Filenews 18 July 2022
In its 17th year, the Limassol International Documentary Festival reopens its cinematic horizons by screening in a pancyprian premiere award-winning creative documentaries that stood out during the festival year, from the global film production. It will be held from the 1st to the 8th of August at the Lanitis Carob Mill (Ceronia Hall).
At the core of the beloved summer event are once again shocking documentaries by new avant-garde voices and established creators of the art of documentary, which awaken the viewer and his senses, expanding the boundaries of the cinematic language.
Covering a wide range of thematic and cinematic approaches, these are the films we will see this year at the 17th Limassol International Documentary Festival:
(Real) roles of women
In "Days and Nights of Dimitra K." the acclaimed documentary filmmaker and visual artist Eva Stefani follows the legendary prostitute Dimitra Kanellopoulou, from her home in the historic brothel in Acharnon and back, in a documentary that lasted 12 years.
By getting to know Dimitra, we are confronted with our stereotypes about sex, female desire, individual freedom, but also the way the trials change us in critical historical moments. Eva Stefani will attend the Festival.
The documentary "Midwives" by Snow Hnin Ei Hlaing, which won the special jury prize for international documentary at this year's Sundance, follows the story of two midwives over 5 years. One Buddhist and the other a Muslim woman will defy their ethnic differences to work side by side in a makeshift clinic in western Myanmar.
Through the award-winning Special Jury Prize at this year's Thessaloniki International Documentary Festival "Letter to Nikola", by Hara Kaminara, which takes the form of an audiovisual letter, the testimony of a photographer who recounts to her still unborn child her experience on the rescue ship Aquarius, in the central Mediterranean, is born. Hara Kaminara will attend the Festival.
"Fashion Reimagined", directed by Becky Hutner, follows the story of Amy Powney, the daughter of environmental activists, and her journey from underdog to fashion big businessman, with her creations promoting ethical and sustainable fashion.
The exploratory
The documentary "Nothing Lasts Forever" highlights the "nicest lie ever sold." The reason for diamonds, the ultimate symbol of romance and erotic devotion. This courageous penetration of director Jason Kohn into the diamond black market and his buying and selling industry, bursts the bubble of romanticism, right where the real is entangled with the phony, the authentic with the synthetic.
In "The Killing of a Journalist", directed by Matt Sarnecki, the murder of a young journalist and his fiancée in their home in Slovakia, triggers the largest protests in the country since the time of communism. The story gets an unpredictable plot when a source lets leak the secret folder of the murder, which includes computers, and the coded communication of the alleged mastermind of the murder: a businessman closely linked to the country's ruling party.
Combining material of today with 3D animation that draws its inspiration from Daxiong's art, the documentary "Eternal Spring" by Jason Loftus, reconstructs the capture of a state television channel of China twenty years later, bringing to life an unprecedented history of resistance, chilling testimonies of persecution and a refreshing narrative about the determination of claiming political and religious freedom, at any price.
Children's lives
From Denmark comes the documentary "A House Made of Splinters" by Simon Lereng Wilmont. With the war in Ukraine burdening destitute families living near the front line of fire, a group of social workers is working tirelessly and decisively in a special orphanage to create an almost magical environment in which children will live safely as long as the state and judicial authorities decide on their future and that of their families.
"End of Time" is the title of the documentary by Loukas Paleokrassas that follows four high school students who face the pressure of the panhellenics. Their lives are put on hold when a student occupation forces the closure of the school.
Environment and climate change
In the award-winning documentary "The Territory", Alex Pritz deals with the destruction of the Amazon rainforests and the battle of indigenous peoples to protect their culture and environment from illegal mining, logging and a corrupt government. Among others, the film won the Audience Award and the special Documentary Craft Jury Prize in Sundance, the Amnesty International Prize at DocsBarcelona, the Golden Space Needle Award at the Seattle International Film Festival, etc.
In one of the world's most populous cities, Delhi, two brothers operate a bird hospital in their tiny basement, taking care of thousands of black-colored iktinos every month, since these fascinating birds are rejected by bird hospitals since their meat is considered unclean for religious reasons and unsuitable for eating. Set against the backdrop of environmental toxicity and social unrest, Shaunak Sen's "All That Breathes" paints a poetic chronicle of the city's collapsing ecology and ever-increasing social tensions. The documentary won the Grand Jury Prize for international documentary at this year's Sundance as well as the Golden Eye Award at this year's Cannes Film Festival.
