The Square: Comments by Director Jehane Noujaim
By Monica Yin, DC Film Society Member
The Square (Al Midan, Jehane Noujaim, 2013) is among the five feature-length documentaries competing for Best Documentary Feature at this year's Academy Awards.
Awards:
Winner, Best Feature, International Documentary Association
Winner, Muhr Arab Award, Dubai International Film Festival
Winner, Independent Spirit Award
Winner, People’s Choice, Toronto International Film Festival
Winner, Audience Award, Sundance Film Festival
Winner, Honorable Mention, Hamptons International Film Festival
(Award for a Film of Conflict and Resolution, in addition to the Rabinowitz Award for Social Justice).
The Square is an intimate documentary about the Egyptian revolution that not only toppled the dictator Hosni Mubarak, but continues to convulse Egypt, for three years now, with demonstrations at Tahrir Square and clashes in the streets of Cairo. The populist uprising, the people power, is documented and narrated through the hearts and minds of three informative and passionate Egyptian representatives in Cairo: (a) Ahmed Hassan, a fearless and intense working class young Egyptian, who believes in a secular democracy for Egypt, and leads the camera through his confrontations with the authorities. (b) Khalid Abdalla, a British/Egyptian actor and son of exiled activist Dina Abdalla. Khalid is filmed regularly consulting over the phone with his father in London. Khalid is also known for his work in The Kite Runner. (c) Magdy Ashour, a member of the Muslim Brotherhood, and a friend of Ahmed.
The film takes the viewer through the chaos, the homes, the heated political discussions, the ruthless military tanks crushing protestors, tents and barricades, firing live ammo, and through the horrors and the realities of the Egyptian revolution.
On January 14, 2014 two screenings were held at West End Cinema in Washington, DC. The first screening was hosted by the Saban Center for Middle East Policy (a part of the Foreign Policy Studies Program at the Brookings Institution). The second screening, was hosted by PR Collaborative. The director Jehane Noujaim and producer Karim Amer held a Q&A following the screening. The discussion was moderated by Max Fisher of the Washington Post.
In the beginning, they got together at Tahrir Square with cameras, excited about a “magical plan” to film the scene. They started following ten characters with their cameras. “We all felt as if we had a huge stake in what was happening. I live ten minutes away from the square. In a country where one must contend with a constant counter-narrative, we felt this was bound to be a founding period for Egypt. We wanted to document the deep tension between two highly polarized groups,” says Noujaim. The film was retooled many times between 2011 and 2013, as Noujaim struggled to keep up with the contradictions and reversals of the ever-changing uprising.
Jehane Noujaim: Once the film won various awards in the festival circuit, the film gained permission to screen at the Cairo Film Festival in December. However, at the last minute, the permit was withdrawn. The reason cited by the festival organizers was that they were unable to obtain an Arabic translated version of the film. “So there is yet to be a screening in Egypt, we do however, remain hopeful. Because it has been so well received by audiences around the world. We had thousands of rolls of film, and many rolls were confiscated by the authorities. We received assistance from various organizations who helped us copy drives and smuggle them out of the country.”
Karim Amer: “Although the revolution was sparked by economic forces it was not so much anti-capitalist as it was anti-oppression. The aspirations of the people sparked this. This movement had its ebbs and flows. The people rejected the religious aims of the Morsi regime. It is also important to point out the manner in which the military declared itself on the side of the people (during the protests that ousted Mubarak), yet in the end it failed epically.”
Karim Amer: “Magdi was a wonderful character, because he was genuinely conflicted. He loved his religion, yet he was deeply disappointed with the hypocrisy in the execution of policy by Morsi. When we screened this film in Utah, Mormons expressed empathy for Magdi.”
Jehane Noujaim: “In Cairo, Thomas Friedman spoke to us, and when Ahmed asked if he could have a talk with Friedman, Friedman excused himself saying yes, but that he only had 10 minutes. Would you believe that Friedman ended up listening to Ahmed for over two hours! Would you believe a conversation with Friedman where he barely spoke, and in fact, he mostly listened to Ahmed, for two hours?”
The Square opened at West End on January 17.
Stranger by the Lake: Q&A with Actor Pierre Deladonchamps
By Ron Gordner, DC Film Society Member
The following Q&A took place in September, 2013 at the 2013 Toronto International Film Festival after a preview screening of Stranger by the Lake (by French director Alain Guiraudie with lead actor Pierre Deladonchamps. The moderator was Noah Cowan, artistic director for the TIFF Bell Lightbox.
Pierre Deladonchamps and Patrick d’Assumçao)
Stranger by the Lake is a French thriller set in the summertime at a lake in Southern France. The time is not provided but since there is discussion of HIV and no cell phones are shown, it is probably sometime in the 1990s. This side of the lake has a nude beach frequented by gay men cruising the beach and nearby woods. There is graphic sex shown but it is unclear if it what rating it will have if any. The lead actor is Franck (Pierre Deladonchamps), a sweet, good-looking twenty-something who has come looking for action and, maybe, a little romance. He meets and befriends an older man who is not apparently gay, sitting alone - Henri (Patrick d’Assumçao) – who is somewhat enigmatic and mysterious. Henri never cruises, never swims, never even takes off his shirt. Franck also has a strong attraction to another man on the beach, Michel (Christophe Paou), a retro young Tom Selleck look-alike who seems to make friends and attracts new lovers very quickly. Although Michel is otherwise occupied, Franck is also seeking him out in the woods. The film takes on some Hitchcockian themes of murder and voyeurism that reminds us of scenes from Rear Window.
Guiraudie’s film won the award for Best Director in the Un Certain Regard section at the 2013 Cannes Film Festival. It also won the Queer Palm, an independently-sponsored prize, for selected LGBT-relevant films entered into the festival.
Noah Cowan: Thank you for coming to TIFF. This is a very intimate film. Can you give us any background research or how you prepared for the role, rehearsals, or what the director may have told you to do?
Pierre Deladonchamps: First I want to apologize for my English which not great and also it is 6 am now in France and I arrived in Toronto yesterday. Well, you can see I do wear clothes also. I told myself about the nudity, not to ask too many questions. If I start asking questions I create some boundaries. I just want to follow the director’s comments. It can be embarrassing to be nude on the screen, but we are all made of flesh and blood and that is what we are so why not? It would be easier if I could see the audience the same way (audience laughts).
Audience Question: The cinematography is really great with all these twilight shots. Was it difficult to set up shots with the limited time window to get that beautiful light?
Pierre Deladonchamps: Yes, this movie is made with natural light. Maybe some lights from the cars also. We had maybe 10-15 minutes every day to capture the scenes between the dark and the light, so those were the times the crew and actors were somewhat stressed to get in good shots and scenes. The rest of the day we could reshoot more as necessary, so some of the last scenes were really done on different days because you sometimes only got a half shot or one shot in during these twilight periods. Even the scenes with the characters running in the woods at this time was done over several days.
