Pictured: “Little Joe” director Jessica Hausner, Martin Gschlacht, one of the film’s producers, Kirsten Niehuus, with director-producer Cordula Kablitz-Post.
Berlin funding agency Medienboard’s managing director Kirsten Niehuus hosted a cocktail reception on Saturday at Grand Hotel in Cannes to celebrate the five films it funded that feature in the festival program.
The five films are competition titles “A Hidden Life” and “Little Joe”; Un Certain Regard films “The Invisible Life of Euridice Gusmao” and “Liberté”; and Critics’ Week film “The Trap”.
Among the 350 guests were August Diehl, an actor in Terrence Malick’s “A Hidden Life”; Jessica Hausner, director of “Little Joe”; Albert Serra, director of “Liberté”; Karim Aïnouz, director of “The Invisible Life of Euridice Gusmao”; and Carlo Chatrian, newly assigned artistic director of the Berlinale.
Other guests include Edward Berger, director of “Patrick Melrose,” “Deutschland 83” and “Jack”; Nurhan Sekerci-Porst, producer of Fatih Akin’s “In the Fade...
Berlin funding agency Medienboard’s managing director Kirsten Niehuus hosted a cocktail reception on Saturday at Grand Hotel in Cannes to celebrate the five films it funded that feature in the festival program.
The five films are competition titles “A Hidden Life” and “Little Joe”; Un Certain Regard films “The Invisible Life of Euridice Gusmao” and “Liberté”; and Critics’ Week film “The Trap”.
Among the 350 guests were August Diehl, an actor in Terrence Malick’s “A Hidden Life”; Jessica Hausner, director of “Little Joe”; Albert Serra, director of “Liberté”; Karim Aïnouz, director of “The Invisible Life of Euridice Gusmao”; and Carlo Chatrian, newly assigned artistic director of the Berlinale.
Other guests include Edward Berger, director of “Patrick Melrose,” “Deutschland 83” and “Jack”; Nurhan Sekerci-Porst, producer of Fatih Akin’s “In the Fade...
- 5/19/2019
- by Leo Barraclough
- Variety Film + TV
“Lamb”, directed by Yared Zeleke and presented by Ama Ampadu and Laurent Lavolé showed in Competition at Doha's Ajyal Youth Film Festival this month to an audience of youth and children under the age of 18. “Lamb” premiered in Cannes’ Un Certain Regard 2015, marking the first time an Ethiopian film has ever screened as an Official Selection at Cannes. ). It was this year’s Ethiopian submission for Academy Award© nomination for Best Foreign Language Film Oscar©.
This is no Little Bo Peep lamb. This lamb has rough brown wool and is led on a rope, dragged on a rope by a young boy, Ephraim, eight years old, who lives in the devout Coptic Christian land of Northern Ethiopia
“Lamb” is a classic tale of a child and pet, the type of story which has been loved by children in every generation. Think “Old Yeller”, “Black Beauty”, “Charlotte’s Web”, “Babe”, “Lassie Come Home”. Ephraim’s pet lamb Chuni belonged to his mother who has died from the drought-caused famine hitting their land. His father must leave the boy with distant relatives while he seeks work in the city. His lamb is the only link he has to a life of happy innocence once shared with his loving mother and father.
The small nuclear family where he must stay lives together in a one-room hut: a grandmother who presides over the family, her son an authoritarian father who reacts against change of any sort, his wife and their sick child. They have also taken in the sixteen year old Tsion who is always reading and seeking ways to educate herself and eventually leaves for the city.
Ephraim does not conform to the norms of males as farmers; instead he prefers cooking.
The authoritarian patriarch of the family refuses to listen to advice of his niece about modern ways of growing crops during the drought and he forbids the child Ephraim, whose love of cooking (“girl’s work! The uncle says) leads him to make money by selling samosas at the market.
Moreover, the authoritarian father of the family wants to serve Ephraim’s lamb as a meal for the upcoming holiday feast and to save his family from starvation.
This moves Ephraim to act to save his lamb. In order to make money he sells his extraordinary samosas in the market place to raise enough to finance his trip to the city to find his father and save his sheep from being sacrificed and served for the upcoming holiday feast.
The children who saw this film at Ajyal Film Festival were entranced by how foreign and strange the landscape, and indeed, the people themselves were. The questions they asked Yared Zeleke, the director, and the two young stars, sixteen-year-old Kidist Siyum and eight year old Rediat Amare were startling. Not the usual Q&A of adults that you hear after they have seen a movie.
Was the boy really being hit?
Yared: Well yes and no. He had lots of padding, lots of practice, and the whip was very small."
Why did you have so much landscape?
Yared: Because the land was a character in the movie. The land shapes who we are. This special land in Ethiopia shapes the characters in the movie. It is as ancient as the people who practice the earliest form of Christianity and Judaism. There is so much history in the mountains. Ethiopia is the only country in Africa never colonized by Europeans. The mountains protected them and the people are very spiritual.
Yared: It was shot in Gondar, the most Jewish section of Ethiopia where Felashas (Jews) and Christians live. The Felashas are a minority and so you see the little boy is an outsider because his mother, who died of the famine and draught, was a Jew and he is given a special blessing by the priest.
When the action was going on, focus was on the boy. Why did you make the film like that?
Yared: The movie is about the boy, so everything is shown around him. Staying with the boy it’s is more “true” to stick with the character.
What was your favorite scene?
Yared: My favorite scene is the magic forest. The hardest scenes were with Chuni the lamb. I’ll never work with an animal again.
Why does your film say “dedicated to my grandmother”?
Yared: I’m from the city; I never had a pet and I don’t cook. But I went to visit my family in the country when I was little and I met my grandmother. When I was 10, I lost all my family in Ethiopia and I moved to New York.
Where do you live?
Yared: I live in Addis Adaba.
I liked seeing Muslim, Jewish and Christians together. I liked the landscapes. They were works of art. How did you choose the actors?
Yared: We auditioned and videotaped 7,000 people over six months. Half of them were kids. The two stars chosen just stood out. Without Rediat Amare playing Ephraim and Kidist Siyum playing Tsion, the movie would be completely different.
How did the 16 year old actress like her role?
Kidist Siyum: I’m a city girl, it was hard to learn to be a country girl.
Yared: Both Kidist and were very smart good students and had not acted before.
Rediat Amare : Ephraim is quiet and introverted. I am not. I’m very outgoing. We are both mischievous and misfits.
How do you feel about audiences their age seeing the movie?
Yared: As the writer, I never thought of who it was for. I only wrote about my loss. The country is like a fairy-tale, so beautiful. I have only had adults watching it in the past so showing it to kids is great! What do you think?
Kidist Siyum : I am happy to see people my age. I hope people will take away lessons from the movie.
Why did the boy leave the lamb?
Yared: He had to let go in order to grow. Sometimes that is a part of growing up, to let go of childish things.
“Lamb” is a carefully nuanced film of silences and understatements, stunning landscapes and beautiful people dressing in exotic styles. Three female figures, the grandmother, the mother and the teenaged Tsion, the strong-willed nose-in-a-book girl bring a measured warmth and depth which increases our feel that we are participating in their lives, lived in such close quarters, beautifully shot and a contrast to the vast and beautiful mountainous countryside of Ethiopia where Ephraim spends much of his waking and dreaming hours.
Christians, Jews, Muslims and others lead a peaceful coexistence in what looks like a hard life but still a life in a sort of paradise which is disappearing. To see it in a family setting will instill a special feeling of participating in the audiences.
The music is outstanding as is the final celebratory dance, with shimmy shoulder shaking I have never seen before.
“Lamb” (not to be confused with Ross Partridge’s “Lamb” soon to be released stateside by The Orchard) is the first film of director Yared Zeleke, who received an Mfa in Writing and Directing from Nyu.
It was workshopped in Addis Ababa. The producer, Slum Kid Films, an Ethiopia-based film production company co-founded by Ama Ampadu aims to discover and nurture emerging talent in Ethiopia, as well as to support the development of Ethiopian filmmaking.
Ama knows the European system of filmmaking and was able to secure support from Acp from Norway and Cnc from France. The fact that "Lamb" was selected for the Cannes L'Atelier film financing summit two years ago, almost assured that, upon completion, it would premiere at the Cannes Film Festival, as it now has.
France, Ethiopia, Germany and Norway are represented by coproducers Gloria Films, Slum Kid Films, Heimatfilm, Dublin Films, Film Farms, Zdf/Das kleine Fernsehspiel.
Producers are Ama Ampadu, Laurent Lavolé, Johannes Rexin. Co-producers are Alan R. Milligan. Executive producers David Hurst, Bettina Brokemper.
Medienboard Berlin funded this international co-production and Naomi Kawase’s “An”, both of which played in Cannes’ official selection this year.
It was supported by the Doha Film Institute, which has funded more than 220 projects since its inception. Five of their grantees made their world premieres in the Festival de Cannes this year in various sections among which ‘"Lamb" was in the main world cinema showcase, Un Certain Regard. The others were "Waves ’98" by Elie Dagher (Lebanon, Qatar) in the Official Short Film Competition; "Dégradé" by Tarzan and Arab Abunasser (Palestine, France, Qatar) and " Mediterranea" by Jonas Carpignano (Italy, France, Germany, Qatar) in the Critics’ Week and "Mustang" by Deniz Gamze Ergüven (Turkey, France, Germany, Qatar) selected for the Directors’ Fortnight.
International sales agent is Films Distribution. The film has been has licensed to
Kimstim Films for U.S.
Haut et Court for France
Neue Visionen for Germany
Trigon film for Switzerland
Filmarti for Turkey
Moving Turtle for Middle East
Ost for Paradis for Denmark
Mantarraya for Mexico
Betta Pictures for Spain
Maison Motion for Taiwan
Suraya for South Asia
Bio Paradis for Iceland
DDDream for China
7ème Ciné Art for Tunisia and Morocco...
This is no Little Bo Peep lamb. This lamb has rough brown wool and is led on a rope, dragged on a rope by a young boy, Ephraim, eight years old, who lives in the devout Coptic Christian land of Northern Ethiopia
“Lamb” is a classic tale of a child and pet, the type of story which has been loved by children in every generation. Think “Old Yeller”, “Black Beauty”, “Charlotte’s Web”, “Babe”, “Lassie Come Home”. Ephraim’s pet lamb Chuni belonged to his mother who has died from the drought-caused famine hitting their land. His father must leave the boy with distant relatives while he seeks work in the city. His lamb is the only link he has to a life of happy innocence once shared with his loving mother and father.
