| EuroDocs Festival  Presented in collaboration with IDA and ELMA.
With the support of the Consulates of Austria,
Belgium, France, Germany,
Italy, The Netherlands, Romania, Sweden, Switzerland,
the Principality of Liechtenstein, Goethe Institut-Los Angeles, the Italian Film Commission and the UK Film Council US
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This series is an Aero Theatre Exclusive!
The recent explosion of documentary features is very much a worldwide
phenomenon. No longer tethered to television, many more nonfiction films are making a
splash at the cinema, and not only here in America -- the documentary renaissance is
changing the rules for the form in Europe as well. Join us for a series of European
documentaries never before shown in Los Angeles. From all parts of Europe, these
documentaries provide insight not only into unfamiliar cultures and livelihoods but also
speak to the broad range of filmmaking practices at work in Europe today. Filmmakers take
us from a boarding school in the Swiss mountains to a Belgian circus show; from a heavy
metal concert in rural Germany to the West London bedroom of a bed-bound artist. Through
the camera’s lens, we experience firsthand the diverse music, art, philosophies,
rituals and histories of people who all share a common human experience. Wine and cheese receptions in between the films!
Thursday, October 16 – 7:30 PM
Triple Feature:
Los Angeles Premiere! "Source of Inspiration," 2008, Sweden, 14 min.
Dir. Linda Blomqvist. A documentary about Roland Pantze, a Saami artist
living alone in the untouched wilderness of Lapland in northern Sweden. Remote living
allows him the undisturbed space for his philosophies on life and a continuous inspiration
for his arts. "This story of an artist living in solitude in the wilderness of
northern Sweden goes beyond showing the unique heritage of a Saami indigenous person. It
captures a lifestyle that inspires a freedom we rarely get to experience anymore."
-- Linda Blomqvist | Official Website
Los Angeles Premiere! VOYAGE IN G MAJOR, 2007, France, 54 min. Dir. Georgi
Lazarevsky. Ninety-year-old Aime Helbing has spent his whole life being
conservative and practical and has decided that it is time for things to change. He leaves
his wife behind and takes off on his dream journey to Morocco, accompanied by his grandson
(Lazarevsky). Joined only by a small camera crew, Aime gets to experience a bit of the
life that he has always dreamed of. Described as a poetic journey, the film, which
premiered at the 2007 SilverDocs Film Festival, "…offers the message that one
is never too old to embrace life’s joys and challenges." -- Mark Deming, All
Movie Guide More on this
film
Los Angeles Premiere! SOUS LE CHAPITEAU DES PAUWELS, 2008, Belgium, 50 min. Dir. Agnes
Bensimon. This documentary lets us into the intimacy of an extraordinary Jewish
family: Clowns, musicians and jugglers, these nomads have passed on both heritage, the art
of the circus and Judaism from one generation to the other for the last 200 years. What
lies in the future for 16-year-old Samuel, a talented juggler himself, now that he has
been appointed manager of the circus? This film reveals the magic of this often unknown
world. Discussion in between films with
director Agnes Bensimon More on this film
Friday, October 17 – 7:30 PM
Double Feature:
 Los Angeles
Premiere! MARTHA, MEMORIES OF A WITCH,
2007, Italy, 50 min. Dir. Giovanni Calamari. Harsh and imposing like
the Dolomites, smooth and fragile like the paths unwinding through the Sciliar Highland,
Martha mirrors the ancient mountain environment with its traditions, tales and scented
herbs, but also hard work and loneliness. She wanders the Sciliar Highlands in an arduous
quest of self-realization, which her fellow villagers call "Martha's disease,"
but the headstrong young woman discovers her magic self. Winner of the 2005 "Autori
da scoprire" for Best Story, Calamari was born in Milan and began his film career in
2001. View Trailer | Website (Italian)
Los Angeles Premiere! VIENNA’S LOST DAUGHTERS, 2007, Austria, 87 min.
Director Miriam Unger explores the overlapping lives of eight Austrian women who
have lived in New York most of their adult lives. Called "Vienna’s Lost
Daughters," they all grew up Jewish in the city and had to flee in the late 1930s.
Unger (whose grandmother had ended up in a psychiatric hospital because of Nazi
persecution) explores how the suffering continues on through the generations while also
celebrating how the women were able to lead successful, positive lives. Official Website Discussion
in between films with director Giovanni Calamari (MARTHA, MEMORIES OF A WITCH).
