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FESTIVAL DO RIO
Rio de Janeiro Film Festival
September 25 to October 9, 2008

Commencing this Thursday, September 25, the city of Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, embarks on a 15 day celebration of cinema with the start of Festival do Rio, the Rio de Janeiro International Film Festival.

In presenting over 350 films selected from 60 countries at over 30 different venues across Rio, Festival do Rio digs deep into a rich catalogue of world premieres, Brazil and Latin premieres and tributes and retrospectives – aiming to round up the best of cinema of today, yesterday and the future.

Likely to repeat the international excitement of last year’s opening film, Tropa de Elite – which went on to take the Golden Bear the Berlin Film Festival, this year’s festival opens with Bruno Barreto’s Last Stop 174, a screen dramatization of a real-life bus hijacking in Rio de Janeiro that previously came to the screen in the form of the highly awarded 2002 documentary Onibus 174. Coincidentally, that documentary marked Tropa de Elite director Jose Padilha’s
entry in filmmaking. Barreto’s festival opening film was this week announced as Brazil’s foreign language Oscar entry.

Central to Festival do Rio’s programming will as usual be the casting of the spotlight on new Brazilian and Latin features which will screen in main sections Première Latina and Première Brasil, the festival’s only competitive section. The latter will feature at least three world premieres: first time director Matheus Souza’s Apenas O Fim, Mauricio Farias’ Veronica, and José Eduardo Belmonte’s Se Nada Mais de Certo.

Diversity is high on the agenda for this tenth edition of Festival do Rio: the 350 movies spread over 20 sections will see such top-name Latin premieres as Woody Allen’s Vicky Cristina Barcelona, Francis Ford Coppolla’s Youth without Youth, Joel and Ethan Coen’s Burn After Reading; Lucrecia Martel’s La mujer sin Cabeza, Pablo Trapero’s, La Leonera, Mike Leigh’s Happy Go Luck, and Korean director Kim Jee-woon’s Cannes crowd pleaser The Good, The Bad, The Weird. Elsewhere, less celebrated but likely to create audience anticipation are films such as Madonna’s Filth and Wisdom, and veteran director Nic Roeg’s latest work, Puffball.

Continuing its mix of classic and brave-new-world, Festival do Rio dedicates one special section to the revered director Derek Jarman and another to the brothers Taviani; puts the United Kingdom centre screen in the section Focus UK screening around 20 recent examples of UK filmmaking, and promotes Live Cinema, a section with films projected on screen accompanied by live DJ’s. For the third year the festival opens space to cell phone films in Pocket Films; it hosts a tribute to the Centenary of the Japanese Immigration to Brazil with films from the mainly Nipponese producers, Masahiro Kobayashi and Yoji Yamada, and brings music icons to the screen with a series of documentaries on music and rock icons such as Patti Smith, Célia Cruz, Philip Glass, Bob Marley and others.

While the Festival once again shows its dependable flair for imaginative programming, it takes a major break from tradition this year: for the first time Festival do Rio headquarters will move from its usual Copacabana Beach setting to Rio’s historic city centre with its Pavilhao do Festival (Festival Pavilion) situated at the Galpao de Cultura e Cidadania. The move is intended to show the festival’s endorsement of Rio’s inner-city regeneration programme which has been put in place to revitalize areas of the city greatly in need of re-urbanisation.
The Festival Pavilion will be the central point of Cine Encontro, where public meet filmmakers in debate and open session, and also home to RioMarket, the business heart of the festival aimed at the business participants attending the festival.

RioMarket introduces this year the first annual Latin American Feature-length Competition,
The result of a partnership between Rio Festival and the Latina America Training Centre (LATC) aimed at discovering new talent and creating international growth opportunities for the Latin film industry.

Venues for the Brazil and Latin premiere screenings remain down-town Cinelandia screens Odeon BR and Palácio.


Festival do Rio 2008
Sponsored by Petrobras and Oi

PREMIÈRE BRASIL
The most awaited and prestigious section of the festival and the only competitive one.

Fiction Features:

- Matheus Souza’s Apenas O Fim
- Julio Bressane’s A Erva do Rato (Out of Competition)
- Selton Mello’s Feliz Natal
- Matheus Nachtergaele’s A Festa da Menina Morta
- Jorge Fernando’s A Guerra dos Rochas (Out of Competition)
- Domingos Oliveira’s Juventude
- Marcelo Galvão’s Rhina
- Guel Arraes’ Romance (Out of Competition)
- David França Mendes’ Um Romance de Generação (Out of Competition)
- José Eduardo Belmonte’s Se Nada Mais der Certo
- Domingos Oliviera’s Tudo Mundo tem Problemas Sexuais (Out of Competition)
- Maurício Farias’ Verônica
- Paolo Pons’ Vinganca

Documentary Features:

- Gil Baroni and Marcos Avellar’s Cantoras do Rádio
- Joel Zito Araújo’s Cinderelas, Lobos e um Príncipe Encantado
- Malu Mader and Mini Kerti’s Contratempo
- Pedro Urano’s Estrada Real da Cachaça
- Lírio Ferreira’s O Homen Que Engarrafava Nuvens (Out of Competition)
- Marco Abujamra and João Pimentel’s Jards Macalé – Um Morcego na Porta Principal
- Paulo Henrique Fontenelle’s Loki – Arnaldo Baptista
- Fábio Gavião and Markão Oliveira’s Morrinho – Deus Sabe Tudo Mas Não é X9
- Eryk Rocha’s Pachamama (Out of Competition)
- Helen Solberg’s Palavra Encantada
- Carlos Nader’s Pan-Cinema Permanente (Out of Competition)
- Evaldo Mocarzel’s Sentidos à Flor da Pele
- Claudio Manoel, Micael Langer and Calvito Leal’s Simonal – Ninguém Sabe O Duro Que
Dei (Out of Competition)
- Branco Mello and Oscar Rodrigues Alves’ Titãs – A Vida Até Parece uma Festa