The small nuclear family where he must stay lives together in a one-room hut: a grandmother who presides over the family, her son an authoritarian father who reacts against change of any sort, his wife and their sick child. They have also taken in the sixteen year old Tsion who is always reading and seeking ways to educate herself and eventually leaves for the city.
Ephraim does not conform to the norms of males as farmers; instead he prefers cooking.
The authoritarian patriarch of the family refuses to listen to advice of his niece about modern ways of growing crops during the drought and he forbids the child Ephraim, whose love of cooking (“girl’s work! The uncle says) leads him to make money by selling samosas at the market.
Moreover, the authoritarian father of the family wants to serve Ephraim’s lamb as a meal for the upcoming holiday feast and to save his family from starvation.
This moves Ephraim to act to save his lamb. In order to make money he sells his extraordinary samosas in the market place to raise enough to finance his trip to the city to find his father and save his sheep from being sacrificed and served for the upcoming holiday feast.
The children who saw this film at Ajyal Film Festival were entranced by how foreign and strange the landscape, and indeed, the people themselves were. The questions they asked Yared Zeleke, the director, and the two young stars, sixteen-year-old Kidist Siyum and eight year old Rediat Amare were startling. Not the usual Q&A of adults that you hear after they have seen a movie.
Was the boy really being hit?
Yared: Well yes and no. He had lots of padding, lots of practice, and the whip was very small."
Why did you have so much landscape?
Yared: Because the land was a character in the movie. The land shapes who we are. This special land in Ethiopia shapes the characters in the movie. It is as ancient as the people who practice the earliest form of Christianity and Judaism. There is so much history in the mountains. Ethiopia is the only country in Africa never colonized by Europeans. The mountains protected them and the people are very spiritual.
Yared: It was shot in Gondar, the most Jewish section of Ethiopia where Felashas (Jews) and Christians live. The Felashas are a minority and so you see the little boy is an outsider because his mother, who died of the famine and draught, was a Jew and he is given a special blessing by the priest.
When the action was going on, focus was on the boy. Why did you make the film like that?
Yared: The movie is about the boy, so everything is shown around him. Staying with the boy it’s is more “true” to stick with the character.
What was your favorite scene?
Yared: My favorite scene is the magic forest. The hardest scenes were with Chuni the lamb. I’ll never work with an animal again.
Why does your film say “dedicated to my grandmother”?
Yared: I’m from the city; I never had a pet and I don’t cook. But I went to visit my family in the country when I was little and I met my grandmother. When I was 10, I lost all my family in Ethiopia and I moved to New York.
Where do you live?
Yared: I live in Addis Adaba.
I liked seeing Muslim, Jewish and Christians together. I liked the landscapes. They were works of art. How did you choose the actors?
Yared: We auditioned and videotaped 7,000 people over six months. Half of them were kids. The two stars chosen just stood out. Without Rediat Amare playing Ephraim and Kidist Siyum playing Tsion, the movie would be completely different.
How did the 16 year old actress like her role?
Kidist Siyum: I’m a city girl, it was hard to learn to be a country girl.
Yared: Both Kidist and were very smart good students and had not acted before.
Rediat Amare : Ephraim is quiet and introverted. I am not. I’m very outgoing. We are both mischievous and misfits.
How do you feel about audiences their age seeing the movie?
Yared: As the writer, I never thought of who it was for. I only wrote about my loss. The country is like a fairy-tale, so beautiful. I have only had adults watching it in the past so showing it to kids is great! What do you think?
Kidist Siyum : I am happy to see people my age. I hope people will take away lessons from the movie.
Why did the boy leave the lamb?
Yared: He had to let go in order to grow. Sometimes that is a part of growing up, to let go of childish things.
“Lamb” is a carefully nuanced film of silences and understatements, stunning landscapes and beautiful people dressing in exotic styles. Three female figures, the grandmother, the mother and the teenaged Tsion, the strong-willed nose-in-a-book girl bring a measured warmth and depth which increases our feel that we are participating in their lives, lived in such close quarters, beautifully shot and a contrast to the vast and beautiful mountainous countryside of Ethiopia where Ephraim spends much of his waking and dreaming hours.
Christians, Jews, Muslims and others lead a peaceful coexistence in what looks like a hard life but still a life in a sort of paradise which is disappearing. To see it in a family setting will instill a special feeling of participating in the audiences.
The music is outstanding as is the final celebratory dance, with shimmy shoulder shaking I have never seen before.
“Lamb” (not to be confused with Ross Partridge’s “Lamb” soon to be released stateside by The Orchard) is the first film of director Yared Zeleke, who received an Mfa in Writing and Directing from Nyu.
It was workshopped in Addis Ababa. The producer, Slum Kid Films, an Ethiopia-based film production company co-founded by Ama Ampadu aims to discover and nurture emerging talent in Ethiopia, as well as to support the development of Ethiopian filmmaking.
Ama knows the European system of filmmaking and was able to secure support from Acp from Norway and Cnc from France. The fact that "Lamb" was selected for the Cannes L'Atelier film financing summit two years ago, almost assured that, upon completion, it would premiere at the Cannes Film Festival, as it now has.
France, Ethiopia, Germany and Norway are represented by coproducers Gloria Films, Slum Kid Films, Heimatfilm, Dublin Films, Film Farms, Zdf/Das kleine Fernsehspiel.
Producers are Ama Ampadu, Laurent Lavolé, Johannes Rexin. Co-producers are Alan R. Milligan. Executive producers David Hurst, Bettina Brokemper.
Medienboard Berlin funded this international co-production and Naomi Kawase’s “An”, both of which played in Cannes’ official selection this year.
It was supported by the Doha Film Institute, which has funded more than 220 projects since its inception. Five of their grantees made their world premieres in the Festival de Cannes this year in various sections among which ‘"Lamb" was in the main world cinema showcase, Un Certain Regard. The others were "Waves ’98" by Elie Dagher (Lebanon, Qatar) in the Official Short Film Competition; "Dégradé" by Tarzan and Arab Abunasser (Palestine, France, Qatar) and " Mediterranea" by Jonas Carpignano (Italy, France, Germany, Qatar) in the Critics’ Week and "Mustang" by Deniz Gamze Ergüven (Turkey, France, Germany, Qatar) selected for the Directors’ Fortnight.
International sales agent is Films Distribution. The film has been has licensed to
Kimstim Films for U.S.
Haut et Court for France
Neue Visionen for Germany
Trigon film for Switzerland
Filmarti for Turkey
Moving Turtle for Middle East
Ost for Paradis for Denmark
Mantarraya for Mexico
Betta Pictures for Spain
Maison Motion for Taiwan
Suraya for South Asia
Bio Paradis for Iceland
DDDream for China
7ème Ciné Art for Tunisia and Morocco...
- 1/30/2016
- by Sydney Levine
- Sydney's Buzz
Detailfilm reunites with director Kutlug Ataman following their collaboration on The Lamb.
Henning Kamm, who will represent Germany at Cannes next month as its Producer on the Move, and business partner Fabian Gasmia at Hamburg-based Detailfilm are to reunite with Turkish filmmaker Kutlug Ataman for his next feature project.
Kamm and Gasmia were co-producers on Ataman’s last feature film The Lamb (Kuzu), which had its world premiere at the Berlinale’s Panorama last February and won the Cicae Art Cinema Award.
Detailfilm will now serve as the co-producer on Ataman’s Hilil, Feza And Other Planets, which received support from the German-Turkish Co-Production Co-Development Fund at this month’s Meetings on the Bridge co-production market in Istanbul.
Moreover, Berlin-based producer Titus Kreyenberg of Unafilm confirmed to ScreenDaily at this week’s Visions du Réel documentary festival in Nyon that the Co-Development Fund had also awarded funding to Jessica Krummacher’s feature debut, Birth Of Purple...
Henning Kamm, who will represent Germany at Cannes next month as its Producer on the Move, and business partner Fabian Gasmia at Hamburg-based Detailfilm are to reunite with Turkish filmmaker Kutlug Ataman for his next feature project.
Kamm and Gasmia were co-producers on Ataman’s last feature film The Lamb (Kuzu), which had its world premiere at the Berlinale’s Panorama last February and won the Cicae Art Cinema Award.
Detailfilm will now serve as the co-producer on Ataman’s Hilil, Feza And Other Planets, which received support from the German-Turkish Co-Production Co-Development Fund at this month’s Meetings on the Bridge co-production market in Istanbul.
Moreover, Berlin-based producer Titus Kreyenberg of Unafilm confirmed to ScreenDaily at this week’s Visions du Réel documentary festival in Nyon that the Co-Development Fund had also awarded funding to Jessica Krummacher’s feature debut, Birth Of Purple...
- 4/29/2014
- by screen.berlin@googlemail.com (Martin Blaney)
- ScreenDaily
Detailfilm reunites with director Kutlug Ataman following their collaboration on The Lamb.
Henning Kamm, who will represent Germany at Cannes next month as its Producer on the Move, and business partner Fabian Gasmia at Hamburg-based Detailfilm are to reunite with Turkish filmmaker Kutlug Ataman for his next feature project.
Kamm and Gasmia were co-producers on Ataman’s last feature film The Lamb (Kuzu), which had its world premiere at the Berlinale’s Panorama last February and won the Cicae Art Cinema Award.
Detailfilm will now serve as the co-producer on Ataman’s Hilil, Feza And Other Planets, which received support from the German-Turkish Co-Production Co-Development Fund at this month’s Meetings on the Bridge co-production market in Istanbul.
Moreover, Berlin-based producer Titus Kreyenberg of Unafilm confirmed to ScreenDaily at this week’s Visions du Réel documentary festival in Nyon that the Co-Development Fund had also awarded funding to Jessica Krummacher’s feature debut, Birth Of Purple...
Henning Kamm, who will represent Germany at Cannes next month as its Producer on the Move, and business partner Fabian Gasmia at Hamburg-based Detailfilm are to reunite with Turkish filmmaker Kutlug Ataman for his next feature project.
Kamm and Gasmia were co-producers on Ataman’s last feature film The Lamb (Kuzu), which had its world premiere at the Berlinale’s Panorama last February and won the Cicae Art Cinema Award.
Detailfilm will now serve as the co-producer on Ataman’s Hilil, Feza And Other Planets, which received support from the German-Turkish Co-Production Co-Development Fund at this month’s Meetings on the Bridge co-production market in Istanbul.
Moreover, Berlin-based producer Titus Kreyenberg of Unafilm confirmed to ScreenDaily at this week’s Visions du Réel documentary festival in Nyon that the Co-Development Fund had also awarded funding to Jessica Krummacher’s feature debut, Birth Of Purple...
