Editor

The festival program of the 15th Stockholm International Film Festival offers 170 films from more than 40 nations, divided into fourteen sections. The party begins on the 18th of November. We are proud to present this year¹s program!

Stockholm XV Competition
The competition for directors making either their debut, second or third film offers innovative, thought-provoking productions by new sharp talents from all over the world. Half of the films entered in this year¹s competition are directed by women, and two thirds are the work of debutants. Maria Blom incarnates this statistic with her debut Masjävlar, the first Swedish film in the history of this section! Other films being screened include the Norwegian gangster movie Uno by Aksel Hennie, and Garden State, by Zach Braff. Both are directors and writers as well as actors playing the leading role in their films.

Short Film Competition
In this section the festival offers short films such as The M Word by Rocky Morton, screenplay by Alan Ball, the creator of the TV series Six Feet Under, and Mercy by Candida Scott-Knight, featuring the actress Natalie Press from last year¹s short film winner Wasp. Swedish commercial director Fredrik Bond makes his short film debut with The Mood.

Open Zone
This section features films by established directors from all over the world. We will screen films such as Ken Loach¹s Ae Fond Kiss, and the German The Ninth Day by Volker Schlöndorff. The Festival¹s closing film is A Very Long Engagement, in which the director Jean-Pierre Jeunet and Audrey Tatou from the critically acclaimed Amelie from Montmartre team up again. This time to tell a story of love, but also of war and its absurdities.

American Independents
The section for new American films produced outside the mainstream. The Festival¹s opening film is Melinda & Melinda by Woody Allen. Other films featured include The Machinist by Brad Anderson ­ a dense thriller in the spirit of Memento and Fight Club starring the brilliant Christian Bale, and The Heart is Deceitful Above All Things ­ Asia Argento¹s stark interpretation of JT LeRoy¹s book.

Asian Images
A wide selection of films from one of the world¹s most creative areas; spanning from Iran in the West to Japan in the East. Three of the entries in this exciting section are the Taiwanese Formula 17, by young DJ Chen, the Cannes-awarded Old Boy by Park Chan-wook (the mid-festival film this year) and Puteri Gunung Ledang by Saw Teong Hin ­ Malaysia¹s most recognized film to date.

Northern Lights
A section focusing on films from the Nordic and Baltic countries. A jury representing the international film critics association FIPRESCI will choose the winning entry. This section includes films such as this year¹s Finnish entry to the Oscars, Producing Adults, an astute, skilful debut by Aleksi Salmenperä, and the Danish drama Aftermath, Paprika Steen¹s directorial debut.

Spotlight: Japanese Anime
This year, the Festival has decided to put a focus on Japanese Anime, an up-and-coming and exciting genre. The section features Satoshi Kon¹s Tokyo Godfathers, a humorous and heart-rendering tale about people at the bottom of society¹s ladder, and Ghost in the Shell 2: Innocence by Mamoru Oshii. The film was in competition at Cannes this year, and could be defined as an animated film noir. Appleseed, a science-fiction tale by Shinji Aramaki will also be screened.

Stone by Stone
Oliver Stone is the recipient of this year¹s Stockholm Lifetime Achievement Award. The award is given to a person active within the film community whose body of work Stockholm International Film Festival wants to honour and shed light on. Stone himself chose the following films featured in this section: Heaven and Earth, Natural Born Killers, Born on the Fourth of July, JFK and Nixon. Oliver Stone¹s latest film, Alexander, which has its European premiere at the Festival, will also be screened.

Stockholm Visionary Award
Stockholm International Film Festival celebrates its 15th edition by establishing a new prestigious award ­ The Stockholm Visionary Award. The award is established in order to encourage the work, visions and achievements of contemporary filmmakers. The section will feature this year¹s winner Todd Solondz¹s latest film Palindromes, which has its Nordic premiere during the Festival.

Twilight Zone
The section offering both cult and horror from the future of cinematic subculture. Featuring films such as The Raspberry Reich by Bruce LaBruce, starring a group of weapon-obsessed, homosexual leftist in Berlin engaged in revolutionary activities, as well as Three Extremes, the result of the three leading directors from the Asian horror-film culture (Takashi Miike, Park Chan-wook and Fruit Chan) pooling their creative talent.

ifestival
Celebrating its fifth anniversary, the section consists of films shown on the Internet with the entire world as its audience. Visitors can watch the films and vote for their favourites 24 hours a day for the duration of the Festival. Last year, the ifestival had 500.000 visitors. Featured this year are, amongst others, Magda by Chel White, the last part of a trilogy. The first instalment, Dirt, won the award for best short film at Stockholm International Film Festival 1998. The acclaimed Chestnut Icelolly by JJ Villard is among the other Internet films shown.

