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Von Trier’s serial killer Jack cuts early deals Frantz
Ozon’s Frantz brightens with sales interest BY MELANIE GOODFELLOW
Paris-based Films Distribution has a secured a slew of deals on Francois Ozon’s post-First World War drama Frantz ahead of an expected premiere at a major autumn festival. Shot mainly in black-and-white, the film stars Pierre Niney as a young Frenchman who meets the fianceé of a dead German soldier at his grave in a small German town. “We really didn’t know how the market would respond to a blackand-white trailer, even though it’s Ozon,” said Films Distribution co-chief Nicolas Brigaud-Robert. The film has sold to Benelux (September), Argentina (Distribution Company), Greece (Feelgood), UK (Metrodome), Italy (Academy Two), Portugal (Leopardo), former Yugoslavia (MCF Megacom), Turkey (Bir Films), Brazil (California Filmes), Colombia (Cine Colombia) and South Korea (Challan). The film is produced by Eric and Nicolas Altmayer at Paris-based Mandarin Cinéma in co-production with Germany’s X Filme Creative Pool.
BY WENDY MITCHELL
TrustNordisk has pre-sold Lars von Trier’s next film The House That Jack Built around the world. Deals have closed for Latin America (California Filmes), Benelux (September), Poland (Gutek), Taiwan (Moviecloud), former Yugoslavia (Cinemania), Czech Republic (Aero) and Romania (Independenta Film 97). The story is told from the point of view of a serial killer who aspires to commit the perfect murder. TrustNordisk had planned to start sales after the cast was
announced, but found that buyers were eager to secure the project early. “People are so excited to buy his title at this stage. It underlines that Lars is one of the world’s best directors working today,” said TrustNordisk CEO Rikke Ennis.
Hubert Boesl
Director Jeff Nichols with actors Ruth Negga and Joel Edgerton on the red carpet here for the world premiere of Loving, which plays in Competition. See review, page 14.
Giddy for US-India genre slate Blumhouse Productions, Ivanhoe Pictures and India’s Phantom Films have unveiled the first films in their local-language genre partnership. Ghoul will be directed by Patrick Graham and star Radhika Apte. The story revolves around a prisoner who arrives at a remote military interrogation centre and turns the tables on his captors. Giddy marks Anurag Kashyap’s horror genre debut and his next
Lars von Trier
Producer Louise Vesth of Zentropa told Screen International that von Trier is casting the film now for a likely autumn start of shoot. The $9.8m (¤8.7m) project is set in Washington State but will shoot near Trollhattan, Sweden — where backer Film Vast is located — and in Copenhagen. There are two main male roles and four main female roles. “There are so many actors he’s looking at now. He wants to create the film and this character of Jack together with an intelligent actor,” said Vesth.
directing project following Raman Raghav 2.0, which premiered in Directors’ Fortnight yesterday. Ludo will be directed by Q (Gandu, Tasher Desh) and is a Hindilanguage remake of his Bengali film of the same name. Ivanhoe will finance the films, Phantom will produce and Blumhouse will help oversee the creative. CAA brokered the partnership. Liz Shackleton
Keanu Reeves replicates sales BY JEREMY KAY
Lotus Entertainment has reported a resounding response to its upcoming sci-fi thriller Replicas, starring Keanu Reeves, set to begin production on July 18. Reeves will star in and produce with Lorenzo di Bonaventura, Company Films’ Stephen Hamel, Fundamental Films’ Mark Gao and Ocean Park Entertainment’s Luis Riefkohl. CAA handles US rights to the story of a neuroscientist desperate
to bring back his family after a car accident. The Day After Tomorrow writer Jeffrey Nachmanoff directs. Lotus has closed deals in Germany and Switzerland (Tele München), Latin America (Leda Films), China (Fundamental Films), Scandinavia (MisLabel), Canada (Remstar), South Korea (Joy N Contents), CIS (West Company), Spain (Second Gen) and Benelux (Dutch Filmworks).
» See ScreenDaily.com for further deals on the film
TODAY
Paterson, review page 15
NEWS Full speed ahead Other Angle sells action comedy » Page 2
REVIEWS Loving An intelligent but stolid drama » Page 14
Paterson Jim Jarmusch’s film is playful but sad » Page 15
SCREENINGS What to see at Cannes today » Page 20
Buyers Still Crazy for Bac BY MELANIE GOODFELLOW
Bac Films has racked up sales on Paolo Virzi’s Still Crazy — starring Valeria Bruni Tedeschi and Micaela Ramazzotti as two women who break out of a secure psychiatric unit — following its well-received premiere in Directors’ Fortnight. Cannes deals include to Scandinavia (Scanbox), Portugal (Alambique), Canada (Axia Film), Colombia (Babilla), Taiwan (AVJet), former Yugoslavia (MCF Megacom), Turkey (Filmarti), Argentina (CDI Films) and Brazil (Imovision). Previous deals include Benelux (Imagine), Switzerland (Filmcoopi), Germany (Neue Visionen), Spain (Caramel Films), Greece (Strada), Austria (Filmladen), Hungary (Vertigo), Israel (Lev Films) and Australia (Hi Gloss). The film is produced by Lotus Production — a subsidiary of Leone Films Group headed by Sergio Leone’s daughter Raffaella — with the backing of Rai Cinema. The film is due to open today in Italy through 01 Distribution on 400 prints. The company has also secured first sales on Romanian director Bogdan Mirica’s Un Certain Regard title Dogs to Benelux (Contact Films) and Turkey (Filmarti).
CANNES DEALS Cohen Media Group has acquired all English-speaking North American distribution rights to Bertrand Tavernier’s Cannes Classics title A Journey Through French Cinema.
Other Angle hurtles Full Speed on sales Like Crazy
Scanbox adds Cannes trio By Wendy MitCHeLL
Scandinavian distributor Scanbox has acquired three hot Cannes titles: Paolo Virzi’s Like Crazy from Bac Films; Mohamed Diab’s Clash from Pyramide; and Ken Loach’s I, Daniel Blake from Wild Bunch. Scanbox has set a personal best with its number of titles in the festival. It boasts Scandinavian rights to Woody Allen’s Café Society, Xavier Dolan’s It’s Only The End Of The World, Asghar Farhadi’s The Salesman, Nicolas Winding Refn’s The Neon Demon, Matt Ross’s Captain Fantastic and David Mackenzie’s Hell Or High Water. “It marks our 12th movie with Woody Allen and our fifth with Refn. We have strong relationships with talent,” said Scanbox chairman Joni Sighvatsson. The company is also beefing up its local productions, aiming to work on seven to 10 per year.
By MeLAnie GOOdFeLLOW
Paris-based Other Angle Pictures has secured fresh sales on Nicolas Benamou action comedy Full Speed about a family stuck in a car jammed on cruise control at top speed. The company has sealed deals here with Spain (Vertigo), Portugal (Films4U), Japan (Gaga) and Korea (Smile), while a Chinese deal is in the works. Previous deals include Italy (Lucky Red), Russia (Volga), Benelux (Belga), Germany (Wild Bunch), Czech Repub-
lic (Bohemia), Hungary (Cinetel) and Turkey (Fabula). Wild Bunch Distribution will release the film in France in December. Other Angle has also secured fresh sales on Don’t Tell Her, about a bride-to-be whose friends choose not to reveal that her fiancé has had an affair with a man, to Switzerland ( JMH), Austria (Thym), Latin America (California Filmes) and Turkey (Fabula). It will be released by Sony in France. It is the first production for Other Angle, which has focused
on sales until now, alongside Diana Elbaum at Brussels-based Entre Chien et Loup with the backing of Orange Studio. Sport-based comedy A Mighty Team, starring Serial Bad Weddings’ Medi Sadoun as a disgraced footballer opposite Gérard Depardieu as his estranged father, has sold to Italy (Videa) while Sun Distribution has taken rights for Spain and Latin America. Previous deals include to Switzerland (Frenetic), Benelux (Victory) and Turkey (Fabula).
© 2016 Twisted Justice Film Partners
Vendian Entertainment and Wild Bunch have struck a first-look deal with Nicolas Winding Refn’s Space Rocket that kicks off with Maniac Cop.
US selects Loach Sundance Selects has picked up US rights to Ken Loach’s Competition entry I, Daniel Blake from Wild Bunch.
Shiraishi serves Justice at nyAFF opening New York Asian Film Festival (NYAFF, June 22-July 9) will open with the world premiere of Kazuya Shiraishi’s Twisted Justice, starring Go Ayano (pictured right). Based on Yoshiaki Inaba’s autobiography, the crime epic stars Ayano as Japan’s most corrupt police detective who was eventually imprisoned for drug and gun possession. Nikkatsu is handling international sales on the film, which opens in Japan on June 25. Shiraishi will introduce Twisted Justice on the
festival’s opening night with producer Yoshinori Chiba. Ayano, one of three actors being recognised at NYAFF with the Screen International Rising Star Award, will attend the festival later to accept the prize. NYAFF is also honouring Japanese film-maker Shunji Iwai, who will receive the festival’s Star Asia Lifetime Achievement Award for a 20-year career spanning films such as Love Letter (1995) and A Bride For Rip Van Winkle (2016). Liz Shackleton
Court calls Lanthimos Haut Et Court has acquired French rights to Yorgos Lanthimos’s The Killing Of A Sacred Deer from HanWay Films.
Worldwide Hunt Taika Waititi’s Hunt For The Wilderpeople has sold out for Protagonist Pictures, including to the UK (Vertigo Releasing).
By MiCHAeL ROSSeR
Kino Lorber has snapped up US rights to Bugs, a documentary that investigates the growing cuisine trend of edible insects. The film debuted at Tribeca Film Festival. Produced by Sigrid Dyekjaer of Danish Documentary, the deal was secured by Autlook Filmsales. Director Andreas Johnsen’s film sets out to unearth the role bugs will play in agriculture and to break down the cultural barriers keeping insects off our plates. Further sales include Canada (BlueIce/KinoSmith), Spain (Canal Plus), Norway (NRK), Poland (Against Gravity) and Greece (Anemon). Japan, Italy and Australia are in discussions, while Cinema Delicatessen will release Bugs in the Netherlands.
Love is All you need?
cannes briefs Refn goes Wild, Vendian
Kino Lorber puts Bugs on menu for US
Europa Cinemas welcomes record figures By MiCHAeL ROSSeR
Admissions for European films in the Europa Cinemas network jumped by almost 3 million to a record-breaking 38 million in 2015, it has been announced. That success among the more than 1,000 cinemas in the net-
2 Screen International at Cannes May 17, 2016
work made a significant contribution to an overall rise of 7% in the box office for European film. Six out of 10 films in the Europa Cinemas network were devoted to European productions. Top titles included Timbuktu, The Lobster and Mustang, gener-
ating $257.2m (¤227m) at the European box office last year. Central and Eastern European countries have taken advantage of Europa Cinemas’ measures to support multiplexes and mobile cinemas, boosting results within a significantly larger network.
Love found on Shoreline By JeReMy KAy
Shoreline Entertainment has been talking to buyers on two new sales titles here. Kim Rocco Shields’ Love Is All You Need? is based on a short that went viral and tackles tolerance and bullying by taking place in a world where heterophobia is prevalent and being gay is regarded as being straight and vice-versa. Briana Evigan stars alongside Tyler Blackburn, Kyla Kenedy, Ana Ortiz and Emily Osment. It Had To Be You stars Cristin Milioti and Dan Soder in the story of a neurotic jingle writer at a crossroads when her fiancé proposes. Sasha Gordon directed. Shoreline director of acquisitions Melody Djavadi brokered the deals with Will Lowery of APA and Jennifer Grey.
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NEWS
No Filter set for remakes FilmSharks has licensed remake rights to Nicolas Lopez’s Chilean hit No Filter (Sin Filtro), which sold more than 1.3 million tickets when it opened earlier this year. Deals have closed for France (Andina), Brazil (Conspiracao Filmes) and Mexico (Balero Films in association with Sobras International Pictures). FilmSharks also licensed rights in China (IM Global), Spain (Amiguetes Entertainment) and Colombia, Uruguay and Argentina (Aeroplano Cine). CAA represents US rights with Sobras International Pictures. In other remake deals, Borsalino/Full House has French remake rights to Mexican smash The Noble Family (Nosotros Los Nobles), while A Boyfriend For My Wife has gone to India’s Global Studios and also to Borsalino for France. Jeremy Kay
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Venice chief Barbera builds industry bridges BY GABRIELE NIOLA
Venice Film Festival is on a roll, having played host to the best picture Oscar winner two years in a row, while three years ago Gravity went on to score seven Oscars. Ahead of the world’s oldest festival, which runs August 31-September 10, the buzz is palpable once again. The success of Gravity, Birdman and Spotlight “changed something in producers’ attitudes to the festival”, Venice Film Festival artistic director Alberto Barbera told Screen. “They now recognise the festival offers a unique combination of calendar position and international press coverage. In Gravity’s year, we missed out on 12 Years A Slave to Toronto but that situation might not repeat itself today,” he said.
Alberto Barbera
This year, the festival is to revamp and relaunch its market offering under the banner Venice Production Bridge, which will incorporate existing market strands and add TV, virtual reality and web series elements. It will have a focus on completion funding, distribution and
international co-production for around 40 unfinished feature films. The festival is also planning to erect a 450-seat outdoor screening venue in the garden of the Casino. The new Cinema del Giardino will screen world and international premieres of noncompeting films and will be free to the public as well as accredited industry. While the festival, according to Barbera, has “half the budget of other great festivals”, it is more than holding its own and is looking to the future. He added: “The barriers between film and TV continue to disintegrate. The risk for a festival is to remain anchored to the past, showing a reality too different from the times we live in.”
New owner for Spanish Rebel BY ELISABET CABEZA
Producer JC Ollana has acquired international sales agency and production company Rebel Movies. The Madrid-based genre specialist shoots in English with Hollywood names such as Mischa Barton and Tara Reid attached to its projects. Barton stars in The Malevolent, a horror feature in post-production. Ravenous, with Reid, is scheduled for 2017. The titles lead Rebel’s Cannes slate. While horror is Rebel’s staple, the outfit also produces thrillers and is looking to move into other genres with commercial viability, Ollana told Screen. Meanwhile, former Rebel Movies founder Jose Magan has launched production company Carbara. Projects include erotic drama Craigslist: Casual Encounters and The Praetorians, a retelling of Akira Kurosawa’s Seven Samurai in Roman sandals.
May 17, 2016 Screen International at Cannes 3
El Deseo presents
Emma Suárez
an
Adriana Ugarte
Almodóvar film
Daniel Grao Inma Cuesta Darío Grandinetti Michelle Jenner & Rossy de Palma
AGUSTÍN ALMODÓVAR producer ESTHER GARCÍA music ALBERTO IGLESIAS JOSÉ SALCEDO director of photography JEAN CLAUDE LARRIEU (A.F.C.) written and directed by PEDRO ALMODÓVAR based on stories by ALICE MUNRO
producer
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News
Stalingrad team in alien Attraction By Geoffrey MAcnAB Boudica heads ian Davies and rebecca Long
Boudica, Europe’s first film finance initiative aimed at female-centric films, launched here in Cannes. The scheme, supported by the UK’s Women In Film & Television, will consider the gender of director, screenwriter, producer, lead protagonists and crew before allocating production and competition finance for films. Investments will begin in September. See ScreenDaily.com for more.
Chile ups production ties By JereMy kAy
Chile’s contingent in Cannes has held meetings to forge stronger ties with counterparts in Argentina, Brazil, Italy, Belgium and Croatia. While Chile already enjoys co-production agreements with Argentina, Brazil, Venezuela, Canada, Italy
and France, it has been setting up development lines. Chile’s Council For The Audiovisual Industry also announced a $100,000 production fund to back two projects involving Chile and Argentina and another $100,000 fund for a project between Chile and Brazil.
Fedor Bondarchuk and Dmitry Rudovsky’s Art Pictures Studios, the Russian outfit behind the epic war movie Stalingrad, has announced details of its new slate. Art Pictures’ flagship project is sci-fi epic Attraction, which is in production and due to be released in Imax theatres next year. The film has been sold to China during the market. The company also has a host of other new projects: Pavel Lungin’s psychological thriller Queen Of Spades, 3D animation Kikoriki: Legend Of The Golden Dragon, and comedies Anyone But Them, When Your Dog Is
Attraction
Your Matchmaker and Love On The Roof. Attraction, which Bondarchuk is directing, centres on aliens descending on Moscow and the impact on civilisation. The cast includes Oleg Menshikov and Alexander Petrov. Further details of the films will be given at a Roskino new projects showcase in Cannes, which runs through today.
