Muslim Cinema Festival

The city of Kazan in Tatarstan in Russia, around 800 km East of Moscow, hosts the 4th International festival of Muslim Cinema, ”Golden Minbar”, taking place September 30 to October 4. 14 films have been selected for the documentary competition, 3 of them have been reviewed on this site: Hungarian Ferenc Moldovanyi’s beautiful ”Another Planet”, Czech/Canadian Petr Lom’s actual Iran-film ”Letters to the President” and Polish Beata Dzianowicz film from Afghanistan, ”Kites” (photo). The programme looks interesting from a festival that I regret to say that I had never heard about before. Films from Russia, Saudi Arabia, Canada, Italy, Lebanon – quite a wide range of countries are represented.

www.miradox.ru

Latvian Film 3

… and as a follow-up this mail from Ilze Gailite Holmberg, managing director of the National Film Centre of Latvia, to the big amount of European colleagues and film funds/centres/associations/institutes:

Dear Colleagues, This is to thank you for all your support to the independence of the National Film Centre of Latvia. Currently we have had the first victory – Mr. Ints Dalderis, the Minister of Culture has announced his decision to support NFC’ s independent status at the Cabinet of Ministers of Latvia. Thus, the final decision will be taken by the government. I am very convinced that the positive move of the Minister towards us has happened thanks to the great support we have received from you, widely from the local media, from Latvian filmmakers and a number of international institutions.

During the decisive meeting between Film Council and Minister of Culture Latvian filmmakers were united in a demonstration – filmmaking of a short film The Dream of Eisenstein, based on the boyhood dream of Latvia- born Eisenstein to make a film in Riga, in order to remind the Ministry on the significance of continuation of film culture. You can see some pictures from the set at this link: http://www.pozitivaszinas.lv/posts/view/par-kino

I truly hope the government will follow the decision of the Minister of Culture.

Latvian Film 2

I received this mail from Latvian Lelda Ozola last night, and got her permission to publish it like this:

Dearest Tue, this is a deja vu situation of some 5 years ago … I start thinking why me, why again, why now. What is happening here is close to a nightmare. Every day the feeling strenghtens that this country is meant for destruction. The earth will very soon be unable to bear what is happening.

And in the middle of that we have to get ready for Baltic Sea Forum… (24 Eastern European projects to be pitched to more than 15 international commissioning editors, ed.) You will not recognise us when you come! However, yesterday we got 200% positive emotions, seeing the support from the industry. It was so touching that everybody could hardly suppress tears. Can you imagine 200 people – almost all the industry + actors, being there around the ministry, having brought rails, cameras, sound equipment and even lighting bus from Lithuania has arrived. We felt the solidarity. It was unbelievable. and the main thing – it is not vain, there will be another Laila Pakalnina short film (shot on 35 mm invested by the cinematographer !!!) as a result of all this (hopefully, award winning with fantastic PR from the very start).It is already agreed that we will try to get the film ready to open the National Film Festival at the end of September. All this and the papers and (film centre director, ed.) Ilze Gailite Holmberg’s efforts together with the NGOs have resulted that they allow us to try to preserve independence but cutting staff and functions… This still has to be defended in the cabinet of ministers and the ministry is not very enthusiastic about defending it! But Baltic Sea Forum in two weeks will definitely take place. The catalogue goes to print tomorrow!

Lelda Ozola. National Film Centre of Latvia & Media Desk Latvia

Shocking Film News from Latvia

”National Film Centre of Latvia is under the threat of reorganization” was the headline of this morning’s daily news from ”Film New Europe”, continued by these lines: ” The financial crisis in Latvia has triggered a chain of reorganization of cultural institutions that threatens the existence of the National Film Centre of Latvia (NFC) as an independent establishment.” So not only has the budget for support for films in 2009 been cut 44% compared to 2008, but an eventual cut-away of the Film Centre to be reduced to an office in the Ministry of Culture is of course a severe perspective of catastrophy.

As one who has followed the Latvian film since the independence, I can only admire the work done by committed and clever people in and around the Film Centre. A well functioning, independent film institutional structure has been established, that serves the many fine film directors and producers from a country that especially in the documentary sector has long and proud traditions.

Anyone can understand that cuts are needed in times of financial crisis, but to destroy an independent structure that represents a country with such competence is political narrow-minded thinking. And if this reorganisation becomes a reality, the consequence will be that the EU-supported Baltic Sea Forum, that takes place in Riga for the 13th time in 3 weeks will cease to exist. At this forum Latvian producers, among others, come to find funding for their film projects. Protests have arrived from neighbouring countries, from Austria, from Slovenia, and more will come, I am sure. The Latvian filmmakers protest outside the Ministry of Culture. Allow me to send many warm thoughts to Latvian film friends. A fight for independence is going on.

http://www.filmneweurope.com

Luis Bunuel: Un Chien Andalou

Just this short note to accompany the posted still photo that everybody knows… it is 80 years ago that Bunuel made this 16 minutes long masterpiece with help from Salvador Dali. Lucky you who has not seen the film yet, and lucky us who can watch it again. Available it is in all dvd shops, and online, and maybe you have a cinematheque near you, that celebrates film history like this.

