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"The Annecy Festival has been an integral part of my life for more than 30 years and many key moments in my artistic career have happened here. It is a great honour to be invited to design the Festival poster for a second time, especially as Portugal is this year’s guest country. To create this image, I drew on my deep love for Annecy, for Portugal and its history, but also the fact that I’m a woman. Hence, a woman is at the heart of the poster’s image as a tribute to them. They are endowed with supernatural powers, these unsung, overshadowed heroines and devoted their entire lives to their families. And yet, they still sing and dance.
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In the clear Annecy Lake waters or in our Portuguese ocean, this woman represents the balance between grace and power in the face of adversity. She is both a swimmer and dancer as she sings in her long dress. A reference to the fado, an expression of the balance between exhilaration and solemnity, intertwines with red carnations, a symbol of the democratic revolution celebrating its 50th anniversary this year."
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Regina Pessoa
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"The Festival has shared a special relationship with Regina Pessoa for many years. We collaborated with this talented artist and director on the poster in 2015 and have been delighted to see her win several awards for her work. With Portugal as our guest country this year, it was only natural to invite Regina to design the poster for this edition."
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Marcel Jean, délégué artistique Annecy Festival
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A Week of French Language Cinema
Posted By Robin Menken
For the fifteenth year straight, in collaboration with the Consulates General of Canada, Belgium, Switzerland, France, the Grand Duchy of Luxembourg, the Quebec Government Office in Los Angeles, and Le Lycée Français de Los Angeles, Théâtre Raymond Kabbaz (TRK) presents A Week of French Language Cinema, with nightly screenings of critically acclaimed French language films, from March 19th through March 25th. All films are subtitled in English.
A Week of French Language Cinema is organized annually to coincide with the International Organization of La Francophonie (OIF)’s celebration of the French language and Francophone culture on March 20th. The event is the perfect showcase to present the artistry of French-language voices the world over.
"Humanist Vampire Seeking Consenting Suicidal Person"- Canadian filmmaker Ariane Louis-Seize’s debut feature is a witty dark comedy, a sort of Romeo and Vampira.
Amusing world building and a witty cast portray the coming of age woes of young Sasha (Sara Montpetit), who’s just too compassionate to kill and feed. She’s kept alive by refrigerated blood packs, as her parents quarrel.
A black comedy scene of little vampire Sasha's birthday party sets the film in motion. Decades pass. Unwilling vampire, teenager-like Sasha is an unending stress to her bickering family
Sara Montpetit (wonderfully matched by actress Lilas-Rose Cantin who plays Sasha as a little vampire) has a face that speaks volumes. She’s a Goth glamor girl. Her dead-pan stares hold hidden depths.
Young looking Sophie’s a late bloomer. Her fangs have never dropped. Unable to feed she spends her nights busking, playing Cello outside the local bowling alley.
One night she spots Paul (Félix-Antoine Bénard) on the roof of the bowling alley where he works, planning to jump. He puts it off.
Sensitive teenager Paul spends his days at school bullied by a bunch of thugs. He can’t tell his mom. Félix-Antoine Bénard plays Paul as a crestfallen innocent willing to follow Sasha's lead.
The next time Sasha spots him, they lock eyes. Paul flees, right into a wall, knocking himself out. Scenting his blood, Sasha’s fangs finally emerge. Afraid of her teenage (blood) lust it’s Sasha’s turn to flee. (She’s already 62 years-old and fang-shy).
This works as a metaphor, Sasha is afraid of her adult sexuality. So is Paul. They connect as two awkward virgins. Sasha explains her issue to Paul framing their various problems as each other’s solutions. It’s a morbidly endearing perfect match.
When Sophie backs off from biting his neck, besotted Paul hurriedly offers to take off his shirt.
Steve Laplante is hilarious as a protective father who resists forcing Sophie to feed, while Mom (Sophie Cadieux) fumes. She’s sick of hunting for the whole family and worries it will go on for the next 300 years.
Eventually they lock the fridge and send Sasha off to room with her bawdy older cousin Denise (Noémie O’Farrell). Efficient vampire Denise, who uses her sexual charms and promises of kinky sex to lure her dinner dates (make that dinner) promises to make Sophie into the vampire they all know she can be.
A Week of French Language Cinema
Posted By Robin Menken
For the fifteenth year straight, in collaboration with the Consulates General of Canada, Belgium, Switzerland, France, the Grand Duchy of Luxembourg, the Quebec Government Office in Los Angeles, and Le Lycée Français de Los Angeles, Théâtre Raymond Kabbaz (TRK) presents A Week of French Language Cinema, with nightly screenings of critically acclaimed French language films, from March 19th through March 25th. All films are subtitled in English.