Audience Question: Can you talk about the moments between Franck and Henri when we find out Franck isn’t really interested in Henri except as a friend.
Pierre Deladonchamps: I think this was up to the director to keep their relationship very subtle. Franck tells Henri that he is really in love with Michel and likes Henri but not in that way. It’s unclear what Henri’s motives are also, but I feel that Franck has found a soul mate in Henri. More of a parent, brother or friend not really a sexual attraction. I don’t think it is because Henri is older and a little fat, but because Henri seems to be just happy in the moment to have a friend and there does not seem to be any sexual relationship there like Franck has with other guys in the woods.
Audience Question: There seem to be other grander ideas or concepts than just the immediate story shown on screen, I was reminded of Candide, did you find in reading the script or acting that you referenced other films or stories?
Pierre Deladonchamps: I don’t know. I find this is a universal tale of the choice we make when we know about danger and also about attraction to something at the same time. It’s about what your love or the choices you make in life, even though sometimes they may include dangers, to do what you like. I felt yes that Franck is quite stupid to go after Michel when he knows he is quite dangerous. I personally would have gone to the police station and reported what I had seen and never go back to this lake again. I think he had this physical attraction for Michel and also seemed a little bit bored in his life and needed to spice it up a bit.
Audience Question: Where is the lake?
Pierre Deladonchamps: It is in the Southeast of France, about 1.5 hour drive from the French Rivierra or Cote d’Azure. It feeds into a river and the water is really a reserve for the region of Marseilles, but you can bathe in it.
Noah Cowan: Isn't this is a nude beach and across the lake are other beaches for families and heterosexual couples?
Pierre Deladonchamps: There is a naturalists area and family beach areas, but where we shot the film is not a nude or gay beach.
Noah Cowan: I know when the film came out in France at the same time there were protests going on about same sex marriage and laws in France. How was that to do media and press coverage for this film at the same time that was going on?
Pierre Deladonchamps: Yes to be precise, the law in France came out the same day the film was screened in Cannes. We were very surprised to see so many protesters in the streets in France with anti-gay messages. I don’t think this movie can be related to gay rights and right to have same sex marriages and kids. This film just presents gay men as gay men. It is not supposed to be politically correct but show all realities. I have no moral judgments about either about the characters or the movie.
Audience Question: The end of the movie is somewhat open-ended. We’re not sure what is going to happen to the two men. What do you think is going to happen?
Pierre Deladonchamps: I don’t really know how it ends either, whether Franck is killed or Michel just leaves or whatever. The director said in one interview that for him they are still both alive and there can be a continuance of the story. I don’t know, maybe Michel committed suicide in the woods or just left. It is left open for your interpretation. To be honest we did shoot another ending to the film where they both left together in the woods. It was obvious to the director that the more ambiguous ending was the correct one. It leaves the interpretation up to each audience member and their good or bad fantasies or endings.
Audience Question: Has the film been screened in France yet?
Pierre Deladonchamps: Yes it was in theatres in France in June 2013 and is no longer playing there. It was quite a success for such a small movie even though it had frontal nudity and gay sex scenes. The press was very good.
Noah Cowan: The film will be released in America (U.S. and Canada) in late January and February 2013 by distributor Strand Releasing.
The film also screened twice in December 2013 at the AFI Silver theatre as part of the 2013 EU Film Festival. The film opened in New York on January 24, 2013. It should open in the DC area sometime in February 2013.
Gimme Shelter: Q&A with Director Ron Krauss, Actress Vanessa Hudgens and Shelter Founder Kathy DiFiore
By Annette Graham, DC Film Society Member
A preview screening of Gimme Shelter (Ronald Krauss, 2013) was held January 7 at Landmark's E Street Cinema. After the screening, filmmaker Ronald Krauss, actress Vanessa Hudgens and Kathy DiFiore, founder of Several Sources Shelters and partial inspiration for the film, answered audience questions. "Movie Mom" Nell Minow was moderator.
The film stars Vanessa Hudgens as 15 year old runaway Apple, Rosario Dawson as her mother, Brendan Fraser as her biological father and James Earl Jones as a kindly priest.
Nell Minow: Tell us about the extraordinary audition process that went into your getting the part and who was it that made the final decision about your getting the part? Who were the casting directors?
Vanessa Hudgens: There was a lot. I initially received the script from my agents just as another script that they had floating around. They told me to give it a read and I did. Immediately something within me just got really excited and it was bigger than myself. I knew that I had to be part of this movie. This was something I was meant to do and it would be a challenge. I was kind of scared of it just because it was such a big thing to tackle and just the transformation aspect of the role. It's kind of scary but I think using fear should be our compass. It just kind of drove me towards it. I e-mailed Ron after reading for him, letting him know I really wanted to be part of the project.
Ron Krauss: The casting for Apple was a long process. I digested it in my head for a while, first creating the character and living in the shelter as I was writing the script for a year, working with these girls. There were four real girls acting in the film with Vanessa. I really had to find somebody who I felt could embody this hero, the lead in the film. I wasn't really looking for an actress. I had met with every actress, her peers and contemporaries and didn't think an actress could pull it off, so I started looking in high schools in New Jersey. Vanessa came, I wasn't familiar with her work. Her audition was really interesting. I took a bunch of people I was interested in and put them in a link and I sent it to the shelter and Kathy and the girls looked at the links of all the possibilities and they picked Vanessa. They just said, "This girl. This is the girl that needs to play this part." And they were right.
Nell Minow: So both you lived in the shelter for a while, as a part of preparing for this. And Kathy, you started the shelter. What is it that people most misunderstand about these girls, that you wanted them to understand from this movie?
Kathy DiFiore: That's a hard question. No one's ever asked me that question. I think the embodiment of the character that Ron created in Apple is what they most misunderstand. These are women that are struggling and in many ways are emotionally, mentally, physically abused. The scene where the mother takes a razor blade out of her mouth and cuts the daughter is a scene that's true. It happened to one of my mothers. The struggle that Apple has is just the common denominator of the young mother that I see at the shelter now, as opposed to 33 years ago when I started. It's gotten more and more difficult and she did an outstanding job portraying the character and he did a miraculous job of writing the script.
Ron Krauss:What makes me most surprised about the girls is how bright and determined and beautiful these girls are. That their dreams have been crushed a bit because of their life and not getting the same opportunities as other people. But Kathy's shelter has really uplifted them and given them the opportunities. As at the end of the movie Vanessa says, "Here you can succeed at life." Darlisha, who acts in the movie with Vanessa, was the one that the razor blade incident happened to. It happened when I was there. She's the writer and was the one who really inspired me to write this as a film. When I was first at the shelter I was just doing a documentary. I had met her one winter night in January three years ago. I came to the shelter and she was standing in front of the shelter. I didn't know who she was. I thought she lived in the shelter and she thought I worked there. I asked her to come in because it was 18 degrees and imagine not having a jacket. Then Kathy shows up and says, "Who's this girl." "I don't know, I thought she lived here." Kathy reprimanded me, "Never let anyone come in the shelter who doesn't belong here." But then she said, "But we do have an extra bed so why don't you tell her she can stay here." I didn't think anything of it. I went to her and said, "Hey Darlisha, they have an extra bed here, you can stay here." She hugged me so hard, she almost knocked me over. It really sent a jolt into my heart. At that moment, it inspired me that perhaps if I do something a little different, like if I make a feature, it can really inspire others. Acts of kindness, selflessness, can inspire other people to open shelters or reach out to help other people in need.
