40th Seattle International Film Festival (2014)

Helping Build a World-Class Festival

At the world premiere of Brave Heart at the 1994 Seattle International Film Festival, Brad Brotherton first caught the SIFF bug. His father Biff, a SIFF supporter and former owner of Brotherton Cadillac Buick GMC, introduced him to the world-class festival. When Brad acquired the family business in 2005, the relationahip was renewed and they’ve enjoyed a fantastic partnership since. In addition to bringing headlining titles such as Battle in Seattle and The Notebook, Brotherton has played a key role in adding Renton premiers and screenings to the festival. Brotherton Cadillac Buick GMC is very proud of their relationship with SIFF and what SIFF does for the community. Happy 40th!

Photos courtesy of SIFF

TRIUMPH BAR

GREETINGS

FROM SIFF’S ARTISTIC DIRECTOR

Seattle is a city of film lovers. The first Seattle International Film Festival was organized to extend cinematic possibilities throughout our great community. What was discovered that first year was an audience starving for films that offered more than the usual and the conventional. That initial, overwhelmingly positive response has never wavered, with the Festival growing beyond all expectations to become the largest film event of its kind in the nation.

Where else can you meet tomorrow’s filmmakers and see their work on the big screen? Where else can you discover films that you might have never heard of or might never have the opportunity to see again? Where else can you meet other interesting cinephiles? Where else can you laugh collectively with 500 of your best friends? Where else can you see the most gifted talent and filmmakers talking about their craft?

Four decades later, we’ve come full circle for our 40th year with the Seattle International Film Festival. When the 25 days are over, you can continue to experience films 365 days a year at SIFF Cinema Uptown, SIFF Film Center, and again this fall at the Egyptian Theatre.

For our anniversary, I want to thank you—the audience. Thank you for providing the encouragement to show films that engage, enlighten, and make our community more alive. Without you to share the passion of filmmakers, we would not have had the courage to grow and maintain our position as one of the best places to experience the possibilities of film, from our own backyard to all points of the world.

Carl Spence, SIFF Artistic & Co-Director

FROM SIFF’S MANAGING DIRECTOR

I am so excited to be part of SIFF’s 40th year celebration. What an incredible milestone we have reached. As I move into my second Festival as Managing Director, I am awed by the passion I’ve witnessed over this last year, from the hardest-working and most dedicated staff to our patrons, who keep coming back to experience our array of exceptional and often unexpected offerings. Together our Seattle audience is more than 150,000 strong. At this year’s Festival we’ll offer up visual treats from more than 80 countries. Then there’s the passion I’ve seen from all of our remarkable Seattle filmmakers, and from so many who visit us from around the globe. They are committed and unfaltering in bringing us together to have experiences that we may never again have in our lives.

This passion has been the foundation of the growth of a very unique community within the Seattle landscape. We all have stories to tell, but those stories are often shared only within a small group of friends. We are Seattleites from many different age groups, cultures, and backgrounds, uniting to share the joy of film and its far-reaching impact. SIFF allows us to immerse ourselves in stories, which we would never otherwise even be aware of without the lens that cinema can offer.

I want to thank each and every one of you for appreciating all that we’ve worked hard to create and for supporting us through the process. We rely on every one of you in so many ways, and would absolutely not be where we are today without this encouragement and assistance. I also want to say a special thank you to our steadfast Board of Directors, who steer the ship through all kinds of weather. I feel very fortunate to have found my way into such a wonderful organization. Now let’s go watch some films!

Mary Bacarella, SIFF Managing & Co-Director

MAUI PUERTO VALLARTA

Friends of SIFF Club

A SPECIAL THANK YOU TO ALL THE FRIENDS OF SIFF who support SIFF year after year:

Greg & Karen Amadon*, James & Jill Angelo, Linda & David Cornfield, Anne Croco*, Katherine & David De Bruyn*,

Robert & Donna Dughi*, Eliza Flug*, Cindy Gantz*, Brian LaMacchia*, Michael Lockman & Woody Davidson, Loeb Family Foundation*, Mary Metastasio*, Chris Newell*, Jeff & Deborah Parsons*,

Deborah Person*, Mina Person*, Charles F. Rose III*, Nancy Shriver, Aron Michael Thompson*, and Carl Tostevin & Mickey McDonough

*Founding Friends of SIFF Member

BECOME A FRIEND OF SIFF TODAY and receive exclusive inside access to SIFF, including private events with filmmakers and guests year-round!

Friends of SIFF Club donors pledge a minimum of $5,000 per year for three years. To learn more or to make a donation contact Renee C. O’Donnell at 206.315.0664 or renee@siff.net.

SIFF 40

A great film is more than entertainment. It’s a chance to see the world from a different perspective, to share an experience that can transform your life.

For 40 years SIFF has challenged, stimulated and served our audiences by bringing them a vast variety of films from around the world. What’s more, we offer classes, panels, and special events to help create and serve a community of cinema enthusiasts who are informed, aware, and alive.

SEATTLE INTERNATIONAL FILM FESTIVAL

SIFF is the largest film festival in the United States, with more than 150,000 people attending each year. The 25-day event is also the region’s most accessible and critically acclaimed festival, renowned for presenting over 450 features, short films, and documentaries gathered from over 70 countries.

SIFF CINEMA

Over 120,000 people attend SIFF Cinema each year to see the best new feature films, one-of-a-kind special events, and mini-festivals celebrating such diverse subjects as Italian and French cinema, women filmmakers, and classic Film Noir.

A three-screen historic movie house, SIFF Cinema Uptown (the former Uptown Cinema in Queen Anne) isn’t just an art-house cinema. We also feature theatrical engagements of prestigious and award-winning major motion pictures like 12 Years a Slave, Gravity in 3-D, American Hustle, and The Wolf of Wall Street.

Our second Queen Anne movie house is the SIFF Film Center at Seattle Center, an intimate state-of-the-art venue where we showcase new discoveries in independent feature and documentary filmmaking from around the world.

SIFF Cinema also features unique programs that take you behind the screen, including filmmaker and panel discussions; “Stage to Screen” theatre events; the Deconstructing the Beatles lecture series; and interactive presentations like The Princess Bride Quote Along and Willy Wonka in Smell-O-Vision. (That’s right: Smell-O-Vision.)

SIFF EDUCATION

SIFF also runs education programs designed to train and strengthen the community of Seattle film lovers and filmmakers. FutureWave provides free access to films and filmmakers, hands-on training, and exceptional cinematic experiences for more than 13,000 students and educators a year. The Catalyst program offers training, forums, and workshops for aspiring filmmakers. Films4All offers informative and enlightening behind-the-scenes discussions and classes for cinema lovers of any age.

Want to learn more about our programs? Got to SIFF.net for more in-depth information about who we are and what we do!

GREETINGS

FROM SIFF’S BOARD OF DIRECTORS

On behalf of the Board of Directors of SIFF, I am honored to welcome you to the 40th Seattle International Film Festival.

For four decades, SIFF has created experiences to help people discover more about the world and themselves through authentic storytelling. Our mission to help foster a community that is more informed, aware and alive has never changed.

We have so much to celebrate. The Seattle International Film Festival is the largest and most highly attended film festival in North America, featuring more than 700 screenings of over 447 films from 85 countries. We welcomed 400 filmmakers and over 150,000 patrons in 2013. We just completed our second year of operation at our historic Uptown Cinemas and the SIFF Film Center. Over the course of the year, we were able to expose nearly 150,000 guests to extraordinary, independent films from around the world through our year-round programming. As we look to the “Next 40”, our goal is to continue to focus on sustaining and growing our three areas of programming: Seattle International Film Festival, SIFF Cinema, and SIFF Education to preserve the future SIFF.

Thank you—our patrons, sponsors, members, donors, volunteers, and staff. Your tremendous support is what makes the magic happen.

Celebrate with us as we honor SIFF’s accomplishments and toast to the next 40!

Michelle Quisenberry President, SIFF Board of Directors

OFFICERS BOARD OF DIRECTORS

BOARD EMERITI

Michelle Quisenberry, President

Seán Kreyling, Vice President

Brian LaMacchia, Vice President

Ian G. J. MacNeil, Treasurer

Katherine De Bruyn, Secretary

Jim Angelo William Belickis Kyle Cable Sharon Conner Christopher Conrad Rich Fassio

Craig Friedson Elizabeth Hubbard

Donna James Scott Lipsky

Darryl Macdonald Kraig L. Marini-Baker

Mary Metastasio Richard Meyer Billy O’Neill Rick Rasmussen Mark Rosencrantz Keith Simanton

Aron Michael Thompson Carl Tostevin Richard von Riesen

Edwin Weihe Sheree Wen

Dan Ireland Deborah Person Tom Skerritt

Rick Stevenson

GREETINGS

FROM THE GOVERNOR

I am delighted to welcome you to the 2014 Seattle International Film Festival (SIFF), currently celebrating its 40th anniversary.

At 25 days, SIFF is the largest film festival in the United States and offers hundreds of feature films and shorts from dozens of countries. Attracting many visitors from around the world, attendance continues to reach unprecedented numbers, growing each and every year.

Cinema is more than entertainment; it is also a wonderful medium for exploring the human condition and the world around us. This celebration of the international language of film can only serve to enlighten us and enhance the diversity of our people, and I applaud the participating filmmakers and the many SIFF organizers and volunteers who have worked hard to make this special event possible.

Thank you all for being part of this year’s festival, and please accept my best wishes for a memorable event.

Jay Inslee, Governor of Washington

FROM THE MAYOR

On behalf of the City of Seattle, it is my pleasure to welcome you to the 40th year of the Seattle International Film Festival!

Each year SIFF brings together filmmakers and fans from all over the world to celebrate the creativity and diversity of cinema at the largest film festival in the nation. The impressive work of the festival’s volunteers, filmmakers, and staff celebrates cinema and affirms the value of a film festival in today’s society.

In addition to the hundreds of film screenings, I encourage you to take advantage of the festival’s speakers panels, forums, and discussions, and ask questions and provide feedback. Be sure to visit SIFF and enjoy their programming year round at the SIFF Cinema Film Center and Uptown Theater.

I am proud to be Mayor of a city with such an outstanding film festival and film community. Thank you for joining SIFF and the entire city during the best 3½ weeks of films all year. Enjoy!

Ed Murray, Mayor of Seattle

GREETINGS

FROM THE MAYOR OF RENTON

Welcome to the fourth annual Seattle International Film Festival (SIFF) held in Renton. We are pleased to welcome SIFF back to Renton for yet another great season of sharing films from around the world, and we’re proud of doing our part to support the arts, culture, and cinema in this region.

On behalf of the Renton Marketing Campaign— which includes the Renton Chamber of Commerce/Renton Visitors Connection, Renton School District, Renton Technical College, Valley Medical Center, and the City of Renton—it is my pleasure to welcome you to SIFF-Renton. SIFF-Renton is a weeklong celebration of film, with screenings of diverse films covering a broad range of genres throughout the week. Whether you’re an action film buff, enjoy a suspenseful thriller, or simply want to travel the world from the comfort of the Renton IKEA Performing Arts Center, there’s something for everyone to enjoy.

SIFF is the longest-running, largest, and most highly-attended film festival in the United States. For the fourth year, hosting SIFF in Renton allows us to participate in the thriving arts and cultural communities in our region, connecting cultures through the excitement and wonder of film. I am proud to say that Renton is truly a great place to live, work, learn, and play.

I would also to thank the SIFF-Renton Host Committee, our dedicated city staff, and our numerous volunteers and generous donors that give of their time, their talents, and their experience to help make your Renton cinema experience a memorable one.

So, as they say in the movies… Lights! Camera! Action!

FROM THE MAYOR OF KIRKLAND

The City of Kirkland is pleased to welcome the Seattle International Film Festival (SIFF) to Kirkland for the sixth year. We look forward with great anticipation to enjoying what is always a treasure trove of diverse and provocative films at the Kirkland Performance Center in the heart of downtown Kirkland. As a city that prides itself on its commitment to the arts and to education, the festival is one more offering that we are pleased to provide to our citizens and to visitors.

In addition to the films, we hope that guests will enjoy other attractions in our compact community, where everything is within reach. There are culinary delights at nearby restaurants within walking distance of the Performance Center including Volterra, Trellis, and Plume. Ample parking at the Library Parking Garage is right next door to the Performance Center.

Or, make it a ‘staycation’. Take a leisurely trip from Seattle to downtown Kirkland aboard an Argosy excursion boat, and enjoy scenic views on the Kirkland waterfront, as well as the public art that is featured there. On your short walk up the hill to the festival, sample unique boutiques and galleries offering clothing, gifts, and art. Coffee served at a number of locations will fortify you for the evening ahead. The Heathman Hotel offers elegant accommodations as does the nearby Woodmark. For more information about where to stay, dine, and shop in Kirkland, visit ExploreKirkland.com.

Lights! Camera! Action! SIFF!

Sincerely,

Denis Law, Mayor of Renton

For more information about exploring Renton, the city “Ahead of the Curve,” please visit rentonwa.gov.

Amy Walen, Mayor of Kirkland

FROM THE MAYOR OF BELLEVUE

On behalf of the City Council and residents of Bellevue— welcome to our city. The City of Bellevue is happy to welcome the Seattle International Film Festival to Lincoln Square Cinemas during May 16—29, 2014.

Hosting SIFF gives us the opportunity to showcase Bellevue as a city with a thriving arts and culture scene, and a diverse community that fosters crosscultural understanding.

Bellevue is a vibrant, modern, and growing city that offers great shopping, dining and cultural attractions. It is surrounded by magnificent natural beauty and outdoor spaces—all within easy strolling distance. I encourage you to get out and explore our many parks located throughout the city. At the heart of the city, Bellevue’s Downtown Park offers a place to get away from the bustle of meetings to walk the ½ mile loop, or simply sit and enjoy the people-watching with the sound of a waterfall in the background. Or if a beach, a hike, or a Botanical Garden is more to your liking, we have them as well.

Sincerely,

Claudia Balducci, Mayor of Bellevue

GRAND SPONSORS

OFFICIAL AIRLINE OF THE SEATTLE INTERNATIONAL FILM FESTIVAL

PRODUCING SPONSORS

The Safeway Foundation supports Puget Sound organizations dedicated to health, hunger relief, disabilities and education.

Proud Supporter of SIFF

Strengthening our Neighborhoods. Changing Lives.

“We make a living by what we get, we make a life by what we give.”

Winston Churchill

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Laura Wright

Kerry Wyman

Keiko Yamada

Donna Yancey

Jim Yand

Patricia Yano

Yvonne Yarbro-Bejarano

Christine Yarrow

Steven Yee

Margaret Yen

Jaime Young

John Young

Deborah Young

Karin Zaugg Black

Chengeng Zeng

Jennifer

Cathryn

Arlene

Pia

Karen

Alan

Jim Vollendroff & Kent Pflugerath

Barbara Von Gehr

Catherine Waddell

Angela Wagner

George & Jean Wagner

Joanne Wagner

Jessica Wagoner

Tracy Wald

Suzanne Walker

Crista Walker

Kelly Walker

William Wallace

Sean Walsh

Patrick Walsh

John Walsh

Ryan Wanamaker

Jennifer Warnick

Nancy Zierman

Tracy Zitnik

Pamela Zoller

Karl Zwick

Carlyn Zylstra

SIFF ALSO THANKS THE 3,463 ENTHUSIAST, 25 FAMILY ENTHUSIAST, 13 FUTUREWAVE, and 482 SENIOR MEMBERS

MEET THE PROGRAMMERS

SIFF is more than just an annual festival of the world’s greatest films; it’s a community of creative, passionate people who live and breathe cinema. This section is dedicated to our talented team of 22 programmers—the people who work (and watch movies) all year long to prepare the best films possible for the continually growing Seattle festival. We asked them what film they’d like to see for the first time again and why. Here are their answers:

CARL SPENCE

ARTISTIC DIRECTOR “Blade Runner

I’m sure that it would wow and amaze me all over again like it did the first time I saw it. It’s a mind-blowing game-changer—it was digital in a non-digital age. I hadn’t seen anything like it before, and nothing since quite has its daring originality and fearlessness.”

ANGELO ACERBI

FOCUS: Italy, Europe

BETH BARRETT

DIRECTOR OF PROGRAMMING “I wish I could see Peter Greenaway’s The Cook, The Thief, His Wife, and Her Lover again. It was the first time I realized that film could have the depth and multifaceted feeling of a painting, and it changed the way I saw cinema forever.”

FILM PROGRAMMER “I wish I could see Moulin Rouge by Baz Luhrman again today, for the first time. I would love to be mesmerized another time by the visual richness and the absolute melodramatic aura that glued me on the seat when I saw it. Plus, it has the most perfect blend of music and singing numbers that a great musical ever had. Baz rules!”

MARYNA AJAJA

FOCUS: Eastern Central Europe, Russia and Central Asia

EMILY ALM

FILM PROGRAMMER “Federico Fellini’s Amarcord—because of the light, because of the dark, because of the compositions, the peacock in the snow, the ship in the night, and the humor.”

FILM PROGRAMMER Hands down, Home Alone 2: Lost in New York. The moviemaking magic of John Hughes and John Williams impacted me at a young age, and I’ve always had a lot of fun watching Kevin take down the Sticky Bandits.

JUSTINE BARDA

CLARE CANZONERI

FILM PROGRAMMER “My mother took me to see a theatrical re-release of Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs when I was a 3-year-old girl in Mississippi. Because it was the first movie I ever saw in theater, I’d love to relive that experience again, or maybe watch it from a distance, It’s a Wonderful Life style.”

CAMILLE DEVY

PROGRAMMING ASSISTANT “Casablanca.

Because I know most of the scenes (and songs) by heart, it’d be nice to watch it without knowing what’s next. And of course, to be totally blown away by this ending, which shows all the complexity of the characters. Such a good classic.”

FILM PROGRAMMER “One of my early arthouse experiences was when a family friend took me to see Jules & Jim. Afterward, we went to this delicious Viennese pastry shop. The whole experience was such an amazing sensory overload, I remember thinking that I’d be perfectly happy if I could do that every day ”

DAN DOODY

FILM PROGRAMMER “It was a dark and stormy night—the wind howling about the castle’s battlements, rain tap-tap-tapping at the windows, a lightning flash or two, and then The Bride of Frankenstein stands revealed Gothic nightmare or bedtime story, either way it plays out in my dreams again and again.”

FOCUS: Midnight Adrenaline, United Kingdom and Ireland

FOCUS: Middle East, North Africa, Western Europe

ANDREW ESPE

FILM PROGRAMMER “I’ve seen it over fifteen times, but I’d love to re-experience Robert Altman’s Nashville for the first time. Upon its initial viewing, it’s overwhelming and chaotic—but rich and somewhat magical. Becoming acquainted with the characters played by Ronee Blakley, Keith Carradine, Lily Tomlin, Geraldine Chaplin, and Henry Gibson (among a plethora of others) is to understand Altman’s wonderful, complex, and dynamic insight into music, politics, and humanity. It’s a panoramic hypnosis that I love to be under, time and time again.”

BRANDEN HAWKINS

PROGRAMMING ASSISTANT “If I could watch any film again for the first time it would be Miyazaki’s My Neighbor Totoro. The first time I saw the film I was around the same age of the main character, Satsuki, whom embodied the same sort of enthusiasm and imagination as me. Most animated films for kids aren’t very good at hiding the fact that they are made by adults, but Totoro, on the other hand, captures everything it means to be a child.”

RUTH HAYLER

CLINTON MCCLUNG

SIFF CINEMA PROGRAMMER “Seeing David Lynch’s Mulholland Dr without knowing about the twists or how the plot lines would connect (and which ones wouldn’t), was so exciting. My brain worked so hard to put all the pieces together, while simultaneously being wowed by what would happen next. It still remains one of my favorites, but now I watch it with a completely different state of mind.”

FILM PROGRAMMER “Lawrence of Arabia

The mesmerizing presence of the unknown actor with blazing eyes exploded on screen. Huge but intimate; the film never sacrificed intelligent storytelling and revealing characterization in favor of spectacle, yet was thrilling and unforgettable. When people are content to download a film to their smartphone, it reminds me of the immersive, life-changing experience of the Big Screen.”

FOCUS: Foreign films, Archive

VIRGILE HEITZLER

PROGRAMMING ASSISTANT “Les Amants Reguliers (Regular Lovers ) by Philippe Garrel, because it made me able to understand a lot of things about myself, and it still does. Summer 1968, it’s the wonderful story of a young man disappointed by the aborted revolution, who tries to find his happiness in arts and love, the only way to find the freedom he was looking for in politics.”

DALE NASH

FILM PROGRAMMER “I am going to have to respond with ‘no film’. I am always looking for that next great film experience when I sit down to watch a film. For me, that is what SIFF is all about, watching new films from around the world and having many ‘first time’ experiences. ‘You can’t relive the past.’— ‘The Great Gatsby’.”

FOCUS: Documentaries

DUSTIN KASPAR

EDUCATIONAL PROGRAMS MANAGER

FOCUS: Films4Families, FutureWave, and African Pictures

CORY RODRIGUEZ

PROGRAMMING ASSISTANT I would see 28 Days Later for the first time again. Danny Boyle showed me a shockingly deserted London, a gripping story of survival, and a new kind of zombie. This film really pulled me towards the horror genre, which has become my favorite today.”

“I would relish the opportunity to view Marco Tullio Giordana’s six hour Italian miniseries Best of Youth with new eyes; discovering the exceptionally precious human moments throughout, which culminate in the unexpectedly transcendent blessing from one brother to another in the final reel.”

MEGAN LEONARD

CAMILLE MADINIER

PROGRAMMING COORDINATOR “When I watched Once Upon a Time in the West for the first time, I was expecting to see the typical Western. I would love to have the experience of being oh-so wrong again, and just be swept away by the incredible depth of storytelling through picture and sound.”

PROGRAMMING ASSISTANT “One of the movies I’d like to see again for the first time is Antonioni’s Blow Up, the first film of his that I saw. Antonioni’s movies always put me in a special mood: they make me think, question, and I find them particularly attractive and intense.”

STAN SHIELDS

FILM PROGRAMMER “There’s so many to choose from, so I’ll just pick a recent one. Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind, because Michel Gondry has put in so many little tweaks and flourishes around the edges of the scenes, and it may be the only time that Jim Carrey broke my heart.”

FOCUS: Canada, Face the Music, South America

ANDY SPLETZER

FOCUS: Alternate Cinema

BRAD WILKE

FILM PROGRAMMER ”I would see a whole bunch of ’50s sci-fi movies like Zontar: The Thing From Venus and The Deadly Mantis, but through the filter of my local horror movie host growing up, the Son of Svengoolie. Not just because of nostalgia, but also because of his ability to find something good and funny in the leastrespected genre films. Through him, I learned to look for the good in movies that most people think are bad.”

FILM PROGRAMMER “Martin Scorsese’s Goodfellas made me fall in love with the movies. Ray Liotta’s voiceover, Thelma Schoonmaker’s editing, and Scorsese’s agitated camera all combined in a way that reinvented film for me, and made me want to be a part of what they were creating up on the screen.”

FOCUS: Catalyst, New American Cinema

“WHAT SORT OF FILM DO I FEEL LIKE SEEING TONIGHT?”

QUICK GUIDE TO MOODS

With our handy moods groupings, we’ve made it easy to find the type of cinematic experience you’re in the mood for. Instead of using traditional categories, we’ve aimed to connect films with you, the audience, by organizing them into 10 areas that match your mood.

LOVE COAST OF PASSION

Romance and love in all its forms, pleasures, and idiosyncracies.

OPEN MY EYES PLAINS OF TRUTH

Revealing films and documentaries revolving around history, politics, and contemporary events from around the world.

SCI-FI

AND FACT SEA OF KNOWLEDGE

Science, technology, environment, the future—and beyond!

THRILL ME THE ADRENALINE

FOREST

Suspense, thrills, and action. Films with a faster pace that might also surprise you when you least expect it!

TO THE EXTREME CAPE

OF OUTER LIMITS

Explore the outer limits with films that go beyond the edge.

PROVOKE ME THOUGHT TRAILS

Mesmerizing dramas and documentaries that explore thought-provoking questions, realities, and topics.

CREATIVE STREAK ORIGINALITY OASIS

The exploration of artistic endeavors from all disciplines: literature, film, art, dance, and performance.

MAKE ME LAUGH BAY OF MERRIMENT

Films that make you chuckle and tickle your funny bone.

SHOW ME THE WORLD UNCHARTED

TERRITORY

Prepare to be taken to another place—from exotic, far-off lands to vibrant experiences outside of everyday life.

FACE THE MUSIC THE

MELODIC SEA

Films that intersect the world of music on all fronts: from biopics and concert films, to musicals and live events.

Director: John Ridley

Producers: Sean McKittrick

Jeff Culotta

Danny Bramson

Brandon Freeman

Anthony Burns

Tristen Orpen Lynch

Nigel Thomas

Screenwriter: John Ridley

Cinematographer: Tim Fleming

Editors: Hank Corwin

Chris Gill

Music: Danny Bramson

Waddy Wachtel

Cast: André Benjamin

Hayley Atwell

Imogen Poots

Ruth Negga

Adrian Lester

Running Time: 118 minutes

Presentation Format: DCP

Print Source: Open Road/XLrator

Film Website: darko.com/ film_allisbymyside

Selected Filmography: Cold Around the Heart (1997)

Jimi: All Is By My Side United Kingdom/Ireland 2013

THURSDAY MAY 15 7:00 PM MCCAW HALL

It’s Jimi Hendrix before he was Jimi Hendrix. Outkast’s André Benjamin gives a magnetic, nuanced performance in this biopic about the rock legend on the verge of making it big and the women who helped him get there. Featuring an insightful script from John Ridley (Academy Award®-winning screenwriter of 12 Years a Slave), Jimi: All Is By My Side looks at the early, momentous years in the life of the legendary guitarist. It’s 1966, and James Hendrix is still an unknown backup guitarist in New York. Linda Keith (Imogen Poots, Filth)—girlfriend to the Rolling Stones’ Keith Richards—happens to catch a set he’s playing and, mesmerized by his skills, brings Hendrix into her inner circle. Now in England, Hendrix hopes that London will be the gateway to success in America. Before long, however, he finds himself caught between Linda’s protective grasp and the charms of a new admirer, Kathy Etchingham (Hayley Atwell, Captain America). With Kathy by his side, Jimi, as he is now known, navigates the city’s music scene and begins making his mark in the world of rock ‘n’ roll. Ridley, who also produced and directed this passion project, has crafted a daring, wholly original interpretation of an artist’s origins, perfectly blending his story with archival footage of the era. It’s the wildly charismatic Benjamin, though, that acts as the beating heart of Jimi: All Is By My Side, brilliantly distilling the essence of the man before anyone knew who he was.

Director: Richard Linklater

Producers: Richard Linklater

Cathleen Sutherland

Screenwriter: Richard Linklater

Cinematographers: Lee Daniel

Shane Kelly

Editor: Sandra Adair

Cast: Patricia Arquette

Ethan Hawke

Ellar Coltrane

Lorelei Linklater

Running Time: 164 minutes

Presentation Format: DCP

Print Source: IFC Films

Film Website: boyhoodmovie.com

Selected Filmography:

Before Midnight (2013)

Bernie (2012)

Me and Orson Welles (2009)

Inning by Inning: A Portrait of a Coach (Doc, 2008)

A Scanner Darkly (2006)

Fast Food Nation (2006)

Bad News Bears (2005)

Before Sunset (2004)

School of Rock (2003)

Tape (2001)

Waking Life (2001)

The Newton Boys (1998)

SubUrbia (1997)

Before Sunrise (1995)

Dazed and Confused (1993) Slacker (1991)

It’s Impossible to Learn to Plow by Reading Books (1988)

ENCORE SCREENING:

Richard Linklater (Dazed and Confused, Before Sunrise trilogy) makes a triumphant return to his independent roots with Boyhood, a dazzling micro-epic shot for 39 days over the course of 12 years in and around Austin, Texas. Boyhood follows the tumultuous lives of Mason Sr. (Ethan Hawke), Olivia (Patricia Arquette), and Mason Jr. (newcomer Ellar Coltrane) and his older sister Samantha (Lorelei Linklater) from around the time Mason is six until he begins his freshman year of college. Within that timeframe, relationships ebb and flow, loved ones pass away, romantic entanglements develop, and life generally takes its course. The beauty of Linklater’s film is in its observation of these in-between times, those bookend moments before and after major life events, when growth happens and lessons are learned. As we see these characters mature on-screen, we develop a new appreciation not only for their individual narrative arcs, but also for the craftsmanship employed by Linklater and his ensemble cast to bring these characters to life over the span of time covered by the film. Today, we’re accustomed to bells, whistles, and CGI pyrotechnics deployed in the hopes of holding our attention on screen. What Linklater and his top-notch cast offer is just the opposite—small, intimate moments of the type we may witness every day in our own homes but never stop to appreciate. Boyhood is a glorious achievement in filmmaking, one that celebrates the hidden beauty of the moments we take for granted each day.

Awards:

Berlin Film Festival 2014 (Silver Bear) SXSW 2014 (Louis Black “Lone Star” Award)

Director: Charlie McDowell

Producer: Mel Eslyn

Screenwriter: Justin Lader

Cinematographer: Doug Emmett

Editor: Jennifer Lilly

Music: Danny Bensi Saunder Jurriaans

Cast: Elisabeth Moss

Mark Duplass

Ted Danson

Running Time: 91 minutes

Presentation Format: DCP

Print Source: Radius-TWC

Selected Filmography: Debut Feature Film

The One I Love USA 2014

SUNDAY JUNE 8 6:00 PM CINERAMA

This sophisticated blend of romantic drama and science fiction follows married couple Ethan and Sophie (Mark Duplass and Elisabeth Moss), who are having trouble rekindling the sparks that began their relationship. Their therapist (Ted Danson) suggests a weekend getaway at a secluded vacation estate, where the couple spends their first night enjoying a quiet dinner, some great conversation, and even a little weed. As Sophie takes a moment to explore the grounds, she wanders into the charming guesthouse by the pool and discovers Ethan waiting for her. Their spark rekindled, they make love, and all seems back on track. That is, until she returns to the main house to find Ethan passed out on the couch with no memory of what happened. So begins a fantastical, original, and completely unpredictable story of devotion, deception, and wish fulfillment reminiscent of “Who’s Afraid of Virginia Woolf?” set in “The Twilight Zone.” Using a bare-bones script from first-time screenwriter Justin Lader, director Charlie McDowell and Seattle-based producer Mel Eslyn staged extensive, collaborative rehearsals with Duplass and Moss, leading to a pair of superb performances filled with depth, humor, and humanity. The result is a series of fantastical twists and turns that feel utterly real, but we dare not spoil a single moment in attempting to describe them. The One I Love simply must be seen to be believed.

Director: Frédéric Tcheng

Producers: Guillaume de Roquemaurel

Frédéric Tcheng

Screenwriter: Frédéric Tcheng

Cinematographer: Gilles Piquard

Editor: Julio C. Perez IV

Music: Ha-Yang Kim

Featuring: Raf Simons

Anna Wintour

Sidney Toledano

Pieter Mulier

Running Time: 89 minutes

Presentation Format: DCP, in French and English, with English subtitles

International Sales: Submarine Entertainment

Print Source: CIM Productions

Film Website: diormovie.com

Selected Filmography: Diana Vreeland: The Eye Has To Travel (2011)

DIOR ET MOI

Dior and I France 2014

SATURDAY MAY 17 6:30 PM PACIFIC PLACE

ENCORE SCREENINGS: SUNDAY MAY 18 1:00 PM LINCOLN SQUARE

THURSDAY MAY 22 4:30 PM SIFF CINEMA UPTOWN

“If there’s ever been a show that the fashion world has waited with absolute bated breath to see, it’s this one: Raf Simons’ debut for Christian Dior,” wrote Vogue in July 2012. In a room filled with flowers, as models slunk down the line in cigarette pants and abbreviated ball gowns, the guests included Harvey Weinstein, Marion Cotillard, Charlotte Rampling, and royalty. Now, Frédéric Tcheng’s documentary puts us all front, center, and behind the scenes leading up to that year’s April event. While Tcheng’s Diana Vreeland: The Eye Has To Travel, leaned heavily on archival footage of the iconic fashion editor, Dior and I is an immediate and fresh documentary of a pivotal moment in contemporary haute couture. The elegant lines of Dior’s mid-20th century “New Look” that Vreeland championed—wasp-waisted bodices and voluptuous flared skirts—were returned in homage through Simons’ introductory collection for the house. Tcheng’s crew was given full access to the goings-on almost as soon as Simons succeeded John Galliano as artistic and creative director. Dior and I looks at Simons’s group of collaborators, and particularly the atelier’s seamstresses. The evening before the show, we see six people sitting around a kitchen table, hand-sewing delicate beads onto a sheer piece of fabric. They’re called away to toast Simons with Champagne, in a warm display of mutual admiration for what they’ve accomplished. “I found myself trying to conjure this ghost of Christian Dior,” Tcheng told Hollywood Reporter, “creating a more immersive experience for the viewer.” J’adore!

Proudly brought to you by the Renton School District, Renton Technical College, Renton Chamber of Commerce, City of Renton and Renton Visitors Connection

Director: Megan Griffiths

Producers: Adam Gibbs

Amy Hobby

Emily Wachtel

Screenwriters: Huck Botko

Emily Wachtel

Cinematographer: Ben Kutchins

Editor: Meg Reticker

Music: Craig Wedren

Cast: Toni Collette

Thomas Haden Church

Ryan Eggold

Ahna O’Reilly

Oliver Platt

Nina Arianda

Running Time: 96 minutes

Presentation Format: DCP

International Sales: Cinetic Media

Print Source: IFC Films

Selected Filmography: Eden (2012)

The Off Hours (2011)

First Aid for Choking (2003)

Lucky Them USA 2013

THURSDAY MAY 22 7:00 PM RENTON IKEA

ENCORE SCREENING: FRIDAY MAY 23 9:15 PM EGYPTIAN

When it comes to the Seattle music scene, veteran rock journalist Ellie (Toni Collette) has seen it all. No stranger to interviewing (and subsequently flirting with) rising musicians, Ellie is surprised when her boss (Oliver Platt) assigns her to track down an older, legendary, and elusive singer-songwriter—someone from Ellie’s serious romantic past. But when funds for the mission suddenly slip out of her hands, Ellie has no choice but to team up with an eccentric aspiring documentary filmmaker, Charlie (Thomas Haden Church, in a delightfully deadpan performance), who foots the trip’s bill. On their search for answers, Ellie and Charlie slowly bond over the peculiarities and mysteries of romance, the past, and life’s little surprises. Seattle filmmaker Megan Griffiths directs this winning, insightful, and touching dramedy that features killer chemistry between Collette and Church in addition to a swooning, catchy soundtrack. Co-starring Nina Arianda, Ahna O’Reilly, and Ryan Eggold (who performs his own songs in the movie), Lucky Them is a fun and moving study of music and relationships that reminds us all that when life gets stale, it’s never too late to put on a new record.

W hen the Food Matters

KA S PA R S

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Director: Mike Cahill

Producers: Mike Cahill

Alex Orlovsky

Hunter Gray

Screenwriter: Mike Cahill

Cinematographer: Markus Förderer

Editor: Mike Cahill

Music: Will Bates

Phil Mossman

Cast: Michael Pitt

Brit Marling

Astrid Bergès-Frisbey

Steven Yeun

Archie Panjabi

Running Time: 113 minutes

Presentation Format: DCP

Print Source: Fox Searchlight

Film Website: facebook.com/IOriginsMovie

Selected Filmography: Another Earth (2011) Boxers and Ballerinas (Doc, 2004)

SATURDAY MAY 24 6:00 PM

I Origins USA 2014

SIFF CINEMA UPTOWN

ENCORE SCREENING: MONDAY MAY 26 9:15 PM EGYPTIAN

For Dr. Ian Gray (Michael Pitt), the human eye holds fascinations unrelated to romantic fancies or religious platitudes. As he and his lab assistant Karen (Brit Marling) chart the development of an organ so perfectly specialized it’s repeatedly cited as proof of an intelligent designer, Gray has no interest in a window to the soul; he’s hoping to pry open a window upon evolution, and deliver a crushing blow against those who insist upon claims of God’s handiwork. His secular outlook stands firm even after a series of improbable coincidences lead him to a beautiful woman named Sofi (Astrid Bergès-Frisbey), so airy and spiritual in contrast to his methodical rationalism that anyone would be forgiven calling them soulmates. When their relationship is abruptly foreshortened, Gray returns to his work with renewed vigor. But his research leads to a startling, supposedly impossible discovery, sending the scientist on a quest that will circle the planet and challenge his every belief. In his follow-up to Another Earth, Mike Cahill has crafted another thought-provoking, boldly emotional exploration of the science fiction genre, earning him his second Alfred P. Sloan Prize—given to exemplary films that focus on science or technology— at the Sundance Film Festival.

Awards: Sundance Film Festival 2014 (Alfred P. Sloan Feature Prize)

Director: Don McKellar

Producers: Barbara Doran

Roger Frappier

Screenwriters: Michael Dowse

Ken Scott

Cinematographer: Douglas Koch

Editor: Dominique Fortin

Music: Maxime Barzel

Paul-Étienne Côté

Francois-Pierre Lue

Cast: Brendan Gleeson

Taylor Kitsch

Gordon Pinsent

Mark Critch

Matt Watts

Running Time: 115 minutes

Presentation Format: DCP

International Sales: Voltage Pictures

Print Source: eOne Films US

Film Website: voltagepictures.com

Selected Filmography: Childstar (2004) Last Night (1998)

The Grand Seduction Canada 2013

THURSDAY MAY 29 8:00 PM KIRKLAND PC

ENCORE SCREENING:

SATURDAY MAY 31 5:00

PM SIFF CINEMA UPTOWN

With charm and chuckles to spare, Don McKellar’s (Last Night, Broadway’s “The Drowsy Chaperone”) droll comedy features a superb performance from Brendan Gleeson as one of the down-on-their-luck Newfoundland villagers determined to trick a big-city doctor into settling into their coastal community. Gleeson’s Murray French, a fisherman no longer allowed to fish, heads up a band of citizens who see hope for their locale in the form of a new factory. The problem? The company insists that a full-time doctor commit to the village for a five-year term. When the somewhat unscrupulous Dr. Lewis (a delightful Taylor Kitsch) arrives in town for what he sees as a month’s service, the villagers resort to any means necessary to get him to stay, including listening in on the good doctor’s phone conversations to learn his likes and dislikes. Rollicking humor, quiet moments of whimsy, and genuinely touching scenes—all anchored in the gorgeous seaside community of Trinity Bay, Newfoundland, where the film was shot—make The Grand Seduction well nigh irresistible.

Awards: Genie Awards 2014 (Best Supporting Actor)

Director: Salomé Breziner

Producers: Stephen Israel

Juan M.R. Luna

Salomé Breziner

George Voskericyan

Screenwriter: Duke Tran

Cinematographer: Chris Squires

Editors: Richard Halsey

Colleen Halsey

Jacob Chase

Music: Jeff Cardoni

Cast: Nia Vardalos

Jason Dolley

Mark Boone Junior

Scott Shilstone

Skyler Samuels

Running Time: 100 minutes

Presentation Format: DCP

Print Source: School Pictures

Selected Filmography: The Secret Lives of Dorks (2013)

Fast Sofa (2001)

An Occasional Hell (1996) Tollbooth (1994) Lifted (1988)

Helicopter Mom USA 2014 World Premiere

WEDNESDAY JUNE 4 7:00 PM EGYPTIAN

Oh, how far we’ve come from the dark days of rampant homophobia. But teenager Lloyd Cooper (Jason Dolley) may think society—or at least his mother—has progressed a bit too far on this topic. Lloyd’s mom Maggie (a hilarious Nia Vardalos) says she would not only accept a gay son, she actively encourages it, as it would be “really cool” to have one. In fact, Maggie becomes so convinced that Lloyd himself is gay that she “outs” him to his entire high school. Like any good “helicopter mom,” who hovers over every aspect of her children’s lives, Maggie takes control of Lloyd’s social life, setting Lloyd up on dates with boys whom she has approved and filing for a gay student college scholarship. There’s just one wrench in her grand plans: Lloyd doesn’t even know whether he’s gay or not. Director Salomé Breziner, who added fresh touches and well-rounded characters to her previous coming-of-age comedy The Secret Life of Dorks (2013), breaks new ground in Helicopter Mom as well, depicting a mother who is willing to accept her son for who he is—or at least who she thinks he is. The film shows, in uproarious fashion, how an overabundance of understanding, however well-intentioned, can be almost as stifling as narrow-mindedness.

Director: Alex Gibney

Producers: Alex Gibney

Jack Gulick

Cinematographer: Maryse Alberti

Editor: Lindy Jankura

Music: Fela Anikulapo-Kuti

Running Time: 120 minutes

Presentation Format: DCP

Print Source: Kino Lorber

Film Website: jigsawprods.com/fela

Selected Filmography:

The Amstrong Lie (Doc, 2013)

We Steal Secrets: The Story of Wikileaks (Doc, 2013)

Park Avenue: Money, Power and the American Dream (Doc, 2012)

Mea Maxima Culpa: Silence in the House of God (Doc, 2012)

The Last Gladiators (Doc, 2011) Magic Trip (Doc, 2011)

Catching Hell (Doc, 2011)

Client 0: the Rise and Fall of Eliot Spitzer (Doc, 2010)

Freakonomics (Doc, 2010)

My Trip to Al-Qaeda (Doc, 2010)

Casino Jack and the United States of Money (Doc, 2010)

Gonzo: The Life and Work of Dr. Hunter S. Thomspon (Doc, 2008)

Taxi to the Dark Side (Doc, 2008)

Behind Those Eyes (Doc, 2005)

Enron: the Smartest Guys in the Room (Doc, 2005)

Finding Fela USA 2014

FRIDAY JUNE 6 7:00 PM PACIFIC PLACE

ALSO SCREENING: WEDNESDAY JUNE 4 3:30 PM SIFF CINEMA UPTOWN

At the dawn of the 1970s, Nigerian Fela Anikulapo-Kuti created the musical movement known as Afrobeat, a prismatic mix of jazz, funk, high-life, West African drums, and Yoruban chants. Within a few short years, his polyrhythmic innovations and confrontational lyrics became the soundtrack of Africa’s new postcolonial activism. Fela also put his political money where his mouth was by creating a combination commune/recording studio/home for his extended musical family, which he named the Kalakuta Republic. While Kuti embraced his controversial celebrity, it also made him the target of Nigeria’s ruthless military regime. With each consecutive album, the military ratcheted up the consequences, moving quickly from harassment to arrests and violence against the Republic. Eleven years after Kuti’s death, Academy Award®-winning director Alex Gibney (Taxi to the Dark Side) joined with renowned choreographer Bill T. Jones (a Tony Award winner for “Spring Awakening”) to record the rehearsals and performances of a Broadway musical of Fela’s life. Inspired by Jones’ interest in Kuti, Gibney began his own non-fiction investigation into Fela’s life. Blending footage of Jones’ kinetic staging with Kuti’s magnetic interviews and performances, Finding Fela offers us unprecedented access to the life of this complex, provocative performer.

Director: David Wain

Producer: Michael Showalter

Screenwriters: Michael Showalter

David Wain

Cinematographer: Tom Houghton

Editor: Jamie Gross

Music: Craig Wedren

Matt Novack

Cast: Paul Rudd

Amy Poehler

Michael Shannon

Cobie Smulders

Melanie Lynskey

Ed Helms

Running Time: 83 minutes

Presentation Format: DCP

Print Source: Lionsgate

Selected Filmography: Wanderlust (2011) Role Models (2008)

They Came Together USA 2014

JUNE 7 7:00 PM EGYPTIAN

The Ten (2007) Wet Hot American Summer (2001) ENCORE SCREENING: SUNDAY JUNE 8 2:00 PM EGYPTIAN

Boy meets girl, boy loves girl, boy and girl overcome obstacles through humor—everyone knows how the typical romantic comedy plays out. But leave it to David Wain and Michael Showalter (TV’s “The State,” Wet Hot American Summer) to give the familiar genre a hilarious and subversive twist. They Came Together stars comedy titans Paul Rudd and Amy Poehler as Joel and Molly, two single, professional, and sentimental go-getters in New York City. Joel’s candy store corporation is poised to kick Molly’s little sugary shop out of business, but an irrepressible and gooey connection—think Tom Hanks meets Meg Ryan via an adorable soundtrack—begins to form between the rivals. Wain and Showalter send up each overly sincere and saccharine cliché, from the hackneyed language to the expected denouement, with gut-busting gags and irreverent laughs. Featuring an all-star supporting cast including Bill Hader, Ellie Kemper, Max Greenfield, Cobie Smulders, Ed Helms, and Christopher Meloni, They Came Together is stacked with laughs and bite. It’s the anti-romantic comedy of the year, with an inspired amount of lunacy that could only come from Wain and Showalter.

POLITICAL REVOLUTIONS, TECHNOLOGICAL INNOVATIONS, AND THE BEGINNINGS OF A TRUE GLOBAL CULTURE—

The Rocky Horror Picture Show

UNITED KINGDOM/USA 1975

these events have defined our times and influenced our art over the past 40 years. SIFForty is a major milemarker in our ongoing film journey, in the Pacific Northwest and all over the world. The concerns, passions, and desires of the day are, as ever, reflected in the diverse ideas that are shown through film. This art form shows us to each other, and connects us in a way that none other can. The Seattle International Film Festival’s 40th anniversary Special Presentations include films that have left deep impressions: a touching directorial debut from a SIFF co-founder (Dan Ireland’s The Whole Wide World ), a unique vision appreciated many years later (Richard Rush’s The Stunt Man), and a film that Seattle embraced right away, which the rest of the world came to adore (The Rocky Horror Picture Show). Enjoy these special screenings, celebrating 40 years of exceptional film.

It was great when it all began, in 1976, at the first Seattle International Film Festival. That’s where audiences got their first taste of what would become the longest running theatrical release in cinema history: The Rocky Horror Picture Show. For our 40th anniversary, Midnight Adrenaline is inviting you to a very special night, an all-new interactive version of the daddy (and mommy) of cult cinema featuring custom goodie bags filled with props (including some new ones), subtitles for the most outrageous callbacks, boisterous singing along from all, and stimulating preshow games. Be prepared for breakthroughs, elusive ingredients, and that...SPARK! Based on the hugely popular London stage play, The Rocky Horror Picture Show is writer-producer Richard O’Brien’s musical tribute to B-movies, sci-fi, ’50s rock, and Hammer Horror, all filtered through the transgressive and camp attitudes of rock opera and punk. Tim Curry gives an iconic performance as the nefarious, cross-dressing Frank-N-Furter, who lures the milquetoast couple Brad and Janet (newcomers Barry Bostwick and Susan Sarandon) into his debaucherous world. A flop when originally released, the film gained a second life through midnight screenings and a core audience of rabid fans who embraced the sweet transvestite’s message of “Don’t dream it…be it.”

Awards:

National Film Preservation Board (Official Selection) Academy of Science Fiction, Fantasy & Horror Films (Hall of Fame)

Director: Jim Sharman

Producer: Michael White

Screenwriters: Richard O’Brien

Jim Sharman

Cinematographer: Peter Suschitzky

Editor: Graeme Clifford

Music: Richard O’Brien

Richard Hartley

Cast: Tim Curry

Susan Sarandon

Barry Bostwick Richard O’Brien

Meat Loaf

Running Time: 100 minutes

Presentation Format:

DCP

Print Source: Twentieth Century Fox

Film Website: rockyhorror.com

Selected Filmography: Shock Treatment (1981)

The Night, The Prowler (1978)

Summer of Secrets (1976)

Shirley Thompson Versus the Aliens (1972)

FRIDAY MAY 16 MIDNIGHT

EGYPTIAN

The Stunt Man

USA 1980

SUNDAY JUNE 1 1:30 PM

The movie that Seattle saved! Richard Rush’s The Stunt Man may have ended up with three Oscar nominations, but it almost never got a release. Based on a novel of the same name, the story is about Cameron (Steve Railsback), a guy on the run from the cops who stumbles onto a movie set, thinks he gets a stunt man killed, and then is hired by megalomaniacal film director Eli Cross (Peter O’Toole) to take the stunt man’s place. He believes the director is taking excessive risks with him, and after he falls for the leading lady (Barbara Hershey), he thinks the director may be trying to have him killed. The studios couldn’t tell whether Rush’s film was a comedy, action film, art film, existential allegory, or what. The producers hated it enough to want to shelve it, so Rush brought it to Seattle, where film critic William Arnold called it “an affirmation of hope for an exciting new American cinema in the 1980s.” The closing night film from SIFF #5, The Stunt Man went on to run 43 weeks at the Guild 45th and went into the history books as one of the best films about filmmaking ever made. It was nominated for three Oscars.

Awards:

Montréal World Film Festival 1980 (Grand Prix des Amériques)

Golden Globes 1981 (Best Original Score)

National Society of Film Critics Awards 1981 (Best Actor)

Director:

Richard Rush

Producer:

Richard Rush

Screenwriters: Richard Rush

Larry Marcus (based on the novel by Paul Brodeur)

Cinematographer: Mario Tosi

Editors:

Jack Hofstra

Caroline Biggerstaff

Music:

Dominic Frontiere

Cast: Peter O’Toole

Steve Railsbeck

Barbara Hershey

Allan Goorwitz

Alex Rocco

Running Time: 131 minutes

Presentation Format: DCP

Print Source:

20th Century Fox

Selected Filmography: Color of Night (1994)

Freebie and the Bean (1974)

Getting Straight (1970)

A Man Called Dagger (1968)

The Savage Seven (1968) Psych-Out (1968)

Hells Angels on Wheels (1967)

The Cups of San Sebastian (1967)

Thunder Alley (1967) Of Love and Desire (1963)

Too Soon to Love (1960)

The Whole Wide World

USA 1996

SATURDAY JUNE 7 4:00 PM

The story of an epic love is portrayed in exquisitely intimate terms in Dan Ireland’s haunting film about love and loss set in Depression-era Texas. The film is based on author Novalyne Price Ellis’s autobiographical memoir, “One Who Walked Alone”, which traces her turbulent romantic relationship with Robert E. Howard, the great pulp fiction writer of the 1930s who created such classics as “Conan the Barbarian” and “Red Sonja”. As the film opens, Novalyne is in a tizzy: her current beau, Clyde, is bringing his best friend, a writer, with him for a visit. Novalyne, a pretty schoolteacher and aspiring author is excited to be meeting a “working writer,” though when the men arrive, her romantic notions are somewhat dashed by Robert’s slovenly appearance. During a subsequent drive through the countryside, however, Robert proves to be fascinating and charismatic, and Novalyne’s earliest assumptions about him are rekindled. One year later, she still hasn’t forgotten about the day she spent with Robert, and when she’s transferred to a next teaching post in Cross Plains, where he lives, she wastes no time in trying to contact him. Before long, their sporadic meetings evolve into a courtship of sorts, but the course of true love is a long and winding road that neither Novalyne nor Bob can negotiate entirely smoothly.

Awards: SIFF 1996 (Best Actor, American Independent Special Jury Prize) Mar del Plata Film Festival 1996 (Best Actress) Lone Star Film and Television Awards 1998 (Best Actor, Screenplay)

PRECEDED BY:

Hate From a Distance

USA, 2014, 19 minutes, director: Dan Ireland, World Premiere In Savannah, Georgia 1963, 12-year-old Danny tries to discern the cause for hate and the difference of race.

EGYPTIAN

Director:

Dan Ireland

Producers:

Carl-Jan Colpaert

Kevin Reidy

Dan Ireland

Vincent D’Onofrio

Screenwriter: Michael Scott Myers

Cinematographer: Claudio Rocha

Editor: Luis Colina

Music:

Harry Gregson-Williams

Cast: Vincent D’Onofrio

Renee Zellweger

Ann Wedgeworth

Harve Presnell

Benjamin Mouton

Running Time: 111 minutes

Presentation Format: 35mm

Print Source:

Sony Pictures Classics

Selected Filmography: Jolene (2008)

Mrs. Palfrey at the Claremont (2005) Passionada (2002)

The Velocity of Gary (1998)

The Rainbow (1989)

Sponsored by Aron Michael Thompson

HARVARD EXIT

Director: Josh Boone

Producers: Marty Bowen

Wyck Godfrey

Screenwriters: Scott Neustadter

Michael H. Weber based on the novel by John Green

Cinematographer: Ben Richardson

Editor: Robb Sullivan Cast: Shailene Woodley

Ansel Elgort

Laura Dern

Sam Trammell

Mike Birbiglia

Willem Dafoe

Running Time: 125 minutes

Presentation Format: DCP

Print Source: 20th Century Fox

Film Website: thefaultinourstarsmovie.com

The Fault in Our Stars USA 2014

FRIDAY MAY 16 6:00 PM EGYPTIAN

SATURDAY MAY 17 10:00 AM EGYPTIAN

Selected Filmography: Stuck in Love (2012) The Fault in Our Stars is, above all else, a love story. When terminally ill sixteen-year-old Hazel Grace Lancaster (The Spectacular Now’s Shailene Woodley) meets the charming and confident Augustus Waters (Divergent’s Ansel Elgort) at a cancer support group, they immediately connect over their matching wit and unconventional interests. As their friendship erupts into full-fledged romance, what follows is a beautiful lesson on living in the moment.

Using John Green’s stunning screenplay, adapted from his own “New York Times” bestselling novel, Woodley and Elgort give compelling performances, rich with organic chemistry, guiding us through an emotional story of two teens living and loving in the face of their impending fate. Hazel begins her story by saying that she believes “we have a choice in this world about how to tell sad stories,” and The Fault in Our Stars chooses the most irresistible and poignant approach possible.

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Director: Dean DeBlois

Producer: Bonnie Arnold

Screenwriter: Dean DeBlois based on a book by Cressida Cowell

Music: John Powell

Voices: Kristen Wiig

Jay Baruchel

Gerard Butler

America Ferrera

Jonah Hill

Cate Blanchett

Running Time: 105 minutes

Presentation Format: 3D-DCP

Print Source: DreamWorks

Film Website: howtotrainyourdragon.com

Selected Filmography: Go Quiet (2010)

How to Train Your Dragon (2010) Heima (Doc, 2007) Llilo & Stitch (2002)

How to Train Your Dragon 2 USA

SATURDAY JUNE 7 6:30 PM PACIFIC PLACE

SUNDAY JUNE 8 10:30 AM PACIFIC PLACE

It’s been five years since Hiccup and Toothless successfully united dragons and Vikings on the island of Berk. While Astrid, Snotlout, and the rest of the gang are challenging each other to dragon races (the island’s new favorite contact sport), the now inseparable pair journey through the skies, charting unmapped territories and exploring new worlds. When one of their adventures leads to the discovery of a secret ice cave that is home to hundreds of new wild dragons and the mysterious Dragon Rider, the two friends find themselves at the center of a battle to protect the peace. Now, Hiccup and Toothless must unite to stand up for what they believe while recognizing that only together do they have the power to change the future of both men and dragons. Don’t miss the thrilling second chapter of the epic How to Train Your Dragon trilogy.

LIFETIME ACHIEVEMENT AWARD AND LIVE MUSIC EVENT

Music buoys our spirits in a way that few things can. SIFF’s Face the Music programming includes films that explore the transformative influence that music has on all of our lives. Music lifts us up out of ourselves, out of our pains both skin-deep and profound. To celebrate music’s invaluable importance in cinema, join us as we honor an extraordinary artist. Then, take a moment from the multiplex for this year’s riveting live performance.

Quincy Jones: SIFF Lifetime Achievement Award

Our lives have been touched by the work of Seattle native Quincy Jones in countless ways—from his work on seminal albums like “Sinatra at the Sands,” “Miles & Quincy Live at Montreux,” and Michael Jackson’s “Thriller,” to his 33 film scores including Sidney Lumet’s The Pawnbroker and Steven Spielberg’s The Color Purple, which he also co-produced, to his TV production, music management, and humanitarian work in the world and in the arts.

This year, SIFF will present Quincy Jones with the Festival’s Lifetime Achievement Award at the premiere screening of Keep On Keepin’ On on Wednesday, June 4 at the Uptown Cinemas at 7:30pm. The following evening, Jones will introduce Justin Kauflin onstage at the Triple Door.

WEDNESDAY, JUNE 4, 7:30PM | UPTOWN CINEMA

ENCORE SCREENING FRIDAY, JUNE 6, 4:00PM | UPTOWN CINEMA KEEP ON

KEEPIN’ ON

This tribute to jazz legend Clark Terry, who taught Quincy Jones and Miles Davis, shows his passionate commitment to mentorship. Now in his 90s, Terry helps blind pianist Justin Kauflin (today a prodigious working artist) realize his dream.

(d: Alan Hicks c: Clark Terry, Justin Kauflin, Quincy Jones, Gwen Terry, Herbie Hancock, USA 2014, 84 min)

THURSDAY, JUNE 5, 7:00PM | TRIPLE DOOR

An Evening with the Justin Kauflin Trio

Enhance the experience of Keep On Keepin’ On by spending the evening with one of its star subjects: the exciting blind jazz pianist Justin Kauflin, with his Trio composed of drummer Billy Williams, and bassist Christopher Smith. Kauflin is an award-winning jazz pianist who lost his vision due to a rare degenerative eye disease at age 11. After losing his sight, music and the piano became the driving force of Justin’s growth as a child. Kauflin met drummer Billy Williams during high school and has counted him as one of his favorite live collaborators. After his time at William Paterson University, Justin added bassist Christopher Smith to his lineup to create his Trio.

The elegant acoustics of the Triple Door create the perfect venue for the extraordinarily talented musician who was mentored by jazz legend Clark Terry. Don’t miss this opportunity to hear Quincy Jones introduce in person one of this year’s Face the Music stars—and a future jazz great—live during SIFF’s 40th anniversary.

You don’t look a day over 29…

Congratulations on 40 years of excellence, community and celebrating Seattle’s film industry. Dale and Leslie Chihuly are excited to spend the next few weeks at the movies with SIFF and the city!

Some of Dale and Leslie’s favorite movies from the last 40 years: The Godfather, Fargo, The Last Picture Show, My Beautiful Laundrette

SIFF Outstanding Achievement Award in Film, 2010, 20 x 5 x 5"

TRIBUTES

Film doesn’t appear out of thin air. It may begin with a spark of inspiration, but it requires talent, ingenuity, and a great deal of hard work to transform that spark into a touching, affecting, exciting, informative finished product. It takes true courage to bare one’s soul for the sake of artistry, to dedicate one’s life to their craft. Those who answer to the call of creativity are the ones who inspire new generations to keep watching and making films. These are the charismatic, magnetic screen personalities and auteurs that keep us in the only place where it’s OK to be in the dark: the theater.

Each year, the Seattle International Film Festival welcomes honorees for our annual Tribute presentations. These people exemplify what’s great about filmmaking, and their visits offer SIFF audiences a chance to connect with the industry for an evening of merriment and celebration. In recent years, we’ve been thrilled to host appearances by actor Kyle MacLachlan and director Peter Greenaway (2013); actress Sissy Spacek and director William Friedkin (2012); actors Ewan McGregor (2011) and Edward Norton (2010); directors Spike Lee and Francis Ford Coppola (2009); Sir Ben Kingsley (2008), and Sir Anthony Hopkins (2007); and visionary directors Bernardo Bertolucci (1994) and Robert Altman (1984). We were proud to present them with awards recognizing their achievements and excellence in the field. This year is no different, as we host acclaimed musician Quincy Jones and actors Laura Dern and Chiwetel Ejiofor. Please join us in our Tribute festivities in honor of these artistic greats.

QUINCY JONES

Our lives have been touched by the work of Quincy Jones—in so many more ways than most of us are aware. On the occasion of the 40th anniversary of the Seattle International Film Festival, we honor this onetime Seattleite and legendary trumpeter, producer, conductor, arranger, and composer with SIFF’s Lifetime Achievement Award. Jones has earned our recognition and gratitude for a lifetime of visionary achievements, which are reflected in two films at this year’s Festival: Sidney Lumet’s searing 1964 drama The Pawnbroker, scored by Jones, and 2014’s Keep On Keepin’ On, a candidly emotional look at one of Jones’ mentors, the incredible jazz trumpeter Clark Terry.

Quincy Delight Jones, Jr., born in Chicago’s South Side in 1933, went on to become a citizen of the world—learning from others, absorbing culture, and creating it himself. His career spans six decades in the entertainment industry. Jones has received a record 79 Grammy Award nominations and 27 Grammys, including a Grammy Legend Award in 1991. In addition to his aforementioned roles, Jones has made lasting impressions on our cultural evolution as a television and film producer (“The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air”; “MADtv”), a magazine mogul (“Vibe”), record company executive, and humanitarian.

Before all of these titles, Jones was simply a student at Seattle’s Garfield High School, where he discovered music at age 12. He developed his skills as a trumpeter and arranger with his teachers and with Clark Terry, who offered 15-year-old Jones early morning lessons that bolstered the young man’s craft. Jones met teenage saxophonist Charlie Taylor and jazz-band leader Evelyn Bundy, and was recruited by Taylor into a swing band that backed visiting greats like Billie Holiday. Playing the Central District and downtown jazz circuit, Jones introduced himself to a then-unknown Florida kid who would become Ray Charles, getting turned on to bebop in the process. Bandleader Lionel Hampton tried to give him a job—but Jones couldn’t take it until after graduation and higher education back East.

Absorbing musical influences in New York, Paris, and Europe, in the ’50s and ’60s Jones conducted classic albums including the Count Basie/Frank Sinatra collaboration “Sinatra at the Sands,” produced pop hits like Lesley Gore’s “It’s My Party,” became the first black vice president of a major American record label (Mercury), and scored The Pawnbroker—his first of 32 film scores including In Cold Blood (1967), In the Heat of the Night (1967), The Italian Job (1969), Roots (1977), The Wiz (1978) and The Color Purple (1985). A move to Hollywood ensured that Jones would long have a hand in creating culture, as his TV career began with writing the themes for “Sanford and Son” and “Ironside.”

In 1991, he convinced Miles Davis to perform beloved works from the ’60s at the Montreux Jazz Festival; the resulting recording of Jones conducting a man he considered a ‘great painter’ was called a masterpiece of honest musical expression. Jones also teased out the greatness in younger performers, most notably Michael Jackson. He produced “Off the Wall,” “Thriller”—the best-selling album of all time— and “Bad.” In Jones’ statement following Jackson’s death, he spoke of the magic of the music they created together being heard all over the world. He praised Jackson as a consummate entertainer whose “contributions and legacy will be felt upon the world forever.”

In light of a life of monumental creativity, hard work, and masterful craftsmanship, we honor the same achievements of Quincy Jones today.

Selected Film Scores

The Pawnbroker (1964)

The Slender Thread (1965)

Walk, Don’t Run (1966)

The Deadly Affair (1966)

In Cold Blood (1967)

In the Heat of the Night (1967)

For Love of Ivy (1968)

Bob & Carol & Ted & Alice (1969)

John and Mary (1969)

The Italian Job (1969)

MacKenna’s Gold (1969)

They Call Me Mister Tibbs! (1970)

The Anderson Tapes (1971)

The Getaway (1972)

The Hot Rock (1972)

Roots (1977)

The Wiz (1978)

The Color Purple (1985)

LAURA DERN DERN

Coming from a family of major cinematic talent, Laura Dern has gone from girl next door (Blue Velvet) to paleontologist (Jurassic Park), from love-crazed bad girl (Wild at Heart) to woman reinvented (HBO’s “Enlightened”), and everywhere in between. An award-winning actress, producer, director, and activist, Dern’s unique blend of candor and magnetism, as well as her penchant for gutsy roles, has brought her to the forefront of American cinema and television.

Lula sits upright in bed wearing a lacy white negligee. Her red nails hold a burning cigarette. The recently menaced young woman is on the run with her lover, pregnant, and scared. “This whole world’s wild at heart and weird on top,” she sobs, in a moment that’s both high camp and tragically touching. Laura Dern’s hot-headed Lula Fortune in David Lynch’s Wild at Heart (1990) isn’t the actress’s most well-known performance, but it’s indicative of the depth she brings to each and every role. On the Seattle International Film Festival’s 40th anniversary, we honor actress, director, and producer Laura Dern with the Award for Outstanding Achievement in Acting. Dern’s fearlessness as an actor is both due to and despite her famous parents. Her father Bruce Dern, who frequently worked with legendary cult director Roger Corman, is known for playing (in his own words) “psychotics, freaks, and dopers.” Dern’s mother, Diane Ladd, is known for her equally tenacious turns in character roles (playing Dern’s on-screen mother no less than five times in the course of their careers).

After Dern first appeared in a cameo in her mother’s 1974 film Alice Doesn’t Live Here Anymore, Adrian Lyne’s Foxes with Jodie Foster in 1980, and other small roles, she was ready to spread her artistic wings. But when Ladd objected to 13-year-old Dern’s desire to be in Ladies and Gentlemen, The Fabulous Stains, saying she was too young to leave home for the set, Dern sued for emancipation. She won the right to play a role in the film’s girl punk band—a bold move that foretold many more.

After appearing in 1985’s Smooth Talk, Dern caught the eye of director David Lynch, who cast her without an audition as girl-next-door Sandy Williams in the following year’s shocking Blue Velvet. “It was the miracle for my career,” Dern said to the Onion A.V. Club in 2011.

“Having been raised by actors in the ’70s on films where characters were complicated and stories were not only elusive but themes were ambiguous, that to me, was filmmaking. And when David Lynch luckily found me, I was right where I belonged.”

Wild at Heart, a love story and road movie, also featured mother-daughter chemistry between Ladd and Dern that seethed with complicated emotion (earning Ladd an Academy Award® nomination). Following this gutsy dual performance, the two rejoined forces in 1991’s Rambling Rose, where Dern played a sexually precocious domestic servant and Ladd the feminist head of the household, who acts as Rose’s protector. These portrayals earned both women Academy Award® nominations.

1993’s Jurassic Park catapulted Dern to global fame in her role as paleobotanist Dr. Ellie Sattler. Whether outsmarting the terrors of overgrown lab experiments or navigating the perils and pleasures of human relationships in films like October Sky (1999), I Am Sam (2001), and We Don’t Live Here Anymore (2004), Dern’s physicality and expressiveness matches her emotional intelligence in reading each role exactly right. Even a caustic character, like the clueless druggie who’s caught up in a political struggle over her unborn child (1996’s Citizen Ruth), is played for ultimate comedic value, while respecting the source material and the audience.

Throughout her career, Dern has also brought these remarkable qualities to television. Most notably, her guest appearance on a story arc of “Ellen,” in 1994, sparked an international sensation when Dern’s love interest was the catalyst for Ellen’s on-screen and real-life coming out.

Dern was awarded a Golden Globe Award for Best Supporting Actress in a Series, Miniseries or Television Film for her portrayal of Florida Secretary of State Katherine Harris in the production Recount (2008). And as Amy Jellicoe, a distressed and self-destructive businesswoman undergoing a spiritual transformation in HBO’s “Enlightened,” she won the 2011 Golden Globe Award for Best Actress in a Television Series Musical or Comedy.

The candor, magnetism, and resonance visible in Dern’s body of work culminated in her receiving a Star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame in 2010. Join us this year in celebrating an actor of exceptional talent and heart.

Select Filmography

Ladies and Gentlemen,

The Fabulous Stains (1982)

Mask (1985)

Smooth Talk (1985)

Blue Velvet (1986)

Wild at Heart (1990)

Rambling Rose (1991)

Jurassic Park (1993)

A Perfect World (1993)

Citizen Ruth (1996)

October Sky (1999)

Daddy and Them (1999)

Dr. T and the Women (2000)

I Am Sam (2001)

We Don’t Live Here Anymore (2004)

Inland Empire (2006)

Everything Must Go (2010)

“Enlightened” (2011-2013)

The Master (2012)

The Fault in Our Stars (2014)

Wild (2014)

SIFF

congratulates on 40 years of film in Seattle.

AN AFTERNOON WITH LAURA DERN

SATURDAY, MAY 17, 2:00 PM

EGYPTIAN

Acclaimed actress, director, and producer Laura Dern touches down at this year’s SIFF in The Fault In Our Stars, adapted from John Green’s popular novel. Additionally, prior to a special screening of Wild at Heart, Dern will be honored with the Seattle International Film Festival Award for Outstanding Achievement in Acting. A Q & A will follow, giving audience members an opportunity to get to know this remarkable performer.

The Fault in Our Stars USA 2014

FRIDAY MAY 16 6:00 PM

EGYPTIAN

SATURDAY MAY 17 10:00 AM EGYPTIAN

Director:

Josh Boone

Producers: Marty Bowen

Wyck Godfrey

Screenwriters:

Scott Neustadter

Michael H. Weber

based on the novel by John Green

Cinematographer: Ben Richardson

Editor: Robb Sullivan

Cast: Shailene Woodley

Ansel Elgort

Laura Dern

Sam Trammell

Mike Birbiglia

Willem Dafoe

Running Time: 125 minutes

Presentation Format: DCP

Print Source: 20th Century Fox

Film Website: thefaultinourstars movie.com

Selected Filmography: Stuck in Love (2012)

The Fault in Our Stars is, above all else, a love story. When terminally ill sixteen-year-old Hazel Grace Lancaster (The Spectacular Now’s Shailene Woodley) meets the charming and confident Augustus Waters (Divergent’s Ansel Elgort) at a cancer support group, they immediately connect over their matching wit and unconventional interests. As their friendship erupts into full-fledged romance, what follows is a beautiful lesson on living in the moment. Using John Green’s stunning screenplay, adapted from his own “New York Times” bestselling novel, Woodley and Elgort give compelling performances, rich with organic chemistry, guiding us through an emotional story of two teens living and loving in the face of their impending fate. Hazel begins her story by saying that she believes “we have a choice in this world about how to tell sad stories,” and The Fault in Our Stars chooses the most irresistible and poignant approach possible.

Wild at Heart USA 1990

SATURDAY MAY 17 2:00PM

Director: David Lynch

Producers:

Steve Golin

Monty Montgomery

Sigurjon Sighvatsson

Screenwriters: Barry Gifford

David Lynch

Cinematographer: Frederick Elmes

Editor: Duwayne Dunham

Music: Angelo Badalamenti

Cast: Laura Dern

Nicolas Cage

Willem Dafoe

Crispin Glover

Isabella Rossellini

Running Time: 125 minutes

Print Source: Park Circus

Awards: Cannes Film Festival 1990 (Palme d’Or)

David Lynch’s hallucinatory crime thriller and crazed romance blends elements of The Wizard of Oz and Elvis Presley fetishism with a cast of outrageous characters. Nicolas Cage and Laura Dern are Sailor and Lula, star-crossed lovers who can’t catch a break. When Sailor brutally dispenses with an assassin—hired by Lula’s psychotic mother, Marietta (Dern’s real-life mom, Diane Ladd)—he’s locked up for two years. Upon his release, the lovers defy Marietta again by taking a freedom ride in Sailor’s vintage T-Bird convertible. They only make it as far as Big Tuna, Texas, waylaid by another bad crowd, while being hunted by Marietta’s lovers-cum-henchmen. The road/revenge/redemption flick was resisted by Roger Ebert on grounds of malevolence and misogyny but won the 1990 Palme d’Or at Cannes. Audacious aesthetics meet bizarre musical pairings for moments that are unpredictable and then unforgettable. Lynch’s milestone film, like Sailor’s ever-present snakeskin jacket, is the ultimate symbol of artistic individuality and belief in personal freedom.

EGYPTIAN

CHIWETEL EJIOFOR

From his first film role in Steven Spielberg’s Amistad at the age of 19 and his colorful performance in Kinky Boots to his extraordinary Oscar®-nominated portrayal of Solomon Northup in Steve McQueen›s  12 Years a Slave, Chiwetel Ejiofor has infused his roles with an exquisite brand of introspective, quiet intensity. His performances are elegant and impassioned, stoic and strong, and infinitely memorable — a master of the craft.

Chiwetel Ejiofor has at last reached the A-list thanks to his searing, magnetic lead performance in 12 Years a Slave, winner of the 2013 Academy Award® for Best Picture. But before that harrowing slave narrative was released, Ejiofor was considered one of the modern acting world’s “best kept secrets,” infusing his roles with an exquisite brand of introspective, quiet intensity, at once elegant and impassioned, stoic and strong.

Born in London in 1977 to a Nigerian couple, Ejiofor became a member of the National Youth Theatre at the age of 13, acting there and at the performing arts-focused Dulwich College. Upon graduation, he earned a scholarship to the prestigious London Academy of Music and Dramatic Arts. His time there lasted only one year, though, as at the age of 19 he was offered a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity—to star in Steven Spielberg’s Amistad as interpreter Ens. James Covey.

While refining his talents on screens both cinema- and television-sized, Ejiofor made a splash at the Royal National Theatre in 2000, starring opposite Bill Nighy and Andrew Lincoln (later his costars in 2003’s Love Actually) in Joe Penhall’s “Blue/Orange”. For his performance as a delusional schizophrenic, Ejiofor was awarded the London Evening Standard Award for Outstanding Newcomer.

Ejiofor’s international breakthrough came in 2002 when revered British director Stephen Frears (Prick Up Your Ears, High Fidelity), enamored with the young man’s performance in “Blue/Orange”, cast him as the lead in Dirty Pretty Things. A gritty urban drama about a London-based Nigerian illegal immigrant forced to take black market jobs, Frears’ film won four British Independent Film Awards, including one for Ejiofor as Best Actor.

Now receiving critical acclaim outside of his native United Kingdom, Ejiofor caught the attention of a slew of gifted American directors, including Woody Allen (Melinda and Melinda), John Singleton (Four Brothers), and Spike Lee (She Hate Me, Inside Man). However, it was a British film that solidified his place in audiences’ hearts, playing sassy drag queen Lola in Julian Jarrold’s Kinky Boots, earning a Golden Globe nomination in the process. (The film would inspire the Tony Award-winning 2013 stage musical crafted by Harvey Fierstein and Cyndi Lauper.)

Over the next several years, Ejiofor proved himself a remarkable resource, able to headline or support films regardless of genre, including crime thrillers (Ridley Scott’s American Gangster, David Mamet’s Redbelt), science fiction (Alfonso Cuarón’s Children of Men, Joss Whedon’s Serenity), disaster flicks (Roland Emmerich’s 2012), and historical drama (Kasi Lemmons’ Talk To Me, which earned Ejiofor the Independent Spirit Award for Best Supporting Actor). In 2008, Queen Elizabeth II appointed him an Officer of the Order of the British Empire (O.B.E.) for his services to drama, the same year Ejiofor won Olivier and Evening Standard Theatre awards for playing the title role in “Othello” opposite Ewan McGregor.

For years, Ejiofor and film director Steve McQueen (Hunger, Shame) had been looking to work on a project together. It wasn’t until McQueen’s wife found a copy of Solomon Northup’s 1853 memoir, the true story of a free black man forced back into slavery, that a project finally came to fruition. In speaking of the film’s casting, McQueen told “Indiewire” that “Ejiofor was always going to be Solomon Northup for me. I was looking for someone that had that genteelness, that kind of humanity. Knowing that humanity was going to be tested under certain duress and circumstances, I needed a person who could actually keep hold of that.”

Upon its release, 12 Years a Slave attained universal praise for its realistic, unrelenting depiction of its challenging subject matter, singling out Ejiofor’s graceful, brave lead performance the best of his career so far. Among the film’s numerous accolades, Ejiofor won 15 Best Actor awards—including a BAFTA—out of 30 nominations from around the world.

Select Filmography

Amistad (1997)

G:MT Greenwich Mean Time (1999)

It Was an Accident (2000)

My Friend Soweto (2001)

Dirty Pretty Things (2002)

Love Actually (2003)

She Hate Me (2004)

Red Dust (2004)

Melinda and Melinda (2004)

Four Brothers (2005)

Serenity (2005)

Kinky Boots (2005)

Inside Man (2006)

Children of Men (2006)

Talk to Me (2007)

American Gangster (2007)

Redbelt (2008)

Endgame (2009)

2012 (2009)

Savannah (2013)

12 Years a Slave (2013)

Half of a Yellow Sun (2013)

EMP MUSEUM

A proud supporter of SIFF’s Face the Music program

Nirvana: Taking Punk to the Masses Hear My Train a Comin’: Hendrix Hits London

NOW OPEN

Featuring more than 200 iconic instruments, original poster artwork, photographs, albums, and 100 new and archived oral histories from key figures in the independent music scene, Nirvana: Taking Punk to the Masses introduces the world’s most extensive exhibition of memorabilia celebrating the music and history of Sea le grunge luminaries, Nirvana.

Spectacle: The Music Video

NOW OPEN

Hendrix wowed the swinging London scene for nine months before returning home to dazzle audiences at the Monterey Pop Festival in California. Hear My Train a Comin’: Hendrix Hits London features lyrics, personal instruments, original photographs, outrageous outfits, and rare concert footage that demonstrate how Hendrix achieved prominence across the pond.

OPENS MAY 17, 2014

Discover the black and white musical Soundies of the 1940s and the Frenchmade Scopitones of the 1950s, relive MTV masterpieces, and step into super-sized cinematic productions of today. With legendary props, interactive experiences, and more than 300 videos Spectacle: The Music Video traces the evolution of the genre and cements its place at the forefront of creative technology.

AN EVENING WITH CHIWETEL EJIOFOR

MONDAY, MAY 19, 6:00 PM

EGYPTIAN

This special tribute for actor Chiwetel Ejiofor will begin with the presentation of the Seattle International Film Festival Award for Outstanding Achievement in Acting, followed by screenings of Columbite Tantalite, a short film directed by Ejiofor, and Biyi Bandele’s feature film Half of a Yellow Sun, costarring Thandie Newton and Anika Noni Rose.

Following the screening, there will be an onstage interview with film clips from Ejiofor’s career and an audience Q&A. An exclusive tribute reception will follow the event.

Half of a Yellow Sun USA 2014

MONDAY MAY 19 6:00 PM EGYPTIAN

TUESDAY MAY 20 4:00 PM EGYPTIAN

Director: Biyi Bandele

Producer: Andrea Calderwood

Screenwriter: Biyi Bandele

based on the novel by Chimamanda Ngozi

Adichie

Cinematographer: John De Borman

Editor: Chris Gill

Music: Ben Onono

Paul Thomson

Cast:

Thandie Newton

Chiwetel Ejiofor

John Boyega

Anika Noni Rose

Joseph Mawle

Running Time: 106 minutes

Presentation Format:

DCP

International Sales: Metro International

Entertainment

Print Source: Monterey Media

Film Website: halfofayellowsunmovie.com

Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie’s epic 2006 bestseller comes to the big screen in a sprawling melodrama that perfectly captures the Nigerian Civil War of the late ’60s. First-time writer-director Biyi Bandele takes the novel’s twisting narrative structure and focuses on Odenigbo (Ejiofor) and Olanna (Newton), a radical academic and his sophisticated girlfriend, allowing the other characters and storylines to orbit efficiently around their central drama. Olanna and her sister Kainene have returned from University in England, and Olanna’s swift move to live with the revolutionary Odenigbo is frowned upon by his traditional-minded mother (clearly foreshadowing the tension that will erupt along social lines). As violence erupts across the country, Odenigbo and Olanna are forced to flee, and so begins Bandele’s film on its displaced journey toward resolution, effectively bridging the personal and historical realities of an African country struggling to find its identity. Half of a Yellow Sun’s impressive performances and rich visuals create an exceptional foundation for a driving drama that both informs about the history of Nigeria and creates a deeper understanding of the challenges of regaining culture following colonialist rule.

Sponsored by Deborah Person

Serenity USA 2005

SUNDAY MAY 18 9:30 PM

Director: Joss Whedon

Producers: Christopher Buchanan

David Lester

Barry Mendel

Alisa Tager

Screenwriter: Joss Whedon

Cinematographer: Jack N. Green

Editor: Lisa Lassek

Music: David Newman

Cast:

Nathan Fillion

Gina Torres

Alan Tudyk

Morena Baccarin

Chiwetel Ejiofor

Running Time: 119 minutes

Presentation Format: DCP

Print Source: Universal Pictures

EGYPTIAN

Although critically acclaimed upon its 2002 FOX premiere, Joss Whedon’s “Firefly,” which followed the sci-fi/western adventures of captain Mal Reynolds (Nathan Fillion) and the ragtag crew of Firefly-class transport ship Serenity in the 26th century, was canceled after airing only 11 of its 14 episodes. But you can’t stop the signal, and in 2005 Serenity took to the skies once again with a rowdy, rollicking feature-length film. Still fugitives at law, Mal (Nathan Fillion), first mate Zoe (Gina Torres), pilot Wash (Alan Tudyk), mercenary Jayne (Adam Baldwin), mechanic Kaylee (Jewel Staite), and medic Simon (Sean Maher) subsist on the odd smuggling job to make ends meet. But they are also guarding a precious bounty—Simon’s unpredictable sister River (Summer Glau), a tortured telepath—and when they learn that the deadly Operative (Chiwetel Ejiofor), a sword-wielding agent of the authoritarian Alliance, is hot on their heels, they must race against time to discover what government secrets lie within River’s fragile mind.

AFRICAN PICTURES

In 2013, SIFF launched African Pictures, thanks to a grant from the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences. The program was a terrific success, giving SIFF audiences unique access to some of the best work from and about Africa being made today. Films in African Pictures won the Golden Space Needle for both Best Film and Best Director.

This year’s lineup is no less exceptional: Difret, winner of the Sundance Audience Award, tells the true story of a young girl’s fight against Ethiopia’s longstanding tradition of marriage by abduction. Rags & Tatters, called “a touchstone of postrevolutionary Egyptian cinema” by Variety, follows a nameless fugitive as he fights his way through the chaos of revolutionary Cairo. Half of a Yellow Sun brings Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie’s award-winning novel to the big screen with an all-star cast led by Academy Award®-nominee Chiwetel Ejiofor (12 Years a Slave) and Thandie Newton. The Rooftops, by Merzak Allouache, Algeria’s foremost director, weaves the story of five Algiers neighborhoods around the five daily calls to prayer. And the African Pictures Party celebrates Finding Fela, Alex Gibney’s new documentary about Nigerian musician and activist Fela Kuti.

Best of all, we’re bringing many of these filmmakers to the Festival with their work. So come and meet them, see their films, and hear them talk about this new hotspot of filmmaking activity.

African Metropolis

B For Boy

Bound: Africans versus African Americans

Difret

Electro Chaabi

Finding Fela

Four Corners

Half of a Yellow Sun

Leading Lady

Rags and Tatters

The Rooftops

Salvation Army

Under the Starry Sky

White Shadow

“WHAT’D I MISS?”

AFTER TAKING A PISS

INTRODUCING PEE-PER-VIEW PLOT-RECAPPING TINKLE-TEXT TECHNOLOGY

RETURNTOSEAT

DETERMINE YOUR CURRENT NEED STATE:

To assure nominal accuracy, we’ve conducted informal lavatory surveillance and determined approximate timeframes required to make one or two.

Current versions of our software cannot accurately take into account shy bladders” or “sharts .”

GO1 OR

GO2

FOLLOW THESE SIMPLE STEPS: 3 1 TURN

Your tiny brain might not be able to fathom this, but through our partnership with the Film Festival we have access to the entire database of films, show times and key plot summaries. Using a complex mathematical algorithm, it could, hypothetically, be possible to determine the exact details you were absent for. Alternatively, we are employing the “shot in the dark” methodology, which has a nominal rate of accuracy.

Creatively Combining Film and Scatology for SIFF since 2004.

PEE-PER-VIEW IS UNABLE TO COMPENSATE FOR BATHROOM TRAFFIC.

TEXT: BathroomGo1 OR BathroomGo2 TO 59769

GEO-LOO-CATION

The satellite GPS technology exists to theoretically triangulate your exact restroom location. This allows us to find the theater and the film your bladder has required you to step away from — theoretically.

COMPLETE YOUR BIOLOGICAL TASK

1 in 6 mobile phones are contaminated with fecal matter.

6 in 6 Pee-Per-View plot recaps are entirely fecal matter.

ALTERNATE CINEMA

This year’s Alternate Cinema program takes forms that seem familiar, like “documentary” or “horror film,” and spins them into something entirely new. Anyone looking for a sample need look no further than the ALT World Shorts program, with its surreal stories and formal experiments that are sure to blow your mind. After that, we encourage you to explore the feature-length picks.

On its surface, A Dream of Iron is about the iron industrial revolution in Korea, but the driving force behind it is much more personal. The Airstrip also filters a personal story into a seemingly objective documentary. Heinz Emigholz (Loos Ornamental, SIFF 2008) takes us from Europe through South America, to the Mariana Islands, where it becomes obvious that this is an architectural essay about the fallout from WWII. Equally fascinating is how Norbert Pfaffenbichler encapsulates 50 years of Boris Karloff’s career in the found-footage masterpiece A Masque of Madness, using a sly editorial sense to create situations where Karloff’s characters interact with each other. With his giallo-style movie Another, director Jason Bognacki embraces a dream logic that builds into a creepy, and creepily beautiful, horror film. Then there’s queercore provocateur Bruce LaBruce, whose Pierrot Lunaire is shot like a silent film, but that doesn’t stop him from incorporating naked men and a “penis guillotine” in his story of a trans man looking for a penis to call his own.

New this year, we are collaborating with Aktionsart to present Black Box: Art & Cinema Black Box presents contemporary artists who work across a diverse range of media to expand the language of cinema inside and outside of the movie theater. Join us as we explore the current state of art, film and technology in this inaugural series of exhibitions, screenings, and events.

Presented by Aktionsart in collaboration with the Seattle Art Museum, curated by Julia Fryett. Please visit www.siff.net or www.aktionsart.org to view the complete program.

The Airstrip –Decampment of Modernism, Part III

ALT World

Another A Dream of Iron

A Masque of Madness

Pierrot Lunaire

AMBIENTE: NEW SPANISH FILMS

To make the perfect Valencian paella, you need more than vegetables and meats. An exceptional paella is built with short-grain rice, sweet pimentón, and saffron—just a few of the flourishes that careful cooks include. In progress, the dish is observed using all the senses, as the rice begins to caramelize, crackle, and smell sweetly toasted.

A superb film is just like this. While actors and directors are fundamental in a movie’s construction, they’re supported by cinematographers to achieve the most pleasing look; by composers to enhance the visual moods; and by editors to bring it all together. Satisfying Spanish filmmaking makes up one of SIFF’s favorite showcases each year.

Writer-director Carlos Marques-Marcet, of the LA-based group of Spanish filmmakers La Panda, looks at technology’s role in long-distance relationships in the steamy 10,000KM. Prolific Catalan filmmaker Ventura Pons presents Ignasi M., a documentary on the outsized personality and fascinating life of museum expert (and so much more) Ignasi Millet.

Villians are curiously considered in Albert Serra’s Story of My Death, which features a conversation between Casanova and Dracula; in Manuel Martín Cuenca’s Cannibal, a Granada tailor with a secret might just have some humanity after all. Witching and Bitching, from Álex de la Iglesia, shows what happens when a dissatisfied dad and his pals screw up a robbery—and collide with a bloodthirsty Basque country coven.

On the lighter side, Daniel Sánchez Arévalo’s Family United referees a wedding plagued by misunderstandings, which coincides with the 2010 World Cup final. Living is Easy with Eyes Closed, which won director David Trueba 2014 Goya Awards for Best Film and Best Director, is the road movie of a teacher obsessed with the Beatles, and his two precocious travel companions. Óskar Santos breathes cinematic life into Spain’s popular comic book characters Zip & Zap and the Marble Gang, in a story as freewheeling as The Goonies

Finally, for a sampling of what’s to come from Spain’s newest directors, Tapas! provides a taste of the year’s best and boldest in Spanish short films. Salud!

10,000KM

Astigmatismo

Candyhearts

Cannibal

Democracia

Don’t Look There

Family United

Ignasi M.

Living is Easy With Eyes Closed

Not Funny

The Red Carpet

Story of My Death

Strings

Tapas!

Witching and Bitching

The Wrong Man

Zip & Zap and the Marble Gang

ASIAN CROSSROADS

Exploring the rich diversity of Asia, SIFF has brought together a carefully curated collection of films for 2014. Representing a wide array of styles and themes, the selection this year highlights 26 films from 9 countries including China, Hong Kong, India, Japan, Mongolia, the Philippines, South Korea, Taiwan, and Thailand. From a satirical zombie film (Miss Zombie) to modern noir (Black Coal, Thin Ice) and everything in between, there’s something for everyone.

Take in Taiwan’s natural wonders with Chi Po-Lin’s Beyond Beauty: Taiwan From Above This moving documentary juxtaposes views of the untarnished Taiwanese landscape with evidence of man’s destructive tendencies on the same island. From Mongolia’s Byamba Sakhya comes Remote Control, a story about Birdie, a teenage runaway who lives on the roof of a skyscraper. When Birdie falls in love with a woman he’s spying on, he creates a game playing with her television via remote control. Explore the darker side of Chinese mythology as Juno Mak’s nod to classic Chinese horror movies, Rigor Mortis pits a retired horror actor against vampires and ghosts as he discovers the truth about his neighbors. Patrol the streets of Mumbai with rookie cop Adi as he comes face to face with a notorious assassin in Amit Kumar’s Monsoon Shootout. Adi must decide whether or not to shoot, as he weights the consequences of his actions. Have your heartstrings pulled with Taiwanese director Tsai Ming-Liang’s latest film, Stray Dogs. Masterfully composed, this empathetic film follows an alcoholic man as he tries to earn enough money to support his two children. Indulge in a Japanese animated film from Yasushiro Yoshiura: Patema Inverted tells the story of a young woman who is constantly in danger of falling into the sky. When she meets Age, they begin to uncover the truth behind their different worlds, discovering more than they ever dreamed they could—as you will too, when exploring the best and brightest of new Asian cinema at SIFF.

Beyond Beauty: Taiwan From Above

The Bit Player

Black Coal, Thin Ice

A Dream of Iron

Final Recipe

Firestorm

Intruders

Liar’s Dice

The Little House

Mary is Happy, Mary is Happy

The Midnight After

Miss Zombie

Monsoon Shootout

The Nightingale

Once Upon a Time in Shanghai

Our Sunhi

Patema Inverted

Remote Control

Rigor Mortis

Siddharth

Song of the Fishermen

Stray Dogs

A Time in Quchi

Touch of the Light

Unforgiven

Why Don’t You Play in Hell?