A Week of French Language Cinema is organized annually to coincide with the International Organization of La Francophonie (OIF)’s celebration of the French language and Francophone culture on March 20th. The event is the perfect showcase to present the artistry of French-language voices the world over.
"Humanist Vampire Seeking Consenting Suicidal Person"- Canadian filmmaker Ariane Louis-Seize’s debut feature is a witty dark comedy, a sort of Romeo and Vampira.
Amusing world building and a witty cast portray the coming of age woes of young Sasha (Sara Montpetit), who’s just too compassionate to kill and feed. She’s kept alive by refrigerated blood packs, as her parents quarrel.
A black comedy scene of little vampire Sasha's birthday party sets the film in motion. Decades pass. Unwilling vampire, teenager-like Sasha is an unending stress to her bickering family
Sara Montpetit (wonderfully matched by actress Lilas-Rose Cantin who plays Sasha as a little vampire) has a face that speaks volumes. She’s a Goth glamor girl. Her dead-pan stares hold hidden depths.
Young looking Sophie’s a late bloomer. Her fangs have never dropped. Unable to feed she spends her nights busking, playing Cello outside the local bowling alley.
One night she spots Paul (Félix-Antoine Bénard) on the roof of the bowling alley where he works, planning to jump. He puts it off.
Sensitive teenager Paul spends his days at school bullied by a bunch of thugs. He can’t tell his mom. Félix-Antoine Bénard plays Paul as a crestfallen innocent willing to follow Sasha's lead.
The next time Sasha spots him, they lock eyes. Paul flees, right into a wall, knocking himself out. Scenting his blood, Sasha’s fangs finally emerge. Afraid of her teenage (blood) lust it’s Sasha’s turn to flee. (She’s already 62 years-old and fang-shy).
This works as a metaphor, Sasha is afraid of her adult sexuality. So is Paul. They connect as two awkward virgins. Sasha explains her issue to Paul framing their various problems as each other’s solutions. It’s a morbidly endearing perfect match.
When Sophie backs off from biting his neck, besotted Paul hurriedly offers to take off his shirt.
Steve Laplante is hilarious as a protective father who resists forcing Sophie to feed, while Mom (Sophie Cadieux) fumes. She’s sick of hunting for the whole family and worries it will go on for the next 300 years.
Eventually they lock the fridge and send Sasha off to room with her bawdy older cousin Denise (Noémie O’Farrell). Efficient vampire Denise, who uses her sexual charms and promises of kinky sex to lure her dinner dates (make that dinner) promises to make Sophie into the vampire they all know she can be.
Olmo Schnabel's directorial debut PET SHOP DAYS screened as a Festival Favorite at SXSW, 2024. The film stars Jack Irv, Darío Yazebek Bernal, alongside Willem Dafoe, Peter Sarsgaard and more.
Impulsive black sheep Alejandro (Bernal) and pet store employee Jack (Irv) enter a whirlwind romance that sends them down the rabbit hole of depravity in Manhattan’s underworld.
In an interview at SXSW with director Olmo Schnabel, actor Darío Yazebek Bernal, EP Jeremy O'Harris, here is what they had to say:
Can you tell us a little bit about the film? Was it difficult to get off the ground?
OLMO: It was a collaboration among friends, and yes was a difficult movie to make. Obviously when you’re not part of the industry and you’re doing something that might seem challenging or on the periphery of what people will accept, there is a lot of trial and error. It was a kind of search party to find the right producing partner to help me get this movie made. It wasn’t until I met Francesco Melzi d’Eril that I found a producer who was very excited and motivated to put this film together. I think because he’s from another cultural background, he was willing to take some risks. Whereas if you go meet with an agency or head of a studio in the US, they have a mandate to fill that this film didn’t fit into. Someone like Francesco is willing to bet on young filmmakers, and to take a risk. With Francesco I met Jeremy who was very instrumental. He helped me meet other people who were super useful for getting this out into the world. It was important to create a dialogue and have the support system I needed, because it wasn’t easy.
JEREMY: Olmo had worked a long time and garnered a lot of financing before I got involved. It was a real mountain to climb getting the movie made. Francesco is a great champion of Italian cinema and independent cinema. He’s worked a lot with Luca Guadagnino. I think that in Francesco, Olmo found a real partner who could read the universe he was building.
Can you tell us about the inspiration behind the story? Is it based on true events?