Russia’s Blitz Films will also unveil Sergey Sarkisov’s Floating, with creative producer Nikolai Sarkisov on hand to introduce an early look. Billionaire Sarkisov is a co-owner of insurance giant RESO-Garantiya. In addition, Moscowbased studio and production outfit Russian World Studios (RWS) has more than 20 film and television projects in development including Nurbek Egen’s action drama Versus and Vladimir Ustyugov’s Christmas comedy Thriller’s Family. Yuri Sapronov, Natalia Lazareva, and Russian star Alexey Chadov will also visit the Russian Pavilion to introduce features.
kfD sells snake tale Kaleidoscope Film Distribution is handling sales on animated feature Danny Diamondback. Aardman Animations alumni Darren Walsh is to direct the story of a young rattlesnake with a musical talent in his tail. The film is based on the book by illustrator and production designer Barry Jackson (How The Grinch Stole Christmas), who has written the script and will head production design. Siege Train’s Curtis Augspurger, Matthew Hampton and Cora Palfrey will produce alongside Jackson. Bibo Bergeron (Shark Tale) is executive producer. Andreas Wiseman
Blood draws Twilight star By Liz ShAckLeton
Xavier Samuel (The Twilight Saga) and Morgan Griffin (San Andreas) have signed to star in David Pulbrook’s Australian suspense thriller Bad Blood. The film is produced by Antony I Ginnane (Screamers) through his FG Film Group banner, along with David Lightfoot (Wolf
Creek) through his production outfit Ultra Films. Shanghai-based post house Leading Digital Post is part-financing the film through its co-financing partnership with The Little Film Company, which is handling international sales. Pulbrook is directing from a script he co-wrote with Patrick Edgeworth
about a woman who spends a weekend at a mountain resort with a male friend but soon realises all is not as it seems. The film is being produced with financial assistance from South Australian Film Corporation and Screen Queensland. Production is scheduled to start in Adelaide on June 6.
SE Asian directors brush up for art project By JeAn noh
National Gallery Singapore has announced an unprecedented collaboration with five award-winning southeast Asian film-makers: Apichatpong Weerasethakul (Thailand), Brillante Mendoza (Philippines), Eric Khoo (Singapore), Ho Yuhang (Malaysia) and Joko Anwar (Indonesia). The five will create Art Through Our Eyes, an omnibus for which the directors each pick a masterpiece from the region to inspire
6 Screen International at Cannes May 17, 2016
their short films. Initiated with the gallery by Khoo, the dramatised-interpretations project is designed to connect with audiences worldwide to deepen their appreciation for Southeast Asian art. The gallery is funding the project, which is supported by Singapore Film Commission (SFC) and is set to be showcased before the end of the year. Khoo told Screen: “It is every film-maker’s dream to be involved in projects
eric khoo
that are meaningful. I hope this collection of shorts by a band of diverse film-makers will inspire and create further interest in the impressive collection of the National Gallery.”
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GermanFilmsSCREENCannesTuesday17May_Screen_107x304 25.04.16 10:03 Seite 1
NEW GERMAN FILMS IN CANNES 2016 TUESDAY, 17 MAY 09:30 h LERINS 1
LENALOVE
Florian Gaag · 90 min · Picture Tree International
………………………………............................. 11:30 h LERINS 4
FAMILY COMMITMENTS
Hanno Olderdissen · 85 min · Media Luna New Films
………………………………............................. 13:30 h LERINS 4
ZAZY M.X. Oberg 99 min · Patra Spanou Film Marketing & Consulting
………………………………............................. 15:30 h LERINS 4
SOY NERO
Rafi Pitts · 114 min · The Match Factory
………………………………............................. 17:45 h LERINS 4
FACK JU GOETHE 2
Bora Dagtekin · 115 min · Picture Tree International
………………………………............................. 20:00 h LERINS 4
4 KINGS Theresa von Eltz 100 min · Global Screen
WEDNESDAY, 18 MAY 09:30 h LERINS 4
TED SIEGER’S MOLLY MONSTER
Matthias Bruhn, Ted Sieger, Michael Ekblad 72 min · Global Screen
………………………………............................. 11:30 h LERINS 4
TOO HARD TO HANDLE
Laura Lackmann · 112 min · Beta Cinema
………………………………............................. 13:30 h LERINS 4
ONE BREATH
Christian Zübert · 96 min · ARRI Media International
News
Ansip calms fears over DSM proposals By Geoffrey Macnab
As uncertainty continues to dog the European film industry about proposals for the Digital Single Market (DSM), Andrus Ansip of the European Commission (EC) moved to reassure the industry. The former Estonian prime minister, now serving as the EC’s vice-president for the DSM, told Screen International here in Cannes: “The principle of territoriality has to stay. It is important, especially for smaller producers.” Territoriality is the longestablished practice of films being licensed and released on a country-by-country basis. The fear conjured by DSM proposals was that as soon as a film was available digitally in one European country, it would be available everywhere else too. Ansip suggested there had been scaremongering over the issue in Cannes last year when the commission launched its DSM strategy. “A year ago in Cannes, people here were pretty afraid about the principle of territoriality,” he said. “Too many people, film-makers, took defensive positions at the very beginning.” Ansip again talked of the
8 Screen International at Cannes May 17, 2016
importance of ensuring “portability” — the idea that EU consumers should be allowed access to their digital content even when travelling to other countries. “We have to make it easier to clear rights to get crossborder access to some really valuable movies from some other countries,” he noted. At the same time as he offered reassurance to the f i l m i n d u s t r y, A n s i p insisted the principle of the DSM remained “extremely important”. “Twenty years ago, we were able to tear down those barriers dividing our member states and everybody benefited from this single market,” he said. “But, I am sorry to say, in the physical meaning, we have a single market in the European Union but a digi-
tal single market does not exist. Instead of a single [digital market] with more than 500 million healthy customers, we have 28 relatively small markets.”
Eroding rights Ansip’s remarks came as a report released at the festival yesterday warned that the EU proposals outlined in the EC’s DSM strategy last year could erode the established territorial exploitation of TV and film rights in Europe. The report — titled ‘The Impact of Cross-Border Access to Audiovisual Content on EU Consumers’ —stated that changes to copyright and other initiatives at the EU level could result in substantially lower levels of investment in TV and film content.
India plans permit portal By Liz Shackleton
INTERNATIONAL VILLAGE GERMAN PAVILION · #125 phone +33-(0)4-92 59 01 80 www.german-films.de
Andrus Ansip
India’s new Film Facilitation Office is developing a web portal to provide information about shooting in India and enable producers to handle the entire permits application process online. The portal will offer information about filming in each of the Indian states, including production and post-production facilities, transport, hospitality and
medical services. Local and overseas film-makers will be able to apply and pay for all shooting permits online. The portal was one of several initiatives to improve India’s film-making infrastructure announced in Cannes by India’s minister of state for information and broadcasting, Rajyavardhan Singh Rathore. “India has all the ingredients to position itself
as a digital hub for the global media and entertainment industry,” he said. The Indian government has also introduced a ‘Most Film Friendly State Award’ as part of the annual National Film Awards, which this year was held on May 3. The inaugural award was presented to Gujarat with Uttar Pradesh and Kerala receiving special mentions.
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Feature VOD FOcus
secret numbers On the vexed issue of why VoD operators do not share their numbers, Steve Lewis, head of Home Entertainment and digital at Curzon UK, revealed that, in the UK, an EST (electronic sell through) chart is likely to be started at some stage this year, and potentially a VoD chart after. “I am sure that there comes a point where we do release figures but at this point, no-one does in the UK,” Lewis said. “At this moment, there is a general nervousness about releasing those figures. Premium VoD is growing but it still has some way to go.” When Curzon releases films such as 45 Years (a notable success at the UK box office) or Son Of Saul, they are made available in cinemas and on premium VoD at the same time. The pioneering British company has made it clear that it regards premium VoD as an extension of the theatrical window. Curzon charges viewers around $14 (£10) to watch a new release on its home cinema platform — that is to say roughly the same amount as would be charged in cinemas. “You are getting early access, on the same day as theatrical. Also, we have to be very mindful of exhibitors,” Lewis said, justifying the price. The Curzon executive insisted the company was not “trying to cannibalise” exhibitors’ audiences by releasing a film on VoD at the same moment it hits the big screen. It was simply a case of making wellreviewed films that would only play in a handful of cinemas available to as big an audience as possible. “If you don’t live near to a metropolitan centre or an arthouse cinema that may be playing it, you may have read the fantastic review but you just can’t see it.” Mathilde Henrot’s Festival Scope, the
10 Screen International at Cannes May 17, 2016
Theo Wood
M
any of the key issues surrounding VoD and the independent film industry were debated at length during Screen International’s Sunday panel in the Majestic Hotel, ‘VoD Goes Global’. These ranged from the cost — and ingredients — of Heineken beer in Brazil to the all-pervasive influence of Netflix and Amazon; from the pricing for ‘premium’ VoD to the virtues of transactional VoD as opposed to subscription VoD — and just why operators are still so coy about their viewing figures. Fabio Lima, executive director of aggregator Sofa Digital, predicted that, in the long run, consumers will spend more on transactional VoD than on SVoD. By contrast, fellow panellist Efe Cakarel, founder and CEO of MUBI, declared himself “a believer in SVoD,” after MUBI switched from TVoD to a subscription model early in its existence.
‘A new film is worth 10 times more to the consumer than a library title’ Efe Cakarel, MUBI
pioneering online platform for film professionals, is now also venturing into transactional VoD aimed at general film lovers. At festivals, the platform will charge $4.50 (¤4) for a film or $11 (¤10) for a festival pass.
On demand
in debate
The discussion at Screen’s VoD panel centred on the relative virtues of different platforms and subscription models, and why the industry remains tight-lipped on viewing figures. By Geoffrey Macnab
Steve Lewis, Curzon
Efe Cakarel, MUBI
Mathilde Henrot, Festival Scope
Fabio Lima, Sofa Digital
regional variations Lima was the panellist who brought beer into the conversation. Sofa Digital is active in Latin America and is moving into southeast Asia. He pointed out Sofa charges different prices for different regions, relating to market conditions and demographics. Lima also predicted prices would come down. This is where the beer came in. “Heineken beer in Brazil tastes very good but in Mexico and the west, not actually,” the Sofa executive reflected. When he studied the ingredients in the drink, he soon realised it was not the same beer sold in Brazil — “even if it has the same marketing. The Heineken not only tastes better in Brazil, it also costs a quarter of the price.” So what is the lesson for the film industry? Pricing and local tastes vary in different countries — and that is only to be expected. The idea that the price — and taste — of a cold beer in different territories may take over from that of the Big Mac as an economic indicator was welcomed by the panel. Asia is seen as a new Klondike by many western distributors, especially those looking to break into China. But they are likely to face fierce competition. Lima pointed out there were three huge local VoD operators in China. With the competition between them, big Hollywood movies were available for less than a dollar. Cakarel suggested that when MUBI expands into China, 70% of its content will be local and the rest will be curated arthouse, film festival-type fare. Cakarel revealed that when he launched his company, subscription was $4.30 (£2.99) a month — but the takeup actually increased when the price went up, first to $7.15 (£4.99) and then to $8.60 (£5.99). “Based on the data we’ve seen, a new film is worth 10 times more to the consumer than a library title,” Cakarel stated as he talked through “profit maximising” price point forecasting models that the company uses. He may run a VoD company but Cakarel, for one, insisted s that “cinema is here to stay”. n
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OLIVIER ASSAYAS (Personal Shopper, Competition)
SQUARE UP Stars Usher Raymond, Ana de Armas and Edgar Ramirez weigh in at the photocall for the Cannes premiere of Jonathan Jakubowicz’s Hands Of Stone, also starring Robert De Niro. Hubert Boesl
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You can get croissants in Cannes??? Wow… nobody told me Russell Crowe @russellcrowe
Ruth Negga for the Best Actress award. She has the most soulful eyes and her performance in Loving is just wonderful. #Cannes2016 Martyn Conterio @Cinemartyn
Best red carpet appearance yet — Carrie Fisher’s dog Gary upstaging Spielberg somewhat #Cannes2016 Catherine Nicholson �@ACatInParis
Female empowerment We Do It Together hails its first female-driven project, shorts anthology Together Now We Do It Together, the recently formed non-profit production company that will finance and produce female-driven films, announced its first feature film. Titled Together Now, it will comprise seven short films, each paired with a female director and actress in a lead role. The seven directors include House Of Cards star Robin Wright, Catherine Hardwicke, Katia Lund (City Of God), Patricia Riggen (The 33), Haifaa Al Mansour (Wadjda), Malgorzata Szumowska (Elles) and Melina Matsoukas (Rihanna’s ‘We Found Love’ video). Freida Pinto and Juliette Binoche are on board to star in one of the seven shorts each, and Carol Polakoff, Shelby Stone and Chiara Tilesi are set to produce. Production is scheduled to begin in July with principal pho-
12 Screen International at Cannes May 17, 2016
tography taking place in various international locations. All profits generated through the film’s release will be reinvested back into We Do It Together. “The goal is to take immediate steps to generate fresh new content that is both insightful and entertaining,” said founder Chiara Tilesi, who would like to produce two to three films per year. Binoche added: “It’s not about pushing men aside, it’s simply about supporting women. I have worked hard to avoid narrowminded roles. I want to help women do the same.” Pinto supported her saying: “We want to help women avoid some of the road blocks that the rest of us have faced, and to be able to tell stories that women are passionate about telling.” Tiffany Pritchard
Olivier Assayas and Kristen Stewart first appeared on the Croisette together in 2014 for Clouds Of Sils Maria and are back in Competition with ghost story Personal Shopper. In a haunting, revealing performance, the actress plays Maureen, who is trying to contact her dead twin brother while also holding down a job as a stylist to a narcissistic celebrity. Assayas speaks to Screen International about casting Stewart and delving into the spirit world. Did you have Kristen Stewart in mind when you were writing Personal Shopper? It was a complicated process. I would never have written the part of Maureen this way if I had not worked with Kristen on Clouds Of Sils Maria. At the time, I thought this might be a bit too extreme for her. What changed your mind? Kristen happened to be in Paris when I was finishing the screenplay. We sat down and at the end of the conversation I thought I
was out of my mind to imagine that I could make this film without her. Why a film about a stylist? I am interested in the tension of our inner and outer life. I thought that doing the personal shopping for a celebrity, there is not a job that could more define what it means to be involved in the materialistic aspect of modern society. I wanted to see someone who was trying to deal with her job as well as she could, but simultaneously she is involved in something else that is bigger than her and that’s where her dreams are. That part of her life involves ghosts. Why the fascination with the afterlife? Fantasy elements have always been part of art and literature but it has been absorbed by genre filmmaking and become very serious and conventional. I think the notion of injecting a fantasy element in everyday life with everyday characters, it just adds a dimension. Kaleem Aftab
Personal Shopper
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Reviews reviews edited by Fionnuala Halligan finn.halligan@screendaily.com
Loving Reviewed by Tim Grierson Telling the true story of Richard and Mildred Loving, an American interracial couple whose marriage in 1958 sparked a legal battle that went all the way to the Supreme Court, writerdirector Jeff Nichols favours a stripped-down style that eschews the theatrics usually associated with this sort of inspirational tale. Though commendable, that approach ends up having its own pitfalls, resulting in an intelligent but stolid drama that lacks the precise characterisations and region-specific detail that have marked Nichols’ superb previous films. Joel Edgerton and Ruth Negga play the Lovings as refreshingly ordinary people caught up in the swirl of history, but a benign tastefulness overcomes Loving, smothering chances of a meaningful engagement with the material. Here in Competition, Loving is set for a US release on November 4, a clear indication that Focus Features feels it has an awards contender on its hands. Certainly, the subject matter will draw interest, as will solid but perhaps unspectacular festival reviews — flashier and more accomplished films may eventually dampen Loving’s Oscar buzz. Starting in 1958 and spanning 10 years, the film stars Edgerton and Negga as Richard and Mildred, lovers with a child on the way. Unable to marry in their segregated home state of Virginia, they wed in Washington, DC, only to be arrested once they return. After trying to make a life in Washington, Mildred decides she
14 Screen International at Cannes May 17, 2016
CoMPETITIoN US. 2016. 123mins Director-screenplay Jeff Nichols Production companies Focus Features, Raindog Films, Big Beach, Augusta Films, Tri-State Pictures International sales Insiders, sales@insidersfilms.com, gfarkas@ insiders-films.com Producers Ged Doherty, Colin Firth, Nancy Buirski, Sarah Green, Marc Turtletaub, Peter Saraf Cinematography Adam Stone Editor Julie Monroe Production design Chad Keith Music David Wingo Main cast Joel Edgerton, Ruth Negga, Marton Csokas, Nick Kroll, Terri Abney, Alano Miller, Jon Bass, Michael Shannon
cannot raise a family in the city, prompting the couple to set up roots clandestinely back home. The Lovings’ situation eventually attracts the attention of the American Civil Liberties Union, which takes up their cause through the courts. Loving’s combination of biopic, issue film and court drama is new terrain for Nichols, who in movies such as Take Shelter and Midnight Special has revealed a keen eye for character dynamics, especially when it comes to families. That aptitude would seem to serve him well in a film about the bond between an embattled husband and wife, but Loving stubbornly stays on the surface, unable to offer many insights into this couple. To be fair, this is somewhat by design, Nichols and his actors emphasising the ordinariness of the Lovings. Edgerton plays Richard with a stoic, inarticulate nobility — he is the sort of devoted, blue-collar husband who takes care of his family with a minimum of fuss — while Negga pinpoints Mildred’s quiet strength. But Nichols does not so much elevate his characters’ commonness — locating their simple decency and deep, abiding love for one another — as he reduces them to honourable ciphers who become spectators in their own film. Consequently, Nichols’ respectful treatment of their story, which extends to the anticlimactic portrayal of their lawyers’ Supreme Court battle, ends up feeling as neutered as the typical inspirational true-life drama, even though Loving has far more care and strategy behind its approach than one sees in awards-season fodder. The film details dutifully what racism looked like in the US in the 1950s and ’60s, but Nichols cannot find a way into the material to
bring the distinctiveness that highlighted his earlier southern portraits. Edgerton has no easy task portraying an introverted man who wants nothing more than to make a life with Mildred — he does not talk so much as push a few words from his mouth — but his recessive, distant performance fails to capture fully the depth of feeling or pressure he experiences as part of this interracial couple. Negga is Loving’s spiritual centre, the actress subtly revealing Mildred’s growing assertiveness once she realises she is going to need to be the one to push for legal action since Richard will not bother. There are two societal obstacles against Mildred — she is a woman and she is black — and it is pleasing to see how she navigates restrictive cultural norms to have her marriage recognised in her home state. If Edgerton’s taciturn performance is a touch mannered, hers has a shy sweetness that emerges slowly. Indicative of Loving’s disdain for artifice, the supporting cast exudes a chiselled naturalness. Nick Kroll, better known for his comedic television work, is solid as a lawyer defending the Lovings, while Marton Csokas slightly overdoes his role as a bigoted local sheriff. But it is telling that Michael Shannon, playing a Life photographer profiling the Lovings, provides the biggest impact despite limited screen time. A frequent Nichols collaborator, Shannon seems to understand instinctively the less-is-more approach the film-maker prefers — it is just a shame the tasteful restraint does not lead to a greater emotional payoff.
