Deadline Hollywood - Contenders Film: International - 12/03/22

Lorenzo Vigas (Co-Writer/Director/Producer) Michel Franco (Producer)

Hernán Mendoza (Actor/Producer)

Park Chan-wook (Co-Writer/Director) Jiwon Lee (Interpreter)

Carla Simón (Co-Writer/Director/EP)

Colm Bairéad ( Writer/Director)

Alice Diop ( Co-Writer/Director) Nicholas Elliot (Interpreter)

Vicky Krieps (Actor)

Jerzy Skolimowski (Co-Writer/Director/Producer) Ewa Piaskowska (Co-Writer/Producer) Kasia Glinka (Interpreter)

Lukas Dhont (Co-Writer/Director)

Edward Berger (Co-Writer/Director/Producer) Felix Kammerer (Actor)

Daniel Brühl (EP/Actor)

James Friend (Cinematographer)

Alejandro G. Iñárritu (Co-Writer/Director/Producer/ Co-Editor/Co-Composer)

Daniel Giménez Cacho (Actor)

Pan Nalin

(Writer/Director/Producer/Production Designer)

Bhavin Rabari (Actor)

Dheer Momaya (Producer)

Siddharth Roy Kapur (Producer)

Tarik Saleh (Writer/Director)

MER FILM OAK MOTION PICTURES

AMAZON STUDIOS

MORNING PRESENTATIONS

War Sailor Narcosis Argentina, 1985

Gunnar Vikene (Writer/Director)

Kristoffer Joner (Actor)

Pål Sverre Hagen (Actor)

Martijn de Jong (Co-Writer/Director)

Thekla Reuten (Actor)

Santiago Mitre (Co-Writer/Director/Producer)

Ricardo Darín (Actor/Producer)

Consuelo Lyonnet (Interpreter)

AFTERNOON PRESENTATIONS

Jason Loftus (Director/Producer)

Daxiong (Animator/Subject)

Masha Loftus (EP)

Ali Abbasi (Co-Writer/Director/Producer)

Zar Amir-Ebrahimi (Actor)

Erik Matti (Director/Producer)

Mario Martone (Co-Writer/Director)

Pierfrancesco Favino (Actor)

Anthony Chen (Producer)

He Shuming (Co-Writer/Director)

Saim Sadiq (Co-Writer/Director/Co-Editor)

Darin J. Sallam (Writer/Director) Deema Azar (Producer)

Ayah Jardaneh (Producer)

Maryna Er Gorbach (Writer/Director/Producer/Editor)

Michael Koch (Co-Writer/Director) Michèle Brand (Actor)

Gabriel Martins (Writer/Director/ Producer/Co-Editor)

Lou Yi-an (Co-Writer/Director/Co-Editor)

Singing Chen (Co-Writer/Co-Editor)

Brian Kuo (Interpreter)

Guðmundur Arnar Guðmundsson (Writer/Director)

Sturla Brandth Grøvlen (Cinematographer)

MEI AH ENTERTAINMENT GROUP CO., LTD

LOUVERTURE FILMS

AFTERNOON PRESENTATIONS

Where the Wind Blows

EAMI

Philip Yung (Writer/Director)

Paz Encina (Writer/Director/Producer)

Javier Umpierrez (Supervising Sound Editor/Sound Designer/Re-recording Sound Mixer)

Carlos Cortés Navarrete (Sound Mixer)

Alejo Magariños (Interpreter)

NATIONAL TREASURES

Deadline’s Contenders Film: International event brings you the best of this year’s world cinema

BY DAMON WISE

The first calendar year to see the physical return of almost every major film festival since the pandemic, 2022 has been a huge morale booster for filmmakers from all around the globe. And now, with the third annual edition of Deadline’s Contenders Film: International, that outreach expands even further. Leaving a carbon-free footprint, our online event will showcase the myriad films that soared at Sundance, beguiled Berlin, captivated Cannes, thrilled Telluride, vitalized Venice and touched Toronto, all the while shining a spotlight on the must-see movies that might have flown under your radar.

Since submissions accepted for the Best International Feature Film category continue to grow—up by something like 30 percent from just 10 years ago, buoyed no doubt by the boundary-breaking success of 2019’s Parasite—it is harder than ever before to see where the awards race is going. Our writers are here to help you cut through the noise, talking to stars, directors, producers and writers to find

the stories behind the scenes for an audience that wants to know where the new Drive My Car may be coming from.