ARCHIVAL FILMS/ ARCHIVAL SHORTS

Time travel may still just be a dream in the scientific world, but in cinema it is practically inevitable, as every film captures several distinct moments in time: the period of the story, the era of the film’s creation, and the instance of discovery and even rediscovery by the filmgoer.

Though filmed in 1994, Queen Margot is a time capsule of the 16th century, yet only today can it be seen in the director’s original vision. The horrors or war can be recorded as they happen, inspiring a pacifist entreaty (J’accuse, 1918), or examined from a distance, revealing the ravages brought by Fascism in postwar Italy (The Skin, 1981) or a holocaust survivor’s trauma (The Pawnbroker, 1964). Sometimes the real story behind a now-classic film is forgotten as time passes, as with 1980’s The Stunt Man, which co-star Peter O’Toole noted was a film which “wasn’t released...it escaped.” It was indeed a commercial failure, but not here in Seattle, where audiences made it the biggest hit of the year. A film can also have a surprising butterfly effect, as when the theme song for 1934 blockbuster The Song of the Fishermen became an easy listening hit in the 1970s. Dan Ireland, meanwhile, co-founded SIFF in 1976 and returned in 1996 with his first feature film The Whole Wide World, the story of a dreamer in the 1930s who writes stories of heroics that take place in 10,000 B.C. He and his film are back to help SIFF celebrate our 40th anniversary, bringing our trip through time full circle.

Charlie Chaplin shorts

J’accuse

Last Year at Marienbad

The Lusty Men

Mr. Deeds Goes to Town

The Pawnbroker

Queen Margot

The Rocky Horror Picture Show

The Servant

The Skin

Song of the Fishermen

The Stunt Man

The Whole Wide World

Wild at Heart

SIFF CATALYST

Each year, filmmakers around the world produce thousands of new films, each one hoping to connect with an audience. As crowdfunding platforms and new digital technologies pave the way for more storytellers, both film festivals and distributors often serve as the primary filter between these new films and their prospective audiences.

The SIFF Catalyst program intends to help change that.

By supporting the next generation of independent storytellers through film screenings and education programs, SIFF Catalyst hopes to remove some of the barriers that exist between filmmakers and their audience. A sea change is coming in the indie film world and SIFF Catalyst offers you a front row seat to the new normal.

This year’s SIFF Catalyst program includes something for everyone. We have the North American premiere of Bradley King’s complex time travel thriller Time Lapse, as well as Five Star, the stunning sophomore effort from SIFF 2012 FIPRESCI-winning writerdirector Keith Miller. We are also proud to screen filmmaker Lise Raven’s taut period mystery Kinderwald alongside the world premiere of Scott Cohen’s moody drama Red Knot. Rounding out this year’s program are two feature film directing debuts that also happen to be world premieres: Joshua Caldwell’s kinetic French-language drama Layover and Sean Mullin’s nuanced multicultural romance Sam & Amira

We’ll also offer a full day of educational panels, including our highly anticipated filmmaker panel (featuring all six Catalyst directors), and a keynote address from Emily Best, the founder and CEO of Seed&Spark.

If you make movies or just love watching them, you don’t want to miss this year’s SIFF Catalyst.

Five Star Kinderwald Layover

Red Knot

Sam & Amira Time Lapse

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@_ericmickelson

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OFFICIAL BREWERY PARTNER OF

NOTE: THE FOLLOWING DOCUMENT WAS FOUND AMONG THE BELONGINGS OF A JOHN DOE, DECEASED; HIS REAL IDENTITY HAS YET TO BE DETERMINED. FOR YOUR SAFETY, SELECTED WORDS AND PHRASES HAVE BEEN REDACTED.

TO: Keith Gilroy Stevens

Executive

Director, Cinematic Intelligence Agency

FROM: Nick Fury Field Agent

SUBJECT: SIFF Secret Festival

Greetings Director Stevens . Since 1983, SIFF has held a festival within a festival for its audiences. The exact content of this “Secret Festival” are never disclosed. I have spent the past three months attempting to uncover what films have played, but an exhaustive search has revealed only a minuscule amount of intelligence. Previous films include: an adorably cute FILM NOIR starring French Chartreux kittens ; an ultra-rare screening of London after Midnight , a film once believed to have been lost; and Lost In Neverland , a documentary that nominally premiered at the Palm Springs Film Festival.

Unfortunately, all of the above information is based on conjecture; no first-hand accounts are available. All Secret Festival attendees sign Oaths of Silence before acquiring their passes. Advanced “information coercion techniques” have been attempted to corroborate these findings but, so far, such methods have yet to yield satisfactory results.

As you can plainly see, the matter requires further investigation. Please wire $45 ($43 for SIFF Members) so I may covertly obtain a Secret Festival Pass. After attending the four Secret Festival screenings, held at the Egyptian Theatre on Sunday mornings throughout SIFF, I will be able to fully reveal what clandestine cinematic mysteries are involved.

A living legacy of community support

Wells Fargo Private Bank is proud to continue our tradition of strong community partnership by saluting Seattle Symphony Orchestra.

Wells Private Bank is proud to continue our tradition of strong community partnership saluting Seattle International Film Festival.

Since 1852, Wells Fargo has helped families build, manage, preserve and transition their wealth. To learn more about how The Private Bank can help you achieve your financial goals, contact Marco Abbruzzese, Regional Managing Director at (206) 340-4647.

DOCUMENTARY COMPETITION

For the documentarian, the world around us provides a seemingly inexhaustible source of material. Music, dance, art, sports, history, politics, the natural world— all of these offer an infinite number of stories that we’ve never heard, or think we know well but that might require another look. These stories expand our horizons and deepen our understanding of the world we live in, and the people and creatures we live among. From the ridiculous to the sublime and everything in between, documentary art is about showing the world how it is, how it was, and how it could be. SIFF is proud to present the 12 films in this year’s Documentary Competition, which explore everything from the new face of Dior (Dior and I) to the man behind the Muppet (I Am Big Bird: The Caroll Spinney Story), from the inner workings of the New York City Ballet (Ballet 422) to the international influence of breakdancing (Shake the Dust).

Ballet 422

USA, 2014

Director Jody Lee Lipes

#ChicagoGirl – The Social Network

Takes on a Dictator

USA/Syria 2013

NORTH AMERICAN PREMIERE

Director Joe Piscatella

Dangerous Acts Starring

the Unstable Elements of Belarus

United Kingdom/USA/Belarus 2013

US PREMIERE

Director Madeleine Sackler

Dior and I

France 2014

Director Fredéric Tcheng

Garden Lovers

Finland 2014

US PREMIERE

Director Virpi Suutari

I Am Big Bird:

The Carroll Spinney Story

USA 2014

Director Dave LaMattina, Chad Walker

Leninland

Russia/Germany/Netherlands 2013

NORTH AMERICAN PREMIERE

Director Askold Kurov

Marmato

Colombia/USA 2014

Director Mark Grieco

Obama Mama

USA/Poland/France 2014

WORLD PREMIERE

Director Vivian Norris

Shake the Dust

USA 2014

WORLD PREMIERE

Director Adam Sjöberg

Song of the New Earth

USA 2014

WORLD PREMIERE

Director Ward Serrill

Two Raging Grannies

Norway/Denmark/Italy 2014

NORTH AMERICAN PREMIERE

Director Håvard Bustnes

NEW AMERICAN CINEMA COMPETITION

When we begin the film selection process in the fall, each film lover on SIFF’s programming team leaves the office with bags full of film screeners, each disc containing the hopes and dreams of filmmakers, casts, and crews from around the world. By far, we receive the largest volume of submissions from independent American filmmakers and, each year, we are only able to select a fraction of those that we love. However, the films we’ve chosen this year represent the collective output of U.S. independents we love very much, and hope that you will, too.

Each of these films—four of which are world premieres!—has found a champion on the programming team. Someone who fought to have this or that particular film included in the group that we would eventually present to our audience as the best and brightest work of U.S. filmmakers. Spanning the range of genres and employing innovative storytelling devices, these are the films that you will be talking about long after the festival has come to an end. These are the films that you will share with your friends to allow them to experience that same sense of wonder that accompanied your discovery of the character, story, or emotion that first spoke to you from the screen. Join us on our voyage into storytelling in its most modern, dynamic, and engaging form: the moving image.

Alex of Venice

USA 2014

Director Chris Messina

Another

USA 2014

WORLD PREMIERE

Director Jason Bognacki

Five Star

USA 2014

Director Keith Miller

Kinderwald

USA 2013

Director Lise Raven

Layover

USA 2014

WORLD PREMIERE

Director Joshua Caldwell

Little Accidents

USA 2014

Director Sara Colangelo

Medeas

USA/Italy/Mexico 2013

Director Andrea Pallaoro

Red Knot

USA/Argentina/Antarctica 2014

WORLD PREMIERE

Director Scott Cohen

Sam & Amira

USA 2014

WORLD PREMIERE

Director Sean Mullin

The Sleepwalker

USA/Norway 2014

Director Mona Fastvold

Time Lapse

USA 2014

NORTH AMERICAN PREMIERE

Director Bradley King

X/Y

USA 2014

Director Ryan Piers Williams

NEW DIRECTORS COMPETITION

Be at the cutting edge of world cinema and take a little risk in your viewing. This year, 12 new international voices have been selected for our SIFF’s New Directors Competition. To qualify, the films must be dramatic features, a director’s debut or second feature, and be without U.S. distribution at the time of SIFF selection. The films are selected for their original scripts, innovative cinematography, and unique insights into people, places, and story. A New Directors Award jury comprised of film industry professionals and journalists will choose the winning filmmaker during the Festival’s final weekend. The winner will be announced at the Golden Space Need Awards and receive a cash prize of $2,500.

10,000KM

Spain/USA 2014

Director Carlos Marques-Marcet

40 Days of Silence

Uzbekistan/Tajikistan/Netherlands/ Germany/France 2014

NORTH AMERICAN PREMIERE

Director Saodat Ismailova

B For Boy

Nigeria 2013

Director Chika Anadu

Eastern Boys

France 2013

Director Robin Campillo

History of Fear

Argentina/Uruguay/France/Germany 2013

Director Benjamín Naishtat

Life Feels Good

Poland 2013

Director Maciej Pieprzyca

Macondo

Austria 2014

NORTH AMERICAN PREMIERE

Director Sudabeh Mortezai

Me, Myself and Mum

Belgium/France/Spain 2013

Director Guillaume Gallienne

Remote Control

Mongolia/Germany/USA 2013

Director Byamba Sakhya

Rhymes for Young Ghouls

Canada (Québec) 2013

US PREMIERE

Director Jeff Barnaby

Standing Aside, Watching

Greece 2013

Director Yorgos Servetas

Viktoria

Bulgaria/Romania 2014

Director Maya Vitkova

2o14

bypipero’neill

June 8 2o14

SHORT FILMS COMPETITION

Limited in length but never in creativity, short films have their very own energy, far removed from the financial constraints of a feature film and often the rules of cinema themselves. Whether they feature the start of an idea or the crystallization of one, shorts are one of the most consistently intriguing cinematic forms, a fascinating world unto themselves.

Each year, SIFF is proud to present a collection of short films we believe best represent the limitless imagination of the form. While these films may be onscreen for mere moments, they make lasting impressions.

Every short film at the Seattle International Film Festival is eligible for both the Golden Space Needle Audience Award and the Grand Jury Award.

Our Shorts Competition jurors will choose winners in the Narrative, Animation, and Documentary categories. Each Grand Jury Prize winner will receive $1,000; winners may also qualify to enter their respective Short Film category of the Academy Awards® for the concurrent season without the theatrical run.

MIDNIGHT ADRENALINE QUARANTINE

The films contained within are under quarantine until further notice, per order of the Seattle International Film Festival.

Unauthorized individuals are forbidden to attend these screenings without proper training and/or protection. The contents of the films within have been found to be corrosive to the general cinema going public. Those familiar with Midnight Adrenaline films will attest to its effects—fever, insomnia, persecutory delusions, and, occasionally, lycanthropy. Midnight Adrenaline has been shown to be highly contagious and, as of yet, there is no effective form of treatment following exposure.

SIFF recognizes that this decision will generate controversy among its patrons. However, it is important to recognize that certified non-Midnight Adrenaline films are available in ample numbers. SIFF cannot be held responsible for individuals willfully exposing themselves to such known toxic agents as witches, zombified beavers, or Sasquatch.

Those found in violation of the quarantine will be detained for an unspecified duration until it can be determined the individual in question poses no threat of contaminating the general festival populace.

The Babadook

Dead Snow: Red vs. Dead

Late Phases

Rigor Mortis

The Rocky Horror Picture Show

Why Don’t You Play in Hell?

Willow Creek

Witching and Bitching Zombeavers

IMMEDIATELY NOTIFY THE PROPER SIFF AUTHORITIES IF QUARANTINE IS BROKEN. DO NOT APPROACH EXPOSED INDIVIDUALS ON YOUR OWN. FAILURE TO COMPLY WITH THE ABOVE PROTOCOLS MAY EXPOSE YOU TO NOXIOUS CINEMATIC ELEMENTS.

NORTHWEST CONNECTIONS

DISCOVERING A TREASURE TROVE OF CINEMA IN OUR OWN BACKYARD.

Seattleites see more films per capita than the residents of any other American city, and a growing number of these selections have their roots in the fertile Pacific Northwest film community. Each year, SIFF honors the many ways in which the Puget Sound region contributes to the world of cinema, whether it acts as an evocative location for outside filmmakers or as inspiration for local filmmakers ready to strut their stuff.

Megan Griffiths, winner of the 2012 Reel NW Award for Eden, is back with Lucky Them, starring Toni Collette as a rock journalist chasing an impossible story. John Jeffcoat, whose Outsourced won the 2007 Golden Space Needle Best Film Award, returns with Big in Japan, in which local band Tennis Pro plays a fictionalized version of themselves, hoping to attain fame in the Land of the Rising Sun. Taylor Guterson reassembles some of the Bainbridge Island cast of sleeper hit Old Goats for Burkholder, another quality, low-key comedy about the joys of friendship and aging. Seattle stands in as the location for Charles-Olivier Michaud’s English-language debut 4 Minute Mile, a drama about a high school track-and-field athlete co-starring Richard Jenkins and Kim Basinger.

For directors making their feature debuts, there’s Jeffrey Brown’s Sold, based on Patricia McCormick’s harrowing novel of human trafficking, Shawn Telford’s BFE, about teenage ennui in rural Washington, Bret Fetzer’s My Last Year With the Nuns, adapted from monologist Matt Smith’s Capitol Hill coming-of-age story, and Travis Gutiérrez Senger’s Desert Cathedral, which combines found footage with fictional recreations of a Seattle real estate developer who went missing in the Southwestern desert.

Do your tastes skew more toward non-fiction? One of our state’s biggest headlinegrabbers, teenage outlaw Colton Harris-Moore, gets the documentary treatment in Fly Colt Fly: The Legend of the Barefoot Bandit, Razing the Bar charts the epic rise and fall of punk venue the Funhouse, Tacoma garage rock gets spotlighted in Isaac Olsen’s Strictly Sacred: The Story of Girl Trouble, and and the Elwha Dam features in both DamNation and The Breach, two studies on environmental conservation.

3 Minute Masterpieces

4 Minute Mile

BFE

Big in Japan

The Breach Burkholder

DamNation

Desert Cathedral

Fly Colt Fly: The Legend of the Barefoot Bandit

Fly Filmmaking Challenge

Lady Be Good; Instrumental Women in Jazz

Lucky Them

My Last Year With the Nuns

Oil & Water

Razing the Bar

Seattle Supersonic Shorts

Sold

Song of the New Earth

Strictly Sacred: The Story of Girl Trouble

Two Raging Grannies

FUTUREWAVE AND FILMS4FAMILIES

SIFF Education expands and strengthens the community of film lovers and filmmakers in Seattle. Our programs include FutureWave (for youth and educators), Catalyst (for filmmakers), and Film4All (cinema education for everyone).

FUTUREWAVE

FutureWave and Films4Families Programming

SIFF has two programs curated to make the Festival more accessible to younger audiences. FutureWave features films chosen for our film-savvy teen audience to explore new cinematic worlds, and Films4Families is the perfect way for the young (and young at heart) to find new favorite films at SIFF. Both programs feature juries comprised of young people who watch all of the films and present the Youth Jury Awards in their respective categories.

SuperFly 2014

Now in its ninth year, the SuperFly Filmmaking Experience, created by Longhouse Media and presented by SIFF, brings 50 youths from across the country to Seattle to participate in an immersion into filmmaking and tribal culture. The filmmakers produce five short films in 36 hours at the Snohomish Tribal Community, films completed just hours before their World Premiere at the SuperFly and Native Shorts Showcase on May 31, 2014.

Our year-round FutureWave programming includes: All City Youth Media, an integrated media literacy program in schools and community organizations throughout Seattle; the Crash Kids non-competitive movie production challenge; educator media trainings; school screenings and filmmaker visits; and transmedia workshops.

CATALYST

Catalyst offers professional development trainings, workshops, and forums created for filmmakers. The aim of Catalyst programs is to support local independent filmmakers in getting to the next level in their career and in their art.

FILM4ALL

Film4All is a program that offers cinema education, discussions, and workshops for the public. Many of the films we screen at SIFF start a conversation, inspire an action, or pose a question. Film4All provides a platform for cinema audiences to discuss these issues, as well as learn the basic skills to make a film themselves.

FESTIVAL FORUMS

Our Festival Forums set the stage for engaging discussions, extraordinary demonstrations, and hands-on workshops for a variety of ages and experience levels. Deepen your connection to the art of cinema. Visit siff.net for further information and see page 117 for a complete list of forums dates and times.

Highlights include:

Inside LAIKA Animation

A presenter from the animation studio behind Coraline and ParaNorman will be exploring behind the scenes.

The Changing Face of Documentary Filmmaking

A fascinating set of perspectives on the current world of documentary filmmaking.

Crash Cinema at Folklife

Crash Cinema with Folklife as its creative playground. Not to be missed.

Adobe Hammersmith Teacher Workshop

A great new program from Adobe that will be out for the next school year. Get the lowdown here first.

SIFF Catalyst Panels

A full day of outstanding panels and discussions on co-creation and collaboration in the new digital age.

FILMS4FAMILIES FEATURES AND PROGRAMS

Join SIFF each weekend morning throughout the Festival for extraordinary matinees of both international and new American films created for children and the young at heart.

ForestRidgeSch SIF14 1_4.pdf

Films4Families is a celebration of the whole family coming together to share the moviegoing and filmmaking experience at SIFF. We are proud to present our outstanding 2014 lineup featuring some of the best children’s features and shorts from around the world. Seattle families will be among the first audiences to enjoy a select few of these creative treasures. In addition, SIFF is proud to be creating opportunities for expanded filmmaking activities for our younger audiences at the SIFF Film Center throughout the Festival.

SIFF is also delighted to have the Films4Families Youth Jury back for SIFF 2014. Comprised of seven elementary and middle school youth, the jury will watch all of the features to determine their favorite, and crown the winner with the Youth Jury Award for Best Films4Families Feature at the Golden Space Needle Awards on June 8, 2014.

Films4Families Jury: Ava Etheredge, Brianna Platt, David Platt, Eden Campbell, Jonah de Forest, Lilyanna Bintz, Oscar Snider

Belle & Sebastien

France 2013, 99 minutes

Directed by Nicolas Vanier

In French with English subtitles. Recommended for ages 8+

The Boy and the World

Brazil 2013, 80 minutes

Directed by Alê Abreu

No dialogue. Recommended for ages 5

The Family Picture Show

Bring the whole family to the cinema for a playful set of animated, live action, and documentary short films curated for the young and the young at heart.

See page 127

Get Animated: Animation Workshop for Kids

Ages 8 –14

See page 117

House of Magic 3D

France 2013, 82 minutes

Directed by Ben Stassen and Jeremy Degruson

In English. Recommended for ages 5+

How To Train Your Dragon 2

USA 2014, 105 minutes

Directed by Dean DeBlois

In English.

Inside LAIKA Animation

Behind the scenes of Coraline, ParaNorman, and more! Presented by Mark Shapiro. See page 117

Land of the Bears 3D

France 2014, 86 minutes

Directed by Guillaume Vincent

In English. Recommended for ages 5+

Zip & Zap and the Marble Gang

Spain 2013, 92 minutes

Directed by Óskar Santos

In Spanish with English subtitles. Recommended for ages 8+

FUTUREWAVE

Since its inception in 2010, the SIFF FutureWave Committee has grown into an exceptionally active and exciting aspect of SIFF Programming and Outreach.

Comprised of 10 diverse students from across the Seattle Metro area, the committee makes film more accessible for young film enthusiasts, planning events, hosting screenings, and promoting awareness of the SIFF world that has exciting programming for their age group. The FutureWave Committee hosts the SIFF FutureWave page on Facebook, which interested teens can “Like” for more information on upcoming FutureWave events. Youth aged 15-20 can email futurewave@siff.net for an application to join the 2014/2015 SIFF FutureWave Committee.

SIFF is a participating TeenTix venue. TeenTix are available on the day of any regularly priced film in the Festival, as well as at SIFF Cinema throughout the year.

For its sixth year, SIFF has selected a jury of five high school students to view all eight FutureWave feature films and award their favorite with the Youth Jury Award for Best FutureWave Feature.

FutureWave Jury: Cooper Castelle, Daniel Young, Nora Wangsness, Rachel Mallasch, Samuel Cleary

Dear White People

USA 2014

Directed by Justin Simien

Appropriate for teens 15 and up. Contains language and intense situations.

God Help the Girl

United Kingdom 2014

Directed by Stuart Murdoch

Appropriate for teens 13 and up. Contains language and sexuality.

Mary is Happy, Mary is Happy

Thailand 2013

Directed by Nawapol Thamrongrattanarit

Appropriate for teens 13 and up.

Patema Inverted

Japan 2013

Directed by Yasuhiro Yoshiura

Appropriate for teens 13 and up.

Rhymes for Young Ghouls

Canada (Québec) 2013

U.S. PREMIERE

Directed by Jeff Barnaby

Appropriate for teens 17 and up. Contains scenes of violence, nudity, and sexuality.

Shake the Dust

USA 2014

WORLD PREMIERE

Directed by Adam Sjöberg

Appropriate for teens 13 and up. Contains language.

Touch of the Light

Taiwan 2012

Directed by Jung-Chi Chang

Appropriate for teens 13 and up.

We Are the Best!

Sweden 2013

Directed by Lukas Moodysson

Appropriate for teens 13 and up.

Capitol Hill | Seattle Center | Stone Way

hand rolled, honey water boiled, generously seeded, wood-fired bagels

Top 10 Bagels in AmericaEpicurious

The Joan Miró of Bagel BakeriesCity Arts

Best BagelsSeattle Weekly

FUTUREWAVE SHORTS AND BEST OF NFFTY

SIFF is proud to present FutureWave Shorts 2014, a program of new films created by filmmakers younger than 19 years old, whose talents celebrate the creative possibilities of the art form.

For a second year, we are also showcasing a selection of the best films from the National Film Festival for Talented Youth (NFFTY), the largest youth film festival in the world, which is presented annually in Seattle.

These inspiring original short films represent some of the best short filmmaking from around the world. Also included in the program will be the J. Michael Award winner from the Seattle Times Three-Minute Masterpiece digital film contest.

The WaveMaker Award for Excellence in Youth Filmmaking will be presented to a film chosen in recognition of its artistic and technical achievement. In addition to the recognition award, The Prodigy Camp will also be providing a full scholarship to their weeklong, immersive overnight film camp for youth ages 12-18 held in late July.

3-Minute Masterpieces

Youth Winner

USA, 2014, 3 minutes

How hard could it be to make a threeminute film? We challenged you to find out.

Air Pressure

USA, 2013, 8 minutes

Directors: Leo Pfeifer, Coleman Anderson Long after a disastrous experience at the Balloon Animal World Championships, an old man struggles to regain his youthful confidence.

Black Rock Creek

USA, 2013, 6 minutes

Director: Malone Lumarda

A young girl takes a mystical walk along beautiful Black Rock Creek.

City Series: Seattle

USA, 2014, 4 minutes

Director: Miles Crist

A glimpse at the city of Seattle in the vein of ‘city symphonies’ from the 1920s.

Clapping For The Wrong Reasons

USA, 2014, 11 minutes

Director: Khidr Joseph

Experience the effects of gentrification on Bedford-Stuyvesant through the eyes of its community.

Dave’s Wild Life

United Kingdom, 2013, 8 minutes

Director: Samuel de Ceccatty Dave is a lonely and socially awkward retail assistant who leads a seemingly uneventful life. He dreams of having his own wildlife show, and transforms his otherwise mundane life in an adventure by imagining undiscovered urban creatures.

The Dead State

Canada, 2013, 7 minutes

Director: Maxim Moskale Kleinburg is under zombie attack. Almost everyone got bitten except for two little boys who must discover a cure before it is too late.

Dresses - Painting Roses

USA, 2014, 3 minutes

Director: Tim Hendrix

An experimental music video featuring the band Dresses as they perform in a mystical, miniature land full of skeletons.

Espero? (Hope?)

United Kingdom, 2014, 5 minutes

Director: Yifan Hu

Gaia, our planet Earth, met humankind years and years ago, and then problems ensued.

Listen Up Kids

USA, 2014, 1 minute

Directors: Gus Meyer, Liam Barry An experiment in rhythm.

Max’s Last Chance!

USA, 2013, 6 minutes

Director: Patrick Winston

Max and Kelly are known for being the truest besties that came out of Idyllwild Arts, but Max wants more.

A Purrfect Pair

Canada, 2013, 4 minutes

Director: Gwyneth Christoffel

A dog and a cat spy each other at the veterinarian’s office and instantly fall in love and after they are ripped apart imagine what their lives together might be like.

Quicksand

USA, 2013, 7 minutes

Director: Lance Oppenheim

An elderly gentleman attempts to retrieve forgotten memories while battling the progression and regression of the cycles of life.

The Sempiternal

Malaysia, 2014, 2 minutes

Director: Ainan Celeste Cawley

A man comes home, late at night, and parks his car in a lonely car park. As he walks to his home, he encounters a horror he could never have expected.

Space Girl

USA, 2013, 7 minutes

Directors: Sam Gorman, Si Affron

A young girl’s trip to her grandmother’s house takes an unexpected turn when she shares a story from her adventurous youth.

While We’re Asleep

USA, 2013, 7 minutes

Director: Summer Matthews

These kids are experts in explaining and exploring the world of dreams.

DAVE’S WILD LIFE

FLY FILMMAKING CHALLENGE

Fresh Pair

Director: Norma Straw

Producer: Ruthann Taylor Lopez

Screenwriter: Eric Perret

Cinematographer: Angela Bernardoni

Editor: Graeme Lowry

Music: David Hrivnak

Cast: Jessica Aceti, Owuor Arunga and the Macklorettes

SIFF’s Fly Filmmaking Challenge has regularly showcased the blossoming talents of the Seattle filmmaking scene. For the 40th Anniversary, SIFF has changed things up a bit, challenging five local production companies to create short films inspired by the theme “Seattle, I Love You.”

With the Commercialize Seattle initiative, these production houses are making commercial products for major corporations seen on TV and online, but do they have what it takes to create a 5-to-7-minute narrative or documentary short? Each team was given the charge to create an original short love story with Seattle as a character, background, or inspiration. All films must also incorporate one of these five Festival venues: Harvard Exit Theatre, Egyptian Theatre, Moore Theatre, SIFF Film Center, or SIFF Cinema Uptown. Their creative visions have pulled out all the stops and this celebration of cinema and Seattle is a not-to-be-missed event.

MONDAY, MAY 26, 2:30PM

SIFF CINEMA UPTOWN

SATURDAY, JUNE 7, 3:30PM

SIFF CINEMA UPTOWN

A woman’s simple decision to set herself on a new path leads her to discover Seattle’s rich emotional landscape, and her possible place within it.

B47 Studios features an award-winning team of directors, designers, creatives, and technical producers overseeing video productions and webcasts across all locations and genres. Their production repertoire includes commercial, industrial, case studies, product promotion, documentaries, corporate communications, live event coverage, along with original and branded entertainment content.

Hannah & Otto

Director: Chris Volckmann

Producer: John Gerard

Screenwriter: Chris Volckmann

Cinematographer: Joel Voelker

Editor: Chris Volckmann

Music: Eric Nielsen

Cast: Conner Marx, Trin Miller

A story of happenstance, and how the most important moments of our lives are only made possible by seemingly insignificant decisions.

Launched in 2007, We Are Royale creates designs that transcend medium and technology to invent creative solutions for their clients. Their collective of directors, designers, animators, developers, editors, and producers are all led by the single vision of creating engaging experiences that influence the behavior of audiences and make them smile in the process. Past clients include Oreo, Toyota, and Nike.

Open Mouth

Director: Randy Walker

Producers: Jessica Aceti, Jennifer Shainin

Screenwriters: Randy Walker, Cast

Cinematographer: Chris Bell

Editors: Jennifer Shainin, Randy Walker, Jessica Aceti

Music: John Aguilar, djblesOne, emecks, El Mizell

Cast: Lloyd Hammond, Vickie Williams, Christopher Laranang, Saleemah Shabazz, Tiana Lee

What do you do when you’re trying to find love and joy but you don’t know how, or you’re out of practice? You open your mouth and you yell and you laugh and you kiss. And it might not work out the first time, but so what?

ForeignAmerican Pictures boasts a crossbreed of skill-sets, ranging from graphic design and motion graphics to directing, producing, editing and illustration. They aim to create memorable stories with authentic performances that resonate on a human level. Since its formation in 2003, ForeignAmerican Pictures has released two feature films, Agave and Apart From That, and has done commercial work for clients ranging from Starbucks to Walt Disney.

Parties, Concerts, Weddings, Corporate Events, Festivals, Holiday Lighting...We do it all! Contact us today and find out how we can help make your event unforgettable.

Sea Folk

Directors: Morgan Henry, Josh Hayward

Producer: Paul Williamson

Cinematographer: Morgan Henry

Editor: Slavka Kuehn

Music: Andrew Swanson

Seattle was built on sea shanties and the bones of mariners; it’s impossible to fully grasp the city without spending time on the waters that surround her. Sea Folk welcomes you into the community of people who spend their lives there. A diver festooned with tattoos, rowers pulling through a biblical downpour, a stoic tug crew, and a handful of colorful sailors are a small part of the family of Sea Folk. Digital Kitchen’s unique approach of blending digital, film, experiential design and rich brand storytelling provides creative business solutions for a roster of clients. Founded in 1995, the awardwinning agency features a collective of artists and producers that focus on the creation of integrated connections between brands and consumers. The agency has received acclaim for its opening title sequences including “True Blood,” “Dexter,” “Six Feet Under,” and “Nip/Tuck.”

Secret

Director: Tony Fulgham

Producer: Bobby McHugh

Screenwriter: Tony Fulgham

Cinematographer: E. Ryan McMackin

Editor: Andy Seaver

Music: Madrona Music

Cast: Russell Hodgkinson, Avital Ash, Gretchen Krich, Tyler Trerise

Watching his neighbors navigate the treacherous waters of young love, George is moved to look at his marriage of thirty years

Since its launch in 2005, World Famous has been dedicated to crafting visual storytelling that embraces live action, animation, and creative advertising. Their inventive staff of directors, designers, musicians and artists tirelessly work to stay up-to-date on developing trends and technologies. World Famous has been spotlighted by the Northwest’s most important tastemakers, and recently won the prestigious Best of Show ADDY Awards in Washington and Utah.

This program is made possible with the generous support of Seattle’s film community including:

snoqualmie indian tribe

Proud to Invest in the Pacific

Northwest

Community and The Seattle International Film Festival

Caring about Community, Stewardship, and Culture

National Parks Conservancy Association | KUOW

Seattle Aquarium | Seattle Arts Museum

Pacific Northwest Ballet | Woodland Park Zoo

Swedish Hospital | University of Washington

Seattle Symphony | Mountains to Sound Greenway Trust

Visit the tribe’s website at www.snoqualmietribe.us to learn more about the tribe’s community healthcare services, investment efforts, and ways you can be involved.

SUPERFLY AND NATIVE SHORTS SHOWCASE

SIFF FutureWave empowers youth to work collaboratively as creative storytellers and positive voices in their communities. This mission is embodied in the SuperFly Filmmaking Experience in a partnership with Longhouse Media, a Native-run nonprofit that works in tribal communities. In this program, young filmmakers come together to express themselves using multimedia and digital tools.

On May 29th, 50 young filmmakers from around the country will convene in Seattle to participate in the 9th Annual SuperFly, a 36-hour filmmaking workshop organized by Longhouse Media. Divided into five teams, the filmmakers are provided with the production tools to storyboard, direct, shoot, and edit a collection of unique stories based in the ancestral lands of the Snoqualmie, the People of the Moon. Guided by talented mentors such as Sterlin Harjo, Jeff Barnaby, Adrian Baker, Lou Karsen, Them Savages, and BC Campbell, the students will dive into community stories including the famous Snoqualmie waterfalls, racecar driving, and edgy contemporary narratives. Each SuperFly team will have less than two days to research, storyboard, shoot, and edit their films, which will then premiere four hours after completion.

Previous SuperFly films (based on scripts by Sherman Alexie, Sterlin Harjo, Peter Bratt, Andrew Okpeaha MacLean, Sierra Ornelas, and tribal elders) have played at festivals around the country, inspiring other communities to use digital media for education and social activism.

The mission of Longhouse Media is to catalyze indigenous people and communities to use media as a tool for self-expression, cultural preservation, and social change. Longhouse Media draws from both traditional and modern forms of artistic expression, storytelling, teaching, and inquiry.

Join us for the SuperFly 2014 premiere on May 31st at 4:00pm at the Harvard Exit as we celebrate the 9th Anniversary of this unique program in partnership with the Snoqualmie Tribal People.

Injunuity: Injunuity

USA, 2014, 4 minutes

Director: Adrian Baker

In a world increasingly short on real answers, where short term fixes are preferred over long term solutions and greed is championed over compassion, its time we looked to Native wisdom to lead the way. It is time for some Injunuity.

Sikumi

USA, 2008, 15 minutes

Director: Andrew Okpeaha MacLean

An Inuit takes his dog team out onto the frozen Arctic Ocean hunting for seals only to inadvertently stumble upon a murder.

Wakening

Canada, 2013, 9 minutes

Director: Danis Goulet

A lone Cree wanderer searches an urban wasteland to find the ancient and dangerous Weetigo.

SIFF IN THE SCHOOLS

FutureWave: In School and Beyond…

FutureWave offers youth and educators a direct link both to the Festival and the local filmmaking community. Celebrating two complementary activities—film viewing and filmmaking—FutureWave includes compelling, relevant, and enjoyable films alongside meaningful workshops for youth. Together, these components advance SIFF’s leadership role in creating an audience that is more informed, aware, and alive.

For more information on any of these programs email futurewave@siff.net

FILMMAKER VISITS

SIFF sees the arrival of more than 200 international filmmakers during the Festival and throughout the school year. SIFF brings many of these artists into classrooms across the Puget Sound to share their real-world experiences.

SCHOOL SCREENINGS

Films are carefully selected across a broad range of content areas and learning levels to engage students and teachers. Screenings may occur at SIFF Cinema and occasionally in a theatrical setting at schools.

ALL CITY YOUTH MEDIA

SIFF Education provides 2- through 8-week filmmaking workshops to schools and community-based organizations throughout Seattle. This program is designed to bolster academic classwork and student involvement.

TEACHER TRAININGS

SIFF Education provides technical trainings to educators throughout Washington. In addition, we collaborate with organizations such as KCTS in providing year-round media literacy workshops and support to teachers.

CRASH KIDS

SIFF Crash Kids is a movie production challenge, taking participants from concept to screening in one day. Crash Kids is open to anyone 9-19 years of age and their parents or mentors. The objective of Crash Kids is to engage local schools, youth, and their families with cinema in a more meaningful and hands-on way.

FESTIVAL FORUMS

SATURDAY, MAY 17 The Editor’s Toolkit

11:00am–1:00pm (Film Center Theater)

Post-production magic and generated imagery is more than just eye candy; it can be integral to the film’s success. SIFF and Women in Film: Seattle invite you to explore with us the postproduction side of filmmaking: editorial technique and decision, color grading, and visual effects (animation, compositing, keying, mattes, and green screen). Copresented by Women in Film Seattle

SATURDAY, MAY 17 Inside LAIKA Animation

2:00pm–3:30pm (Film Center Theater/Classroom)

In his presentation featuring rarely viewed behind-the-scenes footage, Mark Shapiro will talk about the remarkable creativity at LAIKA, the studio behind ParaNorman (2012), Coraline (2009), and the upcoming Boxtrolls (2014).

SATURDAY, MAY 17 The Changing Face of Documentary Filmmaking

4:00pm–5:30pm (Film Center Theater)

Join visiting documentary filmmakers for an illuminating discussion on the art of their art form.

SUNDAY, MAY 18 The Alchemy of Film Scoring

12:00pm–1:30pm (Film Center Theater)

Dissecting the ingredients to what makes a strong film score, and exploring how directors and composers communicate to create the magic that elevates action, evokes emotion, and makes film sing. Copresented by SAG–AFTRA

Our Festival Forums set the stage for engaging discussions, extraordinary demonstrations, and hands-on workshops for a variety of ages and experience levels. Don’t miss these great opportunities to deepen your connection to the art of cinema!

Most forums are $8 for general audience and free for SIFF Members / Passholders. Visit SIFF.net for session prices and expanded information on panelists.

SUNDAY, MAY 18 Get Animated: Animation Workshop for Kids (ages 8-14)

1:00pm–3:00pm (Film Center Classroom)

Create your own character and learn how to animate it. Using flipbooks, participants will learn the basics of stop motion and GET ANIMATED!

SUNDAY, MAY 18 How To Make a Living Creating Media

2:00pm–3:30pm (Film Center Theater)

A filmmaker needs to diversify their moneymaking projects outside of independent films. A panel of experts discuss additional revenue sources around the media industry.

FRIDAY, MAY 23 Short Filmmakers Happy Hour & Panel: Making the Most of Any Festival

4:30pm-6:00pm (Film Center Classroom)

Join us for important tips from fellow filmmakers that will make your experience at any festival an exceptional one. Happy Hour beverages provided.

SUNDAY, MAY 25 Crash Cinema @ Folklife

9:00am–7:00pm (Film Center Theater)

Make a film in a day with a group of filmmakers using the Folklife Festival as your backdrop. All films screen at the 6:00pm at the Film Center Theater. Free program.

SATURDAY, MAY 31 Digital Storytelling in the Classroom: The Hammersmith App and Other New Teaching Tools

9:00am–12:00pm (Film Center Classroom)

Participants will get hands on experience with an exciting new app that facilitates filmmaking within a community. Clock hours will be available for participating educators. Free for teachers who RSVP to education@siff.net.

FESTIVAL FORUMS

SATURDAY, MAY 31 SIFF Catalyst Panels

12:00pm–4:00pm (Film Center Theater)

SIFF Catalyst offers a full day of public panels & dynamic, thought-provoking discussions around the dual themes of co-creation and community in the new digital space.

12:00pm: Produce Smarter: How to Finance Your Short Film Without Using Your Credit Card

1:15pm: Keynote by Emily Best (Seed&Spark)

2:30pm: Catalyst Filmmaker Panel

4:00pm: Catalyst Happy Hour

SATURDAY MAY 31 Catalyst: Produce Smarter: How to Finance Your Short Film Without Using Your Credit Card

12:00pm–1:00pm (Film Center Theater)

Screenwriter-attorney Steve Edmiston will share over a decade of lessons learned about finding and raising money for low budgets in the rapidly evolving filmmaking ecosystem.

SATURDAY MAY 31 Catalyst: Keynote by Emily Best (Seed&Spark)

1:15pm–2:15pm (Film Center Theater)

Emily Best, founder and CEO of Seed&Spark, believes that storytelling is about expanding imagination and that films are not just art, but also business ventures—which means filmmakers are creative CEOs. Join her as she discusses the importance of audience engagement, the next wave of digital distribution, and why the future is bright for diverse voices in filmmaking.

SATURDAY, MAY 31 Catalyst: Filmmaker Panel

2:30pm–4:00pm (Film Center Theater)

Join the six Catalyst filmmakers (and some of their producers) as we discuss how they each brought their unique vision to the screen. From script development to production to finding an audience on the festival circuit and beyond, this is sure to be one of the most engaging and informative panels of the festival.

SUNDAY, JUNE 1 The Emergence of Native Filmmaking

1:00pm–2:00pm (Film Center Theater)

Visiting and local First Nations filmmakers discuss the contemporary trends and challenges of capturing their own stories.

SUNDAY, JUNE 1 Successful Genre Filmmaking

2:30pm–3:30pm (Film Center Theater)

Join producers Kelly Martin Wagner and Nick Phillips (Beneath) for an illuminating session focused on genre filmmaking. In addition to producing, they also have years of experience to share in development and casting of genre properties.

SATURDAY, JUNE 7 TheFilmSchool: How to Correctly Pitch Your Project

10:00am–11:30am (Film Center Theater)

Learn the most effective strategies for pitching and selling your media project.

SATURDAY, JUNE 7 Filmmaking Across the African Diaspora

11:00am–12:00pm (Film Center Classroom)

Join our attending filmmakers for an in-depth exploration of the current trends in African and African American filmmaking.

SATURDAY, JUNE 7 TheFilmSchool: How to Prepare for the Investor Conversation

12:00pm–1:00pm (Film Center Theater)

Learn directly from investors how to communicate your project to them and what types of projects get serious consideration.

SATURDAY, JUNE 7 The Future of Film Criticism

1:00pm–2:30pm (Film Center Classroom)

Eric Kohn and film critics from across the country weigh in on their thoughts around the fate of film criticism in our digital world.

SATURDAY, JUNE 7 TheFilmSchool: Protecting your IP & Negotiating the Deal

1:30pm–2:30pm (Film Center Theater)

Entertainment lawyers break down what you need to know about licensing for mobile and digital and negotiating a deal with studios for your films.

SATURDAY, JUNE 7 The Future of Distribution

3:00pm–4:30pm (Film Center Theater)

Indiewire’s Eric Kohn leads panelists from the world of distribution on what they see the future may be for audiences and filmmakers alike.

SHORTSFEST WEEKEND SHORT FILMS

Too often short films are viewed as apprentice works, a practical workshop for the filmmaker to ply his craft before embarking upon a career in feature films. And while there is certainly some truth in this observation, it belies the fact that feature and short films are two very different cinematic forms. With short films, the filmmaker is freed from most, if not all, commercial constraints. Indeed, the only constraint is time— less than 30 minutes please. In exchange for this freedom, short film practitioners must distill their creative vision to its most vital essence, without wasting a single frame of film, and take deliberate care to achieve a certain unique, singular effect. Year after year, the most original cinematic work emerges in these fleeting, yet no less intense, flashes of inspiration.

Every short film at the Seattle International Film Festival is eligible for both the Golden Space Needle Audience Award and Jury Award. The Golden Space Needle prizewinner will be determined by audience balloting.

Our Shorts Competition jurors will choose winners in the Narrative, Animation and Documentary categories. Each jury winner will receive $1,000 and also qualify to enter their respective Short Film category for the Academy Awards® .

Awards

ShortsFest Opening Night

THU MAY 22 7:00PM

SIFF CINEMA UPTOWN

It is our great pleasure to open our ShortsFest weekend with this collection of superb short films from around the world that exemplify the art of storytelling in all its variety. Comedy and drama, live action and animation—these films prove that short is truly sweet. (86 minutes)

Box Walk

USA 2013, 16 minutes, Director: Tony Fulgham

The lessons learned by a quiet Eastern Washington teen reverberate into his adult life in this coming-of-age father-son tale.

Dawn

USA 2013, 18 minutes, Director: Rose McGowan

Dawn is a quiet young teenager who longs for something or someone to free her from her sheltered life.

Font Men

USA 2013, 7 minutes, Director: Dress Code

You’ve never heard of Jonathan Hoefler or Tobias Frere-Jones but you’ve seen their work—they make the fonts used by everyone from the New York Times to the President of the United States.

Marilyn Myller

USA 2013, 6 minutes, Director: Michael Please

Marilyn Myller seeks to create the perfect sculpture—It will be epic. It will be tear-jerkingly profound. It will be perfect.

The Numberlys

USA 2013, 12 minutes, Directors: William Joyce, Brandon Oldenburg

Friends 1, 2, 3, 4, and 5 live in a world where there is no alphabet—only numbers. One day, they decide they want something different and set out to create each letter of the alphabet with color, creativity...and jellybeans.

The Phone Call

United Kingdom 2013, 20 minutes, Director: Mat Kirkby

North American Premiere

During a small amount of time, a shy operator (Sally Hawkins) at a crisis hotline center forms a powerful and emotional bond with a depressed older man (Jim Broadbent).

Rain

Sweden 2014, 7 minutes, Director Johannes Stjärne Nilsson

World Premiere

A woman wakes up to a pouring rain. A rain that will follow her through the rest of the day.

Sponsored by Chris Newell

Alone With You

MON MAY 26 11:30AM

These films showcase internal struggles to find acceptance, love, and understanding. Sometimes we must face these battles alone, but sometimes we are lucky enough to have someone by our side. (96 minutes)

Closet

United Kingdom 2013, 11 minutes, Director: Christopher Gore

A forbidden love story set in a brutish high school unfurls around a wardrobe that appears on a desolate beach.

Looms

USA 2013, 15 minutes, Director: Funk Brothers

Alone with nobody to pass on a family legacy, a farmer struggles to find purpose in his life.

Our Lad

United Kingdom 2013, 15 minutes, Director: Rachna Suri

Ali stands out—one of the few British Muslims in the Armed Forces. Returning home from Afghanistan unexpectedly, he faces renewed tensions from his family and community.

Silent Treatment

United Kingdom 2013, 10 minutes, Director: Mark Lobatto

In a dull waiting room, two strangers are compelled to connect in an encounter where actions speak louder than words.

Tryouts

USA 2013, 14 minutes, Director: Susana Casares

Being a teenager isn’t easy, especially for Nayla, a Muslim American girl who wants to join her new high school’s cheer leading squad.

Whale Valley

Denmark 2013, 16 minutes, Director: Gudmundur Gudmundsson

Two brothers share a tumultuous relationship amidst the discovery of a beached whale near their hometown.

When You Were Mine

USA 2014, 15 minutes, Director: Michelle M. Witten

World Premiere

A couple, Ian and Anita, head to the desert to spend their last few days together, while something ominous their way comes.

SIFF CINEMA UPTOWN

ALT World

THU MAY 22 9:00PM

Surreal stories, mythological moments, and formal experiments that are sure to blow your mind. (91 minutes)

All Vows

USA 2013, 10 minutes,

Director: Bill Morrison

Ancient archival films depict an unknowable future reflected through a dissolving historic document.

Crème 21

USA 2013, 10 minutes,

Director: Eve Heller

A vision of heavenly bodies culled from old features and educational movies.

Diana

USA 2014, 7 minutes,

Director: Erin O. Kay

World Premiere

Two travelers search the world for their missing friend, then invoke strange and powerful magic to bring her back to life.

ELSA merdelamerdelamer

USA 2013, 4 minutes,

Director: Abigail Child

Inspired by an event where Man Ray and Marcel Duchamp made a film of a baroness shaving her pubic hair.

Exterior Extended

Austria 2013, 9 minutes,

Director: Siegfried A. Fruhauf Interior and exterior spaces blur in a frenzied staccato of layered digital imagery, assembled from 36 individual frames.

Parasit

Austria 2013, 8 minutes,

Director: Nikki Schuster

Inside a desert cactus, vibrating insect wings transform into elements of toxic beauty.

Amazing Journeys

SAT

All aboard this tour of amazing people and places. From the pioneering women at the dawn of computers to a young Burkinabe boy who wants to be a superhero, these short will take you places that have to be seen to be believed. (91 minutes)

the point.

Austria 2013, 5 minutes,

Directors: Thomas Brandstätter, Andrea Maurer

A joyful excursion into the history of science, and the concept of time, in animated films.

Radio Plutus

USA 2014, 5 minutes,

Director: Steve Demas

World Premiere

The freedom of the American road meets the sticky lure of nostalgia.

Real Ethereal

USA 2011, 13 minutes,

Director: Evan Mann

David Lynch meets Matthew Barney in this trip through a foamy landscape of cotton balls and stop-motion animations.

Revolve

USA 2014, 8 minutes,

Director: Jon Behrens

World Premiere

Everything is moving and everything is turning.

Walk With Me

Uganda 2014, 12 minutes,

Directors: Johan Oettinger, Peter Muhhumuza Tukei

Daydreams become animated toys in this playful journey through childhood’s vivid imaginary world.

Beauty of Mathematics

Canada 2013, 2 minutes, Directors: Yann Pineill, Nicolas Lefaucheux

A fabulous split-screen portrait of everyday events and the mathematics behind it.

The Computers

USA 2014, 20 minutes, Director: Kate McMahon World Premiere

This is the inspiring story of how six gifted young women programmed the first all-electronic digital computer, the ENIAC, as part of a secret WWII project.

Kay Pacha

Peru 2013, 13 minutes, Director: Alvaro Sarmiento North American Premiere

Maribel and Carmencita, two indigenous girls who work in Cuzco Central Square taking pictures with the tourists in exchange for tips, frame this stirring tale.

Love. Love. Love.

Russia 2013, 11 minutes, Director: Sandhya Daisy Sundaram

Through the endless winters, every year, her love takes new shapes and forms.

Twaaga

Burkina Faso 2013, 30 minutes, Director: Cedric Ido

Eight-year-old Manu loves comics and dreams of becoming a superhero, to be a driving force for change just like President Thomas Sankara.

Unfold

Ireland 2013, 15 minutes, Director: Steven Daly

Coping with unexpected changes in his life, Mark meets Sara, who opens his eyes to a new perspective of the world around him.

SIFF CINEMA UPTOWN

SIFF CINEMA UPTOWN

Animation4Adults

Join our side of animation superstars as they endeavor to show you to strange, new, and exciting visions in short film form. (86 minutes)

Ab Ovo

Poland 2013, 5 minutes,

Director: Anita Kwiatkowska-Naqvi

US Premiere

The body of a pregnant woman is a sculpture ceaselessly remodeled by a growing life.

The Chaperone

Canada 2013, 12 minutes,

Directors: Fraser Munden, Neil Rathbone

The true, previously untold story of a lone schoolteacher who fought off an entire motorcycle gang while chaperoning a middle school dance.

Confusion Through Sand

USA 2013, 12 minutes,

Director: Danny Madden

A nineteen-year-old finds himself alone in a hostile desert, scared as hell and trained to react.

Drunker Than a Skunk

USA 2013, 4 minutes, Director: Bill Plympton

The adaptation from a poem by Walt Curtis about a cowboy town that torments the local drunk.

Leviathan Ages

United Kingdom 2013, 4 minutes,

Director: Jon Yeo

Bound in an ancient celestial ballet, nine long-dead Kings arise to claim a fallen Emperor.

Mario

Netherlands 2014, 3 minutes,

Director: Tess Martin

World Premiere

Based on an Italian folk song, a soldier returns home only to discover his lover has left him.

Calling Card

These cinematic messages from around the world prove that the language of film is universal. (90 minutes)

Passer Passer

USA 2013, 4 minutes,

Director: Louis Morton

An animated ‘city symphony’ celebrates the hidden world of background noise.

Payada pa’Satan

Argentina 2013, 8 minutes,

Directors: Carlos Balseiro, Antonio Balseiro

When a Gaucho discovers a huge hole in the middle of the mountains, he concludes that Satan has made it to link hell and earth.

Stardust

Netherlands 2013, 4 minutes, Director: Mischa Rozema

Witness the beauty and wonders of interstellar space as Voyager 1 passes out of our solar system.

We Should Have Coffee Sometime

USA 2014, 6 minutes,

Directors: Maile Martinez, Lane Stroud

World Premiere

An animated meditation on the end of a very significant relationship.

Yearbook

USA 2013, 5 minutes,

Director: Bernardo Britto

A man is hired to compile the definitive history of human existence before the planet blows up.

Ziegenort

Poland 2013, 19 minutes,

Director: Tomasz Popakul

Fish Boy tries to fit in, but everybody can sense that he’s not from around here.

Afronauts

USA 2014, 15 minutes, Director: Frances Bodomo

Shortly after achieving independence, Zambia seeks to become the first country to launch a woman into space.

Hero

France 2013, 20 minutes, Director: Benoit Martin

During municipal elections, a small village wakes up to political graffiti. Teenage Maxime decides to claim this act to get the attention of the girl he loves.

How you doin’ boy? Voicemails from Gran’pa

USA 2013, 4 minutes, Director: William D. Caballero

A pint-sized elderly Latino Gran’pa leaves a series of humorous unanswered voicemails for his grandson Davy.

Koweit Market

North American Premiere

Democratic Republic of Congo 2013, 13 minutes, Director: Paul Shemisi

Experience the Koweit Market in downtown Kinshasa.

The Lottery

USA 2013, 9 minutes, Director: Shahir Daud

While waiting to board his plane so that he can immigrate to America, Augusto Ramirez recalls the three biggest regrets in his life.

Rhino Full Throttle

Germany 2013, 15 minutes, Director: Erik Schmitt

Bruno roams the streets of Berlin with his head full of questions, looking for what’s behind the many facades and surfaces, seeking the soul of the city, that little something that others might never notice.

Up on the Roof

United Kingdom 2013, 17 minutes, Director: Nour Wazzi

North American Premiere

A troubled young boy finds his rooftop escape jeopardized by the girl he pines for.

SIFF CINEMA UPTOWN SAT

SIFF CINEMA UPTOWN

Films by : Amy Enser and Drew Christie; Sihanouk Mariona; Laura Jean Cronin; and Neely Goniodsky

Futurewave Shorts / Best Of NFFTY The Family Picture Show

SAT MAY 24 12:00PM

Bring the whole family to the cinema for a playful set of animated, live action, and documentary short films curated for the young and the young at heart. (80 minutes)

Cloudy Goats

Iran 2014, 6 minutes,

Director: Hamid Karimian

A goat transforms the spooky sounds of the forest around him as they fade into a playful dream of a piper and a myriad of colorful goats.

First Prize

USA 2013, 10 minutes,

Director: Kevin McMullin

A boy finds something amazing in the forest and no one believes him. It will be a perfect exhibit to unveil at the science fair.

Forward, March!

France 2013, 4 minutes,

Directors: Pierrick Barbin, Rimelle Khayat, Loic Le Goff, Guillaume Lenoel, Garrick Rawlingson

A group of London Guards are headed for high-flying hijinks when an unexpected member joins their band.

Mops & Ollie

Denmark 2013, 9 minutes,

Director: Christian Kuntz

North American Premiere

An alien creature lives on a tiny planet collecting garbage that falls from the intergalactic highway. But one day, something lands on his home that changes his life.

The Numberlys

USA 2013, 12 minutes, Directors: William Joyce, Brandon Oldenburg

Friends 1, 2, 3, 4, and 5 live in a world where there is no alphabet—only numbers. One day, they decide they want something different and set out to create each letter of the alphabet with color, creativity... and jellybeans.

The Pink Helmet Posse

USA 2014, 9 minutes, Directors: Kristelle Laroche, Ben Mullinkosson Pink tutus. Pink helmets. Pink skateboards. Skateboarding is not just for boys.

Practice Makes Perfect

USA 2013, 3 minutes,

Director: Devon Avery

When is a kiss more than a kiss?

... When it’s your first kiss.

The Smortlybacks

Switzerland 2013, 6 minutes,

Directors: Ted Sieger, Wouter Dierickx

On a tabletop mountain, a mahout and his strange herd make a surprising and neverending journey.

SpongeBob SquarePants:

The Great Jelly Rescue USA 2013, 7 minutes,

Director: Brent Young

When Bikini Bottom’s jellyfish population is threatened by Plankton’s maniacal plans, it’s up to SpongeBob, Patrick, and Sandy to save the day.

Super Secret

USA 2014, 3 minutes,

Director: Nnenna Ijiomaj

World Premiere

The story of a supervillain father and his daughter. On her 13th birthday, he discovers her deep, dark secret.

Swan Cake

USA 2013, 6 minutes, Directors:

Amos Sussigan, Nikitha Mannam

A chubby French baker liberates the graceful ballerina within when she combines her pastries with her heartfelt imagination.

Tamara

USA 2013, 5 minutes, Directors:

Jason Marino, Craig Kitzmann

A music box unlocks a little girl’s passion for dance no matter the odds.

MON MAY 26 1:30PM

The next generation of filmmakers has extraordinary talent and shares their own unique voices. These international shorts from filmmakers 18 and under point the way to an exceptional cinematic tomorrow. (80 minutes)

3-Minute Masterpieces Youth Winner

USA 2014, 3 minutes

How hard could it be to make a three-minute film?

We challenged you to find out.

Air Pressure

USA 2013, 8 minutes,

Directors: Leo Pfeifer, Coleman Anderson

Long after a disastrous experience at the Balloon Animal World Championships, an old man struggles to regain his youthful confidence.

Black Rock Creek

USA 2013, 6 minutes,

Director: Malone Lumarda

A young girl takes a mystical walk along beautiful Black Rock Creek.

City Series: Seattle

USA 2014, 4 minutes, Director: Miles Crist

A glimpse at the city of Seattle in the vein of ‘city symphonies’ from the 1920s.

Clapping For The Wrong Reasons

USA 2014, 11 minutes, Director: Khidr Joseph Experience the effects of gentrification on BedfordStuyvesant through the eyes of its community.

Dave’s Wild Life

United Kingdom 2013, 8 minutes,

Director: Samuel de Ceccatty

Dave is a lonely and socially awkward retail assistant who leads a seemingly uneventful life. He dreams of having his own wildlife show, and transforms his otherwise mundane life in an adventure by imagining undiscovered urban creatures.

The Dead State

Canada 2013, 7 minutes,

Director: Maxim Moskale Kleinburg is under zombie attack. Almost everyone got bitten except for two little boys who must discover a cure before it is too late.

Dresses - Painting Roses

USA 2014, 3 minutes,

Director: Tim Hendrix

An experimental music video featuring the band Dresses as they perform in a mystical, miniature land full of skeletons.

Espero? (Hope?)

United Kingdom 2014, 5 minutes,

Director: Yifan Hu

Gaia, our planet Earth, met humankind years and years ago, and then problems ensued.

Listen Up Kids

USA 2014, 1 minute,

Directors: Gus Meyer, Liam Barry

An experiment in rhythm.

Max’s Last Chance!

USA 2013, 6 minutes, Director: Patrick Winston Max and Kelly are known for being the truest besties that came out of Idyllwild Arts, but Max wants more.

A Purrfect Pair

Canada 2013, 4 minutes,

Director: Gwyneth Christoffel

A dog and a cat spy each other at the veterinarian’s office and instantly fall in love and after they are ripped apart imagine what their lives together might be like.

Quicksand

USA 2013, 7 minutes,

Director: Lance Oppenheim

An elderly gentleman attempts to retrieve forgotten memories while battling the progression and regression of the cycles of life.

The Sempiternal

Malaysia 2014, 2 minutes,

Director: Ainan Celeste Cawley

A man comes home, late at night, and parks his car in a lonely car park. As he walks to his home, he encounters a horror he could never have expected.

Space Girl

USA 2013, 7 minutes, Directors: Sam Gorman, Si Affron

A young girl’s trip to her grandmother’s house takes an unexpected turn when she shares a story from her adventurous youth.

While We’re Asleep

USA 2013, 7 minutes,

Director: Summer Matthews

These kids are experts in explaining and exploring the world of dreams.

SIFF CINEMA UPTOWN

SIFF CINEMA UPTOWN

Outside the Box International Male

FRI MAY 23 7:00PM

Through ritual, law, loss, and experience, the diverse lives of these gay men have been forever changed. (87 minutes)

Aban + Khorshid

USA 2013, 13 minutes, Director: Darwin Serink

An intimate portrait of two imprisoned Iranian men, remembering the world in which they met and fell in love.

Best United Kingdom 2013, 3 minutes, Director: William Oldroyd

A groom finds himself at a crossroads just moments before walking down the aisle.

Dragula

USA 2013, 25 minutes, Director: Frank Meli

When a talent show is promoted at his high school, one awkward boy finds solace in an unlikely place that he can use to express his identity and participate in the event.

The Goat

South Africa 2014, 13 minutes, Director: John Trengove

North American Premiere

Ritualistic isolation is said to be the cure for homosexuality and the path to manhood in some parts of Africa. The question is how will one boy come out of it?

A Last Farewell

Sweden 2013, 13 minutes, Director: Casper Andreas

An aging author seeks to reconcile with his pregnant daughter even while being haunted by his late husband.

Maikaru

USA 2014, 7 minutes, Director: Amanda Harryman

US Premiere

One Seattle male reflects upon the harsh street life he dealt with during his childhood and the push he has had to make it out and find a sense of normalcy.

Refuge

USA 2014, 13 minutes, Director: Melanie Aronson

World Premiere

Douglas Turnbaugh, a 78-year-old Manhattan intellectual with a hidden passion for whips, bondage, and younger men, relives the evolution of his sexuality.

SUN MAY 25 6:00PM

These filmmakers really know how to push your buttons, challenge your opinions, and make you sit on the edge of your seat. (86 minutes)

2 Girls 1 Cake

Denmark 2013, Director: Jens Dahl

24-year-old Julie stands face to face with unbearable injustice when two girls reunite after a traumatic near-death experience.

Bernard The Great

Canada 2013, 10 minutes, Directors: Marie-Hèléne Viens, Philippe Lupien

It’s Bernard’s birthday, but he is not happy about it. In a strange world where adults are selfish and indifferent, Bernard doesn’t want to grow up if it means to become like them.

Cruising Electric (1980)

USA 2014, 1 minute, Director: Brumby Boylston Greatest. Movie tie-in. Ever.

Here I Am ... There You Are ...

Israel 2013, 12 minutes, Director: Dikla Jika Elkaslassy

Shifting power dynamics create confusion for a couple during foreplay, forcing them to re-evaluate what really controls them.

Isle de Jean Charles

USA 2014, 9 minutes, Director: Emmanuel Vaughan-Lee

Two Louisiana families face a future where storms, rising seas, and coastal erosion threaten to wash their homes away.

Krisha

USA 2013, 15 minutes, Director: Trey Edward Shults

When Krisha decides to join her family for a holiday dinner, tensions escalate while she struggles to keep her own demons at bay.

Scent of a Woman

USA 2013, 12 minutes, Director: Lauren Savoy

When Chloe’s new boyfriend cooks her his signature meal, Fettuccine Alfredo, she wants to admit to being lactose-intolerant, but decides to wait. But how long can she really keep her secret?

Security

South Africa 2013, 15 minutes, Director: Mark Middlewick

North American Premiere

A lonely security guard in a colossal shopping mall finds solace and security in a storefront mannequin.

SIFF CINEMA UPTOWN

SIFF CINEMA UPTOWN

Run, Jump And Getaway Ripped

From The Headlines

FRI MAY 23 12:30PM

Lan Yan

China/USA 2013, 14 minutes, Director: Danielle Schmidt

As high-rise developments threaten their building, the residents of the Shikumen area in Shanghai reflect upon their sense of closeness and community.

The Last Days of Peter Bergmann

Ireland 2013, 19 minutes, Director: Ciaran Cassidy

In 2009, Peter Bergmann arrived in the town of Sligo, Ireland and went to great lengths to ensure no one ever discovered who he was and where he came from.

Life After Manson

USA 2013, 25 minutes, Director: Olivia Klaus

A timely, intimate portrait of one of the world’s most infamous crimes and notorious killers.

The Lion’s Mouth Opens

USA 2013, 14 minutes, Director: Lucy Walker

A stunningly courageous young woman takes the boldest step imaginable, supported by her mother and loving friends.

Passing Ellenville

USA 2014, 17 minutes, Directors: Gene Fischer, Samuel Centore

World Premiere

Two transgender teens share their ambitions, their successes, and their struggles in rural upstate New York.

The Queen

Argentina 2013, 19 minutes, Director: Manuel Abramovich

North American Premiere

Memi prepares to become queen of the carnival. Lost in a world of grown-ups and trapped in her routine, she is torn between the glamour of pageant and the social pressure to become a winner.

FRI MAY 23 3:30PM

Whether they’re avoiding a shoot ‘em up, escaping dinosaurs, or jumping through time, these risk takers will keep you on the edge of your seat. (91 minutes)

La Canarda

Mexico 2013, 12 minutes, Director: Josh Soskin

A young boy experiences a jolt of violent reality during his first drug smuggle across the “Devil’s Highway” desert stretch between Arizona and Mexico.

Children of War (Bosha)

Iraq 2013, 10 minutes, Director: Mohamed Medo

A young boy’s imagination comes to life through his pencil drawings at a Baghdad orphanage.

Dog Food

USA 2013, 18 minutes, Director: Brian Crano

When a butcher loses his dog, he starts searching everywhere.

Gumshoe

USA 2013, 5 minutes, Director: Matt Steinauer

A hard-boiled tale following Gumshoe, a private eye hot on the trail of his missing partner. In this world of femme fatales and hired goons, the truth lies beneath.

The Gunfighter

USA 2014, 9 minutes, Director: Eric Kissack

A gunslinger walks into a bar, looking for a drink. What he finds instead is a building full of raunchy people, and an audible, bloodthirsty narrator (Nick Offerman).

In Passing Canada 2013, 5 minutes, Director: Alan Miller

A short film about a man who jumps off a building to end his life, and the woman he falls in love with on the way down.

The Life and Death of Tommy Chaos and Stacey Danger

USA 2013, 10 minutes, Director: Michael Lukk Litwak

Tommy and Stacey live for the adventures fighting dinosaurs, flying through outer space, and diving to the depths of the ocean, but can they do this forever?

Mr. Invisible

United Kingdom 2014, 14 minutes, Director: Kieran O’Brien

A lonely, disregarded old man seems invisible to the world around him. But when he journeys to the heart of London, being invisible proves to be his greatest weapon.

Sorry About Tomorrow

USA 2013, 8 minutes, Director: Motke Dapp

With his life spinning out of control, Baldwin turns to time travel and a coffee date 15 years in the past.

A notorious killer faces parole, China faces a new architecture, and a young girl wants to be crowned in these true stories from around the world. (97 minutes)

SIFF CINEMA UPTOWN

SIFF CINEMA UPTOWN

Seattle Supersonic Shorts

From dinosaurs to drones, with a dash of noir, the creativity of Seattle filmmakers is on clear view. (93 minutes)

3-Minute Masterpieces Winner

USA 2014, 3 minutes

How hard could it be to make a three-minute film? We challenged you to find out.

Dinosaurs and Sea Hawks

USA 2014, 5 minutes, Director: Linas Phillips

World Premiere

Sleeping under a bridge is a man and his dinosaur mask.

From the Sky

USA 2013, 18 minutes, Director: Ian Ebright

A humble father and son in the Middle East struggle to cope with the effect of drones.

The Green Room

USA 2013, 8 minutes, Director: Daniel Even

US Premiere

Everyone is in a band, every band that has ever existed still exists, and if it doesn’t, don’t worry, there will be a reunion show soon.

The Hero Pose

USA 2013, 13 minutes, Director: Mischa Jakupcak

Mia is eight years old and wants to do just about anything but hang out at her dad’s house trying to sell a car that doesn’t run.

The Killer Diller

USA 2013, 5 minutes, Director: Joon Chang

A private eye investigating the mysterious deaths of beautiful dancers finds more than he expects.

The Maury Island Incident

USA 2014, 30 minutes, Director: Scott Schaefer

North American Premiere

The incredible, tragic, and forgotten story of the 1947 UFO sighting over Puget Sound that sparked “the summer of the saucers” and the launch of the modern era of UFO obsession.

Ten Years Later

USA 2014, 14 minutes, Directors: Lindy Boustedt, Kris Boustedt

World Premiere

After being released from prison, Alice hunts down the person who put her there—her sister.

Suburban Gothic

Ghoulies and ghosties and the monster next door—horrors hidden beneath the tranquil surface of the everyday. (83 minutes)

The Archivist

Canada 2013, 11 minutes, Director: Jeremy Ball

US Premiere

The new assistant projectionist at an aging movie palace investigates a series of mysterious disappearances.

Cargo

Australia 2013, 7 minutes, Directors: Yolanda Ramke, Ben Howling

Stranded in the midst of a zombie apocalypse, a man sets in motion an unlikely play to protect his infant daughter.

Crazy for You

United Kingdom 2013, 10 minutes, Director: James Moran

In a rom-com world, it’s difficult to find love when you’re a serial killer.

The Cyclist

USA 2013, 7 minutes, Director: Christopher Bryan

Pushing himself to his physical limits, a cyclist retreats into the past as a flesheating horde closes upon him.

HIDE and SEEK

Japan 2013, 11 minutes, Director: Kayoko Asakura

A girl attends her music lesson only to become a player in a ghostly game.

How to Deal with an Axe Murderer

Canada 2014, 13 minutes, Director: Adam Estey

A short instructional film that just might save your life. Please take notes.

I’m 23 and There’s a Fucking Monster Under My Bed

USA 2013, 5 minutes, Director: Jeremy Ungar

A young man moves back in with his parents after college, only to discover that the monster, which tormented him as a child, is still in his bedroom.

Rotation

USA 2014, 11 minutes, Director: Jenn George

World Premiere

A veteran body snatcher teaches his new apprentice a thing or two about their nefarious trade.

Total Freak

USA 2014, 9 minutes, Director: Andrew Ellmaker

At summer camp, a young teen seeks to impress the prettiest (and meanest) girl at the lake, discovering a dark secret in the process.

SIFF CINEMA UPTOWN

SIFF CINEMA UPTOWN

Get a taste of this year’s best and boldest batch of Spanish short films. (86 minutes)

Astigmatismo

Spain 2013, 4 minutes, Director: Nicolai Troshinsky

A boy loses his glasses and can only see one thing in focus at a time.

Candyhearts

Spain 2013, 15 minutes, Director: Joan Martin

A boy and girl must go to great lengths to fend off an obsessive candy man in their little town.

Democracia

Spain 2013, 11 minutes, Director: Borja Cobeaga

The manager of a company proposes a daring new plan for keeping his workers’ morale high.

Don’t Look There

Spain 2013, 15 minutes, Director: Daniel Romero

Marta comes home to stay a few days with her mother and little sister, only to discover their house is being haunted by an uncanny presence.

Not Funny

Spain 2013, 15 minutes, Director: Carlos Violadé Guerrero

Manolo and Maria are in love and live together. One night, his joke will go too far.

Strings

Spain 2013, 10 minutes, Director: Pedro Solís

Maria’s routine at school is altered by the arrival of a very special child. Soon, they become close friends.

The Wrong Man

Spain 2013, 16 minutes, Director: Roberto Goñi

An ordinary sales rep, an attractive sea archeologist, 200,000 euros—all the ingredients for a perfect first date.

Think you know where you’re going? Guess again. These quick flicks pack unexpectedly powerful punches. (94 minutes)

Fool’s Day

USA 2013, 20 minutes, Director: Cody Blue Snider

The 4th graders have planned an April Fools’ Day prank to end all pranks. Literally.

Kekasih

Malaysia 2013, 9 minutes, Director: Diffan Sina Norman

A botanical professor encounters a divine presence that will transform him forever.

Metube: August Sings Carmen “Habanera”

Austria 2013, 4 minutes, Director: Daniel Moshel

A tribute to the thousands of ambitious YouTubers and to the rebellious bird that none can tame.

Rat Pack Rat

USA 2014, 19 minutes, Director: Todd Rohal

A Sammy Davis Jr. impersonator, hired to visit a loyal Rat Pack fan, finds himself performing the last rites at the boy’s bedside.

Steve’s Problem

USA 2013, 15 minutes, Director: Mike Lars White

A stranger offers Steve a little help with his shyness, only to cause much worse problems later on.

The Voice Thief

France 2014, 27 minutes, Director: Adan Jodorowsky

When an opera singer loses her voice, her husband embarks on an odyssey through Miami’s dark underworld to recover it.

SUN MAY 25 9:30PM

SIFF CINEMA UPTOWN

SAT MAY 24 6:30PM

SIFF CINEMA UPTOWN

ShortsFest Closing Night

MON MAY 26 6:00PM

Avery, Offline

USA 2013, 21 minutes, Director: Rachel Whitaker

Tech savvy and internet-dependent Avery reevaluates her online lifestyle and tendencies after her boyfriend proposes to her via a meme.

Life’s a Bitch

Canada 2013, 6 minutes, Director: Francois Jaros

Love. Grief. Shock. Denial. A portrait of a breakup in five minutes.

The Missing Scarf

Ireland 2013, 7 minutes, Director: Eoin Duffy

Albert the squirrel searches for his missing scarf only to explore some of life’s most common fears.

Ni-Ni

USA 2013, 19 minutes, Director: Melissa Hickey

A lonely street thug yearns for a better life after he bumps into a girl from his past and remembers the boy he used to be.

Perception

Australia 2013, 15 minutes, Director: Miranda Nation

North American Premiere

Faced with her own mortality, Crystal is forced to confront how she really feels about herself and her relationships with those close to her.

The Red Carpet

Spain 2013, 12 minutes, Directors: Manuel Fernández, Iosu López

A 12-year-old Indian girl dreams of becoming an actress and changing her slum into a cleaner and more habitable place.

Tape Recorder

USA 2014, 7 minutes, Director: Douglas Horn World Premiere

All of Joe’s conversations are pre-recorded, and Alison can’t let him get away with that.

SIFF is pleased to once again partner with The Seattle Times for the eighth annual 3-Minute Masterpiece contest.

Each year we challenge filmmakers around Seattle to create short, family-friendly films that last no longer than a mere three minutes. Any subject matter may be explored as long as there is no sex, violence, or obscenities.

There are several opportunities for awards and recognition for contest participants. Filmmakers under 18 are eligible for the J. Michael Rima Award, celebrating young Seattle directors. The winner of this award will have his or her film featured during the Festival’s FutureWave Shorts Program. Other winning films will be featured on The Seattle Times website as well as at the Festival. The Grand Prize winner will also receive one Full Series pass to this year’s Festival.

Here is a list of last year’s winners:

GRAND PRIZE WINNER

Philip Baca, Caleb Melvin, Jason Thompson, and Ryan Trudeau for The Last Slice

J. MICHAEL RIMA WINNER

(the best entry made by a director under 18 years old)

Matt Wells for Laser Rabbit

SEATTLE TIMES READERS’ CHOICE

Parker Briggs for Freddie Hits the Pipe

SPECIAL MENTION FOR SEATTLE-CENTRIC FILM

Eric Pokorny for History is Walking in Someone Else’s Shoes

OTHER WINNERS

Alone, directed by Travis Vogt

Come Along Spring, directed by Madeline Lootens

A Final Conversation, directed by Scott Graves

Like This, directed by Jessie Brugger

Post Nuclear Family, directed by John and Lily Williamson

Tom Mcgee and the Offal Waffle, directed by Robbie Cribbs

UNDER-18 WINNERS

Seattle is Great!, directed by Phoebe, Jessica, and Abby

SIFF’s annual celebration of the short form finishes off with this wonderfully varied program examining the breezy joy and tremendous complexity found in the best short films. (87 minutes)

SIFF CINEMA UPTOWN

Columbite Tantalite

United Kingdom/Democratic Republic of Congo 2013, 13 minutes

Director: Chiwetel Ejiofor

A postcolonial parable about the West’s hunger for African mineral wealth and about Congo’s struggle to come to terms with its past, created as part of the YV Shorts, inspired by productions at the Young Vic.

Screens before Half of a Yellow Sun.

Duke and the Buffalo

USA 2013, 15 minutes

Director: Alfredo Alcantara Merentes, Josh Chertoff

Once a year, a crew of Colorado ranchers rounds up two thousand wild buffalo as part of a unique conservation effort to preserve these endangered animals.

Screens before Seeds of Time.

Flor de Toloache

USA 2013, 4 minutes

Director: Jenny Schweitzer

A group of women daringly challenge gender social norms as an all-female mariachi band.

Screens before Lady Be Good; Instrumental Women in Jazz.

Hate From a Distance

USA 2014, 19 minutes

Director: Dan Ireland

WORLD PREMIERE

Set in the world of racial tensions of 1963, Hate From A Distance tells the story of a young Southern boy, Danny Baker, who is caught in the middle of his father’s hatred of an African American family who have dwelt on the peanut farm they’ve owned for the last one hundred years. When a land dispute arises, all hell breaks loose, resulting in tragic consequences for all concerned.

Produced in honor of the 50th Anniversary of the Civil Rights Act (July 2, 1964) abolishing segregation, and directed by SIFF Festival Co-Founder, Dan Ireland.Screens before The Whole Wide World.

Herd in Iceland

Iceland/USA 2013, 29 minutes

Director: Lindsay Blatt

A unique and moving portrait of Iceland’s people, horses, and stunning landscapes.

Screens after Of Horses and Men.

I’m a Mitzvah

USA 2013, 19 minutes

Director: Ben Berman

A young American man (Ben Schwartz) tries to transport his deceased friend’s body out of rural Mexico. Screens before Happy Christmas.

In The Same Boat

USA 2014, 18 minutes

Director: Elijah Lawson

WORLD PREMIERE

An intimate and charming portrait of fishermen in Bristol Bay and the commercial salmon industry.

Screens before The Breach.

Lambing Season

USA/Ireland 2013, 15 minutes

Director: Jeannie Donohoe

An American woman travels to the Irish countryside in search of her long-lost father, only to find her path full of sheep, secrets, and shenanigans.

Screens before Natural Sciences.

The Missing Scarf

Ireland 2013, 7 minutes

Director: Eoin Duffy

Albert the squirrel searches for his missing scarf only to explore some of life’s most common fears.

Screens before To Be Takei.

My Guide

Hungary 2013, 13 minutes

Director: Barnabás Tóth

An elderly couple in traffic—the wife chitchats, warns, controls— a policeman, a GPS, and a commentator, all at once. The husband growls or strikes out. This is how their world works. But life is a constant replanning...

Screens before Leninland.

Not Anymore: A Story of Revolution

USA 2013, 15 minutes

Director: Matthew VanDyke

The story of the Syrian revolution as told through the experiences of two ordinary young Syrians as they fight an oppressive regime for the freedom of their people.

Screens before #ChicagoGirl – The Social Network Takes on a Dictator.

Sonata

France 2014, 11 minutes

Director: Nadia Micault

In an imaginary musical world, a young woman seeks escape, loses herself, and tests her own limits. Screens before Ballet 422.

Vis à Vis

USA 2013, 25 minutes

Director: Abigail Child

A testament to 16mm black and white celluloid and differing sexualities, seductions, and (d)alliances. Screens before Pierrot Lunaire.

FEATURE FILMS FROM A TO Z

For 40 years, SIFF has had the honor of curating films from around the world, giving Seattle audiences the international cinematic experience they crave. This is the power of film, where an audience can be transported from a darkened theater in the Pacific Northwest to anywhere on Earth in just a few minutes. All you need is a ticket, a place to sit, and an open mind.

Elsewhere in this catalog, we have broken down our feature film listing by genre (see Moods, page 29) and grouped them in traditional subject categories (see Film Programs, beginning on page 73). On the following pages, however, we’re offering you the whole world of cinema at once with our listing of alphabetized feature films.

With a program that literally spans the globe, each page allows you discover worlds both familiar and unknown, from the flats of South Africa to the wilds of the Australian outback, into the sunny days of “Sesame Street” and the endless nights of Scandinavia. Take a trip to the jungles of Singapore or the volatile cityscapes of Syria. Explore the seaside neighborhoods of Algiers, discover the lush rainforests of the Amazon, and upload yourself into a surrealistic digital Hollywood of the future. Visit Nigeria during the Biafran War, Indiana in the days leading up to the Civil War, and a vampire-infested Hong Kong housing estate. Time travel to 19th century Japan, 18th century Venice, 1960s Greece, and 1920s France. And, of course, we still have lots of films from American filmmakers, including many from right here in the Pacific Northwest.

With more than 270 films from 85 countries for 25 days every spring (and more year-round at SIFF Cinema!), we bring you the whole wide wonderful world, from A to Z!

TUSEN GANGER GOD NATT

1,000 Times Good Night

FRIDAY MAY 23 7:00 PM

SUNDAY MAY 25 4:15 PM

Juliette Binoche simply and totally embodies a top war photojournalist torn between passionate involvement with her work and commitment to her worried marine biologist husband (Nikolaj CosterWaldau, “Game of Thrones”) and two daughters in this moving meditation on duty and family. As Rebecca Thomas, a Dublin-based photographer sent routinely into conflict zones, Binoche’s luminously multifaceted performance spans the emotional spectrum. Director Erik Poppe’s elegant film frames the 21st century discussion on women “having it all” (or not) in a subtle way, and offers no easy answers. Issues of relationship, security, need, and self-actualization are highlighted against the global significance of Rebecca’s dangerous work. On her latest assignment in Kabul, Rebecca documents the journey of a female suicide bomber, from her preparations—which evoke the fittings and rituals inside a bridal suite—through the aftermath of the bomb’s detonation. This time, that includes a punctured lung for Rebecca, who goes home to entertain the idea of settling down. But just as her shell-shocked family begins to recover, Rebecca’s eldest daughter Steph, who’s developed a good eye for pictures, proposes a trip to a refugee camp in Kenya. In a warm-hued cinematic palette, contrasting shots of children learning about sea creatures on the Dublin beach with those of children living with little opportunity are just two tender threads in this revelation on the complex nature of forgiveness and love.

Awards:

Montreal World Film Festival 2013 (Special Grand Prize) Chicago International Film Festival 2013 (Founder’s Award)

Sponsored by Rob, Donna & Eddy Dughi

10,000KM

SPAIN/USA 2014

TUESDAY MAY 27 9:30 PM

Director:

Erik Poppe

Producers: Finn Gjerdrum

Stein B. Kvae

Screenwriters:

Erik Poppe

Harald Rosenløw Eeg

Cinematographer: John Christian Rosenlund

Editor:

Sofia Lindgren

Music:

Armand Amar

Cast: Juliette Binoche

Nikolaj Coster-Waldau

Lauryn Canny

Maria Doyle Kennedy

Larry Mullen Jr.

Running Time: 111 minutes

Presentation Format: DCP

International Sales: Global Screen

Print Source: Film Movement

Film Website: filmmovement.com

Selected Filmography: Troubled Water (2008) Hawaii, Oslo (2004) Bunch of Five (1998)

LINCOLN SQUARE

THURSDAY JUNE 5 9:30 PM HARVARD EXIT

FRIDAY JUNE 6 4:15 PM PACIFIC PLACE

Does technology help or hinder our relationships?

Can Skype ever truly substitute for the intimacy of sex? 10,000KM unpacks these questions with sensitive storytelling from one would know: writerdirector Carlos Marques-Marcet, a Barcelona native who works with La Panda, an L.A.-based filmmaking group of Spanish expats. His award-winning debut feature, co-written with Clara Roquet, shows a relationship’s communication through videochats, texts, status updates and phone calls. It’s shot entirely within the apartments of Alex (Natalia Tena, Nymphadora Tonks from Harry Potter and Osha from “Game of Thrones”) and Sergi (David Verdaguer). Before the separation, the film opens on the couple in their shared Barcelona home—a nearly twenty minute shot unfolds from steamy lovemaking into scenes of everyday intimacy. Photographer Alex and student Sergi are trying for a baby—until Alex receives an offer of a year long, paid artist residency in Los Angeles. Alex can’t pass up the opportunity to further her career. Will it be at the expense of the bond she’s built with Sergi? With video-diary markings showing Day 1, Day 15, Day 60, and so on, viewers live the happy, painful, and revelatory process of a relationship in flux, along with the intuitively played characters. Understated insight on the nature of technology and connection anchors this story of a couple separated by geography, dreams, and desires.

Awards:

SXSW 2014 (Special Jury Recognition for Best Acting Duo) Malaga Spanish Film Festival 2014 (Best Film, Director, Actress, New Screenwriter)

Director: Carlos Marques-Marcet

Producers: Tono Folguera

Jana Díaz Juhl

Sergi Moreno

Screenwriters: Carlos Marques-Marcet Clara Roquet

Cinematographer: Dagmar Weaver-Madsen

Editors: Julia Montañés

Carlos Marques-Marcet

Cast:

Natalia Tena

David Verdaguer

Running Time: 99 minutes

Presentation Format: DCP, in Spanish and English, with English subtitles

International Sales: Visit Films

Print Source: Visit Films Film Website: 10000km-movie.com

Selected Filmography: Debut Feature Film

HARVARD EXIT

PACIFIC PLACE

HUNDRAÅRINGEN

The 100-Year-Old Man Who Climbed Out the Window and Disappeared

SWEDEN 2013 NORTH AMERICAN PREMIERE

WEDNESDAY MAY 28 8:30 PM

FRIDAY MAY 30 6:30 PM

RENTON IKEA PAC

SIFF CINEMA UPTOWN

SUNDAY JUNE 1 4:00 PM EGYPTIAN

Take a wily centenarian, stolen money, angry skinheads, an elephant, and circus costumes, and you have the ingredients of a rollicking, slapstick cross-country road trip. Oh, and did we mention explosions? The titular old man is also a dynamite expert. The result from actor-turneddirector Felix Herngren is one of 2013’s highestgrossing comedies in Sweden. Based on the bestselling novel by Jonas Jonasson, this anarchic film follows the journey of Allan Karlsson (Robert Gustafsson), who yearns to escape from his 100th birthday party at his retirement home. After doing exactly what the film’s title indicates, Allan meets an elderly soulmate, Julius (Iwar Wiklander), and unwittingly finds a suitcase full of loot that belongs to a violent skinhead. While on the run, the geriatric duo pick up a driver named Benny (David Wiberg) and former gangster moll Gunilla (Mia Skaringer), who help them evade authorities and make new enemies. As the farcical chase rolls on and the body count rises, the film flashes back to Allan’s itinerant youth. Like a sillier, more destructive Forrest Gump, Allan is seen stumbling through the 20th century, shifting the course of world events with the likes of Franco, Truman, Stalin, Reagan, and Gorbachev. With a bouncy soundtrack, cartoonish violence, a deliberate disrespect for history, and a commitment to lunacy, this propulsive black comedy reminds us that life doesn’t begin until our second century.

Awards: Guldbagge Awards 2014 (Audience Award)

Director:

Felix Herngren

Producers:

Malte Forssell

Felix Herngren

Henrik JanssonSchweizer

Patrick Nebout

Screenwriters: Felix Herngren

Hans Ingemansson based on a novel by Jonas Jonasson

Cinematographer: Göran Hallberg

Editors:

Henrik Källberg

Björn Stein

Music:

Erik Nilsson

Cast: Robert Gustafsson

Iwar Wiklander

Mia Skäringer

Alan Ford

David Wiberg

Running Time: 114 minutes

Presentation Format: DCP, in Swedish, with English subtitles

International Sales: Studio Canal

Print Source: Swedish Film Institute

Selected Filmography: Every Other Week (2006) Adult Behavior (1999)

20,000 Days on Earth

FRIDAY MAY 16 10:00 PM

LINCOLN SQUARE

WEDNESDAY MAY 21 9:30 PM SIFF CINEMA UPTOWN

Music icon Nick Cave’s distinctive baritone and darkly witty songwriting have been crafted onto a blend of moody balladry and postpunk swagger to create a style that can only be defined as “Nick Cave.” Blending fact, fiction, and fantasy, 20,000 Days on Earth is a playful deconstruction of the typical music documentary. It follows a single day in the life of the artist—his twenty thousandth, as the title suggests—as he digs through archives, verbally spars with a therapist, and engages in a series of hallucinatory interviews with friends like actor Ray Winstone, pop star Kylie Minogue, and fellow band mates Blixa Bargeld and Warren Ellis. While in the midst of making his recent album “Push the Sky Away,” Cave offers a glimpse into his creative mind, exploring the dark recesses of his past, the pitfalls of fame, and his sometimes-elusive sources of inspiration. Co-directors Jane Pollard and Iain Forsyth, known for their work in both film and performance art, have frequently collaborated with Cave, and their playful sensibility, mixed with the musician’s enigmatic style, makes for an experience that is simultaneously insightful and vague, intimate and aloof, candid and mysterious. In other words, the encapsulation not just of a legendary performer, but also of the artistic process as a whole.

Awards: Sundance Film Festival 2014 (Editing Award, Directing Award for World Cinema Doc)

Directors: Iain Forsyth

Jane Pollard

Producers: Dan Bowen

James Wilson

Cinematographer: Erik Wilson

Editor: Jonathan Amos

Music:

Nick Cave

Warren Ellis

Running Time: 95 minutes

Presentation Format: DCP

International Sales: HanWay Films

Print Source: Drafthouse Films

Film Website: 20000daysonearth.com

Selected Filmography: Debut Feature Film

3 Mile Limit

NEW ZEALAND 2014

TUESDAY MAY 20 4:30 PM PACIFIC PLACE

SUNDAY MAY 25 6:00 PM

RENTON IKEA PAC

WEDNESDAY MAY 28 9:30 PM HARVARD EXIT

It’s not easy being a pirate. You have to buy a ship, pay your crew, and always be on your toes. Then there’s the matter of buying an illegal radio transmitter, securing a 100-foot antenna, and a recording of the latest Rolling Stones singles on reel-to-reel. Such are the travails of New Zealand’s Radio Hauraki, the first “pirate radio station” in the Southern Hemisphere and the basis of writer-director Craig Newland’s debut feature. Matt Whelan plays Richard Davis, a 23-year-old journalist in 1965 who was fed up with listening to “chamber music and horse races” on the conservative, government-controlled radio stations of Auckland while the rest of the Western world was dancing to rock ’n’ roll. Denied a broadcasting license, Davis gathers a group of ragtag DJs, engineers, and salesmen to convert a rust-bucket ship into a floating radio station in the Hauraki Gulf to the east of Auckland, just beyond the country’s three-mile territorial limit. Along the way, the renegade station dodges creditors, evades arrest, strains relationships back on land, and suffers a tragedy, but also gains a huge following. The thrilling true story of Radio Hauraki’s breaking of the New Zealand broadcast monopoly is legendary among baby-boom-age Kiwi rock fans, but Newland’s film introduces the swashbuckling DJs to a whole new generation. This tale of courage, defiance, and perseverance will make you stand up and cheer, and remind you what rock ’n’ roll is all about.