SCrEEn SCorE
★★ www.screendaily.com
» Loving p14 » Paterson p15 » One Week And A Day p15
» The Cinema Travellers p16 » Endless Poetry p16
Paterson Reviewed by Tim Grierson CoMPETITIoN
Writer-director Jim Jarmusch often explores existential themes, but they have perhaps never been so beautifully unadorned as they are in Paterson, a deceptively modest character piece that is profound and moving while remaining grounded in the everyday. Observing a bus driver (played with incredible grace by Adam Driver) over eight days, the movie turns the tiny details of its protagonist’s life into a deeply felt consideration of partnership, love, compromise and the casual oddities inherent in being alive. Premiering in Competition at Cannes, Paterson will cater to the same crowds that have supported this independent film-maker over the past 30 years. The presence of Driver, who saw his profile rise exponentially thanks to Star Wars: The Force Awakens, might help shine a slightly brighter spotlight on the movie, but word-of-mouth and positive reviews will be just as important to stoke commercial interest. Driver plays Paterson, a bus driver who writes poetry during his downtime. Living with his wife Laura (Golshifteh Farahani), a cupcake chef who dreams of becoming a country music star, Paterson — who happens to live in Paterson, New Jersey — goes through his daily routine, which
US. 2016. 118mins Director/screenplay Jim Jarmusch Production companies K5 International, Amazon Studios, Le Pacte, Inkjet International sales K5 International, carl@ k5mediagroup.com Producers Joshua Astrachan, Carter Logan Cinematography Frederick Elmes Editor Affonso Goncalves Production design Mark Friedberg Music SQÜRL Main cast Adam Driver, Golshifteh Farahani, Barry Shabaka Henley, Clifford Smith aka Method Man, Chasten Harmon, William Jackson Harper, Masatoshi Nagase
includes jotting down lines for his latest poem and stopping by his favourite bar every night. Jarmusch often utilises distinct genres, such as the western (Dead Man) or the vampire film (Only Lovers Left Alive), as accessible delivery devices to express troubling questions about the mysteries of existence. But with Paterson, his only camouflage is the story’s unassuming dayin-the-life structure, which studies the similarities and slight differences in Paterson’s routine. It is natural that such a description will invite comparisons to Chantal Akerman’s Jeanne Dielman, 23 Commerce Quay, 1080 Brussels, that masterpiece of minutiae. But Paterson is far looser, funnier and more contemplative. Paterson’s life-affirming tone is offset smartly by Driver’s reserved, faintly melancholy performance, hinting at the emotional undercurrents flowing beneath the character’s placid surface as he listens to his passengers’ conversations or writes about his marriage through his poems (poet Ron Padgett supplies the verses). Neither romanticising Paterson’s ordinary life nor patronisingly lamenting it, Jarmusch crafts a precise portrait that is both specific and universal. The transition from one day to another underlines how, despite the fact Paterson and Laura have a loving relationship, they are slowly
creating the foundation for what might become problems later. Farahani is superb as a supportive wife whose desire for Paterson to publish his poems is laced with a passive-aggressive frustration whose roots emerge gradually. Throughout, Jarmusch sprinkles in cosmic anomalies that go unexplained, such as Paterson’s repeated sightings of twins, or the accusing looks of the family dog that start off adorable but take on an air of foreboding. This film may be playful but it is quite sad and thoughtful underneath. Jarmusch examines what makes a life worth living, encouraging his protagonist — and maybe the audience — to do the same.
Dodina), who are coping with the death of their son Ronnie from cancer in starkly contrasting ways. Vicky, numbed by grief, is clinging to the quotidian routines of normal life to keep afloat. Eyal, the main focus of the film, is rather more unpredictable. Clearly suffering from temporary impulse-control issues, he slaps his female neighbour, brawls with her husband and decides to blaze a trail through the large bag of medicinal marijuana that he retrieves from the hospice when looking for his son’s missing blanket. The first of several skilfully handled moments of physical comedy comes when Eyal attempts to roll his first ever joint. After numerous failed attempts, he admits defeat and enlists the help of Zooler (Tomer Kapon), the deadbeat son of his detested next-door neighbours and a childhood friend of Ronnie. But while the smokefuelled encounter between Eyal and Zooler, which unfolds over the course of the day after the end of the Shiva period, provides closure for both, Polonsky resists easy sentimentalisation. The film’s least successful moments are those in which the comedy feels most forced. A sequence that sees Zooler demonstrate his airguitar prowess is self-consciously wacky; an
encounter with the most cheerful child ever to hang out in a cancer ward is rather laboured. But the moments of stillness have a real potency: Eyal and Vicky lie wordlessly on their son’s bed next to Zooler, who has passed out. And later, having snapped yet again in the cemetery, Eyal stumbles onto the funeral of the woman who is to be buried next to Ronnie. The voice of the cantor, the official who sings the prayers, is mellifluous and melancholy. But it is the achingly lovely eulogy that follows, accompanied by a glimpse of the life of the man who delivers it, which floors us. The sharing of another man’s grief helps Eyal to finally make sense of his own.
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★★★★
One Week And A Day Reviewed by Wendy Ide There is an abrasive, snarling humour to this impressive first feature from US-born, Israelraised writer-director Asaph Polonsky. It occasionally evokes something of the simmering rage that powers the comedy of television show Curb Your Enthusiasm. So when this portrait of a couple mourning the recent death of their son delivers its emotional payload in the third act, it is an unexpectedly devastating moment that more than makes up for the slight dip in momentum that came before. This is an accomplished debut, which juggles its tonal contrasts adroitly. A tragicomic stoner movie about bereavement, it is a curiosity, that should pique the interest of festival audiences and could enjoy some theatrical success if backed by critical support and audience word-of-mouth. The title refers to the traditional Jewish week of mourning, known as Shiva, which follows immediately after the funeral of the deceased and takes place at the home of an immediate family member. In this case, the home is that of Eyal (Shai Avivi) and Vicky Spivak (Evgenia
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CRITICS’ WEEK Isr. 2016. 98mins Director-screenplay Asaph Polonsky Production company Black Sheep Film Productions International sales New Europe Film Sales, jan@ neweuropefilmsales.com Producers Saar Yogev, Naomi Levari Cinematography Moshe Mishali Editor Tali Halter Shenkar Production design Yoav Sinai Music Tamar Aphek, Ran Bagno Main cast Shai Avivi, Evgenia Dodina, Tomer Kapon, Sharon Alexander, Uri Gavriel, Carmit Mesilati-Kaplan, Alona Shauloff
May 17, 2016 Screen International at Cannes 15
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REVIEWS
Endless Poetry
DiReCtoRs’ FoRtnigHt
Reviewed by allan Hunter
The Cinema Travellers Reviewed by graham Fuller Whatever masterpieces, if any, bow at this year’s Cannes Film Festival, it is likely none will communicate the excitement engendered by movies more headily than The Cinema Travellers. This fast-moving, lyrical documentary tells of the waning days of the tent cinemas that tour around remote villages of western India’s Maharashtra region. It is also an elegiac paean to the showmen who tote their rusted equipment to fairgrounds following the harvest season, and also to the twinkly-eyed septuagenarian projector technicianinventor Prakash, and to the rapt faces of spectators. This evocative first feature collaboration of documentarian Shirley Abraham and photography artist Amit Madheshiya, who are both Indian, is destined to accrue attention on the festival circuit. Though The Cinema Travellers is much more rigorous, aesthetically and intellectually, than the majority of well-heeled exotic travelogues, commercial success may be limited by its slightly buried narrative. More through montages than linear storytelling, an ominous tale does emerge from the unending crises brought on Sumedh Touring Pictures and Akshay Touring Pictures by late-arriving film reels, bad weather, defective equipment, decaying nitrate film, rivalry, and competition from television and bootleg discs. The cinemas’ vintage projectors — sometimes cobwebbed, over-oiled or snagged with broken celluloid — are among the film’s stars: cantankerous, juddering sources of enchantment which, when functioning, deliver experiences that are near-sacred judging by the patrons’ expressions at the start of the show. They seem oblivious to the mud and stones they sit on beneath the big tops as they feast on old mythological adventures, Bollywood fare and chop-socky actioners. Madheshiya, responsible for the cinematography, has an eye for atmospheric long shots — an image of a cinema tent juxtaposed to two Ferris wheels elegantly weds old amusements that have stuck around for years. A punctuating shot of dawn mist merely says the itinerant exhibitors have been granted another day of poorly paid work. The melodic score is sometimes plaintive, sometimes achy, thanks to a scraping violin. It helps give the film the quality of a requiem.
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Cannes ClassiCs India. 2016. 96mins Directors-producerseditors shirley abraham, amit Madheshiya Production company Cave Pictures International sales submarine, info@ submarinedeluxe.com Executive producers shirley abraham, Minette nelson, David eckles Cinematography amit Madheshiya Music laura Karpman, nora Kroll-Rosenbaum
Alejandro Jodorowsky’s late career decision to embrace film-making as a form of family therapy continues to pay dividends in Endless Poetry (Poesia Sin Fin). The follow-up to his 2013 ‘comeback’ The Dance Of Reality continues the story of the young Alejandro as he dives into the febrile artistic life of 1940s Santiago and pursues a dream of becoming a poet. Inevitably, this is far from conventional autobiography and more like a chaotic three-ring circus, with Jodorowsky orchestrating a succession of memories, impressions, reconstructions and reimaginings of the past. If the film exasperates and exhausts, which it does, there are also moments of surreal comedy, freewheeling invention and genuine tenderness. Endless Poetry will not win new recruits to the cult of Jodorowsky but it should attract those who have kept the faith and anyone who took pleasure in The Dance Of Reality. In essence a coming-of-age tale, the film begins with young Alejandro (Jeremias Herskovits) still under the yoke of his macho, penny-pinching father Jaime (Brontis Jodorowsky), who wants him to study hard, become a doctor and start behaving like a man. His mother Sara (Pamela Flores) communicates only in song. When Alejandro confesses his love of poetry, Jaime fears that he will wind up as a degenerate if he reads “filth” by the likes of Federico Garcia Lorca. Alejandro finally defies his father, and the film charts his intoxication at joining the bohemian world of Santiago’s artistic scene and finding a muse in punk poetess Stella (also Pamela Flores). The colour-drenched palette employed by cinematographer Christopher Doyle adds to the heightened feel of the whole piece, underlining the fairytale quality and magic realist instincts of Jodorowsky, who remains endlessly inventive in bringing his vision to the screen on a modest budget. The film-maker has also lost none of his ability to outrage, with one scene involving Alejandro having sex with a menstruating midget as we hear the dulcet tones of Fred Astaire singing Cheek To Cheek. But there are real feelings beneath all the bawdy burlesque. When the 87-year-old Jodorowsky appears on screen to stage a different version of the last goodbye between Alejandro and his father, he achieves a resolution that is hard won and deeply felt.
Chile. 2016. 128mins Director/screenplay/ production design alejandro Jodorowsky Production companies satori Films, le soleil Films, le Pacte International sales le Pacte, a.lesort@ le-pacte.com Producers alejandro Jodorowsky, Moises Cosio, abbas nokhasteh, takashi asai Cinematography Christopher Doyle Editor Maryline Monthieux Music adan Jodorowsky Main cast adan Jodorowsky, Pamela Flores, Brontis Jodorowsky, leandro taub, Jeremias Herskovits
May 17, 2016 screen international at Cannes 17
IN FOCUS DOCUMENTARIES
The Risk taker With Doc Day talking place today, Laura Poitras speaks to Wendy Mitchell about her Cannes world premiere Risk and the thrill of working on short-form documentaries at her new company Field of Vision Laura Poitras
L
aura Poitras does not necessarily see herself as an activist filmmaker. “First and foremost I believe we make cinema. I don’t make films as activism, I don’t consider my films to be activism. “We make movies, that’s our numberone job, to make a film that’s good; it’s not just about the issues,” she says, in an interview with Screen International the week before Cannes. She is still in the edit room in New York, putting the final touches to Risk, her new feature documentary about WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange. It has its world premiere in Directors’ Fortnight on Thursday, and Poitras will deliver a talk today at the Marché’s inaugural Doc Day, presented by Doc Corner and the Ford Foundation’s Just Films. The theme is ‘Global Awareness for Social Justice: Impact-Making Documentaries’. Poitras has a reputation for making an impact. Her last film, the Oscar-winning Citizenfour, was an intimate portrait of NSA whistleblower Edward Snowden. It completed her post-9/11 trilogy, which also included My Country, My Country (2006), about an Iraqi physician during the US occupation, and The Oath (2010), about the connection between a prisoner in Guantanamo Bay and his brotherin-law, Osama Bin Laden’s driver.
18 Screen International at Cannes May 17, 2016
‘We make movies, that’s our number-one job, to make a film that’s good; it’s not just about the issues’ Laura Poitras
“Documentary can be used to leverage conversations for change. I applaud that, but I don’t think that’s what motivates people to make films,” she says. “Citizenfour has impact but it exists as a portrait of a person who makes enormous sacrifices for what he believes in and that’s a narrative story. My films focus on political issues because that’s what moves me.” The Assange project was actually started before she was caught up in the Snowden whirlwind. She obviously sees connections between the two films. “[Risk]] is definitely connected [to Citizenfour]. In a weird way it’s a prequel to that film. There are so many echoes in the two projects: Julian, in creating WikiLeCitizenfour aks, understood
EXPERT ADVICE WHAT IS YOUR ONE TIP FOR ENABLING A SOCIALLY CONSCIOUS DOCUMENTARY TO MAKE THE MOST IMPACT? “Work with the social movements that already exist, and identify the most active and engaged partners within each movement. This will help ensure your film reaches the right audiences in the short and the long term.” Signe Byrge Sorensen producer, Joshua Oppenheimer director, Final Cut For Real
“There is no ‘one’ tip. We are big believers that every film, set of issues and context is different; each film needs a bespoke strategy drawn up after consultation with all the other actors in the area. Hard work but deeply rewarding when you get it right.” Jess Search chief executive, Britdoc
“There is a real discussion to be had among those in the doc community who are obsessed with impact as to why a film like Blackfish has succeeded, arguably more than any other recent socially conscious documentary. Real change can only ever be achieved by making films accessible for mass audiences, both in their appeal and their distribution and not by preaching to the choir. While we absolutely relied on a huge number of partner organisations to do fantastic outreach on that film, we deliberately kept this ‘behind the curtain’. We were sure from the outset to position the film as a must-watch thriller to mainstream audiences, avoiding a heavyhanded animal-rights approach in all of the marketing.” Oli Harbottle head of distribution, Dogwoof
“Treat your audience as collaborators. If you want your film to have a greater impact, it’s up to you to turn your fans from passive observers into active participants. The best way to do this is to open a direct, long-term line of communication with your audience (ideally long before the film even comes out), and to invite them into the fold in meaningful and genuine ways throughout the process. Build trust and relationships over the long term, so that when it does come time to launch your impact campaign, they feel like it’s their film and their fight as well.” Dan Schoenbrun film outreach lead, Kickstarter
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‘We’re interested in trying things, making mistakes and figuring out what works’ Laura Poitras
that the internet would change global power, it would empower states, it would empower citizens in new ways, it would empower journalism.” She had thought it would be a series of short episodes, and previewed three of those episodes under the title Asylum at New York Film Festival in autumn 2015. “In the editing process, I realised that it comes together as a feature. It’s told in chapters, that’s how the creative process worked.” Risk will show Assange as we have never seen him; Poitras started filming him in 2010 and more recently after he sought asylum at the Ecuadorian embassy in London in 2012. It also promises to be about more than one man — filming the other technologists, volunteers and reporters behind WikiLeaks, looking at how their publishing of sensitive documents has revolutionised journalism, politics and corporate power. Risk is produced by Praxis Films in association with First Look Media and Field of Vision, with world sales handled by Josh Braun of Submarine. A new Vision In September 2015, Poitras teamed with fellow film-maker AJ Schnack (Caucus) and former Hot Docs director of programming Charlotte Cook to found Field of Vision, which is funded by eBay billionaire Pierre Omidyar’s First Look Media, which also funds sister journalism site The Intercept. Field of Vision aims to pair film-makers with developing and ongoing stories around the globe; it will commission up to 50 short non-fiction films each year. Poitras is “really thrilled” with the work they are doing. They do not call it short film-making, they call it “visual journalism”. And that is an important distinction. “We believe in the power of cinema and visuals and images to talk about issues in different ways than print can. It is a response to seeing a lot of bad video on news sites — a reporter standing in a conflict zone or a flood zone narrating what’s happening. The tools of cinema are so much greater than that. “When there’s something urgent happening, we want to engage with it, but more quickly,” she continues. “Longform documentaries can take two years or longer for something to be finished. We wanted to be more responsive, and engage with news in a different way.”