Nell Minow: My favorite scene in the film is when the girls go into Kathy's office and read the files about themselves. Their reaction to it surprised me. I thought they would read those comments and get angry or sad or get embarrassed. But I loved the way they supported each other and were kind of liberated in a way by it.
Ron Krauss: That scene shows the audience about how much these girls have gone through and how resilient they are. That they are all from different backgrounds, different forms of abuse and addiction. My favorite part of that scene is when the girl talks about how she was raped and says the family doesn't want her back and one of girls reaches up and says, "We're your family." And another girl reached out to Apple and says, "You're not so aggressive." It was just a moment of bonding in a film that had so many complex things going on. And it gives the audience an opportunity to really find out who these girls are in a certain kind of way, just by seeing their case history. That was Kathy's real office. We shot in real locations. Her office is just mayhem, there's so much going on. When I walked into the shelter and we were getting ready to shoot, I said, "Don't touch anything. Let's shoot this."
Vanessa Hudgens: The physical transformation was fun for me. If you put your attention fully on something, it allows other things to flow freely. So my putting attention on how I walked or talked allowed the lines to come out and I didn't have to think about them. Because when I looked in the mirror, I didn't see myself. So it was comforting.
Audience: What was so interesting about Vanessa's audition and what is the background of Rosario Dawson?
Ron Krauss: Rosario Dawson is a force of nature. Vanessa gave Rosario the script. She really responded to the script. She liked it. Rosario really understood the character because she understands poverty. She grew up in a squatter home and had a tough life. She understood this character. She was like a bull waiting to go. Every scene she was ready to go and boom the door opened, and bam she comes in. She was unstoppable. We were lucky to have her in the film. About Vanessa's audition: a lot of things go into the decision of hiring someone to put all your hard work into and have her to carry the torch. We just got lucky. She was just the right person. She had it inside of her. She was great to do this movie. She was willing beyond anyone I could have hired for this movie. We just came from Chicago and Houston. It's her passion. She has it inside of her and she wanted to bring this character to life and move other people and create awareness and inspire other people. Apple is a character who says, "Don't give up on life. No matter how difficult your life is, no matter what you're facing, there's always hope. There's always somebody somewhere who is just like you who will help you in life."
Audience: It's a long way since High School Musical. Did you and your agents purposefully seek out a part like this?
Vanessa Hudgens: I did High School Musical eight years ago. I've been working a lot since then. I'm very picky about the projects that I do. I try to keep it varied, I don't like staying stagnant. When you're young, you gotta push yourself, you gotta grow. That's what I was looking for. My agents literally handed me the script and didn't put any emphasis on it. They didn't give me their opinion, they didn't push it on me necessarily either. I was really the one who said, "I'm doing this. I need to. It is my soul's purpose to do this film. I gotta do it". It's never been a plan to get away from that because I'm extremely grateful for it. It's just about growth for me.
Nell Minow: I loved seeing the girls with their babies. How do you help model and teach being a good mother to women who have not been well mothered?
Kathy DiFiore: They have a grand support system. They have their house mothers in all of the shelters. I have four shelters for mothers and babies. There's a supervisor who's a licensed social worker and they have a PhD psychologist whom they meet with once a week. They have group therapy, they have motherhood training, they have bible study. There's all kinds of opportunities. And we have a benefactor who funds their college education if they want to go to college. A lot of them are choosing nursing as a career, it's very interesting. So they have an opportunity to really build a life. We don't put a time limit on when they leave. People say, "How long can they stay?" As long as they want.
Audience: How much of Apple's particular story is true? Is she based on a real person? If so, what is latest story of her and where is she now?
Ron Krauss: It's all true. Unlike a movie you see that says, "Based on a true story" and it's a re-telling, about something that happened years ago and Hollywood is re-envisioning the story. This was a story I wrote as I was there and it was all happening around me. I became part of the story in a way. At the end of the credits those are the real people. The real Wall Street father, Tom Fitzpatrick. Apple is based on two people, Darlisha who is in the movie and Tom's daughter, the girl at the end. All the stuff in the film, the razor blade, etc. is all true, the sisterhood, Christmas, it's all how it happened in the real place. I even borrowed half the stuff from her shelters to recreate it. The only thing I held back on was some of the abuse and of the stories of some of the girls. Because it was so bad I couldn't even put it in the movie. Especially some of the characters like Darlisha. I did put the razor blade thing in the movie but didn't put some of the other stuff that mother did that is worse than that. Darlisha is still at the shelter. She is now a housemother to other women. She works at the shelter. She is studying to be a nurse and just passed her CNA. And got her driver's license.
Please reach out to other people and social media. Small films like this can only exist with your word of mouth help. Human emotion and personal stories helps all of us. Visit Kathy's website which has a shelter kit and she has a book coming out. Also see the film's website and people's personal stories from the shelter.
Gimme Shelter opened in the DC area on January 24.
Interviews with European Cinemas Rising Stars
By James McCaskill, DC Film Society Member
Who will be among European cinema's top stars? For seventeen years European Film Promotions, a network of European film and export organizations selects young actors with the potential to rise to the top. In the past such stars as Daniel Craig, Rachel Weisz and Carey Mulligan were the European Shooting Stars. This year ten young men and women from all over the European continent have been selected and will be introduced to influential agents, directors, producers and casting directors giving added energy to already outstanding careers. Several have already appeared in films that have been or will be released in the US. Maria Dragus played the eldest daughter of Pastor Burghart in The White Ribbon (Michael Haneke, 2009), winner of the Oscar for Best Foreign Language Film and nominated for Best Cinematography, a movie that was well received by US critics and audiences. Cosmina Stratan starred in Cristian Mungiu Beyond the Hill (2012, Romania), a film set in an isolated Orthodox convent. Stratan played the part of Voichita who reunited with her childhood friend, Alina and tried to persuade her to come to Germany.
I was able to arrange interviews with five of the ten who were selected: Maria Dragus (Germany), Marwan Kenzari (The Netherlands), Mateusz Kosciukiewicz (Poland), Cosmina Stratan (Romania) and Nikola Rakocevic (Serbia).
