Category Archives: Film Festivals

The 12th edition of Kosovo’s Dokufest kicks off this Saturday, August 17, and continues through Sunday, August 25. Held in the historic city of Prizren, the event is well-regarded within the international documentary community, notable not only for its programming but also for its larger mission to foster film culture in the once war-torn region that for more than a decade counted no cinemas within the city. The festival’s lineup of more than 75 documentary features largely consists of selections of some of the best international nonfiction featured in other fests over the past year, included in multiple competitions, including human rights and environmental categories, as well as several out of competition thematic sections.

Because I’ve covered the majority of these films out of other festivals, my focus of interest here rests primarily on Dokufest’s Balkan Dox competition, showcasing more than a dozen films from the region. Among the intriguing, and less familiar, titles here are: Kaltrina Krasniqi’s SEX (pictured), an investigation into the religious controversy set off by a recent Kosovan magazine’s sex-focused edition; Jurij Meden’s KARL MARX AMONG US, described as “agitprop in eight chapters;” Petra Seliškar’s MAMA EUROPA, a personal look at life along various European borders; and Can Candan’s MY CHILD, which profiles the parents of LGBT people in conservative Turkey.

The Sarajevo Film Festival begins its nineteenth edition this Friday, August 16, and runs through Saturday, August 24. The festival is famed for launching in 1995, in the midst of the Bosnian War, while the city was under siege for what ended up being nearly four years. It has long since established itself as the largest film event in the Balkans, drawing notable international attention – and celebrity guests – each year, while also showcasing films from the region, especially shorts. Of its nearly 100 feature presentations this year, more than twenty are nonfiction, centered in its official documentary competition, but also sprinkled throughout other fest sections. The following offers a selection of newer notable titles that caught my eye.

The official doc competition includes eight features and several shorts. Among the former are Juri Rechinsky’s provocative SICKFUCKPEOPLE, following two Ukrainian streetkids facing the very worst of humanity; Diana Groó’s REGINA, the story of the world’s first female rabbi; Marta Popivoda’s YUGOSLAVIA, HOW IDEOLOGY MOVED OUR COLLECTIVE BODY (pictured), an exploration of state ideology through mass public spectacle; and Mladen Kovačević’s UNPLUGGED, a look at the unusual musical art of leaf-playing.

Nonfiction appearing in other sections includes: Bryan Little’s THE AFRICAN CYPHER (pictured), a survey of South African street dance culture; Hinde Boujemaa’s IT WAS BETTER TOMORROW, which follows a poor Tunisian woman in the aftermath of the revolution; Khaled Jarrar’s INFILTRATORS, an immersion into the experiences of Palestinians trying to make their way through the West Bank; and Kaveh Bakhtiari’s STOP-OVER, an insider’s look at migrants in Greece, in limbo as they try to secure passage to other countries.

Among the world’s oldest international film events, the Film Festival Locarno kicks off its 66th edition tonight, running through Saturday, August 17, with a lineup of over 100 features, of which more than forty are documentaries. The Swiss fest, situated just weeks before Venice, Telluride, and Toronto, often showcases an adventurous program, balancing the expected star-driven fare with more challenging discoveries that might normally be relegated to the sidelines at other festivals its size. Its non-fiction offerings appear in virtually every section, from the fest’s signature Piazza Grande massive open-air screenings to its own version of the independently curated Semaine de la critique. The following highlights docs, section-by-section, that have caught my eye: Continue reading →