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Risk
One example of Field of Vision’s work is Schnack’s Speaking Is Difficult, a 14-minute film that shows calm footage of sites where mass shootings have occurred, paired with the audio of the 911 calls as the emergencies unfolded. “It’s a powerful way to look at mass shootings, but in a different way than the mainstream news,” Poitras says. “That’s a really exciting use of the form of cinema meeting urgent news.” At Field of Vision, they want to work with film-makers from around the globe, firstly reaching out to those they already know but also willing to take cold pitches sometimes, such as a new project that will be a multipart series about the Syrian crisis, from an Istanbulbased journalist. Other commissions have gone to Michael Moore, Shola Lynch, House Of Cards creator Beau Willimon, Margaret Brown and Heloisa Passos to name a few. “We want to raise the bar,” Poitras adds. “We’re interested in trying things, making mistakes, and figuring out what works for short form online.” The documentary world, both in short and long forms, is particularly healthy now, she says: “Audiences are going to see docs because they are good stories not just issues. That’s a positive thing.” Being invited to Cannes for the first time is proof that her films are cinema not just activism. “I’m thrilled to be invited, to be in Directors’ Fortnight, I believe that documentaries should be seen as cinema,” she says. “I’m also very excited that the Ford Foundation is coming in [to Cannes] to help broaden the s conversation.” n
DOC CORNER AND DOC DAY
This year’s Doc Corner at the Marché has an expanded programme, a larger home at the Riviera and a dedicated screening room
Children 404
Highlighting impactful documentaries that focus on social justice, the Marché and the Ford Foundation’s JustFilms are hosting the first Doc Day conference today. The event at Cinema Olympia 1, in collaboration with La Scam and Connect4Climate/World Bank Group, will open with a keynote from Fire At Sea director Gianfranco Rosi, who will be interviewed by JustFilms’ Cara Mertes. Risk director Laura Poitras, Children 404 director Askold Kurov and Clouds Over Sidra director Gabo Arora will present excerpts from their latest films before sharing their views about advancing social change with moderator Thierry Garrel. There will also be a talk on connecting impact-making documentaries with global audiences, with Daniela Elstner of Doc & Film International, Josh Braun of Submarine and Signe Byrge Sorensen of Final Cut For Real, moderated by Screen International contributing editor Wendy Mitchell. The closing keynote on how the creative industries interact with climate action will be from Lucia Grenna of the Connect4Climate/World Bank Group. After the conference, there will be a networking event and a pitching event. Other highlights at the Marché include a focus on VR docs hosted by IDFA Doc Lab, and tomorrow’s event ‘Refugee Voices In Film’. Tom Grater
May 17, 2016 Screen International at Cannes 19
ScreeningS Edited by Paul Lindsell
paullindsell@gmail.com
Dir: Vatche Boulghourjian. Cast: Barakat Jabbour, Julia Kassar, Michel Adabashi, Toufic Barakat. Rabih, a young blind man, lives in a small village in Lebanon. He sings in a choir and edits Braille documents for an income. His life unravels when he tries to apply for a passport and discovers that his identification card, which he has carried his entire life, is a forgery.
FestivaL
and press
08:30 JULIETA
(Spain) 96mins. Dir: Pedro Almodovar. Cast: Emma Suarez, Adriana Ugarte, Daniel Grao, Inma Cuesta, Dario Grandinetti, Michelle Jenner, Pilar Castro, Nathalie Poza, Susi Sanchez, Joaquin Notario. Julieta lives in Madrid with her daughter Antia. They both suffer in silence over the loss of Xoan, Antia’s father and Julieta’s husband. But at times grief doesn’t bring people closer, it drives them apart. When Antia turns 18 she abandons her mother, without a word of explanation. Julieta looks for her in every possible way, but all she discovers is how little she knows of her daughter. Competition Grand Theatre Lumiere Press, ticket required
Critics’ Week Miramar
12:00 THE TOGETHER PROJECT
FestivaL & press 08:45 FIORE
(Italy) 105mins. Dir: Claudio Giovannesi. Cast: Valerio Mastandrea, Daphne Scoccia, Josciua Algeri. Young and in prision
for theft, Daphne falls in love with Josh, another inmate. Their relationship exists through secret letters and fleeting conversations. Directors’ Fortnight Theatre Croisette
MIMOSAS
(Spain) 93mins. Dir: Oliver Laxe. Cast: Ahmed Hammoud, Shakib Ben Omar, Said Aagli, Ikram Anzouli, Ahmed El Othemani, Hamid Fardjad, Margarita Albores. A caravan escorts an elderly and dying Sheikh through the Moroccan Atlas. His last wish is to be buried with his loved ones. But death does not wait. The caravaneers, fearful of the mountain pass, refuse to continue transporting the corpse. Ahmed and Said, two rogues travelling with the caravan, promise to take the body to its destination. But do they really know the way? In another world, parallel and remote, Shakib is chosen to travel to the mountains where the caravan is. His assignment is clear: he has to help the
improvised caravaneers reach their destination. Critics’ Week Miramar
08:45 FIORE See box, above
10:30 LOVING
(UK) 123mins. Dir: Jeff Nichols. Cast: Joel Edgerton, Ruth Negga, Michael Shannon. Celebrates the real-life courage and commitment of an interracial couple, Richard and Mildred Loving, who married and then spent the next nine years fighting for the right to live as a family in their hometown. Their civil rights case, Loving v. Virginia, went all the way to the Supreme Court, which in 1967 reaffirmed
20 Screen International at Cannes May 17, 2016
the very foundation of the right to marry — making their love story an inspiration to couples everywhere. Competition Salle Du Soixantieme
11:00 AQUARIUS
(France) 140mins. Dir: Kleber Mendonca Filho. Cast: Sonia Braga, Irandhir Santos. Clara, a 65-year-old widow and retired music critic, was born into a wealthy and traditional family in Recife, Brazil. She is the last resident of the Aquarius. All the neighbouring apartments have already been acquired by a company that has other plans for the plot. Clara has pledged to only leave her place upon her death,
and engages in a cold war of sorts with the company, a confrontation which is both mysterious, frightening and nerve wracking. This tension both disturbs Clara and gives her an edge in her daily routine. It also gets her thinking about her loved ones, her past and her future.
PERSONAL SHOPPER
Competition Salle Bazin Press
Competition Grand Theatre Lumiere Ticket required
(France) 105mins. Dir: Olivier Assayas. Cast: Kristen Stewart, Lars Eidinger, Anders Danielsen Lie, Sigrid Bouaziz, Nora Von Waldstatten. Revolves around a ghost story that takes place in the fashion underworld of Paris.
FOOL MOON
(France) 109mins. Dir: Gregoire LeprinceRinguet. Cast: Gregoire Leprince-Ringuet, Pauline Caupenne, Amandine Truffy. Ondine and Paul have loved each other. When she leaves him, he swears not to love again. To prove this to himself, he pursues the beautiful Camille, whom he intends to seduce and abandon. But Camille puts a spell on Paul, whom she desires for herself alone. And, while falling under Camille’s charms, Paul has to deal with the memory of his past love. Out of Competition Salle Bunuel Press
VOIR DU PAYS
(France) 102mins. Dir: Delphine Coulin, Muriel Coulin. Cast: Soko, Ariane Labed. At the end of their tour of duty in Afghanistan, two young military women, Aurore and Marine, are given three days of decompression leave with their unit at a five-star resort in Cyprus, among tourists. But it’s not that easy to forget the war and leave the violence behind. Un Certain Regard Theatre Claude Debussy Press
11:30 TRAMONTANE
(France) 105mins.
(France) 83mins. Dir: Solveig Anspach. Cast: Florence Loiret Caille, Samir Guesmi. Samir, a tall, lanky, 40-something crane operator from Montreuil, in the outskirts of Paris, falls head over heels in love with Agathe, a feisty young woman he sees in a cafe. He discovers she is a swimming instructor at the local public pool, and, for lack of a better plan, he decides to enlist as her student even though he can swim perfectly. But his lie only lasts for three lessons, and Agathe hates liars. The truth surfaces. Agathe is furious. The end? Not quite. Directors’ Fortnight Theatre Croisette
13:00 AQUARIUS
(France) 140mins. Dir: Kleber Mendonca Filho. Cast: Sonia Braga, Irandhir Santos. Competition Salle Bunuel Press
PATERSON
(US) 100mins. Dir: Jim Jarmusch. Cast: Adam Driver, Golshifteh Farahani. Set in the present in Paterson, New Jersey, this is a tale about a bus driver and poet. A wry comedy that chronicles the challenges of work and love, and observes the quiet triumphs and defeats www.screendaily.com
Jury grid, page 32
» Screening times and venues are correct at the time of going to press but subject to alteration
of daily life, and the poetry evident in its smallest details.
conflicting loyalties? Cannes Classics Salle Bunuel
Competition Salle Du Soixantieme
19:00 MA’ ROSA
13:30
(Philippines) 110mins. Dir: Brillante Mendoza. Cast: Jaclyn Rose, Julio Diaz, Felix Roco. Rosa, mother of four, owns a small convenience store in the slums of Manila. To make ends meet, Rosa and her husband, Nestor, sell narcotics on the side, until the police come to arrest them. Their children have to trade the little they have left to pay off the police.
JULIETA
(Spain) 96mins. Dir: Pedro Almodovar. Cast: Emma Suarez, Adriana Ugarte, Daniel Grao, Inma Cuesta, Dario Grandinetti, Michelle Jenner, Pilar Castro, Nathalie Poza, Susi Sanchez, Joaquin Notario. Competition Grand Theatre Lumiere Ticket required
14:00
Competition Theatre Claude Debussy Press
APPRENTICE See box, right
19:30
CAPTAIN FANTASTIC
(US) 120mins. Dir: Matt Ross. Cast: Viggo Mortensen, Frank Langella, George Mackay, Kathryn Hahn, Steve Zahn, Ann Dowd. In the forests of the Pacific northwest, a father devoted to raising his six kids with a rigorous physical and intellectual education is forced to leave his paradise and enter the real world, challenging his idea of what it means to be a parent. Un Certain Regard Theatre Claude Debussy Press
JULIETA Festival & Press 14:00 APPRENTICE
(Singapore) 96mins. Dir: Junfeng Boo. Cast: Rahman Fir, Su Wan Hanafi, Ahmad Mastura, Boon Pin Koh, Nickson Cheng, Crispian Chan, Gerald Chew. Aiman, a correctional officer, is transferred to the territory’s top
(France) 66mins. Dir: Claude Barras. Cast: Michel Vuillermoz, Paulin Jaccoud, Natacha Koutchoumov. Courgette is an odd nickname for a 10-yearold boy. After his mother’s death, he ends up in a special orphanage. There he will discover friendship, trust and even love. Directors’ Fortnight Theatre Croisette
Out of Competition Salle Du Soixantieme
MY LIFE AS A COURGETTE
15:15
16:00
THE NICE GUYS
AQUARIUS
(US) 116mins. Dir: Shane Black. Cast: Russell Crowe, Ryan Gosling,
(France) 140mins. Dir: Kleber Mendonca Filho. Cast: Sonia Braga,
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Un Certain Regard Salle Bazin
and they and their wives head for the city. However, Genjuro soon sends his wife back home, promising to return to her soon, and Tobei, in his keenness to follow the samurai, abandons his wife. Meanwhile, a wealthy noblewoman, the Lady Wakasa, shows an interest in Genjuro’s pots, and invites him to her mansion. Cannes Classics Salle Bunuel
Kim Basinger, Matt Bomer. Takes place in 1970s Los Angeles, when downon-his-luck private eye Holland March and hired enforcer Jackson Healy must work together to solve the case of a missing girl and the seemingly unrelated death of a porn star. During their investigation, they uncover a shocking conspiracy that reaches up to the highest circles of power.
15:00
prison. He strikes up a friendship with Rahim, who is revealed to be the chief executioner of the prison, and one of the world’s most prolific. Can Aiman overcome his conscience and his past to become the executioner’s apprentice?
Irandhir Santos. Competition Grand Theatre Lumiere Press, ticket required
UGETSU
(Japan) 93mins. Dir: Kenji Mizoguchi. Cast: Machiko Kyo, Masayuki Mori, Kinuyo Tanaka. In the civil wars of 16th century Japan, two ambitious peasants set out to make their fortunes. The potter Genjuro intends to sell his wares for vast profits in the local city, while his brotherin-law Tobei wishes to become a samurai. Their village is ransacked by the marauding armies, but Genjuro’s kiln miraculously survives,
16:30 VOIR DU PAYS
(France) 102mins. Dir: Delphine Coulin, Muriel Coulin. Cast: Soko, Ariane Labed. Un Certain Regard Theatre Claude Debussy Press
17:00 TRAMONTANE
(France) 105mins. Dir: Vatche Boulghourjian. Cast: Barakat Jabbour, Julia Kassar, Michel Adabashi, Toufic Barakat. Critics’ Week Miramar
17:15 FIORE
(Italy) 105mins.
Dir: Claudio Giovannesi. Cast: Valerio Mastandrea, Daphne Scoccia, Josciua Algeri. Directors’ Fortnight Theatre Croisette
18:00 FAREWELL BONAPARTE
(France) 115mins. Dir: Youssef Chahine. Cast: Michel Piccoli, Patrice Chereau, Mohsen Mohieddin. In 1798, Napoleon lands his army in Egypt, defeats the Mameluke warlords and goes on to Cairo. Three brothers, who are Egyptian patriots, reject the prospect of French domination. Bakr, the eldest, is a hothead, quick to advocate armed rebellion; Ali is more philosophical and poetic; Yehia is young and impressionable. One of Napoleon’s generals, the one-legged intellectual Caffarelli, wants to make Frenchmen out of Ali, Yehia and other Egyptians, opening a bakery where their father works, becoming a tutor, and declaring his love for them. Is tragedy the only resolution of these
(Spain) 96mins. Dir: Pedro Almodovar. Cast: Emma Suarez, Adriana Ugarte, Daniel Grao, Inma Cuesta, Dario Grandinetti, Michelle Jenner, Pilar Castro, Nathalie Poza, Susi Sanchez, Joaquin Notario. Competition Grand Theatre Lumiere Ticket required
19:45 FOOL MOON
(France) 109mins. Dir: Gregoire LeprinceRinguet. Cast: Gregoire Leprince-Ringuet, Pauline Caupenne, Amandine Truffy. Out of Competition Salle Du Soixantieme
20:15 THE TOGETHER PROJECT
(France) 83mins. Dir: Solveig Anspach. Cast: Florence Loiret Caille, Samir Guesmi. Directors’ Fortnight
Theatre Croisette 20:30 MIDNIGHT RETURNS: THE STORY OF BILLY HAYES AND TURKEY
(Turkey) 99mins. Dir: Sally Sussman. Cast: Billy Hayes.