- 4/29/2014
- by screen.berlin@googlemail.com (Martin Blaney)
- ScreenDaily
This year the 12th edition of the Indian Film Festival of Los Angeles (Iffla) includes a lineup of narrative and documentary features and short films. The impressive program reflects the rich diversity of Indian cinema, as well as the future of Indian filmmaking, with cutting-edge filmmakers and emerging voices bringing their acclaimed films to Los Angeles.
The festival is widely recognized as the premiere showcase of groundbreaking Indian cinema globally. Iffla will run April 8-13 at ArcLight Hollywood in Los Angeles, the festival’s home since its inception. Jadoo, an exploration of family bonds amidst two feuding brothers’ restaurants in England, will screen as the festival’s Closing Night Gala. The film is written and directed by Iffla alum Amit Gupta, and first premiered at the 2013 Berlinale. It features a wonderful ensemble cast that includes Kulvinder Ghir, Amara Karan, Harish Patel, Tom Mison, and Madhur Jaffrey. As previously announced, Iffla will open with Jeffrey D. Brown’s Sold, produced by Jane Charles and executive produced by Emma Thompson.
Iffla 2014 wil l present more than 33 films, including three world premieres, six North American premieres, six U.S. premieres, and 16 Los Angeles premieres. The films feature 10 different languages, from Hindi to Marathi, to Russian to Bengali. Additionally, Iffla supports American, Australian, British, Canadian, and European diaspora filmmakers from nine different countries telling their stories.
“I'm thrilled and proud that Iffla's line-up this year includes an especially diverse range of cinematic experiences, covering many regions of India and the diaspora,” said Iffla’s Artistic Director Jasmine Jaisinghani. "We would like to thank our Programming Advisor in India, Uma Da Cunha, for helping our programming team source some of these exceptional films."
Program highlights include: the North American premiere of Anurag Kashyap’s latest, Ugly an intense, masterfully directed psychological thriller that premiered in the 2013 Director’s Fortnight section of Cannes; Liar's Dice, the remarkable directorial debut of South Indian actress Geetu Mohandas that premiered at this year’s Sundance Film Festival; Anup Singh’s latest feature Qissa: The Tale of a Lonely Ghost, starring Irrfan Khan (Life of Pi, Slumdog Millionaire), winner of Netpac Award at the Toronto International Film Festival, and Dioraphte Award at the International Film Festival Rotterdam; the Audience Award winner at the 2013 Slamdance Film Festival Hank and Asha , an exploratory, romantic look at two people bonding in the digital age by newcomer James E. Duff; Nagraj Manjule’s Fandry, a highly praised debut feature for its multilayered emotion and realism on the subject of caste discrimination; Brahmin Bulls starring Roshan Seth (Gandhi, Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom, Mississippi Masala) and Sendhil Ramamurthy (Beauty and the Beast, Heroes) as an estranged father and son unexpectedly brought together to confront the family’s past; and Siddharth, a nuanced look at a family whose son goes missing, by lauded Canadian director and Iffla alum Richie Mehta (Amal).
The festival's feature documentary competition includes an eclectic mix of films from established and upcoming filmmakers that consider India's unique traditions and dynamic future. The films include: the world premiere of
The Auction House , an intimate and funny look at two brothers trying to keep their anachronistic family business going in the digital age; festival favorite Powerless, which depicts intense struggles over electricity in a mid-size Indian city; Faith Connections, Iffla alum Pan Nalin's beautiful and rare look at the Kumbh Mela; and the National Award-winning Shepherds of Paradise, about an arduous, mountainous trek through an animal drive in the Kashmiri winter.
The Bollywood by Night series returns this year with Bombay Talkies and Monsoon Shootout. Premiering at last year’s Cannes Film Festival, Bombay Talkies is a quartet of short films that celebrates 100 years of Indian cinema. The omnibus film features work by four of India’s most exciting contemporary directors: Karan Johar, Dibakar Banerjee, Zoya Akhtar, and Anurag Kashyap, as well as a stellar cast that includes Amitabh Bachchan, Rani Mukerji, and Katrina Kaif. Monsoon Shoutout is a thrilling debut by Iffla alum writer/director Amit Kumar about how a split-second decision made by a rookie police officer has rippling effects in his life and the lives of those around him.
The shorts competition showcases a diverse selection of 15 films that include narrative, documentary, experimental, and animated works. Highlights of this year’s program include Academy Award® shortlisted Kush; Sundance award winner Love.Love.Love.; and the world premiere of acclaimed director Umesh Kulkarni’s The Fly.
Festival Passes and Gala tickets are currently on sale at the festival's website.
For more information, please visit:
Website: www.indianfilmfestival.org.
Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/ indianfilmfestival
Twitter: https://twitter.com /iffla
Tumblr: http://indianfilmfestival.tumblr.com/
About Iffla
Now in its 12th year, the Indian Film Festival of Los Angeles (Iffla) is a nonprofit organization devoted to a greater appreciation of Indian cinema and culture by showcasing films, honoring entertainment industry business executives, and promoting the diverse perspectives of the Indian diaspora.
Opening Night Gala
Sold
Los Angeles Premiere
USA/2014/97min
Director: Jeffrey D. Brown
Producer: Jane Charles
Executive Producer: Emma Thompson
Screenwriters: Joseph Kwong, Jeffrey D. Brown
Composer: John McDowell, Sammy Chand, Salim & Sulaiman Merchant
Cast: Susmita Mukherjee, Seema Biswas, Tillotama Shome, Niyar Saikia, Priyanka Bose, Ankur Vikal, Parambrata Chatterjee, Gillian Anderson, David Arquette
Academy Award®-winning filmmaker Jeffrey D. Brown adapts Patricia McCormick’s novel Sold – a National Book Award finalist – into a vivid, harrowing and inspiring story of a young girl’s resilience in the face of unspeakable cruelty.
Closing Night
Jadoo
Los Angeles Premiere
UK/2013/84 mins
Director: Amit Gupta
Producers: Amanda Faber, Isabelle Georgeaux, Richard Holmes, Nikki Parrott
Screenwriter: Amit Gupta
Composer: Stephen Warbeck
Cast: Kulvinder Ghir, Amara Karan, Harish Patel, Tom Mison, Madhur Jaffrey
Set in Leicester, England, Amit Gupta’s culinary comedy charts the chaos that ensues when young Shalini gets engaged to her longtime boyfriend Mark. The fact that Mark is not Indian is the least of Shalini’s concerns. Her father Raja and uncle Jagi have been at war for years. After a legendary falling out that caused them to close their family restaurant, each man opened his own establishment – directly across the street from one another! Shalini’s dream wedding would see both men put aside their differences and prepare the feast together, but resentment runs deep and neither man can hear mention of the other’s name without a spike in blood pressure. Both the prospect of disappointing their beloved Shalini and the threat of a new, hip restaurant opening in the area force Raja and Jagi to work together – but for how long? In this uproariously funny and heartfelt exploration of family bonds, shared history and gastronomic perfection, Gupta’s cast is endlessly appealing. Plus, there’s enough mouth-watering Indian food on display to have your stomach growling before the credits roll.
Feature Films
Before My Eyes (Ankhon Dekhi)
Los Angeles Premiere
India/2013/107min
Director: Rajat Kapoor Producer: Manish Mundra
Screenwriter: Rajat Kapoor
Cast: Sanjay Sanjay Mishra, Seema Pahwa, Rajat Kapoor, Taranjeet, Maya Sarao
Celebrated writer, director, and actor Rajat Kapoor (Midnight’s Children, Monsoon Wedding, Mixed Doubles, Mithya) paints an offbeat yet thought-provoking portrait of domestic life in modern day Delhi when an incident prompts head of the family Bauji to reject anything he himself has not experienced, much to the exasperation of his extended family but to the delight of his newfound philosopher disciples. Balancing the comical and the existential, both Bauji and the film ask the basic question, ‘Can you know truth without true experience?’
Brahmin Bulls
Los Angeles Premiere
USA/96min/2013
Director: Mahesh Pailoor
Producer: Yoshinobu Tsuji
Screenwriters: Anu Pradhan, Mahesh Pailoor
Cast: Sendhil Ramamurthy, Roshan Seth, Mary Steenburgen, Justin Bartha, Cassidy Freeman, Monica Raymund, Michael Lerner
Mahesh Pailoor's tender, funny, and touching debut tells the story of estranged father and son Ashok and Sid, who reunite at Sid's Los Angeles home when Ashok arrives unexpectedly. Each man is keeping secrets from one another, and when the truth is revealed, parent and child must work even harder to close the rift between them.
Fandry
North American Premiere
India/2013/103min
Director: Nagraj Manjule
Producers: Vivek Kajaria, Nilesh Navalakha
Screenwriter: Nagraj Manjule
Cast: Kishor Kadam, Chhaya Kadam, Somnath Awghade, Suraj Pawar, Rajshree Kharat, Sakshi Vyavhare, Aishvarya Shinde, Nagraj Manjule
Marathi poet Nagraj Manjule's impressive debut feature tells the story of Jabya, a Dalit boy, and his family's struggle against daily prejudice in their Maharashtra village. Jabya's carefree childhood desires and antics are soon stifled by his family's "untouchable" status, and the film's gradual transformation into an insightful and damning look at caste discrimination builds from a murmur to a defiant roar. Refusing to reduce his Dalit characters to victims – most explicitly at the film's explosive conclusion - Manjule's socially reflective film has received critical acclaim in India.
Hank and Asha
Los Angeles Premiere
USA/2013/73min
Director: James E. Duff
Producers: James E. Duff, Julia Morrison
Screenwriters: James E. Duff, Julia Morrison
Cast: Mahira Kakkar, Andrew Pastides
James E. Duff's feature directorial debut, the Audience Award winner at the 2013 Slamdance Film Festival, is an endearing tale of a long-distance connection in the digital age. Hank and Asha, two aspiring filmmakers separated by an ocean, connect with one another through video messages and quickly find themselves heading towards romance. That is, until Asha reveals some surprising news. Duff has created a captivating ode to the new possibilities open to us now that the world's gotten smaller.
Liar's Dice
Los Angeles Premiere
India/2013/104min
Director: Geetu Mohandas
Producers: Alan McAlex, Ajay G. Rai
Screenwriter: Geetu Mohandas
Cast: Nawazuddin Siddiqui, Geetanjali Thapa, Manya Gupta
Established actress Geetu Mohandas steps behind the lens for her bracing directorial debut. A woman named Kamala and her daughter journey from their remote Himalayan village to Delhi in search of Kamala's missing husband. They find a guide in an unfriendly wanderer whose interest may lie more in his personal gain than in any help he can offer them. Beautifully shot by Rajeev Ravi (Gangs of Wasseypur), Mohandas' film evokes a hazardous world where answers may never be clear and a helping hand always comes at a price.
