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VFF CONFIRMATIONS TO DATE |
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It’s been a busy few weeks at the Film Festival office and we’ve been very proud to announce an engaging and entertaining series thus far. Here’s a quick run down of all the announcements so far. If there's a trailer available in English you can open it by clicking the image for the movie.
Beyond Gay – Beyond Gay will be our Canadian Opening Film and it comes with a powerful message. Vancouver Pride Director Ken Coolen travels along with a film crew to countries where Pride is steeped in protest to experience the powerful oppression that still exists and discovers Pride is more than a parade, it’s a giant step on the road to global human rights. After the screening the Victoria Pride Society will be hosting a party for the film.
Coco Chanel & Igor Stravinsky –This beautifully shot French film, ripe with fashion, captures the passionate and intense love affair between two creative giants and will be our Opening Gala film. The Opening Gala film and reception will be January 29th.
Under Rich Earth – In a remote mountain valley in Ecuador, family farmers face the dismal prospect of being forced from their fertile land to make way for a mining project. Passionate and provocative, Under Rich Earth offers critical insights from struggling farmers whose communities are torn apart by global forces as they try and defend their land by using the law.
Coopers’ Camera – Starring Daily show correspondants Jason Jones and Samantha Bee (also a real life married couple), Coopers’ Camera is a holiday film sure to make you laugh. A dysfunctional family’s Christmas disintegrates into madness once an estranged uncle shows up for the holidays. A Canadian film, produced by Uvic alumni Nicholas Tabarrok, and directed by Warren P. Sonoda who has previously had a Victoria Film Festival screening.
Usta – Usta is a beautiful Turkish film that deals with a mans obsession with building a small plane from scratch, and how his dream affects those around him.
Lebanon – In the first Lebanon war in June of 1982 a lone tank and a paratroopers platoon are dispatched to search for a hostile town – a simple mission that turns into a nightmare. The four members of the tank crew find themselves in a situation that they are not equipped to handle. Motivated by fear and the basic instinct of survival, they desperately try not to lose themselves in the chaos of war.
Focaccia Blues – Too often we hear of McDonald’s or other large corporations shutting the little guy down, but in Focaccia Blues, an Italian baker opens up shop next to the fast food giant and brings the competition to their door.
The Yes Men Fix The World – A screwball true story about two gonzo political activists who, posing as top executives of giant corporations, lie their way into big business conferences and pull off the world’s most outrageous pranks. It’s like Punked, but for adults.
Taqwacore – The word Taqwacore is a combination of hardcore, a genre of punk music, and taqwa, an Arabic word that translates as "piety" or "god-fearing." The first to use the term was writer, journalist, and Muslim convert Michael Muhammad Knight. His novel The Taqwacores, about a group of young Islamic punk rockers, received a storm of recognition among young American Muslims and prompted the formation of various Muslim punk bands.
I Killed My Mother – Canada’s official selection for best foreign film at the Oscars, I Killed My Mother has been getting some buzz and could actually take home the honours, which would be the 2nd Canadian film to do so, the other being the Barbarian Invasions. One of the most unique and interesting aspects of the film is that it was written, produced, directed and acted by first time filmmaker, Xavier Dolan who is just 19 years old. It chronicles the awkward, sometimes painful, love between a mother and her son.
Make sure to catch as many films as you can!
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