May 17, 2016 Screen International at Cannes 21
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ScreeningS
Market screenings
09:15 HARMONIUM
(Japan) 118mins. MK2 Films. Dir: Koji Fukada. Cast: Kanji Furutachi, Tadanobu Asano, Mariko Tsutsui. Toshio hires Yasaka in his workshop. This old acquaintance, who has just been released from prison, begins to meddle in Toshio’s family life. Riviera 2
HOLDING THE MAN
Festival & Press 21:30 PERSONAL SHOPPER
(France) 105mins. Dir: Olivier Assayas. Cast: Kristen Stewart, Lars Eidinger, Anders Danielsen Lie, Sigrid Bouaziz, After his escape from a Turkish prison in 1975, Billy Hayes arrived home to a hero’s welcome, instant celebrity and within a week had a book and movie deal for his story. ‘Midnight Express’ cemented its place in film history as an artistic and financial success, before becoming an indelible part of pop culture. But its lasting impact has been on Turkish people worldwide who blame Billy Hayes for defaming them and their country. In an effort to clear his conscience, Billy attempts a rapprochement with the Turkish nation but is refused entry. It is only when he receives an invitation from a most unlikely source that he returns to Turkey and faces a nation still haunted by the film and his own demons. Cannes Classics Salle Bunuel
Nora Von Waldstatten. Revolves around a ghost story that takes place in the fashion underworld of Paris. Competition Olympia 1 Marché badge holders only
21:30 THE GREAT DICTATOR
(US) 125mins. Dir: Charles Chaplin. Cast: Charlie Chaplin, Paulette Goddard, Jack Oakie. Charlie Chaplin’s classic comedy satire mocking Hitler and the Nazi regime in Germany. Cinema on the Beach Plage Mace
MA’ ROSA
(Philippines) 110mins. Dir: Brillante Mendoza. Cast: Jaclyn Rose, Julio Diaz, Felix Roco. Competition Salle Bazin Press
A divorced dad and his ex-con brother resort to a desperate scheme in order to save their family’s farm in west Texas. Un Certain Regard Salle Du Soixantieme
See box, above
22:00 HELL OR HIGH WATER
(US) 102mins. Dir: David Mackenzie. Cast: Chris Pine, Ben Foster, Jeff Bridges, Katy Mixon.
22 Screen International at Cannes May 17, 2016
Cannes Classics Salle Bunuel
TRAMONTANE PERSONAL SHOPPER
See box, below
(France) 105mins. Dir: Olivier Assayas. Cast: Kristen Stewart, Lars Eidinger, Anders Danielsen Lie, Sigrid Bouaziz, Nora Von Waldstatten.
Palais J
09:30 A GERMAN LIFE
(Austria) 113mins. Cinephil. Dir: Christian Krones, Florian Weigensamer, Roland
Lerins 4
AFTER THE STORM
(Japan) 118mins. Wild Bunch. Dir: Hirokazu Kore-Eda. Cast: Hiroshi Abe, Yoko Maki, Kiki Kilin, Taiyo Yoshizawa. Multi-award-winning and critically lauded director Hirokazu Kore-eda returns with a sensitive and powerful story of family ties remade. Olympia 8 By invitation only
ALOYS
(Switzerland) 91mins. New Europe Film Sales. Dir: Tobias Nolle. Cast: Georg Friedrich, Tilde Von Overbeck. A lonely private investigator is contacted by a mysterious woman who pulls him into a mind game known as “telephone walking”. Fascinated by her voice, he discovers an imaginary universe that allows him to break out of his isolation. Palais F
Competition Grand Theatre Lumiere Ticket required
22:15 CAPTAIN FANTASTIC
(US) 120mins. Dir: Matt Ross. Cast: Viggo Mortensen, Frank Langella, George Mackay, Kathryn Hahn, Steve Zahn, Ann Dowd. Un Certain Regard Theatre Claude Debussy Press
22:30 PLANET OF THE VAMPIRES
PERSONAL SHOPPER
swayed by the uncertain influence of the planet and its strange inhabitants.
(Australia) 128mins. Goalpost Film. Dir: Neil Armfield. Cast: Ryan Corr, Craig Stott, Anthony Lapaglia, Guy Pearce, Kerry Fox, Sarah Snook. The story of a bright Catholic boy who falls in love with the captain of the school’s football team... and gets him.
Schrotthofer, Olaf S Muller. Brunhilde Pomsel always described herself as just being a sideline figure and not at all interested in politics. Nevertheless she was close to one of the worst criminals in world history — Joseph Goebbels.
(Italy) 88mins. Dir: Mario Bava. Cast: Barry Sullivan, Norma Bengell, Angel Aranda, Evi Marandi, Stelio Candelli. After landing on a mysterious planet, a team of astronauts begin to turn on each other,
Festival & Press 22:30 TRAMONTANE
(France) 105mins. Dir: Vatche Boulghourjian. Cast: Barakat Jabbour, Julia Kassar, Michel Adabashi, Toufic Barakat. Rabih, a young blind man, lives in a small village in Lebanon. He sings in
a choir and edits Braille documents for an income. His life unravels when he tries to apply for a passport and discovers that his identification card, which he has carried his entire life, is a forgery. Critics’ Week Miramar
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delinquent, a fact which makes the local crime bosses far from happy. When he falls in love with Alessia, Enzo will learn the value of helping others.
BAD GIRL
90mins. Arclight Films. Olympia 9 THE BALLAD OF OPPENHEIMER PARk
(Mexico) 70mins. Mexican Film Institute (Imcine). Dir: Juan Manuel Sepulveda. Cast: Harley Prosper, Marcus Raweater Bear, Janet Brown. A film that celebrates the everyday life of a group of First Nations, exiles from the Canadian reserves, who, during a fleeting summer, occupy a municipal park in Vancouver.
Palais E
10:00 A YELLOW BIRD
(Singapore) 112mins. Alpha Violet. Dir: K Rajagopal. Cast: Sivakumar Palakrishnan, Huang Lu, Seema Biswas, Udaya Soundari. Siva, a Singaporean Indian man released from jail, begins a quest to locate his ex-wife and daughter. How far can he go to redeem himself from guilt?
Gray 4
FAI BEI SOGNI
(Italy) 134mins. The Match Factory. Dir: Marco Bellocchio. Cast: Valerio Mastandrea, Berenice Bejo, Guido Caprino, Nicolo’ Cabras, Dario Dal Pero, Barbara Ronchi. Massimo’s idyllic childhood was shattered by the mysterious death of his mother. As he prepares to sell his parents’ apartment, he is haunted by his traumatic past. Compassionate doctor Elisa could help tormented Massimo open up and confront his childhood wounds. Arcades 2
LENALOVE See box, right
Palais G
APPRENTICE
Market 09:30 LENALOVE
(Germany) 90mins. Picture Tree International. Dir: Florian Gaag. Cast: Emilia Schule, Jannik Schumann, Kyra Sophia Kahre. Lena spends her time assembling expressive collages and chatting with a guy she met online. Only Tim, a gifted graffiti-artist and loner, notices her artistic talent, and the two get closer — much to the
displeasure of Lena’s friend Nicole who is now best friends with Stella. When Lena sees Nicole and Tim kissing, she breaks off contact with her former friends, not knowing Stella set up the kiss. In her despair, Lena throws herself head-on into the social network and confides in the chat buddy she has never met in person — but behind the stranger’s profile are Nicole and Stella. Lerins 1
LIFE, ANIMATED
(US) 91mins. Dogwoof. Dir: Roger Ross Williams. Cast: Owen Suskind, Ron Suskind. At three years old, a chatty, energetic little boy named Owen Suskind ceased to speak, disappearing into autism with apparently no way out. Almost four years passed and the only stimuli that engaged Owen were Disney films. Then one day, his father donned a puppet — Iago, the wisecracking parrot from ‘Aladdin’ — and asked “what’s it like to be you?” And poof! Owen replied, with dialogue from the movie. ‘Life, Animated’ tells the remarkable story of how Owen found in Disney animation a pathway to language and a framework for
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making sense of the world. By evocatively interweaving classic Disney sequences with verite scenes from Owen’s life, the film explores how identification and empathy with characters like Simba, Jafar and Ariel forge a conduit for him to understand his feelings and interpret reality. Gray 2
LONDON TOWN
(US) 90mins. Radiant Films International. Dir: Derrick Borte. Cast: Jonathan Rhys-Meyers, Daniel Huttlestone, Natascha McElhone. In 1970s London, a 14-year-old boy discovers the music of The Clash and experiences first love
over the course of one lifechanging summer. Palais D
the four Walker children and their sailing rivals, the Blacketts, run amok in their boats against the stunning backdrop of the Lake District. The Walkers sail the agile Swallow and the Blacketts commandeer The Amazon, making camp on a nearby island. Their world is one of imagination — filled with pirates and cannons, where boats are captured and the enemy has to walk the plank. But when family friend, Uncle Jim is revealed to be a spy, our motley crew are forced to put down their imaginary swords and band together to protect him from his Soviet enemies. Olympia 6
NUTS
(Lebanon) 107mins. Fondation Liban Cinema. Dir: Henri Barges. Cast: Darine Hamze, Alexandra Kahwagi, Gabriel Yammine, Hassan Mrad, Edmund Hedded, Houssam Sabah, Tarek Tamim, Bassel Madi, Jean El Alam, Abboudi Mallah. åPalais H
SWALLOWS AND AMAZONS
(UK) 98mins. HanWay Films. Dir: Philippa Lowthorpe. Cast: Rafe Spall, Kelly Macdonald, Gwendoline Christie. Set during an idyllic English summer holiday,
TUMULT IN SVET IVOR
(Switzerland) 90mins. Lemendu. Dir: Matthias J Michel. Cast: Maria Bottner, Daniel Mezger, Manfred Liechti, Daniel Frei. A snobbish woman on her way to a luxury resort ends up by mistake in a lonely rocky island hosted by a creepy lighthouse keeper. Palais B
09:45 CLOUDY SUNDAY
(Greece) 116mins. Media Luna New Films. Dir: Manoussos
Manousskis. Cast: Andreas Konstantinou, Christina Hila Famel, Haris Fragoulis. A love story condemned to a tragic end, caught between a dehumanising totalitarian regime and the insanity of racial discrimination. History, as always, is reflecting contemporary life. Riviera 1
SLACk BAY (MA LOUTE)
(France) 122mins. Memento Films International. Dir: Bruno Dumont. Cast: Juliette Binoche, Fabrice Luchini, Valeria Bruni Tedeschi. A couple of inspectors investigate the mysterious disappearance of tourists in Slack Bay, where young fisherman Ma Loute mingles with Billie Van Peteghem’s bourgeois family. Palais k
THEY CALL ME JEEG
(Italy) 118mins. Rai Com. Dir: Gabriele Mainetti. Cast: Claudio Santamaria, Luca Marinelli, Ilenia Pastorelli, Stefano Ambrogi, Maurizio Tesei, Francesco Formichetti, Daniele Trombetti. Enzo, an ex-con from the poor outskirts of Rome, puts his newfound superpowers to use furthering his career as a
(Singapore) 96mins. Luxbox. Dir: Junfeng Boo. Cast: Rahman Fir, Su Wan Hanafi, Ahmad Mastura, Boon Pin Koh, Nickson Cheng, Crispian Chan, Gerald Chew. Aiman, a correctional officer, is transferred to the territory’s top prison. He strikes up a friendship with Rahim, who is revealed to be the chief executioner of the prison, and one of the world’s most prolific. Can Aiman overcome his conscience and his past to become the executioner’s apprentice? Olympia 2
BORIS WITHOUT BEATRICE
(Canada) 90mins. Films Boutique. Dir: Denis Cote. Cast: James Hyndman, Simone-Elise Girard, Denis Lavant. Boris Malinovsky has achieved all of his life goals: he’s strong-willed, independent, proud, and arrogant. After his wife Beatrice falls into a mysterious depression, Boris indulges in a love affair with his colleague Helga. When a mystical stranger appears, Boris must confront his world view and put his achievements and his certainties to the test. Lerins 3
THE CHILDREN OF CHANCE
(France) 90mins. Other Angle Pictures. Dir: Malik Chibane, Philippe Torreton.
May 17, 2016 Screen International at Cannes 23
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ScreeningS
The true story of a Jewish child who lost all his family but was saved during the war by a hospital doctor, and his friendship with the other children in the hospital who shared his faith.
VAKRATUNDA MAHAKAAYA
(India) 89mins. Maharashtra Film, Stage & Cultural Development Corporation. Dir: Punarvasu Naik. Cast: Usha Nadkarni, Vijay Maurya, Murari Kumar, Naman Jain, Nachiket Purnapatre, Jayant Sawarkar. Comedy thriller about an attempted terrorist attack in Mumbai during the festival of Ganesh Chaturthi.
Olympia 4
DAMASCUS COVER
(UK) 98mins. Carnaby International Sales And Distribution. Dir: Dan Berk. Cast: Jonathan Rhys-Meyers, John Hurt, Olivia Thirlby, Jurgen Prochnow. A veteran spy is sent undercover in Syria to smuggle a chemical weapons scientist and his family out of Damascus.
Gray 4
WILD
Gray 1
THE FIRST MONDAY IN MAY
(US) 91mins. Elle Driver. Dir: Andrew Rossi. Cast: Anna Wintour, Rihanna, Wong Kar-Wai, Jean-Paul Gaultier. Follow the creation of The Metropolitan Museum of Art’s ‘China: Through the Looking Glass’ exhibition. With unprecedented access, film-maker Andrew Rossi captures the collision of high fashion and celebrity at the Met Gala, and dives into the debate about whether fashion should be viewed as art.
Market 11:30 FAMILY COMMITMENTS
(Germany) 85mins. Media Luna New Films. Dir: Hanno Olderdissen. Cast: Max Von Pufendorf, Omar El-Saeidi, Maren Kroymann, Ramin Yazdani, Nikola Kastner, Kristin Hunold, Franziska Brandmeier, Hendrik Von Bultzingslowen, Corny Littmann,
THE LIVES OF THERESE
Michael Prelle. To get married is easy, but will things still go smoothly when it involves a homophobic Arab father, a pseudoorthodox Jewish mother and an unexpected pregnancy? David and Khaled need to set a lot of things straight before they can say their vows and live happily ever after. Lerins 4
Olympia 5
INTERCHANGE
(Malaysia) 102mins. Reel Suspects. Dir: Dain Iskandar Said. Cast: Shaheizy Sam, Nicholas Saputra, Prisia Nasution, Nadiya Nisaa, Alvin Wong, Chew Kin Wah, Iedil Putra. A hard-nosed cop and a crime photographer’s friendship is put to the test as a macabre murder investigation leads them to the mystical underbelly of a city of dark secrets where shamans, supernatural beings and century-old superstitions come to life.
the struggle to legalise abortion to the fight for equal rights of men and women and the battle for gay rights, she’s been on the front lines of all of them. Lerins 2
Palais B
FAMILY COMMITMENTS See box, above
PANAMA GOES TO CANNES
110mins. International Film Festival Panama. The Festival Internacional de Cine Panama presents the ‘Primera Mirada’ winner film from its selection: ‘Noeli En Los Paises’ by Laura Amelia Guzman. Palais I Press allowed
SUBMARINE HIGHLIGHTS
Gray 3 Priority badges only
(US) 90mins. Submarine Entertainment.
THE LIVES OF THERESE
Palais C
(France) 50mins. Doc & Film International. Dir: Sebastien Lifshitz. Therese Clerc is one of the great figures of militantism. From
Cast: Ada Condeescu. This is the story of Radu, a young man who went to Italy for work and now comes home after a year.
11:30
THE GREASY STRANGLER
(US) 93mins. Protagonist Pictures. Dir: Jim Hosking. Cast: Michael St Michaels, Sky Elobar. Ronnie runs a disco walking tour with his son, Brayden. When a sexy woman takes the tour, it begins a competition between father and son for her love. It also signals the arrival of an oily strangler who stalks the streets at night.
BY THE RAILS
Olympia 3
(Romania) 88mins. Romanian Film Centre. Dir: Catalin Mitulescu.
JUVENILES
24 Screen International at Cannes May 17, 2016
See box, opposite page
(France) 50mins. Doc & Film International. Arcades 1
MERCI PATRON!
