International feature films in the Contemporary World Cinema series at this year’s Vancouver International Film Festival (VIFF) are some of the most anticipated of 2019, made by the world’s boldest creators. Part of the Panorama programming stream, this sprawling film series includes award winners, new discoveries, and several North American premieres. Contemporary World Cinema is made up of 47 films from 28 countries, representing a broad range of cultures, stories, topics, and themes.
“Every year, this is one of our most exciting and anticipated film series, and when you look at the program, it’s clear why. Not only does Contemporary World Cinema give audiences the opportunity to experience the year’s greats, but it also offers us at VIFF the ability to encourage understanding of the world’s cultures through the art of cinema,” said Alan Franey, Director of International Programming. “Running the gamut from Kleber Mendonça Filho and Juliano Dornelles’ off-the-grid Brazilian political thriller Bacurau to the ever-so-subtly-sad urban-female-friendship-drama of New Yorker Dan Sallitt’s Fourteen, Contemporary World Cinema shows a spectrum of the best new work from international filmmakers.”
Some of the programming team’s not-to-be-missed highlights include Carl Hunter’s Sometimes Always Never, a delightfully offbeat, wry British dramedy about love, loss and Scrabble starring Bill Nighy and Jenny Agutter; the North American premiere of Frederikke Aspöck’s Out of Tune, a touching and humane drama set in a Danish prison which tells the story of a men’s choir programming going smoothly... until a new member arrives; Ira Sachs’ Frankie starring Isabelle Huppert, Brendan Gleeson, Greg Kinnear and Marisa Tomei, an exquisite drama about family, friends and loss, set amidst the natural and architectural glories of Sintra, Portugal; and the North American premiere of Levan Akin’s And Then We Danced, which tells the story of troubled queer romance within the spheres of the balletic, yet militaristic world of Georgian Dance, all set against beautiful, sun-dappled Georgian scenes.
Award winners in Contemporary World Cinema series include the aforementioned Bacurau, which won the Jury Prize at Cannes ‘19; Karim Aïnouz’s The Invisible Life of Eurídice Gusmão and Kantemir Balagov’sBeanpole, both of which were awarded major prizes in Cannes' Un Certain Regard section; and Cenk Ertürk’s Noah Land, which claimed Best Screenplay and Best Actor in the International Narrative Competition at Tribeca ‘19.
For more information on the Contemporary World Cinema series and Panorama stream, visit: www.viff.org/Online/VIFF-2019
38th Vancouver International Film Festival
September 26 – October 11, 2019
Feature Films:
Adam (dir. Maryam Touzani), Morocco/France
And Then We Danced (dir. Levan Akin), Georgia/Sweden - N. American Premiere
Babysplitters (dir. Sam Friedlander), USA - Canadian Premiere
Bacurau (dirs. Kleber Mendonça Filho, Juliano Dornelles), Brazil/France
Beanpole (dir. Kantemir Balagov), Russia
Burning Cane (dir. Phillip Youmans), USA - Canadian Premiere
Castle of Dreams (dir. Reza Mirkarimi), Iran - N. American Premiere
Chained (dir. Yaron Shani), Israel/Germany - N. American Premiere
Checkered Ninja (dirs. Anders Matthesen, Thorbjørn Christoffersen), Denmark
Cherry Blossoms & Demons (dir. Doris Dörrie), Germany/Japan - N. American Premiere
The Day After I'm Gone (dir. Nimrod Eldar), Israel - N. American Premiere
Divine Love (dir. Gabriel Mascaro), Brazil/Uruguay/Norway/Denmark
A Dog and His Man (dir. Siddharth Tripathy), India - World Premiere
Dogs Don’t Wear Pants (dir. J-P Valkeapää), Finland/Latvia
Fourteen (dir. Dan Sallitt), USA - N. American Premiere
Frankie (dir. Ira Sachs), France/Portugal
I Was at Home, but… (dir. Angela Schanelec), Germany/Serbia
The Invisible Life of Eurídice Gusmão (dir. Karim Aïnouz), Brazil/Germany
It Must Be Heaven (dir. Elia Suleiman), France/Qatar/Germany/Canada/Turkey/Palestine
Joel (dir. Carlos Sorín), Argentina - Canadian Premiere
Koko-di Koko-da (dir. Johannes Nyholm), Sweden/Denmark
Lara (dir. Jan-Ole Gerster), Germany - N. American Premiere
The Last to See Them (dir. Sara Summa), Germany - Canadian Premiere
Little Joe (dir. Jessica Hausner), Austria/UK/Germany
Noah Land (dir. Cenk Ertürk), Turkey/Germany - Canadian Premiere
Once in Trubchevsk (dir. Larisa Sadilova), Russia - N. American Premiere
Out of Tune (dir. Frederikke Aspöck), Denmark - N. American Premiere
Port Authority (dir. Danielle Lessovitz), USA/France
Queen of Hearts (dir. May el-Toukhy), Denmark/Sweden
The Realm (dir. Rodrigo Sorogoyen), Spain/France
Retrospekt (dir. Esther Rots), Netherlands/Belgium
Scarborough (dir. Barnaby Southcombe), UK - Canadian Premiere
Sometimes Always Never (dir. Carl Hunter), UK
Song Without a Name (dir. Melina León), Peru/Spain/USA
Spider (dir. Andrés Wood), Chile
Staff Only (dir. Neus Ballús), Spain/France
Stitches (dir. Miroslav Terzić), Serbia/Slovenia/Croatia/Bosnia and Herzegovina - N. American Premiere
Synonyms (dir. Nadav Lapid), France/Israel/Germany
Tehran: City of Love (dir. Ali Jaberansari), Iran/UK/Netherlands
Temblores (dir. Jayro Bustamante), Guatemala/France/Luxembourg
Those Who Remained (dir. Barnabás Tóth), Hungary - Canadian Premiere
Vai (dirs. Nicole Whippy, 'Ofa-Ki-Levuka Guttenbeil-Likiliki, Matasila Freshwater, Amberley Jo Aumua, Mīria George, Marina Alofagia McCartney, Dianna Fuemana, Becs), New Zealand
A Voluntary Year (dirs. Ulrich Köhler, Henner Winkler), Germany - N. American Premiere
The Whistlers (dir. Corneliu Porumboiu), Romania/France/Germany
A White, White Day (dir. Hlynur Pálmason), Iceland/Denmark/Sweden
Young Ahmed (dirs. Jean-Pierre Dardenne, Luc Dardenne), Belgium
Yuli (dir. Icíar Bollaín), Spain/UK/Germany - Canadian Premiere
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