Collage
This section features films that reflect current trends in innovative and experimental documentaries and television productions. This year, we offer several sharp-edged political documentaries, a genre that has enjoyed a significant boost recently. Samples from this category include Uncovered: The War on Iraq, by Robert Greenwald, which investigates the US administration¹s case for war through interviews with US intelligence and defence officials, foreign service experts, and U.N. weapons inspectors ­ including a former CIA director, a former ambassador to Saudi Arabia and even President¹s Bush¹s Secretary of the Army. We also show The Corporation by Mark Achbar and Jennifer Abbott as well as Oliver Stone¹s documentary films Looking for Fidel and Persona Non Grata.

15 ­ The Festival
In celebration of the 15th anniversary of Stockholm International Film Festival, we showcase one film from every previous year in this special section. The films have all been favourites among the audience and some have later gone on to become modern classics. We will show the opening film of 1990, Wild at Heart, directed by the winner of last year¹s Stockholm Lifetime Achievement Award ­ David Lynch. We are proud to once again screen Reservoir Dogs from 1992 by Quentin Tarantino ­ at the time an unknown director who received his very first award in Stockholm. The section also features the opening film of 1998 Happiness, by the recipient of this year¹s Stockholm Visionary Award ­ Todd Solondz. Another film being highlighted is Donnie Darko by Richard Kelly, shown in the recent Director¹s Cut version, which contains an additional 20 minutes.

Dedication
This year¹s festival is dedicated to Marlon Brando. In honour of his memory, we screen A Streetcar Named Desire directed by Elia Kazan.

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The Complete Program
STOCKHOLM XV COMPETITION


BUTTERFLY by Yan Yan Mak (Hong Kong)
CHRYSTAL by Ray McKinnon (USA)
CQ2 (SEEK YOU TOO) by Carole Laure (Canada/France)
DON¹T MOVE by Sergio Castellitto (Italy)
GARDEN STATE by Zach Braff (USA)
HOTEL by Jessica Hausner (Austria/Gemany)
INNOCENCE by Lucile Hadzihalilovic (France)
L¹ESQUIVE by Abdel Kechiche (France)
LOOK AT ME by Agnès Jaoui (France)
LOVE IN THOUGHTS by Achim von Borries (Germany)
MASJÄVLAR by Maria Blom (Sweden)
MEAN CREEK by Jacob Aaron Estes (USA)
OMAGH by Pete Travis (Ireland)
PRIMER by Shane Carruth (USA)
SOMERSAULT by Cate Shortland (Australia)
STEVE + SKY by Felix van Groeningen (Belgium)
THE WOODSMAN by Nicole Kassell (USA)
UNO by Aksel Hennie (Norway)


SHORT FILM COMPETITION


ALIGATO by Maka Sidibé (France)
BETWEEN CURL & SNOUT by Johan Jonason (Sweden)
BIRTHDAY by Bertrand Lee (Singapore)
CINEMARE by Chrzu (Finland)
FREDERIQUE IN LOVE by Pierre Lacan (France)
GET THE PICTURE by Rupert Wyatt (UK)
HEART IS A PIECE OF MEAT by Jan Cviktovic (Slovenia)
MERCY by Candida Scott-Knight (UK)
MONSTERS by Robert Morgan (UK)
STRANGE LITTLE GIRLS by Savina Dellicour (UK)
TALKING WITH ANGELS by Yousaf Ali Khan (UK)
THE GOSPEL OF THE CREOLE PIG by Michelange Quay (Haiti)
THE KINCH by Måns Månsson (Sweden)
THE M WORD by Rocky Morton (USA)
THE MOOD by Fredrik Bond (USA)
THE SWIMMER by Klaus Hüttmann (Germany)
THINNING THE HERD by Rie Rasmussen (France)
TWO CARS, ONE NIGHT by Taika Waititi (New Zealand)


OPEN ZONE


A LESS BAD WORLD by Alejandro Agresti (Argentina)
A VERY LONG ENGAGEMENT by Jean-Pierre Jeunet (France)
AE FOND KISS by Ken Loach (UK/Italy/Germany/Spain)
A TOUCH OF SPICE by Tassos Boumeltis (Greece)
ANATOMY OF HELL by Catherine Breillat (France)
CONTRA TODOS by Roberto Moreiro (Brazil)
DAYS OF SANTIAGO by Josue Mendez (Peru)
DEAD MAN¹S SHOES by Shane Meadows (UK)
KONTROLL by Nimròd Antal (Hungary)
LEON AND OLVIDO by Xavier Bermudez (Spain)
MAN ABOUT DOG by Paddy Breathnach (Ireland)
THE ALZHEIMER CASE by Erik van Looy (Belgium)
THE BEAUTIFUL COUNTRY by Hans Petter Moland (Norway/USA)
THE NINTH DAY by Volker Schlöndorff (Germany/Luxembourg)
THE SPECTATOR by Paolo Franchi (Italy)