Maria Dragas has made three films: Summer Outside (Friederike Jehn, Germany, 2012), Kill Me (Emily Atef, Germany, 2012) and White Ribbon (Michael Heneke, Germany/Austria/France/Italy, 2009). In selecting her the Jury said, "Maria's personality infuses her work with a quiet strength that demands our attention. Not yet 20, she brings interior depths that suggest an actor of great maturity and accomplishment. We were captivated by her intriguing screen presence." I asked her how she found out she had been selected as a 2014 European Shooting Star, she said, "When my agent called to give me the news, I was on set. It was really hard to keep quiet for the rest of the day, since I wasn't alowed to tell anyone. It's a great pleasure for me to be chosen alongside all those talented young actors, I am very excited to meet all the other Shooting Stars." As to when she made the decision to act, Maria told me, "After shooting The White Ribbon I seriously considered becoming an actor for the first time. When I saw the movie in Cannes, I remember that I didn't recognize myself, Klara had my appearance and my voice, but this person in the movie was someone completely different. It that moment it was clear that this was what I wanted to do for a living!
Did she have much input in her scripts: "I wouldn't say that I ever had much input in any of the scripts I have worked on. I do like the tightly scripted movies though, the vision of the writer becomes clear from the very beginning, which makes working on it easier for me personally."
Would she like to visit her character sometime in the future? "Definitely, my character from the White Ribbon as a grown woman in her 40s! I always wonder what might have happened to her after our story ended."
"I would love to work with Doris Dorrie, Martin Scorsese or Christian Mungiu and if I could ever be in a Pedro Almodovar movie, even as an extra, my world would be complete!" she told me when I asked which directors she would like to work with.
As to future films? "One project is already set for shooting this year. Otherwise I don't ever really plan my future, I just let it happen and then try to embrace whatever I get to do."
COSMINA STRATAN was born in Romania and came to acting after studying journalism and advertising. She appeared in several short films and plays, then in 2012 she was cast in Beyond the Hills, her feature film debut. For her performance in this film, directed by Cristian Mungiu, she received the Best Actress Award at the 65th Cannes Film Festival.
The Jury said, "Cosmina rules with her emotions. In Beyond the Hills, she demonstrates incredible precision in her acting, with an expertly modulated performance that keeps emotion reined in but radiates a powerful feeling."
When asked how she found out she had been selected as a Shooting Star, Cosmina said, "Being part of the Shooting Stars program is one great thing that could happen to any actor involved in the cinema business. I couldn’t have been happier when I found out that this year I am one of them. When I got the news I was visiting my parents, that’s the place where I usually receive good news.
When did she make the decision to act? "I was working as a journalist when the idea came into my mind. During a meeting with my boss from the tv station I was working at that time, I started to think about something else. I started to think about a new way of expression, about acting. A few months later I was accepted at the national university of drama and I quit my old job."
Did she have any input in the script? "Well, in a way it really challenges me to try to fulfill somebody else’s dream or fantasy, I find it much more attractive then doing it my way. It depends, I don’t have a rule when it comes to scripts, or directors. Working with Cristian Mungiu for Beyond the Hills was a combination of strict script and freedom of expression. This is ideal."
"The audition for Beyond the Hills lasted about four weeks. I was in cards from the beginning, but it took some time for Cristian to be convinced that I’m the right choice. He later told me, he was actually rehearsing during the auditions."
Would you like to revisit your character? "Not yet. Voichita’s charm is her age."
Are there any directors you would like to work with? "I’m superstitious with names, but I follow some directors very carefully."
Any plans for directing? "No plans for directing yet. It’s not for me, but you know, never say never. I have a movie planned this spring and some theatre rehearsals, but both of them are not ready ... so, I will be superstitious again."
Marwan Kenzari has also appeared in three films: Wolf (Jim Taihuttu, The Netherlands, 2010), Rabat (Jim Taihuttu & Victor Ponten, The Netherlands, 2011) and Loft (Antoinette Beumer, The Netherlands, 2012). The jury in selecting him said, "In Wolf, Marwan has a very strong, masculine, magnetic screen presence, playing a naturally gifted kick-boxer whose choices send him on a criminal path. He earns out empathy while never wavering from embracing the character's flaws, delivering a highly convincing performance that carried us on a journey."
In response to the same questions I asked Maria, Marwan said, "It makes me very proud and filled with excitement to be one of the Shooting Stars. I found out that I made the top ten while I was directing a school play. I directed a Chekov play in a pre-drama school and during a run through of the whole play my agent tried to call me several times. I wasn't able to leave the stage so I knew that there was something important but it had to wait till after the run through. I was curious to find out why my agent was calling. She gave me the good news. It made me very happy."
"I decided I wanted to be an actor after I saw Good Will Hunting. The film made a huge impact upon me. I was captured by this form of storytelling. That was maybe 10 years ago. Till this day that film means a lot to me."
Interesting projects? "On stage I have had the chance to play very interesting roles such as: Romeo in Romeo and Juliet, Joseph Pitt in Angels in American and Achilles in Iphegenia in Aulis. Film: Zakaria in Rabat, Tom in Loft and Rico in Bloedlink (Reckless, released in Autumn 2014).
Input? "When it comes to Rabat and Wolf the director, Jim Taihuttu is fully responsible for the writing and storytelling, but of course we would have a lot of conversations about the story and character and how he has to be built. I think it is very important to be able to communicate. I think as an actor you have to fully trust your director and his way of telling the story. I'm lucky to have worked with some strong directors that allowed me to think with them on what has to be a character's next step in a scene."
Revisiting a character? "In 2050 it would be very funny to revisit the 'Zakaria' character from Rabat with the same cast."
Future projects?" In 2015 Ratu Adil which is Jim Taihuttu's third film will be made. I am lucky enough to be part of that project. That will be our third film together. In the summer of 2014 I will hopefully direct my first short, 15 minutes, in Amsterdam. I am working on the last draft now. Hopefully I'll find someone crazy enough to give me some money to realize it."
Mateusz Kosciukiewicz has also made three films: In The Name Of... (Malgoska Szumowska, Poland, 2013), Mother Teresa of Cats (Pawel Sala, Poland, 2010), All That I Love (Jacek Borcuch, Poland, 2009). Jury's comment: "Mateusz has an intense screen presence. In contemporary Polish dramas In The Name Of, he ingeniously conveys a character that journeys from enigmatic misfit to wildly unpredictable ticking bomb, enlivening his performance with a goofy energy and finally a beguiling tenderness. At all times we were carried along with conviction."
"I was actually on a film set and to make it even funnier, in Berlin," he said when I asked how he learned he had been selected. "It was my first part in a film that had nothing to do with Poland. The director was Australian and one of the actresses was the Shooting Star of Moldavia. An international group. I was even more at ease than in the beginning of the shoot. What did I feel? Satisfaction but then I quickly returned to work."
