Best of Fests
The Ladino Ladies’ Club Boris Missirkov, Georgi Bogdanov
Sephardic Jews had lived in Spain since time immemorial, but in 1492 they were given the choice of either converting to Christianity or leaving the country. Some of them went to Bulgaria, and after the founding of the state of Israel in 1948, nearly all of their 45,000 descendants emigrated to their promised land. The Ladino Ladies’ Club is about a gathering of nine Bulgarian Sephardic Jews. They are probably the only people in Bulgaria still able to speak the official Sephardic Jewish language of Ladino, a form of Spanish that is peppered with Hebrew vocabulary. The film underlines the importance of keeping memories and traditions alive. These elderly women—who include a professor of biochemistry, an opera singer and a microbiologist—tell each other stories from their youth and discuss their shared history. The subjects they cover include their religious background, the Second World War and the inferior status of daughters with respect to sons. The women also sing Sephardic songs, discuss the Ladino aria in Verdi’s La Traviata and share their recipe for perfect marzipan.
Bulgaria, USA, 2015 DCP, color, 26 min Director: Boris Missirkov, Georgi Bogdanov Cinematography: Boris Missirkov, Georgi Bogdanov Screenplay: Boris Missirkov, Georgi Bogdanov Editing: Georgi Bogdanov, Boris Missirkov Sound Design: Momchil Bozhkov Music: Ivaylo Milenkov Narration: Edward Serotta Narrator: Edward Serotta Production: Martichka Bozhilova for Agitprop Executive Production: Edward Serotta for Centropa Screening Copy: Agitprop
Boris Missirkov & Georgi Bogdanov:
’94 Forever (2008) I Am a Bulgarian (2009)
Lampedusa in Winter Jakob Brossmann
A radio distress call from a refugee boat: the passengers haven’t eaten for three days and are exhausted. It’s winter on Lampedusa. The tourists have all gone home and it’s cold on the windy Italian island, which lies some 110 kilometers (68 miles) from the coast of North Africa. There’s a feeling of unease on the small island, which is the first port of call for African migrants looking to reach Europe. Not only are they protesting against the poor treatment they receive, but the local fishing community is also restless. The cargo capacity of the new ferry—the only way onto and off of the island for its 5,000 inhabitants—isn’t sufficient to transport their catches to the mainland. Angry, the fishermen block the arrival of the boat. Stocks on the island are slowly running low, and store shelves are frightenly bare. There’s division among the inhabitants of the island, and the garbage is piling up—as are the leaky, abandoned immigrant boats in the harbor. In the meantime, a lawyer from Palermo is trying to arrange a place of burial for those who have died, and the mayor is trying to keep everyone calm. Eventually, the fishermen get back to work and the ferry is allowed to dock again. The island gets back to business as usual—until the next call to the coastguard: once again, an overloaded boat is bobbing on the waves.
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Austria, Switzerland, Italy, 2015 DCP, color, 93 min Director: Jakob Brossmann Cinematography: Serafin Spitzer, Chris Flatzek Editing: Nela Märki Sound: Axel Traun, Jakob Brossmann Sound Design: Max Liebich Production: Jakob Brossmann for Finali Film & Wortschatz Produktion Co-Production: Miramontefilm World Sales: Taskovski Films Screening Copy: Finali Film & Wortschatz Produktion
Jakob Brossmann: Call Back (2010) A Day’s Work (2011)
Awards: Boccalino d’Oro Independent Critics’ Award Locarno Film Festival