CHILLA

40 Days of Silence

UZBEKISTAN/TAJIKISTAN/NETHERLANDS/GERMANY/ FRANCE 2014 NORTH AMERICAN PREMIERE

TUESDAY MAY 20 7:00 PM

Producers:

Lesa Davis

Craig Newland

Screenwriters: Craig Newland

Andrew Gunn

Cinematographer: D.J Stipsen

Editor: Jonathan WoodfordRobinson

Music: Tom McLeod

Grant McKinnon

Cast: Matt Whelan Belinda Crawley Daniel Musgrove

David Aston

Elliot Wrightson

Running Time: 105 minutes

Presentation Format: DCP

Print Source: No. 8 Films

Film Website: 3milelimit.co.nz

Selected Filmography: Debut Feature Film

HARVARD EXIT

THURSDAY MAY 22 4:30 PM HARVARD EXIT

Surrounded by high mountains in an isolated village of Central Asia, a young woman named Bibicha decides to take a vow of silence. The Persian title of 40 Days of Silence is Chilla , which translates to “quarantine,” and is also a spiritual practice of penance and solitude known mostly in Indian and Persian traditions. In this ritual, a person remains silent and practices meditation techniques for 40 days. Bibicha tries to do this despite many family distractions. In her home, four women from four generations live their day-to-day lives under one roof: a grandmother who married and became a widow when she was just a kid, her oldest daughter who lived in the city and had a child, the granddaughter, out of wedlock, and Bibicha, the aunt and youngest daughter. Saodat Ismailova’s first dramatic feature film, shot on location in the Rangoon Valley in Tajikistan, makes silence it’s foundation and features an ample and keen sense of shadow, light, and color that is worthy of patience and close attention.

Director: Saodat Ismailova

Producers: Denis Vaslin

Jean des Forêts

Benny Drechsel

Saodat Ismailova

Screenwriters: Saodat Ismailova

Ulughbek Sadikov

Cinematographer: Benito Strangio

Editors: Benjamin Mirguet

Nathalie Alonso-Casale

Music: Jacob Kierkegaard

Cast: Rukhshona Sattarova

Barohat Shukurova

Saodat Rahimova

Farida Olimova

Running Time: 88 minutes

Presentation Format: DCP, in Tadjik, with English subtitles

International Sales: Ramonda Films

Print Source: Ramonda Films

Film Website: volyafilms.com/main/ filmography.html

Selected Filmography: Aral, Fishing in an Invisible Sea (Doc, 2004)

Director Craig Newland

4 Minute Mile

THURSDAY JUNE 5 7:00 PM

FRIDAY JUNE 6 4:30 PM

A sensitively observed drama unfolds when a Seattle high school student trying to run from his problems meets an old man who’s locked himself away to hide from his own, and find that they’re just the solution the other needs. Drew (Kelly Blatz) is about to graduate from school, but the dire economic straits of his broken family have set a fence around his horizons. Drew seems destined to remain stuck in his rough neighborhood, following his older brother’s downward spiral into drugs and violence. But he does have one advantage on his side: a runner’s body, however untrained and in need of discipline. His efforts at track and field glory catch the eye of neighbor Coleman (Richard Jenkins), a former coach who’s bitter over past regrets. Admiration for Drew’s potential softens Coleman’s hardened reserve, and he offers the young man guidance on achieving his dreams on and off the track. Deftly pairing up-and-comer Blatz with veteran actors Jenkins and Kim Basinger in the role of Drew’s mother, 4 Minute Mile offers an inspirational message to appeal to all audiences, even as its shot-in-Seattle locations offer a particular attraction for homegrown crowds.

SIFF CINEMA UPTOWN

SIFF CINEMA UPTOWN

Director:

Charles-Olivier Michaud

Producers:

Deborah Moore

Howard Burd

Mark DiSalle

Jennifer Reibman

Micah Sparks

Screenwriters:

Josh Campbell

Jeff Van Wie

Cinematographer: Jean-François Lord

Editors: Elisabeth Olga Tremblay

Dirk Westervelt

Music:

Stephen Barton

Cast:

Kelly Blatz

Richard Jenkins

Kim Basinger

Cam Gigandet

Analeigh Tipton

Running Time: 96 minutes

Presentation Format:

DCP

Print Source:

Gravitas Ventures

Selected Filmography: Exil (2013)

On the Beat (2011)

Snow & Ashes (2010)

ABUS DE FAIBLESSE

Abuse of Weakness

FRANCE/GERMANY/BELGIUM 2013

THURSDAY JUNE 5 9:45 PM

SIFF CINEMA UPTOWN

SUNDAY JUNE 8 4:30 PM EGYPTIAN

Maud (Isabelle Huppert), a celebrated film director wounded by a paralyzing stroke, is looking to prove that she can live beyond her disability. With her next film in pre-production, she finds a potential lead in charismatic Vilko (French rapper Kool Shen) while watching a TV talk show. What begins as a simple meeting between the director and the charming man, turns into something far more conniving as Vilko, with money on his mind, makes himself indispensible to the ailing auteur and begins bleeding her savings dry. The same story happened to director Catherine Breillat a few years ago—half-ruined by Christophe Rocancourt—a few years ago, leading to an autobiographical book and now in this the cinematic account. Over the course of her career, Breillat’s films have demonstrated an uncanny knowledge of reciprocity in domination-based relationships as well as the confusion they create. In Abuse of Weakness, the victim does not become the persecutor, leaving us to consider why Vilko stays with Maud once the well has seemingly run dry. It is almost a kind of elective affinity, from which nothing good can come out. No resistance is possible. This is the truly tragic scope of the film. With a powerful directorial focus, especially concerning the bruised body, Breillat brings out Maud’s human vulnerability in touching and frightening ways.

Director: Catherine Breillat

Producers: Jean-François Lepetit

Nicolas Steil

Screenwriter: Catherine Breillat

Cinematographer: Alain Marcoen

Editor: Pascal Chavance

Music: Didier Lockwood

Cast: Isabelle Huppert

Kool Shen

Christophe Sermet

Laurence Ursino

Ronald Leclercq

Running Time: 104 minutes

Presentation Format: DCP, in French, with English

subtitles

International Sales: Rezo Films

Print Source: Strand Releasing

Film Website: rezofilms.com/world-sales/ abuse-of-weakness

Selected Filmography: The Sleeping Beauty (2010)

Bluebeard (2009)

The Last Mistress (2007)

Anatomy of Hell (2004)

Sex is Comedy (2002)

Brief Crossing (2001)

Fat Girl (2001)

Romance X (1999)

Perfect Love! (1996)

Aux Niçois qui Mal Y Pensent (1995)

Dirty Like an Angel (1991)

36 Fillette (1986)

Nocturnal Uproar (1979)

A Real Young Girl (1976)

African Metropolis

KENYA/IVORY COAST/EGYPT/ SENEGAL/NIGERIA/SOUTH AFRICA 2013

TUESDAY JUNE 3 6:30 PM

SIFF CINEMA UPTOWN

WEDNESDAY JUNE 4 3:00 PM SIFF CINEMA UPTOWN

To much of the world, the African continent remains a mystery, shrouded in stereotypes to the Western world. Concentrating on the blossoming modern Africa, African Metropolis spotlights six bustling cities through the eyes of six emerging filmmakers. In Nairobi, fantasy, science fiction, and infatuation fuse as an obsessed neighbor invents strange scenarios for wooing the girl of his dreams. In Cairo, angry young musician Adham discovers that the city is an arena in which the strong survive and the weak are left by the wayside. In Lagos, a nightly ritual occurs in which ten men, put into a line-up, are mysteriously whittled down to seven and given considerable cash, but at what price? In Dakar, a housewife in her fifties discovers her true self when she must accept her husband’s second wife into her home. In Abidjan, artist Jean-Michel Basquiat comes face-to-face with demons, ghosts, doubt—and his own death. And in Johannesburg, though his neighborhood and friends are long gone, an old man has one last link to the here and now—a weekly visit from a beautiful stranger. Through this series of shorts that leap across genres and countries, the social transformations, economic struggles, desires, and dynamism of Africa’s urban centers take center stage.

Age of Uprising: The Legend of Michael Kohlhaas

FRANCE/GERMANY 2013

TUESDAY MAY 20 3:30 PM

WEDNESDAY MAY 21 9:00 PM

Directors:

Marie Ka

Philippe Lacote

Ahmed Ghoneimy

Vincent Moloi

Folsakin Iwajomo

Jim Chuchu

Producers:

Rebecca Chandler

Wanuri Kahiu

Idil Ibrahim

Tamer El Said

Victor Okhai

Marie Ka

Claire Gadéa

Makgano Mamabolo

Screenwriters: Jim Chuchu

Ahmed Ghoneimy

Kemi Adesoye

Marie Ka

Philippe Lacôte

Lodi Matsetela

Makgano Mamabolo

Running Time: 92 minutes

Presentation Format:

HDCAM, in French, Nouchi, Arabic, English, Pidgin English, Yoruba, Kiswahili, and Swahili, with English subtitles

Print Source: Big World Cinema

Film Website: goethe.de/ africanmetropolis

In this epic tale of wrongdoing and retribution set in 16th century Cévennes, Michael Kohlhaas (the ever impressive Mads Mikkelsen) starts out as a successful, well-to-do horse trader with a loving family. The once unshakable feudal system is slowly declining, and when a local nobleman humiliates Kohlhaas and seizes two of his horses, he retaliates by gathering an army and embarking on a Robin Hood-style mission to have his revenge against the baron. Kohlhaas’ actions become more and more violent and extreme, and the repercussions become increasingly devastating. Soon, an entire army is raised and chaos descends on the countryside in the fight to defend a man’s rights. Based on Heinrich von Kleist’s classic German Romanticist novel, the story of Michael Kohlhaas previously inspired a 1969 film by Volker Schlöndorff. With gorgeous widescreen cinematography, skillful stunt work, and a powerful score, Age of Uprising: The Legend of Michael Kohlhaas is a stunning period piece that raises important questions of faith and morality.

Awards:

Brussels European Film Festival 2013 (Best Feature)

César Awards 2014 (Best Original Music, Sound)

Director:

Arnaud des Pallières

Producers: Martina Haubrich

Serge Lalou

Gunnar Dedio

Screenwriters: Arnaud des Pallières

Christelle Berthevas based on a book by Heinrich von Kleist

Cinematographers: Adrien Debackere

Jeanne Lapoirie

Editors: Sandie Bompar

Arnaud des Pallières

Music: Martin Wheeler

Cast:

Mads Mikkelsen

Mélusine Mayance

Delphine Chuillot

David Kross

Bruno Ganz

Running Time: 122 minutes

Presentation Format: DCP, in French, with English subtitles

International Sales: Les Films du Losange

Print Source: Music Box Films

Film Website: musicboxfilms.com

Selected Filmography: Park (2008)

Farewell (2003)

Drancy Future (1996)

SIFF CINEMA UPTOWN

HARVARD EXIT

The Airstrip - Decampment of Modernism, Part III

GERMANY 2014 NORTH AMERICAN PREMIERE

FRIDAY JUNE 6 8:30 PM

SUNDAY JUNE 8 5:30 PM

Director Heinz Emigholz knows you can learn more about architecture from actually looking at it than from having a narrator tell you what you are seeing. In Loos Ornamental (SIFF 2008) he showed surviving buildings designed by Adolf Loos in a series of well thought-out shots, without extraneous commentary, and the result plays like a fascinating lecture. In his latest film, Emigholz takes a similar aesthetic approach, but instead of tracing the work of a single architect he takes a pilgrimage to look at modernist architecture around the world, from Europe to South America to the Mariana Islands. Both instructive and abstract, he shows us shopping centers and churches, airports and warehouses, all with minimal narration. It should also be noted that Emigholz has a sense of humor, particularly when his narration decries the use of music in documentaries before creating a mini-music video in the Montevideo Airport. Once the film arrives in the Mariana Islands, we see the airstrip evoked by the title where US forces launched the atomic attack on Japan that led to the end of WWII. This creates context for the entire film, a view of architecture in the face of complete destruction.

SIFF CINEMA UPTOWN

SIFF CINEMA UPTOWN

Director: Heinz Emigholz

Producers: Frieder Schlaich

Irene von Alberti

Screenwriter: Heinz Emigholz

Cinematographer: Heinz Emigholz

Editors: Heinz Emigholz

Till Beckmann

Music:

Kreidler

Running Time: 108 minutes

Presentation Format: DCP

International Sales: Filmgalerie 451

Print Source: Filmgalerie 451

Film Website: filmgalerie451.de/en/filme/ the-airstrip/

Selected Filmography: Perret in Frankreich und Algerien (Doc, 2012)

Parabeton - Pier Luigi Nervi and Roman Concrete (2012) Sense of Architecture (Doc, 2009)

Loos Ornamental (Doc, 2008) Schindler’s Houses (Doc, 2007)

D’annunzios Höhle (Doc, 2005)

Goff in der Wüste (Doc, 2003) Photographie und Jenseits (2001)

The Holy Bunch (1991)

The Meadow of Things (Doc, 1988)

The Basis of Make-Up (1984) Ordinary Sentence (1981)

Alex of Venice

USA 2014

FRIDAY JUNE 6 7:00 PM

HARVARD EXIT SATURDAY JUNE 7 1:30 PM

Actor Chris Messina (TV’s “The Newsroom,”

“The Mindy Project”) makes his directorial debut with this funny and complex character study. Alex (Mary Elizabeth Winstead, Smashed) is a workaholic attorney trying to juggle a marriage, a young son, and a relationship with her dependent father (Don Johnson). But as her professional life continues to escalate with stressful cases, her husband (Messina) decides to leave her. Forced to take on the role of both parents, Alex finds her work cut out for her, while reinventing the life she took for granted and slowly solidifying her relationships with her son and aging father. It’s difficult to believe this is Messina’s first effort behind the camera given his assurance and focus on the film’s story and character. He’s created a character colored by flaws but enriched with empathy, fully brought to life by an impassioned and resonant performance from Winstead. Adding an extra amount of truth and humanity to the film is a scene-stealing turn from Johnson as the struggling actor father of Alex, denying himself her needed support. A realistic but heartfelt look at family and change, Alex of Venice is a remarkable and revelatory directorial debut.

HARVARD EXIT

Director:

Chris Messina

Producer: Jamie Patricof

Lynette Howell

Screenwriters:

Jessica Goldberg

Katie Nehra

Justin Shilton

Cinematographer: Doug Emmett

Editor:

Amy McGrath

Music:

David Wingo

Cast:

Mary Elizabeth Winstead

Chris Messina

Don Johnson

Julianna Guill

Derek Luke

Running Time: 86 minutes

Presentation Format:

DCP

International Sales:

Preferred Content

Print Source:

Electric City Entertainment

Selected Filmography: Debut Feature Film

Alive Inside: A Story of Music & Memory

USA 2014

SATURDAY MAY 17 11:00 AM

MONDAY MAY 19 7:00 PM

On a whim, New York-based social worker Dan Cohen decided to bring iPods to a nursing home and made a remarkable discovery: Many Alzheimer’s and dementia-afflicted patients suffering from memory loss seem to “awaken” when they listen to music from their past. With great excitement, Cohen recruited first-time director Michael RossatoBennett, and the two embarked on a threeyear investigation of the mysterious ways music reconnects patients with the memories and emotions of their youth. RossatoBennett explores the history of the elder care industry from the 19th century to the modern day, incorporating interviews with an array of medical and musical luminaries (including renowned neurologist Dr. Oliver Sacks and musician Bobby McFerrin) and examining how music functions inside our brains and our lives. In the end, though, it’s the amazing footage of Cohen’s method in action that earned this film the top audience award documentary prize at this year’s Sundance Film Festival. When a few minutes of gospel music compels the listless patient Henry to break into song, you’ll know that you are witness to a landmark discovery that will make you a little more Alive Inside

Awards: Sundance Film Festival 2014 (Audience Award for Documentary)

Director: Michael Rossato-Bennett

Producer: Michael Rossato-Bennett

Screenwriter: Michael Rossato-Bennett

Cinematographer: Shachar Langlev

Editors: Michael Rossato-Bennett Mark Demolar

Manuel Tsingaris

Music: Itaal Shur

Running Time: 74 minutes

Presentation Format: DCP

International Sales: The Film Sales Company

Print Source: The Film Sales Company

Film Website: aliveinside.us

Selected Filmography: Debut Feature Film

LOS INSOLITOS PECES GATO

The Amazing Catfish

MEXICO 2013

SATURDAY MAY 24 11:30 AM

TUESDAY MAY 27 7:00 PM

When all you feel is alone, there is nothing more special that finding a person with whom to share your feelings. When 22-year-old Claudia, who lives by herself in Guadalajara, ends up in the emergency room with signs of appendicitis, she meets Martha lying on the bed next to her, where they bond over a shared bag of potato chips. After they’re discharged from the hospital, Martha spies Claudia walking home from her surgery and forces her to accept a ride home in her bright yellow Beetle. Always maintaining the best of spirits, Martha welcomes Claudia into her family of four wild children, where she’s quickly able to find her place in the tribe. Sadly, though Martha acts as the strong parental figure of this chaotic household of personalities, she is HIV-positive and slowly dying. As Martha weakens, Claudia’s bond with each family member grows stronger and stronger. With natural and inspired performances all-around, this heartwarming “bedside story” from first-time Mexican director Claudia SainteLuce explores the importance of generosity, responsibility, and family.

Awards:

Toronto Film Festival 2013 (FIPRESCI Prize)

Baja International Film Festival 2013 (Best Film)

Gijón International Film Festival 2013 (Special Jury Award)

Locarno International Film Festival 2013 (Junior Jury Award)

Director: Claudia Sainte-Luce

Producer: Geminiano Pineda

Screenwriter: Claudia Sainte-Luce

Cinematographer: Agnès Godard

Editor: Santiago Ricci

Music:

Madame Recamier

Cast: Ximena Ayala

Lisa Owen

Sonia Franco

Wendy Guillén

Andrea Baeza

Running Time: 89 minutes

Presentation Format: DCP, in Spanish, with English subtitles

International Sales: Pyramide International

Print Source: Strand Releasing

Film Website: inter.pyramidefilms.com/ content/amazing-catfish

Selected Filmography: Debut Feature Film

SIFF CINEMA UPTOWN

PACIFIC PLACE

SIFF CINEMA UPTOWN

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Another USA 2014

WORLD PREMIERE

SATURDAY MAY 17 5:30 PM

SIFF CINEMA UPTOWN

SUNDAY MAY 18 2:00 PM SIFF CINEMA UPTOWN

As the movie opens, a mysterious figure wearing black robes holds aloft a baby. 18 years later, Jordyn Ames is celebrating her birthday when strange and gruesome things start to happen. She learns that she is a descendent of a long line of witches, and she may have a dark twin who is performing horrific acts. As Jordyn, Paulie Rojas seems delicate and fragile when the movie opens, but as the demon within (or maybe it’s her twin) starts taking over, she takes command of the screen. Director Jason Bognacki perfectly captures the nightmarish feel of Italian giallo films, where the main character can’t tell the difference between nightmare and reality, and the audience is right there with her. The movie looks and sounds so good that you’d never know it was pieced together with a small crew and a slim budget. With confident direction, unsettling music stings, and a subjective storyline that never lets you out of its dream logic, Another builds up a creepy feeling that compounds all the way through its demonic tale.

Director:

Jason Bognacki

Producers: Jason Bognacki

Aline Bognacki

Screenwriter: Jason Bognacki

Cinematographer: Jason Bognacki

Editor: Jason Bognacki

Cast:

Paulie Rojas

Nancy Wolfe

Maria Olsen

Michael St. Michaels

David Landry

Lillian Pennypacker

Running Time: 80 minutes

Presentation Format: DCP

Print Source:

Full Frame Features

Film Website: www.another-film.com

Selected Filmography: Debut Feature Film

Attila Marcel

FRANCE 2013

FRIDAY MAY 16 7:00 PM

SIFF CINEMA UPTOWN

SUNDAY MAY 18 7:00 PM LINCOLN SQUARE

TUESDAY MAY 27 7:00 PM SIFF CINEMA UPTOWN

French writer-director Sylvain Chomet (The Triplets of Belleville, The Illusionist) makes an effortless transition from animation to live action with Attila Marcel, a whimsical tale about a young piano virtuoso, his smothering aunts, and a magical brew from a very odd neighbor. Thirty-something Paul lives a sheltered, shy existence. He spends his days playing piano and being taken care of by his two overbearing aunts. But when an eccentric neighbor offers Paul a hallucinogenic herbal brew, he unlocks his buried childhood memories and the great mystery of his life: what really happened to his parents. Full of music, dance sequences, and colorful production design, Attila Marcel echoes the work of Chomet’s visionary contemporaries Jean-Pierre Jeunet and Michel Gondry, with a strong dose of legendary Jacques Tati’s influence for good measure. César nominated Guillaume Gouix makes a splendid turn as both the man-child Paul and as Paul’s father, the titular Attila, in flashbacks. This charming, feel-good film is an unforgettable delight.

Director: Sylvain Chomet

Producers: Claudie Ossard

Chris Bolzli

Screenwriter: Sylvain Chomet

Cinematographer: Antoine Roch

Editor: Simon Jacquet

Music: Sylvain Chomet

Franck Monbaylet

Cast: Guillaume Gouix

Anne Le Ny Bernadette Lafont

Hélène Vincent

Luis Rego

Running Time: 106 minutes

Presentation Format: DCP, in French, with English subtitles

International Sales: Pathe International

Print Source: The Festival Agency

Film Website: patheinternational.com

Selected Filmography: The Illusionist (2010) Paris, Je T’aime (2006)

The Triplets of Belleville (2003)

Awake: the Life of Yogananda

USA 2014

WORLD PREMIERE

SUNDAY MAY 18 6:30 PM

MONDAY MAY 19 7:00 PM

Even as a young boy growing up in East India, Paramahansa Yogananda knew that his spiritual journey would lead him to share the concepts of yoga and meditation with the vastly different cultures of the West. Inspired by many years of teaching under his own personal guru, Yogananda began travelling throughout the United States in the 1920s, attracting many devotees and making the ancient teachings of self-realization accessible to a modern audience. His message spread like wildfire, just as our perception of the world was radically challenged by significant advances in physics and nuclear science, and as tensions escalated leading up to World War II. Yogananda knew that there was no more important time to engage with the community and to encourage enlightenment through expanding our consciousness. Up until his death in 1952, his teachings impacted thousands of people around the world, sparking a new, widespread belief that we are all capable of overcoming our egos and the temptations of the material world, and that we can ultimately free ourselves from suffering and find lasting serenity.

EGYPTIAN

LINCOLN SQUARE

Directors: Paola di Florio

Lisa Leeman

Producers:

Peter Rader

Paola di Florio

Lisa Leeman

Screenwriters: Paôlo di Florio

Lisa Leeman

Peter Rader

Running Time: 84 minutes

Presentation Format: DCP

Print Source: CounterPoint Films

Film Website: awaketheyoganandamovie.com

Selected Filmography:

DI FLORIO:

Home of the Brave (Doc, 2004)

Speaking in Strings (Doc, 1999)

LEEMAN:

One Lucky Elephant (Doc, 2010)

Out of Faith (2006)

Metamorphosis: Man Into Woman (Doc, 1990)

The Babadook

AUSTRALIA 2014

FRIDAY JUNE 6 MIDNIGHT

EGYPTIAN

SATURDAY JUNE 7 9:30 PM SIFF CINEMA UPTOWN

“If it’s in a word or it’s in a look, you can’t get rid of the Babadook.” Six years after the death of her husband, which coincided with the birth of their child, Amelia is struggling to raise her son, Samuel. A disciplinary problem at school, Samuel’s behavior only gets worse after he begins to suffer from vivid, violent nightmares. But when a mysterious children’s book entitled “Mister Babadook” appears among Samuel’s possessions, it portends a chilling, spectral descent into fear and paranoia. “I’ll wager with you. I’ll make you a bet. The more you ignore me, the stronger I get.” Amelia tries to convince Samuel that there is no Babadook, even as her son’s tantrums grow more frequent and intense, drawing her own deeply troubled nature to the surface. “A rumbling sound then three sharp knocks—ba-BA-ba

DOOK! DOOK! DOOK!” In her feature film debut, director Jennifer Kent crafts a frightful masterpiece that draws influence from H.P. Lovecraft, The Exorcist, and Poltergeist while creating one of the creepiest movie monsters in recent memory.

Awards: Gèrardmer Fantastic Film Festival 2014 (Audience Prize, Critics Award, Grand Jury Prize, Youth Jury Prize)

PELO MALO

Bad Hair

VENEZUELA/PERU/GERMANY 2013

SUNDAY MAY 18 9:00 PM

THURSDAY MAY 22 4:30 PM

Director:

Jennifer Kent

Producers:

Kristina Ceyton

Kristian Moliere

Screenwriter: Jennifer Kent

Cinematographer: Radek Ladczuk

Editor:

Simon Njoo

Music:

Jed Kurzel

Cast:

Essie Davis

Noah Wiseman

Daniel Henshall

Hayley McElhinney

Barbara West

Running Time: 94 minutes

Presentation Format: DCP

International Sales: eOne Entertainment

Print Source: IFC Midnight

Film Website: causewayfilms.com.au

Selected Filmography: Debut Feature Film

Junior is a nine-year-old boy with adamantly curly hair who dreams of having long, flowing locks like his favorite pop star. His constant obsession with looking at himself in the mirror and fixing his hair has become a growing concern for Marta, his struggling, recently widowed mother. Fired from her job as a security guard, Marta barely survives by cleaning the homes of the wealthy, and desperately seeks some form of stability and control in her life. While her affection for her son is palpable, Junior’s emerging identity challenges her belief in strict male-female gender roles. As his annual school photo approaches, Junior’s fixation grows, putting the two on a collision course. Exercising a keen, dramatic sense, writer-director Mariana Rondón (Postcards from Leningrad, SIFF 2008) withheld her script from her actors, choosing instead to allow their naturalistic performances to emerge organically in each scene. Cinematographer Micaela Cajahuaringa’s tight lensing keeps our focus on the performances, with stunning rewards: Samantha Castillo’s edgy, guarded performance captures Marta’s tightrope walk between love and fear, and Samuel Lange carries every scene in a slippery, stunning portrayal of Junior’s transformation from his initial appeasement to his defiant later scenes that give hope that true individualism can survive in the roughest of terrains.

Awards:

San Sebastian Film Festival 2013 (Best Film)

Havana Film Festival 2013 (Special Jury Prize)

Thessaloniki Film Festival 2013 (FIPRESCI Prize, Bronze Alexander)

Director: Mariana Rondón

Producer: Marité Ugás

Screenwriter: Mariana Rondón

Cinematographer: Micaela Cajahuaringa

Editor: Marité Ugás

Music: Camilo Froideval

Cast: Samuel Lange

Samantha Castillo

Nelly Ramos

Beto Benites

Maria Emilia Sulbarán

Running Time: 93 minutes

Presentation Format: DCP, in Spanish, with English subtitles

International Sales: FiGa Films

Print Source: FiGa Films

Film Website: pelomalofilm.com

Selected Filmography: Postcards from Leningrad (2007)

At Midnight and a Half (2000)

HARVARD EXIT

PACIFIC PLACE

Ballet 422

USA 2014

MONDAY JUNE 2 7:00 PM

TUESDAY JUNE 3 3:30 PM

Explore the world behind the curtain with Ballet 422, a documentary that follows the creation of a new ballet from early rehearsals to the world premiere. An up-and-coming choreographer and corps de ballet member with the world-renowned New York City Ballet (or NYCB), Justin Peck is tasked with creating the company’s 422nd original piece, the highly anticipated production of “Paz de la Jolla.” Joining him in this arduous creative process are costume designers, seamstresses, musicians, technical crew and, of course, the other dancers. This vérité portrait takes audiences beneath the glamour of the performance onstage, providing unprecedented access to the elite world of the NYCB without sentiment and often without commentary. With its largely silent observation of Peck and his team, the film highlights the labor required to bring the beauty of ballet to life. Ballet enthusiasts, as well as lovers of art in general, will deepen their respect of the work behind the scenes as they witness the endurance, exasperation, occasional laughter, and genuine artistry of these creative talents.

PRECEDED BY:

Sonata

France 2014, 11 minutes, Director: Nadia Micault

In an imaginary musical world, a young woman seeks escape, loses herself, and tests her own limits.

Beautiful Noise

USA 2014

WORLD PREMIERE

SATURDAY MAY 31 9:15 PM

SUNDAY JUNE 1 9:15 PM

Director: Jody Lee Lipes

Producers: Anna Rose Holmer

Ellen Bar

Cinematographers: Nick Bengten Jody Lee Lipes

Editor: Saela Davis

Featuring: New York City Ballet

Running Time: 72 minutes

Presentation Format: DCP

International Sales: The Film Sales Company

Print Source: The Film Sales Company

Film Website: filmsalescorp.com/ ballet-422

Selected Filmography: NY Export: Opus Jazz (2010)

Brock Enright: Good Times Will Never Be The Same (Doc, 2009)

Beautiful Noise is an in-depth exploration of the dense, sensuous, and extremely loud movement in popular music, which was pejoratively named “shoegaze” by the British press. Tracing its influences back to the Cocteau Twins’ ethereal ambiance and the Jesus and Mary Chain’s brash guitar sound, the film explores how bands like My Bloody Valentine fused these two disparate sounds together to create a distinctive, new musical style. Acts including Slowdive, Ride, and Lush furthered the genre’s ideals of sonic experimentation without the grandiose stage personas of traditional pop stars. First-time director Eric Green scores a coup by getting this notoriously press shy bunch to open up about their music and experiences: the class politics behind the genre’s poor treatment in the British press, My Bloody Valentine’s infamous falling out with Creation Records, and how that band defied the rules to become sonic innovators whose music is only now receiving its due respect. These interviews are woven together with rare archival footage and testimonials from other music icons—including Trent Reznor and the Cure’s Robert Smith—to tell the story of a group of bands that aspired to not simply have a hit song for one week, but to make music that would change lives forever.

Director: Eric Green

Producers: Eric Green

Sarah Ogletree

Screenwriter: Eric Green

Cinematographers: Craig Bond

Fredrik Cavali

Ryan Daddi

Editor: Sarah Ogletree

Music: Brad Laner

Featuring: Trent Reznor

Billy Corgan

Robert Smith

Wayne Coyne

Running Time: 87 minutes

Presentation Format: DCP

Print Source: Hypnagogia Films

Film Website: facebook.com/ beautifulnoisedocumentary

Selected Filmography: Debut Feature Film

SIFF CINEMA UPTOWN

SIFF CINEMA UPTOWN

SIFF CINEMA UPTOWN

PACIFIC PLACE

Begin Again

USA 2013

SATURDAY MAY 24 6:30 PM

SUNDAY MAY 25 4:00 PM

In 2007, Irish writer-director John Carney gave the world one of the best and most moving musical romances with the seminal Once Although set on this side of the Atlantic, Begin Again sees the filmmaker re-work his magic with a delightful cast and excellent soundtrack. Musician Greta (Keira Knightley) is full of aspiration and hope for her musical career—but it’s put in serious jeopardy when her successful boyfriend (Maroon 5’s Adam Levine) unexpectedly breaks up with her. Alone and lost in New York’s music scene, Greta forms a bond with a dejected record producer, Dan (Mark Ruffalo), who has his own share of problems. Trying to fix strained relationships with his daughter (True Grit’s Hailee Steinfeld) and ex-spouse (Catherine Keener), Dan is down-on-his-luck and dubious when he meets Greta. But taking a chance on the young singer-songwriter might be the key to turning around and changing both strangers’ lives. Heartfelt and moving, Begin Again is a charming dramedy about friendship, passion, and resilience, featuring two winning performances from Knightley and Ruffalo. Complete with a fantastic soundtrack full of soon-to-be hits, Carney’s film proves that he understands and masters the soulful, powerful, and cinematic essence of music.

Director:

John Carney

Producers:

EGYPTIAN

EGYPTIAN

Anthony Bregman

Tobin Armbrust

Screenwriter: John Carney

Cinematographer: Yaron Orbach

Editor:

Andrew Marcus

Music:

Gregg Alexander

Cast: Keira Knightley

Mark Ruffalo

Catherine Keener

Adam Levine

Cee Lo Green

Hailee Steinfeld

Running Time: 101 minutes

Presentation Format: DCP

Print Source: The Weinstein Company

Film Website: beginagainfilm.com

Selected Filmography: The Rafters (2012)

Zonad (2009)

Once (2006)

On the Edge (2001)

Park (1999)

November Afternoon (1996)

BELLE ET SÉBASTIEN

Belle & Sebastien FRANCE 2013

SUNDAY MAY 25 10:30 AM

FRIDAY MAY 30 11:00 AM

SUNDAY JUNE 1 12:00 PM

There is perhaps no cinematic bond stronger than that of the friendship between a boy and his dog. For this reason, the novel “Belle et Sébastien” by actress and author Cécile Aubry has endured since the 1960s, inspiring several films, television series, and even the name of a Scottish indie ensemble. In this latest film adaptation by Nicolas Vanier, the setting has been shifted to World War II on the French/Swiss border. Sébastien (Félix Bossuet) lives with his grizzled grandfather, César (Tchéky Karyo), in a vertiginous mountain village and crosses paths with a giant, filthy Pyrenean Mountain Dog who the locals have dubbed “the Beast” for allegedly killing livestock. Sébastien, however, sees something good in the misunderstood canine and eventually befriends the animal, naming her “Belle.” Their budding friendship is put to the test when Nazi occupiers march into town looking for members of the French Resistance, who are guiding Jewish refugees to neighboring Switzerland. With their intimate knowledge of the nooks and crannies of the alpine valleys, Belle and Sébastien help point the way to safety, with the merciless SS officer, Lieutenant Peter (Andreas Pietschmann), tracking them every step of the way. Using 35mm film and jaw-dropping scenery from the Haute Maurienne-Vanoise region of France, Belle et Sébastien is a charming homage to the beloved live-action nature films of Disney, but with a pulse-pounding World War II subplot that will thrill audiences of all ages.

PACIFIC PLACE

PACIFIC PLACE

KIRKLAND PC

Director: Nicolas Vanier

Producers: Clément Miserez

Matthieu Warter

Frédéric Brillion

Gilles Legrand

Screenwriters: Fabien Suarez

Juliette Sales Nicolas Vanier

based on a novel by Cécile Aubry

Cinematographer: Eric Guichard

Editors: Stéphanie Pedelacq

Raphaele Urtin

Music: Armand Amar

Cast: Félix Bossuet

Tchéky Karyo

Margaux Châtelier

Dimitri Storoge

Mehdi El Glaoui

Running Time: 99 minutes

Presentation Format: DCP, in French, with English subtitles

International Sales: Gaumont

Print Source: Gaumont

Film Website: belleetsebastien-lefilm.com

Selected Filmography: Loup (2009)

L’Oddyssée Sibérienne (2006)

The Last Trapper (2004)

L’Ódyssée Blanche (1999)

The Child of the Snows (1995)

Au Nord de l’Hiver (1993)

Beneath

USA 2013

SATURDAY MAY 31 6:30 PM

SIFF CINEMA UPTOWN

SUNDAY JUNE 1 8:30 PM SIFF CINEMA UPTOWN

On the night before his last day of working in the coalmines, foreman George Marsh celebrates his impending early retirement with his colleagues at their favorite watering hole. His daughter Samantha, an aspiring environmental lawyer, is home from New York City for the festivities as well, though her profession doesn’t sit well with either her dad or the other miners. George’s fellow miners succeed in goading Samantha into accepting a challenge to work one day in the mine. Despite the hard work she encounters there, all goes well—until a disastrous, yet mysterious, collapse traps the miners 600 feet underground. At first the group seeks to establish contact with the surface while investigating the cause of the cave-in. But soon, with their air supply growing more and more toxic and the time for rescue running out, Samantha begins to suspect a sinister presence at work, turning the miners against one another as they all slowly descend into madness. A white-knuckle, claustrophobic thriller, Beneath is a subterranean nightmare that will leave you yearning for daylight.

Awards: Screamfest La 2014 (Best Picture, Director, Cinematography, Makeup Effects, Special Effects)

Director: Ben Ketai

Producers: Nick Phillips

Kelly Wagner

Screenwriters: Patrick Doody

Chris Valenziano

Cinematographer: Timothy A. Burton

Editor: Toby Wilkins

Music: Andres Boulton

Cast: Brent Briscoe

Kurt Caceres

Eric Etebari

Jeff Fahey

Joey Kern

Running Time: 89 minutes

Presentation Format: DCP

Print Source: IFC Films

Film Website: beneaththemovie.com

Selected Filmography: Debut Feature Film

The Better Angels

USA 2014

TUESDAY JUNE 3 7:00 PM EGYPTIAN

THURSDAY JUNE 5 4:30 PM SIFF CINEMA UPTOWN

Stunningly shot and set in 1817 Indiana, this Terrence Malick-produced hyperrealistic reflection plumbs the difficult early years of Abraham Lincoln, whose later struggle against slavery made him a legend. The United States is only 40 years old. Lincoln’s family has moved from Kentucky to the Indiana woods, where men and women battle against nature and disease on an elemental level. Thoroughly researched and authentic down to the very fibers worn and food eaten at the time, The Better Angels explores the hardships that shaped Lincoln, the tragedy that marked him forever, and his two mothers who guided him toward immortality. Starring newcomer Braydon Denney (as young Lincoln), Jason Clarke (Zero Dark Thirty) and Diane Kruger (Inglourious Basterds, “The Bridge”) and gorgeously shot with lush visuals and blackand-white cinematography, it’s a visceral and emotional film. Director A.J. Edwards has worked extensively with Malick as an editor on The New World and as second-unit director on The Tree of Life. Edwards’ first narrative feature film creates a vivid impression of an austere era and the familial circumstances that shaped one of history’s most unique and beloved presidents.

Director: A.J. Edwards

Producers: Terrence Malick

Charley Beil

Jake DeVito

Nicolas Gonda

Screenwriter: A.J. Edwards

Cinematographer: Matthew J. Lloyd

Editor: Alexander Richard Milan

Music: Hanan Townshend

Cast: Braydon Denney

Jason Clarke

Diane Kruger

Brit Marling

Wes Bentley

Running Time: 94 minutes

Presentation Format:

DCP

International Sales: Electric Entertainment

Print Source: Amplify • Variance Films

Selected Filmography: Debut Feature Film

Beyond Beauty: Taiwan From Above

WEDNESDAY MAY 21 7:00 PM PACIFIC PLACE

FRIDAY MAY 23 4:30 PM LINCOLN SQUARE

A document of Taiwan from an aerial perspective, Beyond Beauty: Taiwan From Above introduces viewers to the island nation’s rich landscapes while also revealing the environmental effects of human development. Director and cinematographer Chi Po-Lin captured his footage over the course of hundreds of hours spent filming from a helicopter, employing the geographical expertise that he developed as a photographer for the National Highway Engineering Bureau. The documentary describes both the “beauty and sorrow” of Taiwan by juxtaposing awe-inspiring views of its mountains and coastlines with images of industrial devastation that are equally affecting. The heart of the film is a sobering examination of the extensive pollution and destruction caused by factory waste, heavy logging, overharvesting of cash crops, and high levels of electricity use. No single individual or agency is accused of bearing the blame for the state of affairs, but the film presents the undeniable reality of the damage and urges audiences to acknowledge the truth. This environmentalist wake-up call garnered the 2013 Taipei Film Festival’s award for Best Documentary, as well as a pledge from President Ma Ying-jeou to begin work on many of the problems highlighted in the film.

Awards: Worldfest International Film Festival Houston 2014 (Jury Special Prize, Best Documentary, Cinematography)

Taipei Film Festival 2013 (Best Documentary)

Beyond The Brick: A LEGO® Brickumentary

DENMARK/USA 2014

FRIDAY MAY 16 4:00 PM

Director: Chi Po-Lin

Producer: Amy Chiung-Yao Tseng

Screenwriter: Tsui Chi-Chuan

Cinematographer: Chi Po-Lin

Editor: Kuo Yu-Ning

Music: Ricky Ho

Narrated by: Wu Nien-Jen

Running Time: 93 minutes

Presentation Format: DCP, in Mandarin, with English subtitles

Print Source: Taiwan Aerial Imaging

Film Website: facebook.com/abovetai

Selected Filmography: Debut Feature Film

LINCOLN SQUARE

SATURDAY MAY 17 3:30 PM SIFF CINEMA UPTOWN

SUNDAY MAY 18 2:30 PM SIFF CINEMA UPTOWN

Beyond The Brick: A LEGO® Brickumentary is the first official documentary about the world’s favorite toy. Or is it more than just a toy? Co-directors Kief Davidson and Daniel Junge explore the vast the world of LEGO® and the boundless creativity it inspires. Since its birth in 1947, LEGO® has produced over 400 billion bricks, but the bricks aren’t just for kids. Adult Fans of LEGO® from around the globe unashamedly proclaim their love of the toy, with brick artists—particularly those who’ve achieved the status of “Master Builder”—assembling stunning and surprising creations. Increasingly, LEGO® bricks are also being used for therapeutic purposes, as well as in the classroom to expose children to the principles of engineering. Ultimately, Beyond The Brick: A LEGO® Brickumentary goes beyond being a survey of all things LEGO® to delve into such deeper questions as why we build. What are the limits of human creativity in a finite world? This awesome documentary will inspire audiences of all ages to rekindle their inner creative flame.

Directors: Kief Davidson

Daniel Junge

Producers:

Chris Brown

Brendan Kiernan

Justin Moore-Lewy

Cinematographers: Luke Geissbuhler

Robert Muratore

Tony Molina

Aaron Phillips

Shana Hagan

Editors:

Inbal B. Lessner

Darrin Roberts

Davis Coombe

Tiffany Hauck

Chad Herschberger

Marco Jacubowicz

Music:

John Jennings Boyd

Running Time: 95 minutes

Presentation Format:

DCP

International Sales: Submarine Entertainment

Print Source:

Milkhaus

Film Website: thelegodocumentary.com

Selected Filmography:

DAVIDSON:

Open Heart (Doc, 2013)

Kassim the Dream (Doc, 2008)

The Devil’s Miner (Doc, 2005)

JUNGE:

Fight Church (2014)

Saving Face (Doc, 2011)

The Last Campaign of Governor Booth Gardner (Doc, 2009)

They Killed Sister Dorothy (Doc, 2008)

Iron Ladies of Liberia (Doc, 2007)

Chiefs (2002)

BFE

USA 2014

MONDAY JUNE 2 9:00 PM

TUESDAY JUNE 3 4:00 PM

In a small town where everyone has been dealt a bum hand, four people seek an escape from reality. Terminally ill Grampa (Wally Dalton) is looking for a way out a little sooner, and he unwittingly enlists his grandson Ian, embarking on an adventure full of shady deals and risk taking. Along the way, they encounter several friends—some new and some old—who are each grappling with bad decisions and with the relentless monotony that comes from living in an insular small town. One of those friends is Ellie, a troubled teenager searching for love and salvation in her relationship with Zack, a young romantic whose future hinges on how he reacts to temptation. A stunning debut from local filmmaker Shawn Telford, building on his short film The Last Virgin (SIFF 2013), deftly expands his ambitious narrative and delivers diverse well-written characters who still have one distinct commonality: they all need to get out of BFE.

Awards: Sarasota Film Festival 2014 (Best Ensemble)

HARVARD EXIT

HARVARD EXIT

Director: Shawn Telford

Producers: Shawn Telford

Mark Carr

Screenwriter: Shawn Telford

Cinematographer: Ty Migota

Editor: Nicholas Davis

Music: Mr. Gnome

Cast: Wally Dalton Kelsey Packwood Aleksander Greenleaf

Ian Lerch

Abby Dylan

Running Time: 98 minutes

Presentation Format: DCP, in English and Korean, with English subtitles

Print Source: What a dream INK & Otherwise

Film Website: facebook.com/BFEfilm

Selected Filmography:

Debut Feature Film

B for Boy

NIGERIA 2013

MONDAY JUNE 2 8:30 PM

FRIDAY JUNE 6 1:15 PM

Amaka, a middle-class woman in contemporary Nigeria, is nearing 40 and is expecting her second child. Her seven-year-old daughter is the pride of her life, but in Nigerian Igbo cultural tradition, if a woman is unable to conceive a male heir, the husband is expected to take a second wife. With Amaka’s mother-in-law breathing down her neck and a proposed second wife already invading the household, Amaka has a secret ultrasound. The joyous news of a baby boy is marred a short time later by the news that the child has died in utero. Desperate to keep her family together, Amaka conceals the tragedy and sets in motion a plot to have a male heir by her due date at any cost. Debut filmmaker Chika Anadu explores a controversial topic with an elegant and moving drama featuring an exceptional performance from lead Uche Nwadili and a strong supporting cast of largely first-time actors. In a country known primarily for cheaply produced Nollywood cinema, B for Boy raises the bar with an honest, affecting portrait of a society which screams modernity, but whose traditions may give an impression to the contrary.

Awards:

AFI Film Festival 2013 (Breakthrough Award)

Director: Chika Anadu

Producers: Chika Anadu

Arie Esiri

Screenwriter: Chika Anadu

Cinematographer: Monika Lenczewska

Editor: Simon Brasse

Music:

Enis Rotthoff

Cast: Uche Nwadili

Nonso Odogwu

Ngozi Amarikwa

Frances Okeke

Iheoma Opara

Running Time: 118 minutes

Presentation Format: DCP, in Igbo, with English subtitles

Print Source: No Blondes Productions

Film Website: facebook.com/bforboymovie

Selected Filmography: Debut Feature Film

SIFF CINEMA UPTOWN

PACIFIC PLACE

Big in Japan

USA/JAPAN 2014

THURSDAY JUNE 5 7:00 PM

SATURDAY JUNE 7 12:30 PM

EGYPTIAN

SIFF CINEMA UPTOWN

“The only way that you are gonna make it here is if you make it somewhere else first.” That’s the advice given to a struggling Seattle-based surf-rock trio by a mysterious, and somewhat dubious, band promoter. So begins a rollicking overseas journey by the band Tennis Pro as they attempt to live the ultimate rock cliché of becoming “big in Japan” before catapulting to global success. With seemingly no other option, the three desperate musicians sell their van to scrape together just enough for a plane ticket to ply the neon-lit maze of Tokyo’s nightclub districts. Along the way, they endure crappy venues, lost luggage, cramped hotel rooms, and exotic intoxicants, but also feel a renewed burst of artistic creativity. But this is no “mockumentary”—Tennis Pro is a real Seattle band, played by the real-life musicians: John Drury, Sean Lowry, and perhaps heart and soul of the band, Philip Peterson, who sports Coke-bottle glasses, a David Crosbyesque hairdo, and boundless goofy enthusiasm. This fictionalized version of sort-of-true Tennis Pro events is guided by director John Jeffcoat (Outsourced, Golden Space Needle Audience Award at SIFF 2007), who amps up the laughs as the band navigates smarmy label execs, tests of loyalty, jealous girlfriends back home, and even plate tectonics. Big in Japan, featuring a bouncy soundtrack of original Tennis Pro songs, is a hilarious, trippy delight that may inspire you to get that high-school garage band back together.

Director: John Jeffcoat

Producers: Jannat Gargi

John Jeffcoat

Screenwriter: John Jeffcoat

Cinematographers: John Jeffcoat

Ryan McMackin

Editors:

Michelle Witten

John Jeffcoat

Music: Tennis Pro

Philip A. Peterson

Cast: David Drury

Philip A. Peterson

Sean Lowry

Alex Vincent

Adam Powers

Running Time: 100 minutes

Presentation Format:

DCP

Print Source: Outsider Pictures

Film Website: bijthemovie.com

Selected Filmography: Outsourced (2006)

Bingo! The Documentary (Doc, 1999)

The Bit Player

PHILIPPINES 2013

MONDAY MAY 19 9:30 PM PACIFIC PLACE

WEDNESDAY MAY 21 5:00 PM SIFF CINEMA UPTOWN

FRIDAY MAY 23 8:30 PM RENTON IKEA PAC

It’s not easy being an extra. While vital to the authenticity to a filmed project—be it a movie, TV show, or music video—extras, or bit players, are regularly relegated to the sidelines, where they are subjugated, mistreated, underfed, and disrespected, working long hours without any promises of fame, fortune, or respectable paychecks. Such is the life of middle-aged single mother Loida (Vilma Santos), who has yet to catch her big break. Waking up at the crack of dawn, she and a dozen other extras pack themselves like sardines into a van and head out to a remote location shoot for the nightly TV soap opera “Nauna kang nagging Akin” (or “You Were Mine First”). Upon their arrival, they find the set in complete disarray, a frenzied circus of diva behavior, rain delays, and prop mishaps. Over the course of one very long shooting day, the behind-the-scenes chaos become as dramatic, if not more, than the soap opera unfolding before the cameras, but Loida, ever committed to her craft, discovers what could be a glimmer of hope in the form of a small, available speaking role. Santos, who ironically is a cinema megastar in her home country, gives one of the best performances of the Festival, imbuing Loida with a dogged tenacity lying just beneath the surface of her kind but world-weary visage. The film itself strikes a wonderful balance between a screwball showbiz comedy and a compassionate socio-realist drama about the exploitation of labor, equally harsh and hilarious.

Awards: Cinemalaya Independent Film Festival 2013 (Audience Award, Best Screenplay, Actress, Supporting Actress)

Director: Jeffrey Jeturian

Producers:

Josabeth Alonso

Ferdinand Lapuz

John Victor Tence

Jeffrey Jeturian

Vilma Santos

Screenwriters: Zig Dulay

Antoinette Jadaone

Jeffrey Jeturian

Cinematographer: Lee Briones

Editors:

Glenn Ituriaga

Zig Dulay

Music:

Vincent de Jesus

Cast:

Vilma Santos

Vincent de Jesus

Marlon Rivera

Ruby Ruiz

Tart Carlos

Running Time: 111 minutes

Presentation Format: DCP

International Sales: Ignatius Films Canada

Print Source: Ignatius Films Canada

Selected Filmography: Trespassers (2011)

The Bet Collector (2006)

Bikini Open (2005)

Minsan pa (2004)

Bridal Shower (2004)

Larger Than Life (2001)

Fetch a Pail of Water (1999)

Enter Love (1998)

BAI RI YAN HUO

Black Coal, Thin Ice

CHINA/HONG KONG 2014

TUESDAY JUNE 3 9:30 PM

PACIFIC PLACE

SATURDAY JUNE 7 9:00 PM SIFF CINEMA UPTOWN

SUNDAY JUNE 8 1:30 PM PACIFIC PLACE

A new Chinese noir thriller arrives fresh off winning the Golden Bear for Best Film at the Berlin Film Festival. When a coal plant worker is found gruesomely murdered, with severed parts of his body spread over hundreds of kilometers across the province, policeman Zhang Zili and his colleagues are sent to investigate. Multiple suspects arise, but when the police attempt to bring one in for questioning, the resulting shootout leaves two officers dead and Zhang wounded. Five years later, Zhang, who was forced to retire in disgrace, now works as a factory security guard between bouts of steady drinking. However, during a chance encounter with his former partner, he learns that two other factory workers have been murdered and dismembered in eerily similar fashion to the earlier case. Soon, Zhang uncovers a common link between the victims, Wu Zhizhen, a beautiful laundry shop worker. Zhang poses as a customer to get closer to her, only to find himself falling in love with his chief suspect. Evoking the spirits of James M. Cain and Raymond Chandler, Black Coal, Thin Ice is a bleak and powerful crime mystery from Diao Yinan, director of Golden Space Needle winner Shower (SIFF 2000).

Awards: Berlin Film Festival 2014 (Best Film, Actor)

Director:

Diao Yinan

Producers: Vivian Qu

Wan Juan

Screenwriter: Diao Yinan

Cinematographer: Dong Jinsong

Editor:

Yang Hongyu

Music:

Wen Zi

Cast:

Liao Fan

Gwei Lun Mei

Wang Xuebing

Wang Jingchun

Yu Ailei

Ni Jingyang

Running Time: 106 minutes

Presentation Format: DCP, in Mandarin, with English subtitles

International Sales: Fortissimo Films

Print Source: Fortissimo Films

Selected Filmography: Night Train (2007) Uniform (2003)

BRMA PAEMNEBI

Blind Dates

GEORGIA 2013

WEDNESDAY JUNE 4 4:00 PM

SUNDAY JUNE 8 5:00 PM

Boasting a strong vision, an ironic sense of humor and brilliant minimalistic acting, this lovely, compassionate, melancholy comedy portrays the warmth and delicacy of human relationships in contemporary Georgia. Sandro is a 40-year-old Tbilisi teacher who still lives with his parents. His mother constantly bugs him to grow up and get married, but Sandro has little luck with the women he and his single friend Iva contact through dating sites. After yet another unsuccessful match-up, Sandro meets hairdresser Manana, the mother of one of his students, and falls in love with her. However, the seemingly single Manana turns out to be married—and her hot-tempered husband, Tengo, is about to be released on probation. As Sandro and Iva kill time by the sea, their backdrops are artfully staged yet familiar and realistic. Winner of the Special Jury Prize at the Abu Dhabi Film Festival, Blind Dates is a slice of life everyone can relate to: the simple search for connection and meaning.

Awards:

Abu Dhabi Film Festival 2013 (Special Jury Award) Karlory Vary 2013 (Most Promising Project)

HARVARD EXIT

SIFF CINEMA UPTOWN

Director: Levan Koguashvili

Producers: Levan Koguashvili

Suliko Tsulukidze

Olena Yershova

Screenwriters: Boris Frumin

Levan Koguashvili in collaboration with Andro Sakvarelidze

Cinematographer: Tato Kotetishvili

Editor: Nodar Nozadze

Music: Iakob Bobokhidze

Otar Tevdoradze

Cast: Andro Sakhvarelidze

Ia Sukhitashvili

Archil Kikodze

Vakhtang Chachanidze Kakhi Kavsadze

Running Time: 95 minutes

Presentation Format: DCP, in Georgian, with English subtitles

International Sales: Films Boutique

Print Source: Films Boutique

Selected Filmography: Street Days (2010)

Women from Georgia (Doc, 2009)

Borgman

NETHERLANDS/BELGIUM/DENMARK 2013

SUNDAY MAY 18 8:00 PM

SIFF CINEMA UPTOWN

TUESDAY MAY 20 9:30 PM SIFF CINEMA UPTOWN

A playful and sinister adult fable from Dutch writer-director Alex van Warmerdam ( Abel , The Northerners , Grimm ). Vagrant trickster Borgman’s arrival amidst the tree-lined avenues of an exclusive residential area sets off a series of unsettling events that penetrate the carefully constructed façade of a wealthy couple, their three children, and the nanny. Borgman proves that evil comes in everyday form, embodied within ordinary, normal, polite men and women who perform their tasks with pride and pleasure, and with ruthless attention to detail. It shows that evil is enacted not just on cold winter nights, but in the optimistic summer, beneath a warm and comforting sun. And that a perpetually elusive man like Borgman can intoxicate a woman so fully with desire that she is rendered powerless.

Awards:

Official Oscar Submission 2013 (Foreign Language Film)

Netherlands Film Festival 2013 (Best Film, Screenplay, Actress)

Athens International Film Festival 2013 (Life Achievement)

European Film Festival Palic 2013 (Best Film)

Haifa International Film Festival 2013 (Best Film)

Strasbourg European Fantastic Film Festival 2013 (Best European Fantastic Film)

Lund International Fantastic Film Festival 2013 (Best International Feature Film)

Sitges International Fantastic Film Festival 2013 (Best Film)

Sweden Fantastic Film Festival 2013 (Grand Prize)

Director:

Alex van Warmerdam

Producers:

Mogens Glad

Eurydice Gysel

Koen Mortier

Tine Mosegaard

Berry van Zwieten

Marc van Warmerdam

Screenwriter:

Alex van Warmerdam

Cinematographer: Tom Erisman

Editor:

Job ter Burg

Music:

Vincent van Warmerdam

Cast:

Jan Bijvoet

Hadewych Minis

Jeroen Perceval

Sara Hjort Ditlevsen

Elve Lijbaart

Running Time: 113 minutes

Presentation Format: DCP, in Dutch, with English subtitles

International Sales: Fortissimo Films

Print Source: Drafthouse Films

Film Website: drafthousefilms.com/film/ borgman

Selected Filmography:

The Last Days of Emma Blank (2009)

Waiter (2006)

Grimm (2003)

Little Tony (1998)

The Dress (1996)

The Northerners (1992) Abel (1986)

Born To Fly USA 2014

MONDAY MAY 26 5:30 PM SIFF CINEMA UPTOWN

WEDNESDAY MAY 28 4:30 PM PACIFIC PLACE

FRIDAY JUNE 6 1:00 PM SIFF CINEMA UPTOWN

What’s the difference between stunt-work, circus acts, ballet, and physical labor? Testing the limits of space and contact, Catherine Gund’s newest documentary boldly follows choreographer and ‘Evil Knievel of Dance’ Elizabeth Streb and her company as they take on different forms of experimental movement, and explore the philosophy of their performances. For more than 30 years, Brooklynbased Streb has been interested in inventing motion—with the idea of flight as a major touchstone. The effects of gravity, math, and physics are forcefully imposed upon the traditional dance vocabularies in her work. “A question like: ‘can you fall up?’ That is the bedrock of my process,” Streb told BOMB Magazine in 2010. The result is a Cirque du Soleil-style acrobatic slant to modern dance conducted primarily using harnesses and other apparatus that allow dancers to scale walls, dodge beams, and drop from great heights. These are presented as ‘Extreme Action Events,’ and Streb’s dancers seem willing to risk it all in service of her highly controlled vision. Dancer DeeAnn Nelson actually breaks her back in performance. As Gund’s exploration of these powerful (and power) dynamics comes to a close, footage of ‘One Extraordinary Day’ brilliantly encapsulates the risk and beauty put forth in the company’s performance. These breathtaking feats used the London Eye as a playground to open the 2012 London Olympics.

Director: Catherine Gund

Producers: Catherine Gund

Tanya Selvaratnam

Cinematographers: Kirsten Johnson

Albert Maysles

Ian McAlpin

Editor: Alex Meillier

Music: Adam Crystal

Running Time: 82 minutes

Presentation Format: HDCAM

Print Source: The Film Collaborative

Film Website: borntoflymovie.com

Selected Filmography: What’s On Your Plate?

(Doc, 2009)

A Touch of Greatness (Doc, 2004)

Making Grace (Doc, 2004)

Hallelujah! Ron Athey: A Story of Deliverance (Doc, 1998)

Bound: Africans versus African Americans

USA 2014

WORLD PREMIERE

SATURDAY JUNE 7 5:30 PM

SUNDAY JUNE 8 2:30 PM

Bound: Africans versus African Americans is a hard-hitting documentary that addresses the little-known tension that exists between Africans and African Americans. The film opens with a collage of personal testimonials that expose the rift as more than just childish name-calling with deeper wounds that span hundreds of years. Through exploring the historical experiences of both African Americans and Africans, the filmmakers provide perspectives that take the events of history and brings to the fore the direct and indirect effects of slavery and colonization on populations that last for generations with no easy solution. Ultimately, Bound smartly focuses on the things that make Africans and African Americans similar as opposed to dwelling on what divides them, culminating with ideas that promote reconciliation without assuming that it is a simple fix. Kenyan-born director Peres Owino has created an engaging, substantive, and compassionate film that will be a discussion starter and a catalyst for change across the African diaspora. But the film’s exemplary investigation of cultural relations succeeds in reflecting on all societies the importance of examining the ethnic, political, and geographical prejudices within us all.

The Boy and the World

BRAZIL 2013

SATURDAY MAY 24 12:30 AM

SATURDAY JUNE 7 11:30 AM

Director: Peres Owino

Producers: Peres Owino

Nicole Kruex

Isaiah Washington

Screenwriter: Peres Owino

Cinematographers: Iyabo Kwayana

Nicole Kruex

Editors: Barry Kolsky

Gehrig Burnett

Music: Benjamin Ochieng

Michael Schneider

Running Time: 90 minutes

Presentation Format: DCP

Print Source: End Time Harvest

Productions

Selected Filmography: Debut Feature Film

Open your senses to a refreshingly original, uniquely visual animated film from Brazilian artist Alê Abreu. Employing everything from mosaics to watercolors, the film overflows with delight, exploding with vibrant color and samba/hip hop rhythms. The story focuses on Cuca, a young child growing up in the Brazilian countryside with his family. One day, his father leaves to work in the city, forcing Cuca to embark for the metropolis, hoping to bring his family back together. The animation starts simply, but as Cuca ventures further into the world, the visual style takes on a greater complexity, eventually creating a neon-infused cityscape with a variety of strange characters never seen before. The seemingly simple story unveils the conflict between country and city, poor and wealthy, handmade to motorized in such a way that audiences of all ages will experience different levels of the same narrative. Abreu’s film is captivating, keeping attention rapt for its full running time with hardly a line of dialogue all the way to its surprising and emotional finale.

Awards: São Paulo International Film Festival 2013 (Youth Award for Best Brazilian Film)

Director: Alê Abreu

Producer: Alê Abreu

Screenwriter: Alê Abreu

Editor: Alê Abreu

Music: Ruben Feffer

Gustavo Kurlat

Running Time: 80 minutes

Presentation Format: DCP, no dialogue

Print Source: GKids

Film Website: omeninoeomundo. blogspot.com.br

Selected Filmography: Garoto Cósmico (2007)

SIFF CINEMA UPTOWN

SIFF CINEMA UPTOWN

RENTON IKEA PAC

SIFF CINEMA UPTOWN

Boyhood USA 2014

SATURDAY MAY 31 5:00 PM

SUNDAY JUNE 1 8:00 PM

Richard Linklater (Dazed and Confused, Before Sunrise trilogy) makes a triumphant return to his independent roots with Boyhood, a dazzling microepic shot for 39 days over the course of 12 years in and around Austin, Texas. Boyhood follows the tumultuous lives of Mason Sr. (Ethan Hawke), Olivia (Patricia Arquette), and Mason Jr. (newcomer Ellar Coltrane) and his older sister Samantha (Lorelei Linklater) from around the time Mason is six until he begins his freshman year of college. Within that timeframe, relationships ebb and flow, loved ones pass away, romantic entanglements develop, and life generally takes its course. The beauty of Linklater’s film is in its observation of these in-between times, those bookend moments before and after major life events, when growth happens and lessons are learned. As we see these characters mature on-screen, we develop a new appreciation not only for their individual narrative arcs, but also for the craftsmanship employed by Linklater and his ensemble cast to bring these characters to life over the span of time covered by the film. Today, we’re accustomed to bells, whistles, and CGI pyrotechnics deployed in the hopes of holding our attention on screen. What Linklater and his top-notch cast offer is just the opposite—small, intimate moments of the type we may witness every day in our own homes but never stop to appreciate. Boyhood is a glorious achievement in filmmaking, one that celebrates the hidden beauty of the moments we take for granted each day.

Awards: Berlin Film Festival 2014 (Silver Bear)

SXSW 2014 (Louis Black “Lone Star” Award)

JONGENS

Boys

NETHERLANDS 2014

MONDAY JUNE 2 9:30 PM

TUESDAY JUNE 3 4:00 PM

Director: Richard Linklater

Producers: Richard Linklater

Cathleen Sutherland

Screenwriter: Richard Linklater

Cinematographers: Lee Daniel

Shane Kelly

Editor: Sandra Adair

Cast: Patricia Arquette

Ethan Hawke

Ellar Coltrane

Lorelei Linklater

Running Time: 164 minutes

Presentation Format: DCP

Print Source: IFC Films

Film Website: boyhoodmovie.com

Selected Filmography:

Before Midnight (2013)

Bernie (2012)

Me and Orson Welles (2009)

A Scanner Darkly (2006)

Fast Food Nation (2006)

Bad News Bears (2005)

Before Sunset (2004)

School of Rock (2003)

Tape (2001)

Waking Life (2001)

The Newton Boys (1998)

SubUrbia (1997)

Before Sunrise (1995)

Dazed and Confused (1993)

Slacker (1991)

It’s Impossible to Learn to Plow by Reading Books (1988)

First-time summer love is something most people never forget. Teenager Sieger (Gijs Blom), however, is doing his best to not even acknowledge his first crush. During his summer school break, the 15-year-old is training to make the team for the National Relay Championships with his best friend, Stef (Stijn Taverne). During his running workouts, Sieger meets another runner named Marc (Ko Zandvliet), a more free-spirited and outgoing person, and the two strike up a friendship. Before long, Sieger realizes his feelings for Marc are deeper than he imagined. Things get even more complicated when Marc reveals that he shares the same longing for Sieger. Terrified of being found out by his father and his rebellious, intimidating older brother Eddy (Jonas Smulders), Sieger begins to make moves on one of the girls in his school while also attempting to curry favor by showing Eddy the location of a hidden motocross track, an activity their father has forbidden. But with each of Sieger’s attempt to mask his true feelings, his intense attraction to Marc only grows stronger. Director Mischa Kamp, known for her Dutch television work and award-winning family movies (Tony 10, Winky’s Horse), creates an authentic and tender love story about two young people trying to cope with emotions they don’t quite understand but can no longer deny.

EGYPTIAN

EGYPTIAN

Director: Mischa Kamp

Producers: Iris Otten

Sander van Meurs

Pieter Kuijpers

Screenwriters: Chris Westendorp

Jaap-Peter Enderlé

Cinematographer: Melle van Essen

Editor: Katarina Türler

Music: Rutger Reinders

Cast: Gijs Blom

Ko Zandvliet

Jonas Smulders

Ton Kas

Stijn Taverne

Running Time: 78 minutes

Presentation Format: HDCAM, in Dutch, with English subtitles

International Sales: m-Appeal

Print Source: The Film Collaborative

Selected Filmography: Tony 10 (2012)

Where is Winky’s Horse? (2007)

Winky’s Horse (2005)

EGYPTIAN

HARVARD EXIT

The Breach USA 2014

WORK IN PROGRESS

WEDNESDAY JUNE 4 6:30 PM

SIFF CINEMA UPTOWN

SATURDAY JUNE 7 1:00 PM PACIFIC

A riveting story of the journey of wild salmon and their precarious situation in the ecosystem of the American river system–specifically here in the Pacific Northwest. Wild salmon are icons in the Pacific Northwest and Alaska, as well as a vital food source for the planet. One can find images of salmon everywhere—in airports, stadiums—even over I-90. We are uniquely connected to these ancient animals, yet the centuries-old system of dams, fish farms, the resource-extraction booms, and subsequent environmental busts of the last 150 years have nearly extinguished the once-teeming wild salmon runs throughout the Pacific Northwest and Alaska. Filmmaker Mark Titus, himself an avid fisherman and fishing guide, delves deep into the lore and reality of the wild salmon in the Northwest, with in-depth interviews featuring Russ Busch, campaigner for the removal of the Elwha Dam, and renowned fish artist and activist Ray Troll. With the Elwha Dam recently removed, an ancient salmon run is being restored, but is it enough? Covering more than dam removal, Titus’ insightful film looks deep into the British Columbia regulations of fish farms and the current legislative action around the Pebble Mine in Bristol Bay, Alaska. With spectacular footage of salmon—from baby fry to spawning—Titus takes us on the powerful journey of the patron fish of the Northwest.

PRECEDED BY:

In The Same Boat

USA 2014, 18 minutes, Director: Elijah Lawson

World Premiere

An intimate and charming portrait of fishermen in Bristol Bay and the commercial salmon industry.

A Brony Tale

USA 2014

THURSDAY MAY 22 9:30 PM SIFF CINEMA

PLACE

Director:

Mark Titus

Producers: Susan LaSalle

Mark Titus

Screenwriter: Mark Titus

Cinematographer: Andres Garreton

Editors: Eric Frith

Ryan Horner

Music: David Parfit

Narrated by: Kate O’Toole

Running Time: 85 minutes

Presentation Format:

HDCAM

Print Source: The Breach LLC

Film Website: thebreachfilm.com

Selected Filmography: Debut Feature Film

SATURDAY MAY 24 11:00 AM EGYPTIAN

Voice actress Ashleigh Ball acknowledges that “The pervert alarm, for sure, went off in my head,” when she first head about the “Brony” phenomena. The concept of a Brony— an adult male fan (usually aged 18-30) of the animated children’s series “My Little Pony: Friendship Is Magic”—does give one pause. In this Morgan Spurlock Presents documentary, director Brent Hodge follows Ball, the voice actress behind the series’ characters Apple Dash and Rainbow Dash, to her first BronyCon—the largest My Little Pony fan convention in the world. As we meet the celebrities of Brony fandom, and see them through Ball’s eyes, we discover what Bronies already know: Friendship is Magic. Un-ironic and non-controversial, A Brony Tale, is never mocking or condescending. Ball is bemused that she’s a part of people’s lives in this way, and that voice acting has made her a celebrity in this sub-division of geek culture. The Bronies themselves echo the values of the series, and are visibly moved and inspired as they talk about their commitment to celebrating friendship and kindness unapologetically claiming that, “Bronies have changed the definition of masculinity.”

Director:

Brent Hodge

Producers:

Brent Hodge

Carolyn Wells

Screenwriter: Brent Hodge

Cinematographers: Josh Huculiak

Brent Hodge

Joe Schweers

Editor: Nick Shepherd

Music:

Chris Kelly

Hey Ocean!

Featuring: Ashleigh Ball

Donald Rhoades

Andy Stein

Running Time: 75 minutes

Presentation Format: Digital

International Sales: Hodgee Films

Print Source: Hodgee Films

Film Website: bronythemovie.com

Selected Filmography: CBC’s What Happens Next? (Doc, 2012)

The Cockumentary (Doc, 2011)

CBC’s Winning America (Doc, 2011)

UPTOWN

Burkholder USA 2014

SATURDAY MAY 17 4:00 PM

SUNDAY MAY 18 6:30 PM

THURSDAY MAY 22 4:00 PM

Writer-director Taylor Guterson delighted SIFF audiences three years ago with Old Goats, a low-key comedy about three old codger pals who refuse to give up on life. After a movie that broke stereotypes in its depiction of the elderly, Guterson wasn’t ready to put aside his actors just yet. As he notes, the film premiered just a few weeks before one of the cast, Bob Burkholder, turned 90 years old. “I wanted to do another feature with him while we still had time.” In this film, Burkholder (whose name gave Guterson his title) plays Teddy—a more fictionalized version of himself—who rents a basement suite from Barry (Britton Crosley, another Old Goats alumnus), as he has done for more than two decades. But lately Barry has become irritated by the older man’s erratic, crotchety behavior. Casting about for a solution, he turns to an underemployed couples counselor for help in this quirky, lifeaffirming, low-key comedy about the joys of aging disgracefully.

HARVARD EXIT

HARVARD EXIT

LINCOLN SQUARE

Director: Taylor Guterson

Producers: Taylor Guterson

Charles Lake

Benita Staadecker

Screenwriter: Taylor Guterson

Cinematographer: Taylor Guterson

Editor: Taylor Guterson

Music: Joshua Myers

Featuring: Bob Burkholder

Britton Crosley

David VanderWal

Sean MacLean

James Molyball

Running Time: 81 minutes

Presentation Format:

HDCAM

Print Source:

ShadowCatcher

Entertainment

Selected Filmography: Old Goats (2010)

Burning Bush

CZECH REPUBLIC 2013

TUESDAY MAY 27 7:00 PM

In January 1969, university student Jan Palach set himself aflame in Prague’s Wenceslas Square to protest the Soviet occupation of his homeland. His brave deed and painful death sparked massive spin control by the Czech government and its Soviet overlords, rather than the expressions of dissent he hoped to inspire. This is Agnieszka Holland’s featurecut of her expertly directed, three-part HBO Europe miniseries. It’s a compelling slice of history reminding us that fear can trump idealism and that truth doesn’t always lead to justice. Rather than telling Palach’s story in straightforward biopic form, the film concentrates on the impact his self-immolation had within the social and political climate of the time. The action centers on charismatic attorney Dagmar Buresova, who becomes part of Jan’s legacy by acting for his family in the legal case against the communist government, a regime that tried to dishonor Palach’s sacrifice. Burning Bush is a taut, nuanced work that represents a valuable contribution to understanding the past half-century of Czech history.

Awards:

Czech Lions 2014 (Best Film, Director, Screenplay, Supporting Actress, Cinematography, Editing, Music)

Director: Agnieszka Holland

Producers: Tereza Polachová

Tomáš Hrubý

Screenwriter: Štepán Hulík

Cinematographer: Martin Štrba

Editor: Pavel Hrdlička

Music:

Antoni Komasa-Lazarkiewicz

Cast: Tatiana Pauhofová

Ivan Trojan Martin Huba

Vojtech Kotek

Jaroslava Pokorná

Running Time: 230 minutes

Presentation Format: DCP, in Czech, with English subtitles

International Sales: Beta Cinema

Print Source: Kino Lorber

Film Website: hbo-europe.com/ burningbush

Selected Filmography: In Darkness (2011)

Janosik: A True Story (2009)

Copying Beethoven (2006)

Julie Walking Home (2002)

The Third Miracle (1999) Washington Square (1997)

Total Eclipse (1995)

The Secret Garden (1993)

Olivier, Olivier (1992)

Europa Europa (1990)

To Kill a Priest (1988)

Angry Harvest (1985)

EGYPTIAN

Burt’s Buzz

CANADA 2013

MONDAY MAY 26 10:30 AM

LINCOLN SQUARE

TUESDAY MAY 27 6:30 PM SIFF CINEMA UPTOWN

An iconic image—a woodblock print of a friendly bearded face—adorns tubes of lip balm, bottles of lotion, bars of soap, and other natural products known as Burt’s Bees. But who is Burt, how many bees does he have, and where exactly did he come from? Burt’s Buzz introduces us to Burt Shavitz, a curmudgeonly recluse and local legend in backwoods Maine who for years made a modest living raising bees and selling their honey from the back of a truck. Then he met single mother Roxanne Quimby, whose entrepreneurial spirit lead them to start a small workshop and expand their offerings to include candles, shoe polish, and eventually an array of personal care products. Unfortunately, as the popularity of Burt’s Bees grew, so did a rift between the two partners, and soon Burt left the empire he begrudgingly founded to spend more time with his beloved dog. Documentary filmmaker Jody Shapiro gets up close and personal with the man behind the logo, both in the same 400-square-foot converted chicken coop that he still calls home and on the road, where Burt dutifully makes public appearances for a company that no longer has a place for him and his bees.

Director: Jody Shapiro

Producer: Jody Shapiro

Cinematographer: Brian Jackson

Editor: Stacey Foster

Music: Howie Beck

Featuring: Burt Shavitz

Running Time: 88 minutes

Presentation Format: DCP

Print Source: Area 23a

Selected Filmography: How to Start Your Own Country (Doc, 2010)

Ice Breaker (Doc, 2005)

Do You Love Me? (Doc, 1994)

KELEBEGIN RUYASI

The Butterfly’s Dream

TURKEY 2013

MONDAY JUNE 2 9:30 PM

PACIFIC PLACE

FRIDAY JUNE 6 12:30 PM SIFF CINEMA UPTOWN

Turkey’s official submission for the 2014 Academy Awards®, The Butterfly’s Dream tells a true story of refusing to let circumstances tamp down artistic and romantic passions. In the 1940s, Rüştü Onur (Mert Firat) and Muzaffer Uslu (Kivanç Tatlitu) long to be poets, despite their mining town of Zonguldak being so culturally isolated that ice cream remains a costly import from Istanbul, and so poor even the paper they write on must be cadged from friendly sources. Each also suffers from tuberculosis, a second, tragic bond marking them as outcasts. When both men fall in love with Suzan (Belçim Bilgin), they agree to woo her with separate poems—may the best writer win—but Suzan’s father, fearful of contagion, orders that all contact must cease. From the smoky gloom of the mineshafts to the crisp, seaside air of an island sanatorium, the film is awash in the surprising beauty of the dayto-day that has always acted as inspiration to wordsmiths and young lovers. Writer-director Erdogan, a poet himself, dedicates his film to the “forgotten” members of the profession, and its loving portrait ensures that Onur and Uslu, at least, will be remembered from this point on.

Awards: Official Oscar Submission 2013 (Foreign Language Film) World Soundtrack Awards 2013 (Public Choice Award)

Director: Yilmaz Erdogan

Producer: Necati Akpinar

Screenwriter: Yilmaz Erdogan

Cinematographer: Gökhan Tiryaki

Editors: Bora Goksingol

Cagri Turkkan

Music: Rahman Altin

Cast: Kivanç Tatlitug

Belçim Bilgin

Mert Firat

Farah Zeynep Abdullah

Yilmaz Erdogan

Ahmet Mümtaz Taylan

Running Time: 123 minutes

Presentation Format: DCP, in Turkish, with English subtitles

Print Source: BKM - Mamut Film

Film Website: thebutterflysdream.com

Selected Filmography: Neseli hayat (2009) Haybeden gerçeküstü ask (2007)

Magic Carpet Ride (2005)

Vizontele Tuuba (2004) Vizontele (2001)

Calvary

IRELAND/UNITED KINGDOM 2014

SATURDAY JUNE 7 7:00 PM

SIFF CINEMA

SUNDAY JUNE 8 11:00 AM HARVARD EXIT

Brendan Gleeson delivers one of his best performances as a priest in a small Irish coastal town—a gruff yet acutely feeling soul whose steadfast quest for goodness arises from a deeper spiritual belief in both man and God. One day while hearing confession, a mysterious figure tells Father James Lavelle that he will be murdered in one week’s time. His crime? Being innocent. Over the coming week, Father James wanders about his parish, ministering to his flock—a foul-mouthed rogues gallery that includes an atheist doctor, a closeted police inspector, and an aging American author. However, as the week wanes, Father James must reckon with his prophesized death, a situation that only grows more dire with the arrival of his troubled daughter. With his follow-up to The Guard, writer-director John Michael McDonagh proves again to be a master of Guinness-dark comedy, and yet his new film is much more complex than its predecessor, being both a vulgar morality play as well as a metaphysical murder mystery.

Awards: Berlin Film Festival 2014 (Panorama Prize of the Ecumenical Jury)

Director: John Michael McDonagh

Producers: Chris Clark

Flora Fernandez Marengo

James Flynn

Screenwriter: John Michael McDonagh

Cinematographer: Larry Smith

Editor: Chris Gill

Music: Patrick Cassidy

Cast: Brendan Gleeson Aidan Gillen

Chris O’Dowd

Kelly Reilly

Dylan Moran

Running Time: 100 minutes

Presentation Format: DCP

International Sales:

Protagonist Pictures

Print Source: Fox Searchlight

Film Website: reprisalfilms.com/calvary

Selected Filmography: The Guard (2011)

CANÍBAL

Cannibal

SPAIN/ROMANIA/RUSSIA/FRANCE 2013

SATURDAY MAY 31 9:30 PM

SUNDAY JUNE 1 7:30 PM SIFF

Carlos Marquez, the finest tailor in Granada, is an upstanding citizen who happens to enjoy the taste of human flesh, preferably with an excellent glass of red wine. Living alone, Carlos rarely interacts with anyone except his clients—and victims—most of whom are foreign young women with few ties in the community, like his new upstairs neighbor. However, following her disappearance, his neighbor’s twin sister seeks him out in her search for clues as to her sibling’s whereabouts. Soon Carlos grows more and more involved with Nina and her quixotic quest, accompanying her on visits to the police and vegetarian dinners before eventually inviting her to join him at his mountain cabin. The trip may prove to be life changing, but for whom? Antonio de la Torre gives a chilling yet enthralling performance as Carlos, a quiet monster with magnetic appeal, who may or may not be falling in love with his next victim. Employing many of the elements of film noir, director Manuel Martín Cuenca fashions a stylishly seductive romantic thriller.

Awards:

Cinema Writers Circle Awards, Spain 2014 (Best Director, Actor, Cinematography, Adapted Screenplay)

Goya Awards 2014 (Best Cinematography)

San Sebastián Film Festival 2013 (Best Cinematography)

Director: Manuel Martín Cuenca

Producers: Manuel Martín Cuenca

Fernando Bovaira

Simón de Santiago

Alejandro Hernández Díaz

Screenwriters: Manuel Martín Cuenca

Alejandro Hernández Diaz

Cinematographer: Pau Esteve Birba

Editor: Angel Hernández Zoido

Cast: Antonio de la Torre

Olimpia Melinte Delphine Tempels

Manuel Solo

María Alfonsa Rosso

Running Time: 117 minutes

Presentation Format: DCP, in Spanish, with English subtitles

International Sales: Film Factory Entertainment

Print Source: Film Factory Entertainment

Film Website: golem.es/canibal

Selected Filmography: Half of Oscar (2010) Últimos testigos (Doc, 2009)

Hard Times (2005)

The Weakness of the Bolshevik (2003)

Cuatro Puntos Cardinales (2002)

The Cuban Game (Doc, 2001)

UPTOWN

PACIFIC PLACE

CINEMA UPTOWN

Canopy

AUSTRALIA/SINGAPORE 2013

FRIDAY MAY 16 1:30 PM

PACIFIC PLACE

SUNDAY JUNE 8 7:00 PM EGYPTIAN

In his debut feature film, Australian director Aaron Wilson envelops us in an exhilarating thriller, set in a vast wilderness during the Japanese invasion of Singapore in 1942. Jim, a stranded Australian airman, wakes up suspended among the treetops after being shot down in combat, and is forced to traverse the harsh jungle—full of unknown and dangerous adversaries—in his quest to reach safety. His own strength and ingenuity is his only hope for survival, until he encounters Seng, a Chinese resistance fighter, who has also been separated from his battalion. The two men don’t share the same language but are forced to become unlikely teammates and rely on one another through extraordinary conditions, in order to escape their extreme surroundings and ultimately find their way out of the canopy. Wilson crafts an unforgettable and tangible cinematic experience through Stefan Duscio’s rich cinematography and an expert use of sound and dialogue, which when combined, place the viewer brilliantly into the action. Canopy offers the audience a unique bird’s eye view of Jim’s and Seng’s journey, along with an exploration of the relationship between nature and war.

Awards:

Abu Dhabi International Film Festival 2013 (Special Jury Mention)

Director:

Aaron Wilson

Producer:

Katrina Fleming

Screenwriter: Aaron Wilson

Cinematographer: Stefan Duscio

Editor:

Cindy Clarkson

Cast: Khan Chittenden

Mo Tzu-Yi

Yoshi Yamamoto

Robert Menzies

Edwina Wren

Running Time: 84 minutes

Presentation Format: DCP

International Sales: Odin’s Eye Entertainment

Print Source: Monterey Media Inc.

Film Website: canopythefilm.com

Selected Filmography: Impossible Orchestra (Doc, 2013)

The Case Against 8

FRIDAY MAY 16 6:30 PM

HARVARD EXIT SATURDAY MAY 17 11:30 AM SIFF CINEMA UPTOWN

In 2008 California passed Proposition 8, outlawing same-sex marriage in the state; in 2013 appeals were concluded, and the amendment was confirmed unconstitutional. That ultimately triumphant six-year journey was, among other things, the story of a legal battle, one documented in stirring fashion by The Case Against 8. When co-directors Ben Cotner and Ryan White approached the team preparing to mount their opposition, they had no idea what outcome would emerge. But they knew they had a marvelous set of heroes to follow. The plaintiffs were two couples—Kristin Perry and Sandra Stier, and Paul Katami and Jeffrey Zarrillo—motivated by love of family as much as fairness. And the legal team fighting for them was an odd couple if ever there was one: Republican Theodore Olson and Democrat David Boies had been opposing counsel in the equally famous, and fractious, case of Bush v. Gore. With footage shot over five years of unparalleled behind-the-scenes access, Cotner and White successfully navigate the audience through complicated courtroom proceedings, while crafting sensitive portraits that give life to the people behind the names laid out dryly in court documents and news reports.

Awards: Sundance Film Festival 2014 (Directing Award, US Documentary) SXSW 2014 (Audience Award)

Sponsored by Thomas Zimmerman

Directors: Ben Cotner

Ryan White

Producers: Ben Cotner

Ryan White

Editor:

Kate Amend

Music: Blake Neely

Running Time: 112 minutes

Presentation Format: DCP

Print Service: Tripod Media

Film Website: thecaseagainst8.com

Selected Filmography: WHITE: Good Ol’Freda (2013) Pelada (2010)

Charlie Chaplin Shorts USA

SUNDAY MAY 25 3:00 PM

Join “The Little Tramp” in his mis-adventures in this collection of short films, with live accompaniment by Donald Sosin. Fun for all ages!

Kid Auto Races In Venice – The first appearance of Chaplin’s ‘Little Tramp’ character. Chaplin plays a spectator at a ‘baby-cart race’ in Venice, Los Angeles. The spectator keeps getting in the way of the camera and interferes with the race, causing great frustration to the public and participants.

One A.M. – Chaplin plays a rich young man who has trouble navigating his way to bed after returning home from a night on the town. Inside the house, the furniture and other inanimate objects become almost insurmountable obstacles for the drunk. The first film Chaplin starred in alone, except for a brief scene of Albert Austin playing a cab driver.

Easy Street – In a slum called “Easy Street”, the police are failing to maintain law and order and so the Little Tramp steps forward (rather reluctantly) to rid the street of bullies, help the poor, save women from madmen.

The Immigrant – The ‘Tramp’ as an immigrant coming to the United States who is accused of theft on the voyage across the Atlantic Ocean and befriends a young woman along the way. Also starring Edna Purviance and Eric Campbell.

#ChicagoGirl - The Social Network Takes on a Dictator

USA/SYRIA 2013 NORTH AMERICAN PREMIERE

SUNDAY MAY 18 4:30 PM

TUESDAY MAY 20 4:00 PM

Director:

Charles Chaplin

Running Time:

74 minutes

Presentation Format:

DCP

Print Source:

Flicker Alley

Selected Filmography:

Limelight (1952)

Monsieur Verdoux (1947)

The Great Dictator (1940)

Modern Times (1936)

City Lights (1931)

The Circus (1928)

The Gold Rush (1925)

The Kid (1921)

Armed only with a laptop, a smartphone, and her determination, an American teenager is running the Syrian revolution from her Chicago bedroom. Six thousand miles away from Damascus, 19-year-old Ala’a Basatneh orchestrates an impressive array of social media to coordinate and protect the Syrian protesters from President Bashar al-Assad’s oppressive rule of terror, and while she is out of the regime’s reach, there’s no telling when the other shoe will drop. Shot over the course of two years, first-time director Joe Piscatella follows Ala’a as she organizes demonstrations, improvises escape routes, and broadcasts atrocities to global news services—all from her suburban Illinois home. By circumventing al-Assad’s media blackout, Ala’a and her social network keep Syria at the forefront of world news, but when the regime begins the widespread bombing of Syrian cities, the activists must decide if the time has come to trade in their computers for AK-47s. Intercutting Ala’a’s efforts with footage of Syrian activists on the ground, Piscatella immerses us in the daring—sometimes harrowing—real-time stakes on the front lines of Revolution 2.0.

Awards: International Documentary Festival Amsterdam 2013 (Doc U Award)

PRECEDED BY:

Not Anymore: A Story of Revolution

USA 2013, 15 minutes, Director: Matthew VanDyke The story of the Syrian revolution as told through the experiences of two ordinary young Syrians as they fight an oppressive regime for the freedom of their people.

Director: Joe Piscatella

Producers: Mark Rinehart

Aaron Wahle

David Gorodyansky

Bert Roberts

Screenwriter: Joe Piscatella

Cinematographers: Bassel Shahade

Rob Hauer

Editor: Matthew Sultan

Music: Huma Huma

Running Time: 74 minutes

Presentation Format: DCP, in Arabic and English, with English subtitles

Print Source: Revolutio, LLC

Film Website: chicagogirlfilm.com

Selected Filmography: Debut Feature Film

SIFF CINEMA UPTOWN

SIFF CINEMA UPTOWN

SIFF CINEMA UPTOWN

CASSE TÊTE CHINOIS

Chinese Puzzle

FRANCE 2013

FRIDAY MAY 16 4:00 PM

SUNDAY MAY 18 8:30 PM

For over a decade, beginning with L’Auberge Espagnole (2002) and continuing in Russian Dolls (2005), Cédric Klapisch has followed the professional and romantic travails of writer Xavier (Romain Duris). Chinese Puzzle maintains the gentle, sunny charm that has defined the series, despite such far-flung locales as Barcelona, Saint Petersburg, and now a beautifully filmed New York, so inimitably, irresistibly Gallic. When Xavier’s ex-wife Wendy (Kelly Reilly) moves their young children to America, he has no option but to uproot himself, despite a lack of prospects and no accommodations beyond the couch of old pal Isabelle (Cécile de France) and her partner Ju (Sandrine Holt). Needing work, Xavier becomes a bicycle courier; needing a solution to his visa status, he considers a green card marriage. Bringing back most of Xavier’s circle of friends from previous installments while making plenty of room for new ones, the film’s sympathetic humor ensures they’re all delightful company to keep, whether you’re encountering them for the first time or catching up with a series you’ve followed for years.

DER KREIS

The Circle

SWITZERLAND 2014

SIFF CINEMA UPTOWN

SIFF CINEMA UPTOWN

Director: Cédric Klapisch

Producers: Bruno Levy

Cédric Klapisch

Screenwriter: Cédric Klapisch

Cinematographer: Natasha Braier

Editor: Anne-Sophie Bion

Music:

Loïk Dury

Cast: Romain Duris

Audrey Tautou

Cécile de France

Kelly Reilly

Sandrine Holt

Running Time: 117 minutes

Presentation Format: DCP, in French, with English subtitles

International Sales: Studio Canal

Print Source: Cohen Media Group

Film Website: cassetetechinois-lefilm. fr/intro

Selected Filmography:

My Piece of the Pie (2011)

Paris (2008)

Russian Dolls (2006)

Neither For, Nor Against (2002)

L’Auberge Espagnole (2001)

Maybe (1999)

Family Resemblances (1996)

When the Cat’s Away (1996)

Lumière and Company (1995)

Good Old Daze (1994)

Little Nothings (1992)

TUESDAY JUNE 3 9:30 PM

HARVARD EXIT

SUNDAY JUNE 8 12:00 PM SIFF CINEMA UPTOWN

Based on a true story, The Circle tells the story of Ernst, a young teacher in 1950s Zurich who lives an existence that forces him to choose between expressing his true devotion to the man he loves, and hiding his secret from those around him in order to maintain his successful career. Motivated by the freedom that comes with standing up for who you are, Ernst nurtures his intimate relationship with his lover Robi, an entertainer by night, and the two of them participate in what has been called the very first gay rights movement. The inclusive self-help organization “The Circle” remained a beacon for the gay community in Switzerland until 1967, when the government’s relentless raids successfully shut them down. In this love memoir, filmmaker Stefan Haupt weaves together present-day documentary footage of Robi and Ernst in which they recount their experiences living in a dangerously homophobic and oppressive culture, with fictional reenactments of their journey—poignantly expressing what it’s like to fight for forbidden love.