Arts and music in the cinema of the real
Rita Baghdadi's "Sirens" is set in the suburbs of Beirut, where Lilas and Shery, co-founders and guitarists of the Middle East's first metal band consisting only of women, struggle with friendship, sexuality and destruction in their quest to become metal stars.
Few figures in the history of photography and the moving image have played as great and decisive a role as that of Idward Maybridge, a complex artist whose personal story was colored by ambition, success, mayhem, and even a murder in cold blood. The documentary "Exposing Muybridge", directed by Marc Shaffer, stars the popular British actor Gary Oldman.
"Constantly Flying" is a music documentary about Baba Zula, one of the most important psychedelic rock bands in Turkey. This documentary, overflowing with music and psychedelia, was directed by Adriana Cordeiro.
Society in crisis
The documentary "The Divinity of Oneness" highlights stories of victims of religious hatred in Germany, Greece, Portugal and Cyprus, answering key questions related to the destruction of sacred monuments and places of worship, as hatred for the "other" escalates. The film was produced by RESET Cyprus, with Filmhouse Pictures in the framework of the PROSECUW program, which was led by the Center for Social Innovation.
"I Didn't See You There", directed by the American Reid Davenport, a creator suffering from cerebral palsy, is a journey through the world through the eyes and camera of a disabled filmmaker, who exposes sometimes with humor and sometimes with rage the difficulties he faces in the inhospitable environment of the city, as a man who may be seen but rarely heard. The documentary won the Best Director Award at this year's Sundance Film Festival as well as the Golden Gate Award at the San Francisco Film Festival.
With humor and a visually impressive style, Sean Wang's "A Marble Travelogue" records the journey of marbles from Greece to China, where sculptors turn them into statues and columns of Hellenistic type, refrigerator magnets and other tourist souvenirs, which return to the European market and are sold to Chinese tourists.
Underexposed
The Underexposed programme includes panel discussions, workshops and events on the subject of lesbian representation, debates and movements in Cyprus.
The Republic of Lesbians & their friends presents a program of events that addresses the issue of the absence of lesbian representation, speech and movements in Cyprus. Creating space for the multi-community experiences and expressions of the island's queer women, the program highlights local examples of self-determination and resilience, draws inspiration from lesbian communities and radical stories, and presents international contemporary artists.
As part of the Underexposed project, the documentary "Rebel", set in the 1980s, will be screened in post-punk London. An untold story of a community of lesbians who met by doing art, music, politics, and sex, and how they went together to change their world. In the presence of directors Harri Shanahan and Siân A. Williams. In a panel discussion entitled "The Lesbian experience in Cyprus", five women from different professional and social backgrounds and from different generations, will analyze the complexity of the identity of lesbians in today's Cyprus.
The program is organized by: Diana Georgiou, Natalia Damigou-Papoti and Michalis Intziegiannis in co-production with the Limassol International Documentary Festival.
Partnership with The Island Club
The Island Club, in collaboration with the Limassol International Documentary Festival, presents the documentary "Los Angeles Plays Itself" (2003) by Thom Andersen. Using footage from dozens of films shot in Los Angeles, Anderssen examines how Hollywood depicted or falsified the image of the city where he was born.
The poster for the 17th edition of the Festival has been designed by Chryso Kosmas and Despina Ragou (POPsnacks). The rationale of the poster entitled "Detecting the Unseen" is as follows: As a process, the creation of a documentary seeks an objective truth that has not yet been viewed. In a similar way, the poster shapes that emerge through the empty space between the letters of the title, act as compositions to create new visual narratives.
We stay safe
For the safety and health of all, the Festival will observe all the health protection and safety measures to limit the spread of the coronavirus that will be in force during its conduct. For the convenience of the public but also to avoid overcrowding, tickets for the Festival are available through online sale.
Limassol, Lanitis Carob Mill (Ceronia Hall), 1-8 August, Tickets: soldouttickets
More information on filmfestival.com.cy website and Facebook.
Subtitles: Greek, English
The Limassol International Documentary Festival is organized by Brave New Culture and is supported and funded by the Cultural Services of the Ministry of Education, Culture, Sports and Youth. The Limassol International Documentary Festival supports the Evagoras and Kathleen Lanitis Foundation.