(France) 84mins. Jour2Fete. Dir: Francois Ruffin. Palais J
MY HINDU FRIEND
(Brazil) 114mins. HanWay Films. Dir: Hector Babenco. Cast: Willem Dafoe, Maria Fernanda Candido, Reynaldo Gianecchini . Diego is a film director very close to death. With a newly married wife and a brother in tow, Diego takes off for a last-chance operation in America. His tempestuous behaviour makes his family and friends despair and disaster strikes when his brother abandons him in his moment of need. On his journey for a cure, with all the odds stacked against him, Diego finds new friends and a chance to relive his life. Olympia 9
NOT SHORT ON TALENT
110mins. Telefilm Canada. Palais F
THE SUMMER OF ALL MY PARENTS
(France) 97mins. Films Distribution. Dir: Diasteme. After attempting to set a
mailbox on fire, Pimpette, 14, and her elder sister, Josephine, spend their summer holidays shuttling between their secretly pregnant mom and bachelor father. But when Josephine gets involved with the wrong crowd, little Pimpette turns out to be more responsible than the grown-ups. Lerins 2
TWISTING FATE
(France) 107mins. Be For Films. Dir: Christophe Lioud. Cast: Noemie Merlant, Caroline Jurczak, Marie-Christine Barrault. Claire is 17. While vacationing together in South Africa, her family die in a terrible accident. She is the only one to survive the tragedy. Utterly distraught, convinced she is responsible for the death of her loved ones, devastated and guilt-ridden, she flees and decides to let fate, which saved her from death, now guide her life. Will this initiatory journey give her the means to return home and face the scrutiny of others? During the course of her adventures and encounters, some happy and others tragic, she skips over life stages, finally realising that she carries within her the strength to shape her own destiny. Palais D
(Germany) 100mins. The Match Factory. Dir: Nicolette Krebitz. Cast: Thania Dimitrakopoulou, Michael Weber. Tells an anarchistic story of a protagonist who breaks the tacit contract with civilisation and fearlessly decides on a life without safety net or hypocrisy. Olympia 6
12:00 A GOOD WIFE
(Serbia) 94mins. Films Boutique. Dir: Mirjana Karanovic. Cast: Ksenija Marinkovic, Hristina Popovic, Bojan Navojec, Jasna Djuricic, Boris Isakovic, Mirjana Karanovic. Milena, a middle-aged wife and mother, is living comfortably in an upscale neighbourhood of Belgrade. She quietly tends to her looks, dutifully cooks and entertains her friends. But unsettling realities are beginning to seep in when she finds out about the hidden past of her seemingly ideal husband. She begins an awakening from the suburban paradise she had thought to live in. Lerins 3
THE BOUNCE BACK
(US) 104mins. Double Dutch International. Dir: Youssef Delara. Cast: Shemar Moore, Nadine Velazquez, Kali Hawk. Father, author and allaround good guy Matthew Taylor is on a whirlwind tour promoting his new book, ‘The Bounce Back’. He meets the acerbic Kristin, a talk show circuit
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psychotherapist, who’s convinced he’s nothing but a charlatan.
CAMPUS MOVIE FEST
Palais K
Palais F
CHOUF
ENOC THE RESPLENDENT STARGATE
110mins. Campus Moviefest.
(France) 90mins. Doc & Film International. Dir: Karim Dridi. Cast: Sofian Khammes, Foued Nabba, Oussama Abdul Aal, Zine Darar, Foziwa Mohamed. Sofiane is 20. A brilliant student, he comes back to spend his holiday in the Marseille ghetto where he was born. His brother, a dealer, gets shot before his eyes. Sofiane gives up on his studies and gets involved in the drug network, ready to avenge him.
(Spain) 71mins. ErS. Dir: Marin Martha. Cast: Marin Martha. A film without dialogue, where acoustic live and experimental music, and studio recordings, merge with the images in a powerful and indissoluble form. Arcades 1
HALAL
Palais I
CINEMA NOVO
(Brazil) 90mins. Figa Films. Dir: Eryk rocha. An idea in their heads, a camera in their hands and the ambition to change the world. Gray 1
DOWN BY LOVE
(France) 110mins. Studiocanal. Dir: Pierre Godeau. Cast: Guillaume Gallienne, Adele Exarchopoulos. A passionate, poignant story of forbidden love. Arcades 2
I AM YOUR FATHER
(Spain) 82mins. Cinema republic. Dir: Toni Bestard, Marcos Cabota. Cast: David Prowse, Marcos Cabota. David Prowse is the actor who played Darth Vader in the original ‘Star Wars’ trilogy. During shooting of the last sequence where the mask of the icon villian was removed, Prowse was replaced with another actor. This fact has marked his life ever since. Palais C
MIMOSAS
(Spain) 93mins. Luxbox. Dir: Oliver Laxe. Cast: Ahmed Hammoud, Shakib Ben Omar, Said Aagli, Ikram Anzouli, Ahmed El Othemani, Hamid Fardjad, Margarita Albores. A caravan escorts an elderly and dying Sheikh through the Moroccan Atlas. His last wish is to be
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Market 11:30 JUVENILES
(US) 95mins. radiant Films International. Dir: Nico Sabenorio. Cast: Beau Knapp, Stephen Moyer, Martin Henderson. buried with his loved ones. But death does not wait. The caravaneers, fearful of the mountain pass, refuse to continue transporting the corpse. Ahmed and Said, two rogues travelling with the caravan, promise to take the body to its destination. But do they really know the way? In another world, parallel and remote, Shakib is chosen to travel to the mountains where the caravan is. His assignment is clear: he has to help the improvised caravaneers reach their destination. Olympia 2
MONKEY TWINS
(Thailand) 110mins. Kaothaitayarn Co. Dir: Nonthakorn Thaweesuk. Cast: Sumret Muangput, Panyanut Jirarottanakasem. Palais E
THE NIGHT MY MOTHER KILLED MY FATHER
(Spain) 93mins. Inside Content. Dir: Ines Paris. Cast: Belen rueda, Eduard Fernandez, Maria Pujalte, Diego Peretti,
A feud between two families is reignited when a young man is forced to avenge his father’s death at the hands of the local crime boss. Gray 2
Fele Martinez, Patricia Montero. What will Isabel, a 40-year-old actress who nobody wants to hire, be able to do in order to persuade her husband to let her play the lead role in the next film he is preparing? An evening, a perfect hostess, some guests and a dinner none of them will ever forget. Palais G
RAW
(France) Wild Bunch. Dir: Julia Ducournau. Cast: Garance Marillier, Ella rumpf, rabah Nait Oufella, Joana Preiss, Laurent Lucas, Bouli Lanners. Everyone in Justine’s family is a vet. And a vegetarian. At 16, she’s a brilliant and promising student. When she starts at veterinary school, she enters a decadent, merciless and dangerously seductive world. During the first week of hazing rituals, desperate to fit in whatever the cost, she strays from her family principles when she eats raw meat for the first
time. Justine will soon face the terrible and unexpected consequences of her actions. Olympia 8 Press allowed
SALSIPUEDES
(Panama) 97mins. Habanero. Dir: ricardo Aguilar, Manolito rodriguez. Cast: Elmis Castillo, Maritza Vernaza, Jaime Newball. The story of a young boy, Andres Pimienta, who is sent to the United States to be kept away from the bad influences but returns 10 years later and meets his father, Bobby, in an encounter that will change his destiny.
13:15 PLAY YOUR GENDER
(Canada) 90mins. All rights Entertainment. Dir: Stephanie Clattenburg. Cast: Courtney Love, Sara Quinn, Melissa Auf De Maur. What does it take for a woman to make it in music?
(India) 109mins. Maharashtra Film, Stage & Cultural Development Corporation. Dir: Shivaji Lotan Patil. Cast: Pritam Kagne, Priydarshan Jadhav, Chinmay Mandalekar, Vijay Chouhan, Vimal Mhatre, Chaya Kadam, Sanjay Sugavkar, Praglbha Kolekar, Neha Dakhinkar. Based on Muslim marriages. Gray 4
IN MY FATHER’S GARDEN
(Austria) 85mins. Stray Dogs. Dir: Daniel Hoesl. Cast: Heinz Arthur Boltuch, Aurelia Burckhardt, Stephanie Cumming. Four allegedly professional investors travel the globe in search of established companies they want to buy for nothing.
(US) 98mins. Halalywood. Dir: Omar regan. Cast: Eric roberts, Najmah Abraham, Nadine Abu-Jubara. Officer Richardson profiles every Muslim he sees as a terrorist. He goes on an arrest “frenzy”, which makes community activists Jihad Akbar and Osama Khan rally the community to stand up for their rights. Meanwhile, police chief Adam Carswell aims to gain the trust of the Muslim community in order to get their votes for the upcoming election. Carswell calls on his own Muslim detective, Mohammed “Mo”, and partners him with a Middle Eastern officer, who just happens to be well-versed in Sharia Law. Mo is shocked with his new partner’s methods and pleads with the chief to send him back to the country he came from.
(Netherlands) 120mins. Dutch Features Global Entertainment. Dir: Ben Sombogaart. Cast: Barry Atsma, Noortje Herlaar. Tells the story of Hans and Margie — sweethearts since school. Hans grows up in a strict religious environment with a brutal father. At a young age, he runs away from home and studies horticulture. After the Second World War, he starts a nursery in a small village. At first, he and Margie enjoy a happy family life and boundless love for each other. One afternoon, Hans meets Josef Mieras, who talks to him about God. At first, Hans is not interested but after he has an ominous dream about his dead father, he falls increasingly under Miera’s spell. Hans draws deeper and deeper into his faith — a faith that will now determine the course of his life and his family. The rift between Hans and his family becomes bigger and bigger, until Hans is completely in the grip of the religious sect.
Gray 5
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SUMMERTIME
(Italy) 105mins. rai Com. Dir: Gabriele Muccino. Cast: Matilda Lutz, Brando Pacitto, Taylor Frey, Joey Haro. The memories of that summer will last for a lifetime. Riviera 1
12:30 WINWIN
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13:30 AMERICAN SHARIA
May 17, 2016 Screen International at Cannes 25
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in the middle of nowhere start experiencing a strange phenomenon.
JAILBIRDS
(France) 98mins. Elle Driver. Dir: Audrey Estrougo. Cast: Sophie Marceau, Suzanne Clement, Alice Belaidi. In order to save the man she loves from jail, Mathilde takes his place by helping him break out. Mathilde has not heard from him since her imprisonment. Isolated, only supported by her son, she is now identified by the inmate number 383205-B. Will Mathilde become a convict like any other one?
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VAXXED: FROM COVER UP TO CATASTROPHE
(US) 91mins. Cinema Libre International. Dir: Andrew Wakefield. Cast: Dr. Jim Sears, Dr Rachel Ross, Polly Tommey. In 2013, biologist Dr Brian Hooker received a call from a senior scientist at the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) who led the agency’s 2004 study on the Measles-MumpsRubella (MMR) vaccine and its link to autism.
Olympia 3
LEGENDARY AD
(US) 94mins. Legendary Series. Dir: Leonardo Corbucci. Cast: William Paul Clark, Marty Eli Schwartz, Nick Satriano, David H Venghaus Jr, Donald Sparks, Jason Roberts, Lisa C Satriano, Brian E Frankish, Mark Anthony Little, Donald Murphy. What do ‘Star Wars’, ‘The Godfather’, ‘Saving Private Ryan’, ‘Top Gun’, ‘Pirates Of The Caribbean’, ‘Interstellar’ and ‘Pulp Fiction’ all have in common? Simple: amazing assistant directors. Behind the scenes of your favourite movies. Doc Corner
MR FROG
(Netherlands) 82mins. Attraction Distribution. Dir: Anna Van Der Heide. Cast: Jeroen Spitzenberger, Yenthe Bos, Paul Kooij. The story of an ordinary schoolteacher who has an extraordinary secret: from time to time, he changes into a frog. Luckily one of his pupils loves amphibians and she will do everything to protect him. Palais D
PERICLES THE BLACK
(Italy) 106mins. Rai Com. Dir: Stefano Mordini. Cast: Riccardo Scamarcio, Marina Fois, Gigio Morra, Valentina Acca, Maria Luisa Santella, Lucia Ragni. ‘Pericles’ is a noir film, a throwback to American movies of the 1940s, with a tight rhythm and a plot
Lerins 1
14:30 THE LAST SURVIVORS
Market 13:30 ZEBRA (SHIMAUMA)
(Japan) 103mins. Toei Company. Dir: Hajime Hashimoto. Cast: Ryo Ryusei, Kenta Suga, Kyoko Hinami. Tatsuo Kuragami and his cohorts make money by running extortion
that never misses a beat. The protagonist of the story, Pericles, works for an underworld boss and during one of his nomerous assignments he makes a serious mistake which damages another powerful boss. Riviera 2 By invitation only
SAMUEL STREET
(India) 80mins. Arc Pictures. Dir: Aliakbar Campwala. Cast: Sarita Joshi, Saif Thakur, Anne Adams. ‘Samuel Street’ revolves around the characters who live on this street, which is famous for being a very conservative and middle-class neighbourhood in Mumbai. Palais J
WE CAN BE HEROES
(France) 98mins. MK2 Films. Dir: Sophie Reine. Cast: Gustave Kervern, Camille Cottin, Heloise Dugas, Fanie Zanini, Franck Gastambide.
26 Screen International at Cannes May 17, 2016
scams on married men, but his downward spiral accelerates wildly after targeting a member of the yakuza, which forces him to become a “retributionist” called Dora, and enter a whole new world of villainy. Palais B
Denis struggles to raise his boisterous daughters Janine and Mercredi on his own while holding down two jobs. Everything goes sour when Denis forgets Mercredi one too many times at the school gates. Severine, a cheerful social worker, is appointed to scrutinise the family’s daily lives. Arcades 3
ZAZY
14:00 BOX
(Romania) 94mins. Romanian Film Centre. Dir: Florin Serban. Cast: Hilda Peter, Narcis Romulus Dobrin, Claudia Ardelean, Orlando Chirvase. Rafael (19) is a young boxer at the start of his career. Cristina (34) is an actress. ‘Box’ is a movie about a simple game: a game with no rules, a game in which nobody is safe.
Palais C
MALAYSIA GOES TO CANNES
25mins. All Rights Entertainment. Dir: James Huang.
Palais I Press allowed
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THE OUTSIDER THE GREEN FAIRY
(US) 90mins. Upward Rising Development. Dir: Dan Frank. Cast: Roddy Piper, Ashley Laurence, Manu Intiraymi, Linda Blair, Richard Grieco. History of absinthe from 1730 to 1915. Gray 5
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THE LAND OF THE ENLIGHTENED
ZEBRA (SHIMAUMA)
(Belgium) 87mins. Films Boutique. Dir: Pieter-Jan
HISSEIN HABRE, A CHADIAN TRADEGY
(Chad) 80mins. Doc & Film International. Dir: Mahamat-Saleh Haroun. Habre’s arrest in Senegal, in 2013, was a decisive breakthrough in a 23-year struggle pitting the ex-tyrant against survivors. Riviera 1
Palais G
110mins. National Film Development Corporation Malaysia (Finas). A selection of works-inprogress by Malaysian film-makers.
Palais E
(Germany) 99mins. Gilles Mann Filmproduktion. Dir: MX Oberg. Cast: Ruby O Fee, Paul Boche, Petra Van De Voort, Philippe Brenninkmeyer. Zazy and her boyfriend Tomek stumble upon the truth behind a terrible accident, which they use to force the wealthy Marianna into giving them the life they have always desired.
See box, above
De Pue. Cast: Gholam Nasir, Khyrgyz Baj, Noor. A group of Kuchi children wage their own mini-wars in the daily madness of life in Afghanistan.
(Congo) 81mins. Nyotadis. Dir: Arnaud Toussaint. Cast: Arnaud Toussaint, Fanny Roger, Marcel Mankita, Lucky Jacob, Didier Lelong, Loic Brabant, Sandra Thomas, Fabien Joubert, Karim Moutaoukil, Tristan Bonnard.
(France) 117mins. Le Pacte. Dir: Christophe Barratier. Cast: FrancoisXavier Demaison. Based on a true story, in 2008 the world economy is hit by the worst crisis since 1929. A young star trader, Jerome Kerviel (nicknamed “the cash machine”), is allegedly responsible for the biggest banking loss in history, hitting France’s Societe Generale for ¤5bn. How could he gamble supposedly alone and in secret with ¤50bn? Lerins 3
THE SIMILARS
(Mexico) 90mins. Stray Dogs. Dir: Isaac Ezban. Cast: Luis Alberti, Carmen Beato, Fernando Becerril. Eight characters waiting in a remote bus station
14:55 BOBBY THE HEDGEHOG
15:00 ALPHA PILL, AN INTERACTIVE EXPERIENCE
(France) 40mins. Adastra Films. Dir: Vincent Diderot. Cast: Xavier Simonin, Ludovic Berthillot, Anais Tellenne, Vincent Haquin. Take a pill and enjoy a unique interactive cinema experience. Palais K By invitation only
15:30 2101, SCIENCE AND FICTION
(France) 85mins. C Productions Chromatiques. Dir: Patrick Chiuzzi. A sci-fi comic questions the scientists. Doc Corner
A MIGHTY TEAM
(France) 97mins. Other Angle Pictures. Dir:
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Thomas Sorriaux. Cast: Gerard Depardieu, Mehdi Sadoun, Chantal Lauby. A football star is injured and cannot play for a while. His agent sends him back to his home village to stay with his father who he hasn’t seen for 15 years, and to train the local children’s team in order to improve his terrible reputation. There he finds much more than he expected.
Attraction Distribution. Dir: Marek Benes. Pat and Mat, best neighbours for 40 years, decide to look back at their crazy life. What can be better than a home cinema showcasing a series of their everyday life stories recorded on 35mm reels? As the old-style 35mm movie projector starts to roll and lights dim, they are amazed at how exciting their life has been. They have never been short of problems, nor solutions. They constantly fix something, even when nothing is broken. Life to them seems full of adventures and misadventures. They may not be the smoothest builders in the world; however, they surely are the most optimistic.