OLMO: Jack Irv, the lead in the movie who also co-wrote it, based it off a friendship he had with a friend of ours named Alejandro. In its core it’s based off a relationship he was very excited and surprised about. I believe it’s more of a fantasy of what they could do together than what they weren’t doing together. It’s a mixture between the attraction of a real relationship but also that kind of naïve childlike curiosity of what could happen if they went on this crazy adventure together. And Jack had that kind of spontaneous completely loose and free story that didn’t need to be hyper realistic. It was much more like if something was going to happen, then it’s destiny. Like if you’re going to win the lottery, you’re going to win it; I’m not going to explain to you how the ticket ended up in your hand. Similarly, these two characters literally
Marco Müller announced as the new Artistic Director
of the Taormina Film Fest,
which celebrates its 70th Anniversary this year.
The festival will run from July 12th to July 19th this year, bringing the magic of Italian and international cinema to Teatro Antico.
Marco Müller is the new Artistic Director of the 70th edition of the Taormina Film Fest, which will take place this year from July 12 to 19 in Taormina. The announcement was made by the special commissioner of the Taormina Arte Sicilia Foundation/ Fondazione Taormina Arte Sicilia, Sergio Bonomo, who enthusiastically declared: "Maestro Müller's professional contribution will be a driving force of success for the prestigious film event”.
This Festival is one of the most renowned and prestigious in the world, and this year celebrates 70 years. The story of the festival combines glamour, culture and great cinema which over the years has brought many Italian and international stars to the Teatro Antico, the Ancient Greek open-air theatre – helping to cement Taormina as an iconic destination.
The Taormina Film Fest is promoted and organized by the Taormina Arte Sicilia Foundation/ Fondazione Taormina Arte Sicilia with the support of the Regional Department for Tourism, Sports and Entertainment of the Sicilian Regional Authority / Assessorato del Turismo, dello Sport e dello Spettacolo della Regione Siciliana, the Sicilia Film Commission, the Municipality of Taormina / Comune di Taormina and the MiC, Ministero della Cultura/Ministry of Culture – Direzione Generale cinema e audiovisivo/ Movies and Audiovisual Department. It will feature national and international premieres, masterclasses and retrospectives with prestigious guests from July 12 to 19, 2024.
"I wish to express my satisfaction and praise for the appointment of Marco Müller as Artistic Director of the Taormina Film Festival" – says Elvira Amata, Regional Councillor for Tourism, Sports and Entertainment - "I am sure that this high international profile will contribute to significantly strengthen the expectations and the quality of the choices to be made for the content of the Festival, which remains, as always, a highly anticipated event. I wish Marco Müller and the Fondazione Taormina Arte Sicilia all the best in their work, with the strong hope that the Festival will be a great success."
Cateno De Luca, Mayor of Taormina, emphasises: "The Taormina Film Fest represents an appointment of great importance that brings prestige to our splendid city and enhances its cultural high value. A tradition that has been going on for 70 years and that has given Taormina unforgettable pages of film history. I hope that the Taormina Film Fest will always live up to its history and to the Taormina brand. I congratulate Maestro Müller on his appointment and wish him an excellent direction of the Festival being sure that he will be able to give us a prestigious 70th edition”.
Producer, scholar, film professor and festival “maker” for more than 40 years, Marco Müller has directed, among others, the Pesaro New Cinema Festival, the Locarno and Rotterdam film festivals, the Venice Film Festival, the Rome Film Festival. He is currently director of the Film Art Research Centre at the Shanghai University and Professor Emeritus at the Shanghai Film Academy; in China he created and directed the Pingyao and Macao festivals. He has written and edited more than twenty monogr
By Shahnaz Mahmud
A screenwriter on the rise. A long forgotten script. A producer who unearthed it and held onto the dream of making it for years. A racing production during Ramadan. The story of how Beirut finally made it to the big screen has just as many twists and turns as its espionage plot.
The 2018 Tony Gilroy–penned political thriller centers on Mason Skiles played by Jon Hamm, a U.S. diplomat who left Lebanon in the 1970s after tragedy struck. Ten years later, the CIA sends Skiles back to a war-torn Beirut, and the mission’s success depends solely on him. Hamm is forceful as a broken man doing his best just to get through the day.
Beirut earns its place among good spy thrillers by immediately wrapping you up into the chaos of the spy world. There’s something about it, a coolness reminiscent of some of the fantastic films of the 1960s. Bullitt or The Thomas Crown Affair anyone? Hamm steps up as a leading man and exudes charisma in Beirut, which is essential as the intricate plot tangles around to see his character actually influence the actions of both the terrorists and the government representatives involved. No matter how far it goes, you willingly go along with him as the plot thickens.
