director and writer (China - France)

FEATURE FILMS

Grand prix des Americas:

LIFE FEELS GOOD (CHCE SIEZ ZYC) by Maciej Pieprzyca (Poland)

Special Grand Prix of the jury:

A THOUSAND TIMES GOODNIGHT by Erik Poppe (Norway)

Best Director:

HET VONNIS (THE VERDICT) by Jan Verheyen (Belgium)

Best Actress :

JÖRDIS TRIEBEL for the film WESTEN (WEST) by Christian Schwochow (Germany)

Best Actors :

MARCEL SABOURIN for the film ANOTHER HOUSE by Mathieu Roy (Canada)

PETER PLAUGBORG for the film THE MIRACLE (MIRAKLET) by Simon Staho (Danemark)

Best Screenplay:

IVAN SON OF AMIR by Maksim Panfilov, screeplay by Maksim Panfilov & Andrei Osipov (Russie)

Best Artistic Contribution :

ASK THIS OF RIKYU by Mitsutoshi Tanaka (Japan)

LANDES by François-Xavier Vives (France)

Innovation Award:

FEED ME by Yazhou Yang & Bo Yang (China)

SHORT FILMS

1st prize:

HELP! by Jean Marboeuf (France)

Jury Award:

WOLSMELK (WOLF’S MILK) by Hans Vercauter (Belgique)

ZENITHS FOR THE BEST FIRST FICTION FEATURE FILMS 2012

Members of the jury of the First Fiction Films:

Pierre-Henri Deleau (France)

Wieland Speck (Germany)

Raymond Zhou (China)

Golden Zenith for the Best First Fiction Feature film:

THE LONG WAY HOME (EVE DÖNÜS SARKAMIS 1915) by Alphan Eseli (Turkey)

Silver Zenith for the First Fiction Feature Film : 

PUERTO PADRE by Gustavo Fallas (Costa Rica / Mexico)

Bronze Zenith for the First Fiction Feature Film : 

FINSTERWORLD by Frauke Finsterwalder (Germany)

PUBLIC AWARDS

The public was invited to vote for the most popular films in different categories:

Public Awards for the most popular film of the Festival:

LIFE FEELS GOOD (CHCE SIEZ ZYC) by Maciej Pieprzyca (Poland)

Public Award for the most popular Canadian Feature Film:

L’AUTRE MAISON (ANOTHER HOUSE) by Mathieu Roy (Canada)

Glauber Rocha Award for the Best Latin American Film:

LA DISTANCIA MAS LARGA (THE LONGEST DISTANCE) by Claudia Pinto Emperador (Venezuela / Spain)

Award for Best documentary:

WAGNERWAHN (THE WAGNER FILES) by Ralf Pleger (Germany)

Award for Best Canadian Short Film:

30-LOVE de Richard Stark (Canada)

FIPRESCI PRIZE 

FIPRESCI Prize for a film in the World Competition:
WESTEN (WEST) by Christian Schwochow (Germany)

FIPRESCI Prize for a film in the First Films Competition:
THE LONG WAY HOME (EVE DÖNÜS SARKAMIS 1915) by Alphan Eseli (Turkey)

ECUMENICAL PRIZES

LIFE FEELS GOOD (CHCE SIEZ ZYC) by Maciej Pieprzyca (Pologne)

Special mention of the Ecumenical jury:

A THOUSAND TIMES GOODNIGHT by Erik Poppe (Norway)

THE FERRY by Shi Wei (China)

MWFF 2013: Ivan Son of Amir

IVAN SON OF AMIR
ИВАН СЫН АМИРА

PRODUCTION TEAM

Director : Maksim Panfilov

Screenwriter : Maksim Panfilov, Andrei Osipov

Cinematographer : Oleg Lukichev

Cast : Karolina Grushka, Bobur Yuldashev, Dmitry Dyuzhev, Andrey Merzlikin, Lola Eltaeva, Nargis Abdullaeva, Aziza Begmatova, Anastasia Smoktunovskaya, Samira Khuseynova

Film production and Sales : Film Company: Vera, Mosfilmovvskaya str. 1, Moscow (Russia), tel. and fax: +7 499 1439222, ivera2007@mail.ru

OFFICIAL FILM SYNOPSIS

"A Russian woman from Sevastopol flees with her two children during the Second World War. Amir, an Uzbek with two wives, gives her shelter in a remote village. The Uzbek has not gone to the front to fight, because he, as he explains, he does not like to kill people. Nevertheless, Amir believes that he is "defending the motherland" by looking after and feeding his own family along with the Russian, now his third wife, her two children and little Ivan, his new son from the Russian woman. When the war ends, the woman's husband, a lieutenant of the Black Sea fleet, who was assumed to be dead, shows up looking for his wife and children. He finds them and returns with them to Sevastopol -- his wife, the children and little Ivan. But he has difficulty accepting that his wife was third wife of a Muslim man who wouldn't fight in the war and the product of their union, Ivan, who is named after him, is now playing host to Amir's visiting family."