Phoring
North American Premiere
India/2013/128min
Director: Indranil Roychowdhury
Producers: Anasua Roychowdury, Sugata Bal
Screenwriters: Indranil Roychowdhury, Sugata Sinha
Cast: Akash Adhikary, Sohini Sarkar, Sourav Basak, Ritwick Charaborty, Shankar Debnath, Senjuti Roymukherjee
Indranil Roychowdhury's stunning feature debut is an evocative, unpredictable tale of confused adolescence in a struggling North Bengal town. Phoring, an imaginative adolescent boy, and his beautiful new teacher Doel form a close friendship that soon arouses doubt and suspicion when Doel's presence in the town is revealed to have less-than-noble origins. Roychowdhury accomplishes a tricky feat with his first film by luring us with the promise of an inspirational teacher-student story before ultimately delivering a much more complex and truthful account of the joys and pains of growing up.
Qissa: The Tale of a Lonely Ghost (2013)
Los Angeles Premiere Germany-India-Netherlands/2013/109min
Director: Anup Singh
Producers: Bero Beyer, Johannes Rexin, Bettina Brokemper, Thierry Lenouvel
Screenwriter: Anup Singh, Madhuja Mukherjee
Cast: Irrfan Khan, Tisca Chopra, Tillotama Shome, Rasika Dugal
Set in 1940s Punjab, Anup Singh’s latest feature Qissa details the aftermath of the Indo-Pakistan Partition through the experiences of one Sikh family, headed by Umber (Irrfan Khan). Following the family’s forceful displacement from their village, Umber’s desire for a male heir is stronger than ever. When his wife gives birth to their fourth daughter, Kanwar, Umber makes the fateful decision to raise her as a boy. This tragic choice ends up dividing the family in violent ways, and provokes a series of increasingly unsettling situations for Kanwar as she grows up. While in a sense a ghost story, the source of pain and suffering is all too real.
Siddharth
Los Angeles Premiere
Canada-India/2013/96min
Director: Richie Mehta
Producers: David Miller, Steven N. Bray
Screenwriter: Richie Mehta
Cast: Rajesh Tailang, Tannishtha Chatterjee
A celebrated Iffla alum, Canadian director Richie Mehta returns to the festival with a heartbreaking story of parents Mahendra and Suman, whose son goes missing after being sent to work 200 miles north of Delhi. Carried by powerful yet restrained performances from Rajesh Tailang and Tannishtha Chatterjee as the parents, Mehta and cast capture the dignity of those facing the unthinkable. Mehta's chance encounter with a man searching for his lost son alerted him to the underreported plight of the families of 44,000 children estimated missing in India every year.
Ugly
North American Premiere
India/2013/128mins/Dcp
Director: Anurag Kashyap
Writer: Anurag Kashyap
Producers: Vikas Bahl, Madhu Mantena, Vikramaditya Motwane, Vivek Rangachari, Arun Rangachari
Cast: Rahul Bhatt, Ronit Roy, Tejaswini Kolhapure, Anshika Shrivastava
When ten-year-old Kali disappears from her father Rahul's car on the busy streets of Mumbai, the events that follow quickly spiral out of control and plunge into a morass of corruption and violence. Rahul and Kali's mother, Shalini, are divorced. Shalini is now married to Shoumik, the local police chief. When Shoumik learns that his stepdaughter is missing, he and Rahul clash in a breathless race to find the girl. With intricate plotting and vivid characterizations, Iffla alum Anurag Kashyap fashions a story that's sure to keep the heart racing.
Writers (Sulemani Keeda)
North American Premiere
India/2013/90min
Director: Amit V Masurkar
Writer: Amit V Masurkar
Producer: Datta Dave
Cast: Naveen Kasturia, Mayank Tewari, Aditi Vasudev and Karan Mirchandani
Writing partners Dulal and Mainak dream of shaking up Bollywood in director Amit Masurkar's slacker comedy. The two young men take a job from the wealthy, oddball son of a famous B-movie producer, but soon fear they're on the path to selling out. Masurkar's film captures the creative spirit of Andheri West, a Mumbai suburb where writers, directors, and actors come from all over India with the dream of working in the film industry, and is a sweet taste of things to come from the new "hindie" cinema.
Documentary Features
The Auction House: A Tale of Two Brothers
World Premiere
UK/2014/85min
Director: Ed Owles
Producers: Ed Owles, Giovanna Stopponi
The auction houses of Kolkata used to be where the rich and famous found the right high-end objects to decorate their homes. Today, the family-owned Russell Exchange is the last, and oldest, one to remain in India. Director Ed Owles follows two brothers, with the older brother moving back to Kolkata from London with hopes of using his Western business acumen to bring the Exchange into the 21st century. However, in a country radically transformed by technology and a rising youth culture, it may already be too late.
Faith Connections
Los Angeles Premiere
France-India/2013/115min/Dcp
Director: Pan Nalin
Producers: Raphaël Berdugo, Gaurav Dhingra, Pan Nalin, Virginie Lacombe
Every three years, Hindus gather at one of four rotating sites for Kumbh Mela, a religious celebration of faith and devotion marked by bathing in the sacred waters of the Ganges. With 100 million people at the 2013 Kumbh Mela, the pilgrimage is said to be the largest gathering on the planet. Iffla alum Pan Nalin crafts a moving and unique view of the mass gathering and presents unique stories of how individuals came to be there to share in the belief of the divine.
Powerless (Katiyabaaz)
Los Angeles Premiere
India/2013/82min
Director: Fahad Mustafa and Deepti Kakkar
Producers: Fahad Mustafa, Deepti Kakkar, Judy Tam, Leopold Koegler
Screenwriter: Fahad Mustafa
In Kanpur, a city of three million that has seen better days, one of the only ways for many residents to get electricity is to steal it. Co-directors Fahad Mustafa and Deepti Kakkar focus their attention on the likes of pirate engineers like Loha Singh and first female CEO at the local power authority Ritu Maheshwari. Coupled with beautiful photography of the intricately tied together powerlines of the city and a pulsating original score, they present a unique documentary about current-day India and its future battles over limited resources.
Shepherds of Paradise
U.S. Premiere
India/2013/50min
Director/Producer/Screenwriter/Cinematographer/Editor: Raja Shabir Khan
Composer: Bilal Iran
Nomadic herder Gafoor has to lead his large flock of goats, sheep, cows and horses across Jammu all the way to Kashmir so they can graze. Director Raja Shabir Khan presents lives few have ever seen, let alone lived, with simple beauty and real terror in a film that has won major National Awards in India. A cinematic wonder that must be seen to truly understand, Shepherds of Paradise is a testament of the power of film to transport us to other lands and experiences.
Bollywood By Night
Bombay Talkies
North American Premiere
India/117min/2013
Directors: Karan Johar, Dibakar Banerjee, Zoya Akhtar, Anurag Kashyap
Producers: Ritesh Sidhwani, Farhan Akhtar, Guneet Monga
Screenwriters: Karan Johar, Dibakar Banerjee, Zoya Akhtar, Reema Kagti, Anurag Kashyap
Cast: Amitabh Bachchan , Rani Mukerji, Katrina Kaif, Randeep Hooda, Saqib Saleem, Nawazuddin Siddiqui
A quartet of short films directed by four of India’s most exciting contemporary filmmakers celebrates 100 years of Indian cinema in this omnibus film. Karan Johar, Dibakar Banerjee, Zoya Akhtar and Anurag Kashyap crafts a tale of ordinary people whose love of movies profoundly alters the course of their lives. Each story beautifully captures how lovers of cinema can’t help but carry that fascination into their day-to-day life. Haven’t we all wished, at one time or another, that our lives were more like a film?
Monsoon Shootout
Los Angeles Premiere
India-uk-Netherlands/2013/88min
Director: Amit Kumar
Producers: Trevor Ingman, Guneet Monga, Martijn De Grunt
Screenwriter: Amit Kumar
Cast: Vijay Varma, Nawazuddin Siddiqui, Tannishtha Chatterjee, Geetanjali Thapa
A split-second decision made by a rookie police officer propels writer/director Amit Kumar’s debut feature, which fascinatingly splinters into three separate, equally pulse-pounding scenarios. In a secluded alley drenched in the pouring rain, principled cop Adi aims his gun at Shiva, a vicious gangster on the run. What Adi decides to do next will reverberate throughout his personal and professional life in ways he could never imagine. Kumar thus explores the ripple effect our choices have, and how we unknowingly alter the lives of those around us.
Shorts
Aarti
Shorts Program 2
World Premiere
USA/2013/4min
Director: David Walter Lech
Producer: Terrie Samundra
A hypnotic look into the nightly “ceremony of light” ritual in a Hindu temple in Sheikhupur, Punjab.
Alchemy
Shorts Program 2
U.S. Premiere
India/2013/5min
Directors: Pranay Patwardhan, Shivangi Ranawat, Janmeet Singh
Producer: Pritesh Varia
A bold and vibrant song to the intricate fabric of modern day India, a kaleidoscope of voices, colors and traditions.
Bhiwani Junction
Shorts Program 1
Los Angeles Premiere
USA/2013/18min
Director: Abhi Singh
Producer: Abhi Singh
A poignant documentary portrait of Himanshu, a 12-year old boxer, whose formidable commitment to the sport makes his lofty dreams to become an Olympic champion appear well within reach.
Black Rock (Kaatal)
Shorts Program 1
U.S. Premiere
India/2012/22min
Director: Vikrant Pawar
Producer: Film and Television Institute of India
Two young lovers spend one last afternoon together. A beautiful meditation on the ephemeral nature of young love that has won three of India’s National Film Awards.
The Fly (Makhi)
Shorts Program 2
World Premiere
India/2013/31min
Director: Umesh Vinayak Kulkarni
Producer: Film and Television Institute of India
Employed as a Fly Killer in an upscale restaurant, Pipal must ensure a fly-free environment by smacking dead the flies that buzz over the patrons’ heads. When a nearby drainage is closed and the source of the fly infestation eradicated, Pipal must find a way to produce enough live flies to save his job, in this delightfully absurdist commentary on urban India’s emerging work culture.
Beloved (Humsafar)
Shorts Program 2
U.S. Premiere
India/2012/6min
Directors/Writers: Swapnil Awate, Laura Erbacher
Producer: Dsk Supinfocom
A sweeping single shot takes us on the breathtaking animated journey of two lovers and their eternal pursuit of harmony.
Jaya
Shorts Program 2
USA/2013/19min
Director: Puja Maewal
Producer: Puja Maewal
Young Jaya is able to survive the gruesome gang life in the unforgiving streets of Mumbai by posing as a boy. When she meets a wealthy businessman who looks like he could be the father who abandoned her, she sets out to reclaim her identity, in this engrossing drama that was shortlisted for a Student Academy Award®.