While it is a fictional story, Gilroy’s astute script was grounded in extensive research. Part of the inspiration came from the real-life kidnapping of CIA Station Chief William Buckley in 1984.
 Plot twists and turns aside, though, Beirut marks a rare moment in the film industry — when a screenplay finally gets its due nearly three decades later. Gilroy first wrote it back in 1991 when he was a young upstart, not the prolific writer-director he is now whose 30-plus-year career includes Michael Clayton, most of The Bourne franchise, Duplicity, The Devil’s Advocate, Proof of Life, Rogue One: A Star Wars Story, and now Andor.
When his original script for Beirut (then known as High Wire Act) made the studio rounds, it was red hot. Gilroy penned it for Interscope Films, a major studio for whom he wrote The Cutting Edge, a comedy-romance set in the world of ice skating. In fact, High Wire Act sprang from daily discussions Gilroy was having with producer Robert Cort on the set of The Cutting Edge. Cort had worked for the CIA, and both would talk about news of the day and politics, and books they were reading — mainly From Beirut to Jerusalem by Thomas L. Friedman — during those long production hours.
While many were interested in High Wire Act in the early ’90s, the geopolitics were considered too controversial, and in the end, the film was too expensive to make. So, the script sat in a drawer for nearly a decade. Gilroy credits the buzz around High Wire Act with helping to elevate his career but he moved on never looking back.
Enter Michael Weber — a producer who works for Radar Pictures, which is owned by American media mogul Ted Field. Field also owns Interscope Communications (Bill & Ted’s Excellent Adventure, The Texas Chainsaw Massacre). It is, of course, the same studio that Gilroy worked for in the early ‘90s, which still owned his script.
Examining The Case of Kurdish Cinema  Yilmaz Güney, one of the fathers of Kurdish filmmakingThe Past  Map of The The Ottoman Empire, XIXth century, Library of Congress
Their homeland is scattered between 4 hostile to each other countries, with the seemingly only uniting factor being the repression of the group.
After the fall of the Ottoman Empire, and later decolonization efforts, several national republics have been established throughout the region.
Turkey, forging the ambitions of its predecessor gave up the claims for the Middle East.
Countries of Iraq, Syria, and Lebanon formed in a turbulent process of the post-war retreat of the European empires.
Scattered between the newly forming and the old powers – the Kurdish people were forced out from establishing their own country. Rather, holding a minority status in several of the aforementioned states.
The Kurds, however were not passive to the changes happening around them. Several movements hoping for Kurdish self-rule have emerged over the nation’s century-long history.
The Present  Rojava fighter, Syria 2018, X YPJ Rojava
The Rojava in Syria, fighting both for Kurdish independence and against extremism or the relatively newly established Kurdish Autonomy in Iraq.
These and other movements signal the determination of the Kurds to the world. Through political, peaceful but also sometimes armed activity Kurds’ long history of path to statehood continues.
Their struggle however expands beyond the obvious tools of resistance. Kurdish artists continue to gather attention to the still unresolved and conflicted state of their people.
In opposition to the suppression they face at home – whether it be language bans, political disenfranchisement, or restriction on freedom of expression they continue to create.
Often resorting to emigration, the bulk of today’s focus – Kurdish cinema, is being created abroad. In the metropolis of Western Europe, the creativity of the nation flourishes.
One of the strong sides of Kurdish cinema is documentary, a genre perfect for the necessary advancement of stories that might seem distant and misty to a foreign audience.
The Art
The 2018 “Cornered In Molenbeek” production by Sahim Omar Kalifa develops an empathizing narrative for the inhabitants of the titular district described by media as a “No-Go Zone”.
Although not focusing particularly on the topic of independence struggle, the film tackles another topic, faced by those who chose to emigrate.
The popular portrayal of the minority-majority regions as dangerous has been a common feeding ground for populist anti-immigrant narratives.
We had the pleasure of talking to Kalifa about the movie and the reality of being a Kurdish filmmaker.
 Kalifa with the poster for his latest project “Zagros”
On the topic of Molenbeek, he mentions –
The people there said “no, the Belgian government isolated us, they didn’t pay attention to us, they demonized us”.
That’s the way that people are thinking of trying different things.
Why they told you what they have been faced through all the 40 years in Belgium didn’t pay attention to them. That way we named the film “Cornered&rd
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