Awards:

Berlin Film Festival 2014 (Teddy Award for Best Doc, Panorama Audience Award - Documentary)

Director: Stefan Haupt

Producer: Urs Frey

Screenwriters: Stefan Haupt

Christian Felix

Ivan Madeo

Urs Frey

Cinematographer: Tobias Dengler

Editor: Christoph Menzi

Music: Federico Bettini

Cast: Marianne Sägebrecht

Anatole Taubman

Matthias Hungerbühler

Sven Schelker

Antoine Monot Jr.

Running Time: 102 minutes

Presentation Format: HDCAM, in Swiss-German and German, with English subtitles

International Sales: Wide Management

Print Source: The Film Collaborative

Film Website: derkreis-film.ch

Selected Filmography: Sagrada (Doc, 2012)

How About Love (2010)

A Song for Argyris (Doc, 2006)

Downtown Switzerland (Doc, 2004)

Elisabeth Kübler-Roth: Facing Death (Doc, 2003)

Utopia Blues (2001)

I’m Just a Simple Person (Doc, 1999)

RAZREDNI SOVRAZNIK

Class Enemy

SLOVENIA 2013

FRIDAY MAY 16 4:00 PM

WEDNESDAY MAY 28 7:00 PM

THURSDAY JUNE 5 8:30 PM

The academic year is nearly over for a tightly knit bunch of high school seniors. But the atmosphere in the classroom changes when their beloved homeroom teacher, Nusa, goes on maternity leave and is replaced by German authoritarian Robert. While Nusa was keyed in to the students’ lives and personalities, Robert displays no such sensitivity—he ignores the feelings of the grieving Luka, whose mother recently died, and of shy pianist Sabina, who is hypersensitive to criticism. After one too many scathing remarks toward Sabina, she hangs herself without leaving a note, sparking a student rebellion with Luka at the head of the angry mob. As a colossal battle of wills unfolds at the high school, first-time director Rok Biček demonstrates an impressive control of tension and suspense, making each encounter between class and instructor crackle with the possibility of violence in a narrative loosely based on actual events from Biček’s youth.

Awards:

Official Oscar Submission 2013 (Foreign Language Film)

Venice Film Festival 2013 (Fedeora Award for Best Film)

Bratislava International Film Festival 2013 (Best Actor, Grand Prize, FIPRESCI Prize)

Angers European Film Festival 2014 (Audience Prize)

PACIFIC PLACE

PACIFIC PLACE

SIFF CINEMA UPTOWN

Director:

Rok Biček

Producers:

Aiken Veronika Prosenc

Janez Lapajne

Screenwriters:

Nejc Gazvoda

Rok Biček

Janez Lapajne

Cinematographer: Fabio Stoll

Editors:

Janez Lapajne

Rok Bicek

Music:

Frédéric Chopin

Cast:

Igor Samobor

Nataša Barbara Gracner

Tjaša Železnik

Maša Derganc

Robert Prebil

Running Time: 112 minutes

Presentation Format: DCP, in Slovene, with English subtitles

International Sales: Triglav Film

Print Source: Triglav Film

Selected Filmography: Debut Feature Film

Clownwise

CZECH REPUBLIC/LUXEMBOURG/SLOVAKIA/FINLAND 2014

FRIDAY MAY 16 6:00 PM SIFF CINEMA UPTOWN

SATURDAY MAY 17 12:00 PM SIFF CINEMA UPTOWN

FRIDAY MAY 23 1:30 PM LINCOLN SQUARE

If you’re looking for a film about the art of clownery, you are looking in the wrong place. While clowning can be a surprisingly noble art, you’ll find that Clownwise dives much deeper than pieing someone in the face or making balloon animals. Oskar (Didier Flamand) is a famous, and now retiring, clown who returns home to Prague after immigrating to France 30 years ago. This event inspires a student of comedy to write his thesis about Oskar and his two former partners, Max (Oldrich Kaiser) and Viktor (Jirí Lábus). With death looming on the horizon, these three aging clowns will attempt to reconcile their differences and rediscover past relationships. Viktor Tauš’ Clownwise delivers a subtly hilarious outlook on some deeply grave subjects. The film shows an honest portrayal of people dealing with Alzheimer’s disease, cancer, and death, but also never blocks out the lighter side of life. The film wants us to know that despite what is inevitable to us all, we have to find a way to laugh.

Awards: Czech Lions 2014 (Best Supporting Actor)

Director: Viktor Tauš

Producers: Michal Kollar

Donato Rotunno

Jouko Seppala

Victor Taus

Screenwriter: Petr Jarchovsky

Cinematographer: Milan Chadima

Editor: Alois Fišarek

Music: Petr Ostrouchov

Cast: Didier Flamand

Oldrich Kaiser

Jirí Lábus

Kati Outinen

Eva Jenickova

Running Time: 120 minutes

Presentation Format:

DCP, in Czech and French, with English subtitles

International Sales: Latido Films

Print Source: Latido Films

Film Website: facebook.com/Clownwise

Selected Filmography: The Great Thaw (2010) My Detox (1999)

Club Sandwich

MEXICO 2013

TUESDAY MAY 27 4:30 PM

FRIDAY JUNE 6 9:45 PM

Fernando Eimbcke’s third feature maintains the gentle absurdity and generosity towards its characters of his previous films, but the focus is no longer solely on fumbling adolescence. The seriously silly behavior of parents receives as much attention this time out, making for the director’s richest, most unpredictable comedy to date. Vacationing at a beach resort, Paloma (María Renée Prudencio) and her 15-year-old son Hector (Lucio Giménez Cacho) banter with the easy, flirtatious intimacy of old friends: He weighs in on which of her bathing suits is most fetching; she admits he’s sexy, but not like Prince. A less playfully innocent erotic energy intrudes when Hector catches the eye of fellow teen Jazmin (Danae Reynaud). The boy becomes dazed by unfamiliar feelings, the girl eager to explore this new power she’s discovered, but it’s Paloma who changes the most. Threatened by Jazmin in ways she can’t articulate, she’ll stop at nothing to separate the young couple. Unfolding as leisurely as hotel guests stretching out under the sun, Club Sandwich captures the melancholy of a mother watching her child drift from her orbit, but cradles its sharp perceptions in fond, humane humor.

Awards:

San Sebastian Film Festival 2013 (Silver Seashell for Best Director)

PACIFIC PLACE

PACIFIC PLACE

Director: Fernando Eimbcke

Producers: Christian Valdelièvre

Jaime B. Ramos

Screenwriter: Fernando Eimbcke

Cinematographer: María Secco

Editor: Mariana Rodríguez

Music:

Camilo Lara

Cast: María Renée Prudencio

Lucio Giménez Cacho Danae Reynaud

Running Time: 82 minutes

Presentation Format: DCP, in Spanish, with English subtitles

International Sales: Funny Balloons

Print Source: Funny Balloons

Film Website: cinepantera.com/#!/ catalogo/301

Selected Filmography: Lake Tahoe (2008) Duck Season (2005)

The Congress

ISRAEL/FRANCE/GERMANY 2013

SATURDAY MAY 17 9:30 PM

SATURDAY MAY 24 9:30 PM

Actress Robin Wright may have won a Golden Globe for her performance in “House of Cards,” but “Robin Wright,” her character in The Congress, is at a career crossroads. Twenty years after starring in The Princess Bride, she now struggles for roles while also trying to care for her ailing son, and on the advice of her longtime agent (Harvey Keitel), decides to make a surprising deal—selling her digital likeness to Miramount Studios. Twenty years later, the virtual “Robin Wright” has become a global movie star, and a ruthless studio head (Danny Huston) has invited her real life paramour to cross into the “restricted animation zone”—a kaleidoscopic, surrealistic future Hollywood—to renew her contract. But there is something sinister happening in this Orwellian otherworld, and when she meets her animator (Jon Hamm), Robin starts to question what is real and what is reality. Oscar®-nominated director Ari Folman (Waltz with Bashir) mixes live-action with animation that pays tribute to over a century of the craft, from Max Fleischer to Ralph Bakshi to Hayao Miyazaki, and dives into philosophical questions about self-worth, corporatization, and even the future of cinema, which, as one character postulates, may some day leave the screen and become one with the human body.

Awards: Fantastic Fest 2013 (Best Fantastic Picture, Screenplay) European Film Awards 2013 (Best Animated Feature)

Director: Ari Folman

Producers: Sébastien Delloye

Diana Elbaum

David Grumbach

Eitan Mansuri

Screenwriter: Ari Folman based on the book by Stanislaw Lem

Cinematographer: Michal Englert

Editor: Nili Feller

Music: Max Richter

Cast: Robin Wright

Harvey Keitel

Danny Huston

Jon Hamm

Paul Giamatti

Running Time: 122 minutes

Presentation Format: DCP

International Sales: The Match Factory

Print Source: Drafthouse Films

Film Website: thecongress-movie.com

Selected Filmography: Waltz with Bashir (2008) Made in Israel (2001) Saint Clara (1996) Comfortably Numb (Doc, 1991)

SIFF CINEMA UPTOWN

LINCOLN SQUARE

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SATURDAY JUNE 7 9:45 PM EGYPTIAN

SUNDAY JUNE 8 2:00 PM SIFF CINEMA UPTOWN

The Dalai Lama XIV said, “Know the rules well, so you can break them effectively.” Producer Jason Blum, who ruled the mainstream found-footage horror genre with his Paranormal Activity franchise, adds ballast to a sometimes-creaky haunted house in Creep, his new project with multi-hyphenate indie star Mark Duplass (Cyrus, Safety Not Guaranteed, “The League”). Here Duplass is co-producer and plays the titular weirdo, where writer-director Patrick Brice, in his debut feature, plays a videographer on a spectacularly bizarre assignment. The broke freelancer answers an online ad offering $1,000 to film the last testament of dying eccentric Josef. Aaron journeys to Josef’s family cabin in Northern California to help the man make a video diary for his unborn son, but when the first chapter Josef proposes is called ‘Tubby Time’—a pantomime of him bathing the baby—Aaron realizes he’s met a man with more damage than disease. As the unnerving day of over-sharing continues, including a trip to a heart-shaped spring in the woods that Josef says has restorative properties, Aaron finds that he is in for some nasty surprises. Brice and Duplass acknowledge the influence of Bruce Joel Rubin’s 1993 tearjerker My Life, but Creep takes a decidedly non-warm-and-fuzzy detour on the subject of mortality.

Director: Patrick Brice

Producers: Mark Duplass

Jason Blum

Screenwriters: Patrick Brice

Mark Duplass

Editor: Christopher Donlon

Music:

Eric Kuhn

Kyle Field

Sonny Smith

Cast: Mark Duplass Patrick Brice

Running Time: 80 minutes

Presentation Format: DCP

Print Source: RADiUS–TWC

Selected Filmography: Debut Feature Film

DamNation USA 2014

SUNDAY MAY 18 4:00 PM

MONDAY MAY 19 4:30 PM

WEDNESDAY MAY 28 7:00 PM

For centuries, humans have worked tirelessly to harness an imagined power over planet Earth. The industrial revolution spawned numerous examples of those efforts, and DamNation uncovers how intricately the engineering of dams has severely altered the landscapes, wildlife populations, and watersheds that surround the countless river systems across the United States. As the dam removal movement continues to gain traction, we’re seeing life restored to rivers and to the wild salmon, which now have the ability to return to the pristine spawning grounds they’ve been trying to reach for decades. Native populations have subsequently recovered invaluable folklore and tradition that was wiped away when the federal government altered the natural environment that existed for centuries before us. While stories are shared from both sides of this divisive issue, DamNation majestically inspires us to maintain a better connection to the wealth of our surrounding natural resources, a stronger respect for the ecosystems that are being tarnished because of our engineering pride, and a dedication to preserving our future by protecting the health of our rivers.

Awards:

SXSW Film Festival 2014 (Audience Award)

Sponsored by Mark Cook

Dangerous Acts Starring the Unstable Elements of Belarus

UNITED KINGDOM/USA/BELARUS 2013 US PREMIERE

EGYPTIAN

SIFF CINEMA UPTOWN

LINCOLN SQUARE

Directors: Ben Knight

Travis Rummel

Producers: Travis Rummel

Matt Stoecker

Screenwriter: Ben Knight

Cinematographer: Ben Knight

Editor: Ben Knight

Music:

Todd Hannigan

Running Time: 92 minutes

Presentation Format: DCP

Print Source: Patagonia

Film Website: damnationfilm.com

Selected Filmography: Red Gold (2008)

WEDNESDAY MAY 21 9:30 PM PACIFIC PLACE

FRIDAY MAY 23 4:00 PM PACIFIC PLACE

Creating provocative theater carries great personal risks: emotional, financial, and artistic. For members of the Belarus Free Theatre, there are additional risks including censorship and imprisonment, for starters. Director Madeleine Sackler (whose 2010 documentary on the United States educational system, The Lottery, was shortlisted for the Oscars®) monitors their subversive movements in the underground art scene of one of Europe’s last dictatorships. Dangerous Acts picks up in 2010, as the KGB cracks down on dissenters including Belarus Free Theatre’s founders Nikolai Khalezin and Natalia Koliada. “Even when none of us knew what would be happening next, it was possible to make art out of an absolutely horrible year,” says Kaliada, who, post-filming, lives in London. “I believe it helped us to survive as human beings.”

The subjects the company explores onstage include sexual orientation, alcoholism, suicide, and politics—uncomfortable for any culture to broach and for others, completely taboo. This illuminating real-life drama, featuring smuggled footage and uncensored interviews, follows Khalezin and Koliada and their colleagues as they decide how to best protect their art as well as the safety of their families.

Director: Madeleine Sackler

Producer: Madeleine Sackler

Screenwriter: Madeleine Sackler

Cinematographers: Daniel Carter Larissa Kabernik

Editors: Anne Barliant

Leigh Johnson

Music: Wendy Blackstone

Running Time: 76 minutes

Presentation Format: DCP, in Russian, Belarussian, and English, with English subtitles

International Sales: Dogwoof

Print Source: Great Curve Films

Film Website: dangerousactsfilm.com

Selected Filmography: Duke 91 & 92: Back to Back (2012)

The Lottery (2010)

Dead Snow: Red vs. Dead

FRIDAY MAY 30 MIDNIGHT

Colonel Herzog and his band of Nazi zombies return in Tommy Wirkola’s sequel to his hit horror comedy Dead Snow. Martin is the sole survivor from the previous film’s bloodbath. Despite having lost his arm, he makes it to a hospital believing that the zombies are once again in their cold, frostbitten graves. Alas, Martin is very much mistaken. Fortunately for Martin, the doctor is able to reattach his arm; unfortunately, the arm actually belongs to the Nazi colonel. It’s not long before the arm stages a revolt against its new owner, maiming all who cross its path. Meanwhile, Herzog and his zombie troops march upon an unsuspecting Nordic town in order to fulfill their last orders. Now only Martin, three American film nerds, and a few ragtag zombie companions of their own can possibly stop Herzog’s undead troops. Picking up immediately in the wake of its predecessor, Dead Snow: Red vs. Dead plunges audiences right into Wirkola’s unique blend of gore-filled action splattered with wry laughs and bloody entrails.

Director:

Tommy Wirkola

Producers: Kjetil Omberg

Terje Strømstad

Screenwriters: Vegar Hoel

Tommy Wirkola

Stig Frode Henriksen

Cinematographer: Matthew Weston

Editor: Martin Stoltz

Music: Christian Wibe

Cast: Vegar Hoel

Stig Frode Henriksen

Martin Starr

Ørjan Gamst

Ingrid Haas

Running Time: 100 minutes

Presentation Format:

DCP, in Norwegian, with English subtitles

International Sales: Tappeluft Pictures

Print Source:

Well Go USA

Film Website: deadsnow.com

Selected Filmography: Hansel & Gretel: Witch Hunters (2013)

Kurt Josef Wagle and the Legend of the Fjord Witch (2010)

Dead Snow (2009)

Kill Buljo - The Movie (2007)

Dear White People USA 2014

THURSDAY JUNE 5 7:00 PM

SATURDAY JUNE 7 3:30 PM

“Dear white people. The amount of black friends required not to seem racist has just been raised by two.” So announces Samantha White, a biracial college student and residential advisor, at the opening of her incendiary radio show. Much more than just a space for decrees about relations, Justin Simien’s witty and whip-smart satire follows a variety of characters in a fictional, predominantly white Ivy League university dealing with a non-stop assault of topical cultural issues. Samantha and the fellow members of her all-black residence hall prefer to keep their lives insular within their culture, but rivalries and campus tensions reach a boiling point when a racethemed Halloween party sponsored by a white residence hall is held. Samantha and the rest of the African American students at Winchester must reevaluate their engagement and decide where they really stand with and against their white peers. Full of colorful characters and genuinely absurd cultural situations, Dear White People gives permission to laugh while seriously challenging many of our racial inequalities and societal challenges. Much more than just a School Daze for the Obama generation, Simien has succeeded in exposing the stereotypes across our melting pot in a way that will resonate for years to come.

Awards: Sundance Film Festival 2014 (Special Jury Prize)

HARVARD EXIT

PACIFIC PLACE

Director: Justin Simien

Producers: Lena Waithe

Ann Le

Angel Lopez

Effie T. Brown

Julia Lebedev

Justin Simien

Screenwriter: Justin Simien

Cinematographer: Topher Osborn

Editor: Phillip Bartell

Cast: Tyler Williams

Tessa Thompson

Teyonah Parris

Brandon Bell

Running Time: 108 minutes

Presentation Format: DCP

Print Source: Roadside Attractions

Film Website: dearwhitepeoplemovie.com

Selected Filmography: Debut Feature Film

EGYPTIAN

Desert Cathedral

USA 2014

WORLD PREMIERE

SATURDAY MAY 17 9:00 PM

SUNDAY MAY 18 1:30 PM

In today’s age of social media and surveillance drones, it’s difficult for a person to drop off the grid. But 20 years ago, before the internet and cellphone coverage, vanishing from society was a relatively simple act—one that was tried by real-life Seattle real-estate developer Peter Collins. In 1992, facing massive debt from a bad housing deal, Peter ran off to the open spaces of the desert Southwest, leaving behind a series of cryptic VHS tapes in an attempt to explain his disappearance. In this dramatization and expansion of the real story, Peter, played by Lee Tergesen, makes a video diary that he sends back to his family. After getting nowhere with the police, his distraught wife Annah (Petra Wright) hires private investigator Duran (Chaske Spencer), to track him down. After locating Peter, Duran poses as a friendly local in an attempt to understand Peter’s state of mind—a tactic that leads to tragedy. Desert Cathedral has been called a “hybrid film” for its blend of stunning cinematography—with the Dry Falls region of Central Washington standing in for the Nevada desert—plus actual footage from Peter’s tapes and Collins family home movies. The effect created by director Travis Gutiérrez Senger feels like a documentary but conveys the drama and emotional impact of a fictional narrative about identity, escape, and the relationship between man and nature.

Director: Travis Gutiérrez Senger

Producers: Michael J. Mouncer

Chip Hourihan

Travis Gutiérrez Senger

Screenwriter: Travis Gutiérrez Senger

Cinematographer: Michael Ragen

Editor:

Oriana Soddu

Music: Daniel Bensi

Saunder Jurriaans

Cast: Lee Tergesen

Chaske Spencer

Petra Wright

Tony Doupé

Russell Hodgkinson

Aron Michael Thompson

Running Time: 90 minutes

Presentation Format: DCP

Print Source: Lincoln Leopard

Film Website: desertcathedral.com

Selected Filmography: Debut Feature Film

Desert Runners

USA/CHILE/CHINA/EGYPT/ANTARTICA 2013

FRIDAY MAY 23 6:30 PM

SATURDAY MAY 24 1:00 PM

There are marathon runners and then there are the four ultra-marathon runners who form the heart of Jennifer Steinman’s dynamic and suspenseful documentary. Steinman focuses on the Grand Slam—four desert marathons across the dunes and tundras of Chile’s Atacama, China’s Gobi, Egypt’s Sahara, and Antarctica over the course of one year. The racers, who hail from 35 countries, range in age from 25-year-old Samantha, a law student from Melbourne, to 56-year-old Dave, a marketing manager from Cork. Ricky, a London-based American management consultant, works in a conventional office, and Tremaine, a British security specialist, spends his days teaching fighting techniques. One thing is for certain, all share a passion for running. Dave sees it as a way to keep old age at bay, while Tremaine runs in memory of his late wife, but everyone has his or her own reasons. While running through blazing heat and freezing cold, the competitors battle dehydration, heatstroke, blisters, and worse. In addition, they must carry all their necessities on their backs, but since finishing trumps winning, friendships also form along the way. The risks, however, are substantial enough that what might seem brave and inspiring to some will seem downright lunatic to others.

Awards: Vancouver International Film Festival 2013 (Most Popular International Documentary)

Hamptons International Film Festival 2013 (Audience Award)

Director: Jennifer Steinman

Producers: Jennifer Steinman

Diana Iles Parker

Yael Melamede

Cinematographer: Sevan Matossian

Editor: Jessica Congdon

Jennifer Steinman

Music:

Eric Holland

Running Time: 95 minutes

Presentation Format: DCP

Print Source: SALTY Features

Film Website: desertrunnersmovie.com

Selected Filmography: Motherland (Doc, 2009)

SIFF CINEMA UPTOWN

HARVARD EXIT

SIFF CINEMA UPTOWN

SIFF CINEMA UPTOWN

Difret

ETHIOPIA 2014

SATURDAY MAY 17 6:00 PM

SUNDAY MAY 18 3:30 PM PACIFIC

SATURDAY MAY 24 3:00 PM RENTON

Winner of Audience Awards at both Sundance and Berlin, Ethiopian-born writer-director Zeresenay Berhane Mehari’s exceptional Difret confronts one of Ethiopia’s oldest traditions— the practice of marriage abduction. The film is based on the true story of Hirut, a rural 14-year-old girl who is kidnapped by men on horseback and expected to marry the leader. Instead, she attempts escape and, with a stolen rifle, shoots her captor dead. Hearing about the crime, Meaza, a young lawyer and a fierce advocate for women, comes to the aid of Hirut by proposing a self-defense argument. This unprecedented action is in bold defiance of customary law, and risks the women’s aid organization in which she is employed, but it is Hirut’s only chance to escape a certain death sentence. Shot entirely on 35mm, the film captures an extraordinary time in the history of Ethiopia and the universal struggle for equal rights for women and children around the globe. Featuring a mesmerizing performance from popular Ethiopian actress Meron Getnet as Meaza, Difret is a high watermark for Ethiopian cinema and heralds the arrival of an exciting new creative voice from Ethiopia.

Awards: Sundance Film Festival 2014 (Audience Award, World Dramatic) Berlin Film Festival 2014 (Panorama Audience Award)

Director: Zeresenay Berhane

Mehari

Producers: Mehret Mandefro

Leelai Demoz

Zeresenay Berhane

Mehari

Screenwriter: Zeresenay Berhane Mehari

Cinematographer: Monika Lenczewska

Editor: Agnieszka Glinska

Music: David Schommer

David Eggar

Cast: Meron Getnet

Tizita Hagere

Running Time: 99 minutes

Presentation Format: DCP, in Amharic, with English subtitles

Print Source: Truth Aid Co.

Film Website: difret.com

Selected Filmography: Debut Feature Film

DIOR ET MOI

Dior and I

FRANCE 2014

SATURDAY MAY 17 6:30 PM PACIFIC PLACE

SUNDAY MAY 18 1:00 PM LINCOLN SQUARE

THURSDAY MAY 22 4:30 PM SIFF CINEMA UPTOWN

“If there’s ever been a show that the fashion world has waited with absolute bated breath to see, it’s this one: Raf Simons’ debut for Christian Dior,” wrote Vogue in July 2012. In a room filled with flowers, as models slunk down the line in cigarette pants and abbreviated ball gowns, the guests included Harvey Weinstein, Marion Cotillard, Charlotte Rampling, and royalty. Now, Frédéric Tcheng’s documentary puts us all front, center, and behind the scenes leading up to that year’s April event. While Tcheng’s Diana Vreeland: The Eye Has To Travel, leaned heavily on archival footage of the iconic fashion editor, Dior and I is an immediate and fresh documentary of a pivotal moment in contemporary haute couture. The elegant lines of Dior’s mid-20th century “New Look” that Vreeland championed—wasp-waisted bodices and voluptuous flared skirts—were returned in homage through Simons’ introductory collection for the house. Tcheng’s crew was given full access to the goings-on almost as soon as Simons succeeded John Galliano as artistic and creative director. Dior and I looks at Simons’s group of collaborators, and particularly the atelier’s seamstresses. The evening before the show, we see six people sitting around a kitchen table, hand-sewing delicate beads onto a sheer piece of fabric. They’re called away to toast Simons with Champagne, in a warm display of mutual admiration for what they’ve accomplished. “I found myself trying to conjure this ghost of Christian Dior,” Tcheng told Hollywood Reporter, “creating a more immersive experience for the viewer.” J’adore!

Director: Frédéric Tcheng

Producers: Guillaume de Roquemaurel

Frédéric Tcheng

Screenwriter: Frédéric Tcheng

Cinematographer: Gilles Piquard

Editor:

Julio C. Perez IV

Music:

Ha-Yang Kim

Featuring: Raf Simons

Anna Wintour

Sidney Toledano

Pieter Mulier

Running Time: 89 minutes

Presentation Format: DCP, in French, English, with English subtitles

International Sales: Submarine Entertainment

Print Source: CIM Productions

Film Website: diormovie.com

Selected Filmography: Diana Vreeland: The Eye Has To Travel (2011)

SIFF CINEMA UPTOWN

PLACE

IKEA PAC

The Disciple

FINLAND 2013

TUESDAY MAY 27 4:30 PM

SUNDAY JUNE 1 8:00 PM

Set in an appropriately desolate and chilly island in the Baltic Sea, The Disciple begins with 13-year-old Karl being dropped off at the door of a lighthouse. Coming from an abusive orphanage, he is there to become a government-sanctioned assistant to the longtime lighthouse keeper Master Hasselbond. Determined to prove his worth, he befriends Hasselbond’s teenage son Gustaf, and successfully makes his presence useful around their home. Karl is slowly accepted into this strange and isolated environment, as Hasselbond begins cruelly favoring him over his own son, making it clear that the island and this family’s lighthouse may be some sort of tyrannical and sadistic prison. Stylishly shot with a haunting original score by the director’s own husband, The Disciple is a chilling psychological thriller, it’s subject matter both distressing and entirely absorbing.

Awards:

Official Oscar Submission 2013 (Foreign Language Film) Göteborg International Film Festival (Telia Film Award)

EGYPTIAN

SIFF CINEMA

Director:

Ulrika Bengts

Producer: Mats Långbacka

Screenwriters: Roland Fauser

Jimmy Karlsson

Cinematographer: Robert Nordström

Editor: Tuomo Leino

Music:

Peter Hägerstrand

Cast: Erik Lönngren

Patrik Kumpulainen

Niklas Groundstroem

Amanda Ooms

Ping Mon Wallén

Running Time: 93 minutes

Presentation Format:

DCP, in Swedish, with English subtitles

International Sales: Långfilm Productions

Finland Oy

Print Source: Finnish Film Foundation

Film Website: www.larjungen.fi

Selected Filmography: Iris (2011)

The Double

UNITED KINGDOM 2013

FRIDAY MAY 16 9:30 PM

SUNDAY MAY 18 9:30 PM

After conveying the awkwardness, heartache, and wit of adolescence in 2010’s Submarine, writer-director Richard Ayoade tackles stranger and equally enticing material in The Double. Based on the novella of the same name by Fyodor Dostoyevsky, Ayoade’s film tells the story of lonely and timid office clerk, Simon (Jesse Eisenberg), who spends his days working away at a government organization and pining after Hannah (Mia Wasikowska), a charming and attractive co-worker. Simon’s aimless, uneventful, and dissatisfying life changes when he meets James (also Eisenberg)—his exact physical double, but with an opposite personality. Confident, brash, and seductive, James begins to coach Simon on how to live a more exciting and fulfilling life, which includes wooing Hannah. Yet slowly, Simon realizes that James is a manipulative doppelgänger who begins to take over Simon’s life. Drawing comparisons to Terry Gilliam and Wes Anderson, Ayoade continues to refine his cinematic voice with this darkly comedic and incomparably stylish adaptation. Featuring an electric dual turn from Eisenberg, The Double is an intoxicating, irreverent, and biting piece of cinema.

SIFF

Director: Richard Ayoade

Producers: Robin C. Fox

Amina Dasmal

Screenwriters: Richard Ayoade

Avi Korine

Cinematographer: Erik Alexander Wilson

Editors:

Nick Fenton

Chris Dickens

Music: Andrew Hewitt

Cast: Jesse Eisenberg

Mia Wasikowska

Wallace Shawn

Sally Hawkins

Noah Taylor

Running Time: 93 minutes

Presentation Format:

DCP

International Sales: Protagonist Pictures

Print Source: Magnolia Pictures

Film Website: attercop.com/film/double

Selected Filmography: Submarine (2010)

UPTOWN

CINEMA UPTOWN

LINCOLN SQUARE

A Dream of Iron

SOUTH KOREA/USA 2014

MONDAY MAY 26 8:00 PM

THURSDAY MAY 29 4:30 PM

Some people look for god in abstract spirituality, while others find god within the order of the world. After losing his lover to a religious quest, director Kelvin Kyung Kun Park decides to find his own god, a more concrete god, a god who can prove the sublime exists at home. Because he lives in Ulsan, South Korea, he looks for his god in the city’s Pohang Iron and Steel Company. For Park, steelworkers are on the same level as Buddhist monks; each has their own rituals in service to a higher power. He looks at the growth of the iron industry from the Korean War to today through a spiritual filter. While on this quest, Park captures extraordinary images with his lens. Gigantic vats of liquid metal being poured into molds look like something out of Vulcan’s mythological forge. The colossal cranes that fit together impossibly large metal sections of enormous container ships in the Hyundai shipyard are truly a sight to behold. Expertly combining large-scale industrial environments with a religious framework in which man is small, A Dream of Iron is an unrequited love story, a spiritual quest, and a satisfying history, all in one.

Awards: Berlin International Film Festival 2014 (Netpac Award)

Director: Kelvin Kyung Kun Park

Producer: Kim Kyungmi

Screenwriter: Kelvin Kyung Kun Park

Cinematographers: Kelvin Kyung Kun Park

Kim Stone

Editor: Kelvin Kyung Kun Park

Music: Paulo Vivacqua

Running Time: 98 minutes

Presentation Format: HDCAM, in Korean, with English subtitles

International Sales: Boc Features LLC

Print Source: Boc Features LLC

Film Website: facebook.com/ adreamofiron

Selected Filmography: Cheonggyecheon Medley (Doc, 2010)

LA DUNE

The Dune

FRANCE/ISRAEL 2013

WEDNESDAY MAY 21 9:30 PM LINCOLN SQUARE

FRIDAY MAY 23 11:00 AM PACIFIC PLACE

WEDNESDAY MAY 28 9:30 PM SIFF CINEMA UPTOWN

Some choices we make have ripples that not only last a lifetime, but that carry over to the next generation. In Yossi Aviram’s contemplative feature debut, Hanoch (Lior Ashkenazi), who owns a bicycle shop in Israel, seems indifferent to everything except for his languorous chess matches and conversations with his friend Fogel (Moni Moshonov). When his wife tells him she’s pregnant, Hanoch replies that he’s not ready for fatherhood, so she kicks him out. With nowhere else to go, Hanoch wanders to his native France and ends up mysteriously washed up on a beach by the dunes of the Landes coast. Meanwhile, in Paris, Ruben (Niels Arestrup) a 60-ish, melancholy police detective, contemplates retirement after an unpleasant experience tracking down a reclusive author (Mathieu Amalric). Ruben, who is gay and had suffered abuse for coming out decades earlier, wants to settle down with his life partner, Paolo (Guy Marchand). But before he leaves, he’s assigned to the case of Hanoch, who’s been struck mute and hospitalized with no identification. As Ruben and Hanoch warily orbit one another, they slowly discover clues to an old mutual bond. With sparse dialogue, the story of these taciturn characters is conveyed mostly through subtle body language, facial expressions and exquisite light captured by Aviram, a noted cinematographer. The Dune is an exercise in dignified understatement and a satisfying mystery about familial ties and the healing of old wounds.

Awards: Haifa Film Festival 2013 (Best Debut Feature)

Director: Yossi Aviram

Producers: Yael Fogiel

Laetitia Gonzalez

Amir Harel

Ayelet Kait

Screenwriter: Yossi Aviram

Cinematographer: Antoine Héberlé

Editor: Sari Eyouz

Music:

Avi Belleli

Cast: Niels Arestrup

Lior Askenazi

Emma de Caunes

Guy Marchand

Mathieu Amalric

Running Time: 86 minutes

Presentation Format: DCP, in French, with English subtitles

International Sales: Le Pacte

Print Source: Le Pacte

Film Website: le-pacte.com/ international/new-films/ single/the-dune/

Selected Filmography: Paris Return (Doc, 2009)

SIFF CINEMA UPTOWN

SIFF CINEMA UPTOWN

CHEOL-AE-KUM

Eastern Boys

FRANCE 2013

SUNDAY MAY 25 9:00 PM

TUESDAY MAY 27 3:30 PM

In this erotically charged nail-biter, middleaged businessman Daniel changes his life with a single act, discreetly soliciting the company of Marek, a young man he encounters at the Gare du Nord train station in Paris. The next day, Daniel is expecting a visit from his new companion, but is instead rudely met with a very different experience—an entrapment scheme he has unknowingly fallen into. Marek is one of many “Eastern Boys,” a group of young men of various ages—undocumented immigrants from Russia, Ukraine, Romania, and other nearby countries, who live within insulated camaraderie—forced to do whatever they need to in order to survive on their own in an unfamiliar country. When Daniel finally learns who Marek really is, Daniel’s way of life is changed forever, and the satisfaction he seeks from Marek’s company drastically turns into an undeniable responsibility for Marek’s well-being. Eastern Boys is a cautionary tale that revolves around desire, impulse, responsibility, and what sincerely inspires us to devote ourselves to another person.

Awards: Santa Barbara International Film Festival 2014 (Best International Feature) Venice Film Festival 2013 (Horizons Award, Best Film)

Electro Chaabi

EGYPT/FRANCE 2013

SATURDAY MAY 24 5:00 PM

Director: Robin Campillo

Producers:

Hugues Charbonneau

Marie-Ange Luciani

Screenwriter: Robin Campillo

Cinematographer: Jeanne Lapoirie

Editor: Robin Campillo

Music: Arnaud Rebotini

Cast: Olivier Rabourdin

Kirill Emelyanov

Danil Vorobyev

Edea Darcque

Camila Charinova

Running Time: 128 minutes

Presentation Format: DCP, in French and English, with English subtitles

International Sales: Films Distribution

Print Source: Films Distribution

Film Website: Filmsdistribution.com

Selected Filmography: Les Revenants (2004)

SIFF CINEMA UPTOWN

SUNDAY MAY 25 2:00 PM SIFF CINEMA UPTOWN

On the margins of the cultural revolution that swept over Egypt, in the poorest neighborhoods of Cairo, an electrifying version of Arab hip-hop has evolved out of the popular music known as chaabi. Mahraganat, Arabic for “festivals,” is a raucous and addictive blend of traditional music and rap, set against a furious cascade of drums, bass, and electronic vocals. The singing is fast, often improvised, and the subjects range from hashish, sex, and friendship to poverty and political betrayal. In a country where 50% of Egyptians are under the age of 25, and at a time of major social upheaval, mahraganat has become a phenomenon. With a population of 85 million, Egypt is the Arab world’s most populous nation and its largest music market; its songs rack up millions of views on YouTube, are featured in Arab films and television commercials, and can be heard as cell phone ring tones and at sprawling concert venues. Director Hind Meddeb profiles the young men behind the music—Sadat, Oka & Ortega, Weza, Fig, Chipsy, and Amra Haha—and the impact of their sound on their country as well as on their own lives.

Director: Hind Meddeb

Producer: Karim Boutros Ghali

Screenwriter: Hind Meddeb

Cinematographers: Hind Meddeb Omar Khodier

Editor: Gilles Bovon

Music: Ahmad Capaoré

Running Time: 77 minutes

Presentation Format: BluRay, in Arabic, with English subtitles

International Sales: Monoduo Films

Print Source: Monoduo Films

Film Website: monoduo.net/ electrochaabi-2

Selected Filmography: De Casa Au Paradis (Doc, 2008)

HARVARD EXIT

SIFF CINEMA UPTOWN

Elsa & Fred

USA 2014

SATURDAY MAY 24 4:00 PM

SUNDAY MAY 25 7:00 PM

She (Shirley MacLaine) is a feisty widow with a thing for Fellini, and a tendency to stretch the truth a few extra notches. He (Christopher Plummer) is a dyed-in-thewool curmudgeon, seemingly content to grumble at anything within the proximity of his spacious New Orleans apartment. When a housewares-related mishap brings these next-door neighbors together, the sparks that fly are far from the love-at-first-sight variety. As the two come into increased contact with each other’s considerable quirks, however, some exhilarating new possibilities begin to enter the picture. Remaking the celebrated Spanish-Argentine original (winner of the SIFF 2006 Golden Space Needle Award), director Michael Radford’s film works as a refreshingly non-saccharine look at the struggles—and rewards—of forging a relationship in the twilight years, as well as a justified victory lap for its two stars, who play off each beautifully. Bolstered by an exceptional supporting cast (including Marcia Gay Harden, Scott Bakula, George Segal, and Chris Noth), MacLaine and Plummer bring a lifetime of collective experience to their scenes together, with a give-and-take energy that’s a wonder to behold. Their unique chemistry results in a movie that feels both light and deep, and which comes by its considerable emotions honestly. Viewers with a fondness for La Dolce Vita may wish to have a few extra tissues handy.

Director:

Michael Radford

Producers:

Jose Levy

EGYPTIAN

EGYPTIAN

Matthias Ehrenberg

Nicolas Veinberg

Ricardo Kleinbaum

Ed Saxon

Screenwriters:

Mike Bell

Anna Pavignano

Michael Radford

Cinematographer: Michael McDonough

Editor: Peter Boyle

Music: Luis Bocalov

Cast: Shirley MacLaine

Christopher Plummer

Marcia Gay Harden

Jared Gilman

Chris Noth

Running Time: 104 minutes

Presentation Format:

DCP

International Sales:

Inferno Distribution

Print Source:

Millennium Entertainment

Film Website: www.elsaandfred.com

Selected Filmography:

Michel Petrucciani (Doc, 2011)

Flawless (2007)

The Merchant of Venice (2004)

Ten Minutes Older: the Cello (2002)

Dancing at the Blue Iguana (2000)

B. Monkey (1998)

Il Postino (1994)

White Mischief (1987)

Nineteen Eighty-Four (1984)

Another Time, Another Place (1983)

Van Morrison in Ireland (Doc, 1980)

Everything We Loved

NEW ZEALAND 2014

FRIDAY MAY 16 3:00 PM

SATURDAY MAY 17 1:00 PM LINCOLN SQUARE

SUNDAY MAY 18 9:00 PM PACIFIC PLACE

When tragedy strikes, an Auckland magician transfers his stage skills to the real world in writer-director Max Currie’s riveting debut. Charlie (Brett Stewart) and his wife, Andrea (Sia Trokenheim), worked together as a team until the loss of their beloved son, Hugo. Devastated, Andrea left home. While she was away, Charlie became desperate, but as he muses in the film, “There are different kinds of magic. The kind that makes things disappear, and there’s the kind that makes them turn up again.” As the story begins, he has conjured up a surrogate son in five-year-old Tommy (Ben Clarkson). When Andrea returns to find that her husband has replaced their child with another boy, she’s horrified, but he convinces her they can give him a better life than his neglectful parents. They just need to figure out how to pay several months in back rent before the landlord kicks them out while hiding the increasingly inquisitive Tommy. Their scheme is illegal, immoral, and fraught with danger, but Currie chooses compassion over judgment as the compulsion to heal from loss propels this couple forward, even as obstacles accumulate on their way toward the happy life they once enjoyed.

Director: Max Currie

Producers: Tom Hern

Luke Robinson

Screenwriter: Max Currie

Cinematographer: Dave Garbett

Editor:

Dan Kircher

Music: Tim Prebble

Cast: Brett Stewart

Sia Trokenheim

Ben Clarkson

Jodie Rimmer

Paul Harrop

Running Time: 100 minutes

Presentation Format: DCP

International Sales: Celluloid Dreams

Print Source: Ramonda Films

Film Website: everythingweloved.com

Selected Filmography: Debut Feature Film

SIFF CINEMA UPTOWN

LA GRAN FAMILIA ESPAÑOLA

Family United

SPAIN 2013

FRIDAY MAY 30 6:00 PM

KIRKLAND PC

MONDAY JUNE 2 7:00 PM EGYPTIAN

TUESDAY JUNE 3 4:15 PM PACIFIC PLACE

Soft pastel hues seem to paint this film by director Daniel Sánchez Arévalo with shades of nostalgia from its very inception. Beginning with lively clips from Stanley Donen’s classic Seven Brides for Seven Brothers, the movie unfolds amidst the chaos of the 2010 World Cup final, which just happens to coincide with a family wedding that’s filled with surprises. Drama builds from the beginning as the family gathers for the nuptials of the idealistic youngest brother, each member concealing secrets—from long-ago love affairs to misplaced engagement rings, shady intentions, and regrets. Realistically complex, these characters navigate the day with humor— spilling drinks, dancing down the aisle, and gathering together to watch the game and support each other. With their father’s health waning and emotions running high, this one summer day seems to hold the key to untangling the complicated web existing between family members and friends. Featuring impeccable camera work and scenic shots of small village life in Spain, Family United’s emotional ups and downs are perfectly punctuated by the serene ballads of Josh Rouse, while its light touch makes it an ideal film for audiences of all ages.

Awards: Goya Awards 2014 (Best Supporting Actor, Original Song)

ALLACCIATE LE CINTURE

Fasten Your Seatbelts

ITALY 2014

NORTH AMERICAN PREMIERE

WEDNESDAY MAY 21 7:00 PM

Director: Daniel Sánchez Arévalo

Producers: Fernando Bovaira

José Antonio Félez

Mercedes Gamero

Mikel Lejarza

Screenwriter: Daniel Sánchez Arévalo

Cinematographer: Juan Carlos Gomez

Editor:

Nacho Ruiz Capillas

Music:

Josh Rouse

Cast: Verónica Echegui

Antonio de la Torre

Quim Gutiérrez

Roberto Álamo

Miquel Fernández

Running Time: 95 minutes

Presentation Format: DCP, in Spanish, with English subtitles

International Sales: Film Factory

Entertainment

Print Source: Film Factory

Entertainment

Film Website: facebook.com/ LaGranFamiliaEspanola

Selected Filmography: Cousinhood (2011) Fat People (2009)

DarkBlueAlmostBlack (2006)

SIFF CINEMA UPTOWN

FRIDAY MAY 23 4:00 PM EGYPTIAN

SUNDAY MAY 25 7:00 PM LINCOLN SQUARE

The rules of attraction are usually driven by the heart—not to mention the rest of the body— and have little to do with the mind. Such is the case with polar opposites Elena (Kasia Smutniak) and Antonio (Francesco Arca). Elena is free-spirited while Antonio is conservative, hard-edged, and openly homophobic. But as the title implies, there is turbulence up ahead. Elena and Antonio feel an undeniable, illogical attraction. But it’s an urge that they cannot act on, as Antonio is to be married to Elena’s best friend Silvia (Carolina Crescentini) and Elena has a boyfriend named Giorgio (Francesco Scianna). More than just a love triangle, it’s more like a “love rhombus.” Jump ahead 13 years, though, and the crisis seems to be averted. Antonio and Silvia are married, as are Elena and Giorgio (Francesco Scianna), who have two children together. But the calm is soon shattered again by a dreadful cancer diagnosis, which upsets the delicate balance of these interconnected relationships. Longthwarted desires rise unexpectedly to the surface, threatening the stability of marriages and life-long friendships. Full of gorgeous, sun-drenched scenery from the Apulia region of Southern Italy, and populated with bronzed, equally gorgeous people, Fasten Your Seatbelts is a feast for the senses. Be prepared: It’s going to be a bumpy night of romance and drama.

Director: Ferzan Ozpetek

Producers: Tilde Cosi

Gianni Romoli

Screenwriters: Gianni Romoli

Ferzan Ozpetek

Cinematographer: Filippo Corticelli

Editor:

Patrizio Marone

Music: Pasquale Catalano

Cast: Kasia Smutniak

Francesco Arca

Filippo Scicchitano

Francesco Scianna

Carolina Crescentini

Running Time: 110 minutes

Presentation Format: DCP, in Italian, with English subtitles

International Sales: Pathe International

Print Source: The Festival Agency

Film Website: patheinternational.com

Selected Filmography:

A Magnificient Haunting (2012)

Loose Cannons (2010)

A Pefect Day (2008)

Saturn in Opposition (2007)

Sacred Heart (2005)

Facing Windows (2003)

His Secret Life (2001)

Harem Suare (1999)

Steam: The Turkish Bath (1997)

The Fault in Our Stars

USA 2014

FRIDAY MAY 16 6:00 PM

SATURDAY MAY 17 10:00 AM

The Fault in Our Stars is, above all else, a love story. When terminally ill sixteen-yearold Hazel Grace Lancaster (The Spectacular Now’s Shailene Woodley) meets the charming and confident Augustus Waters (Divergent’s Ansel Elgort) at a cancer support group, they immediately connect over their matching wit and unconventional interests. As their friendship erupts into full-fledged romance, what follows is a beautiful lesson on living in the moment. Using John Green’s stunning screenplay, adapted from his own “New York Times” bestselling novel, Woodley and Elgort give compelling performances, rich with organic chemistry, guiding us through an emotional story of two teens living and loving in the face of their impending fate. Hazel begins her story by saying that she believes “we have a choice in this world about how to tell sad stories,” and The Fault in Our Stars chooses the most irresistible and poignant approach possible.

EGYPTIAN

EGYPTIAN

Director:

Josh Boone

Producers:

Marty Bowen

Wyck Godfrey

Screenwriters:

Scott Neustadter

Michael H. Weber

based on the novel by John Green

Cinematographer: Ben Richardson

Editor:

Robb Sullivan

Cast: Shailene Woodley

Ansel Elgort

Laura Dern

Sam Trammell

Mike Birbiglia

Willem Dafoe

Running Time: 125 minutes

Presentation Format: DCP

Print Source: 20th Century Fox

Film Website: thefaultinourstarsmovie. com

Selected Filmography: Stuck in Love (2012)

Fifi Howls from Happiness

IRAN/USA/ITALY 2013

THURSDAY MAY 22 9:30 PM

FRIDAY MAY 23 3:00 PM SIFF

“I’ll tell you my life story so no idiot will do it after me,” declares Bahman Mohasses to Mitra Farahani, director of Fifi Howls from Happiness. Mohasses, an Iranian artist whose salacious sculpture and paintings have often faced censorship in his native country, disappeared from public life long ago, even as the value of his work continued to appreciate on the international market. Farahani finds him living in self-imposed exile in Rome, where he moved in 2006 after becoming so discouraged by the quality of a creative life in Tehran that he destroyed (or “killed,” in his words) most of his own work. Irascible, egotistical, and with a venomous wit, he puts Farahani through her paces, but the two gradually develop a rapport through conversations about art, legacy, poetry, and sexuality (his taste was for straight boys) in smoky interviews. Keen to film Mohasses at work, she introduces him to brothers Rokni and Ramin Haerizadeh, leading Iranian artists based in Dubai, who want to commission a new, possibly final, piece. Funny, fascinating, and a fitting tribute to one of the great Iranian artists of the 20th century.

Awards: BAFICI 2014 (Best Film)

Director: Mitra Farahani

Producer: Marjaneh Moghimi

Cinematographer: Miltra Farahani

Editors: Yannick Kergoat

Suzana Pedro

Music: Tara Kamangar

Featuring: Bahman Mohassess

Rokni Haerizadeh

Ramin Haerizadeh

Farshad Mahootforoush

Running Time:

96 minutes

Presentation

Format:

DCP, in Farsi, with English subtitles

International Sales: Urban Distribution

International

Print Source: Music Box Films

Film Website: musicboxfilms.com

Selected Filmography: Tabous - Zohre & Manouchehr (2004)

HARVARD EXIT

CINEMA UPTOWN

FIFI AZ KHOSHHALI ZOOZE MIKESHAD

Fight Church USA 2014

SATURDAY MAY 17 1:00 PM

SUNDAY MAY 18 4:00 PM

MONDAY MAY 26 12:30 PM

“Can you love your neighbor as yourself, and then at the same time knee him in the face as hard as you can?” So asks Preston “Pastor of Disaster” Hocker, an amateur MMA fighter and associate pastor of the Freedom Fellowship in Virginia Beach, VA who combines Christian doctrine with the controversial world of Mixed Martial Arts. He’s not the only one, as hundreds of churches across the United States have taken up martial arts ministries, believing that tough guys need Jesus, too. In the camouflage trunks, we have Nahshon Nicks, a youth minister and motivational speaker out of Jacksonville, FL who accepts Hocker’s invitation to step into the octagon. In this corner, it’s light heavyweight John “The Saint” Renken of Clarksville, TN, whose desire to come out of retirement is matched only by his passion of leading others to Christ. And up in Rochester, family man and trainer Paul Burress wages his own battle against the government and respected religious leader Father John Duffell, who refuse to legalize the sport in New York State. Treating these stories with a welcome objectivity, directors Daniel Junge (an Oscar® winner for his 2012 non-fiction short Saving Face) and Bryan Storkel allow audiences to reach their own conclusions about these God-fearing men who beat the holy hell out of each other. Because Jesus never tapped out.

Awards:

Boston International Film Festival 2014 (Grand Jury Prize)

Final Recipe

SOUTH KOREA/THAILAND/SINGAPORE 2013

PACIFIC PLACE

LINCOLN SQUARE

RENTON IKEA PAC

Directors:

Daniel Junge

Bryan Storkel

Producers: Eben Kostbar

Joseph McKelheer

Cinematographers: Daniel Junge

J.R. Kraus

David Lamb

Bryan Storkel

Aaron Kopp

Davis Coombe

Editor: Bryan Storkel

Music: John Jennings Boyd

Running Time: 83 minutes

Presentation Format: DCP

International Sales: Film Sales Company

Print Source: Film Harvest

Film Website: fightchurchfilm.com

Selected Filmography: JUNGE:

Beyond the Brick: A LEGO® Brickumentary (2014)

Saving Face (Doc, 2012)

The Last Campaign of Governor Booth Gardner (Doc, 2009)

They Killed Sister Dorothy (Doc, 2008)

Iron Ladies of Liberia (Doc, 2007) Chiefs (Doc, 2002)

STORKEL:

Holy Rollers: The True Story of Card Counting Christians (2011)

SATURDAY MAY 24 6:00 PM RENTON IKEA PAC

MONDAY JUNE 2 6:30 PM SIFF CINEMA UPTOWN

WEDNESDAY JUNE 4 4:00 PM SIFF CINEMA UPTOWN

Canadian-born Korean pop idol Henry Lau’s acting debut is embellished with luscious imagery in this high-stakes tale of food, family, and competition. All of his life, Mark (Lau)’s grandfather has nurtured and nourished the family through his cooking. Now as his health begins to fail, the man’s restaurant also faces peril. In an effort to save his grandfather’s legacy, high school senior Mark takes out his university savings—a move his grandfather would not approve of—and secretly enters a mega-cooking competition in Shanghai: “Final Recipe.” This televised show familiarly pits contestants against one another in played-up rivalries of ingenuity, wit, and style. The difference is that for this edition, the competition has opened not just to award-winning chefs but also to home cooks and fans of the show. Presiding over the developments is the show’s creator, Julia Lee (Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon’s Michelle Yeoh), and a Master Chef (Chin Han) who strangely resembles Mark. Once Mark impresses guest chef Daniel Boulud, he knows the sky’s the limit, and that the ability to bring his family back together rests in his capable hands. Sumptuous shots of sizzling noodles, delicately plated seared scallops, and other culinary delights reveal Mark’s philosophy throughout Final Recipe: “In cooking, as in music, harmony is greater than the sum of its parts.”

Director:

Gina Kim

Producers: Yeonu Choi

Tae-Sung Jeong

Steven Nam

Gina Kim

Screenwriter: George Huang

Cinematographers: Jun-Young Kim

Young-Ho Kim

Editor: Steve M. Choe

Music: Young Jin Mok

Cast:

Henry Lau

Michelle Yeoh

Chin Han

Chang Tseng

Lori Tan Chinn

Running Time: 98 minutes

Presentation Format: DCP, in English and Mandarin, with English

subtitles

International Sales: Fortissimo Films

Print Source: Fortissimo Films

Film Website: fortissimo.nl

Selected Filmography:

Faces of Seoul (Doc, 2009)

Never Forever (2007)

Invisible Light (2003)

Gina Kim’s Video Diary (Doc, 2002)

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Finding Fela

WEDNESDAY JUNE 4 3:30 PM

FRIDAY JUNE 6 7:00 PM

At the dawn of the 1970s, Nigerian Fela Anikulapo Kuti created the musical movement known as Afrobeat, a prismatic mix of jazz, funk, high-life, West African drums, and Yoruban chants. Within a few short years, his polyrhythmic innovations and confrontational lyrics became the soundtrack of Africa’s new postcolonial activism. Fela also put his political money where his mouth was by creating a combination commune/recording studio/ home for his extended musical family, which he named the Kalakuta Republic. While Kuti embraced his controversial celebrity, it also made him the target of Nigeria’s ruthless military regime. With each consecutive album, the military ratcheted up the consequences, moving quickly from harassment to arrests and violence against the Republic. Eleven years after Kuti’s death, Academy Award®winning director Alex Gibney (Taxi to the Dark Side) joined with renowned choreographer Bill T. Jones (a Tony Award winner for “Spring Awakening”) to record the rehearsals and performances of a Broadway musical of Fela’s life. Inspired by Jones’ interest in Kuti, Gibney began his own non-fiction investigation into Fela’s life. Blending footage of Jones’ kinetic staging with Kuti’s magnetic interviews and performances, Finding Fela offers us unprecedented access to the life of this complex, provocative performer.

Director: Alex Gibney

Producers: Alex Gibney

Jack Gulick

Cinematographer: Maryse Alberti

Editor: Lindy Jankura

Music: Fela Anikulapo-Kuti

Running Time: 120 minutes

Presentation Format: DCP

Print Source: Kino Lorber

Film Website: jigsawprods.com/fela

Selected Filmography: The Amstrong Lie (Doc, 2013)

We Steal Secrets: The Story of Wikileaks (Doc, 2013)

Park Avenue: Money, Power and the American Dream (Doc, 2012)

Mea Maxima Culpa: Silence in the House of God (Doc, 2012)

The Last Gladiators (Doc, 2011)

Magic Trip (Doc, 2011)

Catching Hell (Doc, 2011)

Client 0: the Rise and Fall of Eliot Spitzer (Doc, 2010)

Freakonomics (Doc, 2010)

My Trip to Al-Qaeda (Doc, 2010)

Casino Jack and the United States of Money (Doc, 2010)

Gonzo: The Life and Work of Dr. Hunter S. Thomspon (Doc, 2008)

Taxi to the Dark Side (Doc, 2008)

Behind Those Eyes (Doc, 2005)

Enron: the Smartest Guys in the Room (Doc, 2005)

FENG BAO

Firestorm

HONG KONG 2013

MONDAY MAY 19 7:00 PM

A storm is coming to Hong Kong—one so destructive, it threatens to bring down everything in its path. In a crowded downtown neighborhood, the notorious crime lord Nam (Hu Jun) and his crew of ruthless lieutenants, armed with high-powered weaponry, execute a violent and daring armored car heist in broad daylight. The resulting carnage mobilizes the police, led by senior inspector Lui (Andy Lau), who is determined to put an end to Nam’s nefarious reign. However, extreme crimes require extreme measures, even if it means crossing moral lines. Tou, an ex-con desperate to leave his criminal past behind, agrees to be an informant for his former schoolmate Lau in exchange for a fresh start with his girlfriend Yin Bing. As Nam begins to plot his next big score, Lui’s manhunt heats up, leading the two sides into a high-stakes confrontation on the streets of Hong Kong’s central business district. Drawing on such influences as Heat, Killing Zoe, and The Town, director Alan Yuen crafts an entertaining, epic heist film.

Director: Alan Yuen

Producers: Andy Lau

William Kong

Screenwriter: Alan Yuen

Cinematographer: Chan Chi-ying

Editors:

Kwong Chi-leung

Ron Chan

Music: Peter Kam

Cast: Andy Lau

Lam Ka Tung

Hu Jun

Yao Chen

Running Time: 110 minutes

Presentation Format: DCP, in Cantonese, with English subtitles

International Sales: Edko Films Ltd

Print Source: Edko Films Ltd

Selected Filmography: Princess D (2002)

Touches of Love (1994)

SIFF CINEMA UPTOWN

SIFF CINEMA UPTOWN

PACIFIC PLACE

LA PRIMA NEVE

First Snowfall

ITALY 2013

MONDAY MAY 19 9:30 PM

LINCOLN SQUARE

THURSDAY JUNE 5 4:00 PM PACIFIC PLACE

FRIDAY JUNE 6 6:30 PM

African refugee Dani (Jean-Christophe Folly) had never seen snow in his homeland of Togo. But after seeking a better life in Europe, he finds himself in a group house in the shadow of the breathtaking Italian Alps, a place nearly as alien to him as the moon. The journey across the Mediterranean the previous year was perilous and ultimately tragic, with his pregnant wife dying during childbirth shortly after their arrival. As a result, Dani has trouble connecting with his toddler daughter and struggles to comprehend this new, chilly world. As he finds work as a carpenter’s assistant and tries to mend his psychic wounds, Dani befriends Michele (Matteo Marechal, in his impressive film debut), the precocious 11-year-old grandson of his boss. Michele also has problems coping; since his father’s recent death, he suffers from recurring nightmares and begins skipping school for romps through the woods. As Dani and Michele work on odd jobs around the valley, they slowly form a bond and help each other through the grieving process. Set during autumn in Italy’s Mocheni Valley, where the residents speak an obscure Germanic dialect, First Snowfall makes abundant use of the stunning alpine scenery, with the icy blue light captured by celebrated cinematographer Luca Bigazzi. Director Andrea Segre, known mostly for documentaries, shows an adept hand at narrative drama in this affecting tale of loss, redemption and intergenerational connection.

Awards:

Bastia Italian Film Festival 2014 (Audience Award)

MAHI VA GORBEH

Fish & Cat

IRAN 2013

MONDAY MAY 19 4:00 PM

THURSDAY MAY 22 8:30 PM

SIFF CINEMA UPTOWN

Director:

Andrea Segre

Producers:

Francesco Bonsembiante

Marco Paolini

Screenwriters:

Andrea Segre

Marco Pettenello

Cinematographer: Luca Bigazzi

Editor:

Sara Zavarise

Music:

Piccola Bottega Baltazar

Cast:

Jean-Christophe Folly

Matteo Marechal

Anita Caprioli

Peter Mitterrutzner

Giuseppe Battiston

Running Time: 104 minutes

Presentation Format: DCP, in Italian, French, and Mina, with English subtitles

International Sales: Adriana Chiesa

Enterprises

Print Source: Adriana Chiesa

Enterprises

Film Website: laprimaneve.com

Selected Filmography:

Rebetiko Crisis: Undue Debt (Doc, 2013)

Closed Sea (Doc, 2012)

Shun Li and the Poet (2011)

Il Sangre Verde (Doc, 2010)

Como un Uomo Sulla Terra (Doc, 2008)

Checosamanca (Doc, 2006)

A standout at the Film Society of Lincoln Center’s New Directors/New Films Festival, Shahram Mokri’s dazzling drama Fish & Cat opens with a bloody title card that recounts the real-life case of a restaurant that secretly served human flesh. But this is no cheap slasher flick—rather, it is a bravura tour of genres which includes black comedy, romance, ghost story, family saga, and, okay, perhaps a soupçon of horror. A single twohour shot (masterfully accomplished by A Separation cinematographer Mahmud Kalari) tracks an elliptical narrative that moves fluidly through a series of interconnected stories. The trouble begins when a group of Tehran university students heads to a remote rural spot on a kite flying expedition. Lost, they stop at a roadside restaurant to ask for directions, only to be followed into the woods by a trio of creepy cooks. Atmospheric and absorbing, Fish & Cat is a bold formal experiment that effectively blurs the lines between the stalker and the stalked.

Awards:

Dubai International Film Festival 2013 (Muhr AsiaAfrica Special Jury Prize) Venice International Film Festival 2013 (Horizons Award)

PACIFIC PLACE

SIFF CINEMA UPTOWN

Director: Shahram Mokri

Producer: Sepehr Seifi

Screenwriter: Shahram Mokri

Cinematographer: Mahmoud Kalari

Music: Christophe Rezai

Cast:

Babak Karimi

Saeid Ebrahimifar

Siyavash Cheraghi Pour Mohammad Berahmani

Running Time: 134 minutes

Presentation Format:

DCP, in Farsi, with English subtitles

International Sales: Iranian Independents

Print Source: Iranian Independents

Film Website: fishcat.net

Selected Filmography: Ashkan, The Charmed Ring and Other Stories (2009)

Five Star

USA 2014

THURSDAY MAY 29 7:00 PM

FRIDAY MAY 30 1:30 PM

FIPRESCI-winning writer-director Keith Miller

(

Welcome to Pine Hill, SIFF 2012) returns to SIFF with Five Star, another carefully realized, nuanced portrait of people in various states of transition. Primo (James Grant) is a thoughtful, well-spoken family man, and also a general in the East New York Bloods. When John (John Diaz), the son of a well-respected fallen gang member, begins to explore the possibility of gang life, Primo becomes an unlikely mentor. As John attempts to juggle his work for Primo, a budding romantic relationship with a new girlfriend, and his mother’s attempts to steer him away from the street, he begins to question certain long-held, unspoken truths in his life. The deeper John gets, the more Primo reveals to him, and the more John learns about his father. But when those unspoken truths can no longer be denied, John and Primo must sort out their shared history once and for all. Blending equal elements of narrative and non-fiction filmmaking, Miller creates an honest portrait of two men on the brink as they come to terms with what it means to be a father, a son, and a man.

Awards: Tribeca Film Festival 2014 (Best Editing)

SIFF CINEMA UPTOWN

Director: Keith Miller

Producers: Daryl Freimark

Keith Miller

Luisa Conlon

Screenwriter: Keith Miller

Cinematographers: Ed David

Alex Mallis

Editor: Keith Miller

Music: Michael Rosen

Cast: James Grant

John Diaz

Jasmin Burgos

Tamara Robinson

Wanda Colon

Running Time: 83 minutes

Presentation Format: HDCAM

Print Source: Rooftop Films

Film Website: fivestarthemovie.com

Selected Filmography: Welcome to Pine Hill (2012)

Fly Colt Fly: The Legend of The Barefoot Bandit

CANADA 2013

US PREMIERE

THURSDAY MAY 29 6:30 PM

SIFF CINEMA UPTOWN

SATURDAY MAY 31 11:00 AM EGYPTIAN

SUNDAY JUNE 8 11:00 AM

By age 17, Colton Harris-Moore was living in the forests outside his hometown, a teenage fugitive who showed a remarkable intelligence despite having been neglected for much of his early life. Within two years, Colt would be the subject of an international search, earning the moniker “The Barefoot Bandit”—all the while being cheered on by over 90,000 Facebook fans as he became the first folk-hero outlaw of the 21st century. Fly Colt Fly: The Legend of the Barefoot Bandit traces Colt’s journey from the backwoods of Camano Island, WA to the Bahamas, the site of his eventual capture, and the manhunt that confounded law enforcement agents. Ever resourceful, Colt possessed an uncanny ability to elude capture, even when quite literally surround by his pursuers. But as Colt’s crimes escalated from pilfering food and cash from vacation homes to grand theft aero (an act he commits without the benefit of any formal pilot training), his notoriety inevitably fuels an ego-rush for exploits that grow more and more audacious. Combining interview footage, dramatic recreations, and graphic novel style animation, co-directors Adam and Andrew Gray create a fascinating and entertaining portrait of this Robin Hood for the YouTube generation.

SIFF CINEMA UPTOWN

Directors: Adam Gray

Andrew Gray

Producers: Eric Jordan

Paul Stephens

Screenwriters: Adam Gray

Andrew Gray

Cinematographers: Andrew Gray

Sean Fritz

Editors: Adam Gray

Andrew Gray

Music: Sean Fritz

Running Time: 82 minutes

Presentation Format: HDCAM

Print Source: The Film Works

Film Website: flycoltflymovie.com

Selected Filmography: Debut Feature Film

SIFF CINEMA UPTOWN

For Those in Peril

UNITED KINGDOM 2013

MONDAY MAY 26 1:00 PM

WEDNESDAY MAY 28 6:00 PM

Set in a picturesque Scottish fishing village, For Those in Peril shares the story of Aaron, a young man who can’t quite find his place in his community. He’s the lone survivor of a mysterious fishing accident that left five men dead, including his older brother. While his mother grieves the loss of a son, Aaron attempts to lead a normal day-to-day life despite his earthshattering loss. Left without any memory of what happened and plagued by his village’s cultural superstition and seafaring folklore, Aaron must combat his solitary grief and survivor’s guilt, and ultimately prove that he is not to blame for the accident. Refusing to let go of the hope that his brother is still alive, Aaron dedicates all of his efforts to recovering his brother and delivering payback to the “devil in the sea” that attempted to take away everything that ever mattered to him. With a tour-de-force performance by George Mackay and harkening a bold new voice from debut director Paul Wright, this fable of grief and belief is eerie, primal, and strikingly gorgeous.

Awards: British Independent Film Awards 2013 (Best Debut Director) Stockholm Film Festival 2013 (Best Actor)

PACIFIC PLACE

SIFF CINEMA UPTOWN

Director: Paul Wright

Producers: Mary Burke

Polly Stokes

Screenwriter: Paul Wright

Cinematographer: Benjamin Kračun

Editor: Michael Aaglund

Music: Erik Enocksson

Cast: George Mackay

Michael Smiley

Kate Dickie

Nichola Burley

Running Time: 93 minutes

Presentation Format: DCP

International Sales: Protagonist Pictures

Print Source: Random Media

Film Website: protagonistpictures.com/ films/for-those-in-peril

Selected Filmography: Debut Feature Film

Four Corners

SOUTH AFRICA 2014

NORTH AMERICAN PREMIERE

THURSDAY MAY 29 9:30 PM

SATURDAY MAY 31 3:30 PM SIFF CINEMA UPTOWN

South Africa’s 2014 Oscar® submission evokes Gavin Hood’s Tsotsi but with a more ambitious scope, containing multiple stories that paint an authentic portrait of street life in the Cape Flats of Cape Town. An early scene introduces Farakhan, the leader of 28s gang, who wants to get out of prison, avenge his father’s murder, then find his son and leave the gangster life behind. On the streets, meanwhile, young teen chess wizard Ricardo attempts to resist the lure of the 26s (the deadly rivals of the 28s) and their seductive leader—who pays handsomely for young men who will do his dirty work—with an upcoming chess tournament representing a means of escape. The film’s title is slang for prison cell, but also effectively represents the chessboard against which the film is mirrored. Between the kings of the rival gangs, Ricardo finds that he is much more than just a pawn in a game where every player has a role and every deadly movement is irreversible.

Awards: Official Oscar Submission 2014 (Best Foreign Language Film)

Director:

Ian Gabriel

Producers: Cindy Gabriel

Genevieve Hofmeyr

Screenwriters:

Hofmeyr Scholtz

Terence Hammond

Cinematographer: Vicci Turpin

Editor: Ronelle Loots

Music: Markus Wormstorm

Cast: Brendon Daniels

Irshaad Ally

Jezriel Skei

Lindiwe Matshikiza

Abduragman Adams

Running Time: 119 minutes

Presentation Format: DCP, in Afrikaans, Sabela, English, with English

subtitles

International Sales: The Little Film Company

Print Source: Giant Films

Film Website: fourcornersthemovie.com

Selected Filmography: Forgiveness (2004)

HARVARD EXIT

The Foxy Merkins

USA 2013

FRIDAY MAY 23 9:30 PM

SUNDAY MAY 25 4:00 PM

It’s never easy turning tricks on the mean streets of New York, but it’s even harder if you’re a plus-sized, asthmatic, allergic lesbian who’s too shy to even talk to potential customers, let alone bed them. Such is the plight of Margaret (co-writer Lisa Haas), a hapless, recently homeless woman who turns to prostitution to survive. It’s a potentially tragic situation, but director and co-writer Madeleine Olnek plays the scenario for absurdist, deadpan laughs. Margaret’s luck changes when she befriends Jo (Jackie Monahan), a pretty, more experienced bisexual hooker who shows Margaret the best places to pick up high-paying women—usually closeted Republican socialites who shop at Talbots. We see a parade of Margaret’s “dates” with bizarrely fetishistic clients and other peculiar characters, including an uber-creepy merkin salesman (Alex Karpovsky from HBO’s Girls), who calls them “toupees for your vagina.” In between tricks, Jo also helps Margaret search for her estranged mother, leading Margaret to question the nature of Jo’s friendship. After adding a tongue-in-cheek lesbian vibe to the sci-fi B-movie genre with Codependent Lesbian Space Alien Seeks Same, Olnek applies a similar satiric style here, sending up gritty, neorealist hustler films like Midnight Cowboy. With a delicate balance of humor and pathos, The Foxy Merkins gives humanity and charm to characters on the seedier side of urban life, adding a laugh to every winceinducing situation.

Frank

IRELAND/UNITED KINGDOM 2014

HARVARD EXIT

HARVARD EXIT

Director:

Madeleine Olnek

Producers:

Laura Terruso

Madeleine Olnek

Screenwriters:

Lisa Haas

Jackie Monahan

Madeleine Olnek

Cinematographer: Anna Stypko

Editor:

Curtis Grout

Music: Dan Bartfield

Cast:

Lisa Haas

Jackie Monahan

Susan Ziegler

Alex Karpovsky

Sally Sockwell

Running Time: 81 minutes

Presentation Format:

DCP

Print Source: Mad Shorts

Film Website: foxymerkins.com

Selected Filmography:

Codependent Lesbian

Space Alien Seeks Same (2011)

FRIDAY MAY 30 9:30 PM

EGYPTIAN

SATURDAY MAY 31 2:00 PM SIFF CINEMA UPTOWN

Jon Burrows is a young wannabe musician mired in a dreary suburban existence. Just when his rock star dreams seem farthest away, he gets a call to join an avant-garde pop band led by the mysterious and enigmatic Frank (Michael Fassbender, delivering the most delightfully oddball performance of his career), a musical genius who hides himself inside a large, papier-maché head. Soon Jon finds himself recording with the band in Ireland, where he experiences Frank’s unique creative process, such as inventing a new musical scale and insisting that the band forge their own instruments. Tensions rise within the band when Jon encourages Frank to write songs with more commercial appeal while Clara (Maggie Gyllenhaal), the band’s rather intense theremin player, staunchly clings to their esoteric roots. But when Frank secures a spot at the SXSW Music Conference, the gig tests the band’s creative integrity. Based upon his own experiences playing keyboards for the English musician Chris Sievey, aka Frank Sidebottom, screenwriter Jon Ronson has penned an insightfully witty yet eccentric film that examines the mystique that emerges from our fascination with pop music maestro.

Director: Lenny Abrahamson

Producers: David Barron

Ed Guiney

Stevie Lee

Screenwriters: Jon Ronson

Peter Straughan

Cinematographer: James Mather

Editor: Nathan Nugent

Music: Stephen Rennicks

Cast: Michael Fassbender

Domhnall Gleeson

Maggie Gyllenhaal

Scoot McNairy

Carla Azar

Running Time: 95 minutes

Presentation Format: DCP

Print Source: Magnolia Pictures

Film Website: magpictures.com/frank

Selected Filmography: What Richard Did (2012) Garage (2007) Adam & Paul (2004)

Free Range: Ballad on Approving of the World

TUESDAY MAY 27 9:00 PM

THURSDAY MAY 29 4:30 PM PACIFIC

This freewheeling, darkly humorous slacker movie takes us on a joy ride of neverending surprises. Effortlessly cool and stylish, Free Range examines modern life, especially the tensions between conformity and the desire for free will. Meet perfectly cast Lauri Lagle as Fred, an evasive, non-confrontational twentysomething narcissist. He works for a newspaper writing film reviews but spends more time tending to his personal literary ambitions. When he hands in a crassly unfavorable review for Terrence Malick’s Tree of Life, he’s fired. Compounding his problems, Fred’s girlfriend is pregnant and an old flame starts fluttering around his life again. Typically, Fred deals with most problems by ignoring them. Will that tactic work now? In his new manual labor job, he drives a forklift back and forth and stacks containers into towers, a job he doesn’t take seriously. Free Range searches for the same sense of freedom and authenticity as films like Five Easy Pieces and Easy Rider, which left deep impressions on director Veiko Ounpuu. Embellished with an outstanding 1970s-centered soundtrack featuring an eclectic selection of music from Cat Stevens to Arvo Pärt, Free Range is a complex character study that gathers strength as it rolls along.

Director: Veiko Ounpuu

Producer: Katrin Kissa

Screenwriters: Veiko Onupuu

Robert Kurvitz

Cinematographer: Mart Taniel

Editor: Liis Nimik

Cast: Lauri Lagle

Jaanika Arum

Laura Peteson

Denis Lavant

Peeter Volkonski

Running Time: 104 minutes

Presentation Format: DCP, in Estonian, with English subtitles

International Sales:

LevelK

Print Source:

LevelK

Film Website: homelessbob.ee/movies/ free-range

Selected Filmography: The Temptation of St. Tony (2009) Sügisball (2007)

From Neurons to Nirvana: The Great Medicines

CANADA/UNITED

KINGDOM 2013 US PREMIERE

SATURDAY MAY 24 7:00 PM

PACIFIC PLACE

SUNDAY MAY 25 1:15 PM PACIFIC PLACE

For decades, a growing number of scientists and advocates have been pushing back against one of the more entrenched taboos in western culture—our exclusion of psychedelic drugs from therapeutic treatment. Studies involving PTSD sufferers and late-stage cancer patients have shown remarkable results without presenting the debilitating side effects of conventional medicines, yet patients are denied their use and research studies on the subject are heavily discouraged. (“They want you to be on drugs,” as one speaker puts it. “They just want you to be on corporate drugs.”) Gathering a remarkably diverse selection of voices—psychiatrists and shamans, social justice workers and religious scholars, scientists who’ve studied psychedelics in the lab and anthropologists who sampled their effects first-hand in the Amazon jungles— From Neurons to Nirvana presents a side of the debate too frequently silenced. Far from a lazy “tune in, turn on, drop out” harangue, the film offers a heady exploration of the benefits, spiritual, and psychological, of pharmacological ego-shattering, as well as a reminder that the gulf between contemplating Buddha’s territory of the unconditioned mind and discussing serotonin-2 receptor activation methodology isn’t as wide as it initially seems.

Director: Oliver Hockenhull

Producer: Oliver Hockenhull

Editor: Oliver Hockenhull

Music: Lisa Walker

Running Time: 108 minutes

Presentation Format: BluRay

Print Source: Hockenhull

Selected Filmography: Shot On Blood: Kozmikonic Electronica (Doc, 2010)

Evo (Doc, 2002)

Building Heaven, Remembering Earth (Doc, 1999)

Aldous Huxley: The Gravity of Light (Doc, 1996) Entre la Langue et l’Océan (Doc, 1991)

Determinations (1988)

HARVARD EXIT

PLACE

Awards: Official Oscar Submission 2013 (Best Foreign Language Film)

PRAIA DO FUTURO

Futuro Beach

BRAZIL/GERMANY 2014

US PREMIERE

FRIDAY JUNE 6 9:30 PM

SATURDAY JUNE 7 11:00 AM

Two breakneck motorcycle rides—one on the sand dunes of a Brazilian wind farm and one on the German autobahn—bookend a tactile gay romance told over three chapters and in the contrasting locations of sexy Brazil and frigid Berlin. Karim Aïnouz’s fifth feature regales with visions of male beauty not so appreciated since Claire Denis’ Beau Travail, while revealing much about relationships despite a script as skimpy as the attire on Fortaleza’s beaches. In the opening chapter, Donato (Wagner Moura) is a lifeguard on Praia do Futuro who’s taken aback by the first drowning that occurs on his watch. The victim’s companion, Konrad (Clemens Schick), is an Afghanistan war veteran visiting from Germany, who looks to Donato first for comfort—and then love. Chapter two downshifts from the dazzling bright colors of South America to the steely shades of industrialized Berlin, while never losing its forward momentum. Donato has joined Konrad to settle there, embracing his sexuality but missing his adoring younger brother Ayrton and the beaches where he grew up. In the final third, Ayrton is now an 18-year-old thrillseeker himself, looking for Donato in Berlin. Director Aïnouz imparts Donato with the expats’ dual mentality of excited anxiousness. Cinematographer Ali Olcay Gözkaya expresses psychological states with dramatic shifts in light and palette, while Hauschka provides a dreamily melancholic, ambient score, in this story about losing yourself in the city, in the sea, and in love.

SIFF CINEMA UPTOWN

Director: Karim Aïnouz

Producer: Geórgia Costa Araújo

Screenwriter: Felipe Bragança

Cinematographer: Ali Olay Gözkaya

Editor: Isabela Monteiro de Castro

Music: Volker Bertelmann

Cast: Wagner Moura Clemens Schick Jesuita Barbosa

Running Time: 106 minutes

Presentation Format: DCP, in Portuguese and German, with English subtitles

International Sales: The Match Factory

Print Source: Strand Releasing

Film Website: facebook.com/ praiadofuturo

Selected Filmography: The Silver Cliff (2011) I Travel Because I Have To, I Come Back Because I Love You (2009)

Love for Sale: Suely in the Sky (2006) Madame Satã (2002)

Gabrielle

CANADA (QUÉBEC) 2013

WEDNESDAY MAY 21 6:00 PM

SIFF CINEMA UPTOWN

THURSDAY MAY 22 3:30 PM SIFF CINEMA UPTOWN

Gabrielle is a 22-year-old with a vivacious personality and an exceptional gift for music. She also suffers from Williams Syndrome, a rare genetic condition that affects brain development. Gabrielle lives happily in a group home with several other developmentally challenged adults, spending time with her sister, and singing in the choir where she meets her boyfriend, Martin. Her contentment begins to unravel, however, when she learns that her beloved sister is moving across the world to be with her boyfriend in India. Things continue going downhill when Martin’s mother objects to their relationship, insistent that young couples with disabilities are not able to handle the repercussions of being romantically intimate. Gabrielle Marion-Rivard gives an extraordinarily expressive performance, capably eliciting deep sympathy and conveying a wry sense of humor while drawing on her personal experience suffering from Williams Syndrome. Not simply an “issue” movie, Gabrielle is about the joys as well as the frustrations of love, family, and finding independence.

Awards:

Official Oscar Submission 2013 (Foreign Language Film)

Locarno International Film Festival 2013 (Audience Award)

Genie Awards 2014 (Best Canadian Motion Picture, Canadian Actress)

Vancouver Film Critics Circle (Best Supporting Actor in a Canadian Film)

Director: Louise Archambault

Producers: Kim McCraw

Luc Déry

Screenwriter: Louise Archambault

Cinematographer: Mathieu Laverdière

Editor: Richard Comeau

Music: François Lafontaine

Cast: Gabrielle Marion-Rivard

Alexandre Landry

Mélissa DésormeauxPoulin

Vincent-Guillaume Otis

Robert Charlebois

Running Time: 102 minutes

Presentation Format: DCP, in French, with English subtitles

International Sales: EOne Entertainment

International

Print Source: EOne Films US

Film Website: gabrielle-lefilm.ca

Selected Filmography: Familia (2005)

EGYPTIAN

EEDENISTÄ POHJOISEEN

Garden Lovers

FINLAND 2014 NORTH AMERICAN PREMIERE

SATURDAY MAY 17 11:00 AM

LINCOLN SQUARE

THURSDAY JUNE 5 6:00 PM SIFF CINEMA UPTOWN

SUNDAY JUNE 8 4:15 PM PACIFIC PLACE

This beautifully sweet botanical documentary takes its time hopping between households of various married couples and their gardenscapes in Finland’s lush countryside. The tender appreciation of nature and relationships is made palpable with Garden Lovers’ honest portrayal of life’s stillness and the peculiarities of what it is to be human. Through idiosyncratic glimpses of their daily lives, elderly couples impart wisdom about love and remind us of life’s fickle nature, but don’t be fooled—though it moves at a gentle pace and is cut with introspective silences, Garden Lovers incites a chuckle here and there with unexpected moments of silliness. A younger couple is introduced, from birds-eye view, streaking through their garden and wearing what can only be described as white Smurf hats. In another garden, an elderly couple measures pumpkins they’re growing for the ‘largest pumpkin’ competition; pumpkins the wife has lovingly named Plumpy, Chubby, and Cherish. Set in verdant oases, Garden Lovers is a delicate display of life’s quirky musings and the significance that gardens play in the grand scheme of being.

Awards:

Tampere Film Festival 2014 (Best Finnish Doc)

Director: Virpi Suutari

Producer: Ulla Simonen

Screenwriter: Virpi Suutari

Cinematographer: Heikki Färm

Editor: Jussi Rautaniemi

Music:

Sanna Salmenkallio

Running Time: 72 minutes

Presentation Format: BluRay, in Finnish, with English subtitles

International Sales: Autlook Filmsales

Print Source: Autlook Filmsales

Film Website: made.fi/ gardenloversmovie

Selected Filmography: Hilton! (Doc, 2013)

Auf Wiedersehen Finnland (Doc, 2010)

Along the Road Little Child (Doc, 2005)

Joutilaat (Doc, 2001)

Valkoinen Taivas (Doc, 1998)

The Geographer Drank His Globe Away

RUSSIA 2013

SUNDAY MAY 25 4:30 PM

SATURDAY JUNE 7 9:30 PM

Viktor Sergeyevich Sluzhkin is an outsider good-guy anti-hero. A middle-aged Russian “Ivan the Fool,” he’s a drinker, married with a young daughter, flirts with other women and encourages his best friend to have an affair with his wife. An unemployed biologist suffering from lack of money, Sluzhkin, takes a job as a geography teacher in a local secondary school in the city of Perm. Exerting authority is not his forte and the school disapproves of his teaching methods. Regardless, Sluzhkin has a way with his students and promises what turns out to be a fateful and thrilling end-of-the-year river rafting trip for those who get good grades. Subtle actor Konstantin Khabensky (Day Watch, Night Watch) inhabits his best role ever, emanating a complex and completely believable maverick that has lost his way but never his optimism or empathy.

The Geographer Drank His Globe Away is an adaptation of the Russian bestselling novel by Alexei Ivanov. Director Alexander Veledinsky transplanted his film adaptation from the novel’s 1990s to the present day. His quirky tragicomedy has won the main prizes in Festivals across Russia, winning over audiences with great performances and an absorbing narrative.

Awards:

Odessa International Film Festival 2013 (Audience Award, Best Film)

Kinotavr Film Festival 2013 (Best Camera, Music)

Nika Awards 2014 (Best Film, Director, Actor, Actress, Score)

Director: Alexander Veledinsky

Producer: Vadim Goryainov

Screenwriters: Alexander Veledinsky

Rauf Kubaev

Valery Torodovsky

Cinematographer: Vladimir Bashta

Editors:

Tatyana Prilenskaya

Aleksandr Veledinskiy

Music: Aleksei Zubarev

Cast: Anfisa Chernykh

Ilya Ilinyh

Konstantin Khabenskiy

Eugenia Khirivskaya

Running Time: 120 minutes

Presentation Format: DCP, in Russian, with English subtitles

International Sales: Antipode Sales & Distribution

Print Source: Antipode Sales & Distribution

Film Website: antipode-sales.biz/ movies/the-geographerdrank-his-globe-away

Selected Filmography: Alive (2006)

It’s Russian (2004)

LINCOLN SQUARE

PACIFIC PLACE

GEOGRAF GLOBUS PROPIL

Gerontophilia

CANADA 2013

SATURDAY MAY 24 9:00 PM

SUNDAY MAY 25 11:00 AM

A nurturer by nature, cute 18-year-old Lake (Pier-Gabriel Lajoie) is in what seems to be a successful relationship with impassioned girlfriend Desiree (Katie Boland). But underneath the placid surface, Lake has a particular fetish: He is attracted to much older men, possessing a penchant for pensioners if you will.

When his boozy mother, Marie (Marie-Hélène Thibault) secures him a gap-year job as an orderly at the Coup de Coeur nursing home, Lake strikes up a romance with octogenarian Melvyn Peabody, who springs to life when his young lover begins replacing his meds with martinis. As people discover their secret, the sexual outlaws head out on a fugitive road trip, and before long, their relationship no longer seems as unusual as it first appears. Don’t be frightened by the presence of Canadian trashart provocateur and director Bruce LaBruce (whose Pierrot Lunaire is also playing at SIFF 2014). Gerontophilia is as sweet and pleasing as his earlier works were hardcore and confrontational, with LaBruce focusing on feelings with a surprising reserve and finesse. Wiser than he used to be, LaBruce rolls out a beautiful and charming tale of love beyond prejudice.

Awards:

Montréal Festival of New Cinema 2013 (Grand Prize)

Director: Bruce LaBruce

Producers: Nicolas Comeau

Leonard Farlinger

Jennifer Jonas

Screenwriters: Bruce LaBruce

Daniel Allen Cox

Cinematographer: Nicolas Canniccioni

Editor:

Glenn Berman

Music: Ramachandra Borcar

Cast: Pier-Gabriel Lajoie

Marie-Hélène Thibault

Walter Borden

Katie Boland

Running Time: 90 minutes

Presentation Format: DCP, in English and French, with English subtitles

International Sales: MK2

Print Source: Film Option International

Film Website: gerontophiliathemovie.com

Selected Filmography: Pierrot Lunaire (2014)

L.A. Zombie (2010)

Otto; Or, Up with Dead People (2008)

The Raspberry Reich (2004)

Skin Flick (1998)

Hustler White (1996)

Super 8 1/2 (1994)

No Skin Off My Ass (1991)

God Help the Girl

UNITED KINGDOM 2014

SUNDAY JUNE 1 1:30 PM

TUESDAY JUNE 3 7:00 PM

God Help the Girl, the directorial debut from Stuart Murdoch of the Glasgow indie pop band Belle and Sebastian, is a musical set to the songs from the 2009 album of the same name. Eve (Emily Browning), a depressive anorexic with dreams of becoming a musician, escapes from a mental hospital in order to pursue her career in music. She eventually meets her soon-to-be bandmates James (Olly Alexander), an unpolished guitarist who is madly in love with her, and Cassie (Hannah Murray), an eloquent English girl with a knack for singing. The three of them spend a summer developing a band and relationships. Belle and Sebastian have always been known for their whimsical lyrics and twee sentimentality, to which God Help the Girl stays true. Filmed on 16mm, the film’s aesthetic is chicly minimalist. Vanity is the lifeblood that runs through the heart of the musical genre, but in God Help the Girl there is something more honest than vain amidst all the beautiful faces and playful meandering.

Awards: Sundance Film Festival 2014 (Special Jury Award, World Cinema)

Director: Stuart Murdoch

Producer: Barry Mendel

Screenwriter:

Stuart Murdoch

Cinematographer: Giles Nuttgens

Editor: David Arthur

Music:

Stuart Murdoch

Cast:

Emily Browning

Olly Alexander

Hannah Murray

Cora Bissett

Pierre Boulanger

Running Time: 111 minutes

Presentation Format: DCP

International Sales: HanWay Films

Print Source: Amplify • Variance Films

Film Website: godhelpthegirl.com

Selected Filmography: Debut Feature Film

SIFF CINEMA UPTOWN

HARVARD EXIT

EGYPTIAN

SIFF CINEMA UPTOWN

Gold

IRELAND 2014

NORTH AMERICAN PREMIERE

TUESDAY MAY 20 9:30 PM

LINCOLN SQUARE

FRIDAY JUNE 6 6:00 PM SIFF CINEMA UPTOWN

SATURDAY JUNE 7 12:00 PM SIFF CINEMA UPTOWN

Twelve years ago, Alice left Ray, taking their daughter Abbie with her and leaving him deep in depression. However, when his ill father asks to see his granddaughter before it’s too late, Ray reluctantly agrees and heads to his hometown to track down his estranged family. Only he finds Alice remarried to Frank, an overly ambitious fitness guru—and Ray’s old high school PE teacher—driven by his dream of bringing a new revolutionary running technique to the world. The now teenaged Abbie, a competitive cross-country runner who will do anything to earn a gold medal, is the perfect guinea pig for this technique. But Ray’s bumbling efforts to bridge the gap between him and his daughter only lead to chaos as all of his good intentions turn to comic catastrophe. Despite these setbacks, Ray finds himself slowly reconnecting with both Abbie and Alice. As in his feature film debut, Small Engine Repair (SIFF 2007), writer-director Niall Heery delivers a warmly humorous portrait of small town dreams and rivalries, where sometimes even the smallest victories, or losses, are enough to begin life anew.