Kush
Shorts Program 1
India/2013/25min
Director: Shubhashish Bhutiani
Producer: Shubhashish Bhutiani
A bus full of schoolchildren boisterously makes its way back from a field trip when the news of Indira Gandhi’s assassination by her Sikh bodyguards breaks. As violence quickly erupts across the country, Kush, the only Sikh student in the class, must find a way to escape the unquenchable fury of retribution, in this gripping drama that was shortlisted for an Academy Award®.
Little Gypsy (Kachho Gadulo)
Shorts Program 1
Los Angeles Premiere
India/2012/6min
Directors: Saptesh Chaubal, Pranay Patwardhan, Shivangi Ranawat
Producer: D.S.K. Supinfocom
Inspired by the folk traditions of various parts of India, this stunning animated film sweeps us into a mythical journey that celebrates the power of play and imagination.
Love.Love.Love.
Shorts Program 2
Los Angeles Premiere
Russian Federation/2013/12min
Director: Sandhya Daisy Sundaram
Producers: Tanya Petrik, Guillaume Protsenko
An intimate ode to the wondrous force of love, as it takes new shapes and forms through the endless Russian winters. Love. Love.Love. won the Short Film Special Jury Award for Non-Fiction at the 2014 Sundance Film Festival.
Outpost
Shorts Program 1
U.S. Premiere
India-usa/2013/17min
Director: Shiva Shankar Bajpai
Producer: Aditi Anand
In the barren desert of the India-Pakistan border, two lone army guards on the opposite sides of the line yearn for booze, mosquito repellent and some human contact, in this humorous glimpse into the absurdity of rigid immaterial divides.
Presence
Shorts Program 2
U.S. Premiere
India/2012/17min
Directors: Ekta Mittal, Yashaswini Raghunandan
Producers: Ekta Mittal, Yashaswini Raghunandan
Long days and nights spent within the bellies of the rising structural beasts that rapidly transform the city of Bangalore bring on visions of ghosts that speak of the construction workers’ memories, longings and fears, in this haunting meditation on the migrant experience.
Skin Deep
Screens with Writers
U.S. Premiere
India/2013/20min
Director: Hardik Mehta
Producers: Devang Bhavsar, Niraj Kothari
Sanjay and Sushma plan to elope to escape a looming arranged marriage. They are in love and their future together shines bright and perfect and filled with possibility--that is, as long as an extra piece of skin that complicates their sex life gets fixed in what should be a routine medical procedure. But Mumbai’s electricity gods have other plans in store for them.
Small Yellow Field (Tau Seru)
Shorts Program 1
Los Angeles Premiere
Australia-India/2013/8min
Director: Rodd Rathjen
Producer: Rodd Rathjen
In the remote vastness of the Himalayas, a young nomad's curiosity lies beyond the horizon. This stunningly photographed film made its world premiere at Cannes Critics’ Week.
The Puppet (Tamaash)
Screens with Shepherds Of Paradise
Los Angeles Premiere
India/2013/32min
Directors: Devanshu Singh, Satyanshu Singh
Producers: Datta Dave, Chaitanya Hegde, Omar Nissar Paul, Devanshu Singh, Satyanshu Singh
A mysterious puppet offers young Anzar the chance to escape his father’s relentless punishments over his poor school grades by granting him the power to inflict misfortune on his nemesis, his brilliant classmate, Sadat. However, his newfound peace is short-lived as Sadat falls severely ill and Anzar comes to realize that the puppet’s powers are spiraling out of his control...
The festival is widely recognized as the premiere showcase of groundbreaking Indian cinema globally. Iffla will run April 8-13 at ArcLight Hollywood in Los Angeles, the festival’s home since its inception. Jadoo, an exploration of family bonds amidst two feuding brothers’ restaurants in England, will screen as the festival’s Closing Night Gala. The film is written and directed by Iffla alum Amit Gupta, and first premiered at the 2013 Berlinale. It features a wonderful ensemble cast that includes Kulvinder Ghir, Amara Karan, Harish Patel, Tom Mison, and Madhur Jaffrey. As previously announced, Iffla will open with Jeffrey D. Brown’s Sold, produced by Jane Charles and executive produced by Emma Thompson.
Iffla 2014 wil l present more than 33 films, including three world premieres, six North American premieres, six U.S. premieres, and 16 Los Angeles premieres. The films feature 10 different languages, from Hindi to Marathi, to Russian to Bengali. Additionally, Iffla supports American, Australian, British, Canadian, and European diaspora filmmakers from nine different countries telling their stories.
“I'm thrilled and proud that Iffla's line-up this year includes an especially diverse range of cinematic experiences, covering many regions of India and the diaspora,” said Iffla’s Artistic Director Jasmine Jaisinghani. "We would like to thank our Programming Advisor in India, Uma Da Cunha, for helping our programming team source some of these exceptional films."
Program highlights include: the North American premiere of Anurag Kashyap’s latest, Ugly an intense, masterfully directed psychological thriller that premiered in the 2013 Director’s Fortnight section of Cannes; Liar's Dice, the remarkable directorial debut of South Indian actress Geetu Mohandas that premiered at this year’s Sundance Film Festival; Anup Singh’s latest feature Qissa: The Tale of a Lonely Ghost, starring Irrfan Khan (Life of Pi, Slumdog Millionaire), winner of Netpac Award at the Toronto International Film Festival, and Dioraphte Award at the International Film Festival Rotterdam; the Audience Award winner at the 2013 Slamdance Film Festival Hank and Asha , an exploratory, romantic look at two people bonding in the digital age by newcomer James E. Duff; Nagraj Manjule’s Fandry, a highly praised debut feature for its multilayered emotion and realism on the subject of caste discrimination; Brahmin Bulls starring Roshan Seth (Gandhi, Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom, Mississippi Masala) and Sendhil Ramamurthy (Beauty and the Beast, Heroes) as an estranged father and son unexpectedly brought together to confront the family’s past; and Siddharth, a nuanced look at a family whose son goes missing, by lauded Canadian director and Iffla alum Richie Mehta (Amal).
The festival's feature documentary competition includes an eclectic mix of films from established and upcoming filmmakers that consider India's unique traditions and dynamic future. The films include: the world premiere of
The Auction House , an intimate and funny look at two brothers trying to keep their anachronistic family business going in the digital age; festival favorite Powerless, which depicts intense struggles over electricity in a mid-size Indian city; Faith Connections, Iffla alum Pan Nalin's beautiful and rare look at the Kumbh Mela; and the National Award-winning Shepherds of Paradise, about an arduous, mountainous trek through an animal drive in the Kashmiri winter.
The Bollywood by Night series returns this year with Bombay Talkies and Monsoon Shootout. Premiering at last year’s Cannes Film Festival, Bombay Talkies is a quartet of short films that celebrates 100 years of Indian cinema. The omnibus film features work by four of India’s most exciting contemporary directors: Karan Johar, Dibakar Banerjee, Zoya Akhtar, and Anurag Kashyap, as well as a stellar cast that includes Amitabh Bachchan, Rani Mukerji, and Katrina Kaif. Monsoon Shoutout is a thrilling debut by Iffla alum writer/director Amit Kumar about how a split-second decision made by a rookie police officer has rippling effects in his life and the lives of those around him.
The shorts competition showcases a diverse selection of 15 films that include narrative, documentary, experimental, and animated works. Highlights of this year’s program include Academy Award® shortlisted Kush; Sundance award winner Love.Love.Love.; and the world premiere of acclaimed director Umesh Kulkarni’s The Fly.
Festival Passes and Gala tickets are currently on sale at the festival's website.
For more information, please visit:
Website: www.indianfilmfestival.org.
Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/ indianfilmfestival
Twitter: https://twitter.com /iffla
Tumblr: http://indianfilmfestival.tumblr.com/
About Iffla
Now in its 12th year, the Indian Film Festival of Los Angeles (Iffla) is a nonprofit organization devoted to a greater appreciation of Indian cinema and culture by showcasing films, honoring entertainment industry business executives, and promoting the diverse perspectives of the Indian diaspora.
Opening Night Gala
Sold
Los Angeles Premiere
USA/2014/97min
Director: Jeffrey D. Brown
Producer: Jane Charles
Executive Producer: Emma Thompson
Screenwriters: Joseph Kwong, Jeffrey D. Brown
Composer: John McDowell, Sammy Chand, Salim & Sulaiman Merchant
Cast: Susmita Mukherjee, Seema Biswas, Tillotama Shome, Niyar Saikia, Priyanka Bose, Ankur Vikal, Parambrata Chatterjee, Gillian Anderson, David Arquette
Academy Award®-winning filmmaker Jeffrey D. Brown adapts Patricia McCormick’s novel Sold – a National Book Award finalist – into a vivid, harrowing and inspiring story of a young girl’s resilience in the face of unspeakable cruelty.
Closing Night
Jadoo
Los Angeles Premiere
UK/2013/84 mins
Director: Amit Gupta
Producers: Amanda Faber, Isabelle Georgeaux, Richard Holmes, Nikki Parrott
Screenwriter: Amit Gupta
Composer: Stephen Warbeck
Cast: Kulvinder Ghir, Amara Karan, Harish Patel, Tom Mison, Madhur Jaffrey
Set in Leicester, England, Amit Gupta’s culinary comedy charts the chaos that ensues when young Shalini gets engaged to her longtime boyfriend Mark. The fact that Mark is not Indian is the least of Shalini’s concerns. Her father Raja and uncle Jagi have been at war for years. After a legendary falling out that caused them to close their family restaurant, each man opened his own establishment – directly across the street from one another! Shalini’s dream wedding would see both men put aside their differences and prepare the feast together, but resentment runs deep and neither man can hear mention of the other’s name without a spike in blood pressure. Both the prospect of disappointing their beloved Shalini and the threat of a new, hip restaurant opening in the area force Raja and Jagi to work together – but for how long? In this uproariously funny and heartfelt exploration of family bonds, shared history and gastronomic perfection, Gupta’s cast is endlessly appealing. Plus, there’s enough mouth-watering Indian food on display to have your stomach growling before the credits roll.
Feature Films
Before My Eyes (Ankhon Dekhi)
Los Angeles Premiere
India/2013/107min
Director: Rajat Kapoor Producer: Manish Mundra
Screenwriter: Rajat Kapoor
Cast: Sanjay Sanjay Mishra, Seema Pahwa, Rajat Kapoor, Taranjeet, Maya Sarao
Celebrated writer, director, and actor Rajat Kapoor (Midnight’s Children, Monsoon Wedding, Mixed Doubles, Mithya) paints an offbeat yet thought-provoking portrait of domestic life in modern day Delhi when an incident prompts head of the family Bauji to reject anything he himself has not experienced, much to the exasperation of his extended family but to the delight of his newfound philosopher disciples. Balancing the comical and the existential, both Bauji and the film ask the basic question, ‘Can you know truth without true experience?’