Maziar Bahari on Trial

Joint Appeal from DOK Leipzig and DOK.FEST Munich: The Iranian documentary filmmaker Maziar Bahari is currently enduring a show trial in Tehran. In the morning of July 21, Iranian militia arrested Maziar Bahari at his mother‚s house. He has been detained ever since. No formal charge has been made against Bahari and he has not been allowed to see either a lawyer or a member of his family.

DOK Leipzig festival director Claas Danielsen: Maziar Bahari is an important voice in Iranian documentary film making. DOK Leipzig stands for films which defend freedom and human dignity. We call upon the authorities in Iran to enter into a constructive dialogue with all the democratic forces in Iranian society and to immediately release Maziar Bahari and all peaceful demonstrators!

Maziar Bahari has achieved widespread international acclaim through films such as „Along Came a Spider„. He is an active member of the „Iranian Documentary Filmmakers Association„ and an important role model for many young Iranian filmmakers.”

http://www.ipetitions.com/petition/free_maziar_bahari/

Documentary and Trains

… is a genre in itself and perfect for film, as trains are movements from one place to another, a change in time or destiny, an escape from something or a journey to a better life, or a trip to the one and only. Or trains are there to bring letters to the rich and letters to the poor… as it sounds from Auden’s poem in the classic of all train doc classics, ”Night Mail” by Basil Wright and Harry Watt, 1936.

The British Transport Commission – together with the British Film Institute – has published a unique collection of its films over a period of 30 years from 1950 and ”provides a unique insight into the changing social history of Britain”. 125 films, 18 dvd’s, 38 hours. In the promotion it is said that this is a ”must for transport and (British) film-making enthusiasts alike”.

Thematically organised, one of the dvd’s carries the title, ”The Art of Travel” – isn’t it what documentaries can make us do – travel in time and human life conditions?

http://www.britishtransportfilms.co.uk/

http://filmstore.bfi.org.uk

Sergey Dvortsevoy: Tulpan

The Danish Cinematheque, situated at the Film House in Copenhagen, launches from this month a new and very welcomed initiative: ”film of the month”, where a film – contrary to the normal 2-3 screenings – gets a Danish premiere and several screenings. For films that did not get into the usual cinema distribution, I suppose, but still deserves a helping hand from… the state, in this case through the Danish Film Institute and its Cinematheque. Active cultural policy, thank you!

The Cinematheque starts brilliantly with the new film by Sergey Dvortsevoy, ”Tulpan”, that took him 4 years to make, and which has already won quite a lot of prizes at festivals.

Readers of this site will know the name Sergey Dvortsevoy, who has often been praised for his excellent documentaries: ”Paradise”, ”Bread Day”, ”Highway”, ”In the Dark”.

www.dfi.dk (for Danish readers)

http://hcl.harvard.edu/hfa/films/2006fall/dvortsevoy.html

(about the films of S.D.) 

Sarajevo Film Festival

The beautiful city of Sarajevo hosts its festival August 12-20. Selected by competent film director, tutor and consultant Rada Sesic there is a strong competition programme for documentaries from (and about) the region. Among them a wonderful film, Sevdah (photo) by Marina Andree, that I have seen in a rough cut version, and which is presented like this:

An intimate journey through Bosnian “blues” dedicated to the prematurely deceased Farah, a passionate fan of sevdah. Trying to confront their own loss and grief, the autors create a film about sevdah as an emotional, musical, lyrical and visual journey through the soul of Bosnia.

 Also in the programme are these films that have all been reviewed on filmkommentaren.dk:  ”Cash and Marry” (Atanas Georgiev), ”The Caviar Connection” (Dragan Nikolic), ”Cooking History” (Peter Kerekes), ”On the Way to School” (Eskiköy and Dogan). Another tribute to the festival is that the programmes includes short films – that have always been a strong genre in the region… and of course the festival is full of fiction films and retrospectives, take a look at the site below.

www.docuinter.net

www.sff.ba

Flahertiana

The Russians respect film history. At least, this is what the organisers of the international documentary film festival Flahertiana do. October 15-21 they organise the 9th edition with the reference to Robert Flaherty (1884-1951) and with prizes that are named after his (the first creative documentary ever?) ”Nanook of the North”.

Selection has been done already and 3 of the 22 competition films that have been reviewed on this site will be offered the audience in Perm, the location of the festival: ”Cash and Marry” (Atanas Georgiev) (photo), ”The Living Room of the Nation” (Jukka Karkkanen) and ”Young Freud in Gaza” (PeÅ Holmquist). % Russian films are shown, among them a new film by Alexander Gutman (”17 August”), and there are films from Iran, Iraq, Israel, Poland, UK, Germany, Mexico, Romania and Switzerland. A varied and competent selection as I see it.

Let me end with a quote from the site of the festival: “The more your work corresponds to the real life, the better it seems…” — these words said by Dürer, an artist of the Renaissance, are the most laconic expression of the aesthetic conception of the film festival Flahertiana.

www.miradox.ru
http://flahertiana.perm.ru/eng/2009/