Saturday, October 18 – 7:30 PM
Double Feature:
Los Angeles Premiere! RETURN TO GOREE, 2007, Switzerland, 112 min. Grammy-winning
musician Youssou N’Dour embarks on a musical journey around the globe,
everywhere from Atlanta to Bordeaux. He is accompanied by his friend, a blind pianist, and
the duo immerse themselves in the world of gospel and jazz. The film culminates in a
concert in Goree, an island off the coast of Senegal once known as the center of the
Atlantic slave trade. The documentary follows N’Dour’s musical journey, as well
as the spiritual voyage back to Africa for the musician and the African-American artists
who join him. Official Website
Los Angeles Premiere! FULL METAL VILLAGE, 2007, Germany, Flying Moon Filmproduktion,
90 min. Dir. Sung-Hyung Cho. This documentary explores the Wacken Open Air
Festival, a heavy metal concert gathering in a small German town. Every year during the
first weekend in August, the quiet town of Schleswig-Holstein becomes a meeting spot for
40,000 heavy metal fans and the bands that they come to support. A curious clash forms
between the rural community and the fans as each person in the town is affected in their
own singular fashion by the festival. More on this Film | View Trailer
Sunday, October 19 – 7:30 PM
Double Feature:
Los Angeles Premiere! HERE’S JOHNNY, 2008, U.K., Animal Monday
Productions, 60 min. Dir. Kat Mansoor. The eloquent documentary enters the surreal
world of renowned graphic artist Johnny Hicklenton (the comics Judge Dredd
and 2000 AD), who is battling the disease multiple sclerosis. Living in an
increasing state of immobility and frustration, Johnny escapes the confines of his front
room through his artwork. Through the expression of his brilliant and sometimes troubled
imagination, we learn about the disease that he cannot escape from. The filmmakers have
tracked Johnny's struggle with MS for six years, and here, in the space of just an hour,
give us a powerful, painful and humorous portrait of Johnny. Official Website
Los Angeles Premiere!
THE GREAT COMMUNIST BANK ROBBERY,
2004, Romania/France, 70 min. Dir. Alexandru Solomon. A 1959 robbery of
the Romanian National Bank in Bucharest became a chilling piece of proto-reality
television -- Stalinist style. Authorities arrested six suspects – all
high-ranking members of the nomenklatura – who agreed to re-enact their confessed
crimes in a filmed "docudrama." Despite possible expectations of a pardon, the
robbers were executed. Alexandru Solomon's film is both a bizarre re-creation of a crime
in which the motive is still difficult to fathom and an astonishing evocation of a lost
world of Romanian Stalinism. Official Website
Wednesday, October 22 – 7:30 PM
Double Feature:
 Los
Angeles Premiere! PRETPARK NEDERLAND,
2006, The Netherlands, 90 min. A FunFair behind the dikes! In his trademark
tongue-in-cheek style, director Michiel van Erp explores the daily distractions of
people in the Netherlands. Focusing on the mechanics of the Dutch tourism industry and
events from Gay Pride Amsterdam to an Elf Fantasy Fair, the film follows the organizers
and key figures behind events and destinations. This includes everyone from the director
of the Efteling theme park creating a new ride to a manager of an outlet store preparing
for a Christmas sale. A look at how Dutch citizens spend their vacation and leisure time.
Official Website
Los Angeles Premiere! ZUOZ, 2007, Principality of Liechtenstein, 71 min. Dir. Daniella
Marxer. A trip to a boarding school in the snowy Swiss mountains, where youngsters coming
from the most fortunate and influential families in the world live lives apart from each
other. Marxer shows us the day-to-day life at school, ruled by old and traditional values
that hide everlasting power struggles in a golden microcosm. Originality is not tolerated
and threatens the system of the community. Official
Website
Thursday, October 23 – 7:30 PM
ALL DOC'D OUT: A DOCUMENTARY SURVIVAL GUIDE SEMINAR
Nonfiction filmmaking has been a centerpiece of the American film industry for most of our
new millennium. Whether this resurgence can be attributed to the dominance of
reality-based television, new-found artistic and technical liberties or to some good
old-fashioned monetary gain, there is now a vast new playing field for today's documentary
filmmaker. Learn how to keep your film alive and thriving in the competitive world of
nonfiction distribution, exhibition and film festivals from a panel of industry
professionals. Moderated by film consultant/ programmer Thomas
Ethan Harris. |