Arcades 3
ALMOST PARIS
93mins. Odin’s Eye Entertainment. Riviera 2
THE BODYGUARD
(China) 92mins. All Rights Entertainment. Dir: Yue Song. Cast: WaiMan Chan, Collin Chou, Yue Song. Wu-Lin becomes a bodyguard. When his fellow apprentice comes to town, his loyalties are split between his ancient clan of the Iron Kick and his ward, Fei-Fei. Lerins 2
CE QU’IL NE FAUT PAS DIRE
(Canada) 85mins. Les Productions Du CerfVolant. Dir: Marquise Lepage. Cast: Annick Fontaine. Annick, 34, is a funny, strong and beautiful film director. Since her love life is a non-conventional one, her closest friends start to worry. She looks carefree and invincible until her past hurts and secrets eventually resurface. But Annick is resilient. She will astonish everybody including herself. Gray 4
FATIMA
(France) 79mins. Pyramide International. Dir: Philippe Faucon. Cast: Soria Zeroual, Zita Hanrot. Fatima lives on her own with two daughters to support: 15-year-old Souad, a teenager in revolt; and 18-year-old Nesrine, who is starting medical school. Fatima speaks French poorly and is constantly frustrated by her daily interactions with her daughters. Her pride and joy, they are also a source of worry. To ensure
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Palais H
Market 15:30 HAPPY TIMES WILL COME SOON
(Italy) 102mins. The Match Factory. Dir: Alessandro Comodin. Cast: Sabrina Seyvecou, Erikas Sizonovas, Luca Bernardi, Marco Giordana, Carlo Rigoni, Paolo Viano,
Marinella Cichello. A dense forest becomes a mysterious backdrop for danger and legend over the years: two men on the run for survival, a series of wolf attacks and a young woman mystified by a peculiar hole in the ground. Olympia 7
unthinkable. Because she is still a minor, the judge allows her to return home under the surveillance of her parents and special educators. As Melanie is gradually indoctrinated, Sonia follows the opposite path, the return path. Will she be able to leave the spiral and rebuild her life? Arcades 1
the best possible future for them, she works odd hours as a cleaning woman. One day, she suffers a fall on the stairs. On leave, Fatima begins to write to her daughters in Arabic about the things she has never been able to express in French. Palais J
FRAGMENTS OF LOVE
(Puerto Rico) 100mins. Wide. Dir: Fernando Vallejo. Cast: Angelica Blandon, Jose Angel Bichir, Alfredo De Quesada. The main perversion of love is wanting to know everything. Palais B
HAPPY TIMES WILL COME SOON See box, above
HEAVEN WILL WAIT
(France) 105mins. Gaumont. Dir: MarieCastille Mention-Schaar. Cast: Noemie Merlant,
Naomi Amarger, Ariane Arscaride, Clotilde Courau, Sandrine Bonnaire. How French minors, teenagers from all sociocultural backgrounds, can be brainwashed to the point of attempting to leave for Syria and what are the challenges facing those who try to help to turn them around before it’s too late. Melanie is 16 years old. She ponders the meaning of life and the state of the world. She wants to be a doctor. She lives in Creteil, a suburb of Paris, with her mother, who is raising her on her own. Like her friends, Melanie is constantly “connected” via social networks. Spotted by recruiters, she falls in love with one of them before converting and growing increasingly radical, one by one cutting off ties with her former life. Sonia is 17. She is caught trying to leave for Syria and almost commits the
HOUSTON, WE HAVE A PROBLEM!
(Slovenia) 88mins. Slovenian Film Centre. Dir: Ziga Virc. This intriguing docudrama explores the myth of the secret multibillion-dollar deal behind America’s purchase of Yugoslavia’s clandestine space programme in the early 1960s. Palais D
IMAGE BEARERS
(US) 62mins. Arc Entertainment. Dir: Stephen K Bannon. Cast: Phil Robertson. A historical analysis of religion and devotion to God since ancient Greek times, and the inevitable slide into totalitarianism when societies shun God for secular vices. Olympia 9
MOSTLY SUNNY
ROAD TO ISTANBUL
(Canada) 90mins. Mongrel International. Dir: Dilip Mehta. Growing up in small-town Sarnia as the daughter of strict Sikh parents, no one anticipated Sunny Leone’s remarkable transformation into an adult film star and ‘Penthouse’ cover girl — not even Sunny herself. More astonishing still, she has reinvented herself in India as a mainstream reality TV star and Bollywood actress beloved by millions of men and women, despite widespread awareness of her spicy past.
(Algeria) 98mins. Elle Driver. Dir: Rachid Bouchareb. Cast: Astrid Whettnall, Pauline Burlet. When the police inform Elizabeth that her daughter has left to join the Islamic State, her life is thrown into turmoil. Alone in her struggle, she decides to set off for Syria to look for her daughter and convince her to return home.
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OFFICIAL SELECTION
(France) 89mins. Les Films Elementaires. Dir: Jacques Richard. Cast: Bernard Menez, JeanClaude Dreyfus, Jackie Berroyer, Bruno Putzulu, Margot Valle, Jeanne Goupil, Geraldine Danon. Ulysse, a young director, hopes to seduce Clotilde by inviting the rising actress to the island of La Reunion’s The Love Film Festival. Unfortunately, he has missed the submission deadline and his film will not be considered unless he can convince the festival organisers to show it.
MIRAGE OF LOVE
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99mins. Atlas International Film.
PAT & MAT
Gray 2
(Czech Republic) 83mins.
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SOY NERO
(Germany) 114mins. The Match Factory. Dir: Rafi Pitts. Cast: Johnny Ortiz, Rory Cochrane, Aml Ameen, Darrell Britt-Gibson. Nero, a 19-year-old Mexican, dreams of emigrating to the US. He joins the US Army to get his Green Card and is shipped out to fight in the Middle East. Fighting for nationality, he gets lost in a violent maze. Lerins 4
16:00 BITTER HARVEST
(Canada) 102mins. Spotlight Pictures. Dir: George Mendeluk. Cast: Max Irons, Samantha Barks, Barry Pepper, Terence Stamp. Yuri is a young Ukrainian living a contented life in his country village of Smila. Unlike his warrior »
May 17, 2016 Screen International at Cannes 27
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father Yaroslav and notorious grandfather Ivan, Yuri is a talented artist, blissfully in love with his childhood sweetheart Natalka — unware of the burgeoning Soviet Union and political dangers facing the people of Ukraine.
change her corporate lifestyle. The fatherdaughter challenge reaches absurd proportions until Ines begins to see that her eccentric father deserves a place in her life. Olympia 5
16:55
Gray 1
BOBBY THE HEDGEHOG
FILM 265
60mins. LevelK.
25mins. All Rights Entertainment. Dir: James Huang.
Palais I
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17:30
GOOD LUCK SAM
(France) 90mins. Films Distribution. Dir: Farid Bentoumi. Cast: Sami Bouajila, Chiara Mastroianni, Franck Gastambide. Samir has given much of his time and money developing ski equipment for a Swedish Olympic athlete. When the contract fails, his business partner and closest friend plans to save their company by sending Samir to represent Algeria at the Winter Olympics. Already broke, and expecting his second child, Samir trains to become the first Algerian cross-country male athlete to participate in the winter games. Samir, the eldest son of an Algerian emigrant, must first go back to his father’s homeland in order to achieve this goal. Riviera 1
GUADALAJARA GOES TO CANNES
110mins. Festival Internacional De Cine En Guadalajara. A selection of worksin-progress by Latin American film-makers. Palais K Press allowed
KINGS’ SHIFT
(Latvia) 103mins. Reel Suspects. Dir: Ignas Miskinis. Cast: Vainius Sodeika, Aiste Dirziute, Paulius Ignatavicius, Dainius Gavenonis, Vidas Petkevicius, Juozas Rapalis. A rookie policeman is left alone in a private clinic to guard a comatose Second World War war crimes suspect. Lack of sleep, loneliness, hunger and the persistence to serve his duty turn the young man into a ticking time-bomb
THE BIG EVERYTHING
Market 17:30 THE COMPLEXITY OF HAPPINESS
(Italy) 115mins. Rai Com. Dir: Gianni Zanasi. Cast: Valerio Mastandrea, Hadas Yaron. Enrico is the only one capable of doing the job
he does: he approaches executives who are completely incompetent and convinces them to leave. But it will be more difficult to make him confront what he has always been avoiding: his own life.
An expert in the paranormal, Emily Strand takes her team on their last ghost hunt to explain the supernatural. She finds her team terrorised in one of America’s most haunted places. Escaping from the supernatural is their only chance to survive.
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Gray 3
THE RED TURTLE
at the very wrong time. Gray 5
ON THE OTHER SIDE
(Croatia) 85mins. Cercamon. Dir: Zrinko Ogresta. Cast: Ksenija Marinkovic, Lazar Ristovski, Tihana Lazovic. Vesna is a middle-aged visting nurse in Zagreb. She goes about her quiet daily life: babysitting her son, helping her daughter to prepare for her wedding. Out of the blue, she gets a call from her husband Zarko, who left his family on the eve of the war to fight for “the other side”. His reappearance sends her carefully reconstructed life in a tailspin, endangering her new identity. Palais E
driver and poet. A wry comedy that chronicles the challenges of work and love, and observes the quiet triumphs and defeats of daily life, and the poetry evident in its smallest details. Arcades 2
RED BILLABONG
(Australia) Arclight Films. Dir: Luke Sparke. Cast: Jessica Green, Tim Pocock. In the Australian Outback, two brothers discover old secrets and family lies. As their friends start to go missing they fear they are being stalked by someone or something from their worst nightmares. But is it just a story? A legend? A hoax? Or is it real? Lerins 1
PATERSON
(US) 100mins. K5 Media Group. Dir: Jim Jarmusch. Cast: Adam Driver, Golshifteh Farahani. Set in the present day in Paterson, New Jersey, this is a tale about a bus
28 Screen International at Cannes May 17, 2016
THE LINDA VISTA PROJECT
(US) 82mins. XVIII Entertainment. Dir: John Rogers. Cast: Whitney Anderson, Paul Dietz, Douglas Tait, Kara Luiz, Christopher Allan Nelson.
(France) 80mins. Wild Bunch. Dir: Michael Dudok De Wit, Pascale Ferran. A man marooned on a desert island tries desperately to escape, until one day he encounters a strange turtle that will change his life. Olympia 2 By invitation only
THE SEA OF SEIRO: DETECTIVE MITARAI’S CASEBOOK
(Japan) 124mins. Toei Company. Dir: Seiji Izumi. Cast: Hiroshi Tamaki, Alice Hirose. Kiyoshi Mitari, a brain scientist, becomes interested in six unidentified bodies washed ashore on a small island. Mitarai heads to the island and tries to figure out the mystery of the dead and related murders. Palais G
THE TOGETHER PROJECT
(France) 83mins. Le Pacte. Dir: Solveig Anspach. Cast: Florence Loiret Caille, Samir Guesmi.
Samir, a tall, lanky, 40-something crane operator from Montreuil, on the outskirts of Paris, falls head over heels in love with Agathe, a feisty young woman he sees in a cafe. He discovers she is a swimming instructor at the local public pool and, for lack of a better plan, he decides to enlist as her student although he can swim perfectly. But his lie only lasts for three lessons and Agathe hates liars. The truth surfaces. Agathe is furious. The end? Not quite. Lerins 3
THE WORLD IS MINE
(Romania) 104mins. Romanian Film Centre. Dir: Nicolae Constantin Tanase. Cast: Ana Maria Guran, Ana Vatamanu. Sixteen-year-old Larisa lives in a small town by the sea. Her relationship with her mother, who struggles with a lack of finances, is far from ideal, and in addition to that, the girl has to care for her helpless grandmother pretty much by herself.
(France) 118mins. Media Luna New Films. Dir: Nicolas Bazz. Cast: Jauris Casanova, Helene Seuzaret, Benjamin Boyer, Pierre-Alain De Garrigues, Laure Gouget. An ex-convict flies four scientists to a black hole, 50 light years away from Earth. An accident propels them 10,000 light years away from their home, their lives and their culture. Riviera 2
THE COMPLEXITY OF HAPPINESS See box left
DIARY OF A FATMAN
(Australia) 95mins. Majestic Film. Dir: Steve Ravic. Cast: Steven Haar, Tracey Birdsall, Maddie Crea, Ej De La Pena, Lloyd Kaufman, Geraldine Diana. Meet Berd ‘The Nerd’ in a story of a man with no story to tell… until he falls asleep that is. Palais H
LAURENT AND SAFI
(France) 115mins. B-Mol Productions. Dir: Anton Vassil. Cast: Tatiana Rojo, Nico Rogner, Michel Gohou, Xavier Jozelon, Habib Dembele, Teeyah Teeyah, Guimba Guimba, M Wayne, Innocent Versace, Fantani Toure.
Palais C
Arcades 3
TONI ERDMANN
LESLIE HOWARD: THE MAN WHO DIDN’T GIVE A DAMN
(Germany) 162mins. The Match Factory. Dir: Maren Ade. Cast: Sandra Huller, Peter Simonischek. Practical joker Winfried disguises himself as flashy “Toni Erdmann” to get busy Ines’ attention and
(UK) 84mins. Galloping Films. Dir: Thomas Hamilton. Cast: Leslie Howard, Isabella Rossellini, Vivien Leigh, Clark Gable. This is an intimate and compelling look at the
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life and career of one of Hollywood’s most unique stars.
CLEAN HANDS
(Netherlands) 108mins. Wide. Dir: Tjebbo Penning. Cast: Jeroen Van Koningsbrugge, Thekla Reuten, Teun Kuilboer, Bente Fokkens, Nino Den Brave, Angela Schijf. A mother on the run. Two children to protect. A husband to escape from.
Gray 2
RINGAN
(India) 106mins. Maharashtra Film, Stage & Cultural Development Corporation. Dir: Makarand Mane. Cast: Shashank Shende, Saahil Joshi, Suhas Sirsat, Kalyanee Mulay, Umesh Jagtap, Ketan Pawar, Abhay Mahajan, Vijay Salve, Shantanu Gangane, Shyam Savaji. Ringan is a story about relationship between father and son. It is about what they have to face and how they deal with their individual problems and redeem themselves. It is a heart-wrenching tale that depicts the harsh reality confronting the farmers and their families. Gray 4
THE SLEEPER BY THE RIVER
(France) 110mins. Quizas. Dir: Manuel Sanchez. Cast: Dominique Pinon, Marina Tome, Delphine Depardieu, Pascal Turmo. In a village by the Meuse river, located near the French-Belgian border, a factory storekeeper named Basile Matrin leads a dreary life with his wife, Rose. The young Maryse Duval, who has just come back from Paris, has abandoned her dreams of becoming an actress. She will unwittingly turn their life upside down. Basile’s great friend and neighbour, who is a reporter for a local newspaper ‘Le Quotidien de la Meuse’, witnesses the comical drama that is unfolding on the street outside his house, and will unwittingly be drawn into the proceedings. Palais D
TRA LE ONDE NEL CIELO
(Italy) 79mins. Progettarte. Dir: Francesco Zarzana. Cast: Marco Morandi, Laura Efrikian, Claudia Campagnola, Lucia Fossi, Elena Polic Greco, Lucia Bendia. The story about the
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Palais C
ENOC THE RESPLENDENT STARGATE
(Spain) 71mins. Ers. Dir: Marin Martha. Cast: Marin Martha. Olympia 2
MY NEIGHBOUR MARTIKA
Market 18:00 PORT OF CALL
(Hong Kong/China) 98mins. All Rights Entertainment. Dir: Philip Yung. Cast: Aaron Kowk, Maggie Shiu, Patrick Tam, Jessie Li, Michael Ning. Jiamei, 16, seeks independence by working as an escort. forgotten tragedy of Bremen 1966 when the young swimmers in the Italian national team lost their lives. Doc Corner
THE TRAP (LA TRAMPA)
(Ecuador) 113mins. Eclipse ProduccionesRoseland SA. Dir: Carlos Alberto Poe. Cast: Juan Esteban Villacis, Cristopher Du Pree Moore, Angelica Vargas, Maria Isabel Rodriguez, Jaime Bonelli. Your career, your life can be destroyed. Adversity can be the energy that drives you to grow as a person, as a professional. Enemies with power might want what you’ve got. Passion is a very powerful weapon, it can save you. This is a story that could happen to you. Palais F
TRUE CONNECTION (SHORT VERSION)
(Argentina) Blood Window. Dir: Jose Cicala, Nicolas Cuno. Cast:
Ting Tsz-chung, 24, is a lonely outsider working as a meat delivery man. Detective Chong pieces their lives together when Jiamei is found dead and dismembered and Ting is the prime suspect. His defence: she asked me to do it. A real-life crime thriller. Lerins 1
Guillermo Francella, Nicolas Francella. Olympia 6
17:31 BENAVIDEZ’S CASE
(Argentina) 85mins. Blood Window. Dir: Laura Casabe. Benavides is a frustrated art teacher. He argues with his wife and seeks refuge at his psychiatrist’s house, which will change his life and destiny forever. Olympia 6
17:45 FACK JU GOEHTE 2
(Germany) 115mins. Picture Tree International. Dir: Bora Dagtekin. Cast: Elyas M’Barek, Karoline Herfurth, Katja Riemann, Jella Haase. Everyone loves Zeki Muller at the Goethe Comprehensive School, but he’s beginning to lose enthusiasm for his accidental vocation: waking up early,
delinquent students and endless paperwork. And now, overly ambitious principal Gerster has set her sights on stealing the Thailand School Partnership away from the elite Schiller School. Muller and Schnabelstedt are condemned to accompany the class on a trip to a remote Thai village. Chantal, Zeynep, Danger and co are in prime form during their first trip abroad, rampantly displaying their full spectrum of social incompetence and cultural ignorance. Lerins 4
18:00 A TOUCH OF WIND
(Russia) 77mins. KamerTon-Film-Russia. Dir: Olga Veremeeva, Elena Demidova. Cast: Julia Aug. A Moscow actress comes to faraway Buryatia to find the man she once loved. She is terminally ill and Buryatia gives her a second chance. She does not believe in miracles but a miracle happens. Olympia 4
AGNUS DEI
(France) 115mins. Films Distribution. Dir: Anne Fontaine. Cast: Lou De Laage, Agata Buzek, Agata Kulesza, Vincent Macaigne. Poland, 1945. Mathilde, a young French Red Cross doctor, is on a mission to help the war survivors.