Director: Niall Heery

Producers:

Tristan Orpen Lynch

Aoife O’Sullivan

Screenwriters: Niall Heery

Brendan Heery

Cinematographer: Tim Fleming

Editor:

Tony Cranstoun

Music:

Niall Byrne

Cast: James Nesbitt

David Wilmot

Kerry Condon, Maisie Williams

Running Time: 90 minutes

Presentation Format: DCP

International Sales:

Subotica Limited

Print Source:

Subotica Limited

Film Website: subotica.ie/gold.html

Selected Filmography: Small Engine Repair (2006)

Grand Central

FRANCE/AUSTRIA 2013

SATURDAY MAY 17 9:30 PM

THURSDAY MAY 22 7:00 PM

MONDAY MAY 26 1:30 PM

Incendiary French star Léa Seydoux (Blue is the Warmest Color) reunites with Belle Épine director Rebecca Zlotowski for this intense love triangle set in and around a nuclear power plant. Gary (Tahar Rahim, A Prophet) arrives at the plant looking to score hazard pay, finding maintenance work close to the reactor itself. But the real danger comes in the form of his attraction to Karole (Seydoux), who also works at the facility, alongside her fiancé Toni (Denis Ménochet). Shooting in an actual, billion-dollar Austrian plant that was completed shortly before the country voted to ban nuclear power, Zlotowski grounds her melodrama in the mundane operations of this clinical, antiseptic environment. She draws a stark contrast between this industrial space and the lush countryside that surrounds it, where the tight-knit workers can let their hair down and enjoy themselves, but remains alert to the wider complexities and ironies implicit in this setup, most specifically the ramifications of Gary and Karole’s illicit love affair.

Awards: Lumiere Awards 2014 (Best Actress, Lumiere Special Award)

LINCOLN SQUARE

HARVARD EXIT

EGYPTIAN

Director: Rebecca Zlotowski

Producer: Frédéric Jouve

Screenwriters: Gaëlle Macé

Rebecca Zlotowski

Cinematographer: George Lechaptois

Editor: Julien Lacheray

Music: ROB

Cast: Tahar Rahim

Léa Seydoux

Olivier Gourmet

Denis Ménochet

Johan Libereau

Running Time: 94 minutes

Presentation Format:

DCP, in French, with English subtitles

International Sales: Elle Driver

Print Source: Elle Driver

Film Website: elledriver.fr/grand-central

Selected Filmography: Belle Épine (2010)

The Grand Seduction

CANADA 2013

THURSDAY MAY 29 8:00 PM

KIRKLAND PC

SATURDAY MAY 31 5:00 PM SIFF CINEMA UPTOWN

With charm and chuckles to spare, Don McKellar’s (Last Night, Broadway’s “The Drowsy Chaperone”) droll comedy features a superb performance from Brendan Gleeson as one of the down-on-their-luck Newfoundland villagers determined to trick a big-city doctor into settling into their coastal community. Gleeson’s Murray French, a fisherman no longer allowed to fish, heads up a band of citizens who see hope for their locale in the form of a new factory. The problem? The company insists that a full-time doctor commit to the village for a five-year term. When the somewhat unscrupulous Dr. Lewis (a delightful Taylor Kitsch) arrives in town for what he sees as a month’s service, the villagers resort to any means necessary to get him to stay, including listening in on the good doctor’s phone conversations to learn his likes and dislikes. Rollicking humor, quiet moments of whimsy, and genuinely touching scenes—all anchored in the gorgeous seaside community of Trinity Bay, Newfoundland, where the film was shot—make The Grand Seduction well nigh irresistible.

Awards:

Genie Awards 2014 (Best Supporting Actor)

Director:

Don McKellar

Producers: Barbara Doran

Roger Frappier

Screenwriters:

Michael Dowse

Ken Scott

Cinematographer: Douglas Koch

Editor:

Dominique Fortin

Music:

Maxime Barzel

Paul-Étienne Côté

Francois-Pierre Lue

Cast:

Brendan Gleeson

Taylor Kitsch

Gordon Pinsent

Mark Critch

Matt Watts

Running Time: 115 minutes

Presentation Format: DCP

International Sales: Voltage Pictures

Print Source: eOne Films US

Film Website: voltagepictures.com

Selected Filmography: Childstar (2004)

Last Night (1998)

DAS GROSE MUSEUM

The Great Museum

AUSTRIA 2014

TUESDAY JUNE 3 6:00 PM

SATURDAY JUNE 7 2:30 PM

Director Johannes Holzhausen brings an internationally renowned cultural institution to vivid life in this multi-dimensional portrait. Holzhausen eschews voiceover narration, conventional interviews, and a musical score in favor of a fluid journey through the sights and sounds that characterize Vienna’s sprawling Kunsthistorisches Museum Wien (Museum of Fine Arts or KMH). From the curators to the cleaning staff, every worker has a part to play in preserving the collections and attracting new visitors. Built for the Hapsburg Dynasty in 1891, the museum represents an ever-evolving portrait of the past as donors contribute new items to the inventory and staffers re-contextualize older holdings to speak to today’s public. Holzhausen’s unmediated approach provides privileged insights into the restoration process, marketing meetings, and hidden treasures packed away in storage rooms. Since the top brass gave him free reign, the documentarian—who studied art history for six years—captures the stresses and strains (including a few profane words from a frustrated restoration expert) as much as the joys and pleasures of the curatorial world. In his patient eyes and hands, The Great Museum feels as much like a work of art as any of the Kunsthistorisches’ priceless antiquities.

Awards: Berlin Film Festival 2014 (Caligari Film Prize)

CINEMA

Director: Johannes Holzhausen

Producer: Johannes Rosenberger

Screenwriters: Johannes Holzhausen

Constantin Wulff

Cinematographers: Attila Boa

Joerg Burger

Editor: Dieter Pichler

Running Time: 94 minutes

Presentation Format: DCP, in German and English, with English subtitles

International Sales: Wide Management

Print Source: Kino Lorber

Film Website: thegreatmuseum.net

Selected Filmography: On the Seven Seas (2002)

SIFF

UPTOWN

SIFF CINEMA UPTOWN

The Green Prince

GERMANY/ISRAEL/UNITED KINGDOM 2014

SUNDAY MAY 25 7:00 PM

PACIFIC PLACE

MONDAY MAY 26 4:30 PM LINCOLN SQUARE

A true story that stands up to the best of Hollywood’s fictional espionage thrillers. Mosab Hassan Yousef grew up in the shadow of his father, a founder of Hamas, Palestine’s fundamentalist political group. But after inherently entering the conflict by being arrested at age 17 for gun smuggling, Mosab is moved to make a choice between betrayal and protection. When approached by a top leader in Shin Bet, Israel’s security organization, to become a spy on behalf of Hamas’ foe, Mosab abandons his loyalty to his father and community in hopes that he can combat his father’s persecution and the ruthless violence inflicted on both sides of the conflict. After all, the only way his father can be protected is if Mosab makes strides to have him put in prison. Wrestling with the shame that comes with working for the enemy, Mosab finds support from his Shin Bet handler, who has achieved the greatest prize of them all—handling the oldest son of a founding Hamas member. Would-be adversaries become comrades in this tangled web of terror, tradition, surveillance, and loyalty.

Awards:

Sundance Film Festival 2014 (Audience Award, World Documentary)

Director:

Nadav Schirman

Producers:

Nadav Schirman

John Battsek

Simon Chinn

Screenwriter: Nadav Schirman

Cinematographers:

Hans Fromm

Giora Bejach

Raz Dagan

Editors:

Joelle Alexis

Sanjeev Hathiramani

Music: Max Richter

Running Time: 95 minutes

Presentation Format: DCP, in English and Hebrew, with English subtitles

International Sales: Global Screen GmbH

Print Source: Music Box Films

Film Website: globalscreen.de

Selected Filmography: In the Dark Room (Doc, 2013)

The Champagne Sky (Doc, 2007)

Half of a Yellow Sun

NIGERIA/UNITED KINGDOM 2013

MONDAY MAY 19 6:00 PM

EGYPTIAN TUESDAY MAY 20 4:00 PM

Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie’s epic 2006 bestseller comes to the big screen in a sprawling melodrama that perfectly captures the Nigerian Civil War of the late ’60s. First-time writer-director Biyi Bandele takes the novel’s twisting narrative structure and focuses on Odenigbo (Ejiofor) and Olanna (Newton), a radical academic and his sophisticated girlfriend, allowing the other characters and storylines to orbit efficiently around their central drama. Olanna and her sister Kainene have returned from University in England, and Olanna’s swift move to live with the revolutionary Odenigbo is frowned upon by his traditional-minded mother (clearly foreshadowing the tension that will erupt along social lines). As violence erupts across the country, Odenigbo and Olanna are forced to flee, and so begins Bandele’s film on its displaced journey toward resolution, effectively bridging the personal and historical realities of an African country struggling to find its identity. Half of a Yellow Sun’s impressive performances and rich visuals create an exceptional foundation for a driving drama that both informs about the history of Nigeria and creates a deeper understanding of the challenges of regaining culture following colonialist rule.

PRECEDED BY:

Columbite Tantalite

United Kingdom/Democratic Republic of Congo 2013, 13 minutes, Director: Chiwetel Ejiofor

A postcolonial parable about the west’s hunger for African mineral wealth and about Congo’s struggle to come to terms with its past, created as part of the YV Shorts, inspired by productions at the Young Vic.

Sponsored by Deborah Person

Director: Biyi Bandele

Producer: Andrea Calderwood

Screenwriter: Biyi Bandele based on the novel by Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie

Cinematographer: John De Borman

Editor: Chris Gill

Music: Ben Onono

Paul Thomson

Cast: Thandie Newton

Chiwetel Ejiofor

John Boyega

Anika Noni Rose

Joseph Mawle

Running Time: 106 minutes

Presentation Format: DCP

International Sales: Metro International

Entertainment

Print Source: Monterey Media

Film Website: halfofayellowsunmovie.com

Selected Filmography: Debut Feature Film

EGYPTIAN

Happy Christmas

USA 2014

WEDNESDAY MAY 28 9:15 PM

FRIDAY MAY 30 9:30 PM

LINCOLN SQUARE

SIFF CINEMA UPTOWN

Young couple Jeff and Kelly haven’t used their tikithemed basement very much since the birth of their son two years ago. But when Jeff’s younger sister Jenny arrives in town, the party is back on—for better or worse. Director Joe Swanberg is known for working without a script, and here he ably joins the improv team of actors as Jeff.

Melanie Lynskey, also in SIFF 2014’s They Came Together and who starred in Up in the Air alongside Anna Kendrick, plays Kelly; and Kendrick returns from Swanberg’s Drinking Buddies (SIFF 2013), this time not playing a “good girl.” Reeling from a breakup, Jenny is welcomed to start over with her brother’s family in Chicago if she agrees to help out around the house. But on her first night back, Jenny skips chores to attend a party with her old friend Carson (“Girls”’s Lena Dunham in a wise-cracking turn), blacking out and missing her appointment with the baby (Swanberg’s real son, Jude) the next morning. To make matters worse, she finds her babysitting replacement— family friend Kevin (Mark Webber)—quite attractive, and sets forth a seduction. With no filter in conversation and little recognition of inappropriate situations, Jenny’s presence makes for a dicey holiday in this little home.

PRECEDED BY:

I’m a Mitzvah

USA 2013, 19 minutes, Director: Ben Berman A young American man (Ben Schwartz) tries to transport his deceased friend’s body out of rural Mexico.

Director: Joe Swanberg

Producers: Joe Swanberg

Peter Gilbert

Screenwriter: Joe Swanberg

Cinematographer: Ben Richardson

Editor: Joe Swanberg

Music: Chris Swanson

Cast: Anna Kendrick

Melanie Lynskey

Mark Webber

Lena Dunham

Joe Swanberg

Running Time: 78 minutes

Presentation Format: DCP

Print Source:

Magnolia Pictures

Selected Filmography: 24 Exposures (2013)

Drinking Buddies (2013)

All the Light in the Sky (2012)

Marriage Material (2012)

V/H/S (2012)

The Zone (2011)

Caitlin Plays Herself (2011)

Art History (2011)

Autoerotic (2011)

Silver Bullets (2011)

Uncle Kent (2011)

Alexander the Last (2009) Nights and Weekends (2008)

Hannah Takes the Stairs (2007)

LOL (2006)

Kissing on the Mouth (2005)

TRUNDNO BYT’ BOGOM

Hard to Be a God

RUSSIA 2013

NORTH AMERICAN PREMIERE

FRIDAY MAY 16 8:30 PM SIFF

SATURDAY MAY 17 2:00 PM SIFF CINEMA UPTOWN

SATURDAY MAY 24 1:00 PM LINCOLN SQUARE

The last masterpiece of Russian film director Alexei German is not for the faint of heart: a sci-fi drama like a black and white medieval painting, lucid, gory, and brutish; think Hieronymus Bosch. Based on the 1964 Russian science fiction fantasy novel of the same name by brothers and writing partners Arkady and Boris Strugatsky (Stalker), the film takes place on the distant planet Arkanar, which is under a feudal regime identical to that of earth 800 years ago. The protagonist, Don Rumata (Leonid Yarmolnik), is part of a group of enlightened operatives from Earth who are doomed to live with and behave like the locals on Arkanar. They are little more than observers forbidden to get involved or interfere. Highly respected director German was a surviving master of Soviet cinematography and Hard to Be a God was his sixth film, 14 years in the making. Although German died in February 2013 when the film was in its final stages, co-writer and wife Svetlana Karmalita and their son, film director Alexei German, Jr. (The Last Train), finished the director’s unforgettable magnum opus.

Director:

Aleksei German

Producers: Viktor Izvekov

Rushan Nasibulin

Screenwriters:

Aleksei German

Svetlana Karmalita

Cinematographers: Vladimir Ilyin

Yuri Klimenko

Editors:

Irina Gorokhovskaya

Maria Amosova

Music: V. Lebedev

Cast: Leonid Yarmolnik

Aleksandr Chutko

Yuriy Tsurilo

Evgeniy Gerchakov

Running Time: 170 minutes

Presentation Format: DCP, in Russian, with English subtitles

International Sales: Capricci Films

Print Source: Capricci Films

Film Website: capricci.fr

Selected Filmography: Khrustalyov, My Car! (1998)

My Friend Ivan Lapshin (1984)

Twenty Days Without War (1976)

Trial on the Road (1971)

The Seventh Companion (1967)

CINEMA UPTOWN

Healing

AUSTRALIA 2014 NORTH AMERICAN PREMIERE

SUNDAY MAY 25 6:30 PM

MONDAY MAY 26 10:00 AM

TUESDAY MAY 27 6:00 PM

Director Craig Monahan’s first feature film in a decade reunites him with Hugo Weaving (Interview, SIFF 2000) for this moving tale of hope and redemption. Monahan and co-writer Alison Nisselle took inspiration from a true story for their account of a closed-off prisoner finding new purpose by tending to injured birds of prey. Toward the end of his 16-year murder sentence, prison authorities move Iran-born Victor Khadem (Don Hany) to Won Wron, a low-security prison farm north of Melbourne. Drifting unhappily through his days, his life changes when senior officer Matt Perry (Weaving) encourages him to take part in an experiment at Healesville Sanctuary in which inmates nurse raptors, such as falcons and owls, back to health. Perry believes that Victor has what it takes to tame Yasmine, an imposing wedge-tailed eagle, but a combustible mix of inmates and officers with issues of their own threatens to scupper the plan. In the process, a friendship forms that could prove as beneficial to Perry as to Victor, who has more in common with his charge than first meets the eye.

HARVARD EXIT

HARVARD EXIT

RENTON IKEA PAC

Director:

Craig Monahan

Producers:

Tait Brady

Craig Monahan

Screenwriters:

Alison Nisselle

Craig Monahan

Cinematographer:

Andrew Lesnie

Editor:

Suresh Ayyar

Music:

David Hirschfelder

Cast:

Hugo Weaving

Don Hany

Xavier Samuel

Jane Menelaus

Laura Brent

Running Time: 119 minutes

Presentation Format:

DCP

International Sales:

Lightning Entertainment

Print Source:

Lightning Entertainment

Film Website: healingthemovie.com

Selected Filmography: Peaches (2004) The Interview (1998)

Helicopter Mom

USA 2014

WORLD PREMIERE

WEDNESDAY JUNE 4 7:00 PM

THURSDAY JUNE 5 4:00 PM

Oh, how far we’ve come from the dark days of rampant homophobia. But teenager Lloyd Cooper (Jason Dolley) may think society—or at least his mother—has progressed a bit too far on this topic. Lloyd’s mom Maggie (a hilarious Nia Vardalos) says she would not only accept a gay son, she actively encourages it, as it would be “really cool” to have one. In fact, Maggie becomes so convinced that Lloyd himself is gay that she “outs” him to his entire high school. Like any good “helicopter mom,” who hovers over every aspect of her children’s lives, Maggie takes control of Lloyd’s social life, setting Lloyd up on dates with boys whom she has approved and filing for a gay student college scholarship. There’s just one wrench in her grand plans: Lloyd doesn’t even know whether he’s gay or not. Director Salomé Breziner, who added fresh touches and well-rounded characters to her previous coming-of-age comedy The Secret Life of Dorks (2013), breaks new ground in Helicopter Mom as well, depicting a mother who is willing to accept her son for who he is—or at least who she thinks he is. The film shows, in uproarious fashion, how an overabundance of understanding, however well-intentioned, can be almost as stifling as narrow-mindedness.

EGYPTIAN

EGYPTIAN

Director: Salomé Breziner

Producers: Salomé Breziner

Josh Cole

Salvador De La Fe

Stephen Israel

Screenwriter: Duke Tran

Cinematographer: Chris Squires

Editor: Richard Halsey

Music: Jeff Cardoni

Cast: Nia Vardalos

Jason Dolley

Mark Boone Junior

Scott Shilstone

Skyler Samuels

Running Time: 100 minutes

Presentation Format: DCP

Print Source: School Pictures

Selected Filmography: The Secret Lives of Dorks (2013)

Fast Sofa (2001)

An Occasional Hell (1996)

Tollbooth (1994)

Lifted (1988)

Hellion

USA 2014

FRIDAY MAY 30 9:45 PM PACIFIC PLACE

SATURDAY MAY 31 3:30 PM PACIFIC PLACE

Writer-director Kat Candler delivers a searing portrait of a fractured family, led by the stoic Hollis (Aaron Paul of “Breaking Bad”) as he attempts to rein in his oldest son, Jacob (Josh Wiggins, in his big-screen debut), following the tragic loss of the young boy’s mother. With no parental supervision, Jacob spins deeper and deeper into delinquency, eventually pulling his younger brother, Wes (Deke Gardner), into his criminal orbit. This leads to an intervention by Child Protective Services, who place Wes in the home of his Aunt Pam (Juliette Lewis). This serves as a stark wake-up call for both Hollis and Jacob, who must each begin to tame their personal demons in order to salvage what’s left of their once happy family. Based on her eponymous 2012 short film and shot against the industrial backdrop of southeastern Texas refineries, Candler’s treatment of a family in transition is a powerful dramatic work that explores the nature of loss and the healing power of forgiveness. With its superb cast and pounding heavy metal soundtrack, Hellion establishes Candler as a bold, unflinching filmmaker. It’s a story that is at once intimate and expansive, raw and authentic, and not soon forgotten.

Awards:

SXSW 2014 (Gamechanger Award Special Mention)

Director: Kat Candler

Producers: Kelly Williams

Jonathan Duffy

Screenwriter: Kat Candler

Cinematographer: Brett Pawlak

Editor: Alan Canant

Music: Curtis Heath

Cast: Aaron Paul Juliette Lewis

Josh Wiggins Deke Garner

Jonny Mars

Running Time: 98 minutes

Presentation Format: DCP

Print Source: Sundance Selects

Film Website: facebook.com/hellionfilm

Selected Filmography: Jumping Off Bridges (2006)

Cicadas (2000)

HISTORIA DEL MIEDO

History of Fear

TUESDAY JUNE 3 9:30 PM

THURSDAY JUNE 5 4:00 PM

Something’s amiss in a gated community outside of Buenos Aires. Burglar alarms are being tripped in Camilo’s uncle’s mansion, the abandoned land on the other side of the gate has begun to smolder, and Pola’s simple trip to a fast food restaurant takes a bizarre, unsettling turn. When a hole is discovered in the community’s fence, anxiety sets in and their fragile sense of safety begins to dissolve. Through a series of overlapping stories, History of Fear traverses both sides of this fence to explore the lives and anxieties of a series of recurring characters who feel their security threatened in a variety of ways. Intentionally isolated from the larger world, their dread begins to feed on itself. As their stories progress and merge, we begin to recognize their fears and identify with each character’s unease, while we are subtly invited to join them as their fear slowly turns to hysteria. Employing a crack team of editors and sound designers, debut director Benjamín Naishtat creates a stunning exercise in suspense that examines the destructive qualities of fear, and questions the very nature of fear itself.

SIFF CINEMA UPTOWN

SIFF CINEMA UPTOWN

Director: Benjamín Naishtat

Producers: Benjamín Doménech

Santiago Gallelli

Screenwriter: Benjamín Naishtat

Cinematographer: Soledad Rodríguez

Editors: Fernando Epstein

Andrés Quaranta

Music: Pedro Irusta

Cast: Jonathan Da Rosa

Claudia Cantero

Mirella Pascual

Claudia Cantero

Tatiana Giménez

Running Time: 79 minutes

Presentation Format: DCP, in Spanish, with English subtitles

International Sales: Visit Films

Print Source: Visit Films

Film Website: reicine.com.ar/portfolio/ historia-del-miedo

Selected Filmography: Debut Feature Film

Hotell

SWEDEN 2013

SATURDAY MAY 17 11:00 AM

HARVARD EXIT

MONDAY MAY 19 6:30 PM SIFF CINEMA UPTOWN

In times of crisis, who hasn’t wanted to be someone else? Cathartic oddball drama Hotell trades this universal sentiment with a guilty pleasure tale of a therapy group that starts its own unique course of treatment. Whipping up a sympathetic brew of humor, compassion, awkwardness, and devastation, Lisa Langseth draws intense and committed performances from a fine cast that includes Alicia Vikander (A Royal Affair). Young, affluent, and expecting her first child, Type A interior designer Erika thinks she has everything under control. But fate has something different in store and she just can’t cope with the changes. Unable to confront her own pain, Erika tries group therapy, where she distracts herself by listening to the problems of others. There she meets torture-obsessed Rikard (David Dencik), who has major mommy issues; pathologically timid Ann-Sofi; lonely, middle-aged Pernilla; and silent Peter. When the therapy group leader goes on vacation, the members decide to explore the notion of making a fresh start by going somewhere no one knows them—the well-appointed confines of anonymous hotels. Will the group find comfort in these swell surroundings or perhaps in each other?

Awards:

Guldbagge Awards 2014 (Best Supporting Actress) Marrakech International Film Festival 2013 (Best Actress)

Director:

Lisa Langseth

Producers:

Patrik Andersson

Frida Jonason

Screenwriter: Lisa Langseth

Cinematographer: Simon Pramsten

Editor:

Elin Pröjts

Music:

Johan Berthling

Andreas Söderström

Cast:

Alicia Vikander

David Dencik

Anna Bjelkerud

Mira Eklund

Henrik Norlén

Running Time: 97 minutes

Presentation Format: DCP, in Swedish, with English subtitles

International Sales: MK2

Print Source: MK2

Selected Filmography: Pure (2009)

House of Magic 3D

MONDAY MAY 26 11:00 AM SIFF CINEMA UPTOWN

SATURDAY JUNE 7 10:30 AM PACIFIC PLACE

SUNDAY JUNE 8 3:00 PM SIFF CINEMA UPTOWN

A retired magician’s troupe of animal friends band together to save his mansion from a realtor’s sales pitch. House of Magic opens with Thunder, an abandoned cat looking for shelter from a storm, who finds a dry space in a strange house full of automatons and gizmos. Initially rejected by the magician’s other snooty animals, the young cat wins the affection of the “The Illustrious Lorenzo” himself. When an accident lands Lorenzo in the hospital, his scheming nephew finds an opportunity to sell the mansion. Without Lorenzo at home, it is up to his furry friends to defeat the realtor’s plans by turning the house into a seemingly haunted mansion. Directors Ben Stassen and Jeremy Degruson have created a world full of imagination and overflowing with fabulous 3D set pieces. From an early montage of Lorenzo’s magic performances to a bravura finale against the realtor’s final desperate act, House of Magic gives thrills and laughter to anyone in its vicinity. Recommended for ages 6+ (contains comic violence)

Directors: Ben Stassen

Jeremy Degruson

Producers:

Nadia Khamlichi

Adrian Politowski

Ben Stassen

Caroline Van Iseghem

Gilles Waterkeyn

Screenwriters: James Flynn

Dominic Paris

Ben Stassen

Music: Ramin Djawadi

Running Time: 82 minutes

Presentation Format: 3D-DCP

International Sales: Studio Canal

Print Source: Studio Canal

Film Website: thehouseofmagic.nwave. com

Selected Filmography: Stassen:

African Safari (2013)

A Turtle’s Tale 2: Sammy’s Escape from Paradise (2012)

A Turtle’s Tale: Sammy’s Adventures (2010)

Fly Me to the Moon 3D (2008)

African Adventure: Safarie in the Okavango (2007)

Wild Safari 3D (2005)

S.O.S. Planet (2002)

How to Train Your Dragon 2

SATURDAY JUNE 7 6:30 PM

SUNDAY JUNE 8 10:30 AM

It’s been five years since Hiccup and Toothless successfully united dragons and Vikings on the island of Berk. While Astrid, Snotlout, and the rest of the gang are challenging each other to dragon races (the island’s new favorite contact sport), the now inseparable pair journey through the skies, charting unmapped territories and exploring new worlds. When one of their adventures leads to the discovery of a secret ice cave that is home to hundreds of new wild dragons and the mysterious Dragon Rider, the two friends find themselves at the center of a battle to protect the peace. Now, Hiccup and Toothless must unite to stand up for what they believe while recognizing that only together do they have the power to change the future of both men and dragons. Don’t miss the thrilling second chapter of the epic How to Train Your Dragon trilogy.

PACIFIC PLACE

PACIFIC PLACE

Director: Dean DeBlois

Producer: Bonnie Arnold

Screenwriter: Dean DeBlois based on a book by Cressida Cowell

Music:

John Powell

Voices: Kristen Wiig

Jay Baruchel

Gerard Butler

America Ferrera

Jonah Hill

Cate Blanchett

Running Time: 105 minutes

Presentation Format: 3D DCP

Print Source: 20th Century Fox

Film Website: howtotrainyourdragon.com

Selected Filmography: Go Quiet (2010)

How to Train Your Dragon (2010)

Heima (Doc, 2007)

Llilo & Stitch (2002)

IL CAPITALE UMANO

Human Capital

ITALY/FRANCE 2013

FRIDAY MAY 16 9:00 PM

SUNDAY MAY 18 10:30 AM

After a cyclist is driven off the road, Human Capital returns to the events that set the crime in motion. Returns again and again, in fact, unfolding as three chapters each following a different character from two disparate families involved, their various perspectives expanding our understanding of the circumstances, and of their tragic inevitability. Realtor Dino Ossola (Fabrizio Bentivoglio), nakedly desperate to climb the social ladder, sees the chance to move up a few rungs when his daughter Serena (Matilde Gioli) begins dating the son of hedge-fund manager Giovanni Bernaschi (Fabrizio Gifuni). Dino’s avaricious eyes can only see the Bernaschi’s monied lifestyle as a gleaming prize to chase by any means; darker shades behind the façade are limned as we follow Giovanni’s insecure wife Carla (Valeria Bruni Tedeschi). Serena, meanwhile, is revealed to be indifferent to her boyfriend’s wealth, and pursuing interests of her own. After a string of acclaimed comedies distinguished by his intuitive use of actors and bold, perceptive engagement with the political and economic crises wracking Italy, Paolo Virzí displays all his strengths even as he leaps genres, forsaking laughs for a murder mystery as beautiful and coldly foreboding as the winter landscape of its setting.

Awards: Tribeca Film Festival 2014 (Best Actress)

Director: Paolo Virzí

Producers: Fabrizio Donvito

Marco Cohen

Benedetto Habib

Screenwriters: Francesco Bruni

Francesco Piccolo

Paolo Virzí

based on the novel by Stephen Amidon

Cinematographer: Jérôme Alméras

Editor: Cecilia Zanuso

Music: Carlo Virzí

Cast: Fabrizio Bentivoglio

Valeria Bruni Tedeschi

Valeria Golino

Fabrizio Gifuni

Matilde Gioli

Running Time: 110 minutes

Presentation Format: DCP, in Italian, with English subtitles

International Sales: BAC Films

Print Source: Film Movement

Film Website: bacfilms.com/ international/film/52

Selected Filmography: Every Blessed Day (2012)

The First Beautiful Thing (2010)

A Whole Life Ahead (2008)

Napoleon and Me (2006)

Caterina in the Big City (2003)

My Name is Tanino (2002)

La Strana Coppia (Doc, 2001)

Kisses and Hugs (1999)

Hardboiled Egg (1997)

August Vacation (1995)

Living It Up (1994)

SIFF CINEMA UPTOWN

HARVARD EXIT

I Am Big Bird: The Caroll Spinney Story

USA 2014

SUNDAY MAY 25 1:30 PM

MONDAY MAY 26 4:30 PM

TUESDAY MAY 27 7:00 PM

“Big Bird is the most popular children’s character in the world and I think that’s largely due to Caroll.” (Jim Henson) Caroll Spinney has performed as Sesame Street’s Big Bird and Oscar the Grouch for over 40 years. Directors LaMattina and Frost (SIFF 2010 favorite Brownstones to Red Dirt) were bestowed with extraordinary access to Spinney’s home video archive that dates back to the 1950s, and they have masterfully crafted a reconstruction of a warm-hearted puppeteer who has imbued the puppets with his soul. The narrative carefully explores not just Spinney’s greatest successes, of which there are many, but also his deepest challenges, including Big Bird’s fall from popularity in the ‘90s and a shocking murder investigation on his property. Using current interviews with Spinney’s family and Sesame Street costars as well as never-before-seen home videos capturing intimate moments from his life and career, I Am Big Bird reveals the creation of characters that have influenced generations of children. And, as the yellow feathers give way to grey hair, it is the man, not the Muppet, who will teach us the greatest lesson of all—how to love unconditionally.

EGYPTIAN

HARVARD EXIT

PACIFIC PLACE

Directors: Dave LaMattina

Chad Walker

Producers: Dave LaMattina

Chad Walker

Clay Frost

Screenwriter: Dave LaMattina

Cinematographer: Chad Walker

Editor: Chad Walker

Music: Joshua Johnson

Featuring: Caroll Spinney

Debra Spinney

Frank Oz

Jerry Nelson

Bob McGrath

Running Time: 90 minutes

Presentation Format: DCP

International Sales: Preferred Content

Print Source: Copper Pot Pictures

Film Website: iambigbird.com

Selected Filmography: Brownstones to Red Dirt (Doc, 2010)

Ida

POLAND 2013

FRIDAY MAY 16 3:30 PM

WEDNESDAY MAY 21 7:00 PM

Shy Anna, raised in a Polish convent, is just about to take her vows as a Catholic nun, when she shockingly learns that her real name is Ida, and that she’s actually Jewish. Ida is reunited with her tough Aunt Wanda, a diehard socialist ex-state prosecutor who was banished to the provinces. Wanda is a boozing, jazz-loving cynic, and is both amused and saddened by her naïve niece. Together Wanda and Ida take a road trip to find out about their relatives and attempt to understand their history. Out one evening in a hotel bar with her aunt, Ida meets a handsome young saxophonist (Dawid Ogrodnik, Life Feels Good), and the possibilities of a life that Ida never considered begin to form in her mind. With Wanda’s influence, Ida moves towards a transformation. Set in the 1960s, themes of World War II serve as a backdrop to the meeting of the two women whose lives and fates were touched by war. Polish born director Pawlikowski, whose family immigrated to England in his teens, likes to get under the skin of his characters. Stripped down to the bare minimum and shot in black-and-white, Pawlikowski’s style in Ida is a definitive tribute to Eastern/Central European film masters.

Awards:

Polish Film Festival 2014 (Best Film, Director, Actress, Editing)

Gdynia Film Festival 2013 (Grand Prize, Best Actress, Cinematography)

Toronto International Film Festival 2013 (FIPRESCI Award)

London Film Festival 2013 (Best Film)

Warsaw Film Festival 2013 (Grand Prize)

Gijón Film Festival 2013 (Best Film, Actress, Screenplay)

Sarasota Film Festival 2014 (Grand Jury)

Director: Pawel Pawlikowski

Producers:

Ewa Puszczyńska

Eric Abraham

Christian Falkenberg Husum

Piotr Dzięcioł

Screenwriter: Pawel Pawlikowski

Cinematographers: Łukasz Żal

Ryszard Lenczewski

Editor: Jarosław Kamiński

Music: Krystian Selin Eidnes Andersen

Cast:

Agata Kulesza

Agata Trzebuchowska

Joanna Kulig

Adam Szyszkowski

Jerzy Trela

Dawid Ogrodnik

Running Time: 80 minutes

Presentation Format: DCP, in Polish, with English subtitles

International Sales: Fandango Portobello

Print Source: Music Box Films

Film Website: musicboxfilms.com/ida

Selected Filmography: The Woman in the Fifth (2011)

My Summer of Love (2004)

Last Resort (2000)

Tripping with Zhirinovsky (Doc, 1994)

Serbian Epics (Doc, 1992)

Dostoevsky’s Travels (Doc, 1991)

From Moscow to Pietushki (Doc, 1990)

Extraordinary Adventures (Doc, 1989)

Vaclav Havel (Doc, 1988)

Lucifer Over Lancashire (Doc, 1987)

SIFF CINEMA UPTOWN

HARVARD EXIT

Ignasi M.

SPAIN 2013

THURSDAY MAY 22 6:30 PM

SIFF CINEMA UPTOWN

SATURDAY MAY 24 11:00 AM PACIFIC PLACE

Both larger-than-life and utterly down to earth, museum expert Ignasi Millet is introduced showing off his comically vast arsenal of prescription drugs. In a series of sparkling, rapid-fire conversations with close friends and immediate family, he examines his relationship with his parents—both of them renowned painters—his fatherhood, his fluidly gay identity, and his 14-year relationship with the mother of his two grown sons. He shares his provocative thoughts on art, religion, sex, Catalan independence, and much more, all intercut with playful footage of Ignasi trying on clothes and shopping for sex toys, as well as a matter-of-fact visit to an HIV clinic. Directed by the renowned Catalan filmmaker Ventura Pons (A Thousand Fools, Anita Takes a Chance), Ignasi M. is a window into the heart, mind, and psyche of a refreshingly fearless and thoughtful character—a bubbling source of wisdom, humor, and self-acceptance with a clear-eyed and joyful approach to life.

Director: Ventura Pons

Producer: Ventura Pons

Screenwriter: Ventura Pons

Cinematographer: Andalu Vila San Juan

Editor: Marc Matons

Featuring: Ignasi Millet

Running Time: 85 minutes

Presentation Format: DCP, in Catalan and Spanish, with English subtitles

International Sales: Latido Films

Print Source: Latido Films

Film Website: venturapons.cat

Selected Filmography: Year of Grace (2011)

A Thousand Fools (2011)

Drifting (2010)

Forasters (2008)

Barcelona (a Map) (2007)

Life on the Edge (2006)

Wounded Animals (2006)

Idiot Love (2005)

El Gran Gato (2003)

Food of Love (2002)

Anita Takes a Chance (2001)

Beloved/Friend (2000)

To Die (or Not) (2000)

Caresses (1998)

Actrius (1997)

What’s It All About? (1995)

Que te Juegas, Mari Pill? (1991)

Puta Miseria! (1989)

La Rossa Del Bar (1986)

El Vicario de Olot (1981)

Ocana, an Intermittent Portrait (1978)

In Order of Disappearance

NORWAY 2014

SUNDAY MAY 18 1:30 PM

WEDNESDAY MAY 21 9:15 AM

THURSDAY MAY 29 7:00 PM

Dirty Harry meets Fargo in this dark Norwegian crime comedy. Swedish émigré Nils drives a snowplow, endlessly clearing the roads in a remote, northern winter paradise. Life is good, and he’s just been presented with the town’s “Citizen of the Year” award when he receives news that his son has died from an apparent heroin overdose. Disbelieving the official report, Nils soon uncovers evidence of the young man’s murder—a victim in a turf war between the local crime boss, known as “The Count,” and his Serbian rivals. Armed with heavy machinery and a good dose of beginner’s luck, Nils embarks upon a quest for revenge that soon escalates into a fullblown underworld gang war, with the body count spiraling ever higher and higher. As Nils, Stellan Skarsgård gives a wonderfully nuanced comic performance while director Hans Petter Moland delivers a ruthlessly hilarious film with an uncompromising mixture of violent thrills and volatile laughs.

EGYPTIAN

EGYPTIAN

LINCOLN SQUARE

Director: Hans Petter Moland

Producers: Stein B. Kvae

Finn Gjerdrum

Screenwriter: Kim Fupz Aakeson

Cinematographer: Philip Øgaard

Editor: Jens Christian Fodstad

Music: Kaspar Kaae

Kåre Vestrheim

Brian Batz

Cast: Stellan Skarsgård

Bruno Ganz

Pål Sverre Hagen

Birgitte Hjort Sørensen

Jakob Oftebro

Running Time: 116 minutes

Presentation Format: DCP, in Norwegian and Swedish, with English subtitles

International Sales: Norwegian Film Institute

Print Source: Norwegian Film Institute

Film Website: nfi.no/english

Selected Filmography: When Bubbles Burst (Doc, 2013)

A Somewhat Gentle Man (2011)

Comrade Pedersen (2006)

The Beautiful Country (2004)

United We Stand (2002) Aberdeen (2000)

Zero Kelvin (1995)

The Last Lieutenant (1993)

The Internet’s Own Boy

SATURDAY MAY 31 3:00 PM

SUNDAY JUNE 1 5:00 PM

An inspiring story of the life and work of internet prodigy and activist Aaron Swartz, an infuriating story of his persecution by the U.S. government, and a heartbreaking story of his suicide at the age of 26. The Internet’s Own Boy is all three and more. Director Brian Knappenberger interviews Swartz’s family, friends, girlfriends, and colleagues to trace the key moments in Swartz’s career: his emergence on the technology scene at the age of 13; his building of the infrastructure for alternative-copyright platform Creative Commons; his involvement in the development of the web feed format RSS; his co-founding of Reddit. Ultimately, his commitment to the cause of open sourcing led him to download nearly four million academic articles from the online service JSTOR. Already under FBI surveillance, Swartz was subsequently arrested and prosecuted under the Computer Fraud and Abuse Act, charged with multiple felonies, and faced the possibility of a million-dollar fine and a 50-year prison term. A must see for anyone invested in the future of the freedom of information on the Internet.

Director: Brian Knappenberger

Producer: Brian Knappenberger

Screenwriter: Brian Knappenberger

Cinematographers: Lincoln Else

Brian Knappenberger Scott Sinkler

Editors: Bryan Storkel

Michelle M.Witten

Jason Decker

Andy Robertson

Brian Knappenberger

Music: John Dragonetti

Running Time: 105 minutes

Presentation Format: DCP

Print Source: Film Buff

Film Website: aaronswartzthedocumentary.com

Selected Filmography: We Are Legion: The Story of the Hacktivists (Doc, 2012)

Life After War (Doc, 2003) Into the Body (Doc, 2001)

Intramural

FRIDAY JUNE 6 9:00 PM

SATURDAY JUNE 7 4:15 PM

The team is down by six with two seconds to play. Can the quarterback find the courage to battle his demons, humiliate the preppy bullies on campus, win back the heart of his estranged girlfriend, and steal a championship for his recently deceased coach? If you’ve seen any teen sports movies from the ’80s, of course you know the answer—and so does Andrew Disney, director of Intramural, a hilarious satire of every sports-underdog cliché in cinema history. The film starts with Caleb (Jake Lacy, “The Office”) and a group of misfits playing intramural college football in an almost empty stadium. Caleb wins the game with a trick play, but, as a result, his best friend Grant (Nick Kocher) is paralyzed. Skip to four years later and Caleb, a fifth-year senior stuck in a loveless relationship with the spoiled Vicky (Kate McKinnon from “Saturday Night Live”), has given up football to prepare reluctantly for law school. When he meets up with one of his former players, Caleb knows he must get the old ragtag team back together to avenge Grant, vanquish his muscle-headed nemesis, Dick (Beck Bennett, also from “SNL”), and impress the nerdy-hot-but-doesn’t-know-it dream girl, Meredith (Nikki Reed, The Twilight Saga). Filled with uproarious performances by improv comics, absurd motivational speeches, and lots of tube socks, Intramural knows what it means to have the “Eye of the Tiger.”

Director: Andrew Disney

Producers: Russell Wayne Groves

Andrew Lee

David James Ward

Red Sanders

Tucker Moore

Screenwriter: Bradley Jackson

Cinematographer: Jeffrey Waldron

Editor: Kody Gibson

Music: Alice Wood

Cast: Jake Lacy

Nikki Reed

Kate McKinnon

Beck Bennett

Nick Kocher

Running Time: 100 minutes

Presentation Format:

DCP

Print Source: Ralph Smyth

Entertainment

Film Website: intramuralthemovie.com

Selected Filmography: Searching for Sonny (2012)

SIFF CINEMA UPTOWN

HARVARD EXIT

KIRKLAND PC

HARVARD EXIT

JO NAN-JA-DEUL

Intruders

SOUTH KOREA 2013

THURSDAY MAY 29 9:30 PM

PACIFIC PLACE

WEDNESDAY JUNE 4 9:30 PM EGYPTIAN

With his follow up to Daytime Drinking (SIFF 2009), director Noh Young-seok crafts a quirky mishmash of absurdist comedy and slowburn mystery-thriller. Screenwriter Sang-jin needs a quiet place to work past his writer’s block and put the final touches on his latest script. His producer offers his family’s mountaintop bed and breakfast. With the lodge closed for winter, Sang-jin believes he has found the perfect spot, free from distractions. However, his solitude is short-lived as one unexpected guest after another arrives at his doorstep, including his police officer brother, two hostile poachers, a group of party-hungry skiers, and a murdered body. Now with the snow falling hard and the telephones dead, Sang-jin’s secluded getaway becomes a darkly farcical ordeal. Imagine if Jim Jarmusch and Agatha Christie collaborating on a version of The Shining, the resulting film would be Intruders—a comedy of errors where every misstep slowly builds menace until tensions reach an apocalyptic boiling point.

Awards:

Hawaii International Film Festival 2013 (Best Narrative Feature)

Director: Noh Young-seok

Producer: Choi Sun-hee

Screenwriter: Noh Young-seok

Cinematographer: Park Jae-in

Editor: Park Soo-dan

Music:

Noh Young-seok

Cast: Jun Suk-ho

Oh Tae-kyung

Running Time: 99 minutes

Presentation Format:

DCP, in Korean, with English subtitles

International Sales: Finecut Co.

Print Source: Finecut Co.

Selected Filmography: Daytime Drinking (2008)

I Origins

USA 2014

SATURDAY MAY 24 6:00 PM SIFF CINEMA UPTOWN MONDAY MAY 26 9:15 PM EGYPTIAN

For Dr. Ian Gray (Michael Pitt), the human eye holds fascinations unrelated to romantic fancies or religious platitudes. As he and his lab assistant Karen (Brit Marling) chart the development of an organ so perfectly specialized it’s repeatedly cited as proof of an intelligent designer, Gray has no interest in a window to the soul; he’s hoping to pry open a window upon evolution, and deliver a crushing blow against those who insist upon claims of God’s handiwork. His secular outlook stands firm even after a series of improbable coincidences lead him to a beautiful woman named Sofi (Astrid Bergès-Frisbey), so airy and spiritual in contrast to his methodical rationalism that anyone would be forgiven calling them soulmates. When their relationship is abruptly foreshortened, Gray returns to his work with renewed vigor. But his research leads to a startling, supposedly impossible discovery, sending the scientist on a quest that will circle the planet and challenge his every belief. In his follow-up to Another Earth, Mike Cahill has crafted another thought-provoking, boldly emotional exploration of the science fiction genre, earning him his second Alfred P. Sloan Prize—given to exemplary films that focus on science or technology—at the Sundance Film Festival.

Awards: Sundance Film Festival 2014 (Alfred P. Sloan Feature Prize)

Director: Mike Cahill

Producers: Mike Cahill

Alex Orlovsky

Hunter Gray

Screenwriter: Mike Cahill

Cinematographer: Markus Förderer

Editor: Mike Cahill

Music: Will Bates

Phil Mossman

Cast: Michael Pitt

Brit Marling

Astrid Bergès-Frisbey

Steven Yeun

Archie Panjabi

Running Time: 113 minutes

Presentation Format: DCP

Print Source: Fox Searchlight

Film Website: facebook.com/IOriginsMovie

Selected Filmography: Another Earth (2011) Boxers and Ballerinas (Doc, 2004)

It’s Only Make Believe

MONDAY MAY 26 8:30 PM

THURSDAY JUNE 5 9:30 PM

FRIDAY JUNE 6 1:30 PM

Jenny (Silje Salomonsen) and Frank (Fredrik Hana) are young and in love—so much so that when Jenny reveals she’s pregnant, Frank is unfazed, and even proposes marriage under a lavender sunset. Unfortunately, these pledges are given just before the couple attempts to steal drugs from a greenhouse. The burglary quickly goes awry, leaving one person dead, another crippled for life, and Jenny doing 10 years for murder. Her child, Merete (Iben Østin Hjelle), is born while Jenny is in prison and is subsequently raised by foster parents. Upon Jenny’s release, she tries her best to reconcile with Merete and lead a normal life on the outside, also seeing a glimmer of hope in sweet Gary (Tomas Alf Larsen), an old schoolmate and loan officer who still harbors a crush on her. But old habits die hard, and before long, various unsavory characters come sniffing around to settle old scores, forcing Jenny to go to extremes to make sure her daughter remains unharmed. Led by Salomonsen’s astonishing performance, a mixture of naïveté and steely resolve, Arild Østin Ommundsen’s nail-biting thriller shows how mistakes from the past can haunt one’s future and test the resilience of the bonds between mother and daughter.

Awards: Amanda Awards Norway 2013 (Best Cinematography)

RENTON IKEA PAC

PACIFIC PLACE

Director: Arild Østin Ommundsen

Producers: Arild Østin Ommundsen

Gary Cranner

Screenwriter: Arild Østin Ommundsen

Cinematographer: Arild Østin Ommundsen

Editor: Arild Østin Ommundsen

Music: Thomas Dybdahi

Cast: Silje Salomonsen

Iben Østin Hjelle

Vegar Hoel

Tomas Alf Larsen

Fredrik S. Hana

Running Time: 91 minutes

Presentation Format: DCP, in Norwegian, with English subtitles

Print Source: Chezville

Film Website: www.facebook.com/ arildseventyrland

Selected Filmography: Twigson in Trouble (2011) Rat Nights (2009) Monsterthursday (2004) Mongoland (2000)

Ivory Tower USA 2014

SUNDAY JUNE 1 1:15 PM PACIFIC PLACE

MONDAY JUNE 2 7:00 PM PACIFIC PLACE

Though still humming with students, faculty, and activity, college campuses across the country have entered a new era of seismic challenges. With curiosity and compassion, filmmaker Andrew Rossi captures the fundamental shift in the world of higher education in this documentary—focusing on the biggest question currently facing students and their parents: Just how much money is a college education worth? With student loan debt reaching staggering heights (one trillion dollars and counting), college tuition has increased more than any other goods or service in the U.S. since 1978. And it doesn’t seem to be slowing down. Through an array of insightful interviews with students, teachers, and experts from the hallowed halls of Harvard to New York’s Cooper Union, from Arizona State University to the alternative Deep Springs College in California, Rossi probes this present conundrum along with possible solutions for the future. He also puts a face to the problem—following current and recently graduated students as they navigate financial ups and downs and deal with the reality of their newly incurred debt. Exploring everything from “hacking” an education with the Uncollege Program to utilizing MOOCs (Massive Open Online Courses) for free, global learning, Ivory Tower leaves no stone unturned as it fervently searches for answers. Though it delivers a startling reality, Rossi’s documentary also does provide hope that a new revolution in the fight for affordable higher education has begun.

Director:

Andrew Rossi

Producers: Andrew Rossi

Josh Braun

Cinematographers: Andrew Rossi

Bryan Sarkinen

Andrew Coffman

Editors:

Chad Beck

Christopher Branca

Andrew Coffman

Music: Ian Hultquist

Running Time: 97 minutes

Presentation Format:

DCP

Print Source: Samuel Goldwyn Films

Selected Filmography:

Page One: Inside the New York Times (Doc, 2011)

Le Cirque: A Table in Heaven (Doc, 2007)

Eat This New York (Doc, 2004)

SIFF CINEMA UPTOWN

J’accuse

FRANCE 1919

SATURDAY MAY 24 11:00 AM

Following the horrific events of WWI, French filmmaker Abel Gance created one of the great works of pacifist art. At its core, J’accuse tells of a small village love triangle: Edith is unhappily married to much-older François, and is drawn into an affair with the local poet, Jean Diaz. When war breaks out with Germany, both François and Jean enlist while Edith is sent to live with François’ parents in Lorraine. The two men find themselves serving together in the same frontline unit, developing a friendship despite their romantic rivalry. However, as the war progresses, Jean is discharged due to ill health and returns home where he once again meets Edith—now the mother of a half-German daughter conceived by rape. But when François comes home on leave, Edith and Jean conspire to hide the child from him, leading to drastic consequences. Gance served briefly in the army early in the war, and returned to active service near the conflict’s conclusion to shoot scenes on real battlefields. J’accuse culminates in one of the most haunting and powerful climactic sequences in cinema history.

SIFF CINEMA UPTOWN

Director:

Abel Gance

Producer:

Charles Pathé

Screenwriter:

Abel Gance

Cinematographers: Marc Bujard

Léonce-Henri Burel

Maurice Forster

Editors:

Andrée Danis

Abel Gance

Music:

Robert Israel

Cast: Séverin Mars

Romuald Joubé

Maryse Dauvray

Maxime Desjardins

Angèle Guys

Running Time: 165 minutes

Presentation Format: DCP, in French, with English subtitles

Print Source: Lobster Films

Film Website: lobsterfilms.com

Selected Filmography: Bonaparte et la Révolution (1972)

Cyrano et d’Artagnan (1964)

The Battle of Austerlitz (1960)

Magirama (1956)

The Tower of Nesle (1954)

Le Capitaine Fracasse (1943)

The Life and Loves of Beethoven (1936)

Vénus Aveugle (1941)

Four Flights to Love (1940)

Louise (1939)

Napoleon (1927)

CÂINELE JAPONEZ

The Japanese Dog

ROMANIA 2013

MONDAY MAY 26 8:30 PM

PACIFIC PLACE

WEDNESDAY MAY 28 4:30 PM LINCOLN SQUARE

THURSDAY MAY 29 4:00 PM HARVARD EXIT

Tudor Cristian Jurgiu’s impressive directorial debut centers on Costache (Victor Rebengiuc), who has been devastated since losing his wife and most of his home in the 2010 flood that ravaged northeast Romania. This understated telling is a sad but sweet story of reunion between a father and son who’ve been scarred in different ways. Now living in an abandoned farmhouse, Costache scavenges through the ruins of his neighborhood after the flood. While his neighbors offer help, he thinks he can take care of himself. Costache has a son named Ticu living somewhere in Asia, but he does not contact him. Eventually, Ticu arrives with a Japanese wife and a sevenyear-old son of his own. Costache is resistant and perplexed by his son’s invasion. As the two attempt to overcome their difficult past, Jurgiu directs the action with minimal clutter and simple environments. He explores huge central human themes of family structures in a globalized world, and the intensity of overcoming cultural differences. Most importantly, The Japanese Dog examines how those scattered across the world can find their way back to one another.

Awards:

Warsaw International Film Festival 2013 (Competition Award) Vilnius Film Festival 2014 (Best Film)

Director: Tudor Cristian Jurgiu

Producers: Tudor Cristian Giurgiu

Bogdan Craciun

Screenwriters: Ion Antoci

Gabriel Gheorghe

Tudor Cristian Jurgiu

Cinematographer: Andrei Butica

Editor: Dragos Apetri

Music:

Vlad Voinescu

Flip Muresan

Cast:

Victor Rebengiuc

Serban Pavlu

Laurentiu Lazar

Kana Hashimoto

Toma Hashimoto

Running Time: 85 minutes

Presentation Format: DCP, in Romanian, with English subtitles

International Sales: m-appeal

Print Source: m-appeal

Film Website: cainelejaponez.ro

Selected Filmography: Debut Feature Film

The Wheel (1922)

Tenth Symphony (1918)

Sorrowful Mother (1917)

LA JALOUSIE

Jealousy

FRANCE 2013

MONDAY MAY 26 11:00 AM PACIFIC PLACE

TUESDAY MAY 27 9:30 PM PACIFIC PLACE

In Philippe Garrel’s latest flim, Louis (played by the director’s son, Louis Garrel) is an actor who has separated from his wife, Clothilde (Rebecca Convenant), and only sees his eight-year-old daughter, Charlotte (Olga Milshtein), on weekends. But he has found a new, passionate love with his mistress, a volatile actress named Claudia (Anna Mouglalis). Divided into two chapters, the film starts with the relatively comfortable domestic rapport of Louis and Claudia. Even a skeptical Charlotte is won over by Claudia’s childlike whimsy. In the second chapter, the seeds of jealousy that were planted earlier begin to sprout, cracking the façade. Clothilde, resentful of her ex’s happiness, starts probing Charlotte for clues about their relationship. Claudia, who can’t (or won’t) find work, feels trapped in Louis’ tiny artist’s garret. Meanwhile, Louis is emasculated when a successful male friend of Claudia’s offers her a larger apartment. Philippe Garrel, the son of famous French actor Maurice Garrel— borrowing many tragic episodes from his real family history—slowly brings this simmering jealousy to a boil, with explosive consequences. Comparisons to the French New Wave films are unmistakable, thanks to the luscious black-andwhite cinematography of Willy Kurant, who shot Godard’s Masculin Féminin in 1966. Jealousy is an absorbing, melancholy treatise on the fragility of happiness and the slow, corrosive effects of distrust and secrecy on family life.

Jimi: All Is By My Side

UNITED KINGDOM/IRELAND 2013

THURSDAY MAY 15 7:00 PM

Director: Philippe Garrel

Producer: Saïd Ben Saïd

Screenwriters:

Marc Cholodenko

Caroline Deruas-Garrel

Philippe Garrel

Arlette Langmann

Cinematographer: Willy Kurant

Editor:

Yann Dedet

Music:

Jean-Louis Aubert

Cast: Louis Garrel

Anna Mouglalis

Rebecca Convenant

Olga Milshtein

Esther Garrel

Running Time: 77 minutes

Presentation Format: DCP, in French, with English subtitles

International Sales: Wild Bunch

Print Source: Distrib Films

Film Website: unifrance.org/movie/ 36211/la-jalousie

Selected Filmography: That Summer (2001)

Frontier of Dawn (2008)

Everyday Lovers (2004)

Wild Innocence (2001)

The Wind of the Night (1999)

The Phantom Heart (1995)

The Birth of Love (1993)

I Can No Longer Hear the Guitar (1991)

Emergency Kisses (1989)

Liberté, la Nuit (1983)

L’Enfant Secret (1979)

Inner Scar (1972)

It’s Jimi Hendrix before he was Jimi Hendrix. Outkast’s André Benjamin gives a magnetic, nuanced performance in this biopic about the rock legend on the verge of making it big and the women who helped him get there. Featuring an insightful script from John Ridley (Academy Award®-winning screenwriter of 12 Years A Slave), Jimi: All Is By My Side looks at the early, momentous years in the life of the legendary guitarist. It’s 1966, and James Hendrix is still an unknown backup guitarist in New York. Linda Keith (Imogen Poots, Filth)—girlfriend to the Rolling Stones’ Keith Richards—happens to catch a set he’s playing and, mesmerized by his skills, brings Hendrix into her inner circle. Now in England, Hendrix hopes that London will be the gateway to success in America. Before long, however, he finds himself caught between Linda’s protective grasp and the charms of a new admirer, Kathy Etchingham (Hayley Atwell, Captain America). With Kathy by his side, Jimi, as he is now known, navigates the city’s music scene and begins making his mark in the world of rock ‘n’ roll. Ridley, who also produced and directed this passion project, has crafted a daring, wholly original interpretation of an artist’s origins, perfectly blending his story with archival footage of the era. It’s the wildly charismatic Benjamin, though, that acts as the beating heart of Jimi: All Is By My Side, brilliantly distilling the essence of the man before anyone knew who he was.

MCCAW HALL

Director:

John Ridley

Producers: Sean McKittrick

Jeff Culotta

Danny Bramson

Brandon Freeman

Anthony Burns

Tristen Orpen Lynch

Nigel Thomas

Screenwriter: John Ridley

Cinematographer: Tim Fleming

Editors: Hank Corwin

Chris Gill

Music:

Danny Bramson

Waddy Wachtel

Cast:

André Benjamin

Hayley Atwell

Imogen Poots

Ruth Negga

Adrian Lester

Running Time: 118 minutes

Presentation Format:

DCP

Print Source: Open Road/XLrator

Film Website: darko.com/ film_allisbymyside

Selected Filmography: Cold Around the Heart (1997)

The Keeper of Lost Causes

DENMARK/GERMANY/SWEDEN

THURSDAY MAY 22 7:00 PM

SATURDAY MAY 24 9:30 PM

SUNDAY MAY 25 9:30 PM

Nordic noir at its stealthy, sexy best. Bestselling Danish crime writer Jussi Adler-Olsen is a favorite among those who enjoyed Stieg Larsson’s Millennium trilogy. Directed by Mikkel Nørgaard (Klown, SIFF 2012), The Keeper of Lost Causes kicks off a series of adaptations centering on hardboiled chief detective Carl Mørck. Following a shootout that left one of his partners dead and the other paralyzed, Mørck is assigned to the newly established Department Q, a repository for cold cases. The department consists only of himself and his new assistant Assad. Although they receive explicit orders to restrict themselves to filing the cases, Mørck’s stubborn nature throws them headlong into the mystery of politician Merete Lynggaard’s disappearance from a passenger ferry. The only witness is her brain-damaged brother. The case was put to rest as an apparent suicide. Unconvinced by this explanation, Mørck and Assad set off on a journey that takes them deep into the undercurrents of abuse and malice that lurk beneath the polished surface of Scandinavia.

Awards: Bodil Awards 2014, Denmark (Henning Bahs Award)

LINCOLN SQUARE

Director: Mikkel Nørgaard

Producers:

Louise Vesth

Peter Aalbaek Jensen

Jonas Bagger

Madeleine Ekman

Maria Köpf

Screenwriter: Nikolaj Arcel

Cinematographer: Eric Kress

Editors: Morten Egholm

Martin Schade

Music: Hans Moller

Cast:

Nikolaj Lie Kaas

Fares Fares

Sonja Richter

Mikkel Boe Følsgaard

Søren Pilmark

Running Time: 97 minutes

Presentation Format: DCP, in Danish, with English subtitles

International Sales: TrustNordisk

Print Source: Danish Film Institute

Film Website: trustnordisk.com

Selected Filmography: Klown (2010)

Keep On Keepin’ On USA 2014

WEDNESDAY JUNE 4 7:00 PM

FRIDAY JUNE 6 4:00 PM

Even among the living legends of jazz, Clark Terry’s star shines extraordinarily bright. The trumpeter, who played in both the Count Basie and Duke Ellington orchestras before striking out on his own, has built up one of the music’s most extensive and celebrated discographies. But perhaps his greatest legacy began when he offered lessons to 15-year-old Quincy Jones, meeting in the early morning before Jones headed off to school and Terry, after a night of playing, retired to bed. Since then, Terry has devoted much of his time to music education, mentoring young players with a generous encouragement that’s of a piece with the warm, expansive tone he coaxes from his instrument. Keep On Keepin’ On is a portrait of the relationship with one of his most recent students, pianist Justin Kauflin, blind since the sixth grade. Bracingly intimate and humane whether recording late-night rap sessions or chronicling Terry’s health problems, the film avoids the easy cliché of playing up the unlikely nature of such a pair. Here, the triumph is that nothing strange is seen at all in a nonagenarian raconteur and a shyly giggling 23-year-old cleaving together so thoroughly over a love of music, and each other.

Awards: Tribeca Film Festival 2014 (Best New Director)

SIFF CINEMA UPTOWN

SIFF CINEMA UPTOWN

Director: Alan Hicks

Producers: Paula DuPre’ Pesmen

Quincy Jones

Screenwriters: Alan Hicks

Davis Coombe

Cinematographer: Adam Hart

Editor: Davis Coombe

Music: Justin Kauflin

Dave Grusin

Featuring: Clark Terry

Justin Kauflin

Quincy Jones

Gwen Terry

Herbie Hancock

Running Time: 84 minutes

Presentation Format: DCP

International Sales: Submarine Entertainment

Print Source: Absolute Clay Productions, LLC

Film Website: keeponkeepinon.com

Selected Filmography: Debut Feature Film

EGYPTIAN

EGYPTIAN KVINDEN

Kinderwald

USA 2013

THURSDAY MAY 29 9:30 PM

SIFF CINEMA UPTOWN

FRIDAY MAY 30 4:00 PM SIFF CINEMA UPTOWN

Set in the rugged wilderness of mid-19th-century Pennsylvania, Lise Raven’s mysterious second feature is an entrancing examination of a pioneer community as they cope with the disappearance of two children. John Linden (Frank Brückner) is a recent immigrant who scrapes out a meager living for his family shoveling coal at a rural mill. Bound by duty following his brother’s death, John has taken his brother’s widow, Flora (Emily Behr), into his home, along with her two sons, Caspar and Georgie (Leopold and Ludwig Pasternak). When the young boys disappear into the forest without a trace, it throws the entire village into tumult. As the settlers band together to search for the missing children, both allegiances and suspicions are formed, setting into motion a series of events that will ultimately test the faith of the entire community. Drawing comparisons to the early films of Peter Weir, especially Picnic at Hanging Rock, Raven’s hauntingly beautiful and enigmatic Kinderwald examines an early immigrant community as they deal with the inexplicable disappearance of two of their own. Featuring gorgeous, naturalistic cinematography by William DeJessa and a moody score, Kinderwald is a beautiful puzzle of a film.

Director: Lise Raven

Producers: Lise Raven

Stephanie Ayanian

Alexandra Navratil

Screenwriters: Lise Raven

Frank Brückner

Cinematographer: William DeJessa

Editor: Elyssa Cusimano

Music: Moby

Syntonic Research Inc.

Cast:

Emily Behr

Frank Brückner

Max Cove

Leopold Fischer

Pasternak

Ludwig Fischer Pasternak

Running Time: 87 minutes

Presentation Format:

DCP, in German and English, with English

subtitles

Print Source: Kinderwald Film

Film Website: kinderwaldfilm.com

Selected Filmography: Low (1995)

Kumiko, the Treasure Hunter

USA/JAPAN 2014

SUNDAY JUNE 1 7:00 PM

MONDAY JUNE 2 4:00 PM

As any Coen Brothers fan can attest, the ending of the 1996 masterpiece Fargo is devilishly enigmatic, with the stolen money lost forever in the endless snows of the Northern Plains. To some, it’s a sardonic ending; to others, it’s the start of an adventure. One lonely woman on the other side of the world becomes convinced that the story is real and that the buried loot is still there for the taking. Based on an urban legend about the Coen Brothers film, Kumiko, the Treasure Hunter, follows the obsessive quest of Kumiko (Rinko Kikuchi), a shy Tokyo office worker who tires of running demeaning errands for her boss and enduring her mother’s nags about finding a man. To escape, she watches a worn copy of Fargo on a VHS tape every night and begins to lose her grip on reality. With little more than a crude map and a pilfered office credit card, Kumiko sets off for America in a deluded haze. Along the way, she meets her share of wellmeaning, misguided Midwesterners, including one who seeks a translator at a Chinese restaurant. The writer/director team of brothers David and Nathan Zellner are no Coen stand-ins, however—they stay true to their own gently absurdist vision throughout. With a mixture of pathos, eccentricity, and deadpan humor, Kumiko is a tribute to the strange power of film in a new film that’s equally charming and haunting.

Awards: Sundance Film Festival 2014 (Special Jury Prize for Music Score)

EGYPTIAN

EGYPTIAN

Director: David Zellner

Producers:

Nathan Zellner

Chris Ohlson

Cameron Lamb

Andrew Banks

Jim Burke

Screenwriters: David Zellner

Nathan Zellner

Cinematographer:

Sean Porter

Editor:

Melba Jodorowsky

Music: The Octopus Project

Cast: Rinko Kikuchi

Nobuyuki Katsube

Shirley Venard

David Zellner

Nathan Zellner

Running Time: 104 minutes

Presentation Format: DCP, in English and Japanese, with English

subtitles

International Sales: KMI

Print Source: Zellner Bros

Film Website: kumikothetreasurehunter.

com

Selected Filmography: Kid-Thing (2012) Goliath (2008)

Lady Be Good; Instrumental Women In Jazz

SUNDAY JUNE 1 5:30 PM

MONDAY JUNE 2 4:00 PM

The International Sweethearts of Rhythm. The Syncoettes. Carol Kaye. The substantial contributions of women to Jazz music have been largely ignored by history, but their significant role is one that can no longer be denied. Lady Be Good reveals the lost stories of female jazz musicians from the early 1920s to the 1970s. Narrated by musician-composer Patrice Rushen, the film charts the influence of female players from the struggles and successes of early innovators (Sweet Emma Barrett, Lil Hardin-Armstrong), through the rise of the all-woman big bands (Ina Ray Hutton & Her Melodears, the Hollywood Redheads), to the female musicians that were instrumental players (Dorothy Donegan, Mary Osborne) and arrangers (Mary Lou Williams, Melba Liston) for more famous male bandleaders, including Benny Goodman and Quincy Jones. Unfolding over nine parts, director Kay D. Ray’s debut film weaves provocative and often humorous interviews with female musicians, big band leaders, jazz authors, and historians throughout a film stuffed end-to-end with archival photos, recordings, and performance footage to create a documentary that restores an essential part of our musical history.

PRECEDED BY:

Flor de Toloache

USA 2013, 4 minutes, Director: Jenny Schweitzer

A group of women daringly challenge gender social norms as an all-female mariachi band.

La Mia Classe

ITALY 2013 NORTH AMERICAN PREMIERE

SATURDAY JUNE 7 8:30 PM

Director: Kay D. Ray

Producer: Kay D. Ray

Screenwriter: Kay D. Ray

Cinematographers: Erich Volkstorf

Bruce Hutson

Mark Hubatsek

Editors: Catherine Wadley

Jill Friedberg

Narrated by: Patrice Rushen

Running Time: 80 minutes

Presentation Format: HDCAM

Print Source: Kay D. Ray Productions

Film Website: kaydray.com

Selected Filmography: Debut Feature Film

SIFF CINEMA UPTOWN

SUNDAY JUNE 8 4:30 PM HARVARD EXIT

A teacher, Attanasio (celebrated Italian actor Valerio Mastandrea), walks in slow motion through a darkened, deserted school at the start of Daniele Gaglianone’s latest feature, La Mia Classe. But this is no typical schoolroom drama. Attanasio teaches Italian to a group of immigrants looking for better job prospects, but the first few minutes are taken up by Gaglianone’s film crew making sure the microphones are adjusted properly and discussing ways to film scenes from different angles. These meta-film sequences juxtapose with the experiences of the real-life immigrants, who play themselves. As Attanasio guides the class through practical roleplaying exercises to build their language skills, the students open up about their funny, poignant, and heartrending tales of assimilation. Some seek new opportunities in the European Union, others have escaped the horrors of war, but all were forced to leave loved ones behind. When the residence permits begin to run out and deportation is threatened, both students and film crews struggle with the sudden absence of the classmates/actors. By revealing the artificiality of his own filmmaking process, Gaglianone shows how no one is left untouched by the iniquities of the Italian immigration process. This clever filmwithin-a-film blurs the line between fact and fiction and blends narrative and documentary styles, adding a heightened sense of immediacy to the stories of ordinary people trying to rebuild their shattered lives.

Director: Daniele Gaglianone

Producer: Gianluca Arcopinto

Screenwriters: Gino Clemente

Daniele Gaglianone

Claudia Russo

Cinematographer: Gherardo Gossi

Editor: Enrico Giovannone

Cast: Valerio Mastandrea

Bassirou Ballde

Mamon Bhuiyan

Gregorio Cabral

Jessica Canahuire Laura

Running Time:

93 minutes

Presentation Format:

DCP, in Italian, with English subtitles

Print Source: Axelotil Film

Selected Filmography: Rust (2011)

Pietro (2010)

Rata Nece Biti! (Doc, 2008)

Changing Destiny (2004)

Our Years (2001)

DANTE ALIGHIERI SOCIETY of Washington State

SIFF CINEMA UPTOWN

HARVARD EXIT

VIHARSAROK

Land of Storms

HUNGARY/GERMANY 2014 NORTH AMERICAN PREMIERE

TUESDAY MAY 20 9:30 PM

WEDNESDAY MAY 21 4:00 PM

In a love triangle story that’s fresh, engrossing and sumptuously shot, freshman soccer player Szabi (András Sütő) has moved from Hungary to Germany to become a professional athlete. While he usually gets along with fellow player and roommate Bernard (Sebastian Urzendowsky), a lost game and a quarrel compel Szabi to return to Hungary, where he’s inherited his grandparents’ derelict home. One night, someone tries to steal his old bike, and that is how he meets Aron (Adam Varga), a young man from the village. What starts as a rough meeting changes when they begin to work together on the house. Their simple and basic life turns complicated when Bernard shows up from Germany. Then the locals start to react to the threesome. Land of Storms is a strong, personal story of sexual awakening, self-discovery, and intolerance. Director Ádám Császi chose to concentrate on what the characters hide, revealing truths subtly rather than through visuals or dialogue, and all three actors give exceptionally strong performances. With his first feature, Császi convincingly reflects a topic that Hungarian cinema is unfamiliar with in a sincere and uncompromising gay love story.

HARVARD EXIT

HARVARD EXIT

Director: Àdám Császi

Producers: Eszter Gyárfás

Viktória Petrányi

Screenwriters: Ádám Császi

Iván Szabó

Cinematographer: Marcell Rév

Editor: Tamás Kolláanyi

Cast: András Süt Ádám Varga

Sebastian Urzendowsky Enik Börcsök

Ottó Lajos Horváth

Running Time: 105 minutes

Presentation Format: DCP, in Hungarian and German, with English subtitles

International Sales: m-Appeal

Print Source: TLA Releasing

Film Website: tlareleasing.com/films/ land-of-storms-2/

Selected Filmography: Debut Feature Film

Land of the Bears 3D

FRANCE 2014

US PREMIERE

SUNDAY MAY 18 10:30 AM PACIFIC PLACE

SATURDAY MAY 24 10:00 AM LINCOLN SQUARE

WEDNESDAY MAY 28 6:30 PM SIFF CINEMA UPTOWN

Brown bears share the screen with the breathtaking vistas of the Kamchatka Peninsula in Guillaume Vincent’s exceptional new documentary. Charting the time between lengthy hibernation periods, the story begins just as winter’s icy grip loosens on the landscape. One juvenile bear saunters out in search of his first meal in months. This will be his first year away from his mother. Soon, another mother and her two young cubs—unbelievably cute roughhousing together—are introduced, as well as an experience male leader. These five animals provide a deeper look at the various roles of the brown bear society from vulnerable youth to the consistently imposing presence of the alpha male. Land of the Bears traverses the Russian countryside down to the great rivers, following these majestic creatures using everything from stationary cameras to helium balloon mounts that provide astonishing aerial shots without disturbing the animals. Vincent’s film plays perfectly for the entire family, whether getting a first glimpse of these incredible beasts or savoring the circle of life within Russia’s extensive wilderness.

Director: Guillaume Vincent

Producers: Thierry Commissionat François de Carsalade

du Pont

Benoit Tschieret

Guillaume Vincent

Screenwriters: Yves Paccalet

Guillaume Vincent

Cinematographer: Lionel Jan Kerguistel

Music: Fabien Cali

Cécile Cobrel

Narrated by: Marion Cotillard

Running Time: 90 minutes

Presentation Format: 3D DCP

International Sales:

Kinology

Print Source: Kinology

Film Website: les-films-en-vrac.com/ terre-des-ours

Selected Filmography: Debut Feature Film

LE DERNIER DES INJUSTES

The Last of the Unjust

FRANCE/AUSTRIA 2013

WEDNESDAY MAY 21 7:30 PM

Claude Lanzmann, whose epic Shoah is perhaps the greatest documentary ever made (certainly the definitive film about the Holocaust), returns to one of the subjects from that masterpiece to unravel the tale of the ‘model’ concentration camp, Theresienstadt, and the ambiguous leader of its Jewish Council, Benjamin Murmelstein. Lanzmann interviewed Murmelstein for Shoah, but felt he couldn’t do justice to him in the context of that film without doubling its length. A former rabbi from Vienna, Murmelstein spent the immediate pre-war years as Adolf Eichmann’s handpicked representative of Austria’s Jewish community, and claimed to have saved 120,000 Jews from deportation and certain death by helping them escape to the US, Britain, and Palestine. Once war began and Murmelstein was sent to the camp, he negotiated on a day-to-day basis with Eichmann over the fate of its inmates. As Murmelstein puts it, “they wanted a puppet, but I got to pull some of the strings.” His interviews with Lanzmann are undeniably riveting, as he recounts the realities of life in the camp with complete candor, alternately erudite, cunning, and guileless. What emerges is a fascinating portrait of the ambiguities of war, and those who are forced to make heartrending choices to cope with the banality of evil.

Director: Claude Lanzmann

Producers: David Frenkel

Danny Krausz

Jean Labadie

Screenwriter: Claude Lanzmann

Cinematographers: William Lubtchansky

Caroline Champetier

Editor: Chantal Hymans

Running Time: 218 minutes

Presentation Format: DCP, in French and German, with English subtitles

International Sales: Le Pacte

Print Source: Cohen Media Group

Film Website: cohenmedia.net

Selected Filmography: The Karski Report (Doc, 2010)

Sobibór, October 14, 1943, 4pm (Doc, 2001)

A Visitor from the Living (Doc, 1997)

Tsahal (Doc, 1994)

Shoah (Doc, 1985)

Israel, Why (Doc, 1973)

L’ANNÉE DERNIÈRE À MARIENBAD

Last Year at Marienbad

FRANCE 1961

TUESDAY MAY 20 6:30 PM

This exquisite puzzle-box of a movie takes place in a grand hotel with endless corridors, ornate ceilings, elaborately decorated rooms, and impeccably sculptured shrubbery. There are many tuxedo- and gown-clad guests, but three stand out: the beautiful A (Delphine Seyrig), X (Giorgio Albertazzi), who insists that he and A have met the year before, and sepulchral M (Sacha Pitoëff), who may be A’s lover or husband. As eerie organ music plays, guests come and go, crowds congregate and abruptly freeze in place as the principals walk by, casting long shadows. Sudden shifts of time and space weave a hypnotic spell. What does it all mean? Ah, that is the stuff of postfilm discussion! Marienbad is an intriguing and virtuosic tour-de-force, if only for its velvety black-and-white photography by cinematographer Sacha Vierny. With its Oscar-nominated screenplay by Alain Robbe-Grillet, director Alain Resnais’ enigma is one of the most iconic and influential films in cinema history. “Seeing the film again, and succumbing, like a dance partner, to its gliding moves, one has to ask: how could a film this beautiful ever have been thought unapproachable?” —Anthony Lane, “The New Yorker.”

Awards:

Academy Awards 1963 (Best Screenplay Nomination) French Syndicate of Cinema Critics 1962 (Best Film) Venice Film Festival 1961 (Golden Lion)

Director: Alain Resnais

Producers: Pierre Courau

Raymond Froment

Screenwriter: Alain Robbe-Grillet

Cinematographer: Sacha Vierny

Editors: Jasmine Chasney

Henri Colpi

Music: Francis Seyrig

Cast: Delphine Seyrig

Giorgio Albertazzi

Sacha Pitoëff

Running Time: 94 minutes

Presentation Format: 35mm, in French, with English subtitles

International Sales: Rialto Pictures

Print Source: Rialto Pictures

Film Website: rialtopictures.com/marienbad

Selected Filmography: Life of Riley (2014)

You Ain’t Seen Nothing Yet! (2012)

Wild Grass (2009)

Private Fears in Public Places (2006)

Not on the Lips (2003)

Same Old Song (1997)

Smoking/No Smoking (1993)

Mélo (1986)

Life is a Bed of Roses (1983)

My American Uncle (1980)

Providence (1977)

Stavisky (1974)

Je t’aime, je t’aime (1968)

The War is Over (1966)

Muriel, ou le Temps d’un

Retour (1963)

Hiroshima Mon Amour (1959)

Night and Fog (1955)

SIFF CINEMA UPTOWN

SIFF CINEMA UPTOWN

Late Phases

USA 2014

THURSDAY MAY 29 9:45 PM

LINCOLN SQUARE

SATURDAY JUNE 7 MIDNIGHT EGYPTIAN

SUNDAY JUNE 8 9:00 PM SIFF CINEMA UPTOWN

Ambrose McKinley isn’t much of a people person. A blind Vietnam vet, he’d rather be left alone with his seeing-eye dog than engage in chit chat with the neighbors. However, when his yuppie son, Will, prompts him to move to Crescent Bay, a seemingly idyllic retirement community, Ambrose’s life erupts into monstrous turmoil. One night, a bloodthirsty creature smashes through the patio door of his house, kills his dog while nearly killing Ambrose, and then murders the little old lady next door. While recovering, Ambrose learns that the community has been the focus of brutal “dog attacks” that have killed several residents. But Ambrose surmises that they’re werewolves, not feral dogs, responsible for the killings. With a month to go before the next full moon, Ambrose scours the community for possible lycanthropic suspects—including the local pastor and his flock of elderly church ladies—all the while preparing for the inevitable hair-raising showdown. The first English language film from Argentinean thrill-master Adrián García Bogliano, Late Phases is a ghastly enjoyable creature feature.

Director:

Adrián García Bogliano

Producers:

Zak Zeman

Greg Newman

Brent Kunkle

Larry Fessenden

Screenwriter: Eric Stolze

Cinematographer:

Ernesto Herrera

Editor:

Aaron Crozier

Music:

Wojciech Golczewski

Cast:

Nick Damici

Ethan Embry

Tom Noonan

Lance Guest

Erin Cummings

Running Time: 95 minutes

Presentation Format: DCP

Print Source:

MPI Media

Selected Filmography:

Here Comes the Devil (2012)

Penumbra (2011)

Cold Sweat (2010)

The Accursed (2010)

Watch ’Em Die (2009)

I’ll Never Die Alone (2008)

36 Steps (2006)

Scream the Night (2005)

Riddlebox (2004)

Rooms for Tourists (2004)

FRIDAY MAY 30 7:00 PM SIFF CINEMA UPTOWN SATURDAY MAY 31 2:30 PM SIFF CINEMA UPTOWN

Simone (Nathalie Fay) is a young Parisian en route to her wedding in Singapore. But when the airline cancels her connecting flight, she’s forced to spend the night in Los Angeles. She decides to make the best of it and contact an old acquaintance, Juliette (Bella Dayne), who is going through a rough patch in her marriage. Invigorated by her friend’s arrival, Juliette insists on taking Simone out for a night of club-hopping. With little regard for her friend, Juliette soon disappears with a stranger, leaving Simone stranded downtown without a ride. When an attractive motorcyclist (Karl E. Landler) appears and offers her a ride, Simone cautiously accepts, leading to an evening of adventure that results in her questioning her life’s direction and, ultimately, if she’s truly ready to make her connection in the morning. Gorgeous and hypnotic, writerdirector Joshua Caldwell’s feature film debut, Layover, invites favorable comparisons to the early films of the French New Wave. Needing little more than a beautiful woman, a mysterious man, and a fast motorcycle to conjure the experience of fleeting youth, Layover is an exercise in visual storytelling that will make you remember why you fell in love with the movies.

Director: Joshua Caldwell

Producers: Travis Oberlander

Vertel Scott

Jatin Das Gupta

Joshua Caldwell

Screenwriter: Joshua Caldwell

Cinematographer: William Wolffe

Editors: Will Torbett

Evan Alexander

Music: Bill Brown

Cast: Nathalie Fay

Karl E. Landler

Bella Dayne

Hal Ozsan

Natalie Loren

Running Time: 83 minutes

Presentation Format: HDCAM, in French, with English subtitles

Print Source: Meydenbauer

Entertainment

Film Website: Facebook.com/ layoverfilm

Selected Filmography: Debut Feature Film

Leading Lady

SOUTH AFRICA 2014

WORLD PREMIERE

SATURDAY JUNE 7 7:00 PM

SUNDAY JUNE 8 1:30 PM

From the director of Fanie Fourie’s Lobola, winner of the SIFF 2013 Golden Space Needle Award for Best Film, comes this uplifting tale of a teacher and struggling actress who enlists a South African sheep farmer in helping her prepare for a make-or-break film role.

Famous film director Daniel Taylor (Gil Bellows) is planning a film about a historical Afrikaans Boer woman. His British actress girlfriend, Jodie, covets the role but realizes she must travel to South Africa to fully embrace the character. Upon arrival she meets ruggedly handsome Kobus, a young farmer who shares the same last name as the historical character, and eventually convinces him to let her stay at the farm. In payment, Jodie will act and direct the annual summer play with a ragtag group of misfits, including a scene-stealing supporting role by Fanie himself (Eduan van Jaarsveldt) as Kobus’ much-looser brother. As is to be expected, the blossoming relationship between Jodie and Kobus becomes much more complicated when Daniel arrives for location scouting. Combining outstanding performances and a deep love of Afrikaans Boer culture with delightful deviations from the romantic comedy formula, writer-director Henk Pretorius confirms the promise of Fanie Fourie’s Lobola with another meaningful, laugh-out-loud comedy about following your dreams and finding your place.

Leninland

RUSSIA/GERMANY/ NETHERLANDS 2013 NORTH AMERICAN PREMIERE

HARVARD EXIT

HARVARD EXIT

Director: Henk Pretorius

Producers: Llewelynn Greeff

Henk Pretorius

Screenwriters: Henk Pretorius

Tina Kruger

Cinematographer: Trevor Calverley

Editor:

Warwick Allan

Music: Benjamin Willem

Cast: Katie McGrath

Bok van Blerk

Gil Bellows

Brumilda van Rensburg

Eduan van Jaarsveldt

Running Time: 96 minutes

Presentation Format: DCP, in English and Afrikaans with English subtitles

Pring Source: Dark Matter Studios

Film Wesbsite: madrobot.co.za/ leading-lady

Selected Filmography: Fanie Fourie’s Lobola (2013) Bakgat! II (2010) Bakgat! (2008)

MONDAY MAY 19 8:30 PM

FRIDAY MAY 23 1:00 PM

Even twenty years after the fall of the USSR, many citizens of the former-Soviet Union still disagree about how to remember Vladimir Lenin, the communist revolutionary, politician, and cultural theorist that served as the leader of the Russian Federation until his death in 1924. Since the Soviet Union dissolved in 1991, there’s been cultural disagreement on whether or not Lenin should be recognized as a positive contributor to the wellbeing of Eastern European civilization, or whether his legacy is now irrelevant and the country should move on. Leninland is the “last” museum devoted to Lenin, built on the site where the renowned leader died. Now it’s the site of forlorn memories and of the museum’s employees’ desire for the Russian citizens to revisit the positive impact Lenin had on his constituency. Struggling to convince patrons to not focus solely on Lenin’s controversial concepts and suggestions about communism, the museum’s employees encourage their countrymen to remember the politician for his forward-thinking philosophies and for his dedication to the betterment of his nation.

PRECEDED BY:

My Guide

Hungary 2013, 13 minutes, Director: Barnabás Tóth

An elderly couple in traffic—the wife chitchats, warns, controls—a policeman, a GPS, and a commentator, all at once. The husband growls or strikes out. This is how their world works. But life is a constant replanning...

SIFF CINEMA UPTOWN

SIFF CINEMA UPTOWN

Director: Askold Kurov

Producer: Vlad Ketkovich

Screenwriter: Askold Kurov

Cinematographers: Alexey Strelov

Askold Kurov

Editor: Kirill Sakharnov

Running Time: 52 minutes

Presentation Format: DigiBeta, in Russian, with English subtitles

International Sales: Deckert Distribution

Print Source: Deckert Distribution

Film Website: deckert-distribution.com/ film-catalogue/leninland

Selected Filmography: Winter, Go Away! (2012) Chilla (2010)

Liar’s Dice

INDIA 2014

MONDAY MAY 26 3:00 PM

TUESDAY JUNE 3 8:30 PM

RENTON IKEA PAC

SIFF CINEMA UPTOWN

THURSDAY JUNE 5 9:00 PM SIFF CINEMA UPTOWN

Geetu Mohandas’ ambitious dramatic feature film debut, Liar’s Dice, takes on the serious theme of conditions for Indian migrant laborers. It’s also a love story between two unlikely characters. In the tribal community Chitkul at the foot of the Great Himalaya Range, Kamala (serenely beautiful Geetanjali Thapa) lives with her precocious three-year-old daughter Manya. Like many locals, Kamala’s husband works as a laborer on a construction site in the city. His letters and phone calls have ceased, leaving Kamala worried. Against the advice of the male elders of her village, she takes her daughter and pet goat to search for her husband. The way is rough and dangerous. Traveling on the treacherous road through the mountains, she meets an army deserter (Nawazuddin Siddiqui, Gangs of Wasseypur), who is a genius at the game of Liar’s Dice. Together they travel to Delhi though spectacular winter mountain landscapes, sometimes by foot, sometimes in a pickup truck or bus. In Delhi, they continue their search for Kamala’s husband until they find their answer. Mohandas is an actor-turned-filmmaker who began her career at the age of four and has a remarkable 28 credits to her name.

Director: Geetu Mohandas

Producers: Alan McAlex

Ajay G. Rai

Screenwriter: Geetu Mohandas

Cinematographer: Rajeev Ravi

Editor: B. Ajithkumar

Music: John Bosters

Cast: Nawazuddin Siddiqui

Geetanjali Thapa

Manya Gupta

Vikram Bhagra

Murari Kumar

Running Time: 104 minutes

Presentation Format: DCP, in Hindi and Himachali, with English subtitles

Print Source: Ramonda Films

International Sales: Ramonda Films

Film Website: liarsdicethefilm.com

Selected Filmography: Debut Feature Film

CHCE SIĘ ŹV

Life Feels Good

POLAND 2013

FRIDAY JUNE 6 7:00 PM

SIFF CINEMA UPTOWN

SATURDAY JUNE 7 10:30 AM HARVARD EXIT

SUNDAY JUNE 8 6:15 PM PACIFIC PLACE

Heartbreaking and humorous, Life Feels Good has thrilled international audiences and swept the Polish Film Awards with virtuosic acting from Dawid Ogrodnik as Mateusz, a romantic, good-natured man with cerebral palsy who yearns to be understood by his family and friends. As he’s grown up, doctors and experts have considered Mateusz a ‘vegetable’ with little capacity for communication—and in doing so, disregarded his rich personality and emotional life. Based on a true story, Life Feels Good is a winning testament to the endurance of the human spirit. Ogrodnik (also in SIFF 2014’s Ida) performs Mateusz with astute brilliance as he grows into a man in 1980s Poland, a cultural climate rife with discrimination. As Mateusz meets his challenges head-on—like in devising an ingenious, agile way to move around his home—Ogrodnik’s empathetic portrayal is totally convincing. His family go through a range of emotions as they try to overcome their frustrations with naysaying clinical and institutional specialists. Mateusz has a breakthrough after meeting a teacher of Bliss language, a popular method to help engender nonverbal communication. Their collaboration revolutionizes Mateusz’s life. This award-winning film miraculously underscores the vital importance of being heard and understood.

Awards:

Polish Film Awards 2014 (Audience Award, Best Actor, Screenplay, Supporting Actor, Supporting Actress)

Gdynia Film Festival 2013 (Jury Prize, Audience Award)

Montréal World Film Festival 2013 (Audience Award, Grand Prix des Americas, Ecumenical Prize)

Chicago International Film Festival 2013 (Audience Award)

Cleveland International Film Festival 2014 (Jury Prize)

Director: Maciej Pieprzyca

Producer: Wiesław Łysakowski

Screenwriter: Maciej Pieprzyca

Cinematographer: Paweł Dyllus

Editor: Krzysztof Szpetmański

Music: Bartosz Chajdecki

Cast: Dawid Ogrodnik

Kamil Tkacz

Dorota Kolak

Arkadiusz Jakubik

Katarzyna Zawadzka

Running Time: 107 minutes

Presentation Format: DCP, in Polish, with English subtitles

International Sales: Intramovies

Print Source: Intramovies

Film Website: tramway.pl

Selected Filmography: Splinters (2008)

Lilting

UNITED KINGDOM 2014

FRIDAY MAY 30 7:00 PM

SATURDAY MAY 31 2:00 PM

Sixty-something Junn (Pei-Pei Cheng) is in mourning for her son Kai. A first-generation immigrant, she is isolated from her London surroundings both physically—before his untimely death, Kai placed her in a nursing home—and linguistically, as she speaks little English. Although Junn finds some romantic solace in her droll nursing home co-resident Alan (Peter Bowles), their language barrier still hinders their time together. Enter young Richard (Ben Whishaw), Kai’s roommate and “best friend,” with a surprise: He has hired a translator, Vann (Naomi Christie), purporting to offer this service as a means for Junn and Alan to become better acquainted. In actuality, he hopes to earn Junn’s trust and reveal to her the true nature of his and Kai’s relationship, a secret her son kept hidden. A delicate chamber piece, Lilting addresses the universal language of grief with elegance, humor, and more than a few tears. Through Junn and Richard’s respective memories of Kai—played by Andrew Leung in visions and flashbacks— two people from different cultures seek to find a common ground under the soberest of circumstances.