AMERICAN INDEPENDENTS


50 WAYS TO LEAVE YOUR LOVER by Jordan Hawley (USA)
BAADASSSSS by Mario van Peebles (USA)
CSA: THE CONFEDERATE STATES OF AMERICA by Kevin Willmott (USA)
DOWN TO THE BONE by Debra Granik (USA)
EVERGREEN by Enid Zentelis (USA)
HAIR HIGH by Bill Plympton (USA)
MELINDA & MELINDA by Woody Allen (USA)
NEVER DIE ALONE by Ernest Dickerson (USA)
QUALITY OF LIFE by Benjamin Morgan (USA)
TARNATION by Jonathan Caouette (USA)
THE HEART IS DECEITFUL ABOVE ALL THINGS by Asia Argento (USA)
THE MACHINIST by Brad Anderson (USA)
UNDERTOW by David Gordon Green (USA)
WAR by Jake Mahaffy (USA)


ASIAN IMAGES


20 FINGERS by Mania Akbari (Iran)
A DAY ON THE PLANET by Isao Yukisada (Japan)
BAYTONG by Nonzee Nimibutr (Thailand)
BEAUTIFUL BOXER by Ekachai Uekrongtham (Thailand)
BREAKING NEWS by Johnnie To (Hong Kong)
FORMULA 17 by DJ Chen (Taiwan)
HARD LUCK HERO by Sabu (Japan)
INFERNAL AFFAIRS 3 by Alan Mak Siu-Fai, Andrew Lau Wai-Keung (Hong Kong)
IZO by Takashi Miike (Japan)
OLD BOY by Park Chan-wook (South Korea)
PUTERI GUNUNG LEDANG by Saw Teong Hin (Malaysia)
SAMARITAN GIRL by Kim Ki-duk (South Korea)
SILMIDO by Woo-Suk Kang (South Korea)


NORTHERN LIGHTS


AFTERMATH by Paprika Steen (Denmark)
PRODUCING ADULTS by Aleksi Salmenperä (Finland)
RANCID by Joakim Ersgård (Sweden)
REVELATION FOR HANNES by Hrafn Gunnlaugsson (Iceland)
REVOLUTION OF PIGS by Rene Reinumägi, Jaak Kilmi (Estonia)
SET POINT by Ilmar Taska (Estonia)
TERKEL IN TROUBLE by Stefan Fjeldmark, Kresten Vestbjerg Andersen, Thorbjørn Christoffersen (Denmark)
THE WOMAN OF MY LIFE by Alexander Eik (Norway)


SPOTLIGHT: JAPANESE ANIME


APPLESEED by Shinji Aramaki (Japan)
GHOST IN THE SHELL 2: INNOCENCE by Mamoru Oshii (Japan)
TOKYO GODFATHERS by Satoshi Kon (Japan)


STONE BY STONE


ALEXANDER (USA)
BORN ON THE FOURTH OF JULY (USA)
JFK (USA)
HEAVEN AND EARTH (USA)
NATURAL BORN KILLERS (USA)
NIXON (USA)


STOCKHOLM VISIONARY AWARD


PALINDROMES by Todd Solondz (USA)


TWILIGHT ZONE


ACACIA by Park-ki Hyung (South Korea)
DOLL MASTER by Jeong Yong-Gi (South Korea)
THE ADVENTURE OF IRON PUSSY by Apitchatpong Weerasethakul and Michael Shaowanasai (Thailand)
THE EYE 2 by Danny and Oxide Pang (Hong Kong)
THE RASPBERRY REICH by Bruce LaBruce (Germany)
THE TUNNEL by Manda Kunitoshi (Japan)
THREE EXTREMES by Takashi Miike, Park Chan-wook and Fruit Chan (Japan/South Korea/Hong Kong)
TOOLBOX MURDERS by Tobe Hooper (USA)


IFESTIVAL


CHESTNUTS ICELOLLY by JJ Villard (USA)
GRASS by Simon Otto (New Zealand)
HI by Choi Won Jae (South Korea)
MAGDA by Chel White (USA)
PICO TAKES OFF by Rico Grünenfelder (Switzerland)
SORROW OF SUPERMAN by In-ok Jeong (South Korea)
STRICTETERNUM by Didier Fontan (France)
THE TREE OFFICER by Neil Jack (Scotland)
UNDRESSING MY MOTHER by Ken Wardrop (Ireland)
WHAT WAVES TOOK AWAY by Ishida Kaouro (Czech Republic)