When a nun seeks her help, she is brought to a convent where several pregnant sisters are hiding, unable to concile their faith with their pregnancy. Mathilde becomes their only hope.
Palais K
PATTAYA
Riviera 1
AYNABAJI
(Bangladesh) 95mins. Content Matters.. Dir: Amitabh Reza Chowdhury. Cast: Chanchal Chowdhury. A dark comedy about an obsessive actor who gets paid handsomely to serve jail time for the rich and famous of Dhaka. It’s a great gig until he falls for the girl of his dreams. Gray 3
BILAL
(UAE) 105mins. Ambi Distribution. Dir: Khurram Alavi, Ayman Jamal. Cast: Ian McShane, Adewale Akinnuoye-Agbaje, China McClain, Thomas Nicholas, Michael Gross. A thousand years ago, one boy with a dream of becoming a great warrior was abducted with his sister and taken to a land far away from home. Thrown into a world where greed and injustice rule all, Bilal finds the courage to raise his voice. Lerins 3
BRING THE SUN HOME
52mins. Galloping Films. Gray 1
(Australia) 118mins. The Proletariat. Dir: Laszlo Mohacsi. Cast: Emma Bellamy, Jessica Racz. The beginning of the end of a friendship unravels between polar opposite neighbours — a romantic idealist and a povertystricken realist.
(France) 97mins. Gaumont. Dir: Franck Gastambide. Cast: Franck Gastambide, Gad Elmaleh, Malik Bentalha, Ramzy Bedia. Francky and Krimo dream about leaving their drab neighbourhood for the notorious Thai beach resort of Pattaya. To get there cheaply, the two friends come up with the mad idea of signing up for the neighbourhood dwarf in the World Dwarf Thai Boxing Championship. But what is meant to be a dream vacation is about to become the craziest, most perilous adventure of their lives. Arcades 2
PORT OF CALL See box, above
ROMAN
(Argentina) 72mins. Superamor Cine. Dir: Eduardo Meneghelli. Cast: Gabi Peralta, Carlos Portaluppi, Nazareno Casero, Horacio Roca, Arnaldo Andre, Aylin Prandi. Roman is a police officer who believes in goodness and the beauty of little things. He manages to live »
May 17, 2016 Screen International at Cannes 29
ScreeningS
October 1940 this would all change after the invasion of Greece by Axis forces. Initially occupied by Italy, the Jewish community remained safe but after Mussolini fell from power the Nazis took control of the town, dooming the community that had existed since the times of the Roman Empire. The film uses never-before-seen archival footage, vibrantly bringing to life just one of the many communities that had existed in Greece before the end of the Second World War. Palais H
20:30 DRIVEN TO SUCCEED
Market 22:30 WOLF AND SHEEP
(Afghanistan) 86mins. Alpha Violet. Dir: Shahrbanoo Sadat. In rural Afghanistan, people are storytellers who make up tales of mystery and imagination to explain the world in which they live. The shepherd children own the mountains and, although no adults are around, they know the rules; they know boys and girls are not allowed to be together. The boys practise with their slings
apart from a chaotic and corrupted world. But when his well-organised universe collapses, he will have to decide how to react. Palais G
STAYING VERTICAL
(France) 100mins. Wild Bunch. Dir: Alain Guiraudie. Cast: Damien Bonnard, India Hair, Raphael Thierry, Laure Calamy. Film-maker Leo is in the south of France. During a scouting excursion he is seduced by Marie, a free-spirited and dynamic shepherdess. Nine months later she gives birth to their child. Suffering from postnatal depression and with no faith in Leo, who comes and goes without warning, Marie abandons both of
to fight wolves. The girls smoke secretly and play at getting married, dreaming of finding a husband soon. They gossip about Sediqa; she’s 11 years old and an outsider. The girls think she is cursed. Qodrat, also 11, becomes the subject of gossip when his mother remarries an old man with two wives. Qodrat roams alone in the most isolated parts of the mountains, where he meets Sediqa and they become friends. Arcades 1
them. Leo finds himself alone with a baby. It is not easy but deep down he loves it. Through a series of unexpected and unusual encounters, struggling to find inspiration for his next film, Leo will do whatever it takes to stay standing. Olympia 8 Press allowed
SUBMARINE PRIVATE SCREENING
Submarine Entertainment. Gray 5 By invitation only
SWEET LITTLE LIES IN DOWNTOWN
(Romania) 155mins. Romanian Film Centre. Dir: Iura Luncasu. Cast: George Pistereanu. Five young actors prepare a show in a theatre in the Old Town. Doru, Dora,
30 Screen International at Cannes May 17, 2016
Lucy, Alecu and Freddie make a harmonious love pentagon.
an unforgettable Christmas full of surprises, pain and laughs.
Palais E
Lerins 4
TEEN STAR ACADEMY
THE FINAL BARRIER
(UK) 94mins. Movie On Pictures & Entertainment. Dir: Cristian Scardigno. Cast: John Savage, Blanca Blanco, Bret Roberts. Becoming a ‘‘star” is often the dream of many kids and young guys, or the fulfillment of the parent’s “missed dreams”. So here here we are, in a very special School called “Teen Star Academy” where dreams come true.
(Austria, Bosnia and Herzegovina) Artdeluxe. Dir: Jasmin Durakovic. A film-maker from Austria experiences in a refugee camp in Serbia first hand the distress, anxiety but also hope of a group of refugees from Syria and their longing for a better life in Europe.
Olympia 1
(France) 95mins. Cite Films. Dir: Rachid Djaidani. Cast: Gerard Depardieu, Sadek, Louise Grinberg. Far’Hook is a 20-year-old rapper. Following a violent dispute with a rival, he’s forced to leave Paris for a while. His producer, Bilal, suggests that Far’Hook acts as driver for Bilal’s father, Serge, on a tour of French ports, following in the footsteps of the classic painter Joseph Vernet. Despite the age gap and culture clash, an unlikely friendship forms between this talented rapper and the bricklayer from the north of France during a road trip that concludes in Marseille for a final concert, one of reconciliation.
THE UNNAMED
(Bangladesh) 92mins. Montmartre Motion Pictures. Dir: Tauquir Ahmed. Cast: Mosharoff Karim, Fazlur Rahman Babu, Shahiduzzaman Selim, Abul Hayat. Palais I Press allowed
20:00 4 KINGS
(Germany) 99mins. Global Screen. Dir: Theresa Von Eltz. Cast: Jannis Niewohner, Paula Beer, Jella Haase, Moritz Leu. Alex, Lara, Fedja and Timo, four very different teens, have to spend Christmas in a psychiatric clinic for adolescents. Locked up with each other, their own quirks and an unconventional psychiatrist, they experience
Palais F
FRENCH TOUR (TOUR DE FRANCE)
Palais J
THE PARK
(France) 71mins. Acid. Dir: Damien Manivel. Cast: Naomie Vogt-Roby, Maxime Bachellerie, Sessouma Sobere. Summer time in a park. A teenage boy and girl discover each other, fall in love and separate. A dark night begins. Arcades 1
THERAPY
(France) 96mins. Euroobscura. Dir: Nathan Ambrosioni. Cast: Shelley Ward, Vanessa Azzopardi, Luna Miti, Nathalie Couturier, Remy Jobert. Jane and Simon are two young police officers leading a routine investigation following the discovery of hidden video equipment by a night watchman in an abandoned house. Gray 5
TREASURES
(US) 96mins. Vision Entertainment. Dir: Lawrence Russo. This deeply moving documentary illuminates the lives of a Sephardic community in Greece whose story speaks for all people who have been displaced and wronged by war and discrimination. The story is set in the beautiful and idyllic city of Kastoria where Jews and Christians lived in harmony for more than two millennia. In
(US) 95mins. Dire Wit Films. Dir: Mark Colegrove. Cast: Chris Kamsch, Kathy Carson, Jamaal Jordan, Rick Miller, Prince Tawro. In this driving school, the only thing more dangerous than the learning curves are the instructors. Arcades 2
ODD JOB
(France) 100mins. Gaumont. Dir: Pascal Chaumeil. Cast: Michel Blanc, Romain Duris, Alice Belaidi, Gustave Kervern. Jacques lives in a small town that has been going downhill ever since the last crisis. When the factory where he works closes, it is the beginning of the end for him: his girlfriend Cathie leaves him and he finds himself struggling while waiting for better days that may never come. One day, Andre Gardot, a local bookmaker whom Jacques knows because he has participated in a few of his illegal poker games, offers him a job: to take care of the murder of his wife for 20,000 euros. After hesitating briefly, Jacques accepts. Palais K
22:30 THE PARK
(France) 71mins. Acid. Dir: Damien Manivel. Cast: Naomie Vogt-Roby, Maxime Bachellerie, Sessouma Sobere. Arcades 2
WOLF AND SHEEP See box, above
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OPENING MAY 12TH 2016 CANNES FILM FESTIVAL
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Jury Grid
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i, daniel blaKe (UK) Ken Loach
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anTon dolin Afisha, Russia
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Good
TiM robey and robbie collin The Daily Telegraph, UK
STaying verTical (Fr) Alain Guiraudie
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nicK jaMeS Sight & Sound, UK
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juSTin chang Los Angeles Times, US
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STePhanie zachareK Time, US
Kong riThdee The Bangkok Post, Thailand
★ ★★
jan Schulz-ojala Der Tagesspiegel, Germany
Fabio FerzeTTi Il Messaggero, Italy
Sieranevada (Rom-Fr) Cristi Puiu
The Screen jury aT canneS
julien geSTer and didier Peron Libération, France
Michel ciMenT Positif, France Culture, France
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Screen office Majestic Barriere, 1st floor, Suites Joy and Alexandre, 10 Boulevard De La Croisette, 06400 Cannes E-mail: firstname.lastname@ screendaily.com (unless stated) editorial +33 4 9706 8458 Editor Matt Mueller US editor Jeremy Kay (jeremykay67@gmail. com) Managing editor and news editor Michael Rosser Reviews editor and chief film critic Fionnuala Halligan (finn.halligan@ screendaily.com) Group head of production and art Mark Mowbray Head of news and chief reporter Andreas Wiseman Reporters Melanie Goodfellow (melanie. goodfellow@btinternet.com), Tom Grater, Geoffrey Macnab (geoffrey@ macnab.demon.co.uk), Liz Shackleton (lizshackleton@gmail.com)
The handMaiden (S Kor) Park Chan-wook
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aMerican honey (UK-US) Andrea Arnold
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advertising and publishing
loving (US-UK) Jeff Nichols
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Senior sales manager Scott Benfold +44 7765 257 260
FroM The land oF The Moon (Fr) Nicole Garcia
aquariuS (Bra-Fr) Kleber Mendonca Filho
Sonia stars in the Brazilian director’s Competition the tale★★ of a 65-year-old ★★Braga★★ ★★ ★★ ★★ ★★ debut, ★★ ★★ widow ★★who ponders ★★ the past engages in a war of★★ attrition with want to throw of her home. ★★as she★★ ★★ ★★developers ★★ who★★ ★★ her out ★★ ★★ ★★
julieTa (Sp) Pedro Almodovar
A★★ story of loss and grief adapted★★ from three short stories writer Munro, following woman (played ★★ ★★ ★★ ★★ by Canadian ★★ ★★ Alice★★ ★★ a★★ at★★ different ★★ ages by Adriana verge of ★★ being overwhelmed by her mysterious ★★ Ugarte ★★and Emma ★★ Suarez) ★★on the★★ ★★ ★★ ★★ past.
PerSonal ShoPPer (Fr) Olivier Assayas
The French ★★ director reteams Kristen★★ Stewart, who Sils Maria★★ in 2014, for his fourth ★★ ★★ with ★★ ★★also starred ★★ in Clouds ★★ Of ★★ ★★ appearance in Competition this ghost story set★★ in Paris’s★★ fashion underworld. ★★ ★★ ★★ with★★ ★★ ★★ ★★ ★★ ★★
Ma’ roSa (Phil) Brillante Mendoza
Filipino plight of those on the margins his fifth film ★★ auteur ★★Mendoza ★★continues ★★to highlight ★★ the ★★ ★★ living★★ ★★ of society ★★ with ★★ to★★ screen at★★ Cannes, the a poor mother-of-four in Manila who sells drugs on the side★★ to make ends ★★tale of★★ ★★ ★★ ★★ ★★ ★★ ★★ meet.
The unKnown girl (Bel-Fr) Jean-Pierre and Luc Dardenne
The tenth feature the Dardenne have been Competition the Palme ★★ ★★ from ★★ ★★ brothers, ★★ who★★ ★★ ★★ fixtures ★★since Rosetta ★★ won ★★ d’Or in 1999,★★ stars Adele as a doctor whose ★★ life is changed death of★★ a young girl practice. ★★ ★★Haenel★★ ★★ ★★ by the ★★ ★★near her ★★
graduaTion (Rom-Fr) Cristian Mungiu
The winner ★★ of the 2007 Palme d’Or Weeks & 2★★ Days returns family drama ★★ ★★ ★★for 4 Months, ★★ 3★★ ★★with a★★ ★★ focusing ★★on a small-town doctor and his psychology is assaulted ★★ ★★ ★★ ★★ student ★★ daughter, ★★ who★★ ★★just before ★★ an important ★★ exam. ★★
iT’S only The end oF The world (Can-Fr) Xavier Dolan
The 27-year-old with his third about a★★ terminally ill writer★★ returning to ★★ ★★director ★★is back★★ ★★Competition ★★ entry, ★★a drama ★★ ★★ his family after Cotillard,★★ Léa Seydoux, Cassel star. ★★ ★★a 12-year ★★absence. ★★Marion★★ ★★Gaspard ★★Ulliel and ★★Vincent ★★ ★★
The laST Face (US) Sean Penn
The director★★ of an international aid agency (Charlize Theron)★★ falls for a ★★ relief aid doctor ★★ ★★ ★★ ★★ ★★ ★★ (Javier ★★Bardem) ★★in war-torn Liberia relationship strain as a★★ result of ★★ their differing on how to★★ solve the★★ crisis. ★★ but finds ★★ their★★ ★★under ★★ ★★views★★
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Fanning★★ stars as a★★ teenage ★★ ingenue trying Jena Malone ★★ ★★ to crack ★★Los Angeles’ ★★ cutthroat ★★ modelling ★★ scene, ★★ while★★ The neon deMon (Fr-US-Den) Elle Nicolas Winding Refn plays exploration of the city’s obsession with beauty. ★★the make-up ★★ artist ★★who takes ★★her under ★★ her wing, ★★in an ★★ ★★ ★★vicious ★★ ★★
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elle (Fr-Ger-Bel) Paul Verhoeven
Verhoeven’s psychological Competition since Basic Instinct★★ in 1992, sees Huppert star ★★ ★★ thriller, ★★his first★★ ★★entry★★ ★★ ★★Isabelle ★★ as★★ a videogame company who is attacked intruder★★ at her home down the assailant. ★★boss ★★ ★★ by an ★★ ★★and vows ★★to track ★★ ★★
The SaleSMan (Iran-Fr) Asghar Farhadi
Forced their apartment building, Emad and Rana move ★★ out of ★★ ★★ due ★★to dangerous ★★ works ★★on a neighbouring ★★ ★★ ★★ ★★ ★★ into a new flat in the centre previous★★ tenant will★★ dramatically the young ★★ ★★ of Tehran. ★★ An incident ★★ linked ★★to the★★ ★★change ★★ ★★couple’s life.
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32 Screen International at Cannes May 17, 2016
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