Moscow festival unveils lineup
Variety
June 9, 2008
By Nick Holdsworth
LONDON – Moscow’s 30th international film festival unspools June 19 with a
competition that includes German director Veit Helmer’s German-Afghan
co-production "Absurdistan" and "The Simple Heart" (Un Coeur Simple) the
solo debut by French actress-turned-director Marion Laine.
The festival, criticized in recent years for placing more emphasis on
attracting Hollywood guest stars and racked last year by an internal dispute
that ended in a change of organizers, has a stronger competition lineup this
year – something observers credit to Russian-speaking Finnish cineaste,
Kirsi Tykkylainen, the former head of the international department of the
Finnish Film Fund, who was appointed program head last year.
The full competition program – to be judged by a jury chaired by actress Liv
Ullmann – includes: "The Visitor" (dir. Tom McCarthy, U.S.); "Majdnem Szuz"
(Virtual Virgin; dir. Peter Bacso, Hungary); "Mao Ce Dun" (dir. Besnik
Bisha, Albania); "Sad" (The Cherry Orchard, dir. Sergey Ovcharov, Russia);
"Raiskiye Ptitsy" (Birds of Paradise, dir. Roman Balayan, Ukraine); "Giorni
e Nuvole" (Days and Clouds, dir. Silvio Soldini, Italy/Switzerland);
"Vedramot" (A Quiet Storm, dir. Guony Halldorsdottir, Iceland); "Zift" (dir.
Javor Gardev, Bulgaria); "Odnazhdy v Provintsii" (Once Upon a Time in the
Provinces, dir. Katya Shagalova, Russia); "Manecer de un Sueno" (Awaking
from a Dream, dir. Freddy Mas, Spain); "Duiande Zhangzheng" (The War of the
Shore, dir. Li Xin, China); "Be Hamin Sadegi"(As Simple as That, dir. Reza
Mir Karimi, Iran); "Der Mond Und Andere Liebhaber" (The Moon and Other
Lovers, dir. Bernd Boehlich, Germany); and "For My Father" (dir. Dror
Zahavi, Israel).
Out of competition, the festival opens with a screening of Will Smith’s
comic superhero "Hancock" at which Smith, Charlize Theron, director Peter
Berg and producer Akiva Goldsman will be present, and June 25 there is a
gala screening of Andrew Stanton’s Disney/Pixar’s new animated feature
"Wall-E."
The Moscow International Film Festival runs June 19-28.
From: Emil Lazarian | Ararat NewsPress
Disclaimer: This article was contributed and translated into English by Emil Lazarian. While we strive for quality, the views and accuracy of the content remain the responsibility of the contributor. Please verify all facts independently before reposting or citing.
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