"Actually I never made a decision to act. At the beginning, when I was 18 I just needed to get out of my small provincial town. Back then I could only play the keyboard, a rubbish one, and recite some poems. That helped me meet a lady from a local cultural center. She encouraged me to go to a drama school. At first I didn't get in so I spent one year doing puppetry classes. Later I got into the acting class but I never finished it. I was constantly being thrown out. I was such a rebellious individual. When I turned 21 I got absorbed by cinema and it has turned out to be what I do best. That's why I never finished school.
What input do you have? "It depends on the director. During the filming of In The Name Of I was involved right from the start and the script was created with me in mind. Usually I meet with the director several times then go to the set and just act and it often works out, which means that I do not have a particular rule when it comes to cooperation. Of course I prefer to be in the project from the beginning and have some influence on the shape of my character, but I can also be a man to hire.
"I would play each of my roles differently now. Maybe not that superficially, using fewer means and much more personal feeling - mysteriously, more subtly, less shouting and so on. I am really looking forward to the "adult roles". I am a grown man now but so far I've played almost the same young men. I look younger on the screen but things are changing now. I am waiting to play a 30 year old. I am curious about how my face will look ten years from now. I am sure that roles of mad men will suit me best. I would like replay some of my youthful roles as a matricide or a man who falls in love with his sister. They tend to cast me like that. I think my performance will be stronger when I am older."
"Directors I would like to work with? Lars von Trier, Michael Haneke, Gus Van Sant. Those whose films I enjoy watching.
"I have a few role propositions, including Jerzy Skolimowski's new production, which makes me very happy. For now I don't think about directing anything but I am writing a script with a director for a new film in which I will be playing. I find this new role to be fun and enjoyable."
Nikola Rakocevic's three films: Circles (Srdan Golubovic, Serbia/Germany/France/Slovenia/Croatia, 2013), Trolling (Kosta Djordjevic, Serbia, 2013) and Travelator (Dusan Milic, Serbia, 2014). The jury's comment: "The youngest of five lead actors in ensemble piece Circles, Nikola registers strongly with an exceptionally vivid performance. While showcasing consistent energy and charisma, Nikola's additional screen credits reveal an impressive range of acting registers - indicating a versatile stealth weapon with great casting potential."
Where were you when you learned you were a 2014 Shooting Star? "At home with my family. It was one of the rare moments when I was really proud of myself. I was not too exalted, just proud."
"When I was a kid I was a member of the amateur theater and then I realized that I wanted to become an actor."
"I have been lucky to have an opportunity to work with directors who wanted to hear my opinion related to scripts. I give my suggestions, some were accepted, some were not. Also my opinion regarding cast roles was considered by directors. The final choice was always the directors."
Revisiting characters some time in the future? "In the film, Graduation, I play a guy who graduated from architectural school and had small chances of finding a job in that profession. His girl friend has gone off with his best friend and his other friend is blowing his mind with drugs. I want to know what will happen with that guy in ten years."
"I would like to work with Jim Jarmush, Tarantino and Brothers Coen."
"At the moment I am working in a play by Ostrovski. Also we are preparing a short film about Gavrilo Princip. I would like to direct a short animated movie."
The remaining five 2014 European Shooting Stars are: Denmark's Danica Curcic; Italy's Miriam Karikvst; Norway's Jakob Oftebro (who was in the well received film Kon-Tiki) and has a film that will premiere in Berlin (In Order of Disappearance that stars Stelian Skarsgard, Bruno Ganz and Anders Baasmo Christiansen); UK's George Mackay who is the singing soldier in Sunshine on Leith and the raw protagonist of For Those in Peril; Sweden's Edda Magnason who has just won the 50th anniversary Guldbagge Award for Best Actress. She stars as the legendary Swedish jazz singer Monica Zetterlund in Waltz for Monica.
Which of these stars will break through for international fame? They all have the potential and we will look for them at future European Union Film Festivals.
February 27-March 9
The 24th Washington Jewish Film Festival
From the press release
The Washington Jewish Film Festival presents 64 films from 18 countries, to be shown at 14 venues through the DC area. Forty filmmaker guests including actor and director John Turturro and Israeli filmmaker Avi Nesher. Many flms are premieres, either world premieres, national premieres or local premieres.
A sneak preview of Turturro’s comedy Fading Gigolo, hot off its Toronto Film Festival premiere, is the festival’s centerpiece event on March 8. Other highlights include a curated focus on Polish cinema, a nightly WJFF Lounge where festivalgoers can mingle with filmmakers over drink specials, a U Street bar crawl featuring film shorts, and free filmmaker talks at the Library of Congress.
“This has been a banner year for international cinema, with some of the top
filmmakers from around the world helming new works,” said Ilya Tovbis, Washington Jewish Film Festival director. “With new films by luminaries like Avi Nesher, Eytan Fox, John Turturro and Jeanine Meerapfel, our audiences are in for a real treat. Newcomers and mid-career artists join us with magnificently creative films such The Man Who Made Angels Fly, Natan and Noye’s Fludde, pushing our program in new directions.
”The festival opens Thursday, February 27, at the DCJCC with The Wonders, a film noir centering on a bartender who doubles as a graffiti artist. The film’s director Ari Nesher and original music composer Avner Dorman will mingle with guests at the opening night party. An Israeli filmmaking pioneer who has become an accomplished producer, director, screenwriter and actor, Nesher will receive the annual WJFF Visionary Award, an honor that recognizes creativity and insight in presenting the full diversity of the Jewish experience through the moving image. After growing up in Israel and New York City, Nesher was brought to Hollywood by producer Dino De Laurentiis, where
he first worked as a writer for such filmmakers as Ron Howard and James Cameron. Nesher will accept the award after a screening of his film Turn Left at the End of the World, a comedy which follows culture wars and alliances formed over the game of cricket in a small Israeli town, is one of Israel’s top grossing movies of all time. The screening and award ceremony will take place on Sunday, March 2, at 3 p.m. at the DCJCC. Nesher will also present a late night screening of his critically-acclaimed thriller The Taxman on Saturday, March 1, at 11 p.m. at the DCJCC.
This year’s Centerpiece Evening film is the insightful and hilarious sneak preview of Fading Gigolo, directed by and starring John Turturro and featuring Woody Allen. In the film, a failing New York City bookstore owner teams up with a florist to make a living by plying the world’s most ancient profession. The Centerpiece Evening will take place Saturday, March 8 at 7:15 p.m. at the AFI Silver Theater, and will be followed by an extended Q&A with
Turturro.
The festival’s closing night features a screening of Cupcakes, directed by Israel’s beloved Eytan Fox, on Sunday, March 9, at 7:30 p.m. at the DCJCC. The comedy follows a group of friends who accidentally enter a Eurovision-style musical contest and their struggle to navigate the sharp elbows of the pop music business.
A curated focus on Polish cinema this year highlights Ida, an Oscar contender direct from its premiere at Sundance, about a sheltered orphan who learns shocking secrets about her past; the controversial thriller Aftermath, which tells the story of two brothers who discover a terrible secret about their father; the U.S. premiere of the documentary The Man Who Made Angels Fly about a Holocaust survivor who became a renowned marionette performer; The Jewish Cardinal, based on the true story of Jean-Marie Lustiger, who maintained his Jewish identity even after becoming a Catholic priest; and Mamale, a 1930s musical comedy about a dutiful daughter who allots no time for herself until she discovers the violinist across the courtyard.