Brahmin Bulls
Los Angeles Premiere
USA/96min/2013
Director: Mahesh Pailoor
Producer: Yoshinobu Tsuji
Screenwriters: Anu Pradhan, Mahesh Pailoor
Cast: Sendhil Ramamurthy, Roshan Seth, Mary Steenburgen, Justin Bartha, Cassidy Freeman, Monica Raymund, Michael Lerner
Mahesh Pailoor's tender, funny, and touching debut tells the story of estranged father and son Ashok and Sid, who reunite at Sid's Los Angeles home when Ashok arrives unexpectedly. Each man is keeping secrets from one another, and when the truth is revealed, parent and child must work even harder to close the rift between them.
Fandry
North American Premiere
India/2013/103min
Director: Nagraj Manjule
Producers: Vivek Kajaria, Nilesh Navalakha
Screenwriter: Nagraj Manjule
Cast: Kishor Kadam, Chhaya Kadam, Somnath Awghade, Suraj Pawar, Rajshree Kharat, Sakshi Vyavhare, Aishvarya Shinde, Nagraj Manjule
Marathi poet Nagraj Manjule's impressive debut feature tells the story of Jabya, a Dalit boy, and his family's struggle against daily prejudice in their Maharashtra village. Jabya's carefree childhood desires and antics are soon stifled by his family's "untouchable" status, and the film's gradual transformation into an insightful and damning look at caste discrimination builds from a murmur to a defiant roar. Refusing to reduce his Dalit characters to victims – most explicitly at the film's explosive conclusion - Manjule's socially reflective film has received critical acclaim in India.
Hank and Asha
Los Angeles Premiere
USA/2013/73min
Director: James E. Duff
Producers: James E. Duff, Julia Morrison
Screenwriters: James E. Duff, Julia Morrison
Cast: Mahira Kakkar, Andrew Pastides
James E. Duff's feature directorial debut, the Audience Award winner at the 2013 Slamdance Film Festival, is an endearing tale of a long-distance connection in the digital age. Hank and Asha, two aspiring filmmakers separated by an ocean, connect with one another through video messages and quickly find themselves heading towards romance. That is, until Asha reveals some surprising news. Duff has created a captivating ode to the new possibilities open to us now that the world's gotten smaller.
Liar's Dice
Los Angeles Premiere
India/2013/104min
Director: Geetu Mohandas
Producers: Alan McAlex, Ajay G. Rai
Screenwriter: Geetu Mohandas
Cast: Nawazuddin Siddiqui, Geetanjali Thapa, Manya Gupta
Established actress Geetu Mohandas steps behind the lens for her bracing directorial debut. A woman named Kamala and her daughter journey from their remote Himalayan village to Delhi in search of Kamala's missing husband. They find a guide in an unfriendly wanderer whose interest may lie more in his personal gain than in any help he can offer them. Beautifully shot by Rajeev Ravi (Gangs of Wasseypur), Mohandas' film evokes a hazardous world where answers may never be clear and a helping hand always comes at a price.
Phoring
North American Premiere
India/2013/128min
Director: Indranil Roychowdhury
Producers: Anasua Roychowdury, Sugata Bal
Screenwriters: Indranil Roychowdhury, Sugata Sinha
Cast: Akash Adhikary, Sohini Sarkar, Sourav Basak, Ritwick Charaborty, Shankar Debnath, Senjuti Roymukherjee
Indranil Roychowdhury's stunning feature debut is an evocative, unpredictable tale of confused adolescence in a struggling North Bengal town. Phoring, an imaginative adolescent boy, and his beautiful new teacher Doel form a close friendship that soon arouses doubt and suspicion when Doel's presence in the town is revealed to have less-than-noble origins. Roychowdhury accomplishes a tricky feat with his first film by luring us with the promise of an inspirational teacher-student story before ultimately delivering a much more complex and truthful account of the joys and pains of growing up.
Qissa: The Tale of a Lonely Ghost (2013)
Los Angeles Premiere Germany-India-Netherlands/2013/109min
Director: Anup Singh
Producers: Bero Beyer, Johannes Rexin, Bettina Brokemper, Thierry Lenouvel
Screenwriter: Anup Singh, Madhuja Mukherjee
Cast: Irrfan Khan, Tisca Chopra, Tillotama Shome, Rasika Dugal
Set in 1940s Punjab, Anup Singh’s latest feature Qissa details the aftermath of the Indo-Pakistan Partition through the experiences of one Sikh family, headed by Umber (Irrfan Khan). Following the family’s forceful displacement from their village, Umber’s desire for a male heir is stronger than ever. When his wife gives birth to their fourth daughter, Kanwar, Umber makes the fateful decision to raise her as a boy. This tragic choice ends up dividing the family in violent ways, and provokes a series of increasingly unsettling situations for Kanwar as she grows up. While in a sense a ghost story, the source of pain and suffering is all too real.
Siddharth
Los Angeles Premiere
Canada-India/2013/96min
Director: Richie Mehta
Producers: David Miller, Steven N. Bray
Screenwriter: Richie Mehta
Cast: Rajesh Tailang, Tannishtha Chatterjee
A celebrated Iffla alum, Canadian director Richie Mehta returns to the festival with a heartbreaking story of parents Mahendra and Suman, whose son goes missing after being sent to work 200 miles north of Delhi. Carried by powerful yet restrained performances from Rajesh Tailang and Tannishtha Chatterjee as the parents, Mehta and cast capture the dignity of those facing the unthinkable. Mehta's chance encounter with a man searching for his lost son alerted him to the underreported plight of the families of 44,000 children estimated missing in India every year.
Ugly
North American Premiere
India/2013/128mins/Dcp
Director: Anurag Kashyap
Writer: Anurag Kashyap
Producers: Vikas Bahl, Madhu Mantena, Vikramaditya Motwane, Vivek Rangachari, Arun Rangachari
Cast: Rahul Bhatt, Ronit Roy, Tejaswini Kolhapure, Anshika Shrivastava
When ten-year-old Kali disappears from her father Rahul's car on the busy streets of Mumbai, the events that follow quickly spiral out of control and plunge into a morass of corruption and violence. Rahul and Kali's mother, Shalini, are divorced. Shalini is now married to Shoumik, the local police chief. When Shoumik learns that his stepdaughter is missing, he and Rahul clash in a breathless race to find the girl. With intricate plotting and vivid characterizations, Iffla alum Anurag Kashyap fashions a story that's sure to keep the heart racing.
Writers (Sulemani Keeda)
North American Premiere
India/2013/90min
Director: Amit V Masurkar
Writer: Amit V Masurkar
Producer: Datta Dave
Cast: Naveen Kasturia, Mayank Tewari, Aditi Vasudev and Karan Mirchandani
Writing partners Dulal and Mainak dream of shaking up Bollywood in director Amit Masurkar's slacker comedy. The two young men take a job from the wealthy, oddball son of a famous B-movie producer, but soon fear they're on the path to selling out. Masurkar's film captures the creative spirit of Andheri West, a Mumbai suburb where writers, directors, and actors come from all over India with the dream of working in the film industry, and is a sweet taste of things to come from the new "hindie" cinema.
Documentary Features
The Auction House: A Tale of Two Brothers
World Premiere
UK/2014/85min
Director: Ed Owles
Producers: Ed Owles, Giovanna Stopponi
The auction houses of Kolkata used to be where the rich and famous found the right high-end objects to decorate their homes. Today, the family-owned Russell Exchange is the last, and oldest, one to remain in India. Director Ed Owles follows two brothers, with the older brother moving back to Kolkata from London with hopes of using his Western business acumen to bring the Exchange into the 21st century. However, in a country radically transformed by technology and a rising youth culture, it may already be too late.
Faith Connections
Los Angeles Premiere
France-India/2013/115min/Dcp
Director: Pan Nalin
Producers: Raphaël Berdugo, Gaurav Dhingra, Pan Nalin, Virginie Lacombe
Every three years, Hindus gather at one of four rotating sites for Kumbh Mela, a religious celebration of faith and devotion marked by bathing in the sacred waters of the Ganges. With 100 million people at the 2013 Kumbh Mela, the pilgrimage is said to be the largest gathering on the planet. Iffla alum Pan Nalin crafts a moving and unique view of the mass gathering and presents unique stories of how individuals came to be there to share in the belief of the divine.
Powerless (Katiyabaaz)
Los Angeles Premiere
India/2013/82min
Director: Fahad Mustafa and Deepti Kakkar
Producers: Fahad Mustafa, Deepti Kakkar, Judy Tam, Leopold Koegler
Screenwriter: Fahad Mustafa
In Kanpur, a city of three million that has seen better days, one of the only ways for many residents to get electricity is to steal it. Co-directors Fahad Mustafa and Deepti Kakkar focus their attention on the likes of pirate engineers like Loha Singh and first female CEO at the local power authority Ritu Maheshwari. Coupled with beautiful photography of the intricately tied together powerlines of the city and a pulsating original score, they present a unique documentary about current-day India and its future battles over limited resources.
Shepherds of Paradise
U.S. Premiere
India/2013/50min
Director/Producer/Screenwriter/Cinematographer/Editor: Raja Shabir Khan
Composer: Bilal Iran
Nomadic herder Gafoor has to lead his large flock of goats, sheep, cows and horses across Jammu all the way to Kashmir so they can graze. Director Raja Shabir Khan presents lives few have ever seen, let alone lived, with simple beauty and real terror in a film that has won major National Awards in India. A cinematic wonder that must be seen to truly understand, Shepherds of Paradise is a testament of the power of film to transport us to other lands and experiences.
Bollywood By Night
Bombay Talkies
North American Premiere
India/117min/2013
Directors: Karan Johar, Dibakar Banerjee, Zoya Akhtar, Anurag Kashyap
Producers: Ritesh Sidhwani, Farhan Akhtar, Guneet Monga
Screenwriters: Karan Johar, Dibakar Banerjee, Zoya Akhtar, Reema Kagti, Anurag Kashyap
Cast: Amitabh Bachchan , Rani Mukerji, Katrina Kaif, Randeep Hooda, Saqib Saleem, Nawazuddin Siddiqui
A quartet of short films directed by four of India’s most exciting contemporary filmmakers celebrates 100 years of Indian cinema in this omnibus film. Karan Johar, Dibakar Banerjee, Zoya Akhtar and Anurag Kashyap crafts a tale of ordinary people whose love of movies profoundly alters the course of their lives. Each story beautifully captures how lovers of cinema can’t help but carry that fascination into their day-to-day life. Haven’t we all wished, at one time or another, that our lives were more like a film?