And this year is a wide-open field, From the Cannes Film Festival alone we have Lukas Dhont’s Close (Belgium), Saim Sadiq’s Joyland , Mario Martone’s Nostalgia (Italy), Park Chan-wook’s Decision to Leave (South Korea), Jerzy Skolimoswki’s EO (Poland), Ali Abbasi’s Holy Spider (Denmark), Marie Kreutzer’s Corsage (Austria) and, from Sweden, Tarik Saleh’s Cairo Conspiracy (which debuted there as Boy From Heaven ).

From the Berlinale there’s Michael Koch’s A Piece of Sky (Switzerland), Guðmundur Arnar Guðmundsson’s Beautiful Beings (Iceland), and Carla Simon’s Alcarràs (Spain), while from the Sundance festival there’s Gabriel Martins’ Mars One (Brazil) and Maryna Er Gorbach’s Klondike (Ukraine). Venice, meanwhile, is represented by the likes of Alejandro Gonzáles Iñárittu’s Bardo, False Chronicle of a Handful of Truths (Mexico), Lorenzo Vigas’s The Box (Venezuela), Alice

Diop’s Saint Omer (France), Erik Matti’s On the Job: The Missing 8 (The Phillipines), and Santiago Mitre’s Argentina, 1985 (Argentina).

Toronto gives us Darin J. Sallam’s Farha (Jordan), Edward Berger’s All Quiet on the Western Front (Germany), and Gunnar Vikene’s War Sailor (Norway). And that’s before we get to Lou Yi-an’s Goddamned Asura (Taiwan), He Suming’s Ajoomma (Singapore), Jason Loftus’s Eternal Spring (Canada), Pan Encina’s EAMI (Paraguay), Philip Yung’s Where the Wind Blows (Hong Kong), Pan Nalin’s Last Film Show (India), Colm Bairéad’s The Quiet Girl (Ireland) and Martijn de Jong’s Narcosis (Netherlands).

As is true of every year, it’s an incredibly rich and diverse selection at our Contenders event: thrillers, comedies, dramas and even hybrid docs that deal with issues ranging from the global to the private. Regardless of what happens on March 12, all these films have earned their place in the conversation—so log in and listen to what their creators have to say. ★

Meet the moderators

The Deadline staffers who’ll be guiding you through this year’s Contenders

YOUR EMCEE JOE UTICHI

EXECUTIVE

AWARDS EDITOR

Joe oversees Deadline’s awards coverage, including its dedicated print magazine for the Oscar and Emmy seasons, AwardsLine. He also edits Deadline’s special “Disruptors” edition for the Cannes Film Festival and serves as the emcee for its Contenders events. He has been aboard since 2012. Prior to joining, his work regularly appeared in his native UK—for outlets including The Sunday Times and The Guardian—and around the world. He has also worked extensively in film and television, producing EPK and production notes and working as a unit publicist. He is a member of BAFTA and has sat on multiple juries for the BAFTA Film Awards.

YOUR MODERATORS

MELANIE GOODFELLOW SENIOR INTERNATIONAL FILM CORRESPONDENT

Melanie joined Deadline in 2022 as Senior International Film Correspondent. She came from UK trade Screen International, where she spent a decade covering film and TV news out of France, Europe and the Middle East. She has also worked for Variety and Moving Pictures as well as the UK broadsheet The Independent, entertainment magazine Heat and Japan’s The Daily Yomiuri, working

out of London, Rome, Brussels, Tokyo and Jerusalem. Melanie originally trained in journalism at Reuters and spent four years there in the mid-1990s as a reporter.

DIANA LODDERHOSE INTERNATIONAL FEATURES EDITOR

Diana has been working in global film journalism since 2005. Before returning to Deadline in 2021 to focus on features for international film and television, she was previously International Reporter for the site. She is based in London and has

frequently covered all the major film festivals and markets including Cannes, Berlin, AFM, Toronto and Sundance. Prior to joining Deadline, Diana was the UK correspondent for Variety and also covered film news and box office at Screen International.

ZAC NTIM INTERNATIONAL REPORTER

Zac joined Deadline in 2022 from Insider/Business Insider, where he started as an intern before being promoted to a full reporter. After joining the site's entertainment team in 2020

he wrote profiles and covered film and TV as well as film festivals. He is currently based in London.