Awards: Sundance Film Festival 2014 (Cinematography Award)

Little Accidents

USA 2014

HARVARD EXIT

EGYPTIAN

Director: Hong Khaou

Producer: Dominic Buchanan

Screenwriter: Hong Khaou

Cinematographer: Ula Pontikos

Editor:

Mark Towns

Music:

Stuart Earl

Cast: Ben Whishaw

Pei-Pei Cheng

Andrew Leung

Running Time: 86 minutes

Presentation Format: DCP, in English and Mandarin, with English subtitles

Print Source: Strand Releasing

Film Website: facebook.com/liltingmovie

Selected Filmography: Debut Feature Film

FRIDAY MAY 30 7:00 PM

PACIFIC PLACE

SATURDAY MAY 31 12:00 PM SIFF CINEMA UPTOWN

SUNDAY JUNE 1 8:00 PM

Coal miner Amos Jenkins (Boyd Holbrook) is lucky to be alive, but he feels more cursed than blessed. As the sole survivor of a devastating accident that took the lives of 10 of his fellow miners, the injured Amos is pressured by his union boss to testify against the mining company for damages. At the same time, his co-workers—including his father, racked with black-lung disease—warn him to keep his mouth shut so they can keep their jobs and feed their families. Meanwhile, Amos’ middleclass boss, Bill (Josh Lucas), fears he will become an easy scapegoat for the mine’s lax safety protocols. The anguish for Bill and his wife, Diana (Elizabeth Banks), increase exponentially when their teenage son goes missing without a trace. His schoolmate, Owen (a terrific Jacob Lofland), knows what happened to the missing teen, but also holds his tongue for fear of the consequences. The secrets and betrayals start to pile up, leading to a dramatic conclusion as these intertwined characters are forced to wrestle with the truth. Shot on location in the blue-collar mining town of Beckley, West Virginia, Little Accidents captures the grit and pride of hardscrabble Appalachia as it copes with loss. This poised first feature by writer/director Sara Colangelo shows how the ripples of tragedy radiate in all directions, forever altering the lives of those underground as much as the ones above.

KIRKLAND PC

Director: Sara Colangelo

Producers: Jason Michael Berman

Anne Carey

Thomas B. Fore

Summer Shelton

Screenwriter: Sara Colangelo

Cinematographer: Rachel Morrison

Editor: Suzy Elmiger

Music: Marcelo Zarvos

Cast: Boyd Holbrook

Josh Lucas

Elizabeth Banks

Chloë Sevigny

Jacob Lofland

Running Time: 105 minutes

Presentation Format: HDCAM

Print Source: TideRock Media

Selected Filmography: Debut Feature Film

CHIISAI OUCHI

The Little House

JAPAN 2014

WEDNESDAY MAY 21 6:30 PM

LINCOLN SQUARE

SUNDAY JUNE 1 4:30 PM SIFF CINEMA UPTOWN

SUNDAY JUNE 8 6:00 PM SIFF CINEMA UPTOWN

When the elderly Taki Nunomiya passes away, her relatives describe her as a spinster and a quiet loner. Her grand-nephew, Takeshi, however, discovers her memoirs and learns of the exciting life she led before the war. So begins The Little House, the latest film from Japan’s prolific director Yôji Yamada. Told mostly in flashback, the film cuts to 1935, when a naïve 18-year-old Taki travels to Tokyo from the rural Yamagata prefecture and finds a job as a maid for a middle-class family: Masaki Hirai, a toy-company executive, and his wife, Tokiko. Taki gets along well with the family, especially after she cares attentively to the couple’s 5-year-old son, Kyoichi, who contracts polio. But trouble soon appears in the form of art-school graduate Shoji, one of Masaki’s work colleagues. As Masaki is increasingly called away from home on business, a lonely Tokiko begins an affair with Shoji that only Taki knows about. While World War II rages around them, most of the drama takes place inside the modest red-tile-roofed house of the film’s title, ratcheting up the tension. In the masterful hands of Yamada, this simple tale of family secrets and scandalous love triangles, adapted from a best-selling novel by Kyoko Nakamura, is a gorgeously art-directed melodrama that reveals a domestic side of nationalistic Japan rarely seen on screen.

Awards:

Berlin International Film Festival 2014 (Silver Bear for Best Actress)

VIVIT ES FÁCIL CON LOS OJOS CERRADOS

Living is Easy With Eyes Closed

SPAIN 2013

SATURDAY MAY 17 6:30 PM

Director: Yoji Yamada

Producers: Hiroshi Fukazawa

Hiroyuki Saitô

Screenwriters: Yoji Yamada

Emiko Hiramatsu based on a novel by Kyoko Nakajima

Cinematographer: Masashi Chikamori

Editor: Iwao Ishii

Music: Joe Hisaishi

Cast: Takako Matsu

Haru Kuroki

Hidetaka Yoshioka

Satoshi Tsumabuki

Chieko Baisho

Running Time: 136 minutes

Presentation Format: DCP, in Japanese, with English subtitles

International Sales: Shochiku Co., Ltd.

Print Source: Shochiku Co., Ltd.

Selected Filmography: Tokyo Family (2012)

About Her Brother (2010)

Kabei: Our Mother (2007)

Love and Honor (2006)

The Hidden Blade (2004)

The Twhilight Samurai (2002)

A Class to Remember (1993)

My Sons (1991)

Final Take: The Golden Age of Movies (1986)

The Village (1975)

Home from the Sea (1972)

Tora San Our Lovable Tramp (1969)

LINCOLN SQUARE

THURSDAY MAY 22 6:30 PM EGYPTIAN

FRIDAY MAY 23 4:00 PM SIFF CINEMA UPTOWN

Spain, 1966: Antonio (Javier Cámara, I’m So Excited!) is a teacher and a Beatles fan— passions he combines by getting his pupils to recite the lyrics from “Help!” in English class. When he learns that his idol John Lennon is making a film in Almería he resolves to meet him. On the journey he picks up two young runaways: Bethlehem, a pregnant girl fleeing a convent, and Juanjo, a boy escaping his dictatorial father. Taking its title from Lennon’s “Strawberry Fields Forever,” Living evokes the spirit and mood of the ’60s in its lively review of a time in Spanish history when dreams seemed impossible. In Antonio’s madcap road trip, new opportunity seems on the horizon.

David Trueba (Madrid, 1987) has transformed this true story, a historical footnote, into an endearing and hopeful dramedy.

Awards:

Palm Springs Film Festival 2014 (Cine Latino Award)

Goya Awards 2014 (Best Film, Director, Actor, Screenplay, Actress, Score)

Cinema Writers Circle Awards, Spain 2014 (Best Film, Original Screenplay, New Actress)

Director: David Trueba

Producer: Fernando Trueba

Screenwriter: David Trueba

Cinematographer: Daniel Vilar

Editor: Marta Velasco

Music: Pat Metheny

Charlie Haden

Cast: Javier Cámara

Natalia de Molina

Francesc Colomer

Ramon Fontsera

Jorge Sanz

Running Time: 108 minutes

Presentation Format: DCP, in Spanish, with English subtitles

International Sales:

6 Sales

Print Source: Outsider Pictures

Film Website: 6sales.es/living-is-easywith-eyes-closed.html

Selected Filmography: Madrid, 1987 (2011)

La Silla de Fernando (2006)

Welcome Home (2006)

Hay Motivo (2004)

Soldiers of Salamina (2003)

Masterpiece (2000)

The Good Life (1996)

LES

GRANDES ONDES (A L’OUEST)

Longwave

SWITZERLAND/FRANCE/PORTUGAL 2013

WEDNESDAY JUNE 4 6:00 PM

SIFF CINEMA UPTOWN

THURSDAY JUNE 5 4:00 PM HARVARD EXIT

It’s 1974, and a French-speaking Swiss radio crew has been dispatched to Portugal for a puff piece on Swiss philanthropy in the thendeveloping country. Vying for command of this fool’s errand are faltering feminist Julie (Valérie Donzelli), who’s been sleeping with the boss in hopes of getting a primetime slot for her women’s issues show, and Cauvin (La Comédie-Française vet Michel Vuillermoz), a weathered war reporter whose memory is as spotty as his Portuguese. Just when it seems their report is a total bust, fortune arrives in the form of Lisbon’s Carnation Revolution, sweeping the inhibited Swiss up in a sensational tide of political and sexual liberation—and the scoop of a lifetime. Perfectly capturing the buoyant spirit and aesthetics of 1970s comedies, Longwave’s screwball humor derives its heart from the actors’ warm and genial performances. Rousing Gershwin tunes and a script cleverly lined with deadpan jokes and nostalgic sight gags imbue the movie with irresistible energy.

Director:

Lionel Baier

Producers:

Pauline Gygax

Max Karli

Lionel Baier

François d’Artemare

Philippe Martin

Maria Joao Mayer

Screenwriters:

Lionel Baier

Julien Bouissoux

Cinematographer: Patrick Lindenmaier

Editor:

Pauline Gaillard

Music:

Georges Gershwin

Cast:

Valérie Donzelli

Michel Vuillermoz

Patrick Lapp

Francisco Belard

Jean-Stéphane Bron

Running Time: 85 minutes

Presentation Format: DCP, in French and Portuguese, with English

subtitles

International Sales:

Films Boutique

Print Source: Films Boutique

Film Website: longwave-film.com

Selected Filmography:

Bon Vent Claude Goretta (Doc, 2011)

Toulouse (2011)

Low Cost (2010)

Un Autre Homme (2008)

Stealth (2006)

Stupid Boy (2004)

La Parade (Doc, 2001)

Celui au Pasteur (Doc, 2000)

SMÅ CITRONER GULA

Love

and Lemons

SWEDEN 2013

FRIDAY MAY 23 6:00 PM

SUNDAY MAY 25 5:00 PM SIFF CINEMA UPTOWN

THURSDAY MAY 29 4:00 PM EGYPTIAN

In this culinary comedy, a young restaurant entrepreneur must figure out the special recipe for balancing her happiness and success in the midst of chaos. Agnes thinks she has everything figured out. She’s got a great apartment, a rockstar boyfriend, a job at a prestigious restaurant, and a close relationship with her parents. But when her comically conniving boss fires her, and she finds her egotistical boyfriend sleeping with a party girl more on his level, she realizes nothing comes that easy. Determined to rise above it, she takes a risk and joins some old friends in a venture to open a new restaurant. It’s just her luck when she finds out that famed food critic David, who goes by the pseudonym Lola, lives in her apartment building, and she concocts the perfect plan for a five-star review: date David and take him to her restaurant. Love and Lemons, based on the bestselling novel by author Kajsa Ingemarsson, avoids falling into cliché by spending time to focus on the quiet revelations of Agnes as she grows into her own person, as well as presenting the more comedic situations in a genuinely awkward yet hysterical fashion. Paired with delectably filmed shots of the delicious meals Agnes and her friends create, this is one banquet you don’t want to miss.

Director: Teresa Fabik

Producer: Pontus Sjöman

Screenwriters: Lars V. Johansson

Johan Kindblom

Cinematographer: Anders Bohman

Editor: Håkan Karlsson

Music: Klas Wahl

Anders Niska

Cast: Rakel Wärmländer

Dan Ekborg

Josefin Bornebusch

Sverrir Gudnason

Tomas von Brömssen

Running Time: 98 minutes

Presentation Format: DCP, in Swedish, with English subtitles

International Sales: Swedish Film Institute

Print Source: Swedish Film Institute

Film Website: trevanner.se/se/film/ sma-citroner-gula

Selected Filmography: Starring Maja (2009) The Ketchup Effect (2004)

RENTON IKEA PAC

Lucky Them USA 2013

THURSDAY MAY 22 7:00 PM

FRIDAY MAY 23 9:15 PM

When it comes to the Seattle music scene, veteran rock journalist Ellie (Toni Collette) has seen it all. No stranger to interviewing (and subsequently flirting with) rising musicians, Ellie is surprised when her boss (Oliver Platt) assigns her to track down an older, legendary, and elusive singer-songwriter—someone from Ellie’s serious romantic past. But when funds for the mission suddenly slip out of her hands, Ellie has no choice but to team up with an eccentric aspiring documentary filmmaker, Charlie (Thomas Haden Church, in a delightfully deadpan performance), who foots the trip’s bill. On their search for answers, Ellie and Charlie slowly bond over the peculiarities and mysteries of romance, the past, and life’s little surprises. Seattle filmmaker Megan Griffiths directs this winning, insightful, and touching dramedy that features killer chemistry between Collette and Church in addition to a swooning, catchy soundtrack. Co-starring Nina Arianda, Ahna O’Reilly, and Ryan Eggold (who performs his own songs in the movie), Lucky Them is a fun and moving study of music and relationships that reminds us all that when life gets stale, it’s never too late to put on a new record.

RENTON IKEA PAC

EGYPTIAN

Director: Megan Griffiths

Producers: Adam Gibbs

Amy Hobby

Emily Wachtel

Screenwriters: Huck Botko

Emily Wachtel

Cinematographer: Ben Kutchins

Editor: Meg Reticker

Music: Craig Wedren

Cast: Toni Collette

Thomas Haden Church

Ryan Eggold

Ahna O’Reilly

Oliver Platt

Nina Arianda

Running Time: 96 minutes

Presentation Format: DCP

International Sales: Cinetic Media

Print Source:

IFC Films

Selected Filmography: Eden (2012)

The Off Hours (2011)

First Aid for Choking (2003)

The Lusty Men USA 1952

SUNDAY MAY 18 5:30 PM

This thrilling, atmospheric Western with powerhouse performances from Susan Hayward and Robert Mitchum was director Nicholas Ray’s last picture for RKO. When longtime rodeo rider Jeff McCloud (Mitchum) is injured while trying to ride a Brahma bull, he decides to retire and return to his childhood home, a decrepit homestead now owned by the elderly Jeremiah Watrus. Once there, he meets Wes Merritt, a cowhand at a neighboring ranch, and his wife Louise (Hayward), who are scrounging to buy the place. Upon hearing Jeff’s name, Wes excitedly introduces himself and helps get Jeff hired on at the ranch where he works. Wes harbors a secret ambition to ride on the rodeo circuit, and enlists Jeff’s help to improve his riding skills. When Wes wins an impressive $400 in his first rodeo, he decides to join the circuit as a professional rider with Jeff as his coach, despite Louise’s objections. But as Wes’s winnings grow, so does the danger, while Jeff grows increasingly captivated by Louise.

Restored by Warner Bros. in collaboration with The Film Foundation and The Nicholas Ray Foundation. Restored print courtesy of The Film Foundation Conservation Collection at the Academy Film Archive. Unavailable on DVD.

Director: Nicholas Ray

Producers: Jerry Wald

Norman Krasna

Screenwriters: David Dortort

Horace McCoy

Alfred Hayes

Andrew Solt based on the novel by Claude Stanush

Cinematographer: Lee Garmes

Editor: Ralph Dawson

Music: Roy Webb

Cast: Susan Hayward

Robert Mitchum

Arthur Kennedy

Arthur Hunnicutt

Running Time: 113 minutes

Presentation Format: 35mm

Print Source: The Film Foundation

Selected Filmography: We Can’t Go Home Again (1976)

King of Kings (1961)

The Savage Innocents (1960)

Party Girl (1958)

Bitter Victory (1957)

The True Story of Jesse James (1957)

Bigger Than Life (1956)

Rebel Without a Cause (1955)

Run for Cover (1955)

Johnny Guitar (1954)

Flying Leathermecks (1951)

In a Lonely Place (1949)

They Live by Night (1949)

SIFF CINEMA UPTOWN

Macondo

AUSTRIA 2014 NORTH AMERICAN PREMIERE

WEDNESDAY JUNE 4 8:30 PM

SIFF CINEMA UPTOWN

THURSDAY JUNE 5 3:00 PM SIFF CINEMA UPTOWN

Set in a refugee settlement in Vienna, Macondo tells the story of Ramasan, who after his father’s murder feels he must take his place as head of the family. A deeply humanist tone carries this portrait of a young boy torn between childhood, adulthood, and the reality of his surroundings. Eleven-year-old Ramasan lives with his younger sisters and his mother in Macondo, a tough, low-income ethnic housing project in Vienna’s industrial suburbs. His family is from Chechnya and after his father dies in the war, they go through the processes of emigration. Ramasan often acts as his mother’s interpreter in their new German-language surroundings. He delivers his rambunctious sisters to school and back, and when he can, hangs out with friends and gets in typical teenage trouble. But things change when a soldier friend of his deceased father shows up. In this assured feature debut, director Sudabeh Mortezai works in a documentary style with nonprofessional actors, finding a sensitive balance between improvisation and dramaturgy. She maintains the uneasy feeling of a boy who’s an outsider, and on the cusp of becoming a man. For Macondo, Mortezai is interested in a child’s perspective on growing up between two cultures, which she reveals through images of masculinity and through themes of jealousy, honor, identity, and even hope.

Director:

Sudabeh Mortezai

Producers:

Oliver Neumann

Sabine Moser

Screenwriter: Subadeh Mortezai

Cinematographer: Klemens Hufnagl

Editor:

Oliver Neumann

Cast:

Ramasan Minkailov

Aslan Elbiev

Kheda Gazieva

Rosa Minkailova

Iman Nasuhanova

Running Time: 98 minutes

Presentation Format: DCP, in German and Chechen, with English subtitles

International Sales: Films Boutique

Print Source: Austrian Film Commission

Film Website: macondo-film.com

Selected Filmography: Debut Feature Film

Manuscripts Don’t Burn

WEDNESDAY JUNE 4 9:30 PM

SUNDAY JUNE 8 7:30 PM

To bring us this gripping political thriller, director Mohammad Rasoulof defied a 20-year ban on making films, imposed on him after his 2010 conviction on charges that included “making propaganda” against the ruling system. Shot in Iran without permission (the names of cast and crew are redacted from the credits for fear of state retribution), the film is an explicit attack on the evils of state corruption, violence, and censorship in modern-day Iran. The title borrows a much-quoted line from author Mikhail Bulgakov’s celebrated anti-Soviet satire “The Master and Margarita;” the plot is based on the true story of a failed 1995 government plot to eliminate 21 dissident writers and journalists. Now, a former dissident-turned-state intelligence minister wants to eliminate all traces of this inconvenient truth from memory. Told from the point of view of the two low-level enforcers tasked with carrying out his plan, Manuscripts Don’t Burn is a brave and deeply personal film from a filmmaker with an important story to tell, willing to take great personal risks to tell it.

Awards:

Cannes Film Festival 2013 (Un Certain Regard FIPRESCI Prize)

Hamburg Film Festival 2013 (Critics Award for Political Film)

Director: Mohammad Rasoulof

Producer: Mohammad Rasoulof

Screenwriter: Mohammad Rasoulof

Running Time: 127 minutes

Presentation Format: DCP, in Farsi, with English subtitles

International Sales: Elle Driver

Print Source: Kino Lorber

Film Website: elledriver.fr/manuscripts

Selected Filmography: Good Bye (2011)

The White Meadows (2009)

The Twilight (2002) DAST-NEVESHTEHAA

Head Win (Doc, 2008)

Iron Island (2005)

PACIFIC PLACE

HARVARD EXIT

Marmato

COLOMBIA/USA 2014

FRIDAY MAY 30 7:30 PM

SATURDAY MAY 31 10:30 AM

Industrialization invades a quiet Colombian village in Mark Grieco’s debut documentary Marmato. An enormous Canadian mining corporation knows about the $20 billion worth of gold embedded in the ground beneath the small town, and they’re stopping at nothing to reach the invaluable fortune. Now, the generations of townspeople who have worked their whole lives in Marmato’s mines to support themselves and their families must confront the reality of globalized mining and the likelihood that they’ll be displaced by the industry’s pursuit of its new frontier. A way of life, and hundreds of years of heritage are at risk when the villagers battle political and social strife to maintain their relentless dedication to preserving their traditions. Confronted with the decision about whether to fight or flee, the townspeople become divided in the face of corporate greed. Grieco urges us to consider the pros and cons of shifting an entire culture into a bold, new future, and the likelihood that Marmato’s culture can truly be preserved amidst this modern gold rush.

Director: Mark Grieco

Producers: Mark Grieco

Stuart Reid

Screenwriter: Mark Grieco

Cinematographer: Mark Grieco

Editors: Ricardo Acosta

Mark Grieco

Music: Todd Boekelheide

Running Time: 87 minutes

Presentation Format: HDCAM, in Spanish and English, with English subtitles

Print Source: Calle Films, Inc.

Film Website: marmatomovie.com

Selected Filmography: Debut Feature Film

Mary is Happy, Mary is Happy

THAILAND 2013

SATURDAY MAY 31 1:00 PM

WEDNESDAY JUNE 4 9:30 PM SIFF CINEMA UPTOWN

410 consecutive tweets by @marylony, a real teenager, provide the foundation for this incredible interaction between film and social media. By melding these messages into a narrative around two high school girls, director Nawapol Thamrongrattanarit (36, which played at SIFF 2013) embraces both the surreal absurdity and mundane voyeurism of the Twitterverse. As the film begins, Mary and her friend are spending their senior year working on the yearbook in a school that looks more like a factory. The world around them owes a passing resemblance to Wes Anderson’s unique insular logic, and Mary peppers the day to day with fantasies of trips to Paris and frequent imaginary visits to the hospital. Once the film’s whimsical nature is established, it reveals a quietly building emotional resonance between these two friends and a developing romance with a boy who hangs out at the railroad tracks-adjacent pancake cart. Mary is Happy, Mary is Happy meticulously assembles its episodic parts into a satisfying and meaningful whole, producing an authentic and oddly funny study of one young woman’s coming of age with all her hopes, fears, and confusions effectively presented in 140 character snapshots.

Awards: Taipei Film Festival 2013 (Netpac Award)

Director: Nawapol

Thamrongrattanarit

Producer:

Aditya Assarat

Screenwriter: Nawapol

Thamrongrattanarit

Cinematographer: Pairach Kumwan

Editor:

Chonlasit Upanigkit

Music: Somsiri Sangkaew

Cast: Patcha Poonpiriya

Chonnikan Netjui

Vasuphon Kriangprapakit

Udomporn Honladdaporn

Rossarin Ananchanachai

Running Time: 127 minutes

Presentation Format: DCP, in Thai, with English subtitles

International Sales: Pop Pictures

Print Source: Mosquito Films

Distribution

Film Website: nawee4.tumblr.com

Selected Filmography: 36 (2012)

HARVARD EXIT

SIFF CINEMA UPTOWN

HARVARD EXIT

A Masque of Madness

AUSTRIA 2013

US PREMIERE

TUESDAY JUNE 3 9:00 PM

SIFF CINEMA UPTOWN

SUNDAY JUNE 8 8:00 PM SIFF CINEMA UPTOWN

Though Boris Karloff is most famous for playing Frankenstein’s monster, his career started in 1919 as a supporting player in silent films and spanned five decades, into talkies and even television. For his “Notes on Film” series, Austrian director Norbert Pfaffenbichler compresses more than 170 different films into a tribute to the magnificent voice, strong chin, and many masks of Boris Karloff. Along with the famous monster, Karloff played mad scientists and a host of other characters, and here they all interact in both humorous and dramatic ways. Karloff is the only actor we see, but through playful editing his characters exist together in imaginary spaces where they spy on each other, goad each other, and even hit each other. Throughout his career, the movies he starred in were often very similar; when shown back-to-back, we get a history lesson in Hollywood genre filmmaking. We often see what seems like the same movie shot over the course of many decades, all featuring one of cinema’s greats. This is 50 years of madness condensed into 80 glorious minutes.

Director: Norbert Pfaffenbichler

Producer: Norbert Pfaffenbichler

Editor: Norbert Pfaffenbichler

Music: Johann Sebastian Bach

Cast: Boris Karloff

Running Time: 80 minutes

Presentation Format: DigiBeta

Print Source: Six Pack Film

Film Website: sixpackfilm.com

Selected Filmography: Debut Feature Film

May in the Summer

QATAR/LEBANON/USA/JORDAN

MONDAY MAY 26 3:30 PM PACIFIC PLACE

WEDNESDAY MAY 28 9:30 PM PACIFIC PLACE

Jordanian-American May Brennan (writerdirector Cherien Dabis, reuniting with Hiam Abbass from her debut hit Amreeka) seems to have everything: a bestselling book, a great life in New York City, and a loving fiancé. But when she visits Amman to arrange her wedding, familial sparks fly in a collision of worlds old and new: her stubborn, bornagain Christian mother (Abbass) is dead set against her marrying a Muslim and threatens to boycott the wedding; her younger sisters have bachelorette partying on their minds; her estranged father, who left her mother years ago for a younger woman, suddenly makes a reappearance. Meanwhile, doubts about May’s marriage surface just as a handsome new acquaintance arrives on the scene, causing May’s carefully structured life to spin out of control. Dabis makes a dazzling big screen acting debut in this lively dramatic comedy about the secrets, lives, and loves of a family straddling two worlds, for better and for worse.

Director:

Cherien Dabis

Producers: Cherien Dabis

Alix Madigan-Yorkin

Christopher Tricarico

Screenwriter: Cherien Dabis

Cinematographer: Brian Rigney Hubbard

Editor:

Sabine Hoffman

Music:

Carlo Siliotto

Cast: Alia Shawkat

Cherien Dabis

Nadine Malouf

Hiam Abbass

Bill Pullman

Running Time: 99 minutes

Presentation Format: DCP, in English and Arabic, with English subtitles

International Sales: Elle Driver

Print Source: Cohen Media Group

Film Website: elledriver.fr/ may-in-the-summer

Selected Filmography: Amreeka (2009)

The D Word (2005)

Medeas

USA/ITALY/MEXICO 2013

THURSDAY JUNE 5 7:00 PM

FRIDAY JUNE 6 4:00 PM

Inspired both by Greek tragedy and by true stories, MEDEAS quietly reveals the inner desires of a farming family through observational portraits set against an unforgiving and achingly beautiful Southern California landscape, with images harkening back to the early films of Terrence Malick. Times are hard for dairy farmers, especially during a drought, and Ennis’ (Brían O’Byrne, Before the Devil Knows You’re Dead) frustrations are starting to boil over. Although he comes down hard on his children—especially his blossoming daughter and his moody teenage son—he is clearly devoted to his family. His hearingimpaired wife, Christina (Catalina Sandino Moreno, Maria Full of Grace), performs her duties in the home but her pent up passion becomes evident when she leaves the homestead. Tensions well up beneath the surface like a tidal wave as Ennis struggles to maintain control of his family and surrounding environment. This archetypal tale of adultery is rendered in exquisite strokes in this stylish, sensual, rural psychodrama from first-time director Andrea Pallaoro.

Awards:

Marrakech Film Festival 2013 (Best Director) Palm Springs Film Festival 2014 (New Voices/New Visions Award)

Director: Andrea Pallaoro

Producers: Kyle Heller

Gina Resnick

Jonathan Venguer

Eleonora Granata

Jenkinson

Alexis Seely

Screenwriters: Andrea Pallaoro

Orlando Tirado

Cinematographer: Chayse Irvin

Editors: Arndt Peemoeller

Isaac Hagy

Cast:

Catalina Sandino Moreno

Brían F. O’Byrne

Kevin Alejandro

Ian Nelson

Mary Mouser

Running Time: 98 minutes

Presentation Format: DCP

Print Source: Varient Pictures

International Sales: TF1

Film Website: medeasthefilm.com

Selected Filmography: Debut Feature Film

LES GARÇONS ET GUILLAUME, À TABLE!

Me, Myself and Mum

BELGIUM/FRANCE/SPAIN 2013

THURSDAY MAY 22 9:30 PM LINCOLN SQUARE

THURSDAY MAY 29 7:00 PM EGYPTIAN

SUNDAY JUNE 1 1:30 PM

These last years have seen their fair share of autobiographical queer movies,and stories about characters facing questions of gender and sexual identity, seemingly alone before a hostile world. Me, Myself and Mum takes a particularly unique place among them: less grave, more pop, more playful. Comedian Guillaume Gallienne’s first directorial work, based on his one-man play, recalls his youth among the upper class and his ambiguous affinity with his mother, who raised him as more of a daughter than a son, insisting that he is gay despite Guillaume’s uncertainty. A member of the Comédie-Française, Gallienne excels in the art of transformism—playing himself at different ages, his mother, and his mental projections (including Sissi of Austria)— and his do-it-yourself spirit translates confidently from the minimalism of his stage show to the wider canvas of cinema. With its lively, subtly cadenced screenplay, Me, Myself and Mum takes its serious, contemporary subject and stamps it with an elegant humor.

Awards:

Cannes Film Festival 2013 (Director’s Fortnight: Art Cinema Award)

César Awards 2014 (Best Film, Actor, Adapted Screenplay, Editing, First Film)

SIFF CINEMA UPTOWN

Director: Guillaume Gallienne

Producers:

Cyril Colbeau-Justin

Jean-Baptiste Dupont

Édouard Weil

Screenwriter:

Guillaume Gallienne

Cinematographer: Glynn Speeckaert

Editor:

Valérie Deseine

Music:

Marie-Jeanne Serero

Cast: Guillaume Gallienne

Diane Kruger

Françoise Fabian

Nanou Garcia

André Marcon

Running Time: 95 minutes

Presentation Format: DCP, in French, with English subtitles

International Sales: Gaumont

Print Source: Gaumont

Film Website: gaumont.fr

Selected Filmography: Debut Feature Film

PACIFIC PLACE

HARVARD EXIT

221 Main Ave S Mon-Thur 3p-2a Downtown Renton Fri-Sun 12p-2a

The Midnight After

HONG KONG/CHINA 2014 NORTH AMERICAN PREMIERE

SATURDAY MAY 24 9:30 PM

HARVARD EXIT

SUNDAY MAY 25 9:30 PM LINCOLN SQUARE

FRIDAY MAY 30 12:30 PM SIFF CINEMA UPTOWN

Fruit Chan’s philosophical take on the apocalypse ferries a minibus full of people (played by established Hong Kong cinema stars and fresh talents) into the first day of the rest of their lives. Hong Kong Second Wave filmmaker Chan is known for his style of reflecting everyday life and for his macabre 2004 chiller Dumplings. Here, he mashes comedy, horror, and melodrama to a grisly pulp, adapted from a novel that began as a viral web series called “Lost on a Minibus from Mongkok to Taipo” by Pizza. An eclectic bunch of characters including a failed gangster, a clairvoyant insurance agent, a bickering couple, a computer programmer, and a cokehead are among the 16 passengers on a bus heading from busy Kowloon to a town in the New Territories. Everything’s fine, ’til they get on the other side of the Lion Rock Tunnel, where they’re the only ones on the road and their destination is abandoned. As in 28 Days Later’s deserted London, the inherent eeriness of an empty Hong Kong and surrounding areas does as much for the story as any panicked dialogue or nascent explanation. When four college students are the first to succumb to what appears to be a virus, the remaining commuters are beset by dream sequences, spooky visions, and increasing paranoia about what’s to come. Handheld camerawork from Chan’s frequent collaborator Lam Wah-tsuen adds to the existential dread.

Director: Fruit Chan

Producer: Eddie Wong

Screenwriters: Chan Fai-hung Kong Ho-yan

Cinematographer: Lam Wah-tsuen

Editors: TinSupFat

ToTo

Music: Ellen Loo

Veronica Lee

Cast: Wong You-nam

Simon Yam

Kara Hui

Janice Man

Suet Lam

Running Time: 124 minutes

Presentation Format:

DCP, in Cantonese, with English subtitles

International Sales: Fortissimo Films

Print Source: Fortissimo Films

Selected Filmography:

Tales From the Dark (2013)

The Yellow Slipper (2010)

Chengdu, I Love You (2009)

Xian Story (2006)

Dumplings (2004)

Public Toilet (2002)

Hollywood Hong Kong (2001)

Durian Durian (2000)

Little Cheung (1999)

The Longest Summer (1998)

Made in Hong Kong (1997)

Lonely Heart Quintet (1992)

Finale in Blood (1991)

EL LUGAR DEL HIJO

The Militant

URUGUAY/ARGENTINA 2013

TUESDAY MAY 20 8:30 PM SIFF CINEMA UPTOWN

WEDNESDAY MAY 28 3:30 PM SIFF CINEMA UPTOWN

In The Militant, Uruguayan writer-director Manolo Nieto combines the traditional coming-of-age story with a fish-out-of-water comedy to create an inspired cinematic experience. Upon learning of his father’s death, disheveled student-activist Ariel leaves the occupation of his university in Montevideo to return home for the funeral. He soon discovers that his father has left behind a ranch with substantial debts that he must settle. Skilled at nothing but protesting, Ariel is reluctant to take on this responsibility, but finds that everything at home is a mess: his father’s mistress has taken over the family home, the ranch hands haven’t been paid in months, and the local activists seem to only want to throw parties and philosophize. Looking for a sense of purpose, Ariel joins the local meat packers protest and tries his hand at ranching, but finds with both that he has a lot to learn. Nieto infuses these situations with a sly, sometimes surreal sense of humor, while Felipe Dieste maintains a detached, slackeresque air that keeps Ariel’s befuddlement continuously amusing. Together, they have created the rare comedy with a sophisticated political gambit: to question the political and economic inheritance of an entire generation.

Awards: Havana Film Festival 2013 (Best Cinematography, Grand Coral Second Prize)

São Paulo International Film Festival 2013 (Critics Special Award)

Director: Manuel Nieto

Producers:

Lisandro Alonso

Manuel Nieto

Screenwriter: Manolo Nieto

Cinematographer: Arauco Hernández Holz

Editors:

Pablo Riera

Martín Mainoli

Music:

Genuflexos

Cast: Felipe Dieste

Alejandro Urdapilleta Rosana Cabrera

Leonor Courtoisie

Germán De Silva

Running Time: 121 minutes

Presentation Format: DCP, in Spanish, with English subtitles

International Sales: FiGa Films

Print Source: FiGa Films

Film Website: facebook.com/Ellugardelhijo

Selected Filmography: La Perrera (2006)

Mirage Men

UNITED KINGDOM 2013

TUESDAY MAY 20 9:30 PM

PACIFIC PLACE

WEDNESDAY MAY 21 4:00 PM EGYPTIAN

On the afternoon of June 24, 1947, pilot Kenneth Arnold reported seeing nine unidentified flying objects, “shaped like saucers,” in the skies near Mt. Rainier. His report was the first in what would become a series of sightings—culminating in the Roswell incident—that gave birth to the modern UFO phenomenon. Five years later, the CIA convened a panel of scientists who concluded that though the evidence for UFOs was meager at best, nevertheless the U.S. government should exercise great care to debunk these reports, while individual citizens who expressed a great interest in UFOs should be carefully monitored. Mirage Men explores the U.S. government’s disinformation campaign among UFO enthusiasts, particularly in the person of Air Force Intelligence agent Richard C. Doty, who for years planted the seeds of several UFO myths that still persist in popular culture. Weaving together testimony from Agent Doty himself as well as from a number of key figures within the UFO movement, director John Lundberg and screenwriter Mark Pilkington brilliantly illuminate how both truths and falsehoods have become inextricably entangled into a modern mythology.

Directors: Roland Denning

John Lundberg

Kypros Kyprianou

Mark Pilkington

Producers: Roland Denning

Kypros Kyprianou

John Lundberg

Mark Pilkington

Screenwriter: Mark Pilkington

Cinematographers: Zillah Bowes

Grant Wakefield

Editors:

Kypros Kyprianou

Roland Denning

Music:

Cyclobe

Urthona

Running Time: 85 minutes

Presentation Format: DCP

Print Source: Random Media

Film Website: miragemen.com

Selected Filmography: Debut Feature Film

Miss Zombie

JAPAN 2013

FRIDAY MAY 16 6:30 PM

SIFF CINEMA UPTOWN

SATURDAY MAY 24 8:30 PM RENTON IKEA PAC

SUNDAY MAY 25 9:30 PM PACIFIC PLACE

A mysterious box arrives at the home of Dr. Teramoto. Inside it is a cage that contains three things: a book of instructions (“Do not feed meat – will become feral”), a gun in case of emergencies, and Shara (Ayaka Komatsu), his new, domesticated zombie. Teramoto and his wife waste no time in putting their mail-order zombie to work scrubbing their courtyard. Their son, Kenichi, is fascinated by their new domestic, as are all the men of the estate. Shara seems condemned to suffer their daily attentions and indignities, but when an unexpected tragedy strikes the family, the lines between living and dead, both physically and ideologically, become blurred. Cult director Sabu mirrors the family’s derailment by allowing the film to slip into other genres. Juggling poker-faced satire, modern melodrama, and early-20th-century horror films, he is able to have his cake and eat it too, skewering the hypocrisy of the modern domestic servant industry while reveling in the satisfying wish-fulfillment that each genre provides. Meanwhile, cinematographer Daisuke Sôma ties it all together with his gorgeously mercurial black-and-white imagery, and Shara’s slowboil transformation will leave you questioning who the real human is.

Awards: Fantasporto Film Festival 2014 (Grand Prize)

Director: Sabu

Producers: Kenichi Yoshida

Yasushi Utagawa

Screenwriter: Sabu

Cinematographer: Daisuke Sôma

Editor: Naoichiro Sagara

Cast:

Ayaka Komatsu

Makoto Togashi

Riku Ohnishi

Toru Tezuka

Taro Suruga

Running Time: 85 minutes

Presentation Format: HDCAM, in Japanese, with English subtitles

International Sales: Celluloid Nightmares

Print Source: Ramonda Films

Film Website: miss-zombie.com

Selected Filmography: Usagi Drop (2011)

Troubleman (2010)

The Crabe Cannery Ship (2009)

Shisso (2005)

Hold-Up Down (2005)

Hard Luck Hero (2003)

Blessing Bell (2002)

Drive (2002)

Monday (1999)

Unlucky Monkey (1998)

Postman Blues (1997)

Non Stop (1996)

Monsoon Shootout

INDIA/UNITED KINGDOM/NETHERLANDS 2013

FRIDAY MAY 16 9:30 PM PACIFIC PLACE

SATURDAY MAY 17 3:00 PM SIFF CINEMA UPTOWN

MONDAY MAY 19 4:00 PM LINCOLN SQUARE

“Does the end justify the means?” This is a phrase that is repeated throughout Monsoon Shootout as a careful warning and constant inner mantra for rookie cop Adi. Regardless of his own morals, any move he makes could potentially threaten the lives around him. In this moody Indian crime thriller, Adi finally gets a chance to prove himself on the Mumbai police force, but soon discovers he’s in over his head when he and his case-hardened partner Khan get caught up in a cat-and-mouse game with the slum community’s most feared gangsters. The fated moment arrives on a rainy Mumbai night when, after a foot race through an alley, Adi corners the infamous assassin Shavi, known as “The Axe Man” for his daunting choice of weapon. Armed and on target, Adi must decide whether to shoot or not to shoot, with the possible consequences shown as various alternate endings. Director Amit Kumar paints this portrait of existential struggle in all the dark shadows and stylized neon lights of a modern noir while effectively juxtaposing the seedy nightlife with lighter, more realistic shots of day-to-day life in the community. Monsoon Shootout provides a multi-layered storyline that comes off as suspenseful and compelling rather than convoluted, leaving it up to the audience to answer for themselves if Adi’s end really does justify his means.

Awards:

Hawaii International Film Festival 2013 (Netpac Award)

Director: Amit Kumar

Producers: Trevor Ingman

Guneet Monga

Martijn De Grunt

Screenwriter: Amit Kumar

Cinematographer: Rajeev Ravi

Editors:

Ewa Lind

Atanu Mukherjee

Music:

Gingger Shankar

Cast: Vijay Verma

Nawazuddin Siddiqui

Tannishtha Chatterjee

Neeraj Kabi

Geetanjali Thapa

Running Time: 88 minutes

Presentation Format:

DCP, in Hindi, with English subtitles

International Sales: Fortissimo Films

Print Source: Fortissimo Films

Film Website: fortissimofilms.com

Selected Filmography: Debut Feature Film

L’ÉCUME DES JOURS

Mood Indigo

FRANCE 2013

WEDNESDAY MAY 28 7:00 PM

HARVARD EXIT

SATURDAY MAY 31 11:00 AM SIFF CINEMA UPTOWN

Based on the novel by Boris Vian, Mood Indigo sees French writer-director Michel Gondry returning to his wild, imaginative, colorful, and romantic roots. Colin (Romain Duris) is living a blessed life in Paris—he’s wealthy, he enjoys the company and comfort of his offbeat friends (Omar Sy, Gad Elmaleh), and is excited about his latest invention, the pianocktail (a piano that produces quality cocktails). One day, one of Colin’s friends admits that he’s fallen head-over-heels in love with an American woman. Anxious and envious, Colin wants the same. At a party, he meets the elegant and unique Chloe (Audrey Tautou) and the two tumble into a whirlwind of jazz-dancing, ice-skating, city-sweeping romance. They fall in love and get married, but are suddenly confronted with the news of Chloe’s strange illness—she’s begun to grow a flower inside her lungs. As Chloe’s health deteriorates, so does her relationship with Colin. Gondry examines the joys, turmoil, and poeticism of love by creating another imaginative, evocative world colored by elation and heartache like he did in Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind and The Science of Sleep. Featuring compelling performances from Duris and Tautou, Mood Indigo is an inventive romance that audiences will swoon over.

Award: Césars Awards 2014 (Best Production Design)

Mr. Deeds Goes to Town

USA 1936

SATURDAY MAY 31 1:00 PM

Director: Michel Gondry

Producer: Luc Bossi

Screenwriters: Luc Bossi

Michel Gondry

based on the novel by Boris Vian

Cinematographer: Christophe Beaucarne

Editor: Marie-Charlotte Moreau

Music: Étienne Charry

Cast: Audrey Tautou

Omar Sy

Romain Duris

Gad Elmaleh

Charlotte Le Bon

Running Time: 95 minutes

Presentation Format: DCP, in French, with English subtitles

International Sales: StudioCanal

Print Source: Drafthouse Films

Film Website: lecumedesjours-lefilm.com

Selected Filmography:

Is the Man Who is Tall Happy? (2013)

The We and the I (2012)

The Green Hornet (2011)

The Thorn in the Heart (2009)

Be Kind Rewind (2008)

The Science of Sleep (2006)

Dave Chappelle’s Block Party (2005)

Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind (2004)

I’ve Been Twelve Forever (2003)

Human Nature (2001)

“That guy is either the dumbest, stupidest, most imbecilic idiot in the world, or else he’s the grandest thing alive. I can’t make him out.” Meet Longfellow Deeds (Gary Cooper) of Mandrake Falls—greeting card poet, tuba enthusiast, and recent inheritor of his late uncle’s $20 million fortune. Now one of the richest men in America, Deeds grudgingly relocates to his uncle’s Fifth Avenue mansion in New York City and quickly becomes the talk of the town. Initially marked as an easy, naïve, “pixilated” target for those who wish to embezzle him of his funds, Deeds swiftly outwits his duplicitous lawyers, relatives, and creditors, revealing himself as a level-headed and kind-hearted businessman. Enter Louise “Babe” Bennett (Jean Arthur), a scrappy New York Mail reporter with a story idea any editor would kill for—go undercover as damsel-in-distress Mary Dawson, earn Deeds’ trust, and report back the inner workings of the reluctant millionaire. Cooper, never more enchanting, charmed his way into his first of five Oscar® nominations, while Frank Capra earned a second Best Director statuette for his even-handed work. Relevant in this age of corruption and increasing income inequality, Mr. Deeds Goes to Town mixes politics with laughs, heart, and gusto, as inspiring as it is hilarious.

Awards:

Academy Awards 1937 (Best Director)

National Board of Review 1936 (Best Picture)

New York Film Critics Circle 1936 (Best Picture) Venice Film Festival 1936 (Special Recommendation)

Sponsored by Ruth Hayler in Honor of Jeff Shannon

Director: Frank Capra

Producer: Frank Capra

Screenwriter: Robert Riskin

based on a work by Clarence Budington Kelland

Cinematographer: Joseph Walker

Editor: Gene Havlick

Music: Howard Jackson

Cast: Gary Cooper

Jean Arthur

George Bancroft

Douglass Dumbrille

Lionel Stander

Running Time: 115 minutes

Presentation Format: DCP

Print Source: Sony Pictures Repertory Film Website: sonypictures.com/movies/ mrdeedsgoestotown

Selected Filmography: Pocketful of Miracles (1961)

A Hole in the Head (1959)

Here Comes the Groom (1951)

It’s a Wonderful Life (1946)

The Battle of Russia (1943) Prelude to War (1942)

Meet John Doe (1941)

Mr. Smith Goes to Washington (1939)

You Can’t Take it With You (1938)

Lost Horizon (1937)

It Happened One Night (1934)

Lady for a Day (1933)

PACIFIC PLACE

Muse of Fire

UNITED KINGDOM 2013

SUNDAY MAY 18 11:00 AM

TUESDAY MAY 20 7:00 PM

“All the world’s a stage.” In the Englishspeaking world, there is no greater writer than William Shakespeare. And yet, the Bard’s lofty reputation often acts as a barrier to modern audiences, who complain that his works are now dated, his language inaccessible. As schoolboys, both Giles Terera and Dan Poole felt alienated from Shakespeare’s works, but when the pair became professional actors, their viewpoint profoundly changed. How did they bridge this gap? If Shakespeare is so important and beloved, then why do so many feel estranged from his plays and poems? Together, Terera and Poole spent three years traveling the globe to find out just what everyone thinks about Shakespeare, including a visit to Elsinore Castle in Denmark with Jude Law, a meeting with Baz Luhrmann to discuss his adaptation of Romeo+Juliet, and taking tea with Dame Judi Dench, all the while never forgetting to discuss Shakespeare’s reputation with ordinary theatre patrons as well as people on the street. Packed with interviews from such notable thespians as Ralph Fiennes, Tom Hiddleston, Ian McKellen, and many, many more, Muse of Fire is a warm and engaging exploration of Shakespeare’s genius.

SIFF CINEMA UPTOWN

SIFF CINEMA UPTOWN

Directors: Giles Terera

Dan Poole

Producers: Dan Poole

Giles Terera

Screenwriters: Dan Poole

Giles Terera

Editors: Ben Stark

Jeremy Shaw

Matthew Troughton

Music: Giles Terera

Featuring: Derek Jacobi

Judi Dench

Ben Kinsgley

Ian McKellen

Rory Kinnear

Ralph Fiennes

Running Time: 83 minutes

Presentation Format: DCP

Print Source: Timebomb Pictures

Film Website: museoffirefilm.co.uk

Selected Filmography: Debut Feature Film

My Last Year With the Nuns USA 2014

WEDNESDAY MAY 21 6:30 PM

EGYPTIAN

MONDAY MAY 26 11:00 AM EGYPTIAN

Local director Bret Fetzer and Seattle monologist Matt Smith transform Smith’s eighth-grade year into a wild coming-of-age story in My Last Year With the Nuns. Set during 1966 in a heavily Catholic Capitol Hill, Smith’s teenage universe is only about ten blocks long, and its twin centers are St. Joseph School and the “Seattle Times” newspaper shack. While the nuns attempt to steer him towards righteousness, Smith is more fascinated by the hijinks of the neighborhood hooligans and his friends at the paper shack. The newspaper shack sits just across the Roy Street “red line” that separates the black and white neighborhoods, providing a unique forum where kids of both races can come together. Over the course of the year, Smith’s fleeting friendship with one black kid brings unexpected consequences to all three parts of his world. Fetzer intercuts Smith’s narration with recreations shot where the original events took place and, in a savvy directorial choice, casts Smith in all of the roles, further immersing us in his subjective point of view. Together, they recount the exploits of these boys with a compassionate but unsparing eye to explore the foundational nature of youthful tribal bonds.

Director: Bret Fetzer

Producers: Michael Seiwerath

Jennessa West

Screenwriters: Bret Fetzer

Matt Smith

Cinematographer: Benjamin Kasulke

Editor:

Sean Donavan

Music: John Osebold

Cast: Matt Smith

Running Time: 77 minutes

Presentation Format:

DCP

Print Source: My Last Year Productions, LLC

Film Website: facebook.com/ mylastyearwiththenuns

Selected Filmography: Debut Feature Film

Mystery Road

AUSTRALIA 2013

MONDAY MAY 19 9:30 PM

SIFF CINEMA UPTOWN

THURSDAY MAY 22 9:30 PM PACIFIC PLACE

When a teenage girl is found murdered beside a rural highway in Winton, Queensland, aboriginal police detective Jay Swan (Aaron Pedersen, “City Homicide”) has personal reasons to crack the case. His relationship with his wife and daughter is practically nonexistent as a result of his choices, one of which was taking a job in the city, and now it mirrors his relationship with the Queensland townspeople. Returning to his hometown now as an outsider who is no longer part of the indigenous community, nor respected by the white establishment he works for, Jay exposes corruption at his peril. As he gradually unravels a complex and disturbing crime web, the sleepy town’s long-simmering racial tensions between both communities rise to the surface. Brandishing genre inspiration from classic western and police procedural, noir and social commentary, this superbly controlled film features some of Australia’s best actors, including Hugo Weaving (Lord of the Rings), Ryan Kwanten (“True Blood”), and Jack Thompson (Breaker Morant). Australian Indigenous director Ivan Sen (who also wrote the screenplay, photographed, scored, and edited the movie) suffuses his gripping outback western with a hostile beauty. Mystery Road guides us through its transformative storyline with a tight script and captivating, multifaceted characters, while treating us to the sprawling, gloomy outback landscape.

Awards:

Film Critics Circle of Australia Awards 2014 (Best Film, Director, Actor)

CIENCIAS

NATURALES

Natural Sciences

ARGENTINA/FRANCE 2014

WEDNESDAY MAY 28 9:00 PM SIFF CINEMA UPTOWN

MONDAY JUNE 2 5:00 PM SIFF CINEMA UPTOWN

Director:

Ivan Sen

Producer:

David Jowsey

Screenwriter: Ivan Sen

Cinematographer: Ivan Sen

Editor:

Ivan Sen

Music:

Ivan Sen

Cast:

Aaron Pedersen

Ryan Kwanten

Hugo Weaving

Jack Thompson

Tasma Walton

Running Time: 118 minutes

Presentation Format: BluRay

International Sales: Arclight Films

Print Source: Well Go USA

Film Website: mysteryroadmovie.com

Selected Filmography:

Toomelah (2011)

Dreamland (2009)

A Sister’s Love (Doc, 2007)

Beneath Clouds (2002)

12-year-old Lila is going to track down her father, no matter what. It doesn’t matter that her mom won’t help her, nor that she’s stuck in a remote mountain boarding school during the middle of winter, nor that the only clue that she has to his whereabouts is a rusted company plaque—she’s going to find him. Needless to say, her constant attempts to run away lead to problems at school, but when the headmistress threatens to expel Lila, a sympathetic teacher engineers an inspired plan to help Lila with her search. Together, the two set off on a journey that leads them through the surrounding Argentinean mountain towns, bringing them face-to-face with unexpected truths. Writer-director Matías Lucchesi and cinematographer Sebastian Ferrero shift between airy, open vistas and tight, confined spaces in order to convey their character’s physical and emotional quests. Paula Hertzog paints an impressive portrait of Lila in every scene, creating an assured performance that mixes dogged tenacity with compassion and surprising vulnerability. In his feature debut, Lucchesi has created a touching tale that explores the struggles of childhood loneliness and our primal, almost elemental need to come to terms with our origins.

Awards: Berlin Film Festival 2014 (Grand Prize Generation KPlus) BAFICI 2014 (Feisal Award)

PRECEDED BY:

Lambing Season

USA/Ireland 2013, 15 minutes, Director: Jeannie Donohoe

An American woman travels to the Irish countryside in search of her long-lost father, only to find her path full of sheep, secrets, and shenanigans.

Director: Matías Lucchesi

Producers: Matías Lucchesi

Juan Pablo Miller

Fabrice Lambot

Screenwriters: Matías Lucchesi

Gonzalo Salaya

Cinematographer: Sebastian Ferrero

Editor: Delfina Castagnino

Music: Nacho Conde

Cast: Paula Hertzog

Paola Barrientos

Alvin Astorga

Arturo Goetz

Sergio Boris

Running Time: 71 minutes

Presentation Format: DCP, in Spanish, with English subtitles

International Sales: Urban Distribution

International

Print Source: Urban Distribution

International Film Website: urbandistrib.com

Selected Filmography: Debut Feature Film

LE PROMENEUR D’OISEAU

The Nightingale

CHINA/FRANCE 2013

SUNDAY MAY 18 11:30 AM SIFF CINEMA UPTOWN

TUESDAY MAY 20 7:00 PM PACIFIC PLACE

SUNDAY MAY 25 3:30 PM RENTON IKEA PAC

In this bittersweet and beautifully lensed family saga, veteran French filmmaker Philippe Muyl takes us on a road trip through spectacular Chinese mountain villages to discover a bucolic way of life. Zhigen’s family moved from the countryside to Beijing 20 years ago so that his son could attend university. But now, the men haven’t spoken in four years. Feeling disconnected from his family, Zhigen decides it’s time to fulfill a promise made to his late wife, to return to their village and set free a bird—who since her death has been Zhigen’s constant companion. Just as he’s about to leave, he’s asked to bring his spoiled granddaughter, Renxing, along. Brought up in the lap of luxury, Renxing is more familiar with iPads than with trekking through forests and rice paddies. Is it time for her to spread her wings? Meanwhile back in Beijing, Renxing’s materialistic parents start to reevaluate what life means to them. This journey of nostalgia and discovery—which thrillingly flows through the lush green countryside—brings everyone in the family closer. This Franco-Chinese coproduction is a loose remake of a story Muyl previously told as 2002’s French-language Le Papillon (The Butterfly), which was an unexpected smash with Chinese audiences.

Director: Philippe Muyl

Producers:

Ning Ning

Hong Qin

Paul Delbeck

Steve René

Screenwriters: Philippe Muyl

Ning Ning

Cinematographer: Ming Sun

Editors:

Kako Kelber

Manuel De Sousa

Music: Armand Amar

Cast:

Li Bao Tian

Li Xia Ran

Qin Hao

Yang Xin Yi

Running Time: 108 minutes

Presentation Format: DCP, in Mandarin, with English subtitles

International Sales: Kinology

Print Source: Kinology

Selected Filmography: Stroller Bird (2012) Magic (2007)

The Butterfly (2002)

The Cow and the Boy (2000)

Everything Must Go (1996)

Kitchen and Addictions (1992)

Tree Under the Sea (1984)

Night Moves

USA 2013

FRIDAY MAY 23 7:00 PM

MONDAY MAY 26 12:00 PM SIFF

When it comes to portrayals of individuals facing personal and complex crises amid the challenging face of nature, look no further than filmmaker Kelly Reichardt. The writer-director has crafted absorbing character portraits and stories with Old Joy, Wendy & Lucy, Meek’s Cutoff, and now Night Moves. Set in present-day Oregon, the film tells the story of three ardent and enigmatic environmentalists. Harmon (Peter Sarsgaard) is an agitated and destructive ex-marine; Dena (Dakota Fanning) is a radical activist who opposes the consumer society that raised her; Josh (Jesse Eisenberg) is an educated, quiet, but militant protector of the planet. Together they embark on a dangerous mission to blow up a local dam. In this engrossing and potent study of those involved with eco-terrorism, Reichardt has created a thorny trifecta of individuals driven by obsession and paranoia, but she refuses to judge her characters. Rather, she lets their blunt and inescapable actions unfold within a nail-biting thriller narrative. Featuring the quiet naturalism evident throughout Reichardt’s body of work, in addition to stark cinematography, Night Moves is a cryptic and tense drama that further cements Reichardt as one of the most significant voices in contemporary American independent cinema.

Awards:

Deauville Film Festival 2013 (Grand Prize)

Valladolid International Film Festival 2013 (Best Cinematographer)

Director: Kelly Reichardt

Producers: Neil Kopp

Anish Savjani

Chris Maybach

Saemi Kim

Rodrigo Teixeira

Screenwriters: Kelly Reichardt

Jon Raymond

Cinematographer: Christopher Blauvelt

Editor:

Kelly Reichardt

Music: Jeff Grace

Cast: Peter Sarsgaard

Jesse Eisenberg

Dakota Fanning

Alia Shawkat

James Le Gros

Running Time: 113 minutes

Presentation Format: DCP

International Sales: The Match Factory

Print Source: Cinedigm

Film Website: filmscience.com/films/ night-moves

Selected Filmography: Meek’s Cutoff (2010) Wendy and Lucy (2008) Old Joy (2006) River of Grass (1994)

LINCOLN SQUARE

CINEMA UPTOWN

PAS SON GENRE

Not My Type

FRANCE/BELGIUM 2014

TUESDAY MAY 27 4:00 PM

LINCOLN SQUARE

SUNDAY JUNE 1 9:30 PM EGYPTIAN

FRIDAY JUNE 6 10:30 AM PACIFIC PLACE

Can love be sustained between opposite types? Clément (Loïc Corbery), a “navelgazing Parisian intellectual” and philosophy teacher, is upset to learn that he has been reassigned to teach a class in small town Arras for one full year. “We knew philology led to disaster,” his father haughtily tells him. “Now we know philosophy leads to Arras.” Reeling from the shock of living a suburban life in Northern France, Clément finds a ray of sunshine in Jennifer (Émilie Dequenne), a local hairdresser and single mother with a beautiful smile. Although very clearly attracted to each other, their initially charming cultural differences—he enjoys pontificating about Kant and Dostoevsky, while she loves gossip magazines, Jennifer Aniston films, and karaoke—soon give way to deeper problems ingrained in their respective insecurities, shortcomings, and fears. Based on the novel by Philippe Vilain, Not My Type is a literate, heartfelt, across-the-tracks drama that questions whether affection is truly enough to sustain a romantic relationship.

Obama Mama

USA/POLAND/FRANCE 2014 WORLD PREMIERE

SATURDAY MAY 31 6:00 PM

Director: Lucas Belvaux

Producer: Patrick Sobelman

Screenwriter: Lucas Belvaux

based on the novel by Philippe Vilain

Cinematographer: Pierric Gantelmi d’Ille

Editor:

Ludo Troch

Music: Frédéric Vercheval

Cast: Émilie Dequenne Loïc Corbery

Anne Coesens

Running Time: 111 minutes

Presentation Format: DCP, in French, with English subtitles

International Sales:

Films Distribution

Print Source:

Films Distribution

Film Website: filmsdistribution.com

Selected Filmography: 38 Witnesses (2012) Rapt (2009)

The Right of the Weakest (2006)

After Life (2002)

An Amazing Couple (2002)

On the Run (2002)

Just For Laugh (1996)

Parfois Trop D’Amour (1992)

KIRKLAND PC

SUNDAY JUNE 1 11:00 AM HARVARD EXIT

Stanley Ann Dunham was more than the mother of the first black President of the United States of America. As an anthropologist with a Ph.D and as a lifelong globetrotter, her intelligence, progressive politics, and activism made for a profound life—one whose inspiration continues to resonate through her son, President Barack Obama. Through interviews with high school friends and colleagues, film clips, and archival footage, Obama Mama explores Dunham’s travels from small-town Kansas to Seattle, Hawaii, and Indonesia as well as her work in the Civil Rights and Feminist Movements, her dedication to raising awareness of global poverty, and her development of microcredit programs to address poverty in rural villages. Dunham is indirectly responsible for some of the greatest contributions to American and global history, especially Obama’s revolutionary health care bill. She died from cancer at the age of 52 – and had incurred several hundred dollars of unreimbursed health-care costs each month due to her cancer being considered a “pre-existing condition.” The “largeness of her heart,” as her son describes it, is the centerpiece of this inspiring documentary.

Directors: Vivian Norris

Producers: Brian Woods

Vivian Norris

Screenwriters: Vivian Norris

Cinematographer: Bruce Hutson

Ray Woodhouse

Yuri Zakovitch

Dennis Boni

Editor: Angelos Angelidis

Music: Josette Zakovitch

Johanna Saint-Pierre

Kate Ellis

Running Time: 83 minutes

Presentation Format: DCP

Print Source: Vigilante VNM Productions

Film Website: vigilante-vnm.com

Selected Filmography: Debut Feature Film

Obvious Child

USA 2014

TUESDAY MAY 20 7:00 PM

EGYPTIAN

WEDNESDAY MAY 21 4:30 PM SIFF CINEMA UPTOWN

Donna Stern is on the rebound—big time. After being dumped, Donna (“SNL” alum Jenny Slate) sinks into depression, which is hard to hide when your job is standup comedy. In true rom-com style, she finds comfort in her best friends, Nellie (Gaby Hoffman) and Joey (played by Slate’s real-life “gay best friend” Gabe Liedman). A particularly terrible standup set sends her into the arms of cute but dull Max (Jack Lacy), for what should be a onenight stand to escape her troubles. Weeks later, however, she realizes her troubles are just beginning: a pregnancy test comes up positive. Judging from the fart jokes in her standup act, Donna is not mature enough to hold down a real job, much less raise a child. To her credit, she realizes this early on and does something few comedic female protagonists do: She decides to have an abortion. Despite the weighty subject matter, director Gillian Robespierre, in her feature debut, injects Obvious Child with sustained laughs, casting well-known comics including Richard Kind as Donna’s father and David Cross as her sketchy boss. Donna careens from wisecracks to raw emotion as the date of her appointment nears—on Valentine’s Day, of course—and as she begins to recognize Max’s inherent decency. This funny, smart, touching film takes an honest look at personal choice, tackling a subject too often overwhelmed by politics and rarely viewed from a female perspective.

Director:

Gillian Robespierre

Producer:

Elisabeth Holm

Screenwriter: Gillian Robespierre

Cinematographer: Chris Teague

Editor: Casey Brooks

Music: Chris Bordeaux

Cast: Jenny Slate

Jake Lacy

Gaby Hoffmann

David Cross

Gabe Liedman

Running Time: 83 minutes

Presentation Format: DCP

Print Source: A24

Film Website: obviouschildmovie.com/

Selected Filmography: Debut Feature Film

HROSS Í OSS

Of Horses and Men

ICELAND/NORWAY/GERMANY 2013

SATURDAY MAY 17 1:30 PM

HARVARD EXIT

TUESDAY MAY 20 3:30 PM LINCOLN SQUARE

THURSDAY MAY 22 9:30 PM EGYPTIAN

Icelandic theater director Benedikt Erlingsson makes a noteworthy debut with this seductively strange movie. Of Horses and Men takes us through a collection of interlinked short fables about the inhabitants of an isolated farming valley, their relationships with their horses, and with each other. Matters of love, jealousy, rivalry, and solidarity unfold against the gorgeous backdrop of Iceland’s volcanic landscapes. Each plot centers on a horse and begins with a close-up on the creature, paying a unique cinematic tribute to the animal’s elegance. We then meet each owner through a reflection in their horse’s eye, showing us both the humanity of the horse and the animality of the human. In all these stories, wryness generally prevails, and even in the lightest-hearted sequences, hardship and tragedy often loom. With its deadpan black humor and memorable imagery, Iceland’s Oscar® submission is what we may call an odd little jewel.

Awards:

Official Oscar Submission 2013 (Foreign Language Film)

San Sebastian Film Festival 2013 (New Directors Prize)

Göteborg International Film Festival 2014 (Best Nordic Film Audience Award, FIPRESCI Prize)

Tallinn Black Nights Film Festival 2013 (FIPRESCI Prize, Best Film, Cinematographer)

Tokyo Film Festival 2013 (Best Director)

FOLLOWED BY:

Herd in Iceland

Iceland/USA 2013, 29 minutes, Director: Lindsay Blatt

A unique and moving portrait of Iceland’s people, horses, and stunning landscape.

Director: Benedikt Erlingsson

Producers: Fridrik Thor Fridriksson

Christoph Thoke

Screenwriter: Benedikt Erlingsson

Cinematographer: Bergsteinn Björgúlfsson

Editor: David Alexander Corno

Music: David Thor Jonsson

Cast:

Ingvar E. Sigurdsson

Charlotte Bøving

Steinn Armann Magnusson

Helgi Björnsson

Atli Rafn Sigurdarson

Running Time: 81 minutes

Presentation Format: DCP, in Icelandic, with English subtitles

International Sales: Icelandic Film Centre

Print Source: Icelandic Film Centre

Film Website: hrosss.is

Selected Filmography: Debut Feature Film

Oil & Water

WORLD PREMIERE

TUESDAY JUNE 3 7:00 PM

WEDNESDAY JUNE 4 4:15 PM

Most people are well-aware of the continuing destruction of the Amazon rainforests, but relatively few people know about the devastation happening underneath this rich ecosystem in Ecuador. Since the 1960s, oil companies have contaminated vast swaths of pristine jungle with 18 billion gallons of cancer-causing oil sludge in open-air pits. Oil & Water portrays this environmental disaster from the unique perspectives of young people at both ends of the spectrum— Hugo Lucitante, from the indigenous Cofan tribe in Ecuador, and David Poritz, from middle-class Amherst, Mass. Hugo, sent at age 10 by his tribal-elder father to get an American education, graduated from Seattle’s Bishop Blanchet High School in 2006. David first became aware of the oil catastrophe while researching a sixth-grade school project and made a commitment ever since to bring justice to the Amazon. This engaging doc follows the two teenagers with their feet in both worlds as their paths intersect over the next six years. While still in college, David fights an uphill battle to establish a “fair trade” certification system for oil production. Meanwhile, Hugo gets married to Sadie, his American high-school sweetheart, and the couple moves back and forth between his Cofan lands and the U.S. to save up for college. Oil & Water is a sobering look at the enormous pressures David and Hugo face, but it also demonstrates how two determined people can make a positive difference in the world.

Directors:

Laurel Spellman Smith

Francine Strickwerda

Producers: Laurel Spellman Smith

Francine Strickwerda

Screenwriters: Laurel Spellman Smith

Francine Strickwerda

Cinematographers: Diana Wilmar

Laurel Spellman Smith

Editor: Tracy Dethlefs

Music: Erik Aho

Featuring: Hugo Lucitante

David Poritz

Running Time: 78 minutes

Presentation Format: HDCAM, in English, Spanish, and Cofan, with English subtitles

Print Source: Stir It Up Productions LLC Film Website: oilandwaterdocumentary. com

Selected Filmography: Busting Out (2005)

IL ETAIT UNE FORÊT

Once

Upon a Forest

FRANCE 2013

SATURDAY MAY 24 2:30 PM

SIFF CINEMA UPTOWN

MONDAY MAY 26 7:00 PM EGYPTIAN

SUNDAY JUNE 1 2:30 PM KIRKLAND PC

In a tropical forest canopy high above the ground, botanist Francis Hallé sits and draws intricate drawings of all that he surveys. These drawings come alive in Oscar®-winning director Luc Jacquet’s (March of the Penguins) new film, Once Upon a Forest. Filming primarily in the Amazon jungle in Peru and in the Congo rain forest in Gabon, Jacquet’s team invites the spectator into a never-before-seen world of natural wonder and staggering beauty using powerful telephoto lenses and drones to capture novel views of nature. These striking frames are featured alongside animated sequences of the botanist’s drawings. Hallé’s vision of the world in a constant state of flux is newly expressed by this blending of visual techniques. What’s more, Jacquet illustrates how trees have the ability to communicate with other species for mutual benefit, providing a haven while defending themselves against predators. Drawing on a vast quantity of research and knowledge, Jacquet and Hallé’s journey into the depths of the tropical jungle to deliver a film of complete sensory immersion into the primeval splendor of the rainforest.

Director: Luc Jacquet

Producers: Yves Darondeau

Christophe Lioud

Emmanuel Priou

Screenwriters: Luc Jacquet

Francis Hallé

Cinematographer: Antoine Marteau

Editor: Stéphane Mazalaigue

Music: Éric Neveux

Featuring: Francis Hallé Michel Papineschi (narrator)

Running Time: 79 minutes

Presentation Format: DCP, in French, with English subtitles

International Sales: Wild Bunch

Print Source: Wild Bunch

Film Website: kpsule.me/iletaituneforet

Selected Filmography: The Fox and the Child (2007) March of the Penguins (2005)

PACIFIC PLACE

PACIFIC PLACE

SHANGHAI TAN MA YONGZHEN

Once Upon a Time in Shanghai

HONG KONG 2014

WEDNESDAY MAY 28 4:30 PM

SIFF CINEMA UPTOWN

TUESDAY JUNE 3 4:30 PM SIFF CINEMA UPTOWN

SUNDAY JUNE 8 9:15 PM PACIFIC PLACE

1930s, Shanghai. Four triads hold the city within an iron grip. Among the rain-slicked streets, smoky nightclubs, and debonair gangsters, Ma Yongzhen arrives from the country to work as a laborer. Despite being blessed with a preternatural talent for kung fu, he has promised his mother to stay out of trouble. Meanwhile, Long Qi, an ambitious young gangster, usurps leadership of the Axe Gang, giving him control over half of Shanghai: a development that earns the ire of the other gang lords. Ma’s fighting prowess soon attracts Long’s attention and the two develop an unexpected friendship. However, as tensions rise between the mainland and Imperial Japan, a network of spies manipulates the remaining triad bosses into launching a vendetta against Long Qi. Now both Long and Ma must fight for their lives against an overwhelming force of assassins. In his remake of the 1972 Shaw Brothers-produced Boxer From Shantung, director Wong Chingpo mixes gritty film noir with bravura martial arts to create a suave, slick, action-packed tour de force.

Awards:

Hong Kong Film Awards 2013 (Best New Director)

One Chance

UNITED KINGDOM 2013

SATURDAY MAY 24 7:00 PM

Director:

Wong Ching-po

Producer:

Wong Jing

Screenwriter:

Wong Jing

Cinematographer:

Jimmy Wong

Editors:

Wenders Li

Wong Mo Hang

Music:

Anthony Cheng

Hubert Ho

So Wang-ngai Hubert

Cast:

Philip Ng

Andy On

Sammo Hung

Hu Ran

Chen Kuan-tai

Running Time: 96 minutes

Presentation Format:

DCP, in Cantonese, with English subtitles

International Sales: Mei Ah Entertainment

Print Source: Mega-Vision

Selected Filmography:

Let’s Go! (2011)

Revenge: A Love Story (2010)

Mob Sister (2005)

Jiang Hu (2004)

Fu bo (2003)

LINCOLN SQUARE

FRIDAY MAY 30 7:00 PM EGYPTIAN

On March 17, 2007, Paul Potts went onstage before three judges, 2,000 audience members, and millions of television viewers to audition for “Britain’s Got Talent.” Mere seconds into his rendition of “Nessun Dorma,” his life would never be the same. Three months later, he was crowned the winner of the reality television competition’s inaugural season. But who is Paul Potts, and where did he come from?

One Chance, a stirring, pitch-perfect biopic from director David Frankel (The Devil Wears Prada), jumps back in time to a pre-fame 2004, finding Paul (played by James Corden, “Gavin & Stacey”) when he was nothing more than a stocky, unassuming mobile phone salesman. Lonely and bullied in his small Welsh town of Port Talbot, Paul finds solace in the sounds of Puccini, Leoncavallo, and Mozart, but his desire to one day grace the stage and perform these magnificent pieces of music seems like a pipe dream, especially if his working class father (Colm Meaney, The Commitments) has anything to say about it. But with the help of his encouraging mother (Julie Walters, Billy Elliot), Paul decides to shoot for the stars, and through ups and downs, arias and pitfalls, love and loss, he makes his way in front of Simon Cowell…and the world.

Director: David Frankel

Producers:

Harvey Weinstein

Bob Weinstein

Mike Menchel

Simon Cowell

Brad Weston

Kris Thykier

Screenwriter: Justin Zackham

Cinematographer: Florian Ballhaus

Editor:

Wendy Bricmont

Music: Theodore Shapiro

Cast: James Corden

Colm Meaney

Alexandra Roach

Julie Walters

Mackenzie Crook

Jemima Rooper

Running Time: 103 minutes

Presentation Format: DCP

Print Source: The Weinstein Company

Film Website: onechancemovie.net

Selected Filmography: Hope Springs (2012)

The Big Year (2011)

Marley & Me (2008)

The Devil Wears Prada (2006)

Miami Rhapsody (1995)

The One I Love

USA 2014

TUESDAY MAY 27 4:30 PM

MONDAY JUNE 2 9:30 PM

This sophisticated blend of romantic drama and science fiction follows married couple Ethan and Sophie (Mark Duplass and Elisabeth Moss), who are having trouble rekindling the sparks that began their relationship. Their therapist (Ted Danson) suggests a weekend getaway at a secluded vacation estate, where the couple spends their first night enjoying a quiet dinner, some great conversation, and even a little weed. As Sophie takes a moment to explore the grounds, she wanders into the charming guesthouse by the pool and discovers Ethan waiting for her. Their spark rekindled, they make love, and all seems back on track. That is, until she returns to the main house to find Ethan passed out on the couch with no memory of what happened. So begins a fantastical, original, and completely unpredictable story of devotion, deception, and wish fulfillment reminiscent of “Who’s Afraid of Virginia Woolf?” set in “The Twilight Zone.” Using a bare-bones script from first-time screenwriter Justin Lader, director Charlie McDowell and Seattle-based producer Mel Eslyn staged extensive, collaborative rehearsals with Duplass and Moss, leading to a pair of superb performances filled with depth, humor, and humanity. The result is a series of fantastical twists and turns that feel utterly real, but we dare not spoil a single moment in attempting to describe them. The One I Love simply must be seen to be believed.

Director: Charlie McDowell

Producer: Mel Eslyn

Screenwriter: Justin Lader

Cinematographer: Doug Emmett

Editor: Jennifer Lilly

Music: Danny Bensi

Saunder Jurriaans

Cast: Elisabeth Moss

Mark Duplass

Ted Danson

Running Time: 91 minutes

Presentation Format: DCP

Print Source: Radius-TWC

Selected Filmography: Debut Feature Film

The wry, delicate films of Hong Sang-soo have been among the great delights of international cinema over the past several years. Our Sunhi is the latest beguiling variation on the director’s eternal subjects of thwarted romance, the impossibility of truly knowing another, and the consumption of vast quantities of alcohol. Sunhi (Jung Yu-mi), just graduated from film school, asks her former instructor Professor Choi (Kim Sang-joong) for a letter of recommendation. He agrees to provide one, though he ominously stipulates that he can only write an “honest” letter. Back on campus, Sunhi calls up her ex-boyfriend Munsu (Lee Sun-kyun) in order to confront him over his debut feature, a transparent recreation of their failed relationship. While Sunhi determines to flirt Professor Choi toward more effusive praise, Munsu—whose torch still burns bright—finds a sympathetic ear to his tales of lover’s woes in old friend Jaehak (Jung Jae-young), before Jaehak himself encounters Sunhi and finds himself equally drawn to her. These crossing, tangled lines of attraction—each man unaware of the other’s desire and equally blind to those Sunhi might have for herself—intersect in the low-key yet magical fashion Hong has made uniquely his own.

Awards: Locarno International Film Festival 2013 (Best Director)

CINEMA

CINEMA

Director: Hong Sang-soo

Producer: Kim Kyoung Hee

Screenwriter: Hong Sang-soo

Cinematographer: Park Hong-yeol

Editor: Hahm Sung-won

Music:

Jeong Yong-jin

Cast:

Jung Yu-mi

Lee Sun-kyun

Kim Sang-joong

Jung Jae-young

Running Time: 88 minutes

Presentation Format: DCP, in Korean, with English subtitles

International Sales: Finecut Co.

Print Source: Finecut Co.

Film Website: finecut.co.kr

Selected Filmography: In Another Country (2012)

The Day He Arrives (2011)

Oki’s Movie (2010) Ha Ha Ha (2010)

Like You Know it All (2009) Night and Day (2008)

Woman on the Beach (2006)

A Tale of Cinema (2005)

Woman Is the Future of Man (2004)

Turning Gate (2002)

Virgin Stripped Bare By Her Bachelors (2000)

The Power of Kangwon Province (1998)

The Day a Pig Fell Into a Well (1996)

SIFF

UPTOWN

SIFF

UPTOWN

U

SUNDAY JUNE 8 6:00 PM

CINERAMA

FALASTINE STEREO

Palestine Stereo

PALESTINE/TUNISIA/FRANCE/NORWAY/ UNITED ARAB EMIRATES/ITALY/SWITZERLAND 2013

MONDAY JUNE 2 7:00 PM

SATURDAY JUNE 7 9:45 PM

Palestinian director Rashid Mashawari (Laila’s Birthday, SIFF 2009) captures the tragicomic absurdities of life under occupation in this gently ironic drama about two brothers in the West Bank. Stereo and Sami have been camping in the backyard of Sami’s former girlfriend, Leila, ever since Stereo’s apartment was destroyed in an Israeli airstrike. (The Israelis were trying to take out a terrorist on the third floor; Stereo had the bad luck to live on the fifth.) The bombing did other damage as well; Stereo’s young wife was killed, while Sami was left unable to hear or speak. Determined to start over, Stereo and Sami now take odd jobs, hoping to raise enough money to immigrate to Canada. But Leila is unwilling to let Sami go, leading to circumstances that cause the brothers to question their decision to leave. What is the benefit of a new start if everything of greatest value gets left behind?

HARVARD EXIT

HARVARD EXIT

Director: Rashid Masharawi

Producers: Habib Attia, Abdel Salam

Screenwriter: Rashid Masharawi

Cinematographer: Tarek Ben Abdallah

Editor: Pascale Chavance

Music:

Kais Sellami

Cast:

Mahmoud Abu Jazi

Salah Hannoun

Areen Omari

Running Time: 90 minutes

Presentation Format: DCP, in Arabic with English subtitles

Print Source: Cinetele Films

Selected Filmography: Land of the Story (Doc, 2012)

Little Wings (Doc, 2009)

Laila’s Birthday (2008) Waiting (2005)

Patema Inverted

JAPAN 2013

WEDNESDAY MAY 28 9:30 PM

EGYPTIAN

FRIDAY MAY 30 4:00 PM EGYPTIAN

Young Age lives in a militant society where he and his friends are brainwashed to never look up and fear the “sinners who fell into the sky.” One day, Age steals away to look up and finds a young woman, Patema, hanging upside down from a tree, her gravity completely opposite from his. Coming from an industrial complex hidden deep underground, her curiosity has taken her beyond the community’s boundaries. From this lyrical beginning, the two begin an adventure to learn the truth behind their two worlds, eventually finding there are secrets that threaten the government’s totalitarian rule. Given the universal truth that youth are always going to move beyond the boundaries that society sets for them, Patema and Age are marvelous protagonists, perfectly driving the quest to uncover the lies around each turn of the plot. With a great concept and an engagingly intelligent story, director Yasuhiro Yoshiura coordinates equally incredible animation that takes full advantage of the inverted perspectives of its characters. Patema Inverted is a must-see for more than just anime fans; it is a wonderful animated sci-fi adventure that will delight audiences looking for substance with their spectacle.

Director: Yasuhiro Yoshiura

Producers: Michiru Ohshima

Mikio Ono

Screenwriter: Yasuhiro Yoshiura

Cinematographer: Yasushiro Yoshiura

Music: Michiru Oshima

Cast: Yukiyo Fujii

Shinya Fukumatsu

Masayuki Katô

Nobuhiko Okamoto

Shintarô Oohata

Running Time: 99 minutes

Presentation Format: DCP, in Japanese, with English subtitles

Print Source: GKids

Film Website: patema.jp

Selected Filmography: Time of Eve (2010)

ISÄNMAALLINEN MIES

A Patriotic Man

FINLAND 2013

FRIDAY MAY 16 1:00 PM

LINCOLN SQUARE

THURSDAY MAY 29 9:30 PM EGYPTIAN

FRIDAY MAY 30 4:00 PM

Outwardly, Toivo (Martti Suosalo), a saturnine, out-of-work man in his 50s, is not much of a physical specimen. Inside, however, he is a secret weapon. After a trip to the doctor, a technician discovers that Toivo’s blood naturally contains an extremely high amount of hemoglobin—the kind desired by athletes to boost performance. Plus, he is O-negative, the universal donor blood type. Before long, the sad-sack Toivo is contacted by the Finnish Olympic Ski Team to tap his gold-medal blood supply. Though he initially refuses on moral grounds, officials ask him if he is a “patriotic man” who will do what he can for the ski-crazy nation. He is finally convinced by money and free cars— unquestioningly welcomed by his ambitious wife—and also to help the pretty, young Nordic skiing star, Aino (Pamela Tola). After some initial success, Toivo pays a heavy price for being used as the team’s “reserve tank.” Set in the ’70s and ’80s, A Patriotic Man is fictional but based on actual Olympic scandals. Well-known documentary director Arto Halonen effectively dramatizes how blood-doping was an open secret used to gain an edge over the mighty Soviet and Eastern Bloc teams. The dark topic is leavened by Halonen’s light comic touches, exciting skiing sequences, and a sympathetic performance by Suosalo as a man torn between serving his country and listening to his conscience.

The Pawnbroker

USA 1964

TUESDAY JUNE 3 7:00 PM

PACIFIC PLACE

Director: Arto Halonen

Producers: Arto Halonen

Igor A. Nola

Screenwriters: Arto Halonen

Jouni K. Kempainen

Cinematographer: Hannu-Pekka Vitikainen

Editor:

Tuuli Kuittinen

Music: Alfi Kabiljo

Cast: Martti Suosalo

Pamela Tola

Janne Reinikainen

Hannu-Pekka Björkman

Mikko Kouki

Running Time: 97 minutes

Presentation Format:

DCP, in Finnish, with English

subtitles

International Sales: Finnish Film Foundation

Print Source: Finnish Film Foundation

Film Website: isanmaallinenmies.fi

Selected Filmography:

When Heroes Lie (Doc, 2012)

Victors and Vanquished (Doc, 2011)

Princess (2010)

The Magnetic Man (Doc, 2009)

Shadow of the Holy Book (Doc, 2007)

Confrontations in Cuba (Doc, 2007)

Pavlov’s Dogs (Doc, 2006)

Moonshine Village (Doc, 2006)

Conquistadors of Cuba (Doc, 2005)

Karmapa - Two Ways of Divinity (Doc, 1998)

Karmapa - A Voyage on the Roof of the World (Doc, 1998)

A Dreamer and the Dreamtribe (Doc, 1998)

Sol Nazerman (Rod Steiger, in a career-defining performance) is a survivor—not just of the mean streets of Spanish Harlem, where he runs a pawnbroker business, but of the Third Reich. Formerly a university professor in Germany, Nazerman witnessed the deaths of his children and the rape and murder of his wife at the hands of the Nazis. Haunted by horrifying flashbacks, he has hardened his heart, focusing only on extracting money from his desperate customers, whom he considers “rejects” and “scum.” Nazerman has accepted that his pawnshop is really a front for a local criminal organization, but when he learns that the money comes partially from a prostitution ring, he makes a stand in honor of his late wife. This 1964 film adaptation of Edward Lewis Wallant’s novel is as emotionally harrowing now, 50 years later, as it was shocking for its day. Directed by Sidney Lumet and featuring a haunting jazz score by Quincy Jones, The Pawnbroker is a groundbreaking classic, hailed as the first American film to depict the Holocaust from a survivor’s point of view. It was also the first major film to defy the Hays Code and show nudity on screen. In 2008, The Pawnbroker was selected for preservation in the U.S. National Film Registry as being “culturally, historically, or aesthetically significant.” Don’t miss this rare chance to view it on the big screen.

Awards: Berlin Film Festival 1964 (Best Actor)

British Academy Film Awards 1964 (Best Foreign Actor) Academy Awards 1966 (Nominated Best Actor)

Director: Sidney Lumet

Producers: Philip Langner

Roger Lewis

Screenwriters: Morton Fine

David Friedkin

based on a novel by Edward Lewis Wallant

Cinematographer: Boris Kaufman

Editor: Ralph Rosenblum

Music: Quincy Jones

Cast: Rod Steiger

Geraldine Fitzgerald

Brock Peters

Jaime Sánchez

Thelma Oliver

Running Time: 116 minutes

Presentation Format: DCP

International Sales: Paramount Pictures

Print Source: Paramount Pictures

Selected Filmography: Before the Devil Knows You’re Dead (2007)

Running on Empty (1988)

The Morning After (1986)

The Verdict (1982)

Prince of the City (1981)

The Wiz (1978)

Equus (1977)

Network (1976)

Dog Day Afternoon (1975)

Murder on the Orient Express (1974)

Serpico (1973)

Long Day’s Journey into Night (1962)

12 Angry Men (1957)

HARVARD EXIT

Pierrot Lunaire

GERMANY/CANADA 2014 NORTH AMERICAN PREMIERE

SATURDAY MAY 24 10:00 PM

SIFF CINEMA UPTOWN

THURSDAY MAY 29 10:00 PM SIFF CINEMA UPTOWN

Legendary queercore provocateur Bruce

LaBruce puts his own crazy stamp on a classic piece of musical theater. Back in 1912, the actress Albertine Zehme asked composer Arnold Schönberg to set the “Pierrot Lunaire” poems to music, so he took 21 of them and created a cabaret-like show. In his adaptation, LaBruce takes a 1912 aesthetic—silent film acting, mostly black-and-white footage, and intertitles—then incorporates his own explicit vision of male sexuality. Inspired by the true story of a transgender man in 1970s Toronto, LaBruce’s adaptation concerns Pierrot, whose girlfriend is oblivious to his birth sex. When her father suspects the truth and forbids them to see each other, Pierrot sets out on a quest to find a penis and prove to his girlfriend’s father that Pierrot is a man. LaBruce had previously made a stage version of the story, and here he builds upon that to make something erotic, energetic, and visually playful.

Awards:

Berlin Film Festival 2014 (Teddy Special Jury Award)

PRECEDED BY:

Vis à Vis

USA 2013, 25 minutes, Director: Abigail Child

A testament to 16mm black and white celluloid and differing sexualities, seductions, and (d)alliances.

Director: Bruce LaBruce

Producers: Jürgen Brüning

Bruce LaBruce

Cinematographer: Ismail Necmi

Editor: Jorn Hartmann

Music: Arnold Schönberg

Cast: Susanne Sachsse

Paulina Bachmann

Boris Lisowski

Mehdi Berkouko

Krishna Kumar Krishnan

Running Time: 51 minutes

Presentation Format: DCP, in German, with English subtitles

International Sales: m-Appeal

Print Source: m-Appeal

Film Website: raspberryandcream.com

Selected Filmography: Gerontophilia (2013)

L.A. Zombie (2010)

Otto, or Up with Dead People (2008)

The Raspberry Reich (2004)

Skin Flick / Skin Gang (1999)

Hustler White (1996)

Super 8 1/2 (1993)

No Skin Off My Ass (1993)

MAKOM BEGAN EDEN A Place in Heaven ISRAEL 2013

SATURDAY MAY 24 6:30 PM

SUNDAY MAY 25 1:00 PM

MONDAY MAY 26 5:30 PM

In striking images, Yossi Madmony (Restoration)’s newest is an allegorical epic spanning the history of Israel over the course of three wars, but with a father-son story as its conflicted center. Religious ideals, familial goals, and longed-for love are the high stakes of this personal drama, which radiate outward through larger societal tensions. It’s a composite of stories inspired by several reallife generals whose controversial military and later political records are debated to this day.

A Place In Heaven is concerned with a tenet of Jewish religious law that allows a person to trade in their place in for something preferable—and implicitly secular. That’s what occurs when a brave officer nicknamed Bambi, like a flawed hero of the Old Testament, returns from a mission and is met by a young army cook, a religious Holocaust survivor who believes that there’s a special place in heaven for those who sacrifice as Bambi does in battle. He offers the soldier a month’s worth of his favorite meal in exchange for his heavenly seat. The nonbelieving Bambi is happy to oblige. The result has profound and unexpected consequences. Eventually, Bambi’s son Nimrod, disgusted by his father’s implication in war crimes, goes in the other direction, turning to other father figures for mentorship in how to live as a religious Jew. Madmony’s interweaving shows brilliant depth and tenderness in telling an epic, yet intimate, tale.

HARVARD EXIT

HARVARD EXIT

RENTON IKEA PAC

Director: Yossi Madmony

Producers: David Mandil

Moshe Edery

Leon Edery

Screenwriter: Yossi Madmony

Cinematographer: Boaz Yehonatan Yacov

Editor: Arik Lahav Leibovich

Music: Ophir Leibovitch

Cast: Alon moni Aboutboul

Tom Graziani

Rotem Zisman-Cohen

Keren Berger

Running Time: 117 minutes

Presentation Format: DCP, in Hebrew, with English subtitles

Print Source: Movie Plus Productions

Selected Filmography: Restoration (2011)

Melanoma ahuvati (2006)

The Barbecue People (2003)

LA REINE MARGOT

Queen Margot

FRANCE/ITALY/GERMANY 1994

MONDAY MAY 26 3:45 PM

Based on the classic novel by Alexandre Dumas, Queen Margot is a lush and sumptuous historical drama. The Catholic Marguerite de Valois (Isabelle Adjani), nicknamed Margot by her brother King Charles IX, is bound in a loveless political marriage to Henri de Bourbon (Daniel Auteuil), the protestant King of Navarre. The move was orchestrated by her mother, Catherine de’ Medici, to establish peace throughout the Kingdom of France. However, within days of their marriage, a wave of assassinations and mob violence breaks out on the streets of Paris. In the midst of this horrific violence, Margot encounters La Môle, a wounded young man from a well-todo Protestant family. The pair soon embarks upon a passionate affair, as courtly intrigue and serial poisonings threaten both King and Kingdom. Winner of five César awards, including Best Actress, and the prestigious Jury Prize at the 1994 Cannes Film Festival, the film was recently screened as part of the Cannes Classic section in 2013 and is presented here fully restored in stunning 4k.

Awards:

Cannes Film Festival 1994 (Jury Prize, Best Actress)

César Awards 1995 (Best Actress, Supporting Actor, Supporting Actress, Cinematography, Costume Design)

Quod Erat Demonstrandum

ROMANIA 2013

SUNDAY MAY 18 7:30 PM SIFF CINEMA UPTOWN

MONDAY MAY 19 3:30 PM SIFF CINEMA UPTOWN

WEDNESDAY MAY 21 3:30 PM LINCOLN SQUARE

Director:

Patrice Chéreau

Producer:

Claude Berri

Screenwriters:

Patrice Chéreau

Danièle Thompson

Cinematographer:

Philippe Rousselot

Editors:

François Gédigier

Hélène Viard

Music:

Goran Bregovic

Cast:

Isabelle Adjani

Daniel Auteuil

Jean-Hugues Anglade

Vincent Perez

Virna Lisi

Running Time: 159 minutes

Presentation Format: DCP, in French, with English subtitles

Print Source: Cohen Collection

Selected Filmography:

Persécution (2009)

Gabrielle (2006)

His Brother (2003)

Intimacy (2001)

Those Who Love Me Can

Take the Train (1998)

Lest We Forget (1991)

Hôtel de France (1987)

The Wounded Man (1984)

Judith Therpauve (1978)

The Flesh of the Orchid (1975)

Shot in luminous black-and-white, Quod Erat Demonstrandum—often written as “Q.E.D.” at the conclusion of a mathematical proof— evokes the suffocating nature and deprivation of the Romanian police state, while exposing the cracks that would soon lead to its violent demise. Romanian mathematician Sorin Parvu (Sorin Leoveanu) made a splash when an article on one of his theorems was published in an American journal. But because he’s a citizen of the Ceaușescu regime of the 1980s, all that matters to the Securitate, or secret police, is Sorin’s loyalty. Because he’s not an official member of the Communist Party, Sorin has been unable to earn his official Ph.D. Now that he’s published a paper in the West without going through the proper state channels, the rebellious math genius becomes the subject of an investigation by Securitate agent Alecu Voican (Florin Piersic, Jr.). To dig up more dirt, Alecu enlists the help of Sorin’s friend Lucian (Dorian Boguta), who has grown wealthy by collaborating with state officials. Alecu is also on the trail of engineer Elena (Ofelia Popii), a colleague and secret love interest of Sorin’s. Elena wants to join her husband, who had defected to France years earlier, but Alecu has other plans for her in his twisted game of deception and betrayal. With exacting period details, director Andrei Gruzsniczki shows how the Securitate effectively stoked paranoia and preyed on personal relationships to exploit weaknesses.