Monsoon Shootout
Los Angeles Premiere
India-uk-Netherlands/2013/88min
Director: Amit Kumar
Producers: Trevor Ingman, Guneet Monga, Martijn De Grunt
Screenwriter: Amit Kumar
Cast: Vijay Varma, Nawazuddin Siddiqui, Tannishtha Chatterjee, Geetanjali Thapa
A split-second decision made by a rookie police officer propels writer/director Amit Kumar’s debut feature, which fascinatingly splinters into three separate, equally pulse-pounding scenarios. In a secluded alley drenched in the pouring rain, principled cop Adi aims his gun at Shiva, a vicious gangster on the run. What Adi decides to do next will reverberate throughout his personal and professional life in ways he could never imagine. Kumar thus explores the ripple effect our choices have, and how we unknowingly alter the lives of those around us.
Shorts
Aarti
Shorts Program 2
World Premiere
USA/2013/4min
Director: David Walter Lech
Producer: Terrie Samundra
A hypnotic look into the nightly “ceremony of light” ritual in a Hindu temple in Sheikhupur, Punjab.
Alchemy
Shorts Program 2
U.S. Premiere
India/2013/5min
Directors: Pranay Patwardhan, Shivangi Ranawat, Janmeet Singh
Producer: Pritesh Varia
A bold and vibrant song to the intricate fabric of modern day India, a kaleidoscope of voices, colors and traditions.
Bhiwani Junction
Shorts Program 1
Los Angeles Premiere
USA/2013/18min
Director: Abhi Singh
Producer: Abhi Singh
A poignant documentary portrait of Himanshu, a 12-year old boxer, whose formidable commitment to the sport makes his lofty dreams to become an Olympic champion appear well within reach.
Black Rock (Kaatal)
Shorts Program 1
U.S. Premiere
India/2012/22min
Director: Vikrant Pawar
Producer: Film and Television Institute of India
Two young lovers spend one last afternoon together. A beautiful meditation on the ephemeral nature of young love that has won three of India’s National Film Awards.
The Fly (Makhi)
Shorts Program 2
World Premiere
India/2013/31min
Director: Umesh Vinayak Kulkarni
Producer: Film and Television Institute of India
Employed as a Fly Killer in an upscale restaurant, Pipal must ensure a fly-free environment by smacking dead the flies that buzz over the patrons’ heads. When a nearby drainage is closed and the source of the fly infestation eradicated, Pipal must find a way to produce enough live flies to save his job, in this delightfully absurdist commentary on urban India’s emerging work culture.
Beloved (Humsafar)
Shorts Program 2
U.S. Premiere
India/2012/6min
Directors/Writers: Swapnil Awate, Laura Erbacher
Producer: Dsk Supinfocom
A sweeping single shot takes us on the breathtaking animated journey of two lovers and their eternal pursuit of harmony.
Jaya
Shorts Program 2
USA/2013/19min
Director: Puja Maewal
Producer: Puja Maewal
Young Jaya is able to survive the gruesome gang life in the unforgiving streets of Mumbai by posing as a boy. When she meets a wealthy businessman who looks like he could be the father who abandoned her, she sets out to reclaim her identity, in this engrossing drama that was shortlisted for a Student Academy Award®.
Kush
Shorts Program 1
India/2013/25min
Director: Shubhashish Bhutiani
Producer: Shubhashish Bhutiani
A bus full of schoolchildren boisterously makes its way back from a field trip when the news of Indira Gandhi’s assassination by her Sikh bodyguards breaks. As violence quickly erupts across the country, Kush, the only Sikh student in the class, must find a way to escape the unquenchable fury of retribution, in this gripping drama that was shortlisted for an Academy Award®.
Little Gypsy (Kachho Gadulo)
Shorts Program 1
Los Angeles Premiere
India/2012/6min
Directors: Saptesh Chaubal, Pranay Patwardhan, Shivangi Ranawat
Producer: D.S.K. Supinfocom
Inspired by the folk traditions of various parts of India, this stunning animated film sweeps us into a mythical journey that celebrates the power of play and imagination.
Love.Love.Love.
Shorts Program 2
Los Angeles Premiere
Russian Federation/2013/12min
Director: Sandhya Daisy Sundaram
Producers: Tanya Petrik, Guillaume Protsenko
An intimate ode to the wondrous force of love, as it takes new shapes and forms through the endless Russian winters. Love. Love.Love. won the Short Film Special Jury Award for Non-Fiction at the 2014 Sundance Film Festival.
Outpost
Shorts Program 1
U.S. Premiere
India-usa/2013/17min
Director: Shiva Shankar Bajpai
Producer: Aditi Anand
In the barren desert of the India-Pakistan border, two lone army guards on the opposite sides of the line yearn for booze, mosquito repellent and some human contact, in this humorous glimpse into the absurdity of rigid immaterial divides.
Presence
Shorts Program 2
U.S. Premiere
India/2012/17min
Directors: Ekta Mittal, Yashaswini Raghunandan
Producers: Ekta Mittal, Yashaswini Raghunandan
Long days and nights spent within the bellies of the rising structural beasts that rapidly transform the city of Bangalore bring on visions of ghosts that speak of the construction workers’ memories, longings and fears, in this haunting meditation on the migrant experience.
Skin Deep
Screens with Writers
U.S. Premiere
India/2013/20min
Director: Hardik Mehta
Producers: Devang Bhavsar, Niraj Kothari
Sanjay and Sushma plan to elope to escape a looming arranged marriage. They are in love and their future together shines bright and perfect and filled with possibility--that is, as long as an extra piece of skin that complicates their sex life gets fixed in what should be a routine medical procedure. But Mumbai’s electricity gods have other plans in store for them.
Small Yellow Field (Tau Seru)
Shorts Program 1
Los Angeles Premiere
Australia-India/2013/8min
Director: Rodd Rathjen
Producer: Rodd Rathjen
In the remote vastness of the Himalayas, a young nomad's curiosity lies beyond the horizon. This stunningly photographed film made its world premiere at Cannes Critics’ Week.
The Puppet (Tamaash)
Screens with Shepherds Of Paradise
Los Angeles Premiere
India/2013/32min
Directors: Devanshu Singh, Satyanshu Singh
Producers: Datta Dave, Chaitanya Hegde, Omar Nissar Paul, Devanshu Singh, Satyanshu Singh
A mysterious puppet offers young Anzar the chance to escape his father’s relentless punishments over his poor school grades by granting him the power to inflict misfortune on his nemesis, his brilliant classmate, Sadat. However, his newfound peace is short-lived as Sadat falls severely ill and Anzar comes to realize that the puppet’s powers are spiraling out of his control...
- 4/8/2014
- by Carlos Aguilar
- Sydney's Buzz
From April 8th to the 11th, Indian films will once again be showcased in the Us at the Indian Film Festival of Los Angeles (Iffla). In its 12th year, Iffla boasts an incredible lineup of fabulous films that reflects the rich diversity of Indian cinema. Iffla’s Artistic Director Jasmine Jaisinghani says, “I’m thrilled and proud that Iffla’s line-up this year includes an especially diverse range of cinematic experiences, covering many regions of India and the diaspora.”
Iffla 2014 presents 33 films that include feature films, documentaries and shorts. The festival will have three world premieres, six North American premieres, six U.S. premieres, and 16 Los Angeles premieres. The films feature 10 different languages, from Hindi to Marathi, to Russian to Bengali. Additionally, Iffla supports American, Australian, British, Canadian, and European diaspora filmmakers from nine different countries telling their stories.
Bollywood will be well represented with three outstanding films all showing during the festival’s run.
Iffla 2014 presents 33 films that include feature films, documentaries and shorts. The festival will have three world premieres, six North American premieres, six U.S. premieres, and 16 Los Angeles premieres. The films feature 10 different languages, from Hindi to Marathi, to Russian to Bengali. Additionally, Iffla supports American, Australian, British, Canadian, and European diaspora filmmakers from nine different countries telling their stories.
Bollywood will be well represented with three outstanding films all showing during the festival’s run.
- 3/21/2014
- by Stacey Yount
- Bollyspice
A still from Qissa
Q issa, that premieres at Toronto International Film Festival in September, is the culmination of a 12-year long ‘exile’ period for Geneva-based filmmaker Anup Singh.
Set in post-colonial India, Qissa tells the story of Umber Singh, a Sikh, who is forced to flee his village due to ethnic cleansing at the time of partition in 1947.
In an interview to Nandita Dutta, Singh describes his journey of making Qissa, why audiences will relate to it easily, and why he hopes to be invited for a Punjabi meal after the world premiere at Toronto!
How did Qissa originate? You were born in Tanzania and currently live in Switzerland. What drew you towards writing a story about partition and displacement in Punjab?
Qissa had been flickering within me from that terrible day my parents, my two younger sisters and I had to leave forever the city of my birth,...
Q issa, that premieres at Toronto International Film Festival in September, is the culmination of a 12-year long ‘exile’ period for Geneva-based filmmaker Anup Singh.
Set in post-colonial India, Qissa tells the story of Umber Singh, a Sikh, who is forced to flee his village due to ethnic cleansing at the time of partition in 1947.
In an interview to Nandita Dutta, Singh describes his journey of making Qissa, why audiences will relate to it easily, and why he hopes to be invited for a Punjabi meal after the world premiere at Toronto!
How did Qissa originate? You were born in Tanzania and currently live in Switzerland. What drew you towards writing a story about partition and displacement in Punjab?
Qissa had been flickering within me from that terrible day my parents, my two younger sisters and I had to leave forever the city of my birth,...
- 8/29/2013
- by Nandita Dutta
- DearCinema.com
Berlinale director Dieter Kosslick is to serve as a “godfather” to the new training venture School of Film Agents (Sofa) and has revealed he wants attract more TV product to Berlin’s Efm.
Speaking exclusively to ScreenDaily during his first ever visit to the New Horizons International Film Festival in Wroclaw, Kosslick said: “The only thing I can do is contribute my know-how, which is quite large because I know a lot of people and have experience of running such projects.”
Initiated by the Cologne-based non-profit organisation Filmplus, Sofa is run in cooperation with the City of Wroclaw, the Polish Film Institute and the New Horizons Association, with funding and support from 15 institutions and organisations including Media Desk Poland, the International Visegrad Fund and Goethe Institutes in Georgia, Romania and Hungary.