NANCY TARTAGLIONE SENIOR AWARDS EDITOR, AWARDSLINE

Nancy joined Deadline as International Editor in 2011. She covers the global film, television and media business, with a particular focus on international box office and China; as well as various festivals and awards shows. Based in Europe for more than 25 years, Nancy is the former Editor-in-Chief of Hollywood Wiretap, and for 10 years was

French Correspondent/Contributing Editor at ScreenDaily.com and Screen International. She also has worked for The New York Times as a freelance editor for its DealBook blog. Earlier in her career, Nancy was the European Media Correspondent for Inside.com and co-hosted CanalPlus’ film program Bazar . Nancy also spent four years as reporter and editor for Variety in Paris and Los Angeles. Prior to that, she worked in the Paris office of 60 Minutes, and spent two years in the Features department of the International Herald Tribune. She lives in the south of France.

DAMON WISE FILM EDITOR, AWARDSLINE

Damon has contributed to Deadline since 2017. As a journalist, his film features, interviews and reviews have been published in publications such as Empire, Total Film, The Guardian, The Times and The Financial Times, and as well as covering set visits and junkets, he is a regular attendee at key international film festivals. In 1998 he published his first book, Come By Sunday (Sidgwick & Jackson), a biography of British film star Diana Dors, and he is currently an advi sor to the London Film Festival.

FILMS

A24 Close (Belgium)

In Close, two young friends find their relationship being put to the test after tragedy strikes. Childhood friends Léo (Eden Dambrine) and Rémi (Gustav De Waele) have always been very close, but once their first high school year starts, their close friendship is threatened by their gossiping classmates.

ALL IN CAPS/KHOOSAT FILMS Joyland (Pakistan)

AMAZON STUDIOS Argentina, 1985 (Argentina)

Santiago Mitre’s political drama

Argentina, 1985 is based on the real-life Trial of the Juntas, which oversaw the prosecution of Argentina’s last civil-military dictatorship. In the movie, we see a team of lawyers working to build a case against the corrupt military faction about their various wrongdoings done between 1976-1983. The film stars Ricardo Darín, Peter Lanzani, and Norman Briski.

JOYLAND

Saim Sadiq’s Joyland provides a unique social commentary surrounding various issues that plague Pakistani society through the lens of the transgender community. The film follows the youngest son Haider (Ali Junejo), born to a strictly patriarchal family, as he finds himself falling in love with a transgender erotic dancer. Joyland explores themes of sexual rebellion and repressed desire within the confines of Muslim culture.

ALTERED INNOCENCE Beautiful Beings (Iceland)

The Icelandic coming-of-age drama Beautiful Beings is a visceral story about the vital importance of making friends and finding your own supportive community. Balli (Áskell Einar Pálmason) is a troubled teen who is often bullied by his mother, stepfather and by his classmates. After connecting with a particularly dangerous misfit classmate, Balli begins to believe that violence might just be the answer to solving all of his woes.

BREAKING GLASS PICTURES Nostalgia (Italy)

This Neapolitan mobster drama, directed and co-written by Mario Martone, follows the dissolution of a friendship beween two childhood friends as they move into adulthood. Faced with a growing concern for his ailing mother after a 40-year absence, Felice (Pierfrancesco Favino) returns to his hometown of Naples to take care of her. During his visit, Felice reconnects with his former best friend only to learn that he’s turned into a coldhearted gangster.

CONTENT DIGITAL FILM CO., LTD Goddamned Asura (Taiwan)

Lou Yi-An’s Goddamned Asura is a harrowing psychological tale inspired by real-life events based on newspaper reports on random killings. On the eve of his 18th birthday, Jan Wen (Joseph Huang) goes on an indiscriminate shooting spree at the Taipei Night Market changing the course of six people’s lives in a single night.

ARGENTINA, 1985

GODDAMNED ASURA

A PIECE OF SKY

MARS ONE

ETERNAL SPRING

FILMES DE PLÁSTICO

Mars One (Brazil)

The multilayered family ensemble Mars One tells the story of the Martins, a lowermiddle-class Black family living in Brazil. After the election of a far-right extremist president, the Martins start to feel the societal pressures of the new regime as the political dust settles. The film is directed by Gabriel Martins and stars Cícero Lucas, Camilla Damião, Carlos Francisco and Rejane Faria.

GIRAFFE PICTURES

Ajoomma (Singapore)

He Shuming’s Singaporean comedy Ajoomma tells the story of a middle-aged widow named Auntie (Hifang Hong) looking for a new lease on life. Trying to find a new identity for herself after her adult son becomes more independent, Auntie uses her obsession with Korean dramas as a catalyst to take a solo vacation to Seoul.