Other notable films at this year’s festival include the world premiere of Master of a Good Name, a fully animated Claymation film about Baal Shem Tov, the famed rabbi often credited with founding Hasidic Judaism; Friends From France, fresh from a magnificent reception at its premiere at the Toronto International Film Festival, about young tourists in the USSR and the underground world of ‘refuseniks;’ and Bethlehem, Israel’s submission for the Academy Award in the Best Foreign Language Film category, about the complex relationship between Israel’s secret service and a young Palestinian informant.
The festival’s Two Jews Walk Into a Bar short film bar crawl is back by popular demand after selling out last year. On Sunday, March 9, at 1 p.m., attendees will visit three U Street bars to watch a selection of short films
while enjoying drinks and the camaraderie of fellow film lovers.
Calendar of Events
FILMS
American Film Institute Silver Theater
"Screen Valentines: Great Movie Romances" starts February 7 and ends March 20. Film titles for February are Love Affair (1939), The More the Merrier (1943), Starman (1984) in 70mm, Midnight (1939), The Philadelphia Story (1940), My Favorite Wife (1940), Intermezzo (1939), Journey to Italy (1954), My Fair Lady (1964), and Swept Away (1974). A few more in March.
Vivian Leigh's 100th anniversary gives us a series of films including Fire Over England (1937), Storm in a Teacup (1937) and Dark Journey (1937). More in March and April.
Part I of a Burt Lancaster series begins February 7 with one of the all-time great noirs The Killers (1946). Other titles in February are Brute Force (1947), Desert Fury (1947), Criss Cross (1949), Jim Thorpe-All Ameican (1951), another great noir Sorry Wrong Number (1948), and Flame and Arrow (1950). More coming in March and April.
"Play Ball: The Hollywood and American Pastime" looks at baseball movies and begins with The Jackie Robinson Story (1950) with the real Jackie Robinson playing himself. Other films in February are Alibi Ike (1935), Angels in the Outfield (1951), The Bingo Long Traveling All-Stars and Motor Kings (1976), Take Me Out to the Ball Game (1949), Damn Yankees (1958), and It Happens Every Spring (1949). More in March and April.
"Action! The Films of Raoul Walsh Part I" begins February 7 with the restored print of The Big Trail (1930) shown in 35mm Cinemascope and starring John Wayne. Other titles in February are Sailor's Luck (1933), Sadie Thompson (1928), Regeneration (1915) with Andrew Simpson providing music accompaniment, Wild Girl (1932) and Me and My Gal (1932). More in March and April.
"Overdrive: L.A. Modern, 1960-2000" is a series co-presented with the National Building Museum and runs from February 8 to April 17. It is inspired by the National Building Museum's exhibition, "Overdrive: L.A. Constructs the Future, 1940-1990" on view through March 10. This is the second of two series exploring L.A.'s modern architectural legacy in film. Titles in February are Harper (Jack Smight, 1966), Point Blank (John Boorman, 1967), The Split (Gordon Flemyng, 1968), Repo Man (Alex Cox, 1984), They Live (John Carpenter, 1988), L.A. Story (Mick Jackson, 1991) with an introduction by Deborah Sorensen from the National Building Museum, Los Angeles Plays Itself (Thom Andersen, 2004), and The Player (Robert Altman, 1992). More in March and April.
A retrospective of the Haitian director Raoul Peck begins February 22 with the filmmaker present for Q&A at his film Fatal Assistance (2013) about the 2010 earthquake. He will also be present for Man on the Shore (1993). Other films in February are Sometimes in April (2005), Lumumba (1990) and Moloch Tropical (2009). Two more in March.
Freer Gallery of Art
The 18th Annual Iranian Film Festival takes place in January and February. On February 2 at 2:00pm is Fat Shaker (Mohammad Shirvani, 2013), on February 7 at 7:00pm and February 9 at 2:00pm is Parviz (Majid Barzegar, 2012), on February 14 at 7:00pm and February 16 at 2:00pm is My Name is Negahdar Jamali and I Make Westerns (Kamran Heydahl, 2012) and on February 22 a 2:00pm is A Cinema of Discontent (2013) with director Jamsheed Akrami in person.
National Gallery of Art
The main series in February is "Recovered Treasure: UCLA's Festival of Preservation." On February 2 at 4:30pm is Gun Crazy (Joseph H. Lewis, 1950) with an introduction by Rebecca Prime. On February 7 at 3:00pm is Double Door (Charles Vidor, 1934) shown with Supernatural (Victor and Edward Halperin, 1933), on February 8 at 1:00pm is International House (Joseph H. Lewis, 1933), on February 14 at 2:30pm is Thirty-Day Princess (1934) preceded by Busy Bodies (1933), a short film with Laurel and Hardy. On February 15 at 2:00pm is The Chase (Arthur D. Ripley, 1946), on February 20 and 21 at 12:30pm is Eadweard Muybridge, Zoopraxographer (Thom Andersen, 1975), on February 22 at 4:30pm is That Cold Day in the Park (Robert Altman, 1969). The series ends with a double-feature cine-concert Mantrap (Victor Fleming, 1926) shown with Midnight Madness (F. Harmon Weight, 1928), music accompaniment by Ben Model.
Art films and special events at the Gallery this month include the Anthony Mann double feature T-Men (1947) shown with Raw Deal (1947) with former DC resident Max Alvarez in person to introduce the films on February 1 at 2:00pm. Camille Claudel 1915 (Bruno Dumont, 2013) on February 15 at 4:00pm and February 16 at 2:00pm. The Festival of New French Shorts is on February 16 at 4:30pm. The John Huston version of Moby Dick (1956) is on February 21 at 2:30pm. For the Dylan Thomas centenary is a program of two films The World I Breathe (Perry Miller Adato, 1969) and the short film A Tribute to Dylan Thomas (Jack Howells, 1961) on February 22 at 2:00pm. Finally, there are two films by Michael Snow. On February 8 at 2:30pm is Wavelength (1966) shown with So Is This (1982) and on February 9 at 4:30pm is Back and Forth (1969).
Museum of American History
On February 1 at 2:00pm is Freedom Summer (Stanley Nelson), a documentary about the 1964 voting rights efforts in Mississippi. Freedom Summer veterans will be present for discussion.
National Portrait Gallery
This following event doesn't happen until March, but we mention it early because discounted tickets are available for advance purchases and we hear that it is selling briskly. A fundraiser, reception, and screening takes place March 19 at the National Portrait Gallery. Meet TCM's host Robert Osborne in conversation with Amy Henderson, Curator of the exhibit Dancing the Dream, followed by a screening of Flying Down to Rio (1933) starring Dolores Del Rio, Ginger Rogers and Fred Astaire.