“From the outset, the idea was not to make a big announcement but to use the network of friends and acquaintances for recommendations,” said Sofa initiator...
Speaking exclusively to ScreenDaily during his first ever visit to the New Horizons International Film Festival in Wroclaw, Kosslick said: “The only thing I can do is contribute my know-how, which is quite large because I know a lot of people and have experience of running such projects.”
Initiated by the Cologne-based non-profit organisation Filmplus, Sofa is run in cooperation with the City of Wroclaw, the Polish Film Institute and the New Horizons Association, with funding and support from 15 institutions and organisations including Media Desk Poland, the International Visegrad Fund and Goethe Institutes in Georgia, Romania and Hungary.
“From the outset, the idea was not to make a big announcement but to use the network of friends and acquaintances for recommendations,” said Sofa initiator...
- 7/29/2013
- by screen.berlin@googlemail.com (Martin Blaney)
- ScreenDaily
Russia’s St Petersburg, the “Venice of the North”, is set to join Paris, New York and Berlin celebrated in the Cities of Love omnibus franchise.
Speaking exclusively to ScreenDaily in St Petersburg during the city’s famous White Nights this week, producers Vitaly Eroshenya and Ilya Zofin of Lyceum Production explained that shooting on Saint Petersburg, I Love You is slated to begin in autumn 2014.
Although the producers stress they have not yet signed any concrete deals, initial interest in directing one of the planned 12 short love stories has been expressed by such film-makers as Jaco van Dormael, Sophie Lellouche, Anne Fontaine, Til Schweiger and Dito Tsintsadze.
Eroshenya had made contact with some of the film-makers as the programmer of closed screenings called ¨Cinema With Taste¨ where around 20 people are invited to see interesting new foreign films with the directors attending.
In the case of Schweiger, the German actor-director-producer had shown interest in being involved when asked...
Speaking exclusively to ScreenDaily in St Petersburg during the city’s famous White Nights this week, producers Vitaly Eroshenya and Ilya Zofin of Lyceum Production explained that shooting on Saint Petersburg, I Love You is slated to begin in autumn 2014.
Although the producers stress they have not yet signed any concrete deals, initial interest in directing one of the planned 12 short love stories has been expressed by such film-makers as Jaco van Dormael, Sophie Lellouche, Anne Fontaine, Til Schweiger and Dito Tsintsadze.
Eroshenya had made contact with some of the film-makers as the programmer of closed screenings called ¨Cinema With Taste¨ where around 20 people are invited to see interesting new foreign films with the directors attending.
In the case of Schweiger, the German actor-director-producer had shown interest in being involved when asked...
- 7/2/2013
- by screen.berlin@googlemail.com (Martin Blaney)
- ScreenDaily
The European Film Commission Network and Film France in partnership with Golden Bird Entertainment and peacefulfish aim to make productions easier between Europe and India.
On the occasion of 100 years of Indian Cinema at Cannes, these partners launched a first-of-its-kind high-level panel discussion on combining European financing opportunities with Indian production, financing, and distribution power.
The Cannes panel discussion had a keynote speech from Mr. Uday Kumar Varma, Secretary, Indian Information and Broadcasting Ministry, who guided on the much simplified “Single window clearance for international shoots and co-production treaties”. Producer Johannes Rexin of Heimat film, Germany shared his experiences on the first official German-Indian co-production “Qissa” starring Irrfan Khan. The European Film Commission Network (Eufcn) and Franck Priot, COO, Film France focused on their mission and objectives which have helped them to work with Indian and French production companies and films in France and India. Juliane Schulze, Senior Partner, peacefulfish providec invaluable guidance on European tax incentives, subsidies, and co-financing opportunities. The panel was moderated by Mohinder Walia, Managing Director, Golden Bird Entertainment Pvt. Ltd. (Former MD, Twentieth Century Fox Studios India) and he shared his deep insight on production, financing, and global distribution from an Indian perspective.
This high-level panel discussion addressed the most effective ways for European and Indian film producers to form lasting working relationships and benefit from the different financing landscapes of both territories.
On the occasion of 100 years of Indian Cinema at Cannes, these partners launched a first-of-its-kind high-level panel discussion on combining European financing opportunities with Indian production, financing, and distribution power.
The Cannes panel discussion had a keynote speech from Mr. Uday Kumar Varma, Secretary, Indian Information and Broadcasting Ministry, who guided on the much simplified “Single window clearance for international shoots and co-production treaties”. Producer Johannes Rexin of Heimat film, Germany shared his experiences on the first official German-Indian co-production “Qissa” starring Irrfan Khan. The European Film Commission Network (Eufcn) and Franck Priot, COO, Film France focused on their mission and objectives which have helped them to work with Indian and French production companies and films in France and India. Juliane Schulze, Senior Partner, peacefulfish providec invaluable guidance on European tax incentives, subsidies, and co-financing opportunities. The panel was moderated by Mohinder Walia, Managing Director, Golden Bird Entertainment Pvt. Ltd. (Former MD, Twentieth Century Fox Studios India) and he shared his deep insight on production, financing, and global distribution from an Indian perspective.
This high-level panel discussion addressed the most effective ways for European and Indian film producers to form lasting working relationships and benefit from the different financing landscapes of both territories.
- 5/18/2013
- by Sydney Levine
- Sydney's Buzz
Roman Polanski's thriller has been nominated for 7 European Film Awards including best European film, director, actor (Ewan McGregor), screenwriter, editor, production design and composer. Other leading nominees are Samuel Maoz's Lebanon with 5 nods and Semih Kaplanoğlu's Honey with 3. This year's European Film Awards will take place in Tallinn, Estonia on December 4. The 2,300 members of the European Film Academy will vote for the winners. Michael Haneke's The White Ribbon won the European film, director and screenwriter awards last year. European Film 2010: Bal (Honey), Turkey/Germany Directed by Semih Kaplanoğlu Written by Semih Kaplanoğlu & Orçun Köksal Produced by Semih Kaplanoğlu & Johannes Rexin Des Hommes Et Des Dieux (Of Gods and Men), France Directed by Xavier Beauvois Written by Etienne Comar & Xavier Beauvois The Ghost Writer, France/Germany/UK Directed by Roman Polanski Written by Robert Harris & Roman Polanski Produced by Robert Benmussa, Alain Sarde & Roman Polanski Lebanon,...
- 11/6/2010
- by TIM ADLER in London
- Deadline London
Bran Nue Dae and Legend of the Guardians: The Owls of Ga’Hoole have been nominated for the Asia Pacific Screen Awards in the Best Children’s Film and Best Animated Film categories respectively.
New Zealand’s Boy was also nominated for Best Children’s Film, and Australian actor Tony Barry has been recognised for his performance in that country’s feature Home by Christmas.
The Jury is headed by producer Lord David Puttnam, and winners will be announced on the Gold Coast on December 2.
The nominees are:
Best Feature Film
Tangshan dadizheng (Aftershock)
People’s Republic of China (Mainland China / Hong Kong)
Produced by Guo Yanhong, Han Sanping, Wang Zhonjun, Peter Lam Kin Ngok, Wang Tonguan and Albert Yeung.
Bal (Honey)
Turkey / Germany
Produced by Semih Kaplanoðlu.
Co-Produced by Johannes Rexin, Bettina Brokemper.
Mengjia (Monga)
Taiwan
Produced by Lee Lieh and Doze Niu Chen-zer.
Paju
Republic of Korea
Produced...
New Zealand’s Boy was also nominated for Best Children’s Film, and Australian actor Tony Barry has been recognised for his performance in that country’s feature Home by Christmas.
The Jury is headed by producer Lord David Puttnam, and winners will be announced on the Gold Coast on December 2.
The nominees are:
Best Feature Film
Tangshan dadizheng (Aftershock)
People’s Republic of China (Mainland China / Hong Kong)
Produced by Guo Yanhong, Han Sanping, Wang Zhonjun, Peter Lam Kin Ngok, Wang Tonguan and Albert Yeung.
Bal (Honey)
Turkey / Germany
Produced by Semih Kaplanoðlu.
Co-Produced by Johannes Rexin, Bettina Brokemper.
Mengjia (Monga)
Taiwan
Produced by Lee Lieh and Doze Niu Chen-zer.
Paju
Republic of Korea
Produced...
- 10/18/2010
- by Miguel Gonzalez
- Encore Magazine
Jim Broadbent, Ruth Sheen, Oliver Maltman in Mike Leigh‘s Another Year (top); Samuel Maoz‘s Lebanon (middle); Moritz Bleibtreu in Fatih Akin‘s Soul Kitchen (bottom) Roman Polanski’s The Ghost Writer, Jean Luc-Godard’s Film Socialism: 2010 European Film Award Semi-Finalists 3 SEZÓNY V Pekle 3 Seasons In Hell Czech Republic, 110 min. written and directed by Tomáš Mašin produced by Monika Kristl Another Year UK, 129 min. written and directed by Mike Leigh produced by Georgina Lowe Bal Honey Turkey/Germany, 103 min. directed by Semih Kaplanoglu written by Semih Kaplanoglu & Orçun Köksal produced by Semih Kaplanoglu & Johannes Rexin Carlos France/Germany, 318 min. directed by Olivier Assayas written by Olivier Assayas & Dan Franck based on an original idea by Daniel Leconte produced by Daniel Leconte, Jens Meurer & Judy Tossell Celda 211 Cell 211 Spain / France, 114 min. directed by by Daniel Monzón written by Jorge Guerricaechevarría & Daniel Monzón produced [...]...
- 9/9/2010
- by Steve Montgomery
- Alt Film Guide
3 SEZÓNY V Pekle 3 Seasons In Hell Czech Republic, 110 min. written and directed by Tomáš Mašin produced by Monika Kristl Another Year UK, 129 min. written and directed by Mike Leigh produced by Georgina Lowe Bal Honey Turkey/Germany, 103 min. directed by Semih Kaplano?lu written by Semih Kaplano?lu & Orçun Köksal produced by Semih Kaplano?lu & Johannes Rexin Carlos France/Germany, 318 min. directed by Olivier Assayas written by Olivier Assayas & Dan Franck based on an original idea by Daniel Leconte produced by Daniel Leconte, Jens Meurer & Judy Tossell Celda 211 Cell 211 Spain / France, 114 min. directed by by Daniel Monzón written by Jorge Guerricaechevarría & Daniel Monzón produced by Emma Lustres, Borja Pena, Juan Gordon & Álvaro Augustín Le Concert The Concert France, 122 min. directed by Radu Mihaileanu written by Radu Mihaileanu produced by Alain Attal Des Hommes Et Des Dieux Of Gods And [...]...
- 9/9/2010
- by Steve Montgomery
- Alt Film Guide
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