Awards: Rome Film Festival 2013 (Special Jury Prize)

Director: Andrei Gruzsniczki

Producer: Velvet Moraru

Screenwriter: Andrei Gruzsniczki

Cinematographer: Vivi Drăgan Vasile

Editor:

Dana Bunescu

Cast:

Ofelia Popii

Sorin Leoveanu

Florin Piersic Jr.

Virgil Ogaşanu

Dorian Boguta

Tora Vasilescu

Running Time:

105 minutes

Presentation Format:

DCP, in Romanian, with English subtitles

International Sales:

Icon Production

Print Source:

Icon Production

Selected Filmography: The Other Irene (2009)

EGYPTIAN

FARSH W’GHATA

Rags and Tatters

TUESDAY MAY 20 6:00 PM

SATURDAY MAY 24 11:00 AM

Hailed by “Variety” as “a touchstone of postrevolutionary Egyptian cinema,” Rags & Tatters reflects the ongoing cultural endeavor of a country to process its own tumultuous upheaval. During the Revolution and its aftermath, director Ahmad Abdalla (Microphone, SIFF 2011) was active with a video collective committed to documenting what transpired on the ground, an experience that provided the inspiration for this film. The story begins in the days preceding Hosni Mubarak’s fall, when security forces largely vanished and several jails were inexplicably opened. Rags’ nameless protagonist walks out of one such jail and into a world of violent anarchy. After his friend is fatally shot, he takes the man’s cellphone, which contains disturbing and brutal footage, and sets out into the chaos of Cairo to find his friend’s family and deliver the evidence to a wider audience. Blending fiction and documentary—a hallmark of his work— Abdalla has crafted a complex and striking film of great dramatic resonance. Appropriately, the dialogue is minimal; as with the events themselves, it’s the images that tell the story.

Awards: Montpellier International Mediterranean Film Festival 2014 (Golden Antigone)

Razing the Bar

USA 2014

WORLD PREMIERE

TUESDAY MAY 20 9:00 PM

TUESDAY MAY 27 9:00 PM

Director: Ahmad Abdalla

Producer: Mohamed Hefzy

Screenwriter: Ahmad Abdalla

Cinematographer: Tarek Hefny

Editor: Hisham Sagr

Music: Mahmoud Hamdy

Cast: Asser Yassin

Atef Yousef

Amr Abed Yara Gubran

Mohamed Mamdouh

Running Time: 87 minutes

Presentation Format: DCP, in Arabic, with English subtitles

International Sales: Film Clinic

Print Source: Visit Films

Film Website: visitfilms.com

Selected Filmography: Microphone (2010) Heliopolis (2008)

Loud, messy, and often outrageous, The Funhouse was one of Seattle’s landmark punk rock venues. From 2003 to 2012, the venue offered artists a place to experiment with new musical styles and performance ideas, and quickly became a breeding ground for local talent. As a young man, KEXP DJ Brian Foss made the decision that it was better to fail at something that you loved than spend a lifetime doing something that you hated, and he imbued The Funhouse with the same spirit, creating a place where creativity, risk, and fun could flourish both onstage and off. Many members of the venue’s offstage community soon found their way both onstage and into the Seattle culture at-large, including the thennascent burlesque movement and the Rat City Rollergirls. First-time director Ryan Worsley was one of those people in the crowd, and had been documenting the scene for years. By incorporating a wealth of archival footage and memorabilia with dozens of interviews with employees, friends, and a multitude of local musicians, Worsley’s Razing the Bar stands as a testament to the creative community that The Funhouse fostered, as well as a warning of what may become lost in Seattle’s all-consuming quest for urban density.

Director: Ryan Worsley

Producers: Debbie Porter

Ryan Worsley

Screenwriters: Ryan Worsley

Kris Kristensen

Laura Dean

Cinematographers: Ryan Worsley

Kris Kristensen

Editors:

Ryan Worsley

Kris Kristensen

Music: Aaron Nicholes

Featuring:

Brian Foss

Joetta Velasquez

Bill Bullock

Chris Chambers

Jake Stratton

Rachel Ratner

Running Time: 83 minutes

Presentation Format: HDCAM

Print Source: Pool Food

Film Website: funhousedocumentary. com

Selected Filmography: Debut Feature Film

SIFF CINEMA UPTOWN

HARVARD EXIT

SIFF CINEMA UPTOWN

SIFF CINEMA UPTOWN

Red Knot

USA/ARGENTINA/ANTARCTICA 2014 WORLD PREMIERE

SATURDAY MAY 31 6:00 PM

SUNDAY JUNE 1 2:30 PM

Echoing Michelangelo Antonioni’s groundbreaking L’Avventura, Scott Cohen’s Red Knot is a modern exploration of love, isolation, and the inescapable vastness of the natural world. Peter (Vincent Kartheiser, “Mad Men”) and Chloe (Olivia Thirlby, Juno), a young married couple, jump at the chance to satisfy their wanderlust by taking a belated honeymoon aboard a research vessel bound for Antarctica. Once on board, Peter, a writer, occupies his time documenting the work of whale biologist Roger Payne (playing himself), leaving little time for Chloe. Feeling increasingly neglected by her husband, Chloe begins to drift closer to the enigmatic Captain Emerson (Billy Campbell, The Killing). As Peter dives deeper into his work and Chloe’s sense of abandonment increases, an act of betrayal ultimately divides the young lovers, driving Chloe to separate herself from Peter, both physically and emotionally. Isolated on the ship and separated from humanity by the vast, rugged expanse of Antarctica, Peter and Chloe must plumb the depths of their love to discover what each so desperately needs to move forward. Set against the stunning backdrop of the Southern Ocean and the jagged coast of Antarctica, Scott Cohen’s Red Knot explores the dual themes of isolation and intimacy via the fragile relationship of a pair of newlyweds. With fearless performances from Thirlby and Kartheiser, Red Knot is a fascinating examination of proximity, seclusion, and the ambivalence of love.

Regarding Susan Sontag USA 2014

SIFF CINEMA UPTOWN

SIFF CINEMA UPTOWN

Director:

Scott Cohen

Producer:

Scott Cohen

Screenwriter:

Scott Cohen

Cinematographer:

Michael Simmonds

Editor:

Dominic La Perriere

Music:

Garth Stevenson

Cast:

Vincent Kartheiser

Olivia Thirlby

Billy Campbell

Lisa Harrow

Roger Payne

Running Time: 82 minutes

Presentation Format: DCP

Print Source:

Thunder Perfect Mind

Film Website: redknotfilm.com

Selected Filmography: Debut Feature Film

SUNDAY MAY 18 3:30 PM

MONDAY MAY 19 4:00 PM

She paved the way for cultural criticism with her essays on society, media, and gender identity. She strove against conventional theories of war and advocated for human and equal rights. Nancy Kates’ documentary Regarding Susan Sontag takes audiences through the life, career, and passion of the famed literary icon and political activist. An opinionated essayist since age fifteen, Sontag was always eager to grow up, see the world, and meet other intellectuals. Kates’ film traces Sontag’s life from her young adulthood awakening, through her literary successes with “Against Interpretation” (including her seminal “Notes on Camp”) and “The Way We Live Now” (about the AIDS crisis), all the way up to her romance with photographer Annie Leibovitz and her bold stance on 9/11. The documentary portrays Sontag as an influential and provocative writer who deconstructed ideas of femininity, embraced and analyzed gay culture, and examined important works of cinema. Kates pays respect to and uncovers secrets of the icon, through exclusive interviews with close friends and writers such as Harriet Sohmers Zwerling, Stephen Koch, and Fran Lebowitz. Featuring rich readings of Sontag’s work by actress Patricia Clarkson, Regarding Susan Sontag is a complex, detailed, and moving tribute to the literary and feminist pioneer.

Awards: Tribecca Film Festival 2014 (Special Jury Prize)

HARVARD EXIT

HARVARD EXIT

Director:

Nancy Kates

Producer:

Nancy Kates

Rachel Amtell

Screenwriters: Nancy Kates

John Haptas

Cinematographer: Sophie Constantinou

Editor: John Haptas

Music:

Laura Karpman

Nora Kroll-Rosenbaum

Running Time: 100 minutes

Presentation Format: DCP

International Sales: Sontag Film

Print Source: Question Why Films

Film Website: sontagfilm.org

Selected Filmography: Debut Feature Film

ALSIN UDIRDLAGA

Remote Control

MONGOLIA/GERMANY/USA 2013

THURSDAY MAY 22 6:00 PM

SIFF CINEMA UPTOWN

SATURDAY MAY 24 3:00 PM SIFF CINEMA UPTOWN

Tsogoo (aka Birdie) is a dreamer, but his Mongolian reality is far from his dreams. His poor and broken family comes from a small village near the Mongolian capitol of Ulan Bator. Tsogoo’s hero is a young monk who, legend has it, was persecuted because he could fly. Birdie recreates his hero’s adventures in a handmade cartoon flipbook. When Birdie makes it to work, he delivers milk in the city. These visits open Birdie’s eyes to another world, and he decides to leave his village and camp out on a rooftop in the city. On his rooftop, Birdie spies on a woman in her skyscraper apartment and falls in love. When Birdie uses a remote control on the woman’s television, what begins as an innocent game turns gradually into an obsession. Full of surprising visions and unexpected camera angles, and a haunting music score by classical Mongolian composer Sansar Sangidorj, Remote Control is a unique and hopeful vision of today’s Mongolia.

Awards:

Busan Film Festival 2013 (New Currents Award)

Director: Byamba Sakhya

Producer: Ariunaa Tserenpil

Screenwriter: Byamba Sakhya

Cinematographer: Charles Libin

Editors: Byamba Sakhya

Naomi Spirio

Music: Sansar Sangidorj

Cast: Baasandorj Enkhtaivan

Bayarmaa Nergui

Ganbaatar Chagnaadorj

Running Time: 90 minutes

Presentation Format: DCP, in Mongolian, with English subtitles

International Sales:

Deckert Distribution

Print Source:

Deckert Distribution

Selected Filmography: Passion (2010)

Rhymes for Young Ghouls

CANADA (QUÉBEC) 2013 US

SATURDAY MAY 31 9:00 PM

SUNDAY JUNE 1 11:00 AM PACIFIC PLACE

Kawennáhere Devery Jacobs gives a ferocious lead performance as Aila, a teenage resident of Canada’s Red Crow reservation circa 1976. Hardened by her mother’s suicide and her father Joseph’s incarceration, Aila assists in her dope-ridden uncle’s seedy marijuana trade, using the extra cash as a means of avoiding the abusive, governmentmandated residential schools forced upon the Native population. Upon her father’s return from prison, the venomous Popper, an “Indian Agent” with a deeply seated grudge against Joseph stemming from a childhood incident, reappears and violently interrupts their tenuous reconciliation. Due to Popper’s legal right to mete out “justice” through whatever means necessary, Aila finds her business and her family on the brink of collapse, leaving her with no choice but to exact revenge. A teen-focused, blood-soaked depiction of rural isolation, deadly grudges, familial loyalty, and noir-inspired lawlessness, Rhymes for Young Ghouls positions itself as an unofficial companion piece to Debra Granik’s 2010 SIFF award-winner Winter’s Bone, with the First Nations land of Canada standing in for Missouri’s desolate Ozark Mountains.

Awards:

Vancouver Film Critics Circle 2014 (Best Director of a Canadian Film)

Vancouver International Film Festival 2013 (Best Canadian First Feature Award)

Director: Jeff Barnaby

Producers: John Christou

Aisling Chin-yee

Screenwriter: Jeff Barnaby

Cinematographer: Michel St Martin

Editors: Jeff Barnaby

Mathieu Belanger

Music: Jeff Barnaby

Joe Barruco

Cast: Kawennáhere Devery

Jacobs

Glen Gould

Brandon Oakes

Mark Antony Krupa

Roseanne Supernault

Running Time: 85 minutes

Presentation Format: DCP, in English and Mi’gMaq, with English subtitles

International Sales: eOne Entertainment

International

Print Source: eOne Entertainment

International

Film Website: Facebook.com/

RhymesForYoungGouls

Selected Filmography: Debut Feature Film

HARVARD EXIT

Rigor Mortis

HONG KONG 2013

FRIDAY MAY 23 MIDNIGHT EGYPTIAN

SATURDAY MAY 24 10:00 PM PACIFIC PLACE

SUNDAY MAY 25 8:30 PM RENTON IKEA PAC GEUNG SI

A washed-up actor makes his new home at a gloomy tenement building populated mostly by quiet retirees. Still haunted by the death of his family, the actor attempts to hang himself in his room, an act of violence that releases the building’s hidden tenants—vengeful ghosts, hopping vampires, and other dark spirits who unleash a war between the human and supernatural realms. A loving tribute to the classic Mr Vampire film series, Rigor Mortis slowly reveals the truth behind the residents— a recently-widowed seamstress knows how to raise the dead, a friendly food-stall owner is a former zombie hunter, and the resident spinster isn’t as crazy as she seems—while letting the creepy ghost-story atmosphere build into sudden moments of exhilarating action and unflinchingly gory special effects that explode onto the screen. With a cast filled with classic Hong Kong genre stars, including martial arts choreographer Chung Fat and former Mr Vampire star Chin Siu-ho playing a heightened version of himself, first-time director Juno Mak—under the guidance of veteran Asian horror director Takashi Shimizu (The Grudge)—delivers a uniquely modern take on the darker side of Chinese mythology. Populated with knowing nods to a generation of horror films, Rigor Mortis is a veritable feast for genre fans.

Awards: Taipei Film Festival 2013 (FIPRESCI Prize) Gérardmer Film Festival 2014 (Special Jury Prize)

Director: Juno Mak

Producers: Juno Mak

Takashi Shimizu

Screenwriters: Juno Mak

Philip Yung

Jill Leung

Cinematographer: Ng Kai Ming

Editor: David Richardson

Music:

Nath Connelly

Cast: Chin Siu-Ho

Kara Wai

Nina Paw

Anthony Chan

Lo Hoi Pang

Running Time: 105 minutes

Presentation Format: DCP, in Cantonese, with English subtitles

International Sales: Fortissimo Films

Print Source: Fortissimo Films

Film Website: kudos-films.com/en/ RigorMortis

Selected Filmography: Debut Feature Film

The Rocky Horror Picture Show

UNITED KINGDOM/USA 1975

FRIDAY MAY 16 MIDNIGHT

It was great when it all began, in 1976, at the first Seattle International Film Festival. That’s where audiences got their first taste of what would become the longest running theatrical release in cinema history: The Rocky Horror Picture Show For our 40th anniversary, Midnight Adrenaline is inviting you to a very special night, an all-new interactive version of the daddy (and mommy) of cult cinema featuring custom goodie bags filled with props (including some new ones), subtitles for the most outrageous callbacks, boisterous singing along from all, and stimulating pre-show games. Be prepared for breakthroughs, elusive ingredients, and that...SPARK! Based on the hugely popular London stage play, The Rocky Horror Picture Show is writer-producer Richard O’Brien’s musical tribute to B-movies, sci-fi, ’50s rock, and Hammer Horror, all filtered through the transgressive and camp attitudes of rock opera and punk. Tim Curry gives an iconic performance as the nefarious, cross-dressing FrankN-Furter, who lures the milquetoast couple Brad and Janet (newcomers Barry Bostwick and Susan Sarandon) into his debaucherous world. A flop when originally released, the film gained a second life through midnight screenings and a core audience of rabid fans who embraced the sweet transvestite’s message of “Don’t dream it…be it.” Presented in collaboration with the Alamo Drafthouse and The Action Pack.

Awards: National Film Preservation Board (Official Selection) Academy of Science Fiction, Fantasy & Horror Films (Hall of Fame)

Director: Jim Sharman

Producer: Michael White

Screenwriters: Richard O’Brien

Jim Sharman

Cinematographer: Peter Suschitzky

Editor: Graeme Clifford

Music: Richard O’Brien

Richard Hartley

Cast: Tim Curry

Susan Sarandon

Barry Bostwick

Richard O’Brien

Meat Loaf

Running Time: 100 minutes

Presentation Format: DCP

Print Source: Twentieth Century Fox

Film Website: rockyhorror.com

Selected Filmography: Shock Treatment (1981)

The Night, The Prowler (1978)

Summer of Secrets (1976)

Shirley Thompson Versus the Aliens (1972)

EGYPTIAN

The Rooftops

SATURDAY MAY 24 4:30 PM

MONDAY MAY 26 9:30 PM

THURSDAY MAY 29 4:00 PM

Merzak Allouache (The Repentant, SIFF 2013), widely considered Algeria’s most important living director, is at the top of his game in The Rooftops, a multi-character portrait of life in the country’s capital city. Taking place on a single day and structured by the five calls to prayer that reverberate across Algiers, the film takes us to five different neighborhoods to explore the nation’s religious, class, and gender divides as well as the fractious coexistence of its revolutionary past and conservative present. An underhanded businessman and his partner, a documentary filmmaker and her crew, a crazy old man who may or may not have fought in the War of Independence, a band practicing for an upcoming gig, an imam and his followers—a complex cross section of lives play out on rooftop terraces from the ramshackle tenements of the Casbah to the upscale highrises on the glittering Mediterranean. In The Rooftops, Allouache demonstrates both a deep affection for and a critical engagement with the country and its people.

Awards:

Abu Dhabi Film Festival 2013 (Best Director, FIPRESCI Prize)

LINCOLN SQUARE

HARVARD EXIT

SIFF CINEMA UPTOWN LES

Director:

Merzak Allouache

Producers:

Merzak Allouache

Jacques Bidou

Marianne Dumoulin

Screenwriter:

Merzak Allouache

Cinematographer: Frédéric Derrien

Editor:

Sylvie Gadmer

Cast:

Adila Bendimerad

Nassima Belmihoub

Ahcene Benzerari

Aïssa Chouat

Mourad Khen

Running Time: 92 minutes

Presentation Format: DCP, in Arabic and French, with English subtitles

International Sales: Elle Driver

Print Source: Elle Driver

Film Website: elledriver.fr/les-terrasses

Selected Filmography:

The Repentant (2012)

Normal! (2011)

Harragas (2009)

Bab el web (2007)

Chouchou (2005)

The Other World (2001)

Salut Cousin (1996)

Bab el Oued City (1993)

Un Amour à Paris (1986)

L’Homme qui Regardait

les Fenêtres (1983)

Mughamarat Batal (1976)

Omar Gatlato (1976)

L’ARMÉE DU SALUT

Salvation Army

MOROCCO/FRANCE 2013

TUESDAY MAY 27 6:00 PM SIFF CINEMA UPTOWN

FRIDAY MAY 30 2:00 PM SIFF CINEMA UPTOWN

In a daring and heartfelt film that inspires empathy and understanding, Paris-based Moroccan writer Abdellah Taïa has adapted his autobiographical novel about growing up gay in a culture disinclined to acceptance (Taïa’s coming out in a French interview in 2007 caused controversy back home). Gorgeously made—with cinematography by Agnès Godard, Claire Denis’ regular cameraperson—Salvation Army is nothing short of a milestone. Divided into two parts, the film first gives us a snapshot of 15-year-old Abdellah (Saïd Mrini), a willful working-class teenager exploring the boundaries of his sexuality in sometimes furtive, sometimes open, and sometimes transgressive ways. Part two transports us 10 years into the future when Abdellah (now played by Karim Ait M’Hand) negotiates a new life as a scholarship student in Geneva, where being a gay Moroccan in a cold European city presents a different set of obstacles. Taïa’s direction is candid and emotionally honest throughout, an outstanding achievement in a film with many.

Director: Abdellah Taïa

Producers: Hugues Charbonneau

Marie Ange Luciani

Screenwriter: Abdellah Taïa

Cinematographer: Agnès Godard

Editor: Françoise Tourmen

Cast: Saïd Mrini

Karim Ait M’Hand

Amine Ennaji

Malika El Hamaoui

Frederic Landenberg

Running Time: 82 minutes

Presentation Format: DCP, in Arabic and French, with English subtitles

International Sales: Ramonda Films

Print Source: Ramonda Films

Film Website: pascaleramonda.com/ salvation-army

Selected Filmography: Debut Feature Film

Awards: Angers European Film Festival 2014 (Jury Award, Best French Film)

Sam & Amira

USA 2014

WORLD PREMIERE

FRIDAY MAY 30 9:00 PM

SIFF CINEMA UPTOWN

SATURDAY MAY 31 11:30 AM SIFF CINEMA UPTOWN

Tracing the relationship between Sam (Martin Starr, Knocked Up, “Freaks & Geeks”), an Iraq war veteran, and Amira (Dina Shihabi), an Iraqi immigrant on the verge of deportation, Sean Mullin’s feature film debut is an assured romantic drama that packs a true emotional punch. After returning from duty in the Middle East, Sam attempts to reintegrate into civilian society, though often finds himself at a loss when it comes to dealing with people outside of a war zone. Seeing an opportunity in Sam’s veteran status, his cousin Charlie (Paul Wesley, “The Vampire Diaries”), an unscrupulous venture capitalist, enlists Sam to help close a funding round with a lucrative donor (David Rasche), himself a veteran. Meanwhile, Sam becomes the reluctant host to Amira, offering her a place to stay as she sorts out her immigration status. When Sam’s involvement with Charlie and his budding romantic relationship with Amira come into conflict, Sam must choose between his evolving conscience and his fledgling career. Drawing on his own experience in the military, writer-director Mullin brings a nuanced, well-observed relationship drama to life with the help of standout performances from his two leads. Sam & Amira is a stark indie drama that looks past common stereotypes to get to the heart of the very real human beings behind them.

Director:

Sean Mullin

Producers:

Matt Miller

Erich Lochner

Terry Leonard

Screenwriter: Sean Mullin

Cinematographer: Danny Vecchione

Editor: Julian Robinson

Cast: Martin Starr

Dina Shihabi

Paul Wesley

Laith Nakli

David Rasche

Running Time: 92 minutes

Presentation Format: DCP, in English and Arabic, with English subtitles

Print Source: Vanishing Angle

Film Website: samandamira.com

Selected Filmography: Debut Feature Film

The Search for General Tso

USA 2014

FRIDAY MAY 16 11:00 AM PACIFIC PLACE

SATURDAY MAY 17 3:45 PM LINCOLN SQUARE

SUNDAY MAY 18 6:30 PM PACIFIC PLACE

General Tso’s chicken, a stir-fried blend of fried chicken, vegetables, and a sticky sweet and spicy sauce, is a staple of every takeout Chinese food restaurant in the United States, making it one of the most popular and profitable dishes in the country. Of the more than fifty thousand restaurants serving the dish, none of them seem to know for sure if General Tso himself originated the recipe or how it become so prevalent. The Search for General Tso is a brisk and entertaining culinary detective story that uncovers the surprising, enlightening, and appetizing history of Chinese food in America, as well as a tale of immigration, adaptation, and innovation. In addition to interviewing chefs, cultural scholars, the world’s foremost Chinese takeout menu collector, and “The Fortune Cookie Chronicles” author Jennifer 8. Lee, director Ian Cheney also travels the globe to discover the origins of the dish. Starting with China’s Hunan Province, home of General Tso namesake Zuo Zongtang, the story then moves to San Francisco, where Chinese cuisine was first embraced by Western taste buds, and then into the Midwest, where takeout culture exploded. Eventually, we meet the bemused and befuddled mastermind behind the dish, who is genuinely surprised by how prevalent his recipe has become.

Director: Ian Cheney

Producers: Amanda Murray

Jennifer 8. Lee

Cinematographers: Ian Cheney

Taylor Gentry

Editor: Frederick Shanahan

Music: Simon Beins

Ben Fries

Running Time: 73 minutes

Presentation Format: HDCAM

International Sales: Cargo Film and Releasing

Print Source: Wicked Delicate Films LLC

Film Website: thesearchforgeneraltso.com

Selected Filmography: The City Dark (Doc, 2011) Truck Farm (Doc, 2011) The Greening of Southie (Doc, 2008)

MAYOR’S AWARD 2014 IN FILM OUTSTANDING ACHIEVEMENT FOR IS PROUDLY

Ron Leamon has designed costumes for films, television series, and commercial productions for over 30 years, featuring the talents of Alan Arkin, James Earl Jones, Dolly Parton, Parker Posey, David Lynch, and many others. His work has been showcased at MOHAI and the Festival International Cinéma Costumes et Mode in Paris which celebrates costume design in film.

Leamon’s works have showcased Seattle and the northwest in feature films including the Sundance award winning Smoke Signals, Lynn Shelton’s Laggies, David Lynch’s Blue Velvet, and Stephen Gyllenhaal’s Grassroots His television series work includes Twin Peaks and Stephen King’s Rose Red. His commercial production work includes hundreds of local, national, and international clients.

In addition to his film production work, Leamon is a well-respected, tireless advocate of the northwest film industry. In 1998, Leamon organized the first ever film lobbying event on behalf of the industry. He is the President and Chair of political action committee Washington FilmPAC, is an active member of IATSE 488 and the Costume Designers Guild 892, and serves on the board of the University of Washington School of Drama.

RON LE AMON

Leamon’s devotion to fostering and attracting new business and talent has raised the profile of Seattle and the region’s film industry through his advocacy and cultivation of new film business, and his mentorship and support of young and up-and-coming talent. Through his work, Ron Leamon continues to be a vital source of energy and inspiration for the industry.

Award Criteria and Process: The Mayor’s Award for Outstanding Achievement in Film is made to an individual or entity which has raised the profile of the City of Seattle and its film industry through an outstanding film-related achievement, or major contribution to the growth, advancement and reputation of Seattle as a filmmaking city. The five Seattle film industry representatives on the Nomination and Selection Committee reached a unanimous decision on the 2014 nomination.

Seeds of Time

SUNDAY JUNE 1 12:00 PM

MONDAY JUNE 2 6:00 PM

An obsession with perfecting farming has inadvertently threatened the wellbeing of global food security. The compelling and timely debut feature from Sandy McLeod is, in her words, “about someone who saw a disaster in the making and was able to do something about it.” That someone is crop diversity pioneer and conservationist Cary Fowler, who received funding from the Gates Foundation and others to found the Svalbard Global Seed Vault in 2008. The steel compound deep in a Norwegian Arctic mountain is the first of its kind, built to last 1,000 years and to withstand even nuclear war. Its purpose is to save the original seeds that global communities have relied on for centuries for survival. For decades, Fowler has been swimming upstream, fighting our fixation with creating the cheapest, most productive farming systems. McLeod catches up with where Fowler is today in his work to protect the future of crop production. By conserving seeds—the one resource we can’t live without—Fowler wants to encourage collaboration as a human race. His focus is on the visionary science that naturally springs from our planet, rather than the politics of those wielding power over the one thing we need the most: our food.

PRECEDED BY:

Duke and the Buffalo USA, 2013, 15 minutes, director: Alfredo Alcantara Merentes, Josh Chertoff

Once a year, a crew of Colorado ranchers rounds up two-thousand wild buffalo as part of a unique conservation effort to preserve these endangered animals.

Sponsored by Mary Rainwater

Serenity

SUNDAY MAY 18 9:30 PM

Director:

Sandy McLeod

Producer: Sandy McLeod

Cinematographer: Henrik Edelbo

Editors: JD Marlow

John Walter

Music:

Kris Bowers

Featuring:

Cary Fowler

Running Time: 77 minutes

Presentation

Format: DCP, in Spanish, English, and Quechan, with English subtitles

Print Source: Isotope Films

Film Website: seedsoftimemovie.com

Selected

Filmography: Debut Feature Film

When “Firefly” premiered on FOX in the fall of 2002, it carried with it the reputation of cult television auteur Joss Whedon (“Buffy the Vampire Slayer,” “Angel”) and his rabid fan base. While the show, which followed the sci-fi/western adventures of captain and war veteran Mal Reynolds (Nathan Fillion) and the ragtag crew of Firefly-class transport ship Serenity in the 26th century, earned rave reviews from critics and audiences alike, it was canceled after airing only 11 of its 14 episodes. But you can’t stop the signal, and in 2005 Serenity took to the skies once again, with Whedon condensing a planned second-season arc into a rowdy, rollicking feature-length film. Still fugitives at law, Mal, first mate Zoe (Gina Torres), pilot Wash (Alan Tudyk), mercenary Jayne (Adam Baldwin), mechanic Kaylee (Jewel Staite), and medic Simon (Sean Maher) subsist on the odd smuggling job to make ends meet, assignments contained mostly to the rugged outskirts of the galaxy. But they are also guarding a precious bounty—Simon’s unpredictable sister River (Summer Glau), a tortured telepath—and when they learn that the deadly Operative (Chiwetel Ejiofor), a sword-wielding black ops agent of the authoritarian Alliance, is hot on their heels, they must race against time to discover what deadly government secrets lie within River’s fragile mind. So gather round, Browncoats, because no power in the verse can stop us. We aim to misbehave.

Director: Joss Whedon

Producers: Christopher Buchanan

David Lester

Barry Mendel

Alisa Tager

Screenwriter: Joss Whedon

Cinematographer: Jack N. Green

Editor:

Lisa Lassek

Music: David Newman

Cast: Nathan Fillion

Gina Torres

Alan Tudyk

Morena Baccarin

Chiwetel Ejiofor

Running Time: 119 minutes

Presentation Format: DCP

Print Source: Universal Pictures

Selected Filmography: Much Ado About Nothing (2012)

The Avengers (2012)

EGYPTIAN

SIFF CINEMA UPTOWN

SIFF CINEMA UPTOWN

The Servant

THURSDAY MAY 29 7:00 PM

“I think servility is basically a manifestation of fear,” director Joseph Losey once commented, “and it’s a product of society.” Nowhere is this observation better displayed than in his masterpiece, The Servant. Upon returning to England from abroad, wealthy young Londoner Tony buys himself a posh new home. His first order of business is to hire a manservant to take care of the place. Enter Hugo Barrett (Dirk Bogarde). Over the next few weeks, Hugo oversees the renovation and decoration of the house while Tony settles into his role as “master.” However, relationships throughout the household shift when Susan, Tony’s fiancée, meets Hugo and instinctively distrusts him. Meanwhile, Hugo hires his sister Vera to serve as a maidservant, whose coquettish nature soon bewitches Tony. Soon afterwards, Tony discovers the true connection between Hugo and Vera, leading to a dramatic reversal of roles. With a screenplay by Nobelprize winning playwright Harold Pinter and a chilling, BAFTA award-winning performance by Bogarde, The Servant is a potent examination of evil and a twisted portrait of the English class system.

Unavailable on DVD.

Awards:

BAFTA Awards 1964 (Best British Actor, British Cinematography, Most Promising Newcomer to Leading Film Roles)

British Society of Cinematographers 1963 (Best Cinematography)

New York Film Critics Circle Awards 1964 (Best Screenplay)

Director: Joseph Losey

Producers: Joseph Losey

Norman Priggen

Screenwriter: Harold Pinter from the novel by Robin Maugham

Cinematographer: Douglas Slocombe

Editor:

Reginald Mills

Music: John Dankworth

Cast: Dirk Bogarde

James Fox

Wendy Craig

Sarah Miles

Running Time: 115 minutes

Presentation Format: DCP

Print Source: Rialto Pictures

Film Website: rialtopictures.com/ servant.html

Selected Filmography:

Steaming (1985)

The Trout (1982)

Don Giovanni (1979)

Monsieur Klein (1976)

Galileo (1975)

A Doll’s House (1973)

The Assassination of Trotsky (1972)

The Go-Between (1970)

Boom! (1968)

Secret Ceremony (1968)

Accident (1967)

Modesty Blaise (1966)

King & Country (1964)

The Damned (1963)

Time Without Pity (1957)

The Sleeping Tiger (1954)

The Big Night (1951)

The Boy with Green Hair (1948)

Shake the Dust

USA 2014

WORLD PREMIERE

THURSDAY JUNE 5 9:45 PM

FRIDAY JUNE 6 4:00 PM

Hip-hop music, and the acrobatic breakdancing culture that arose in tandem with it, started on the streets of The Bronx, but its reach is worldwide. Today, “b-boys” and a growing number of “b-girls” hone their gravity-defying breaking techniques in virtually every country on the planet. The documentary Shake the Dust, by journalist-turned-filmmaker Adam Sjöberg, chronicles the far-reaching influence of breakdancing, exploring how it strikes a resonant chord in the slums, favelas and ghettos of the world. While each culture adopts and adapts hip-hop music, blending it with their own traditions, the breakdancing moves act as a universal language. Moving smoothly between breakdance crews in the poorest urban neighborhoods of Colombia, Yemen, Uganda, and Cambodia, Sjöberg weaves together the stories of rappers, DJs, and b-boys across three continents, revealing how breakdancing today acts as a positive force for social change. Older generations are passing along their moves and showing kids, most of whom are orphans, that the “family” of hip-hop can be an alternative to street gangs and drug addiction. Executive producer and rapper Nasir “Nas” Jones also provides original music for the film. With a soundtrack of globe-spanning hip-hop samples and some of the most jaw-dropping breakdancing moves ever committed to film, Shake the Dust is an inspiring tribute to the uplifting power of music and movement.

EGYPTIAN

EGYPTIAN

Director: Adam Sjöberg

Screenwriter: Adam Sjöberg

Cinematographer: Adam Sjöberg

Editors: Adam Sjöberg

Mariana Blanco

Noam Kroll

Music: Nasir “Nas” Jones

Sean Dimond

Running Time: 108 minutes

Presentation Format: DCP

International Sales: Continental Media

Print Source: Weapons of Mass Entertainment

Film Website: shakethedust.org

Selected Filmography: We All Might Make It (Doc, 2013)

HARVARD EXIT

Shame RUSSIA 2013

AMERICAN PREMIERE

SUNDAY JUNE 1 5:00 PM

MONDAY JUNE 2 3:30 PM

Amidst the fjords of the Kola Peninsula in northwest Russia, there’s a navy settlement base where the families of submariners and frontier guards live. Most of the men are out on a mission while the naval wives on land carry on with their daily lives. A young woman, Lena (Maria Semenova), arrives at the settlement having recently married one of the officers. She is introspective, formal, out of place in the frozen landscapes, and a bit reckless. The rundown base is about to close down and the locals, who are always worried about their men at sea, are worried about their future as well. Shame is loosely based on the sinking of the nuclear-powered submarine “Kursk” to the bottom of the Barents Sea in August 2000 with all 118 sailors on board. Although focused on one woman, it’s not just a personal story. The tragedy of the dead submariners touched the whole world. Veteran Uzbek director Yusup Razykov (Orator, SIFF 2000) has made an effective and understated drama centered on the lives of women who wait by the sea, in the chilling beauty of a nation that still bears scars of this tragedy.

Awards:

Karlovy Vary Film Festival 2013 (FIPRESCI Prize) Trieste Film Festival 2014

SIFF CINEMA UPTOWN

SIFF CINEMA UPTOWN

Director: Yusup Razykov

Producers: Vladimir Malyshev

Andrey Malyshev

Screenwriters: Ekaterina Mavromatis

Yusup Razykov

Cinematographer: Yuri Mikhailyshin

Editor: Denis Luzanov

Music: Alexey Artishevsky

Cast: Maria Semenova

Elena Korobeynikova

Helga Filipova

Seseg Hapsasova

Running Time: 90 minutes

Presentation Format: DCP, in Russian, with English subtitles

Print Source: Cultura Initiatives

Selected Filmography: Migrant Worker (2009) Beglyanki (2007) Erkak (2005)

The Dance of Men (2002)

Women’s Paradise (2000) Orator (2000)

Siddharth

CANADA/INDIA 2013

TUESDAY JUNE 3 4:00 PM

WEDNESDAY JUNE 4 7:00 PM

Canadian-born writer-director Richie Mehta returns to India (the setting for his celebrated debut, Amal) and applies an indie approach to a classic story of familial strife. At the age of 12, Siddharth is mainly interested in playing with his friends. When Mehendra, Siddharth’s father, feels the family finances tightening because of his failing zipper repair business, he ignores his wife’s protests and sends his son away to work in a factory in Punjab, 200 miles north of Delhi. Concern mounts when Siddharth fails to return home for the Diwali holiday. They’re eventually told that he ran away two weeks prior, but conflicting stories indicate that he may have been abducted. The family is too poor to have photos that will aid in the police search, and lack the resources or know-how to begin their own. Nevertheless, Mehendra sets out to find his son, lost among the billion citizens of India. Siddharth is a quietly devastating drama that perfectly captures India’s sense of place, with naturalistic performances and an unsentimental script that build an emotional undercurrent to a knockout peak.

Director: Richie Mehta

Producers: Steven N. Bray

David Miller

Richie Mehta

Screenwriter: Richie Mehta

Cinematographer: Bob Gundu

Editors: Stuart A. McIntyre

Richie Mehta

Music: Andrew Lockington

Lalit Malik

Cast: Rajesh Tailang

Tannishtha Chatterjee

Anurag Arora

Geeta Agrawal Sharma

Shobha Sharma Jassi

Running Time: 96 minutes

Presentation Format: DCP, in Hindi, with English subtitles

International Sales: Fortissimo Films

Print Source: Zeitgeist Films

Film Website: siddharththefilm.com

Selected Filmography: I’ll Follow You Down (2013) Amal (2007)

(Best Film)

SIFF CINEMA UPTOWN

PACIFIC PLACE

The Signal

USA 2014

TUESDAY MAY 27 7:00 PM

WEDNESDAY MAY 28 7:00 PM

What is The Signal? In his follow up to Love (SIFF 2011), director William Eubank further establishes his talent for gorgeous visuals and mind-bending sci-fi. Nic and Jonah are freshmen at MIT with a knack for hacking. However, their online activities have run afoul of a rival hacker, the enigmatic Nomad, who taunts and tantalizes them in equal measure. When Nic’s girlfriend decides to transfer from Cambridge, MA, to Caltech, he and Jonah decide to use the impending road trip to uncover Nomad’s whereabouts. While driving through the Nevada desert, the trio follows a lead to an abandoned shack and a terrifying confrontation ensues—after which Nic awakens in a hidden bunker, unable to feel his legs and tended to by workers in hazmat suits. Enter Dr. Wallace Damon (Laurence Fishburne), a mysterious scientist who poses more questions to Nic than answers. What follows is a series of unpredictable and extraordinary events that culminate with a truly astounding climax.

LINCOLN SQUARE

EGYPTIAN

Director: William Eubank

Producers: Tyler Davidson

Brian Kavanaugh-Jones

Screenwriters: William Eubank

Carlyle Eubank

David Frigerio

Cinematographer: David Lanzenberg

Editor: Brian Berdan

Music: Nima Fakhrara

Cast: Brenton Thwaites

Olivia Cooke

Beau Knapp

Laurence Fishburne

Sarah Clarke

Running Time: 95 minutes

Presentation Format: DCP, in English, with English subtitles

Print Source: Focus Features

Film Website: focusfeatures.com/ the_signal

Selected Filmography: Love (2011)

The Skeleton Twins USA 2014

FRIDAY MAY 16 9:30 PM EGYPTIAN

Siblings Maggie and Milo (“Saturday Night Live” alums Kristen Wiig and Bill Hader) haven’t seen each other in ten years. After both attempt and fail to commit suicide on the same day, the troubled pair moves in together. The two slowly reconnect, wondering how they’ve let themselves grow so far apart. Director and Bellingham native Craig Johnson and co-writer Mark Heyman (Black Swan) have crafted a film about two lost people whose reunion might be the first step in figuring out what to do with their lives. Their screenplay is rich with character and mood, but it’s the striking and authentic dynamic between the two stars that ties it all together. Wiig and Hader are mostly known for their hysterical and offbeat turns, but their performances in The Skeleton Twins are full of real nuance, pain, and resonance—without losing their comedic bite. Their Maggie and Milo are as heartfelt and painfully familiar as onscreen sibling bonds get, bound to make audiences laugh and squirm. Featuring strong supporting work from Luke Wilson and Ty Burrell as the men in the pair’s lives, in addition to one of the best ’80s pop lip-sync performances in recent film history, The Skeleton Twins is a dark and moving comedy that reminds us that no matter how strange and tough life gets, family could be first to help.

Awards: Sundance Film Festival 2014 (Waldo Salt Screenwriting Award)

Director: Craig Johnson

Producers: Stephanie Langhoff

Jennifer Lee

Jacob Pechenik

Screenwriters: Craig Johnson

Mark Heyman

Cinematographer: Reed Morano

Editor: Jennifer Lee

Music: Nathan Larson

Cast: Bill Hader

Kristen Wiig

Luke Wilson

Ty Burrell

Boyd Holbrook

Running Time: 90 minutes

Presentation Format:

DCP

International Sales: Furnace Films

Print Source: Roadside Attractions

Film Website: Facebook.com/

TheSkeletonTwins

Selected Filmography: True Adolescents (2009)

Sponsored by Brian La Macchia

The Skin

WEDNESDAY JUNE 4 8:30 PM

Liliana Cavani’s 1981 film about the corruption and despicable conditions of post-war society, based on the controversial novel by Curzio Malaparte as well as the author’s own experiences, follows Malaparte in his role as diplomatic liaison in 1940s Naples, where he acted as a translator and tour guide between the Allied forces and the Italians during the US occupation. Vile acts of prostitution and the exploitation of young girls appear to be the norm in Naples as Malaparte shows around the family of an American senator. Cavani brings into speculation whether or not moral behavior is a choice when survival is near impossible, and manipulation of ‘the skin’ is seemingly the only option. Presenting a quietly impressive cast, with beloved Italian actor Marcello Mastrioianni as Malaparte and the ruggedly handsome Burt Lancaster as an American general, Cavani’s film is an unsettling look at the globalization process as well as an observation of this particular period of time through a feminist lens. The Skin features a soundtrack by the great Lalo Schifrin (Cool Hand Luke, “Mission Impossible”) and was co-written by French feminist filmmaker Catherine Breillat (Abuse of Weakness, Fat Girl).

The Sleepwalker

HARVARD EXIT

Director:

Liliana Cavani

Producers:

Manolo Bolognini

Renzo Rossellini

Screenwriters:

Catherine Breillat

Curzio Malaparte

Robert Katz

Liliana Cavani

Cinematographer: Armando Nannuzzi

Editor:

Ruggero Mastroianni

Music:

Lalo Schifrin

Cast:

Burt Lancaster

Claudia Cardinale

Ken Marshall

Marcello Mastroianni

Running Time: 131 minutes

Presentation Format:

DCP, in Italian, with English subtitles

Print Source: Cohen Collection

Selected Filmography: Dissociated States (1999) St. Francis of Assisi (1988)

The Berlin Affair (1986)

Beyond the Door (1983)

Beyond Good and Evil (1977)

The Night Porter (1974)

Milarepa (1973)

The Hospital (1971)

The Cannibals (1969)

Galileo (1966)

L’Evento (1962)

Incontro Notturno (1961)

THURSDAY MAY 29 7:00 PM

PACIFIC PLACE FRIDAY MAY 30 4:00 PM

Kaia (Gitte Witt, The Impossible) and her blue-collar boyfriend, Andrew (Christopher Abbott, “Girls”), are renovating her family’s remote family estate in the woods of rural Massachusetts. Late one night, Kaia receives a phone call; her estranged sister Christine (Stephanie Ellis, Art Machine) has arrived unexpectedly and is waiting at the train station. The reunion is a fraught one, as Kaia is not yet ready to forgive Christine for her past transgressions. Tensions boil further as Andrew and Ira (Brady Corbet, Melancholia), Christine’s WASPish fiancé, take an instant dislike to one another. For her part, Christine seems to trail chaos in her wake, announcing her pregnancy, questioning Kaia’s relationship with Andrew, and objecting to the changes to the family home. Off her meds due to her pregnancy, she reverts to her childhood habit of sleepwalking. This intriguing psychodrama from first-time director Mona Fastvold is a dual portrait of two sisters’ very different ways of dealing with the traumas of their shared past, and the high stakes difficulties of distinguishing personal fiction from reality.

HARVARD EXIT

Director: Mona Fastvold

Producers: Karin Julsrud

Turid Øversveen

Screenwriters: Mona Fastvold

Brady Corbet

Cinematographer: Zachary Galler

Editors:

Jon Endre Mørk

Michael Mazzotta

Music: Sondre Lerche

Kato Ådland

Cast: Gitte Witt

Christopher Abbott

Brady Corbet

Stephanie Ellis

Running Time: 92 minutes

Presentation Format:

DCP

International Sales:

LevelK

Print Source: Norwegian Film Institute

Selected Filmography: Debut Feature Film

Sold

USA/INDIA/NEPAL/UNITED KINGDOM 2014

MONDAY MAY 26 7:00 PM

WEDNESDAY MAY 28 4:00 PM

SATURDAY MAY 31 12:00 PM

Patricia McCormick’s award-winning international best-seller is transformed into a deeply affecting film which gives voice to the millions of invisible children trafficked each year across the globe. Sold focuses on Lakshmi, an extraordinary 13-year-old Nepali girl, whose father accepts an advance for her to work as a domestic servant in Kolkata, India. Believing she will earn enough money to purchase a tin roof for her mother, she travels with “Auntie” Bimla to Happiness House. Her new home is ruled by the madame Mumtaz, and soon Lakshmi discovers with horror that she has been sold into prostitution. Academy Award®winning director Jeffrey D. Brown (Molly’s Pilgrim) elects to see this world through an innocent child’s eyes, successfully navigating a delicate balancing act between the brutality of human trafficking and the tenderness and compassion of the brothel community. Featuring a tremendously empathetic performance by Niyar Saikia and excellent supporting work by Gillian Anderson and David Arquette, Sold is an unforgettable experience that not only breathes life into an incredible story but also inspires viewers to action beyond the screen to stop the trafficking of children worldwide.

HARVARD EXIT

EGYPTIAN

KIRKLAND PC

Director: Jeffrey Brown

Producer: Jane Charles

Screenwriters: Joseph Kwong

Jeffrey Brown

Cinematographers:

Seamus Tierney

Jehangir Choudhary

Editor:

Rick LeCompte

Music: John McDowell

Cast: Niyar Saikia

Gillian Anderson

David Arquette

Susmita Mukherjee

Tillotama Shome

Running Time: 97 minutes

Presentation Format: DCP

Print Source: Jaya International

Film Website: soldthemovie.com

Selected Filmography: Debut Feature Film

NÅNTING MÅSTE GÅ SÖNDER

Something Must Break

SWEDEN 2014

MONDAY MAY 19 9:00 PM

WEDNESDAY MAY 28 4:00 PM

How can a person love another before knowing his own identity? This central question haunts protagonist Sebastian (Saga Becker) in this provocative love story about the fluidity of gender and the inexplicable calculus of attraction. Sebastian, biologically male, is a young transgender person struggling to find comfort in his own skin. Inside, he yearns to be “Ellie,” his idealized female alter ego, but cannot admit his secret to anyone. The androgynous Sebastian spends his time cruising the seedy gay bars and men’s rooms of Stockholm for anonymous trysts, some of which become violent. During one such encounter, Sebastian is rescued by the handsome, punky Andreas (Iggy Malmborg), sparking a slow-burning, tentative romance. As things become more physical, Sebastian lets Ellie slowly emerge, leading the couple to engage in edgier behavior, including drugs, rough sex, and petty street crime. But as their passion grows deeper, Andreas worries about the social repercussions and refuses to acknowledge his feelings for Sebastian publicly. “I’m not gay,” says a fearful Andreas. “Neither am I,” Sebastian/ Ellie replies. Director Ester Martin Bergsmark, who is also transgender, uses her own experience grappling with sexuality to capture these confused, ambiguous feelings. The grainy, handheld camerawork and super-slow-mo scenes of aestheticized-yet-graphic sex—all infused with a pulsating, eclectic soundtrack— make Something Must Break an eroticized visual and aural journey of self-discovery.

Awards: Rotterdam International Film Festival 2014 (Tiger Award)

Director: Ester Martin Bergsmark

Producer: Anna-Maria Kantarius

Screenwriters: Eli Levén

Ester Martin Bergsmark

Cinematographers: Lisabi Fridell

Minka Jakerson

Editors: Ester Martin Bergsmark

Andreas Nilsson

Marlene Billie Andreasen

Hanna Storby

Cast: Saga Becker

Iggy Malmborg

Shima Niavarani

Mattias Åhlén

Running Time: 81 minutes

Presentation Format: DCP, in Swedish, with English subtitles

International Sales: Swedish Film Institute

Print Source: Outplay International

Film Website: outplayfilms.com

Selected Filmography: She Male Snails (2012) Maggie in Wonderland (Doc, 2008)

SIFF CINEMA UPTOWN

SIFF CINEMA UPTOWN

YU GUANG QU

Song of the Fishermen

SUNDAY MAY 25 7:00 PM

The misfortune of a poor family living close to Shanghai and their struggle through life is illustrated in this silent film by director Cai Chusheng. A penniless woman gives birth to twins and then immediately afterward is made to work as a nurse for a rich family and their children. Although the class difference is dramatic, the wealthy young boy becomes friends with the impoverished twins, feeling a familial tie because of the role their mother played in his upbringing. They grow up, and the wealthy young man finds a job overseas in the maritime business. The twins follow and do their best to survive on the tough streets of Shanghai, waiting in chaotic, fruitless factory job lines before eventually joining a street performance group. Tragedy and disappointment follow the twins as they work to survive, and the divide between them and their childhood friend becomes far more depressingly revelatory. Newly restored by China Film Archive and being screened with a live musical accompaniment by Donald Sosin, Song of the Fishermen is an iconic film pairing bleak social commentary with strikingly beautiful and detailed shots.

Director: Cai Chusheng

Screenwriter: Cai Chusheng

Cinematographer:

Ke Zhou

Cast: Wang Ren-Mei

Kwah-Wu Shang

Tianxiu Tang

Langen Han

Peng Luo

Running Time: 57 minutes

Presentation Format: DCP, Silent, with English intertitles

Print Source:

China Film Archive

Selected Filmography: Waves on the Southern Shore (1963)

The Spring River Flows East (1947)

Boundless Future (1940)

Orphan Island Paradise (1939)

Fifth Brother Wang (1937)

Lost Lambs (1936)

New Women (1935)

Dawn Over the Metropolis (1933)

Spring in the South (1932)

Pink Dream (1932)

Facing the National Crisis (1932)

Song of the New Earth

USA 2014

WORLD PREMIERE

FRIDAY MAY 16 7:00 PM

SATURDAY MAY 17 3:30 PM

As a young man, Tom Kenyon was pursuing a career in country music when he began to experience a series of mystical visions— colloquies with St. Francis and the Virgin Mary that left him in ecstatic union with the cosmos; angels flanking him as he walked his university campus—culminating in a series of encounters with Hathors, interdimensional beings who instructed Kenyon that his musical endeavors had to leave behind the secular and embrace the shamanistic. Kenyon himself is charmingly forthright about the surface impossibility of his claims, and one needn’t be a believer to be compelled by the results. Integrating his own scientific research into the effect of music on the human brain as well as his four-octave range, Kenyon employs pure tones, onomatopoeia, and ancient methods of singing to purge modern neuroses, crafting some of the most distinctive and compelling New Age music ever heard. As helmed by Seattle-based filmmaker Ward Serrill (2005’s The Heart of the Game), this fascinating foray into the mind, teachings, and travels of Kenyon would give pause to even the harshest of skeptics.

PACIFIC PLACE

PACIFIC PLACE

Director: Ward Serrill

Producer: Sophie J. Mortimer

Screenwriters: Ward Serrill

Sophie J. Mortimer

Eric Frith

Cinematographer: Ward Serrill

Editor: Eric Frith

Music: Jason Staczek

Ian Moore

Featuring: Tom Kenyon

Running Time: 89 minutes

Presentation Format: HDCAM

Print Source: Woody Creek Pictures

Film Website: woodycreek pictures.com/ films/song-of-the-new-earth

Selected Filmography: The Heart of the Game (Doc, 2005)

SIFF CINEMA UPTOWN

NA KATHESE KE NA KOITAS

Standing Aside, Watching

GREECE 2013

FRIDAY MAY 23 8:30 PM

SUNDAY MAY 25 3:30 PM

A train passes through the desolation of economically ravaged modern Greece and stops at a remote city in the shadows of a mountain almost post-apocalyptic in its barrenness. Failed Athens actress Antigone (Marina Symeou) has returned home because whatever she was looking for in the big city has eluded her. After reestablishing contact with her father, Antigone quickly manages to find a tutoring job as well as a boyfriend, Nikos (Yorgos Kafetzopoulos), several years her junior. Nikos, a sweet small-town boy, works for junkyard owner Nondas (Nikos Yorgakis), a boorish, manipulative parolee who also happens to be conducting an emotionally and physically abusive affair with Antigone’s attractive childhood friend Eleni (Marianthi Pantelopoulou). A determined Antigone, recognizing the lawlessness and brutal misogyny of a city in crisis, refuses to become a passive witness to her tyrannical surroundings, and as the violence escalates, so does her resolve. Drawing equally upon American Western aesthetics and Greek tragedy, and with a score that evokes the female-driven revenge dramas of the 1970s, Standing Aside, Watching is an austere, intense domestic thriller about a land torn apart by corruption and anxiety. A storm is coming.

SIFF CINEMA UPTOWN

SIFF CINEMA UPTOWN

Director: Yorgos Servetas

Producers: Fenia Kossovitsa

Konstantinos Kontovrakis

Screenwriter: Yorgos Servetas

Cinematographer: Claudio Bolivar

Editor: Panos Vontsarar

Music: 10

Cast: Marina Symeou

Nikos Yorgakis

Yorgos Kafetzopoulos

Marianthi Pantelopoulou

Kostis Siradakis

Running Time: 90 minutes

Presentation Format: DCP, in Greek, with English subtitles

International Sales: Patra Spanou Film Marketing & Consulting

Print Source: Patra Spanou Film Marketing & Consulting

Film Website: facebook.com/ standingasidewatching

Selected Filmography: The Way Things are Determined (2008)

Starred Up

UNITED KINGDOM 2013

FRIDAY MAY 23 9:00 PM

TUESDAY MAY 27 4:00 PM

Violent, abrasive and explosive, Eric (Jack O’Connell) is a criminal teen under strict watch. He’s prone to break out in dangerous fits of rage that threaten all those around him. But after his transfer to an adult prison, he’s confronted with the one inmate who won’t accept his volatile nature: his father, Neville (Ben Mendelsohn). Director David Mackenzie paints a painful, gritty, and authentic portrait of a Northern Ireland prison housing some of the most vicious and brutal men, and his film unleashes their souls with nuance. In what is easily the most striking and powerful prison drama since Steve McQueen’s Hunger, Starred Up is a piece of confrontational, jarring, and dazzling filmmaking that reveals the beating heart behind the carnage. The film also features a revelatory performance from newcomer O’Connell in the lead role, as well as solid supporting work from Mendelsohn and “Homeland’s” Rupert Friend. Mackenzie’s drama is a must-see revitalization of the prison subgenre, a riveting film about incarceration, violence, and humanity.

Awards:

Dublin International Film Festival 2014 (Best Actor)

British Independent Film Awards 2013 (Best Supporting Actor)

Director: David Mackenzie

Producers: Gillian Berrie

Brian Coffey

Screenwriter: Jonathan Asser

Cinematographer: Michael McDonough

Editors: Jake Roberts

Nick Emerson

Music: Tom McCullagh

Cast: Jack O’Connell

Ben Mendelsohn

Rupert Friend

Running Time: 106 minutes

Presentation Format: DCP

International Sales: Independent Film Company

Print Source: Tribeca Film

Film Website: tribecafilm.com/ tribecafilm/filmguide/ starred-up

Selected Filmography:

Tonight You’re Mine (2011)

Perfect Sense (2011)

Spread (2009)

Hallam Foe (2007)

Asylum (2005)

Young Adam (2003)

The Last Great Wilderness (2002)

SIFF CINEMA UPTOWN

HARVARD EXIT

Still Life

ITALY/UK 2013

SUNDAY MAY 18 10:30 AM

SIFF CINEMA UPTOWN

MONDAY MAY 26 6:00 PM PACIFIC PLACE

Picture a Greek Orthodox funeral in South London with proper music, a moving speech, and a single mourner: John May. Employed by the burial office, it’s his job to notify the next of kin of someone who passes away alone. Only when all leads have been checked and all doors shut will May (Eddie Marsan) close the case and organize the funeral himself. This poignant tale about love, life, and the afterlife is an affecting deadpan drama and a stark reminder that sometimes the best we can hope for in life is having someone care when it ends. May takes pride in choosing appropriate music and writing special eulogies so that his dead clients can rest in dignity. When budget cuts hit his department, he gets word that he’ll be made redundant. In the meantime, he works more assiduously than ever on what will be his final case, an alcoholic man named Billy Stoke. The search for Stoke’s friends takes him on a liberating journey through England that allows him to start living his own life fully at last.

Awards:

Reykjavik International Film Festival 2013 (Best Film, FIPRESCI Award) Venice Film Festival 2013 (Horizon Award for Best Director, C.I.C.A.E. Award, Pasinetti Award for Best Film)

Director:

Uberto Pasolini

Producers: Uberto Pasolini

Christopher Simon

Felix Vossen

Screenwriter: Uberto Pasolini

Cinematographer: Stefano Falivene

Editors:

Gavin Buckley

Tracy Granger

Music:

Rachel Portman

Cast:

Eddie Marsan

Joanne Froggatt

Karen Drury

Andrew Buchan

Ciaran McIntyre

Running Time: 92 minutes

Presentation Format: DCP

International Sales: Beta Cinema

Print Source:

Tribeca Films

Film Website: betacinema.com/stilllife

Selected Filmography: Machan (2008)

HISTÓRIA DE LA MEVA MORT Story of My Death

SPAIN/FRANCE 2013

TUESDAY MAY 20 3:00 PM SIFF CINEMA UPTOWN

SUNDAY MAY 25 8:30 PM SIFF CINEMA UPTOWN

SUNDAY JUNE 8 7:30 PM SIFF CINEMA UPTOWN

The idea of legendary Renaissance man Giacomo Casanova meeting Count Dracula may sound like the basis for campy satire. But in the hands of experimental filmmaker Albert Serra, the result is a subtle, engaging parable about the shift from Casanova’s Age of Enlightenment to the darker, emotionally restless Romanticism of the 19th century, represented by the world’s most famous vampire. Story of My Death focuses on the great lover’s final days, spent with his manservant Pompeu (Lluís Serrat) and planning the final publication of his memoirs. Casanova is played with childlike amusement by Vicenç Altaió, as he eats, jokes, and giggles his way through philosophical monologues about desire, politics, and society. On a trip to the mountains of Carpathia, Casanova meets yet more potential carnal conquests in the form of young peasant girls, but this time he has competition in the form of Dracula (Eliseu Huertas, in an understated performance). After these polar opposites meet, a tonal shift occurs and Casanova’s celebratory romp through life becomes enveloped by the grotesque, irrational world of death as blood drawn by Dracula begins to flow. Shooting mostly in natural light and using non-professional actors, Serra creates an incredibly detailed and naturalistic film that also resembles classic chiaroscuro paintings is an absorbing, deeply unconventional meditation on the cycles of life, love, decay, and death.

Awards: Locarno International Film Festival 2013 (Golden Leopard)

Director: Albert Serra

Producers: Montse Triola

Thierry Lounas

Albert Serra

Screenwriter: Albert Serra

Cinematographer: Jimmy Gimferrer

Editor: Albert Serra

Music: Ferran Font

Marc Verdaguer

Joe Robinson

Enric Juncà

Cast: Vicenç Altaió

Eliseu Huertas

Lluís Serrat

Noelia Rodenas

Clara Visa

Montse Triola

Running Time: 148 minutes

Presentation Format: DCP, in Catalan, with English

subtitles

International Sales: Capricci Films

Print Source: Capricci Films

Film Website: capricci.fr/story-of-my-deathinternational-sales-112.html

Selected Filmography: The Three Little Pigs (2012)

Lord Worked Wonders in Me (2011)

The Names of Christ (2010) Birdsong (2008)

Honour of the Knights (2006)

The Strange Color of Your Body’s Tears

BELGIUM/FRANCE/LUXEMBOURG 2013

SATURDAY MAY 24 7:30 PM

SIFF CINEMA UPTOWN

WEDNESDAY MAY 28 4:00 PM HARVARD EXIT

From the filmmakers behind Amer comes another wonderfully stylish homage to the giallo film—a wicked cinematic riddle about obsession, desire, and memory. Upon returning home from a business trip, Dan Kristensen finds his wife missing, but what is even stranger is that their apartment door is chained from the inside. His elderly upstairs neighbor invites him over, recounting the disappearance of her own husband—taken by someone, or something—in the walls after he climbed through a hole in their ceiling. Soon, a police detective arrives to investigate, but more enigmas appear with every unusual and beguiling tenant he interviews, and neither he nor Dan draw any closer to a final solution. Shot in a gorgeous art-nouveau building with lush set decoration, The Strange Color of Your Body’s Tears is a beautifully ethereal, blood-soaked fever dream in which co-directors Hélène Cattet and Bruno Forzani have carefully constructed each scene, both visually and aurally, to attain a pervasive, unsettling atmosphere of eeriness.

Directors: Hélène Cattet

Bruno Forzani

Producers: Eve Commenge

François Cognard

Screenwriters: Hélène Cattet

Bruno Forzani

Cinematographer: Manuel Dacosse

Editor: Bernard Beets

Cast: Klaus Tange

Jean-Michel Vovk

Sylvia Camarda

Sam Louwyck

Anna D’Annunzio

Running Time: 102 minutes

Presentation Format: DCP, in French, Danish, and Flemish, with English subtitles

International Sales: BAC Films

Print Source: Strand Releasing

Film Website: anonymesfilms.be/ film_etrange.html

Selected Filmography: Amer (2009)

Stray Dogs

TAIWAN/FRANCE 2013

WEDNESDAY MAY 21 9:00 PM

MONDAY MAY 26 2:00 PM

When Tsai Ming-liang’s Stray Dogs premiered at the Venice Film Festival, there were intimations that it would be the director’s final feature. The anguished reaction was muted by overwhelming agreement, capped with the awarding of the Festival’s Grand Special Jury Prize, that if one of cinema’s masters must retire he at least was leaving in sublime fashion, gracing us with another towering achievement. Tsai mainstay Lee Kang-sheng stars as an alcoholic on the margins of Taipei society, collecting what little he can earn as a human billboard and turning it over to his two children before he drinks it away. The young boy and girl (played by Lee’s own niece and nephew, and Tsai’s godchildren) spend their days wandering and cadging food from supermarket samples. Weaving in and out of their lives are three women whose relationship to the father is impossible to determine, but whose protective tenderness toward the children is clear. Rumors of Tsai’s retirement were thankfully premature, making this merely his latest masterpiece, not his last; a miracle of empathic filmmaking, with Tsai’s masterfully composed shots holding their length past novelty or hypnotic fascination, till we’re submerged in nearly psychic communion with the lives glowing on his screen.

Awards:

Venice Film Festival 2013 (Grand Special Jury Prize, Golden MouseSpecial Mention)

Tallinn Black Nights Film Festival (Special Jury Prize)

Taipei Film Festival 2013 (Best Director, Actor)

SIFF CINEMA UPTOWN

SIFF CINEMA UPTOWN

Director: Tsai Ming-liang

Producer: Vincent Wang

Screenwriters: Tsai Ming-liang

Tung Chen-yu

Peng Fei

Cinematographers: Liao Pen-jung

Sung Wen-zhong

Editor: Lei Chen-ching

Cast: Lee Kang Sheng

Lee Yi Cheng

Lee Yi Chieh

Lu Yi Ching

Chen Shiang Chyi

Running Time: 138 minutes

Presentation Format:

DCP, in Mandarin, with English subtitles

International Sales:

Urban Distribution

International

Print Source: The Cinema Guild

Selected Filmography: Face (2009)

I Don’t Want to Sleep Alone (2006)

The Wayward Cloud (2005)

Goodbye, Dragon Inn (2003)

The Skywalk Is Gone (2002)

What Time Is It There? (2001)

The Hole (1998)

The River (1997)

Vive l’Amour (1994) Rebels of the Neon God (1992)

VIA CASTELLANA BANDIERA

A Street in Palermo

ITALY/SWITZERLAND/FRANCE 2013

SATURDAY MAY 24 3:30 PM

HARVARD EXIT

WEDNESDAY MAY 28 8:30 PM SIFF CINEMA UPTOWN

Acclaimed Sicilian theater director Emma Dante’s first feature tells the story of a delightfully theatrical standoff between two stubborn women on a Palermo street too narrow for two cars to pass. In one car, Rosa—who grew up a lonely child of circumstance and cultural deprivation—is accompanying her lover, Clara, to a wedding. Their relationship in crisis, the stifling heat only amplifies the palpable tension between them. On the titular street, the couple comes face-to-face, or car-to-car, with Samira, an elderly woman from a poor Albanian community. Having recently lost her daughter, the only person who remains for her is her young grandson, Niccolò. Stuck in the alley, no one will backpedal. Both have their own reasons for being obstinate, but the situation soon takes on gargantuan and absurd proportions—a symbolic fight to death between the two women in which all the neighbors and passers-by will eventually get involved. Behind the comical, uproarious nonsense of the situation, Dante, with a dynamic scenario and a fierce eye, tells the story of this powder keg of an encounter, bringing to light all the mercilessness and roughness of which humankind is still capable.

Awards:

Göteborg International Film Festival 2014 (Ingmar Bergman International Debut Award)

Venice Film Festival 2013 (Best Actress)

Director:

Emma Dante

Producers: Gregorio Paonessa

Mario Gianani

Screenwriters:

Emma Dante

Giorgio Vast

Licia Eminenti

Cinematographer: Gherardo Gossi

Editor:

Benni Atria

Music: Mancuso Brothers

Cast:

Emma Dante

Elena Cotta

Alba Rohrwacher

Renato Malfatti

Dario Casarolo

Running Time: 94 minutes

Presentation Format: DCP, in Italian, Albanian, and Sicilian, with English subtitles

International Sales:

Films Distribution

Print Source:

Films Distribution

Selected Filmography: Debut Feature Film

Strictly Sacred: The Story of Girl Trouble

USA 2014

WORLD PREMIERE

MONDAY MAY 26 5:00 PM SIFF CINEMA UPTOWN

TUESDAY MAY 27 8:30 PM RENTON IKEA PAC

Garage rock band Girl Trouble has always traveled on their own unique and idiosyncratic musical path, employing all their prodigious talents in the pursuit of creating pure entertainment experiences. For over 30 years, they have been standard-bearers for the collaborative spirit and do-it-yourself aesthetic that the Northwest’s indie rock scene was founded on. From a small family compound in Tacoma, WA, Girl Trouble has spread their influence across Europe, Canada, and the USA. One of the surprising benefits of the band handling every aspect of their career is that they have documented and collected it all, a veritable archive of promo shots, memorabilia, exclusive recordings, and even a magazine about themselves. Director Isaac Olsen weaves together this treasure trove of items with current day interviews with the band’s numerous collaborators, including Neko Case, Calvin Johnson, and Art Chantry. But ultimately, Olsen wisely lets KP Kendall (vocals), Kahuna (guitar), Bon Von Wheelie (drums), and Dale Phillips (bass) tell the story of their journey from self-proclaimed “weirdos” to Tacoma’s local champions and defenders of rock and roll. Girl Trouble are born storytellers, and they wouldn’t have it any other way.

Director: Isaac Olsen

Featuring: Kurt Kendall

Bill Henderson

Bon Henderson

Dale Phillips

Running Time: 95 minutes

Presentation Format: HDCAM

Print Source: SCHNELLULOID

Film Website: facebook.com/StrictlySacred

Selected Filmography: leh Hunger (2014)

The Stunt Man

USA 1980

SUNDAY JUNE 1 1:30 PM

The movie that Seattle saved! Richard Rush’s The Stunt Man may have ended up with three Oscar nominations, but it almost never got a release. Based on a novel of the same name, the story is about Cameron (Steve Railsback), a guy on the run from the cops who stumbles onto a movie set, thinks he gets a stunt man killed, and then is hired by megalomaniacal film director Eli Cross (Peter O’Toole) to take the stunt man’s place. He believes the director is taking excessive risks with him, and after he falls for the leading lady (Barbara Hershey), he thinks the director may be trying to have him killed. The studios couldn’t tell whether Rush’s film was a comedy, action film, art film, existential allegory, or what. The producers hated it enough to want to shelve it, so Rush brought it to Seattle, where film critic William Arnold called it “an affirmation of hope for an exciting new American cinema in the 1980s.”

The closing night film from SIFF #5, The Stunt Man went on to run 43 weeks at the Guild 45th and went into the history books as one of the best films about filmmaking ever made. It was nominated for three Oscars.

Awards:

Montréal World Film Festival 1980 (Grand Prix des Amériques)

Golden Globes 1981 (Best Original Score)

National Society of Film Critics Awards 1981 (Best Actor)

HARVARD EXIT

Director: Richard Rush

Producer: Richard Rush

Screenwriters: Richard Rush

Larry Marcus (based on the novel by Paul Brodeur)

Cinematographer: Mario Tosi

Editors:

Jack Hofstra

Caroline Biggerstaff

Music:

Dominic Frontiere

Cast: Peter O’Toole

Steve Railsbeck

Barbara Hershey

Allan Goorwitz

Alex Rocco

Running Time: 131 minutes

Presentation Format: DCP

International Sales: Westchester Films Inc.

Print Source: 20th Century Fox

Selected Filmography: Color of Night (1994)

Freebie and the Bean (1974)

Getting Straight (1970)

A Man Called Dagger (1968)

The Savage Seven (1968)

Psych-Out (1968)

Hells Angels on Wheels (1967)

The Cups of San Sebastian (1967)

Thunder Alley (1967) Of Love and Desire (1963)

Too Soon to Love (1960)

KLUMPFISKEN

The Sunfish

DENMARK 2014

NORTH AMERICAN PREMIERE

THURSDAY MAY 22 7:00 PM PACIFIC PLACE

FRIDAY MAY 23 4:00 PM HARVARD EXIT

SUNDAY MAY 25 10:30 AM LINCOLN SQUARE

Kesse (Henrik Birch, “Borgen”), a third-generation fisherman hailing from the Hirtshals harbor in the Danish Jutland peninsula, has dedicated his life to his job and his boat. Now pushing 60, however, his luck has taken a turn for the worse. Newly divorced after 19 years of marriage, he cannot even find solace in his occupation, as declining fishing stocks, environmental regulations, and his old age spell out an uncertain future. Hoping to alleviate some of his growing debt, he accepts a deal scoffed at by his fellow fishermen—allow a marine biologist on board in exchange for an extra set of fish quotas. But when the biologist turns out to be a kind, attractive woman (Susanne Storm, Mifune), Kesse begins a relationship with her, finding himself torn between temptation and loyalty. A social realist drama in the vein of Ken Loach, but with more heart and humor, The Sunfish examines the choices we make in order to survive, to love, and to age gracefully. With Birch’s sophisticated lead performance, Kesse is a complex wonder of a character, in turns sympathetic and maddening, a man out of time struggling with the challenges of modernity.

Director: Søren Balle

Producer: Claudia Siesbye Halsted

Screenwriters: Søren Balle

Lærke Sanderhoff

Cinematographer: Martin Munch

Editor: Peter Winther

Music: Flemming Nordkrog

Cast: Henrik Birch

Susanne Storm

Lars Topp Thomsen

Jacob Hauberg Lohmann

Mikkel Vadsholt

Running Time: 100 minutes

Presentation Format: DCP, in Danish, with English subtitles

International Sales: LevelK

Print Source: Danish Film Institute

Selected Filmography: Debut Feature Film

Supermensch: The Legend of Shep Gordon

USA 2013

SATURDAY MAY 17 9:00PM PACIFIC PLACE

SUNDAY MAY 18 1:00PM HARVARD EXIT

Mike Myers’ directorial debut tells the life story of talent manager and Hollywood insider Shep Gordon with playful use of archival footage, new interviews, and his own personal stories about the man himself. Shep Gordon may not be a household name, but after a chance encounter with Janis Joplin and Jimi Hendrix, his career in Hollywood quickly became infamous. Gordon, primarily known for managing the career of Alice Cooper, as well as Blondie, Luther Vandross, and Raquel Welch, among many others, effortlessly shifted gears after stepping away the music industry. He started traveling, and in speaking with all of the great chefs around the world was appalled to discover how poorly they were treated and how little they were paid. Shep Gordon saw a perfect way to monetize the culinary world, and as a result invented the “celebrity chef.” Mike Myers met Gordon while shooting Wayne’s World—they initially butted heads over which Alice Cooper song to use in the film—and 22 years later Myers gets to tell his story alongside some of Gordon’s best pals, including Cooper, Michael Douglas, Sylvester Stallone, Willie Nelson, Anne Murray, and more.

Awards:

Sarasota Film Festival 2014 (Audience Award)

Director:

Mike Myers

Producer: Beth Aala

Screenwriter: XXXXX

Cinematographers: Michael Pruitt-Brunn

Andreas von Scheele

Editor: Joseph Krings

Featuring:

Shep Gordon

Alice Cooper

Michael Douglas

Emeril Lagasse

Tom Arnold

Running Time: 84 minutes

Presentation Format: DCP

Print Source: RADiUS-TWC

Film Website: dogwoof.com/films/ supermensch-the-legendof-shep-gordon

Selected Filmography: Debut Feature Film

MANDARIINID

Tangerines

ESTONIA/GEORGIA 2013

SUNDAY MAY 18 11:00AM

LINCOLN SQUARE

WEDNESDAY MAY 21 4:00 PM SIFF CINEMA UPTOWN

FRIDAY MAY 23 1:30 PM PACIFIC PLACE

Villagers Ivo and Markus take in a pair of men from opposite sides of a bloody conflict in this tense and emotional prize-winning audience favorite. Estonian director Zaza Urushadze’s chamber piece is set during the 1992 outbreak of the conflicts between Georgia and the Russia-supported Republic of Abkhazia, which forced the majority of Estonians to return to the country of their forefathers. There have been Estonian settlements on the Caucasian Black Sea coast for more than a hundred years, but many of these villages had turned into ghost towns: only a few people stayed behind. Among them are aging carpenter Ivo and his neighbor Markus, who makes a living cultivating tangerines. The fruit is ripe and should be harvested soon, but war gets in the way—in fact, it comes for a house visit. When a battle takes place right outside his door, Ivo takes in two badly wounded men: Achmed, a Chechen, and Nika, a Georgian. Ivo soon discovers that housing deadly enemies is not easy, yet he acts calmly and declares his home a diplomatic neutral zone. How long it will last is a question elegantly considered in this deeply pacifist drama, as tense as any thriller.

Awards:

Warsaw International Film Festival 2013 (Audience Award, Best Director) Tallinn Black Nights Film Festival (Estonian Film Award, International Film Clubs Award)

Mannheim-Heidelberg International Film Festival 2013 (Audience Award)

Director: Zaza Urushadze

Producers: Ivo Felt

Zaza Urushadze

Screenwriter: Zaza Urushadze

Cinematographer: Rein Kotov

Editor: Alexander Kuranov

Music: Niaz Diasamidze

Cast: Lembit Ulfsak

Elmo Nüganen

Zhanri Lolashvili

Mikheil Meskhi

Giorgi Nakashidze

Running Time: 89 minutes

Presentation Format: DCP, in Estonian, with English subtitles

Print Source: Allfilm

Film Website: allfilm.ee/en/filmid/ tangerines

Selected Filmography: The Guardian (2012)

Stay With Me (2011)

Three Houses (2008)

Here Comes the Dawn (1998)

They Came Together

SATURDAY JUNE 7 7:00 PM

SUNDAY JUNE 8 2:00 PM

Boy meets girl, boy loves girl, boy and girl overcome obstacles through humor— everyone knows how the typical romantic comedy plays out. But leave it to David Wain and Michael Showalter (TV’s “The State,” Wet Hot American Summer) to give the familiar genre a hilarious and subversive twist. They Came Together stars comedy titans Paul Rudd and Amy Poehler as Joel and Molly, two single, professional, and sentimental go-getters in New York City. Joel’s candy store corporation is poised to kick Molly’s little sugary shop out of business, but an irrepressible and gooey connection—think Tom Hanks meets Meg Ryan via an adorable soundtrack—begins to form between the rivals. Wain and Showalter send up each overly sincere and saccharine cliché, from the hackneyed language to the expected denouement, with gut-busting gags and irreverent laughs. Featuring an allstar supporting cast including Bill Hader, Ellie Kemper, Max Greenfield, Cobie Smulders, Ed Helms, and Christopher Meloni, They Came Together is stacked with laughs and bite. It’s the anti-romantic comedy of the year, with an inspired amount of lunacy that could only come from Wain and Showalter.

Director: David Wain

EGYPTIAN

Producer: Michael Showalter

Screenwriters: Michael Showalter

David Wain

Cinematographer: Tom Houghton

Editor: Jamie Gross

Music: Craig Wedren

Matt Novack

Cast: Paul Rudd

Amy Poehler

Michael Shannon

Cobie Smulders

Melanie Lynskey

Ed Helms

Running Time: 83 minutes

Presentation Format: DCP

Print Source: Lionsgate

Selected Filmography: Wanderlust (2011)

Role Models (2008)

The Ten (2007)

Wet Hot American Summer (2001)

This May Be the Last Time USA 2014

SATURDAY MAY 31 6:30 PM

SUNDAY JUNE 1 4:00 PM

In 1962, a native of the Seminole Nation in Sasakwa, Oklahoma disappeared. Members of the tribe sent out search parties to no avail. As they searched, some sang ancient Seminole and Muscogee (Creek) hymns in hopes of reuniting with their lost brother. Half a century later, the man’s grandson, filmmaker Sterlin Harjo, reexamines the case with his own cinematic investigation of what happened. Along the way, Harjo uses his family history to trace the arc of the tribal songs, which have their roots in the sorrow of the “Trail of Tears” period of the 1830s, during which the federal government forcibly removed the Seminole and Muscogee nations from their homelands in the southeastern U.S., relocating them in the “Indian Territory” that later became Oklahoma. Through interviews with fellow tribal members and elders who took part in the search for his grandfather, Harjo discovers how the hymns were also influenced by musical traditions from Scottish and Appalachian cultures and African American slave communities across the southeast. From the terrible hardships of the uprooted Native Americans sprang a beautiful expression of hope and forgiveness that continues to strengthen and encourage the indigenous people of Oklahoma today. This May Be the Last Time is at once an illuminating document of an endangered way of life, an absorbing mystery, and a moving, deeply personal tribute to the memory of Harjo’s ancestors.

Director: Sterlin Harjo

Producers: Matt Leach

Christina D. King

Cinematographers: Sterlin Harjo

Matt Leach

Shane Brown

Editor: Matt Leach

Music:

Ryan Beveridge

Running Time: 93 minutes

Presentation Format: HDCAM

Print Source: The Land Films

Film Website: thismaybethelasttimefilm. com

Selected Filmography: Barking Water (2009)

Four Sheets to the Wind (2007)

HARVARD EXIT

PACIFIC PLACE

EGYPTIAN

SHU JIA ZUO YE

A Time in Quchi

SUNDAY MAY 18 5:00 PM

MONDAY MAY 19 3:00 PM

TUESDAY MAY 20 6:30 PM

Reigning in the harshness of his previous dramas of gangs and familial strife but maintaining his razor-sharp focus on verisimilitude, Taiwanese writer-director Chang Tso-Chi (The Best of Times; Soul of a Demon) has fashioned a sweet, subtle ode to the anxieties of childhood. Ten-year-old city boy Bao has been sent to Quchi, a riverside town outside of Taipei, for the length of the summer, allowing his parents time to work out the terms of their divorce.

Now stuck in a rural home without cable TV, Bao hides behind his tablet, mostly ignoring his eccentric, recently widowed grandfather. But as the summer progresses, Bao slowly comes out of his shell, thanks especially to his relationship with elementary school peer Ming-chuan, an orphan, and his crush on comely female student Bear. But life has a way of throwing curveballs at us when we least expect them, and when disasters both natural and personal occur, Bao must navigate his journey into adulthood. Mixing tender human truths and sly humor with dazzling vistas of the Taiwanese countryside, A Time in Quchi is a quietly affecting coming-of-age narrative, a film as poetic and often unnerving as growing up.

SIFF CINEMA UPTOWN

LINCOLN SQUARE

Director: Chang Tso-Chi

Producer: Kao Wen-Hong

Screenwriter: Chang Tso-Chi

Cinematographers: Yuan Ching-kuo

Jacky Chen

Shu Chih-chun

Editor: Chang Tso-Chi

Music: Wu Rui-ran

Cast: Liang-Yu Yang

Yun-Loong Kuan

Ya-Ruo Lin

Yung-Heng Yen

Shaoyi Jiang

Running Time: 109 minutes

Presentation Format: DCP, in Taiwanese and Mandarin, with English subtitles

Print Source: Chang Tso-Chi Film Studio Ltd.

Selected Filmography: 10+10 (2011)

When Love Comes (2010)

How Are You, Dad (2009)

Soul of a Demon (2008)

The Best of Times (2001)

Darkness and Light (1999)

Ah-Chung (1996)

Midnight Revenge (1994)

Time Lapse

USA 2014 NORTH AMERICAN PREMIERE

SATURDAY MAY 31 8:30 PM

SUNDAY JUNE 1 11:30 AM

Time Lapse, from co-writer and director Bradley King, is a sci-fi thriller that explores the possibilities of time travel via a machine that is capable of peering 24 hours into the future. When three friends discover this strange machine in their neighbor’s apartment, they are faced with a number of pressing questions, not least of which is the whereabouts of their neighbor. Realizing the potential impact of the machine, Finn (Matt O’Leary, Fat Kid Rules the World, Eden), Jasper (George Finn, LOL), and Callie (Danielle Panabaker, “Justified”) attempt to cash in on their discovery, but when a dangerous criminal learns their secret, the friends must set aside their differences and confront the paradox of a future that is at once predetermined and entirely uncertain. King’s smart genre film is a welcome indie entry to the thought-provoking canon of time travel films. Using an engaging blend of action, humor, and philosophy, King crafts an original thriller that not only keeps the audience guessing, but also explores questions of pre-determination, free will, and destiny. Time Lapse, packed with big ideas and lots of action, is that rare festival film that will appeal to sci-fi genre aficionados and indie film lovers alike.

SIFF CINEMA UPTOWN

SIFF CINEMA UPTOWN

Director: Bradley King

Producers:

BP Cooper

Rick Montgomery

Screenwriters:

BP Cooper

Bradley King

Cinematographer: Jonathan Wenstrup

Editor:

Tom Cross

Music: Andrew Kaiser

Cast: Danielle Panabaker

Matt O’Leary

George Finn

Amin Joseph

Jason Spisak

Running Time: 103 minutes

Presentation Format: DCP

Print Source: Uncooperative Pictures

Film Website: timelapse-themovie.com

Selected Filmography: Debut Feature Film

SIFF CINEMA UPTOWN

To Be Takei

USA 2014

FRIDAY JUNE 6 7:00PM

EGYPTIAN

SATURDAY JUNE 7 4:00PM SIFF CINEMA UPTOWN

As Sulu on TV’s “Star Trek,” he boldly went where no man had gone before—and now, George Takei is on a new mission. Years after becoming one of the first Asian-American actors to appear on primetime television, Takei is the subject of Jennifer Kroot’s documentary, which follows the actor and his husband, Brad, as they fight for and promote equal rights. Kroot traces Takei’s rich and complicated past, from spending time in a WWII internment camp to breaking stereotypes as one of “Star Trek’s” most beloved characters. But To Be Takei also explores George Takei as the social media icon—after leading the starship Enterprise, he now guides over five million Facebook fans in his rally for equality. Firmly believing homosexuality to be an “orientation” (as opposed to a “lifestyle”) in his civil rights advocacy, Takei graces the internet with his quirky humor and abundance of heart, in his signature voice. Kroot’s documentary is a funny and moving film about how a beloved actor has taken advantage of his celebrity to fight for the liberty and love that matters to so many of us.

PRECEDED BY:

The Missing Scarf Ireland, 2013, 7 minutes, director: Eoin Duffy Albert the squirrel searches for his missing scarf only to explore some of life’s most common fears.

Director:

Jennifer Kroot

Producers:

Gerry Kim

Jennifer Kroot

Mayuran Tiruchelvam

Cinematographer: Christopher Million

Editor:

Bill Weber

Music:

Michael Hearst

Running Time: 90 minutes

Presentation Format: HDCAM

Print Source:

The Film Collaborative

Film Website: tobetakei.com

Selected Filmography:

It Came from Kuchar (Doc, 2009)

Sirens of the 23rd Century (2003)

VINO PARA ROBAR

To Fool a Thief

ARGENTINA 2013

FRIDAY MAY 30 3:30 PM

WEDNESDAY JUNE 4 9:45 PM

SIFF CINEMA UPTOWN

SIFF CINEMA UPTOWN

FRIDAY JUNE 6 9:45 PM EGYPTIAN

Nothing is what it seems to be in Ariel Winograd’s crowd-pleasing heist comedy. Virtuoso thief Sebastian (Daniel Hendler) steals an Aztec artifact in a daringly sophisticated museum heist, only to discover that the artifact is a fake and that another thief (Valeria Bertuccelli) has absconded with the real one. Sebastian pursues her into Argentina’s Mendozan wine country, intent on beating her to her next theft: a rare bottle of 1845 Malbec de Burdeos for an unscrupulous wine collector. But when things don’t go as planned, the two rivals are forced to band together in order to steal the bottle from a bank vault. Two of Agentina’s best known film stars, Hendler and Bertuccelli, know that con game films rely as much on charm as real con artists do, and they bring a smooth, accomplished style to their Hepburn-Tracy banter. Winograd wraps his two stars in high-glamor fashion and a sleek, 1960s-style vibe, then updates things with some winking homages to other great caper films. But To Fool A Thief also has another ace up its sleeve: the stunning, picaresque Argentinean city of Mendoza, whose striking locations offer one of the best tourism advertisements in South American film history.

Director: Ariel Winograd

Producers: Nathalie Cabiron

Ricardo Freixa

Alex Zito

Screenwriter: Adrián Garelik

Cinematographer: Ricardo DeAngelis

Editor: Francisco Freixa

Music:

Dario Eskenazi

Cast: Daniel Hendler

Mario Alarcon

Martin Piroyansky

Pablo Rago

Valeria Bertuccelli

Running Time: 105 minutes

Presentation Format: BluRay, in Spanish, with English subtitles

International Sales: Primer Plano Film Group SA

Print Source: Primer Plano Film Group SA

Selected Filmography: My First Wedding (2011) Cheese Head (2006) Fanáticos (Doc, 2004)

MATAR A UN HOMBRE

To Kill a Man

CHILE/FRANCE 2013

THURSDAY MAY 29 7:30 PM

MONDAY JUNE 2 4:30 PM

How far would you go to protect your family? Would you compromise your moral beliefs for honor? These weighty themes are explored in smoldering detail in To Kill a Man, by Chilean writer-director Alejandro Fernández Almendras. Jorge (Daniel Candia) is a middleaged forest caretaker and father of two whose life is upended when he’s mugged by a local gang of toughs. Not one to anger quickly, the diabetic Jorge lets the assailants escape with his insulin kit and a little of his dignity.

Enraged, Jorge’s son Jorgito (Ariel Mateluna) confronts Kalule (Daniel Antivilo), the leader of the thugs, but ends up in the hospital for his bravery. While Kalule does time for his crime, the harassment from the gang doesn’t let up. Meanwhile, Jorge’s wife Marta (Alexandra Yanez) peppers him with emasculating comments him for his timidity. Slowly, Jorge plots a revenge that’s startling in its inventiveness and moral equivocation. Evoking other “defend the home” films such as William Wyler’s The Desperate Hours (1955) and Sam Peckinpah’s Straw Dogs (1971), Almendras’ film gradually builds tension until it reaches a boiling point. To Kill a Man, which won the Sundance World Cinema Grand Jury Prize, is a disquieting thriller that reexamines the nature of violence and the capacity of humanity to turn the other cheek.

Awards:

Sundance Film Festival 2014 (World Grand Jury Prize, Dramatic) Rotterdam International Film Festival 2014 (KNF Award)

Miami Film Festival 2014 (Miami Future Cinema Critics Award)

TOM À LA FERME

Tom at the Farm

CANADA (QUÉBEC)/FRANCE 2013

SIFF CINEMA UPTOWN

SIFF CINEMA UPTOWN

Director:

Alejandro Fernández

Almendras

Producers:

Eduardo Villalobos

Guillaume De Saille

Screenwriter: Alejandro Fernández

Almendras

Cinematographer: Inti Briones

Editors:

Alejandro Fernández

Almendras

Soledad Salfate

Music: Pablo Vergara

Cast:

Daniel Candia

Daniel Antivilo

Alejandra Yañez

Ariel Mateluna

Running Time: 83 minutes

Presentation Format: DCP, in Spanish, with English subtitles

Print Source: Film Movement

Film Website: filmmovement.com

Selected Filmography: By the Fire (2011) Huacho (2009)

FRIDAY MAY 16 9:30 PM

TUESDAY MAY 20 4:00 PM

After creating a kaleidoscopic trilogy of films on impossible love (I Killed My Mother, Heartbeats, and Laurence Anyways), provocateur Xavier Dolan’s new film based on a play by Michel Marc Bouchard, marks a daring change in direction. Tom, a young ad executive, travels to the country for his lover’s funeral, only to discover that the deceased’s mother has no knowledge of him or of his relationship with her son. However, Francis, the dead man’s handsome, dangerous brother is privy to the truth and will go to great extremes to keep it silent, forcing Tom into a perverse game of deception, grief, and savagery. As Tom journeys further into this depraved world, Dolan cannily ratchets up the tension and narrows the film’s aspect ratio to convey the precariousness of Tom’s situation. Aided by Gabriel Yared’s florid, insistent score, Dolan employs elements of melodrama, noir, and suspense to create a kinky, psychological thriller that simultaneously explores the masculine urban/ rural divide, Stockholm Syndrome, and how families are full of secrets—both the ones that they keep from each other and the ones that together they keep from the world.