Ivan Son of Amir was the only Russian film shown  at the Montreal World Film Festival this year. The image to the left shows the Director of the film Mr. Maksim Panfilov (on the right) with two interpreters at the Press Conference that took place at the Hyatt Hotel in Montreal on August 28, 2013.

Two images below are also of the director Maksim Panfilov. On the left, he is listening to a question during the press conference. On the right, posing next to the official poster of his film right after the same press conference.

The film had merited an enthusiastic applause at the end of all three official screenings at the festival. Mr. Panfilov's film presents a very human situation, where a mistaken information is provided to the film's main character, which consequently leads her to faced a dilemma of making some life-changing choices to assure the survival of her two children and herself during the World War II. The original motive for this film was given to the director by his mother when she narrated to him a true story that happened to a Russian woman when she was evacuated from a war-torn Russia to Uzbekistan.

The film's heroin, interpreted superbly with great skill and sensitivity by Karolina Grushka, portrays emotions and conflicts experienced in a very unusual and difficult situation. This is especially true when her husband, previously declared dead in action, finds her in Uzbekistan after the war. Meanwhile, she has become a third wife of a Muslim Uzbek man, to whom she has born a son, small Ivan, called by his Uzbek father to honour the heroin's presumably fallen husband whose name was Ivan.

Although I could tell you more as what took place next, I would actually prefer you saw the film in person, in order to appreciate the ensuing drama, the characters' search to resolve the situation, and the inter-human relationships that triumph even in a complex diverse cultural situation, where purely human values common to all of us, regardless of our nationalities, triumph at the end. 

The film features a superb cinematography with compelling, poetic, and skilfully constructed imagery. The music and sound effects are innate to the story line and help to bring it to the sharp focus. The other principle actors Bobur Yuldashev, Dmitry Dyuzhev also deliver a commendable performance, along with all the supporting actors and even extras.

The picture to the left shows the film's director Maksim Panfilov with the Montreal Film Festival's director Serge Losique at the Mayor of Montreal reception which took place under a tent, on the Montreal City Hall's terrace, on August 28, 2013. The photo below and to the left is of director Maksim Panfilov on the City Hall's terrace during the same reception. The photo to to the right shows Maksim Panfilov with his interpreter on the stage of the Montreal's Maisonneuve Theatre just before the screening of his film.

Film's trailer:

ТРЕЙЛЕР ФИЛЬМА "ИВАН СЫН АМИРА", РЕЖ. МАКСИМ ПАНФИЛОВ




This film has merited the Best Screenplay Prize that was awarded at the very end of the festival. Read more about it in my post of September 3, 2013:

Montreal World Film festival 2013: Best Screenplay - Ivan Son of Amir

Top Image courtesy MWFF 2013 and the Director of the film.
All other photos by Nadia Slejskova.
© Nadia Slejskova

MWFF 2013: Life Feels Good

Life Feels Good
Chce Sie Zyc

PRODUCTION TEAM

Director : Maciej Pieprzyca

Screenwriter : Maciej Pieprzyca

Cinematographer : Pawel Dyllus

Editor : Krzysztof Szpetmánski

Cast : Dawid Ogrodnik, Kami Tkacz, Dorota Kolak, Arkadiusz Jakubik, Katarzyna Zawadzka, Anna Nehrebecka

Music : Bartosz Chajdecki

Film production and Sales : Wieslaw Lysakowski, Tramway Studio, Rejtana 14/9, 02-516 Varsovie (Pologne), tél.: (+48-22) 845 03 52, studio@tramway.pl / TVP - Film Agency, Varsovie (Pologne), tél.: (+48-22) 547 81 67, festivals@tvp.pl

OFFICIAL FILM SYNOPSIS

"Mateusz has cerebral palsy. In addition to his obvious physical handicap, he was diagnosed at a very early age as a mentally disabled person with no communicative ability. After twenty five years, however, it turned out that apart from his physical problems, he was a perfectly normal, even quite intelligent person. The film is a chronicle of his life. We get to know Mateusz now, when he is 30 and is institutionalized at a clinic for the mentally disabled. He is about to be examined by a committee which will decide whether he is normal or not. In retrospect we follow his life from the early 1980s to the present, in happy and sad times. We also get to know the love of his life, Anka. 'The story of Przemek (the name of the real person on whom Mateusz is based) is above all a pretext to ask existential questions about life, death, faith, love, normality and understanding. Life does not bring unambiguous moments of sadness or joy; it is more a state in-between those feelings, between a funeral and a wedding. Life is both tragic and comical.'-- Maciej Pierprzyca"

The photo to the left shows the production team of the Polish film Life Feels Good aduring the press conference at the Montreal's World film Festival. Starting from the left is the lead actor Dawid Ogrodnik, in the centre - film director Maciej Pierpzyka, and on the the right - the cinematographer Pawel Dyllus.