COLLAGE


AWFUL NORMAL by Celesta Davies (USA)
DEADLINE by Katy Chevigny och Kirsten Johnson (USA)
DOGORA by Patrice Leconte (France)
END OF THE CENTURY: THE STORY OF THE RAMONES by Michael Gramaglia, Jim Fields (USA)
FALLEN ANGEL: GRAM PARSONS by Gandulf Hennig (Germany/UK)
HEIMAT 3 ­ CHRONIK EINER ZEITENWENDE by Edgar Reitz (Germany)
HENRI LANGLOIS THE PHANTOM OF THE CINEMATHEQUE by Jacques Richard (France)
IN THE COMPANY OF WOMEN by Lesli Kleinberg and Gini Reticker (USA)
LOOKING FOR FIDEL by Oliver Stone (USA)
MUSICA CUBANA ­ THE SONS OF HAVANA by German Kral (Cuba)
OTHER WORLDS by Jan Kounen (France)
OVERNIGHT by Mark Brian Smith (USA)
PERSONA NON GRATA by Oliver Stone (USA)
THE CORPORATION by Mark Achbar, Jennifer Abbott (Canada)
UNCOVERED: THE WAR ON IRAQ by Robert Greenwald (USA)


15 ­ THE FESTIVAL


1990 ­ WILD AT HEART by David Lynch (USA)
1991 ­ DELICATESSEN by Jean-Pierre Jeunet and Marc Caro (France)
1992 ­ RESERVOIR DOGS by Quentin Tarantino (USA)
1993 ­ SONATINE by Takeshi Kitano (Japan)
1994 ­ BEFORE THE RAIN by Milcho Manchevski (UK)
1995 ­ KIKA by Pedro Almodóvar (Spain/France)
1996 ­ BREAKING THE WAVES by Lars von Trier (Denmark/Sweden/France/Norway/Netherlands)
1997 ­ THE ICE STORM by Ang Lee (USA)
1998 ­ HAPPINESS by Todd Solondz (USA)
1999 ­ BOYS DON¹T CRY by Kimberly Peirce (USA)
2000 ­ CROUCHING TIGER, HIDDEN DRAGON by Ang Lee (Taiwan/Hong Kong/USA/China)
2001 ­ DONNIE DARKO ­ DIRECTOR¹S CUT by Richard Kelly (USA)
2002 ­ IRREVERSIBLE by Gaspar Noé (France)
2003 ­ ELEPHANT by Gus van Sant (USA)


DEDICATION

A STREETCAR NAMED DESIRE by Elia Kazan (USA)


VISITORS AT STOCKHOLM INTERNATIONAL FILM FESTIVAL
You will receive information about more visitors to come further on. Last year, 80 international directors, producers and actors were present at the Festival.

Shinji Aramaki (Japan), director Appleseed
Brad Anderson (USA), director The Machinist
Delfine Bafort (Belgium), actress Steve + Sky
Maria Blom (Sweden), director Masjävlar
Fredrik Bond (Sweden), director The Mood
Paddy Breathnach (Ireland), director Man About Dog
Brian Burnam (USA), writer/actor Quality of Life
DJ Chen (Taiwan), director Formula 17
August Diehl (Germany), actor Love in Thoughts and The Ninth Day
Joakim Ersgård (Sweden), director/writer Rancid
Lucile Hadzihalilovic (France), director /writer Innocence
Gandulf Hennig (Germany), director Fallen Angel: Gram Parsons
Bruce LaBruce (Germany), director/writer The Raspberry Reich
Ray McKinnon (USA), director/producer/actor Chrystal
Frank Mannion (USA), producer Down to the Bone
Robert Morgan (UK), director Monsters
Beatriz Navarrete (Spain), producer Leon and Olvido
Edgar Reitz (Germany), director/writer Heimat 3 ­ Chronik einer Zeitenwende
Aleksi Salmenperä (Finland), director Producing Adults
Todd Solondz (USA), Stockholm Visionary Award, director/writer Palindromes
Bart Simpson (Canada), producer The Corporation
Oliver Stone (USA), Stockholm Lifetime Achievement Award, director/producer Alexander
Ilmar Taska (Estonia), director Set Point
Felix van Groeningen (Belgium), director Steve + Sky

For further information and interview requests, please contact
Helena Stenberg, Head of Press Department
Phone: +46 8677 50 54, Cell: +46 70512 24 30, e-mail: presschef@filmfestivalen.se

www.filmfestivalen.se press, Login: filmfest Password: 2004

Stockholm International Film Festival started in 1990, and is today one of the leading film festivals in Europe. It celebrates its 15th edition November 18th-28th, by screening 170 films from more than 40 nations 24 hours a day! The Festival operates all year around with monthly screenings of selected films. It is also in charge of Film Stockholm, a regional resource centre for film production. In April of this year, the Festival arranged the 5th Junior Film Festival for children and youth between the ages of 6 and 16.