After the celebrations on the Opening Night of Abu Dhabi Film Festival 2014, Friday will be the first full day of the festival with screenings of more than 20 films selected from around the world.
In the first ‘ADFF Talks Film’ session of ADFF 2014, career achievement award winner Rachid Bouchareb will answer queries about his life and career. He will also speak about his favourite theme of immigration, in which he explores various facets of Arab-Western interface. This offers a unique chance for the public to meet the iconic filmmaker (Emirates Palace, 14:30-16:00).
The other ‘ADFF Talks Film’ session scheduled for today will be a panel discussion with the crew of ADFF’s opening film, the Emirati production FROM A TO B, directed by Ali Mostafa. The panellists will discuss the different stages in the production of the film and share thoughts on their plans beyond the festival premiere. Upon popular demand, ADFF has scheduled a third screening of FROM A TO B on November 1 at VOX 5 at 21:15.
In the Narrative Features Competition, Iranian film TALES will be screened at VOX 5 at 18:30. Director Rakshan Bani Etemad and producer Jahangir Kosari will answer the audience’s queries after the film. TALES, which portrays Iranian working class society, won the Award for the Best Screenplay at Venice Film Festival earlier this year.
Premiering in the Middle East and entering ADFF 2014 Narrative Competition is US production 99 HOMES directed by acclaimed filmmaker Ramin Bahrani, which offers a critical view of the real estate business. Producers Mohammad Al Turki and Arcadiy Golubovich will be available at the film screening at Emirates Palace at 21:15.
The 66-minute South Korean feature titled HILL OF FREEDOM, again in the Narrative Competition, is a tale of defeated love by the Korean master Hong Sang-Soo (VOX 5, 16:30).
Three entries in the New Horizons Competition will be screened at VOX 6 today. First among these, the German-French production STATIONS OF THE CROSS, directed by Dietrich Brüggemann, won the Berlin Film Festival award for the best script. Director Alix Delaporte of the French film THE LAST HAMMER BLOW and director Carlos Vermut and producer Pedro Hernandez Santos of the Spanish film MAGICAL GIRL will present their films in person.
In the Documentary Section, director Amer Shomali and producers Ina Fichman and Saed Andoni will present their film THE WANTED 18 (VOX 4, 19:15) in person. The film depicts the bizarre case of how Israel orders the closure of a Palestinian farm during the first Palestinian intifada, declaring the cows a threat to national security.
Meanwhile the documentary titled NEXT GOAL WINS by co-directors Mike Brett and Steve Jamison, about putting together and coaching an American Samoa football team, will be presented at VOX 4 at 16:45.
Also featured in the Documentary Competition, VIRUNGA, directed by Orlando Von Einsiedel and shot in the Virunga National Park, eastern Congo, looks at the plight of the last of the Planet’s mountain gorillas as they exist precariously on the embattled territory.
Included in the ADFF 2014 Showcase section, the multi-awarded Cuban film BEHAVIOR, directed by Ernesto Daranas, will be screened at VOX 3, Marina Mall at 15:30. The film’s actress Alina Rodriguez will be present at the screening. BEHAVIOR narrates the story of the 11-year old unruly boy Chala, who lives with his drug-addict mother.
The World Premiere of French production YOUNG TIGER (ADFF Showcase) directed by Cyprien Vial is scheduled at VOX 2 at 18:30. It tells the story of a Punjabi teenager taken care of by the French government. Even as a bright future awaits him, he is torn by family ties as his parents back home pressurise him to send money.
The Canadian production MIDNIGHT SUN, directed by Roger Spottiswoode, is a family-friendly film about a young boy who braves nature’s fury to reunite an abandoned polar bear cub with its mother. Producer Rob Heydon will take questions after the film (VOX 2, 15:45).
Starting today, in ADFF’s special programme ‘The Arab Diaspora’, famed Mauritanian director Aberrahmane Sissako will present his 2002 film HEREMAKONO (WAITING FOR HAPPINESS). Meanwhile, Sissako’s latest film TIMBUKTU, entering the Narrative Features Competition at ADFF 2014, is slotted for screening on Sunday, October 26, at VOX 5 at 20:45.
The Restored Classics component of ADFF 2014 Special Programmes will include the brand new restoration of the Armenian film THE COLORS OF POMEGRANATES by legendary director Sergei Parajanov. ADFF teamed up with Martin Scorsese’s The World Cinema Project to present the film. Another restored classic on the list for today is Nicholas Ray’s REBEL WITHOUT A CAUSE, starring American actor James Dean in his most celebrated role.
Entries into the Emirates Short Narrative Competitions 1 and 2 will be screened at Marina Mall VOX 3 at 18:00 and 20:45. The crew will be available to take queries from the audience.
ADFF TALKS FILM sessions are open to the public and are free to attend.
Abu Dhabi Film Festival runs from October 23 until November 1. The ceremony for the awarding winners of the Black Pearl Awards will take place on October 31 at Emirates Palace.
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