The film is based on a true story. At the very end of the film we see the real person who inspired this film and whose real name is Przemek. Diagnosed at birth with a cerebral palsy, due to a medical error during his birth, he was tested through his childhood and early adulthood for any signs of intelligence. Unable to talk and to communicate to the others, he was time and again pronounced to be mentally deficient. In reality, he had a normal intelligence and an inquisitive mind, and had to live a life full of frustration, unable to convey this to others and especially to his family members. The breakthrough took place when the woman therapist who brought to Poland the BLISS communication language that enables severely handicapped people to communicate by blinking 'yes' or 'no' when shown various images (the BLISS language, which she incidentally learned in Canada). It was only then that the hero of the film, as well as the real person on whom the film is based, was able to tell the world that he was not a 'vegetable' as he was repeatedly referred to by others, even doctors, but a mentally normal person. 

The role of the main character Mateusz is superbly played by the Polish actor Dawid Ogrodnik. He really deserves a prize for his skilful and sensitive portrayal of the character's handicap. The role required not only the character study but also a physical training to be able to twist his joints in conceivable and plausible ways. But that was not enough. The actor also had to train with a mime - as he told those present at the Press Conference - to be able to acquire the needed skills in order to be authentically real in his role.

Below, in the image to the left we see the lead actor Dawid Ogrodnik as he relaxes on the terrace of the Hyatt Hotel, the headquarters of the film festival. On the right is the photo of Dawid Ogrodnik with the film director Maciej Pierpzyka after the press conference that took place at the same hotel.

Click on images to enlarge them.

Image at the top courtesy of MWFF and the Director of the film.

The film was awarded three prizes at the MWFF 2013:

-Grand Prix des Americas

-Ecumenical Prize

-Public Award for the most popular film of the Festival

All photos in this article by Nadia Slejskova

© 2013 Nadia Slejskova

MWFF 2013: The Ferry

The Ferry

PRODUCTION TEAM

Director : Shi Wei

Screenwriter : Shengsheng H. D'après/Based on: The Ferry. De/By: Shengsheng He

Cinematographer : Wang Yang

Editor : Wang Qiuyue, Zhang Sheng

Cast : Zhou Guangda

Music : Wang Yuanping

Film production and Sales : Peng Yanfang, Qiang Chen, Hubei Film Studio, 139 Wangsongyuan Road, Jianghan District, Wuhan, Hubei Prov. (Chine), tél.: (+86-27) 8548 89 03, chengiang1963@163.com Ventes/Sales: China Film Promotion International, Room 305, Red Chamber, 25 Xinwai Street, Beijing 100082 (Chine), lucy.cfpi@gmail.com

OFFICIAL FILM SYNOPSIS

"Deep in the Enshi mountains, the Tian family live near an old ferry. To keep a commitment made by their forebears, three generations of the Tian family have helped people cross the river without collecting a penny for the ride. Using a wooden punt, they ferry the villagers across the Dasha river which divides the village. A widower in his 60s, his son away outside the village, Tian Huai’en is the third generation of the family to work the ferry. These years Huai’en has been living alone in a small stone hut built by the villagers, spending every day and night with his ferry, living a lonely and monotonous life. One day, his son Chuanjie takes a break from his job to visit his sick dad. He does not understand why Huai’en insists on running a free ferry. To explain, his father recounts how when Chuanjie’s great grandfather and his family came as refugees, the villagers sheltered them. The Tians began providing the free ferry as a token of their gratitude, and a tradition was established. Now Chuanjie wonders whether he should relieve his father. After spending his vacation rowing the ferry, Chuanjie realizes its significance. As his contribution to its future, he decides to save up and replace the wooden punt with a motorboat. Will the tradition continue?"

The film, based on a true story, features superb photography of the natural, mountainous, rural setting. It was filmed in Hubei Province in China. The film skilfully portrays the poetry of the running river, the sounds the water or rain makes, the harmony of colours and forms. But most importantly, it stresses the traditional family and simply human values like, for instance, honour expressed in keeping a promises once made from one generation through the succeeding generations, as well as the honour and pride in one’s work skilfully performed - a free service provided to the local community.

The film deals with the relationship between a son, who arrives for a 10 day holiday from a busy concrete filled city, and his father, who lives in the heart of nature and talks to the water and the river, across which he ferries people back and forth many times per day. At first, their is a conflict between the two, but as the film progresses they both come to understand and respect each other.

At the Montreal World Film Festival 2013 Press Conference, the film's director Shi Wei has stated that he had based his film on the ancient Chinese way of seeing the world, of finding the middle way: there are the heavens and the earth, and in the middle their are the people, and the goal is to harmonize all those spheres of existence.

The film clearly shows that no on-screen violence or portrayal of sex is required to make a film that could make us reconnect to many of our common sensibilities and emotions, to our humanity, love and respect.