Tickets for the film program only at 6:30pm are $15 ($10 early bird price until February 12). This includes the interview and discussion with Amy Henderson and Robert Osborne, followed by the film which is shown in conjunction with the exhibit "Dancing the Dream" on view at the Portrait Gallery. Tickets for the private reception at 6:00pm and film program are $50 ($45 early bird price until February 12). This includes a wine and cheese reception plus the film program described earlier. Tickets must be ordered in advance, they will not be available at the door.
Fred Astaire and Ginger Rogers first appeared onscreen in Flying Down to Rio (1933). Their performance of “The Carioca” generated such an enthusiastic response that RKO quickly cast them in what became a historic movie series—The Gay Divorcee (1934), Roberta (1935), Top Hat (1935), Follow the Fleet (1936), Swing Time (1936), Shall We Dance (1937), Carefree (1938), and The Story of Vernon and Irene Castle (1939). For MGM, they teamed once again for The Barkleys of Broadway (1949).
Order here for the Reception, Interview and Film. Order here for the Interview and film.
Smithsonian American Art Museum
On February 12 at 6:30pm is Stranger Than Paradise (Jim Jarmusch, 1984), in conjunction with the "Landscape in Passing" exhibit. On February 19 at 7:00pm is Inocente, winner of the 2012 Academy Award for Best Short Documentary. A panel discussion with the filmmakers will take place after the screening. This is shown as part of the exhibit "Latino Presence in American Art." On February 27 at 6:30pm is Rubén Salazar: Man in the Middle (Phillip Rodriguez), a PBS documentary about the Civil Rights-era journalist who was killed by an LA County sheriff's deputy in 1970. The filmmaker will introduce his film.
Washington Jewish Community Center
See the the press release above.
Goethe Institute
"Afrofuturism in Short Films" is a program of short films and panel discussion. On February 3 at 6:30pm is Pumzi (Wanuri Kahiu), Drexciya (Simon Rittmeier) and Hydra Decapita, another film about Drexciya. Panelists include artists and curators.
The "Uranium Film Festival" highlights nuclear and radioactive issues. It premiered in Rio de Janeiro in 2011 and traveled to major cities around the world. Each screening will be introduced by the festival curators. On February 10 at 4:00pm is "Uranium Mining," including the documentary The Atomic States of America (Don Argott and Sheena M. Joyce, 2011), the short film Tailings (Sam Price-Waldman, 2012) and Yellow Cake. The Dirt Behind Uranium (Joachim Tschirner, 2010) about a uranium mine in East Germany and other mines in Namibia, Australia and Canada. At 8:30pm is a panel discussion with the film directors via Skype. On February 11 at 6:30pm is "Atom Bombs and Nuclear War" including The Last Flower (Sima Baghery, 2013), Moab (Keren Zaltz, 2012), Atomic Bombs on the Planet Earth (Peter Greenaway, 2011) all of which are short films and the feature documentary Nuclear Savage: The Islands of Secret Project 4.1 (Adam Jonas Horowitz, 2012) about the US's secret nuclear tests in the 1950s. At 8:30pm is a panel discussion with the day's film directors via Skype. On February 12 at 6:30pm is "Fukushima and Nuclear Power Plant Risks" including Abita. Children from Fukushima (Shoko Hara and Paul Brenner), Forbidden Ground Fukushima (Kazunori Kurimoto, 2012) about the aftermath of the Kukushima disaster, Rotten Rock (Eve Lise Silva, Ligia Girão, Stela Grisotti and Walter Behr, 1990) about Brazil's nuclear power plants, and High Power (Pradeep Indulkar, 2013). Panel discussion at 8:30pm.
On February 20 at 6:30pm is The Secret Race (Tobias Rosenberger), a filmed play based on Rosenberger's autobiography The Secret Race: Inside the Hidden World of the Tour de France: Doping, Cover-ups, and Winning at All Costs. Discussion follows the screening with director Tobias Rosenberger.
Beginning February 24 and running through March 17 is a German TV Miniseries in 10 parts In Face of the Crime (Dominik Graf, 2010), winner of the 2011 Grimme Award. The series is a crime drama set in Berlin's Russian-Jewish enclave. Part of the Washington Jewish Film Festival. The first three episodes are on February 24 at 6:30pm with the remainder in March.
Strathmore
On February 1 at 8:00pm the Baltimore Symphony Orchestra will accompany two of Charlie Chaplin's films The Idle Class and The Kid. Martin Alsop conducts the orchestra.
National Geographic Society
All five of the Oscar-nominated films for Best Foreign Language Film will be shown at the National Geographic February 14-16. On February 14 at 7:30pm is The Great Beauty (Paolo Sorrentino) from Italy; on February 15 at 5:00pm is Omar (Hany Abu-Assad) from Palestine; on February 15 at 7:30pm is The Hunt (Thomas Vinterberg) from Denmark; on February 16 at 5:00pm is The Missing Picture (Rithy Pahn) from Cambodia, and on February 16 at 7:30pm is The Broken Circle Breakdown (Felix Van Groeningen) from Belgium.
French Embassy
On February 18 at 7:00pm is Les Apaches (Thierry de Peretti) set in Corsica.
Arlington Arts and Artisphere
For Valentine's Day on February 14 at 8:00pm is Amelie (2001) starring Audrey Tautou.
National Archives
On February 5 at 7:00pm is The Trials of Muhammad Ali (2013) is a documentary about Muhammad Ali outside the boxing ring. The film's director, Bill Siegel, will introduce the film.
On Abraham Lincoln's birthday, February 12, at 7:00pm is The Gettysburg Story (Jake Boritt, 2013) shown with the short film The Wheatfield. Narrator Stephen Lang, film director Jake Boritt and Civil War scholar Gabor Boritt will be present for discussion.
The Academy Award-nominated Documentaries and Short Subjects will be present all the nominees in four categories: Documentary Feature, Documentary Short Subject, Live Action Short Film and Animated Short Film. The Documentary Features: on February 26 at 7:00pm is 20 Feet from Stardom (Morgan Neville, 2013), on February 27 at 7:00pm is The Act of Killing (Joshua Oppenheimer and Signe Byrge Sørensen, 2012), on February 28 at 7:00pm is The Square (Jehane Noujaim, 2013), on March 1 at 7:00pm is Dirty Wars (Richard Rowley and Jeremy Scahill, 2013), and on March 2 at 4:00pm is Cutie and the Boxer (Zachary Heinzerling and Lydia Dean Pilcher, 2013). The Live Action Short Nominees: on March 1 at noon is That Wasn't Me (Esteban Crespo), Just Before Losing Everything (Xavier Legrand and Alexandre Gavras), Helium (Anders Walter and Kim Magnusson), Do I Have to Take Care of Everything? (Selma Vilhunen and Kirsikka Saari), and The Voorman Problem (Mark Gill and Baldwin Li). The Animated Short Film Nominees: on March 1 at 3:30pm is Feral (Daniel Sousa and Dan Golden), Get a Horse! (Lauren MacMullan and Dorothy McKim), Mr. Hublot (Laurent Witz and Alexandre Espigares), Possessions (Shuhei Morita), and Room on the Broom (Max Lang and Jan Lachauer). The Documentary Short Subject Nominees: on March 2 at 11:00am is CaveDigger (Jeffrey Karoff), Facing Fear (Jason Cohen), Karama Has No Walls (Sara Ishaq), The Lady in Number 6: Music Saved My Life (Malcolm Clarke and Nicholas Reed), and Prison Terminal: The Last Days of Private Jack Hall (Edgar Barens).