HUGOFILM FEATURES

A

Piece of Sky (Switzerland)

This Swiss drama directed and co-written by Michael Koch follows the tragic love story between a newly married couple living in a remote mountain village. After getting into a motorcycle accident, which leads to a CT scan that detects a brain tumor, Marco (Simon Wisler) and Anna’s (Michèle Brand) relationship must endure the effects of the illness.

IFC

Corsage (Austria)

Vicky Krieps stars as Empress

Elisabeth of Austria in this fictional account of a year in the life of the Empress, written and directed by Austrian filmmaker Marie Kreutzer. On Christmas Eve 1877, Elisabeth attempts to maintain her public image as a beauty icon as she turns 40 and is deemed an old woman.

LOFTY SKY ENTERTAINMENT

Eternal Spring (Canada)

Jason Loftus directs this documentary based on the spiritual sect Falun Gong’s 2002 hijacking of broadcast television stations in China. Using the animation of Chinese comic book artist Daxiong, a Falun Gong practitioner who fled China in the aftermath, Loftus retraces the events two decades later with a combination of present-day footage and 3D animation. Eternal Spring brings to life a story of defiance against persecution and the determination to speak up to fight to protect political and religious freedom.

LOUVERTURE FILMS

EAMI (Paraguay)

Paz Encina’s EAMI tackles the devestating effects of deforestation in Paraguay through the lens of Indigenous fables and historical accounts. EAMI follows the story of a five-year-old girl who is the reincarnation of Asojá, a birdGod-woman who presides over the Ayoreo-Totobiegosode people. After the village suffers a brutal attack, Eami searches the rainforest looking for her people and friends.

CORSAGE

AJOOMMA

EAMI

MEI AH ENTERTAINMENT GROUP

Where the Wind Blows (Hong Kong)

Inspired by true stories about corrupt police forces in 1960s Hong Kong and Chinese provinces, director-writer Philip Yung made his own crime drama feature. Where the Wind Blows follows the rise of four corrupt police officers who aim to control the task force by controlling organized crime. The film stars Aaron Kwok, Tony Chiu-Wai Leung, Patrick Tan and Michael Chow.

MER FILM War Sailor (Norway)

War Sailor, set against the backdrop of World War II, follows an eight-year journey between two Norwegian best friends. In 1939, just a few months before the Nazi occupation of Norway, Alfred (Kristoffer Joner) and his friend Sigbjørn (Pål Sverre Hagen) decide to sign up for supposedly harmless sea-faring fishing work, only to find themselves thrown into the horrors of the war, transporting explosives.

MUBI Alcarràs (Spain)

After suffering through a series of serious agricultural setbacks, a family of peach farmers in a small Catalonian village must contend with their threatened survival after the owner of their large estate dies suddenly. Director and co-writer Carla Simón primarily hired actors from the Alcarrás region of Spain in order to add to the authenticity of the film.

Decision to Leave (South Korea)

Co-written and directed by Park Chan-wook, this neo-noir mystery follows insomniac detective Hae-Jun (Park Haeil) as he investigates the death of a retired immigration worker. The investigation initially leads to the victim’s young wife, Seo-rae (Tang Wei), but becomes complicated as the detective becomes obsessed with her. Park won Best Director for the film at the 2022 Cannes Film Festival.

The Box (Venezuela)

Directed by Lorenzo Vigas, The Box follows a teenage boy in Mexico who sets out on a journey to collect his father’s remains. He soon finds himself sucked into the underbelly of the manufacturing industry and trapped in a situation he can’t escape. The film was selected to compete for the Golden Lion at the 78th Venice International Film Festival.

NETFLIX

All Quiet on the Western Front (Germany)

The Edward Berger-directed All Quiet on the Western Front explores the World War I battlefront through the eyes of fatigued German soldiers. Based on the 1928 novel of the same name by Erich Maria Remarque, the film follows the newly-enlisted teenager Paul Bäumer (Felix Kammerer) and his friends as they face the unspeakable horrors of serving with the embattled German army on the frontlines.