Awards:

Venice Film Festival 2013 (FIPRESCI Prize)

Vancouver Film Critics Circle 2014 (Best Supporting Actress in a Canadian Film)

HARVARD EXIT

HARVARD EXIT

Director: Xavier Dolan

Producers: Xavier Dolan

Nathanaël Karmitz

Charles Gillibert

Screenwriters: Xavier Dolan

Michel Marc Bouchard

Cinematographer: André Turpin

Editor: Xavier Dolan

Music: Gabriel Yared

Cast: Xavier Dolan

Pierre-Yves Cardinal

Lise Roy

Évelyne Brochu

Manuel Tadros

Running Time: 102 minutes

Presentation Format: DCP, in French, with English subtitles

International Sales: MK2

Print Source: MK2

Film Website: mk2pro.com

Selected Filmography: Laurence Anyways (2012)

Heartbeats (2010)

I Killed My Mother (2009)

NI GUANG FEI XIANG

Touch of the Light

TAIWAN 2012

MONDAY MAY 19 6:00 PM

SIFF CINEMA UPTOWN

THURSDAY MAY 22 4:00 PM EGYPTIAN

Take music, dance, and a splash of romance and you have a recipe that Touch of the Light cooks to perfection. This coming-of-age story opens with a gifted blind young pianist (Huang Yu-siang, playing himself) leaving his village for the university in the big city. Despite his mother’s fears, Huang quickly makes friends and eventually meets Chieh, an aspiring young dancer whose dreams have been stifled by a miserable family situation and an unsupportive boyfriend. Director Chang Jung-chi wisely waits to introduce the two leads to each other, taking the time to get to know them as individuals and allowing a more immersive experience when they begin to interact. Huang makes a very charming protagonist and Sandrine Pinna steals the show as Chieh, communicating so much with just her eyes in moments of grief or joy. In each other, these two amazing individuals find strengths neither knew they possessed, powering this gentle, exuberant crowd-pleaser with the power of positive thinking.

Awards:

Official Oscar Submission 2012 (Foreign Language Film)

Taipei Film Festival 2012 (FIPRESCI Prize, Best New Director)

Busan Film Festival 2012 (Audience Award)

Director:

Jung-chi Chang

Producers:

Jacky Pang Yee Wah

Cheung Hong-Tat

Screenwriter: Li Nien-Hsiu

Cinematographer: Dylan Doyle

Editor: Li Nien-Hsiu

Music:

Wen Tzu-chieh

Huang Yu-Siang

Cast:

Huang Yu-Siang

Sandrine Pinna

Lee Lieh

Hsieh Kan-chun

Running Time: 110 minutes

Presentation Format: BluRay, in Taiwanese, Mandarin, and Cantonese, with English subtitles

International Sales: Fortissimo Films

Print Source: Well Go USA

Film Website: http://hikari-fureru.jp/

Selected Filmography: Debut Feature Film

Trace Amounts

USA 2014

FRIDAY MAY 23 6:00 PM

SIFF CINEMA UPTOWN

SUNDAY MAY 25 12:00 PM SIFF CINEMA UPTOWN

After recovering from a mysterious and devastating illness, director Eric Gladen started researching the science behind autoimmune diseases. His research led him straight into one of the biggest medical controversies of all time: whether or not childhood vaccines cause autism. However—his film is not an anti-vaccine film. He doesn’t concentrate on the vaccines themselves but on something that belongs nowhere near them; on mercury, part of the ingredients used as a preservative in vaccines. Eventually, Eric decided to quit his career, moving into an RV and traveling the country for years in order to interview experts and piece together thousands of studies and leaked documents. When the puzzle was finally complete, the answer was very clear to him. He believes that mercury is the trigger for psychological and neurological autoimmune conditions and autism. His film presents interviews with specialists in the field, as well as specific scientific research and experiments that show how dangerous mercury is. At the very least, his documentary creates a platform for open dialogue for all aspects of this issue, for or against, in hopes of enlightening the public.

Director: Eric Gladen

Producer: Eric Gladen

Screenwriter: Eric Gladen

Cinematographer: Brad Woodville

Editor: Mike Foster

Music: Lee Wall

Running Time: 97 minutes

Presentation Format: DCP

Print Source: Faze Films

Film Website: traceamounts.com

Selected Filmography: Debut Feature Film

Tracks

UNITED KINGDOM/AUSTRALIA 2013

FRIDAY MAY 16 3:00 PM

SATURDAY MAY 17 9:30 PM

Based on Robyn Davidson’s thrilling memoir, director John Curran’s Tracks tells the story of a singular traveler who faces all the beauties and challenges of vast and unforgiving nature.

Mia Wasikowska (The Kids are All Right, The Double) gives a rich and riveting performance as Davidson, a young woman who decides to trek by foot from Australia’s Alice Springs across the country’s large and exacting desert to the Indian Ocean—a staggering distance of nearly 2,000 miles. With her dog and four camels in tow, Davidson embarks on a life-changing adventure that summons up all of her fear and vigor in equal measure. Curran’s film features stunning and immersive cinematography of the Australian desert and yet another transformative performance from rising star Wasikowska. Co-starring Adam Driver (TV’s “Girls,” Frances Ha) as a “National Geographic” photographer who documents her journey, Tracks is a moving drama that confronts the emotional intricacies of motivation—and the indomitable power of the human spirit.

EGYPTIAN

EGYPTIAN

Director: John Curran

Producers: Emile Sherman

Iain Canning

Screenwriter: Marion Nelson based on the book by Robyn Davidson

Cinematographer: Mandy Walker

Editor: Alexandre de Franceschi

Music: Garth Stevenson

Cast: Mia Wasikowska

Adam Driver

Emma Booth Rainer Bock

Roly Mintuma

Running Time: 110 minutes

Presentation Format: DCP

International Sales: HanWay Films

Print Source: The Weinstein Company

Selected Filmography:

Stone (2010)

The Painted Veil (2006)

We Don’t Live Here

Anymore (2004)

Praise (1998)

The Trip to Italy

UNITED KINGDOM/ITALY 2014

FRIDAY MAY 30 4:30 PM SIFF CINEMA UPTOWN

SATURDAY MAY 31 8:00 PM SIFF CINEMA UPTOWN

Planning your dream vacation? You could do a lot worse than following in the footsteps of British comedians Steve Coogan and Rob Brydon, who follow up their 2010 smash hit The Trip with the possibly even more delightful The Trip to Italy. They themselves are following, at least nominally, in the footsteps of the Romantic poets, as they eat and drink their way across Italy, bantering all the way. Zipping along in their Mini Cooper convertible (a tip of the hat to The Italian Job), they make their way from Piedmont, in the north of Italy, to Capri, in the south, with detours through the rolling hills of Tuscany, along the Amalfi Coast, and down the Italian Riviera. Punctuating the tours of sun-soaked vineyards and monuments to Byron and Shelley are long boozy lunches in outside gardens overlooking the sparkling sea, which in turn, are punctuated by another round of competitive Michael Caine impressions. What’s not to love?

Director: Michael Winterbottom

Producer:

Melissa Parmenter

Screenwriters: Rob Brydon

Steve Coogan

Michael Winterbottom

Cinematographer: James Clarke

Editors:

Mags Arnold

Paul Monaghan

Marc Richardson

Cast: Steve Coogan

Rob Brydon

Rosie Fellner

Claire Keelan

Marta Barrio

Running Time: 107 minutes

Presentation Format: DCP

International Sales: Goalpost Film

Print Source: IFC Films

Film Website: ifcfilms.com

Selected Filmography:

The Look of Love (2013)

Everyday (2012)

Trishna (2011)

The Trip (2011)

The Killer Inside Me (2010)

A Mighty Heart (2007)

The Road to Guantanamo (Doc, 2006)

Tristram Shandy: A Cock and Bull

Story (2005)

9 Songs (2004)

Code 46 (2003)

In This World (2002)

24 Hour Party People (2002)

The Claim (2000)

Wonderland (1999)

I Want You (1998)

Welcome to Sarajevo (1997)

Jude (1996)

Go Now (1995)

Butterfly Kiss (1995)

TRIPTYQUE

Triptych

CANADA (QUÉBEC) 2013

MONDAY MAY 26 7:30 PM

SIFF CINEMA UPTOWN

TUESDAY MAY 27 3:00 PM SIFF CINEMA UPTOWN

Triptych builds a portrait of disability and the importance of voice through an interlocking, three-part narrative. Michelle is a middleaged woman who is returning from a stay at a psychiatric hospital. She suffers from schizophrenia and it’s soon apparent that she is far from being cured. As she re-enters society, occupying her own apartment and getting her old job back at a bookstore, she stumbles over the blurred line between reality and the voices in her head. Michelle’s sister, Marie, introduces her fiancé, a retired German neurosurgeon named Thomas, who, in his own flashback chapter, is revealed to have been unhappily married to an opera singer, self-medicating his depression with alcoholism. His steady drinking makes for an unsteady hand, leading him to find solace instead in an affair with vivacious jazz singer Marie, a patient. The final chapter focuses on Marie herself, confronted with the possibility of losing her voice after getting a tumor removed. Triptych is a beautiful film backed with a classical score, combining washed-out colors with the hint of a shadowy vignette around each frame, emphasizing its dramatic origins and themes—co-director Robert Lepage adapted the film from his own play—while the actors provide intense emotional work that carries the story in a confident and effective way.

Awards:

Berlin Film Festival 2014 (Special Jury Mention)

The Turning

AUSTRALIA 2013

NORTH AMERICAN PREMIERE

SUNDAY MAY 25 10:00 AM

Directors:

Robert Lepage

Pedro Pires

Producer:

Lynda Beaulieu

Screenwriter: Robert Lepage

Cinematographer: Pedro Pires

Editors:

Pedro Pires

Aube Foglia

Cast:

Lisa Castonguay

Frédérike Bédard

Hans Piesbergen

Susie Almgren

Rebecca Blankenship

Running Time: 95 minutes

Presentation Format: DCP, in French, English, and German, with English subtitles

International Sales: National Film Board of Canada

Print Source: National Film Board of Canada

Film Website: nfb.ca/film/triptych_en

Selected Filmography:

LEPAGE:

The Far Side of the Moon (2003)

Possible Worlds (2000)

Nô (1997)

Le Polygraphe (1996)

Le Confessional (1995)

SIFF CINEMA UPTOWN

MONDAY MAY 26 1:00 PM LINCOLN SQUARE

THURSDAY MAY 29 9:00 PM SIFF CINEMA UPTOWN

Based on the bestselling book by multi awardwinning author Tim Winton, The Turning’s linking and overlapping stories explore the extraordinary turning points in ordinary people’s lives in a stunning portrait of a small western Australian coastal community. As characters face second thoughts and regret, relationships irretrievably alter, resolves are made or broken, and lives change direction forever. With 18 separate filmmakers each taking on one of the stories in Winton’s book, each interlinking story is reimagined by some of Australia’s most talented film artists including David Wenham, Robert Connolly, Justin Kurzel, and Ian Meadows. In addition, Cate Blanchett and Mia Wasikowska contribute striking directorial debuts. Loosely centered on the character of Vic Lang and his family, The Turning walks through his youth, sexual awakening, parental issues, marriage, and depression. This portmanteau production features Hugo Weaving, Cate Blanchett, Rose Byrne, Miranda Otto, and Richard Roxburgh. Though each film embraces a different filmmaking style, the ingenious narrative links these stories about the extraordinary turning points in ordinary people’s lives over the course of 30 years. Destined to be a classic of Australian cinema, this watershed film is an experience to sink into.

Awards:

Australian Film Institute Awards 2014 (Best Lead Actress)

Film Critics Circle of Australia Awards 2014 (Best Supporting Actress, Supporting Actor)

Directors:

Marieka Walsh

Warwick Thornton

Jub Clerc

Robert Connolly

Anthony Lucas

Rhys Graham

Ashlee Page

Tony Ayres

Claire McCarthy

Stephen Page

Shaun Gladwell

Mia Wasikowska

Simon Stone

David Wenham

Jonathan auf der Heide

Justin Kurzel

Yaron Lifschitz

Ian Meadows

Producers: Robert Connolly

Maggie Miles

Screenwriter: Robert Connolly based on a book by Tim Winton

Editor: Andy Canny

Cast:

Rose Byrne

Hugo Weaving

Cate Blanchett

Miranda Otto

Richard Roxburgh

Running Time: 180 minutes

Presentation Format:

DCP

International Sales:

LevelK

Print Source:

LevelK

Film Website: theturningmovie.com.au

Turning Tide

FRANCE/BELGIUM/SPAIN 2013

MONDAY MAY 26 7:00PM LINCOLN SQUARE

SATURDAY MAY 31 9:00 PM EGYPTIAN

MONDAY JUNE 2 9:00 PM SIFF

The Vendée Globe, which begins and ends in western France, is the world’s only solo nonstop round-the-globe yacht race. The height of single-handed ocean racing, it is an honor to compete in this three-month endurance test, an honor bestowed unto Yann Kermadec (François Cluzet, The Intouchables, SIFF 2012’s The Art of Love) after the unfortunate injury of his friend and fellow sailor Franck (actor-director Guillaume Canet). After bidding farewell to his dear wife and daughter, Yann proudly takes his place at the helm and swiftly secures the lead position, until an unfortunate malfunction temporarily anchors him somewhere in the Canary Islands. With little time to spare, Yann fixes his faulty rudder and rejoins the race, only to find that he has picked up a stowaway, the Mauritian teenager Mano (Samy Seghir). Since the Vendée Globe’s rules state that competitors can receive no assistance, neither onboard nor off, Mano’s mere presence could disqualify Yann outright, a potential future not lost on the increasingly furious skipper. But as turning around would put Yann at the end of the pack, Yann must keep Mano’s presence a secret while soldiering onward against the devastating forces of nature. The debut feature of acclaimed French cinematographer Christophe Offenstein (SIFF 2007’s Tell No One), Turning Tide is a breathtaking adventure on the open seas, where edge-of-seat cinematography and highstakes tension are on the horizon.

The Two Faces of January

UNITED KINGDOM/USA/FRANCE 2014

FRIDAY MAY 23 6:30 PM EGYPTIAN

SATURDAY MAY 24 1:30 PM EGYPTIAN

Director: Christophe Offenstein

Producers: Jean Cottin

Sidonie Dumas

Laurent Taïeb

Screenwriters: Jean Cottin

Pierre Marcel

Christophe Offenstein

Frédéric Petitjean

Cinematographer: Guillaume Schiffman

Editor: Véronique Lange

Music: Víctor Reyes

Cast: François Cluzet

Samy Seghir

Virginie Efira

Guillaume Canet

Karime Vanasse

Running Time: 97 minutes

Presentation Format: DCP, in French, with English subtitles

International Sales: Gaumont

Print Source: Gaumont

Film Website: gaumont.fr/fr/film/ En-solitaire.html

Selected Filmography: Debut Feature Film

It’s 1962 in Athens, and Chester and Collette MacFarland (Viggo Mortensen and Kirsten Dunst) are not your usual American tourists. This eye-catching and charismatic couple has cryptic motives. Unexpectedly, they cross paths with an American expat named Rydal (Oscar Isaac). A Greek-speaking and scamming tour guide, Rydal is transfixed by the wealthy Chester, and especially, by the sensual Collette. But after the couple becomes entangled in criminal and violent intrigue, Rydal agrees to help them out—but discovers that the two hide dark and dangerous secrets. As Rydal’s attraction to Collette—and Chester’s jealousy—increase, so does the tension and drama of the trio’s treacherous situation. Based on Patricia Highsmith’s intense pageturner, The Two Faces of January is a psychological mystery-thriller with nail-biting turns and plenty of heat. Lush European settings and lively visuals lend the adaptation a pure cinematic flavor and an exotic sensuality, while Mortensen, Dunst, and Isaac create a palpable chemistry that keeps their onscreen trifecta alive with energy, urgency, and enigma. The feature directorial debut of screenwriter Hossein Amini (Drive), The Two Faces of January is a sun-stained, exciting, and seductive thriller with three dynamic actors working at the peak of their powers.

Director: Hossein Amini

Producers: Tim Bevan

Eric Fellner

Robyn Slovo

Tom Sternberg

Screenwriter: Hossein Amini

Cinematographer: Marcel Zyskind

Editors: Nicolas Chaudeurge

Jon Harris

Music: Alberto Iglesias

Cast: Viggo Mortensen

Kirsten Dunst

Oscar Isaac

Daisy Bevan

Yigit Özsener

Running Time: 96 minutes

Presentation Format:

DCP

International Sales: Studio Canal

Print Source: Magnolia Pictures

Selected Filmography: Debut Feature Film

CINEMA UPTOWN

OPPRØRSKE OLDEMØDRE

Two Raging Grannies

NORTH AMERICAN PREMIERE

WEDNESDAY MAY 28 7:00 PM

DES ÉTOILES

Under the Starry Sky

FRANCE/SENEGAL 2013

SIFF CINEMA UPTOWN

THURSDAY MAY 29 4:00 PM LINCOLN SQUARE

FRIDAY MAY 30 1:30 PM PACIFIC PLACE

Macroeconomics is an incredibly complex subject, so what can two old ladies from Seattle without financial training possibly add to the discussion about solving the global economic crisis? How about a little common sense? In this documentary by Norwegian filmmaker Håvard Bustnes, longtime activists and close friends Shirley Morrison and Hinda Kipnes take on the Great Recession with some wisdom learned from their own experience during the Great Depression. Cruising around on motorized scooters, the two lefty octogenarians question the logic of “growing the economy” by encouraging more consumerism at the expense of the environment. Using little more than the phone book, they reach out to economists, investment managers, mathematicians, and Wall Street tycoons to ask simple, direct, and polite questions about why economic growth is sacrosanct. The condescending reactions to these inquiries range from eye-rolling to exasperated rudeness from a college professor, who kicks them out of his economics lecture. Later, when Shirley and Hinda fly to New York to crash a Wall Street charity dinner, they strike a nerve, causing a hostile overreaction that is chilling to behold. Through their bodies are beginning to give out, these courageous and tenacious “grannies” never tire of spreading their message that unrestrained spending is, in Hinda’s words, “not the solution, it’s the problem.” Two Raging Grannies proves that you’re never too old to make a difference and to speak truth to power.

Director: Håvard Bustnes

Producers: Håvard Bustnes

Christian Falch

Screenwriters: Håvard Bustnes

Lars K. Andersen

Cinematographer: Viggo Aleksandr Morais Knudsen

Editor: Anders Teigen

Music: Ola Kvernberg

Running Time: 78 minutes

Presentation Format: DCP

Print Source: Norwegian Film Institute

Film Website: tworaginggrannies.com

Selected Filmography: Health Factory (Doc, 2010) Big John (Doc, 2008)

THURSDAY JUNE 5 6:30 PM SIFF CINEMA UPTOWN

FRIDAY JUNE 6 3:30 PM SIFF CINEMA UPTOWN

Under the Starry Sky, Senegalese director Dyana Gaye’s debut narrative feature, is a richly realized examination of the African diaspora and the often fractal nature of contemporary emigration. This multi-country mosaic follows the experiences of African immigrants in various cultural contexts. Young Sophie travels from Dakar, to Senegal to Turin, Italy to join her husband Abdoulaye, only to find he is long gone and that she must fend for herself. Abdoulaye, meanwhile, has followed a job opportunity to New York City, hoping to stay with Sophie’s aunt. Unfortunately, the aunt is currently out of the country with her 19-yearold son, journeying to Dakar to introduce him to his African heritage for the first time and to take care of some unfinished personal business. Through the interconnected, emotionally charged storylines, Gaye succeeds in displaying the underexplored immigrant experience in the three cultural areas. Each character’s journey is an emotional thread, ultimately revealing the broader tapestry of searching for a place to call home with equal parts disillusionment, isolation, and hope.

Awards:

Angers European Film Festival 2014 (Jury Award, Audience Award)

Director: Dyana Gaye

Producer: Arnaud Dommerc

Jean-Baptiste Legrand

Screenwriters: Dyana Gaye

Cécile Vargaftig

Cinematographer: Irina Lubtchansky

Editor: Gwen Mallauran

Music: Baptiste Bouquin

Cast: Marème Demba Ly Ralph Amoussou

Souleymane Seye N’Diaye

Maya Sansa

Babacar M’Baye Fall

Running Time: 86 minutes

Presentation Format: DCP, in French, English, and Wolof with English

subtitles

International Sales: Films Distribution

Print Source: Rouge International

Selected Filmography: Saint Louis Blues (2009) Paris La Métisse (2005)

YURUSAREZARU MONO

Unforgiven

SATURDAY MAY 24 1:00 PM PACIFIC PLACE

TUESDAY MAY 27 9:30 PM SIFF CINEMA UPTOWN

SATURDAY MAY 31 8:30 PM KIRKLAND PC

Featuring stunning cinematography and a story that transcends time and space, Lee Sang-il’s Unforgiven is an impressive cinematic achievement that closes the circle on a classic filmic conversation. It began with Akira Kurosawa’s iconoclastic Samurai flick Yojimbo in 1961. Three years later, Sergio Leone remade it in the spaghetti western A Fistful of Dollars starring Clint Eastwood, which propelled Eastwood to international prominence. As a director, Eastwood helmed the Oscar®-winning masterpiece Unforgiven in 1992. Now, Lee Sang-il transposes that film’s story to Meiji-era Japan. Jubei Kamata (Ken Watanabe), a once notorious swordsman now retired, spends his days tending to his children and his struggling farmstead. When an old comrade arrives bearing news of a sizable bounty on the lives of two bandits who have mutilated the face of a prostitute, Jubei reluctantly sets off with his comrade and Goro, a young and cocky swordsman, to earn the bounty. Unknown to the trio, their journey will draw them in with the sadistic Ichizo, the village bailiff with a loathing for bounty hunters. This dynamic new take on an old story of honor and duty will please genre fans and general audiences with its timeless themes.

Director: Lee Sang-il

Producers: Shinichi Takahashi

Suguru Kubota

Screenwriter: Lee Sang-il

Cinematographer: Norimichi Kasamatsu

Editor: Tsuyoshi Imai

Music: Taro Iwashiro

Cast: Ken Watanabe

Akira Emoto

Koichi Sato

Yuya Yagira

Shiori Kutsuna

Running Time: 135 minutes

Presentation Format: DCP, in Japanese, with English subtitles

International Sales: Warner Entertainment Japan Inc.

Print Source: Warner Entertainment Japan Inc.

Film Website: yurusarezaru.com

Selected Filmography: Villain (2010) Hula Girls (2006)

Scrap Heaven (2005) 69 (2004)

Border Line (2002) Chong (2000)

LA VÉNUS À LA FOURRURE Venus in Fur

FRANCE 2013

FRIDAY MAY 16 4:00 PM HARVARD EXIT SATURDAY MAY 17 6:30 PM SIFF CINEMA UPTOWN

Vanda begs playwright-director Thomas for an audition, and his acceptance sparks a battle of wits and wiles in this adaptation of Leopold von Sacher-Masoch’s 19th-century story of pleasure and pain. Polanski’s film is actually an adaptation of a contemporary stage version of Sacher-Masoch’s story by David Ives, which Polanski sets now in a theater in Paris. Thomas (superbly played by Mathieu Amalric, who resembles a young Polanski) is searching for an actress to play the lead role in a stage version. Dripping from the rain and late for the audition, Vanda (Emmanuelle Seigner, Polanski’s actual wife) stumbles into the theater just as the director is getting ready to leave. It’s a coincidence that her name is Vanda, just like in the novella—or is it? Mesmerized by Vanda’s performance, Thomas forgets about leaving. Vanda’s no flaky dame, more like a skilled manipulator who has the play’s dialogue memorized and makes post-modern, feminist commentary about the 19th-century writing. She hypnotizes the director with her sharptongued bravado and strength. Stage-bound as the action might be, the two veteran actors’ chemistry and the sure hand of a master director keep the playful power struggle sharp, dynamic, and entertaining.

Awards: Lumiere Awards 2014 (Best Screenplay) César Awards 2013 (Best Director)

Director: Roman Polanski

Producers: Robert Benmussa

Alain Sarde

Screenwriters: David Ives

Roman Polanski

Cinematographer: Pawel Edelman

Editors:

Hervé de Luze

Margot Meynier

Music: Alexandre Desplat

Cast: Emmanuelle Seigner

Mathieu Amalric

Running Time: 96 minutes

Presentation Format:

DCP, in French, with English subtitles

International Sales: Lionsgate

Print Source: Sundance Selects

Film Website: unifrance.org/movie/ 34932/venus-in-fur

Selected Filmography: Carnage (2011)

The Ghost Writer (2010)

Oliver Twist (2005)

The Pianist (2002)

The Ninth Gate (1999)

Death and the Maiden (1994) Bitter Moon (1992)

Frantic (1988)

Pirates (1986)

Tess (1979)

The Tenant (1976)

Chinatown (1974)

What? (1973)

Macbeth (1972)

Rosemary’s Baby (1968)

The Fearless Vampire Killers (1966)

Cul-de-Sac (1966)

Repulsion (1965)

Knife in the Water (1962)

Viktoria

BULGARIA/ROMANIA 2014

SUNDAY MAY 25 8:00 PM

MONDAY MAY 26 1:00 PM

Maya Vitkova’s directorial debut is a sly and dryly funny satire on Bulgarian life before and after the fall of communism, as well as an epic mother and daughter story spanning several decades. Boryana is a librarian who dreams of immigration. Her pregnancy, eagerly awaited by her doctor husband, ruins her plans; after the birth, postpartum depression intensifies her feelings of entrapment. Meanwhile her daughter Viktoria, born in 1979 without a bellybutton or umbilical cord, is celebrated as the “Socialist Baby of the Decade.” As Viktoria grows up pampered by her father and by the Bulgarian dictator himself—to whom she has a direct phone line—she becomes the poster child of socialist utopia. But when the state crashes, so does Viktoria’s bright future. What can a youngster comprehend about the fall of a government? Viktoria tries to unravel the mystery of her mother and to realize one of her mother’s lost dreams. Poignant archival footage weaves a structure that gives her semi-autobiographical film a cohesive historical context. In surreal reds and somber tones highlighting her characters’ unruly moods and behaviors, Vitkova shows us a world of political and personal revolution.

Awards:

Titanic Film Festival 2014 (Breaking Waves Award)

Director: Maya Vitkova

Producer: Maya Vitkova

Screenwriter: Maya Vitkova

Cinematographer: Krum Rodriguez

Editor: Alexander Etimov

Music:

Kaloyan Dimitrov

Cast:

Irmena Chichikova

Daria Vitkova

Kalina Vitkova

Mariana Krumova

Dimo Dimov

Running Time: 155 minutes

Presentation Format: DCP, in Bulgarian, with English subtitles

Print Source: Viktoria Films

Film Website: viktoriafilms.jimdo.com/ viktoria-the-film

Selected Filmography: Debut Feature Film

WALESA. CZLOWIEK Z NADZIEI

Walesa. Man of Hope

POLAND 2013

SUNDAY JUNE 1 5:00 PM

KIRKLAND PC

TUESDAY JUNE 3 9:30 PM EGYPTIAN

SATURDAY JUNE 7 1:30 PM EGYPTIAN

1970, Gdansk, Poland. The Communist authorities bloodily repress a workers’ protest. Among the workers: Lech Walesa, an ordinary shipyard electrician. Refusing to submit, he founds a new movement, Solidarity, and embarks on a “quiet revolution” that will not only topple the dictatorship in Poland but will eventually help bring down the Iron Curtain and end the Cold War. There could be no more appropriate filmmaker for this biopic than Andrzej Wajda, the 87-year-old Polish master whose illustrious career includes such epochal works as Kanal and A Generation, important historical dramas like Danton and Katyn, and who gave cinematic expression to the ideals of Solidarity in his masterpieces, Man of Marble and Man of Iron. Skillfully incorporating reams of archival material, Walesa is structured around an interview with the famously tough Italian journalist Oriana Fallaci. It finds its focal point in the dichotomy between Walesa’s working class domestic life and the world-changing role he wound up playing, undoubtedly attributable to his bullish charm, conviction, and charisma—all qualities very much to the fore in Robert Więckiewicz’s brilliant portrayal of the man.

Awards: Official Oscar Submission 2013 (Foreign Language Film) Chicago International Film Festival (Silver Hugo Best Actor Award) Palm Springs International Film Festival (Bridging the Borders Award)

Director: Andrzej Wajda

Producer: Michał Kwieciński

Screenwriter: Janusz Głowacki

Cinematographer: Paweł Edelman

Editors: Grażyna Gradoń

Milenia Fiedler

Music: Paweł Mykietyn

Cast: Robert Więckiewicz

Agnieszka Grochowska

Maria Rosario Omaggio

Zbigniew Zamachowski

Cezary Kosiński

Running Time: 120 minutes

Presentation Format: DCP, in Polish and Italian, with English subtitles

International Sales: Films Boutique

Print Source: TVP

Film Website: walesafilm.pl

Selected Filmography: Sweet Rush (2009)

Katyn (2007)

The Revenge (2002)

Korczak (1990)

Man of Iron (1981)

The Girl from Wilko (1979)

Man of Marble (1977)

Land of Promise (1975)

Everything for Sale (1969)

Ashes and Diamonds (1958)

A Generation (1955)

SIFF CINEMA UPTOWN

HARVARD EXIT

HOJE EU QUERO VOLTAR SOZINHO

The Way He Looks

FRIDAY MAY 30 9:30 PM

WEDNESDAY JUNE 4 4:00 PM

With The Way He Looks, promising young Brazilian director Daniel Ribeiro has fleshed out his award-winning 2010 short I Don’t Want To Go Back Alone with the same storyline and actors, whose affectless performances ring true in this (also award-winning) teenage love triangle. Ribeiro’s debut feature is an awkwardly sweet window into the world of Leonardo (Ghilherme Lobo), a boy leaning toward independence and first love. Blind from birth, Leo dreams of riding a bike unassisted down the streets of Sao Paulo, but his childhood friend Giovana (Tess Amorim) gently holds his arm as they walk home from school each day. Although they’re 16 and 17, neither one of them has been kissed yet. The time seems just right for those spin-the-bottle pool parties to begin. And when Gabriel (Fabio Audi), with an easy smile and a mop of curly hair, arrives as the new kid in school, things start to get really complicated. How can shy Giovana hint at her romantic interest when Leo can’t visually read her body language? And how can Gabriel captivate everyone, sighted or not, so thoroughly? Ribeiro’s savvy film highlights the emotional intelligence of teenagers, evoking a gay take on John Hughes’ teen classics. Fun music from artists including Marvin Gaye, Belle and Sebastian, and One Direction realistically soundtracks these kids’ lives: the ups and downs of coming into your own.

Awards: Berlin Film Festival 2014 (Audience Award, Teddy Award)

VI ÄR BÄST!

We Are the Best!

SWEDEN 2013

HARVARD EXIT

Director: Daniel Ribeiro

Producer: Diana Almeida

Screenwriter: Daniel Ribeiro

Cinematographer: Pierre de Kerchove

Editor: Cristian Chinen

Cast: Ghilherme Lobo

Fabio Audi

Tess Amorim

Selma Egrei

Isabela Guasco

Running Time: 95 minutes

Presentation Format: DCP, in Portuguese, with English subtitles

International Sales: Films Boutique

Print Source: Strand Releasing

Film Website: thewayhelooks.com

Selected Filmography: Debut Feature Film

SATURDAY MAY 17 9:30 PM

WEDNESDAY MAY 21 4:30 PM

Set in early 1980s Stockholm, We Are the Best! is a sweetly raucous film from director Lukas Moodysson that follows a trio of preteen girls who discover the power of music, friendship, and rebellion. Best friends Bobo and Klara are fed up with clueless parents, conformist classmates, and the sexist musicians at the community center who refuse to accept the power of punk rock. Despite having no musical ability (or even instruments) they decide to form their own band, creating cacophonous in-your-face diatribes against sports and politics. Then they meet Hedvig, a good Christian girl in fuzzy sweaters who is a classical guitar prodigy. Hedvig seems out of her element at first, but soon becomes liberated by the music, discovering a fire inside of herself that comes out in force,—especially after she gets her first DIY haircut. Based on his wife Coco’s graphic novel “Never Goodnight,” Moodysson returns to the style of his beloved films Show Me Love and Together, capturing the joys of youth with a naturalistic, almost documentary style that genuinely embraces the spirit of the outsider and features a trio of young actresses who are true discoveries. Like grrl-power classic Ladies and Gentlemen: The Fabulous Stains before it, We Are the Best! is destined to inspire a new generation to pick up guitars, let their freak flags fly, and take over the world.

Awards:

Tokyo International Film Festival 2013 (Grand Prize)

Reykjavik International Film Festival 2013 (Audience Award)

Göteborg Film Festival 2014 (Lorens Award)

Sarasota Film Festival 2014 (Special Jury Prize)

Director: Lukas Moodysson

Producer: Lars Jönsson

Screenwriter: Lukas Moodysson based on the graphic novel by Coco Moodysson

Cinematographer: Ulf Brantås

Editor: Michal Leszczylowski

Cast:

Mira Barkhammar

Mira Grosin

Liv LeMoyne

Running Time: 102 minutes

Presentation Format: DCP, in Swedish, with English subtitles

International Sales: TrustNordisk

Print Source: Magnolia Pictures

Film Website: magpictures.com/ wearethebest

Selected Filmography: Mammoth (2009)

Container (2006)

A Hole in My Heart (2004)

Terrorists: The Kids They Sentenced (Doc, 2003)

Lilya 4-ever (2002) Together (2000) Show Me Love (1998)

HARVARD EXIT

PACIFIC PLACE

EGYPTIAN

US PREMIERE

WEDNESDAY MAY 28 6:00 PM

SATURDAY JUNE 7 6:00 PM

SUNDAY JUNE 8 11:30 AM

West is a dramatic love story and psychological thriller set in 1970s Germany, based on the novel “Lagerfeuer” (Campfire) by Julia Franck. Nelly and her son, Alexei, want to leave East Germany and start a new life in West Germany. Nelly pretends to marry a West German, who takes them over the border. Two suitcases, a schoolbag, and a cuddly toy are all they take along. West really starts where other stories end—with a successful escape. Unfortunately, it’s when Nelly makes it to West Germany and applies for émigré status that the authorities take an interest in her. Until this point, Nelly believed that her former boyfriend (and the father of her child) had died, but she learns that in fact, he was a spy. He may still be alive, and what’s more, the police insinuate that Nelly might know something about it. The second half of the film transpires largely within West Berlin’s Marienfelde Refugee Center, where all émigrés take a series of neverending tests and interviews before they can integrate into society. Some pass through easily, while others remain in limbo for months or even years. West is a realistic drama of a woman trying to deal with humiliation by a system that she hoped would set her free.

Awards:

Montreal Film Festival 2013 (Best Actress, Fipresci Prize)

RENTON IKEA PAC

SIFF CINEMA UPTOWN

SIFF CINEMA UPTOWN

Director: Christian Schwochow

Producers: Thomas Kufus

Helge Sasse

Barbara Buhl

Christoph Friedel

Katrin Schlösser

Screenwriter: Heide Schwochow based on the novel by Julia Franck

Cinematographer: Frank Lamm

Editor: Jens Klüber

Music: Lorenz Dangel

Cast: Jördis Triebel

Tristan Göbel

Alexander Scheer

Jacky Ido

Running Time: 98 minutes

Presentation Format: DCP, in German, with English subtitles

International Sales: Picture Tree International GmbH

Print Source: Picture Tree International GmbH

Selected Filmography: Cracks in the Shell (2011) November Child (2007)

Marta and Her Flying Grandfather (2006)

FEUCHTGEBIETE

Wetlands

GERMANY 2013

FRIDAY MAY 30 10:00 PM

FRIDAY JUNE 6 9:30 PM

A young woman enters a disgusting public restroom, rubs her genitals on a dirty toilet seat, and announces her mission to be a “living pussy hygiene experiment.” Meet Helen, a rebellious 17-year-old obsessed with bodily fluids. Raised by a germaphobic mother, she has decided to embrace a fetish of filth by masturbating with food, swapping used tampons with her best friend, building up her natural “flora,” and collecting sperm samples from random men. One day she develops a painful anal fissure while shaving, leading to an extended hospital stay where Helen crushes on a handsome male nurse while also devising a plan to reunite her separated parents. Based on the controversial bestselling novel by Charlotte Roche, Wetlands is vulgar, rude, and often gleefully disgusting, but that is the point. It is a celebration of breaking female taboos, anchored by a fierce and ebullient performance by Carla Juri, whose firecracker persona hides a vulnerable and sensitive young woman coming to terms with her past. Director David Wnendt’s striking visual style takes cues from Danny Boyle’s Trainspotting and combines it with a guileless eroticism. For a film featuring an unspeakable operatic moment involving a group of men and a pizza, Wetlands is not only surprisingly beautiful to look at, but filled with humor, pathos, and… yes, a whole lot of bodily fluids.

Director: David F. Wnendt

Producer: Peter Rommel

Screenwriters: Claus Falkenberg David F. Wnendt

based on the novel by Charlotte Rohe

Cinematographer: Jakub Behnarowicz

Editor: Andreas Wodraschke

Music: Ennis Rotthoff

Cast: Carla Juri

Christoph Letkowski

Meret Becker

Axel Milberg

Marlen Kruse

Running Time: 109 minutes

Presentation Format:

DCP, in German, with English subtitles

International Sales: The Match Factory

Print Source: Strand Releasing

Film Website: the-match-factory.com/ films/items/wetlands.html

Selected Filmography: Combat Girls (2011)

Small Lights (2008)

Hanging On (2000)

SIFF CINEMA UPTOWN

HARVARD EXIT

QU’EST CE QUE LE CINÉMA?

What Is Cinema?

USA 2013

SUNDAY JUNE 1 2:00 PM

SIFF CINEMA UPTOWN

WEDNESDAY JUNE 4 6:30 PM HARVARD EXIT

If cinema is a language, then Chuck Workman has tracked down its most inspired poets in this rhapsodic deliberation on the purity, grace, and still unfulfilled potential of the moving image. Workman has a hundred different answers to his film’s titular question, some implied in the marvelous clips he’s compiled. He’s transfixed by directors who approach their cinematic tool kit “in ways that Picasso or Frank Lloyd Wright or Chekhov might have used their art form’s tools, often breaking the rules, or inventing new ones, asking the audience to look harder, listen more closely, think about the form of the work as much as the content.” More answers are explicitly stated by some of the greatest practitioners the form has known, including (in archival interviews) Hitchcock, Kurosawa, and Bresson, as well as some of today’s finest directors such as David Lynch, Mike Leigh, Kelly Reichardt, and Michael Moore. Best known for the montage sequences he’s compiled for the Academy Awards® for the past two decades, Workman proves to have a more eclectic and avantgarde sensibility than you might expect, counting Jonas Mekas and Ken Jacobs among his personal pantheon.

Director:

Chuck Workman

Producer:

Charles Cohen

Cinematographers:

John Sharaf

Tom Hurwitz

Editor:

Chuck Workman

Music:

Bernard Herrmann

Nino Rota

Philip Glass

Ennio Morricone

Featuring:

David Lynch

Mike Leigh

Jonas Mekas

Yvonne Rainer

Running Time: 83 minutes

Presentation Format:

DCP, in English, French, and Farsi, with English subtitles

Print Source: Cohen Media Group

Film Website: cohenmedia.net

Selected Filmography: Visionaries (Doc, 2010)

Jonas Mekas and the (Mostly) American Avant-Garde Cinema (Doc, 2009)

A Kiss at Kerouac’s Grave (2004)

A House on a Hill (2003)

Superstar: The Life and Times of Andy Warhol (Doc, 1990) Stoogemania (1986)

What Now? Remind Me

PORTUGAL 2013

TUESDAY MAY 27 8:00 PM SIFF CINEMA UPTOWN

THURSDAY MAY 29 3:00 PM SIFF CINEMA UPTOWN

Veteran Portuguese film producer and filmmaker Joaquim Pinto shares the experiences of a year’s worth of demanding clinical trials for HIV, a virus that has ravaged his body for years. The treatments’ effects are demonstrated through thoughtful and honest first-person self-portraits, intimate moments shared with Joaquim’s husband, Nuno, and through their daily lives in the Portuguese countryside. Juxtaposing observational shots of the creatures and landscapes he encounters while invoking the painful, debilitating, and deranging effects of his treatments, Pinto encourages viewers to consider the relationship between man and nature, and to evaluate our minds’ abilities to distinguish between ordinary happenings and phenomenal events. What can we achieve by attempting to control the order of nature that looms over us, and is it worth it for us to try and obtain ultimate control over our lives, our bodies, and our minds? Contemplative, artistic, and altogether realistic, What Now? Remind Me encourages us to recognize the everyday sensations of observing, recalling, and thinking as the inspiration to live each day for what it is.

Awards: Locarno International Film Festival 2013 (Special Jury Prize, FIPRESCI Prize)

Director: Joaquim Pinto

Producers: Isabel Machado

Joana Ferreira

Screenwriter: Joaquim Pinto

Cinematographers: Nuno Leonel

Joaquim Pinto

Editors: Nuno Leonel

Joaquim Pinto

Music:

WhoMadeWho

Jacques Ibert

Carl Maria von Weber

Ludwig van Beethoven

Running Time: 164 minutes

Presentation Format: DCP, in Portuguese, with English subtitles

International Sales: C.R.I.M. Produções

Print Source: The Cinema Guild

Film Website: presente.pt/WhatNow.html

Selected Filmography:

O Fogo: Das Tripas

Coração (1992)

Onde Bate o Sol (1989)

Uma Pedra no Bolso (1988)

Sponsored by Mary Rainwater

Cuba Crossing (1980) Atlantic City Jackpot (1976)

White Shadow

GERMANY/ITALY/TANZANIA

2013

SATURDAY MAY 17 8:00 PM

SUNDAY MAY 18 1:00 PM

Alias is a young albino boy in Tanzania who is on the run with a price on his head. After witnessing his father’s murder, his mother sends him away to find refuge in the city. He goes to live with his uncle, Kosmos, a truck driver struggling with a few small businesses. Alias is not the only albino who cannot seem to escape from the unthinkable that is happening in Tanzania, Congo, and Kenya. Traditional healers offer huge sums of cash for albino body parts used in magic potions to make people more powerful, to bring prosperity, or to cure disease. From 2008 to 2010, more than 200 witch-doctor inspired murders occurred. Albinos have become a commodity—human targets of a lucrative and sinister trade. “Albinos don’t die, they just disappear” the locals say. At the same time, people with albinism are ostracized and killed for the opposite reasons—they’re presumed to bring bad luck. Israeli director Noaz Deshe has made a highly intense debut film that is mesmerizing and shot with tight close sensory movements that follow, day and night, the details of the plot from Alias’ point-of-view. For him, the city eventually becomes no different from the bush and wherever he travels, the same rules of survival apply.

Awards: Venice Film Festival 2013 (Lion of the Future)

Director: Noaz Deshe

Producers: Ginevra Elkann

Francesco Melzi d’Eril

Noaz Deshe

Screenwriters: Noaz Deshe

James Masson

Cinematographers: Armin Dierolf

Noaz Deshe

Nassos Chatzopoulos

Editors: Noaz Deshe

Xavier Box

Robin Hill

Nico Leunen

Music: James Masson

Noaz Deshe

Cast: Hamisi Bazili

James Gayo

Glory Mbayuwayu

Salum Abdallah

Running Time: 115 minutes

Presentation Format: DCP, in Swahili, with English subtitles

International Sales: Premium Films

Print Source: Premium Films

Film Website: premium-films.com/en/ content/WHITE-SHADOW

Selected Filmography: Debut Feature Film

Whitey: United States of America v. James J. Bulger USA 2014

FRIDAY MAY 23 9:30 PM

PACIFIC PLACE

SUNDAY MAY 25 1:15 PM LINCOLN SQUARE

On June 22, 2011, 81-year-old James “Whitey” Bulger was arrested outside of his apartment in Santa Monica, California, having spent the previous 12 years on the FBI’s Ten Most Wanted Fugitives list. He was the central figure in Boston organized crime—ultimately being charged for murder, extortion, racketeering, and money laundering—as well as a reputed FBI informant who provided information concerning the rival Italian Patriarca crime family. In exchange, the Bureau turned a blind eye to his own illicit activities. But when Bulger was tried in June 2013, he denied ever being an informant for the FBI, fulminating his already high-profile trial into a full-blown media circus. Documentarian Joe Berlinger, director of the Paradise Lost trilogy, explores the Bulger mystique. With unprecedented access to Bulger’s fellow gangsters, the victims and their families, and law enforcement agents, Berlinger uncovers shocking new allegations of corruption that reach into the highest levels of federal law enforcement, yet the director never glosses over Bulger’s own criminal exploits. Comprehensive and mesmerizing, Whitey: United States of America vs. James J. Bulger is a fascinating and compelling examination of truth and justice, crime and punishment.

Director: Joe Berlinger

Producers: Joe Berlinger

Caroline Suh

Cinematographer: Robert Richman

Editors: Joshua Pearson Alex Horwitz

Music:

Wendy Blackstone

Running Time: 130 minutes

Presentation Format: DCP

Print Source:

Magnolia Pictures

Film Website: rocofilms.com

Selected Filmography: Under African Skies (Doc, 2012)

Paradise Lost 3: Purgatory (Doc, 2011)

Crude (Doc, 2009)

Metallica: Some Kind of Monster (Doc, 2004)

Book of Shadows: Blair Witch 2 (2000)

Paradise Lost 2: Revelations (Doc, 2000)

Paradise Lost: The Child Murders at Robin Hood Hills (Doc, 1996)

Brother’s Keeper (Doc, 1992)

SIFF CINEMA UPTOWN

PACIFIC PLACE

The Whole Wide World

SATURDAY JUNE 7 4:00 PM

The story of an epic love is portrayed in exquisitely intimate terms in Dan Ireland’s haunting film about love and loss set in Depression-era Texas. The film is based on author Novalyne Price Ellis’s autobiographical memoir, “One Who Walked Alone”, which traces her turbulent romantic relationship with Robert E. Howard, the great pulp fiction writer of the 1930s who created such classics as “Conan the Barbarian” and “Red Sonja”. As the film opens, Novalyne is in a tizzy: her current beau, Clyde, is bringing his best friend, a writer, with him for a visit. Novalyne, a pretty schoolteacher and aspiring author is excited to be meeting a “working writer,” though when the men arrive, her romantic notions are somewhat dashed by Robert’s slovenly appearance. During a subsequent drive through the countryside, however, Robert proves to be fascinating and charismatic, and Novalyne’s earliest assumptions about him are rekindled. One year later, she hasn’t forgotten Robert, and when she’s transferred to a post in Cross Plains, where he lives, she wastes no time in trying to contact him. Before long, their sporadic meetings evolve into a courtship of sorts, but the course of true love is a long and winding road.

Awards:

SIFF 1996 (Best Actor, American Independent Special Jury Prize)

Mar del Plata Film Festival 1996 (Best Actress)

Lone Star Film and Television Awards 1998 (Best Actor, Screenplay)

PRECEDED BY:

Hate From a Distance

USA, 2014, 19 minutes, director: Dan Ireland, World Premiere Set in the world of racial tensions of 1963, Hate From A Distance tells the story of a young Southern boy, Danny Baker, who is caught in the middle of his father’s hatred of an African American family who have dwelt on the peanut farm they’ve owned for the last one hundred years. When a land dispute arises, all hell breaks loose, resulting in tragic consequences for all concerned. Produced in honor of the 50th Anniversary of the Civil Rights Act (July 2, 1964) abolishing segregation, and directed by SIFF Festival Co-Founder, Dan Ireland.Screens before The Whole Wide World.

IGOKU DE NAZE WARUI?

Why Don’t You Play in Hell?

JAPAN 2013

EGYPTIAN

Director:

Dan Ireland

Producers: Carl-Jan Colpaert

Kevin Reidy

Dan Ireland

Vincent D’Onofrio

Screenwriter: Michael Scott Myers

Cinematographer: Claudio Rocha

Editor: Luis Colina

Music: Harry Gregson-Williams

Cast: Vincent D’Onofrio

Renee Zellweger

Ann Wedgeworth

Harve Presnell

Benjamin Mouton

Running Time: 111 minutes

Presentation

Format: 35mm

International Sales: Sony Pictures Classics

Selected

Filmography: Jolene (2008)

Mrs. Palfrey at the Claremont (2005)

Passionada (2002)

The Velocity of Gary (1998)

The Rainbow (1989)

SATURDAY MAY 24 MIDNIGHT

EGYPTIAN MONDAY MAY 26 9:45 PM LINCOLN SQUARE

If there’s one thing we’ve learned from Midnight Adrenaline films, it’s this—never, ever mess with the Yakuza. But sometimes, you’ve got a dream, and the only way to make it come true is to enlist their help. Hirata yearns to be a big time movie director: he’s got a camera crew called the Fuck Bombers, and a leading man, who he’s promised to make Japan’s answer to Bruce Lee (complete with nunchucks and yellow jumpsuit). Meanwhile in town, the Ikegami clan attacks their rival crime boss Muto’s wife, only to have her wipe out their top hitmen with a butcher’s knife. Unfortunately, the bad press surrounding the attack leads to Muto’s beloved daughter, Mitsuko, having her adorable toothpaste commercial taken off the air. Ten years later, with his wife’s release from prison imminent, Muto’s only desire is for her to see Mitsuko’s first big-screen movie, one that doesn’t exist. Enter Hirata and the Fuck Bombers, who bring together the two rival clans to film the ultimate gang-war showdown. Cult director Sion Sono’s newest offering is an outrageous and perverse piece of outré cinema with a deliriously over the top, blood-soaked, sword-slashing finale.

Awards: Toronto Film Festival 2013 (Midnight Madness Audience Award) Fantastic Fest 2013 (Gutbuster Comedy: Best Picture, Director)

Sponsored by Thomas Zimmerman

Sponsored by Aron Michael

Director: Sion Sono

Producers: Takeshi Suzuki

Takuyuki Matsuno

Screenwriter: Sion Sono

Cinematographer: Hideo Yamamoto

Editor: Sion Sono

Music: Sion Sono

Cast: Jun Kunimura

Shinichi Tsutsumi

Hiroki Hasegawa

Gen Hoshino

Fumi Nikaidô

Tomochika

Tak Sakaguchi

Running Time: 126 minutes

Presentation Format: DCP, in Japanese, with English subtitles

International Sales: T-JOY Co., Ltd.

Print Source: Drafthouse Films

Film Website: drafthousefilms.com/film/ why-dont-you-play-in-hell

Selected Filmography: The Land of Hope (2012)

Himizu (2011)

Guilty of Romance (2011)

Cold Fish (2010)

Be Sure to Share (2009)

Love Exposure (2008)

Exte: Hair Extensions (2007)

Hazard (2006)

Noriko’s Dinner Table (2006)

Strange Circus (2005)

Into a Dream (2005)

Suicide Club (2001)

Keiko Desu Kedo (1997)

I Am Sono Sion! (1985)

Wild at Heart

USA 1990

SATURDAY MAY 17 2:00PM

David Lynch’s hallucinatory crime thriller and crazed romance blends elements of The Wizard of Oz and Elvis Presley fetishism with a cast of outrageous characters. Nicolas Cage and Laura Dern are Sailor and Lula, starcrossed lovers who can’t catch a break. When Sailor brutally dispenses with an assassin— hired by Lula’s psychotic mother, Marietta (Dern’s real-life mom, Diane Ladd)—he’s locked up for two years. Upon his release, the lovers defy Marietta again by taking a freedom ride in Sailor’s vintage T-Bird convertible. They only make it as far as Big Tuna, Texas, waylaid by another bad crowd, while being hunted by Marietta’s lovers-cum-henchmen. The road/ revenge/redemption flick was resisted by Roger Ebert on grounds of malevolence and misogyny but won the 1990 Palme d’Or at Cannes. Audacious aesthetics meet bizarre musical pairings for moments that are unpredictable and then unforgettable. Lynch’s milestone film, like Sailor’s ever-present snakeskin jacket, is the ultimate symbol of artistic individuality and belief in personal freedom.

Awards: Cannes Film Festival 1990 (Palme d’Or)

Director: David Lynch

Producers: Steve Golin

Monty Montgomery

Sigurjon Sighvatsson

Screenwriters: Barry Gifford

David Lynch

Cinematographer: Frederick Elmes

Editor: Duwayne Dunham

Music: Angelo Badalamenti

Cast: Laura Dern

Nicolas Cage

Willem Dafoe

Crispin Glover

Isabella Rossellini

Running Time: 125 minutes

Print Source: Park Circus

Selected Filmography: Duran Duran: Unstaged (2011)

Inland Empire (2006)

Mulholland Dr. (2001)

The Straight Story (1999)

Lost Highway (1997)

Twin Peaks: Fire Walk with Me (1992)

Blue Velvet (1986)

Dune (1984)

The Elephant Man (1980)

Eraserheard (1977)

Willow Creek USA 2014

FRIDAY MAY 23 10:00 PM

LINCOLN SQUARE

SATURDAY MAY 31 MIDNIGHT EGYPTIAN

On October 20, 1967, while riding horses in northern California’s Six Rivers National Forest, Roger Patterson and Bob Gimlin caught on film what appeared to be an unidentified creature. The resulting footage has become legendary among Bigfoot true believers, and provides the inspiration for this found footage horror gem that will send shivers down your spine. Amateur filmmaker Jim is convinced that the elusive Sasquatch exists. His girlfriend Kelly isn’t so sure, but joins him on his pilgrimage to Willow Creek, a tiny community in the immediate vicinity of where the Patterson-Gimlin footage was shot. Rolling into town, they discover a tourist trap built around Sasquatch gimmickry, complete with wood sculptures, comic murals, “Bigfoot Burgers,” and even a Sasquatch-obsessed singer-songwriter. But when the couple leaves this charming hamlet behind to venture into the surrounding forest, they uncover terrifying evidence that may finally prove the creature’s existence. In his newest film, cinematic provocateur Bobcat Goldthwait crafts a frightening exploration of isolation, obsession, and modern myth.

Director: Bobcat Goldthwait

Producers: Sarah de Sa Rego

Aimee Pierson

Screenwriter: Bobcat Goldthwait

Cinematographer: Evan Phelan

Editors: Jason Stewart

Stephen Thurston

Music: Matt Kollar

Cast: Bryce Johnson

Alexie Gilmore

Running Time: 80 minutes

Presentation Format:

DCP

Print Source: MPI Media Group

Selected Filmography: God Bless America (2011)

That’s How We Do It! (2010)

World’s Greatest Dad (2009)

Stay (2006)

Shakes the Clown (1991)

Sponsored by Thomas Zimmerman

EGYPTIAN

LAS BRUJAS DE ZUGARRAMURDI

Witching and Bitching

SPAIN/FRANCE 2013

SATURDAY MAY 17 MIDNIGHT

TUESDAY MAY 20 9:30 PM

A group of costumed characters—including Jesus, the Invisible Man, and Minnie Mouse— stage a daring daytime robbery of a Cash-forGold shop in the middle of a busy Madrid marketplace. Soon, Spongebob Squarepants is lying in a puddle of his own blood, the cops are in pursuit, and this gang of hapless criminals must find sanctuary. They hide out in the creepy mountain village of Zugarramurdi, which happens to be controlled by a coven of witches. Thus begins the ultimate battle of the sexes, culminating in a centuries-old ritual that requires young, male sacrifices… and maybe a little cannibalism. This non-stop cinematic roller coaster from Álex de la Iglesia, Spain’s master of gonzo filmmaking, is a hilariously tasteless mix of screwball comedy, high-tension action, and blood-soaked gore. With a cast that includes Hugo Silva, Spanish heart throb Mario Casas, Carmen Maura, and Terele Pávez in a Goya-winning performance as the creepy coven’s grande dame, Witching and Bitching careens from one unbelievable set piece to the next with audacious and award-winning special effects, ending in a magnificently jaw-dropping, and totally bonkers, climax.

Awards:

Goya Awards 2014 (Best Supporting Actress, Costume Design, Editing, Special Effects, Production Design, Make-Up and Hairstyles, Sound)

O LOBO ATRÁS DA PORTA

A Wolf at the Door

BRAZIL 2013

EGYPTIAN

EGYPTIAN

Director:

Álex de la Iglesia

Producer:

Enrique Cerezo

Screenwriters: Álex de la Iglesia

Jorge Guerricaechevarría

Cinematographer: Kiko de la Rica

Editor: Pablo Blanco

Music:

Joan Valent

Cast: Hugo Silva

Mario Casas

Carmen Maura

Pepón Nieto

Carolina Bang

Terele Pávez

Running Time: 110 minutes

Presentation Format: DEP, in Spanish, with English subtitles

International Sales: Film Factory Entertainment

Print Source: IFC Midnight

Film Website: filmfactoryentertainment.com

Selected Filmography:

As Luck Would Have It (2011)

The Last Circus (2010)

The Oxford Murders (2008)

Perfect Crime (2004) 800 Bullets (2002)

Common Wealth (2000)

Dying of Laughter (1999)

Dance with the Devil (1997)

The Day of the Beast (1995) Mutant Action (1993)

MONDAY MAY 19 9:30 PM

FRIDAY MAY 23 1:30 PM SIFF

Someone has kidnapped six-year-old Clarinha from school. But when the police question the usual suspects, they discover that each one tells a different, contradictory version of the events leading up to her disappearance. Delving deeper, the police peel back layers of lies to discover that everybody has something to hide. With this simple conceit that belies an ambitiously complex narrative structure, firsttime filmmaker Fernando Coimbra takes us on a harrowing journey of love, infidelity, and deception. As each character’s version of the story unfolds, revealing relationships that each has kept secret from one another, scenes that seemed straightforward at first take on greater complexity. Coimbra and cinematographer Lula Carvalho (Elite Squad) roam Rio’s suburbs with a chilly noir style and tight framing that captures the constricted lives these people lead. Combining ripped-from-the-headlines news with Greek mythology, Coimbra and his A-list Brazilian cast create a scandalous, suspenseful tale of how love can curdle into hate, and how one bad turn may earn another.

Awards:

Havana Film Festival 2013 (Grand Coral for First Work)

Rio de Janeiro International Film Festival 2013 (Best Film, Actress)

San Sebastián International Film Festival 2013 (Horizons Award)

Miami Film Festival 2014 (Best Director, Knight Competition)

Director: Fernando Coimbra

Producers: Caio Gullane

Fabiano Gullane

Debora Ivanov

Gabriel Lacerda

Rodrigo Castellar

Pablo Torrecillas

Screenwriter: Fernando Coimbra

Cinematographer: Lula Carvalho

Editor: Karen Akerman

Music: Ricardo Cutz

Cast: Leandra Leal

Milhem Cortaz

Fabíola Nascimento

Juliano Cazarré

Paulo Tiefenthaler

Karine Teles

Antonio Saboia

Running Time: 100 minutes

Presentation Format: DCP, in Portuguese, with English subtitles

International Sales: Mundial

Print Source: Outsider Pictures

Film Website: gullane.com/projeto/ o-lobo-atras-da-porta

Selected Filmography: Debut Feature Film

HARVARD EXIT

CINEMA UPTOWN

Words and Pictures

USA 2013

FRIDAY MAY 16 7:00 PM

SATURDAY MAY 17 6:30 PM

Jack (Clive Owen) is a brilliant but troubled English teacher at an upscale private school who meets far more than his match when Dina (Juliette Binoche), an accomplished painter suffering from arthritis, arrives to teach art. Beset by writer’s block and bothered by his students’ focus on social media, Jack has taken to drinking, too often and in inappropriate places. Initially, he and Dina are like oil and water, dismissive of each other’s reliance upon their respective disciplines, though both struggle to inspire passion in their students. Desperate to get his students’ grades up, Jack hatches a plan: a challenge to the new teacher and her students to prove which is more worthwhile—words or pictures—by pitting the classrooms against each other in a competition. Fred Schepisi (Roxanne, Six Degrees of Separation)’s superb direction meets his leads’ talents in a film that transcends generic convention. Gerald DiPego’s witty script brims with unexpected incident and plot twists. Words and Pictures melds the best of both worlds into a moving picture of sheer delight.

Director: Fred Schepisi

Producers:

Curtis Burch

Gerald DiPego

Screenwriter: Gerald DiPego

Cinematographer: Ian Baker

Editor:

Peter Honess

Music:

Paul Grabowsky

Cast:

Clive Owen

Juliette Binoche

Valerie Tian

Bruce Davison

Amy Brenneman

Navid Negahban

Running Time: 120 minutes

Presentation Format: DCP

International Sales: Voltage Pictures

Print Source: Roadside Attractions

Film Website: voltagepictures.com

Selected Filmography:

The Eye of the Storm (2011) Empire Falls (2004)

It Runs in the Family (2002)

Last Orders (2001)

Fierce Creatures (1996)

I.Q. (1994)

Six Degrees of Separation (1993)

Mr. Baseball (1992)

The Russia House (1990)

A Cry in the Dark (1988)

Roxanne (1987)

USA 2014

SUNDAY JUNE 1 6:30 PM PACIFIC PLACE

MONDAY JUNE 2 4:15 PM PACIFIC PLACE

Ryan Piers Williams (The Dry Land, SIFF 2010) returns to the festival with his sophomore feature, X/Y, a relationship drama centered on a group of six people attempting to make meaningful connections with each other while living and working in New York City. Told episodically from a variety of viewpoints, X/Y burrows deep below the surface of its characters’ lives to explore the inner workings of their relationships and why some of them last while others just fade away. Mark (writer-director Ryan Piers Williams) and Silvia (America Ferrera) are barely able to hold theirs together, while Silvia’s friend, Jen (Melonie Diaz), doesn’t even know where to start. Jake (Jon Paul Phillips) likes to keep his options open, while Stacey (Amber Tamblyn) feels like she is merely passing through. Meanwhile, Jason (Common) finds himself on potentially dangerous ground with Silvia, which brings these interconnected stories to a satisfying end. Directed with a deft touch by Ryan Piers Williams, X/Y is a multi-character story of modern love in the big city, a standout among today’s crop of independent films, that features a standout ensemble cast fully up to the challenge of bringing this three-dimensional relationship drama to life.

Director: Ryan Piers Williams

Producers: Jason Berman

America Ferrera

Thomas B. Fore

Ryan Piers Williams

Kwesi Collisson

Screenwriter: Ryan Piers Williams

Cinematographer: Pedro Gomez Milan

Editors:

Sabine Hoffman

Sloane Klevin

Marco Perez

Roy Tenhauser

Music: Fall on Your Sword

Cast: America Ferrera

Ryan Piers Williams

Melonie Diaz

Jon Paul Phillips

Amber Tamblyn Common

Running Time: 83 minutes

Presentation Format:

HDCAM

Print Source:

Deconstructed Pictures

Selected Filmography: The Dry Land (2010)

Plenty (1985)

Iceman (1983)

Barbarosa (1981)

The Chant of Jimmie Blacksmith (1978)

The Devil’s Playground (1976)

LINCOLN SQUARE

HARVARD EXIT

You Must Be Joking

FRIDAY MAY 23 7:00 PM PACIFIC PLACE

SATURDAY MAY 24 4:00 PM

Barb Schwartz (comedienne and writer Sas Goldberg) is stuck in a rut. She suffers a deadend job as a paralegal, her overbearing mother and sister constantly nag and brag, and she lives her single life in a Roosevelt Island studio apartment watching TV. But after reconnecting with her spirited and feisty childhood friend, Billy (writer-director Jake Wilson), Barb finds the sudden determination to pursue the thing she’s loved all her life: comedy. In this funny and offbeat film about rediscovery, Wilson and Goldberg have made a unique and biting buddy picture about realizing that it’s never too late to change life’s course. Featuring a painfully authentic and endearing look into the New York improv scene, You Must Be Joking is a gut-busting and warm comedy with no shortage of emotional outbursts, awkward office dynamics, and dysfunctional families. Wilson’s and Goldberg’s talents create more than just laughs—their stellar chemistry, perfect timing, and offbeat and subversive humor are starmaking. You Must Be Joking is an original and feel-good comedy that asks the question: What makes you so happy you giggle?

Director: Jake Wilson

Producers: Sirad Balducci

Sas Goldberg

Jake Wilson

Kevin Iwashina

Screenwriters: Sas Goldberg

Jake Wilson

Cinematographer: Jan Reichle

Editor: Alexander Hammer

Music: Adam Wachter

Cast: Sas Goldberg

Jake Wilson

Margaret Colin

David Wohl

James Wolk

Hannibal Buress

Running Time: 92 minutes

Presentation Format: HDCAM

Print Source: The Battery Co.

Film Website: facebook.com/YMBJmovie

Selected Filmography: Debut Feature Film

Yves Saint Laurent

FRANCE 2014

FRIDAY MAY 30 8:30 PM

KIRKLAND PC

SATURDAY MAY 31 6:30 PM PACIFIC PLACE

Long-awaited and ambitious, this new movie by Jalil Lespert confronts the delicate exercise of the biopic and brings to the screen the creative, feminine, and troubled genius of the famous couturier Yves Saint Laurent, beautifully played by the young and charismatic actor Pierre Niney. From the outset, Pierre Bergé, his partner for almost fifty years (superbly played by Guillaume Gallienne), appears as the narrator of the movie: he’s the one who knows everything, who can tell us the secrets of Saint Laurent. Through his eyes the film becomes a dazzling and explicit declaration of love. Thanks to great documenting work, the film shoulders an almost didactic function and unveils the dark facets of Yves Saint Laurent. From the drugs to the fashion show backrooms, from the sentimental whims to the nighttime wandering, it blends the artistic trajectory of Saint Laurent with an authentic descent into hell. In the end it confirms the eternal myth of a genius whose perfectionism has been pushed to the extreme. Built on a succession of different scenes spanning Paris and Morocco, between the society parties and debauchery, the movie succeeds in depicting an eye opened to the Beauty—the eye of a brilliant artist who invented an archetype of the “woman,” audaciously reshaping the flapper aesthetic, the “woman” of Yves Saint Laurent.

Director: Jalil Lespert

Producer: Yannick Bolloré

Screenwriters: Marie-Pierre Huster

Jacques Fieschi

Jalil Lespert

Jérémie Guez

based on the book by Laurence Benaïm

Cinematographer: Thomas Hardmeier

Editor: François Gédigier

Music: Ibrahim Maalouf

Cast: Pierre Niney

Guillaume Gallienne

Charlotte Le Bon

Laura Smet

Marie De Villepin

Running Time: 101 minutes

Presentation Format: DCP, in French, with English subtitles

International Sales: The Festival Agency/SND

Print Source: The Weinstein Company

Selected Filmography: Against the Wind (2011) 24 Measures (2007)

Zip & Zap and the Marble Gang

SATURDAY MAY 17 10:30 AM

SUNDAY MAY 25 1:00 PM

SATURDAY MAY 31 10:30 AM

Zip and Zap, two beloved Spanish comic book characters, are brought to life in this stellar mystery adventure. As the school year ends, Zip and Zap are caught cheating on their final exams and are sent to a strict boarding school ruled by a fun-hating headmaster named Falconetti. With his security guards watching every move, the boys band together with a trio of new friends to create the secret Marble Gang, creating pranks and leaving marbles behind as their signature. Their mischief eventually uncovers a secret that dates back to the school’s first headmaster and a series of puzzles that only the youngat-heart can solve. Director Óskar Santos has spectacularly resurrected the old-fashioned boys adventure for today’s generation. With great performances, a fast-paced story, and eye-popping special effects, Zip & Zap and the Marble Gang is destined to become a family-adventure favorite.

PACIFIC PLACE

RENTON IKEA PAC

PACIFIC PLACE

Director: Óskar Santos

Producers: Fernando Bovaira

Francisco Ramos

Mercedes Gamero

Koldo Zuazua

Mikel Lejarza

Screenwriters: Jorge Lara

Francisco Roncal Óskar Santos

Cinematographer: Josu Inchaustegui

Editor: Carolina Martínez Urbina

Music: Fernando Velázquez

Cast: Javier Gutiérrez

Daniel Cerezo

Raúl Rivas

Claudia Vega

Marcos Ruiz

Running Time: 92 minutes

Presentation Format: DCP, in Spanish, with English subtitles

International Sales: Film Factory Entertainment

Print Source: Film Factory Entertainment

Selected Filmography: For the Good of Others (2010)

Zombeavers USA 2014

SUNDAY MAY 25 MIDNIGHT

MONDAY MAY 26 8:30 PM

Six college friends plan a weekend of drinking, sex, and fun at a secluded cabin. The girls take their tops off (as they do), and they all head out for a swim in the nearby lake. Little do they know that their vacation is dammed, as they have just trespassed into the territory of toxic-waste-mutated beavers, undead creatures with a craving for raw flesh. That’s right…zombeavers! When the trailer for Zombeavers appeared, it quickly became an Internet sensation, racking up millions of views in the first few days. But would this outrageous horror-comedy live up to its premise, or was it just another Sharknado-style gimmick? We’re happy to report that these walking dead nocturnal rodents deliver the goods! Director Jordan Rubin presents more than just an admittedly silly concept, instead crafting a loving tribute to classic ’80s vidsploitation fare. With buckets of gore and practical effects all done by hand (no lazy CGI effects here), the film stays true to the genre without sacrificing an uproarious sense of humor, which arrives in the form of foul-mouthed one liners, a cameo from legendary stand-up Bill Burr, and just the right amount of beaver puns.

EGYPTIAN

SIFF CINEMA UPTOWN

Director: Jordan Rubin

Producers: Evan Astrowsky

Christopher Lemole

Jake Weiner

Tim Zajaros

JC Spink

Chris Bender

Screenwriters: Jordan Rubin

Al Kaplan

Jon Kaplan

Cinematographer: Jonathan Hall

Editors: Ed Marx

Seth Flaum

Music: Al Kaplan

Jon Kaplan

Cast: Cortney Palm

Hutch Dano

Lexi Atkins

Peter Gilroy

Rachel Melvin

Jake Weary

Running Time: 85 minutes

Presentation Format: DCP

International Sales: Epic Pictures Group, Inc.

Print Source: Epic Pictures Group, Inc.

Film Website: facebook.com/ ZombeaversMovie

Selected Filmography: Debut Feature Film

SIFF STAFF 2014

Artistic & Co-Director Carl Spence Managing & Co-Director Mary Bacarella

PROGRAMMING

Director of Programming

Beth Barrett

SIFF Cinema Programmer

Clinton McClung

Programming Coordinator

Megan Leonard

Programming Assistant

Andrew Espe

Programmers

Angelo Acerbi

Maryna Ajaja

Emily Alm

Justine Barda

Beth Barrett

Clare Canzoneri

Dan Doody

Andrew Espe

Ruth Hayler

Dustin Kaspar

Megan Leonard

Clinton McClung

Dale Nash

Paula Nechak

Stan Shields

Carl Spence

Andy Spletzer

Basil Tsiokos

Brad Wilke

Festival Founders Darryl Macdonald, Dan Ireland

Programming Interns

Camille Devy

Branden Hawkins

Virgile Heitzler

Camille Madinier

Cory Rodriguez

EDUCATION AND FORUMS

Educational Programs Manager

Dustin Kaspar

Youth Jury/FutureWave

Committee Coordinator

Sarah Haskell

First Draft / Crash Cinema Intern

Alex Cottle

African Pictures / Education Intern

Hana Peoples

GUEST RELATIONS

Guest Relations Manager

Rhonda J. Sable

Guest Relations Coordinator

Carey Christie

Guest Relations Travel Coordinator

Ruby Wishnietsky

Guest Hospitality Suite Coordinator

Miriam Schwartz

Guest Relations Manager Assistant

Nathania tenWolde

Guest Relations

Administrative Assistant

Don Chan

Guest Relations Interns

Lisa Fortino

Sydney Hunt

DEVELOPMENT AND INDIVIDUAL GIVING

Director of Strategic Partnerships

Nancy Kennedy

Director of Individual Giving

Renee O’Donnell

Corporate Relations Manager

Brady Bekker

Special Events Manager

Phoebe Hopkins

Community Relations Officer

Courtney Smith

SAYED ALAMY, GUY EATS OCTOPUS DESIGN AND PHOTOGRAPHY

Development Coordinator

Natalie Chhim

Membership Coordinator

Serena Preston

Community Relations Activation Officer

Branden Hawkins

Festival Special Events Coordinator

Jennifer Lisignoli

Festival Special Events Assistant

Frank Cardoza

Festival Platinum Plus Concierge

Latesha Miller

Individual Giving Intern

Devon Herold

Special Events Gift Bag Intern

Olivia Gherson

Brand Activation Intern

Elisabeth Richardson

Development Consulting

Grants: Liza Comtois

Special Event: Facility, Inc.

MARKETING AND COMMUNICATIONS

Director of Marketing and Communications

Jason Dittmer

Graphic Design Manager

Jonathan DePriest

Marketing Manager

Maria Rodriguez Abad

Public Relations Manager

Rachel Eggers

Festival Interactive Marketing Manager

Ben Mawhinney

Festival Marketing Associates

Kendra Redman

Natalie Yip

Festival Publications Manager

Jennifer K. Stuller

Festival Publications Associate Editors

Marcus Gorman

Rachel Shimp

Festival Publications Designer

Steve Meyer

Festival Publicists

Sara Huey

John Longenbaugh

Marketing and Communications Interns

Kaylie Au

Alba Bayés-Quer

Beth Crook

Aubrey Jones

Minhye Kim

Rashelle McKee

Anna Rockey

Allison Shroeder

Candace Shrope

Emalie Soderback

Writers

Maryna Ajaja

Justine Barda

Beth Barrett

Camille Devy

Dan Doody

Andrew Espe

Kate Fujimoto

Marcus Gorman

Virgile Heitzler

Aubrey Jones

Dustin Kaspar

Megan Leonard

Heather Logue

Camille Madinier

Clinton McClung

Odawni AJ Palmer

Bruce Reid

Stan Shields

Rachel Shimp

Emalie Soderback

Carl Spence

Andy Spletzer

Jennifer K. Stuller

Brad Wilke

Randy Woods

Andrew Wright

OPERATIONS

Director of Operations

Jodie Levey

Manager of Operations and Technology

Mike Pearson

Manager of Information Systems

Kristine Towne

Manager of Cinema Operations

Tammy Williams

Manager of Human Resources and Volunteers

Lisa Brown

SIFF Cinema Assistant Manager

Dan Hudson

SIFF Cinema Assistant Manager

Mimi Noyes

Operations Intern

Gabi Leidal

Festival Quality Control Manager

Bill Murphey

Festival Venue Operations Manager

Tim Nicolson

Festival Box Office Manager

Carly Rose Moser

Festival Production Manager

Dustin O’Dell

Festival Production Coordinator

Maria Maness

Festival Production Driver

Molly Benson

Festival Print Traffic

Anthony Doyle

Festival Print Traffic

Josh Wakeland

SIFF Cinema Staff

Andrew Niece

David Corry

David Turnbull

Eddy Dughi

Edwin Bailey

Greg Salvatore

Jason Chase

Lauren Wilson

Susan Segalla

Tyler Farry

Zaira Arredondo

SIFF Cinema Projectionists

Jim Tuohey

Aaron Ridenour

Larry Price

Mark Allender

Patrick Gately

Ricky Hancock

ADVERTISING AGENCY

Wong Doody Crandall Weiner

PUBLISHING SERVICES

ENCORE MEDIA GROUP

Publication Design and Production

Ana Alvira

Deborah Choat

Paul Heppner

Robin Kessler

Kim Love

Susan Peterson

Jana Rekosh

Jonathan Shipley

Advertising Sales

Gwendolyn Fairbanks

Marty Griswold

Mike Hathaway

Ann Manning

Lenore Waldron

Denise Wong

20th Century Fox Meredith Lipsky Meredith.Lipsky@fox.com

A24

Lisa Richie lisar@a24films.com 24films.com

Absolute Clay Productions, LLC

Paula DuPre Pesmen paula@clayfilms.com

Adriana Chiesa Enterprises Mélanie Ronat info@adrianachiesa enterprises.com adrianachiesaenterprises. com

Akson Studio Karol Bijos karol.bijos@aksonstudio.pl

Allfilm

Maria Kallaste allfilm@allfilm.ee allfilm.ee

Amplify • Variance Films Dylan Marchetti dylan@variancefilms.com

Antpode Sales & Distribution Elena Podolskaya sales@antipode-sales.biz antipode-sales.biz

Area 23a

Kirt Eftekhar kirt@area23a.com area23a.com

Austrian Film Commission Anne Laurent festivals@afc.at afc.at

Autlook Filmsales Youn Ji youn@autlookfilms.com autlookfilms.com

Axelotil Film Cristina De Carous cristinadecarolis85@ gmail.com

The Battery Co. Jake Wilson jake@thebatteryco.com

Big World Cinema Tamsin Ranger tamsin@bigworld.co.za

BKM - Mamut Film Dilara Omur dilara@bkmonline.net bkmonline. net

Boc Features LLC Kyungmi Kim kyungmi007@gmail.com

The Breach LLC Susan LaSalle susan@thebreachfilm.com

Calle Films, Inc. Mark Grieco grieco.mark@gmail.com

Capricci Films Manon Bayet manon.bayet@capricci.fr capricci.fr

Chang Tso-Chi Film Studio Ltd. Vanessa Liang chang.film@msa.hinet.net changfilm.com.tw

Chezville

Gary Cranner gary@chezville.no

China Film Archive

Zhang Lan zhanglan@yahoo.com.cn

CIM Productions Guillaume de Roquemaurel gderoquemaurel@hotmail. com

Cinedigm

Mike Jesson mikeyj10@gmail.com jeffreichert9@gmail.com

The Cinema Guild Graham Swindoll gswindoll@cinemaguild. com cinemaguild.com

Cinetele Films

Habib Attia mh.attia@cinetelefilms.net cinetelefilms.net

Cohen Media Group

Debbie Acosta debbie@cohenmedia.net cohenmedia.net

Copper Pot Pictures

Dave LaMattina dave@copperpotpictures. com

CounterPoint Films

Peter Rader cpfilms@aol.com

Cultura Initiatives Nina Govorova ninon77@gmail.com

Danish Film Institute

Lizette Gram Mygind lizette@dfi.dk dfi.dk

Dark Matter Studios Llewelynn Greeff llewelynn@gmail.com

Deckert Distribution

Ina Rossow ina@deckert-distribution. com deckert-distribution.com

Deconstructed Pictures Ryan Piers Williams ryanpierswilliams@gmail. com

Distrib Films Clemence Taillandier clemence.taillandier@gmail. com

Drafthouse Films

Jenny Jacobi Jenny.jacobi@drafthouse. com drafthousefilms.com

Edko Films Ltd

Julian Chiu chiujulian@edkofilm.com.hk

Electric City Entertainment Crystal Powell crystal@electriccityent.com electriccityent.com

Elle Driver Lucie Cottet festival@elledriver.eu elledriver.fr

End Time Harvest Productions Peres Owino peresowino@gmail.com

eOne Entertainment International

Ruby Rondina festival.requests@gmail. com entertainmentonegroup. com

eOne Films US Natasha Pietruschka npietruschka@entonegroup. com

Epic Pictures Group, Inc. Evan Astrowsky eastrow@mindspring.com epic-pictures.com

Faze Films

Eric Gladen egladen@gmail.com

The Festival Agency Elodie Dupont ed@thefestivalagency.com thefestivalagency.com

FiGa Films

Alex Garcia alex@figafilms.com figafilms.com

Film Buff

Steven Beckman steve@filmbuff.com filmbuff.com

The Film Collaborative Jeffrey Winter jeffrey@newamericanvision. com thefilmcollaborative.org

Film Factory Entertainment Carlota Caso carlota@filmfactory.es filmfactory.es

Film Harvest info@filmharvest.com

Film Movement

Mallory Jacobs mallory@filmmovement.com filmmovement.com

Film Option International Andrew Noble anoble@filmoption.com filmoption.com

The Film Sales Company Jason Ishikawa Jason.Ishikawa@ filmsalescorp.com filmsalescorp.com

Filmgalerie 451 Freider Schlaich kino@filmgalerie451.de filmgalerie451.de

The Film Works

Eric Jordan eric@thefilmworks.ca

Films Boutique Valeska Neu valeska@filmsboutique.com filmsboutique.com

Films Distribution

Sanam Madjedi sanam@filmsdistribution. com filmsdistribution.com

Finecut Co. Namyoung Kim ny@finecut.co.kr

Finnish Film Foundation Jenni Domingo jenni.domingo@ses.fi

Flicker Alley

Jessica Rosner jessicaprosner@gmail.com

Focus Features

Daniella Robinson

Daniella.Robinson@ focusfeatures.com focusfeatures.com

Fortissimo Films

Laura Talsma laura@fortissimo.nl fortissimofilms.com

Fox Searchlight

Russell Nelson

Russell.Nelson@fox.com foxsearchlight.com

Full Frame Features

Jason Bognacki jbognacki@gmail.com

Funny Balloons

Renan Artukmaç festivals@funny-balloons. com funny-balloons.com

Gaumont Arianne Buhl abuhl@gaumont.fr gaumont.fr

Giant Films Monique Prinsloo monique@giantfilms.tv

GKids

Dave Jesteadt dave@gkids.com gkids.com

Gravitas Ventures

Melanie Miller melanie@gravitasventures. com gravitasventures.com

Great Curve Films

Madeleine Sackler ms@greatcurvefilms.com dogwoof.com

Hockenhull Oliver Hockenhull oliver.hockenhull@gmail. com

Hodgee Films

Brent Hodge info@bronytalemovie.com hodgeepodgee.com

Hypnagogia Films

Eric Green hypfilms@gmail.com hynagogiafilms.com

Icelandic Film Centre

Christof Wehrmeier christof@icelandicfilm centre.is iff.is

Icon Production

Velvet Moraru velvetmoraru@yahoo.com

IFC Films

Elizabeth Brambilla ebrambilla@ifcfilms.com ifcfilms.com

Ignatius Films Canada

Ferdinand Lapuz ignatiusfilmscanada@ yahoo.ca

Intramovies

Manuela Mazzone manuela.mazzone@ intramovies.com intramovies.com

Iranian Independents

Mohammad Atebbai info@iranianindependents. com

Isotope Films Chiemi Karasawa chiemi@isotopefilms.com

Jaya International Jane Charles janecharles11@gmail.com

Kay D. Ray Productions Kay D. Ray kaydray@comcast.net

Kinderwald Film Lise Raven film@kinderwaldfilm.com

Kino Lorber Jonathan Hertzberg jhertzberg@kinolorber.com kinolorber.com

Kinology Grégoire Graesslin festivals@kinology.eu kinology.eu

The Land Films Matt Leach matt@thislandpress.com

Latido Films Óscar Alonso info@latidofilms.com latidofilms.com

Le Pacte Arnaud Aubelle a.aubelle@le-pacte.com le-pacte.com

LevelK Freja Johanne Nørgaard Sørensen freja@levelk.dk levelk.dk

Lightning Entertainment Richard Guardian rsg@lightning-ent.com

Lincoln Leopard Lucas Senger lucas@lincolnleopard.com

Lionsgate Chela Johnson CJohnson@lionsgate.com lionsgate.com

Lobster Films Jessica Rosner jessicaprosner@gmail.com

m-Appeal Katja Lenarcic films@m-appeal.com m-appeal.com

Madshorts Madeline Olnek madshorts@gmail.com

Magnolia Pictures Martin Wendel booking@magpictures.com magpictures.com

Mega-Vision Angela Wong angelaolwong@mvphk.biz

Meydenbauer Entertainment Joshua Caldwell josh@meyd-ent.com

Milkhaus Daniel Junge daniel@jungefilm.com

Millennium Entertainment

Vicky Eugia veguia@millennium entertainment.me

MK2

Anne-Laure Barbarit anne-laure.barbarit@mk2. com

Monoduo Films Ben Bassauer ben@monoduo.net

Monterey Media Jenny Manocchio jmanocchio@monterey media.com

Mosquito Films Distribution Sompot Chidgasornpongse sompot@mosquitofilms distribution.com

Movie Plus Productions leelu@movieplus.info

MPI Media Group Wyatt Ollestad wollestad@mpimedia.com mpimedia.com

Music Box Films Rebecca Gordon rgordon@musicboxfilms. com musicboxfilms.com

My Last Year Productions, LLC

Jennessa West jennessawest@pressing pictures.com

National Film Board of Canada Danielle Viau festivals@nfb.ca

No Blondes Productions Chika Anadu cbanadu@gmail.com

No. 8 Films

Craig Newland yourstation@xtra.co.nz

Norwegian Film Institute Stine Oppegaard stine.oppegaard@nfi.no nfi.no

Open Road/XLrator Mike Radiloff mike.radiloff@xlratormedia. com xlratormedia.com

Outplay International Philippe Tasca philippe@outplayfilms.com

Outsider Pictures Paul Hudson paul@outsiderpictures.us outsiderpictures.us

Paramount Pictures

Stefanie Larson

Patagonia Beda Calhoun beda.calhoun@gmail.com

Patra Spanou Film Marketing & Consulting Patra Spanou spanoupa@yahoo.de

Picture Tree International GmbH Yuanyuan Shi yuan@picturetreeinternational.com picturetree-international. com

Pool Food

Ryan Worsley ryemyles@yahoo.com

Premium Films

Kasia Karwan kasia.karwan@premiumfilms.com

Primer Plano Film Group SA Julia Leik primerplano@primerplano. com

Question Why Films

Nancy Kates kates@sontagfilm.org

RADiUS-TWC

Christina Zisa Christina.Zisa@weinsteinco. com radiustwc.com

Ralph Smyth Entertainment Andrew Lee andrew@ralphsmyth.com

Ramonda Films

Pascale Ramonda pascale@pascaleramonda. com pascaleramonda.com

Random Media

Rob Williams rob@randommedia.com

Revolutio, LLC

Joe Piscatella joepiscatella@mac.com

Rialto Pictures

Eric Di Bernardo eric@rialtopictures.com

Roadside Attractions

Stephanie Northern stephanien@roadside attractions.com roadsideattractions.com

Rooftop Films

Daryl Conlon daryl.freimark@gmail.com

Rouge International Nadia Turincev nadia@rouge-international. com

SALTY Features

Yael Melamede yael@saltyfeatures.com

SCHNElluloid

Isaac Olsen schnelluloid@yahoo.com

School Pictures

Stephen Israel stephenisrael@me.com

ShadowCatcher Entertainment

Chris Blanchett shadowcatcherent.com

Shochiku Co., Ltd. Chiaki Omori omori@shochiku.co.jp shochikufilms.co.jp

Six Pack Film

Ralph McKay amovie@sbcglobal.net sixpackfilm.com

Sony Pictures Repertory Christopher Lane christopher_lane@spe. sony.com

Stir It Up Productions LLC Laurel Spellman Smith laurel@spellmansmith.com

Strand Releasing

Nate Faustyn nathan@strandreleasing. com strandreleasing.com

Studio Canal Pascale Hornus pascale.hornus@ studiocanal.com studiocanal.com

Subotica Limited Claire Nolan claire@subotica.ie

Sundance Selects Elizabeth Brambilla ebrambilla@ifcfilms.com sundanceselects.com

Swedish Film Institute Gunnar Almer gunnar.almer@sfi.se swedishfilm.org

Taiwan Aerial Imaging Jessie Lee JessLee523@gmail.com aerofilms.com.tw

ADVERTISING INDEX

Thunder Perfect Mind

Scott Cohen scott@scottcohen.us

TideRock Media

Jason Michael Berman jberman@tiderockmedia. com

Timebomb Pictures DJ Poole dicedan@gmail.com

TLA Releasing

Andrew Chang andrew@tlareleasing.com tlareleasing.com

Tribeca Films

Kate Brokaw kbrokaw@tribecafilm.com tribecafilm.com

Triglav Film

Aiken Veronika Prosenc triglavfilm@siol.com tiglavfilm.si

Tripod Media Jessica Lawson jessllawson@gmail.com

Truth Aid Co. Lacey Schwartz lacey@truthaid.org

Uncooperative Pictures

BP Cooper bpcooper@mac.com

Universal Pictures Paul Ginsberg paul.ginsburg@nbcuni.com

Urban Distribution

International Arnaud Belangeon-Bouaziz arnaud@urbandistrib.com

Vanishing Angle Matt Miller MMiller@Vanishingangle. com vanishingangle.com

Varient Pictures

Andrea Pallaoro apallaoro@gmail.com

Vigilante VNM Prod. Vivian Norris vivian@vigilante-vnm.com

Viktoria Films

Maya Vitkova mayvitkovitz@yahoo.com

Visit Films

Aida Lipera al@visitfilms.com visitfilms.com

Warner Entertainment Japan Inc. Kury Tamura Kuri.Tamura@warnerbros. com warnerbros.co.jp

Weapons of Mass Entertainment David Jacobson david.jacobson08@gmail. com

The Weinstein Company

Erin Lowrey Erin.Lowrey@weinsteinco. com weinsteinco.com

Well Go USA

Crystal Decker crystal@wellgousa.com wellgousa.com

What a dream INK & Otherwise Shawn Telford sydhartha@comcast.net

Wicked Delicate Films LLC Ian Cheney lacheney@mac.com wickedelicate.com

Wild Bunch Elodie Sobczak esobczak@wildbunch.eu wildbunch.biz

Woody Creek Pictures Ward Serrill sophiejanemortimer@ yahoo.co.uk

Zeitgeist Films Clemence Taillandier clemence@zeitgeistfilms. com zeitgeistfilms.com

Zellner Bros Nathan Zellner info@kumikothetreasure hunter.com

snoqualmie indian tribe

Proud to Invest in the Pacific

Northwest

Community and The Seattle International Film Festival

Caring about Community, Stewardship, and Culture

National Parks Conservancy Association | KUOW

Seattle Aquarium | Seattle Arts Museum

Pacific Northwest Ballet | Woodland Park Zoo

Swedish Hospital | University of Washington

Seattle Symphony | Mountains to Sound Greenway Trust

Visit the tribe’s website at www.snoqualmietribe.us to learn more about the tribe’s community healthcare services, investment efforts, and ways you can be involved.