West End Cinema
The Human Rights Watch starts February 12 and ends March 12. On February 12 at 7:00pm is The New Black (Yoruba Richen) about how the African American community is dealing with the gay rights movement, on February 19 at 7:00pm is In the Shadow of the Sun (Harry Freeland) about two people with albinism in Tanzania and their rejection by their communities, on February 26 at 7:00pm is Camp 14 Total Control Zone (Marc Wise), a documentary about a North Korean who escaped. All have Q&As. More in March.
The Avalon
The "Czech Lions" film for February is Collette (Milan Cieslar, 2013), based on the novel A Girl from Antwerp by Arnošt Lustig, former DC resident, shown on February 12 at 8:00pm. This month's French Cinematheque film is Just a Sigh (Jérôme Bonnell, 2013) starring Gabriel Byrne and Emmanuelle Devos, shown on February 19 at 8:00pm. "Avalon Docs" features a documentary film with Cutie and the Boxer (Zachary Heinzerling, 2013), one of the five contenders for Best Documentary Feature, shown on February 5 at 8:00pm.
The Corcoran
On February 19 at 5:00pm is "Hitchcock Uncorked," an evening of suspense, Hollywood glamour and Alfred Hitchcock classics. The Birds and Rear Window will be shown and you can try making a movie poster, tour the exhibition Alex Prager: Face in the Crowd and learn how the glamorous Hollywood heroines of classic 50s & 60s cinema influenced her work. Plus movie trivia competition and popcorn.
Italian Cultural Institute
On February 4 at 6:30pm is the re-scheduled screening of Yesterday, Today and Tomorrow (Vittorio De Sica, 1963) starring Marcello Mastroianni and Sophia Loren.
Anacostia Community Museum
On February 6 at 11:00am is Belonging (2004), about a woman born into exile as the daughter of South African political émigrés. A discussion follows the film.
On February 8 at 2:30pm is Fate of a Salesman (2013), a documentary about the rise and fall of a DC clothing store. Q&A after a panel discussion.
On February 13 at 2:00pm is a selection from the DC Environmental Film Festival.
On February 27 at 11:00am is Brother Outsider (2003), an award winning documentary about Bayard Rustin, the gay architect of the 1963 March on Washington. A discussion follows.
The Hill Center at the Old Naval Hospital
On February 11 at 7:00pm is The Trials of Muhammad Ali (Bill Siegel, 2013), a documentary about Muhammad Ali's battle to overturn the 5 year prison sentence he received for refusing US military service, when he was banned from boxing.
On February 7 at 7:00pm is another entry in the series "The Dark Side of Hitchcock" with Strangers on a Train (1950).
Bloombars
On February 4 at 7:00pm is Top Floor Left Wing (Angelo Cianci, 2010), a comedy starring Hippolyte Giradot as an accidental hostage victim.
Washington National Cathedral
On February 22 at 5:00pm is Carl Theodore Dreyer's great classic silent film The Passion of Joan of Arc (1928) with Richard Einhorn's "Voices of Light" accompanying.
Smithsonian Associates
See Film Lectures section below.
Busboys and Poets
On February 11 at 6:00pm is A Kiss for Gabriela, a documentary about Gabriela Leite, founder of the sex worker rights movement in Brazil. At the 14th and V location.
Alliance Francais
On February 15 at 7:00pm takes part in "Les Lutins du Court-Métrage," short French films. Other locations include the National Gallery of Art, Hillwood Estate, Museum and Gardens, Montgomery College Cultural Arts Center, Napoleon Bistro & Lounge, Alliance Française de Washington, DC. The festival runs from February 12-16. See the website for the complete schedule at all the locations.
FILM FESTIVALS
REELAbilities Disabilities Film Festival
The third annual REELabilities Film Festial runs from February 6-13. Some titles of the feature films include Come as You Are (Geoffrey Enthoven) from Belgium, Six Points About Emma (Roberto Perez Toledo) from Spain, Son of the Stars (Michelle Chen Miao) from China, The Importance of Tying Your Own Shoes (Lena Koppel) from Sweden, When I Walk (Jason DaSilva) from the US, Wampler's Ascent (Jacques Spitzer) from the US, and Ocean Heaven (Xiao Lu Xue) from China. Plus there are numerous short films. Locations include Spectrum Theater, Artisphere, numerous churches and libraries, schools and community colleges and Jewish community centers. See the website for specific information.
William and Mary Global Film Festival
This festival, which runs from February 13-16, seeks to show films from all over the world to increase global understanding. A few titles: Le Congres (Ari Folman, 2013) is from Israel, Cafe de Flore (Jean-Marc Vallée, 2011) is from Canada, Blue is the Warmest Color (Abdellatif Kechiche, 2013) is from France, Kooky (Jan Sv?rák, 2010) is animated and from Czech Republic, Lasting (jacek Borchuch, 2013) is from Poland, and Milky Way (Cyril Bron & Joseph Incardona, 2013) is from Switzerland. See the website for others.
The DC Independent Film Festival
The DC Independent Film Festival celebrates its 16th year. This year's festival runs from February 19-23 and locations include the US Navy Heritage Center, the Goethe Institute, and the Gala Hispanic Theater. The opening night film is Partners for Peace (Ed Kucerak, 2013). See the website for more information.
The 24th Washington Jewish Film Festival
The 24th annual Washington Jewish Film Festival takes place February 27-March 9. More than 64 films from 18 countries will be shown at several locations. See above.
FILM-RELATED LECTURES
Hollywood, DC: What the Movies Get Right—and Wrong—About Washington
On February 25 at 6:45pm film writer Mike Canning, author of Hollywood on the Potomac: How the Movies View Washington, DC, serves as lively tour guide to the capital as reflected on the screen. Clips from notable films reflect how some moviemakers capture Washington’s essence as a city and a symbol and how others mangle its social and political complexities—and its geography.
Previous Storyboards
January 2014
December 2013
November 2013
October 2013
September 2013
August 2013
July 2013
June 2013
May 2013
April 2013
March 2013
February 2013
Contact us: 
Membership
For members only:
E-Mailing List
Ushers
Website
Storyboard
All Else