ALCARRÀS

WHERE THE WIND BLOWS

BOX

DECISION TO LEAVE

WAR SAILOR

ALL QUIET ON THE WESTERN FRONT BARDO, FALSE CHRONICLE OF A HANDFUL OF TRUTHS

LAST FILM SHOW

ON THE JOB: THE MISSING 8

NARCOSIS

Bardo,

False Chronicle of a Handful of Truths (Mexico)

This dark comedy, directed by Alejandro González Iñárritu, documents one man’s cultural rediscovery as he leaves Los Angeles and returns to Mexico. After receiving a prestigious award for his work in journalism and documentary filmmaking, Silverio (Daniel Giménez Cacho) is suddenly compelled to re-examine his Mexican roots. Upon arrival, Silverio contends with embarrassing memories from the past and an existential crisis.

OAK MOTION PICTURES

Narcosis (The Netherlands)

When the father of a young family fails to resurface after a professional dive, the rest of the family grieve and mourn the loss in unique ways. Director Martijn de Jong explores different phases of grief and loss, as some search for answers and others refuse to accept reality.

PROTIM

Klondike (Ukraine)

Maryna Er Gorbach’s Klondike tells the story of a Ukrainian family living on the border of Russia at the start of the war. After the crash of MH17, the war brutally invades their lives as the couple is expecting their first child. Irka (Oksana Cherkashyna) refuses to leave, even as the village becomes occupied by armed forces.

REALITY MM STUDIOS

On the Job: The Missing 8 (The Philippines)

A sequel to Erik Matti’s 2013

film On the Job, this crime thriller focuses on corruption and media censorship. Corrupt reporter Sisoy Salas (John Arcilla) is forced to investigate the disappearance of his colleagues. Meanwhile, hitman Roman Rubio (Dennis Trillo) plans a way to regain his freedom after he is sentenced to life in prison for a crime he did not commit.

SAMUEL GOLDWYN FILMS

Cairo Conspiracy (Sweden)

In Cairo Conspiracy, Adam (Tawfeek Barhom), the son of a poor Egyptian fisherman lives with his father and brothers in a tiny seaside village. Without telling his domineering father, Adam studies privately so he can attend the prestigious Al-Azhar University in Cairo. To Adam’s surprise, his father encourages him, seeing the opportunity as a gift from God. But when Adam arrives, his good fortune soon turns sour.

Last Film Show (India)

Directed by Pan Nalin, this film follows Samay (Bhavin Rabari), a child in India who is mesmerized by films. He spends his summer watching films in a rundown movie theater by bribing the projectionist. His decision to become a filmmaker leads to heartbreaking times as he follows his dream.

SIDESHOW & JANUS FILMS

EO (Poland)

Director Jerzy Skolimowski’s minimalist drama EO follows the story of a Polish circus donkey that discovers the best

CAIRO CONSPIRACY

KLONDIKE

and worst of humanity during his travels. Along with winning the 2022 Cannes Film Festival Jury Prize, EO stars Sandra Drzymalska, Lorenzo Zurzolo and Isabelle Huppert.

SUPER Saint Omer (France)

Rama (Kayije Kagame), a literature professor, attends the trial of Laurence Coly (Guslagie Malanda), a Senegalese woman accused of murdering her child in director Alice Diop’s first feature film. Though she planned to use the trial as inspiration to write a modern-day retelling of the Greek Medea myth, Rama soon finds parallels between Coly’s life and her own.

The Quiet Girl (Ireland)

Directed by Colm Bairéad, The Quiet Girl follows a 9-yearold Cáit (Catherine Clinch) who is sent away from her dysfunctional family to live with distant relatives. She blossoms in the care of her loving foster parents and discovers a new way of living, but her abusive birth parents soon request her return.

TALEBOX Farha (Jordan)

Writer-director Darin J. Sallam makes her feature debut with the war drama Farha . Set during the 1940s British occupation of Palestine, the film centers around Farha (Karam Taher), a 14-year-old girl who watches the collapse of her village from a locked pantry in her home. Jordan has nominated the film as the country’s official entry for the 95th Academy Awards for Best International Feature Film.

UTOPIA Holy Spider (Denmark)

Based on a true story, Holy Spider unravels a web of murders that were committed between 2000 and 2001. Rahimi (Zar Amir Ebrahimi), an Iranian female journalist, is tasked with investigating a serial killer who targets sex workers in the name of God. The film also stars Mehdi Bajestani. Denmark has nominated the film as the country’s official entry for the 95th Academy Awards for Best International Feature Film.

SAINT OMER

THE QUIET GIRL

FARHA HOLY SPIDER