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PREMIÈRE LATINA
This section will show Latin America’s most important and recent productions:

- Federico Veiroj’s Acné – (Uruguay/Argentina/Mexico/Spain)
- Martin Carranza’s Amorosa Soledad – (Argentina)
- Jonás Cuarón’s Año uña – (Mexico/USA)
- Lucía Cedrón’s Cordero de Dios – (Argentina/France/Chile)
- Rodrigo Plá’s Desierto Adentro – (Mexico)
- José Luis Torres Leiva’s El Cielo, La Tierra y La Illuvia – (Chile/France/Germany)
- Daniel Burman’s El Nido Vacio – (Argentina/France)
- Anahí Berneri’s Encarnación – (Argentina)
- Roberto Flores Pietro’s Heridas – (Colombia)
- Andrés Wood’s La Buena Vida – (Chile/Argentina/Spain)
- Pablo Trapero’s La Leonera – (Argentina/South Korea)
- Patricia Riggen’s La Misa Luna – (Mexico/US)
- Lucrecia Martel’s La Mujer sin Cabeza – (Argentina/Spain)
- Albertina Carri’s La Rabia – (Argentina)
- Pablo Fendrik’s La Sangre Brota – (Argentina/France)
- Lisandro Alonso’s Liverpool – (Argentina/Holland/France)
- Amat Escalante’s Los Bastardos – (Mexico/France/US)
- Esteban Schroeder’s Matar a Todos - (Uruguay/Chile/Argentina)
- Ana Díez’s Paisito – Spain/Argentina/Uruguay)
- Alex Rivera’s Sleep Dealer – (Mexico/USA)

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Panorama (World Cinema)
Award-winning films that have had a place at the principal film festivals around the globe.

- Hang Sang-soo’s Bam gua nat (Night and Day) - (South Korea)
- Antonio Luigi Grimaldi’s Caos Calmo - (Italy)
- Youssef Chahine and Khaled Youssef’s Heya fawda (Chaos) - (France)
- Matteo Garrone’s Gomorrah- (Italy)
- Paolo Sorrentino’s Il Divo – (Italy/France)
- Andrzej Wajda’s Katyn - (Poland)
- Philippe Garrel’s La Frontière de L'Aube – (France)
- Cédric Klapisch’s Paris - (France)
- Jonathan Demme’s Rachel Getting Married – (USA)
- Errol Morris’s Standard Operating Procedure- (USA)
- Charlie Kaufman’s Synecdoche, New York – (USA)
- Jerzy Skolimowski’s Four Nights with Anna – (USA)
- Claude Miller’s Un Secret (A Secret) - (France)
- Alexander Sokurov’s Alexandra (Alexandra) - (Russia)
- Eric Rohmer’s Les Amours d'Astrée et de Céladon (The Romance of Astrea and Celadon)
- (France)
- Amos Gitaï’s Plus tard, tu comprendras...(One Day, You Will Understand) - (France)
- Erick Zonca’s Julia (Julia) - (France)
- Farah Khan’s Om Shanti Om (Om Shanti Om) - (India)
- Brad Anderson’s Transsiberian (Transsiberian) – (Spain)
- Jan Schütte’s Love Comes Lately (Love Comes Lately) - (Germany)
- Jia Zhang-Ke’s Wu Yong (Useless) - (China)
- Lee Chang-Dong’s Miryang (Secret Sunshine) - (South Korea)
- Kornél Mundruczó’s Delta (Delta) - (Hungry)
- Andreas Dresen’s Wolke 9 (Cloud 9) - (Germany)
- Marco Tullio Giordana’s Sanguepazzo (Wild Blood) - (Italy)
- Bent Hamer’s O'Horten (O'Horten) - (Norway)
- Patrick Creadon’s I.O.U.S.A. (I.O.U.S.A.) - (USA)
- Guy Ritchie’s RocknRolla (RocknRolla) - (UK)
- George C. Wolfe’s Nights in Rodanthe - (USA)
- Clark Gregg’s Choke (Choke) - (USA)
- Leonel Vieira’s Julgamento (The Trial) - (Portugal)
- Ferzan Ozpetek’s Un Giorno Perfetto (A Perfect Day) - (Italy)
- Steve Jacobs’s Disgrace - (Australia)
- Tom McCarthy’s The Visitor - (USA)
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Expectation 2008
Films that excite great expectations in contemporary cinema and directors who have been surprising the international audience.

- Miguel Gomes’s Aquele Querido mês de Agosto – (Portugal/France)
- Lance Hammer’s Ballast – (USA)
- Radu Muntean’s Boogie – (Romania)
- Hana Makhmalbaf’s Buddha Collapsed Out of Shame – (Iran/France)
- José Luis Guerin’s En La Ciudad de Sylvia – (Spain)
- Courtney Hunt’s Frozen River – (USA)
- Itshak 'Tzahi' Grad’s Foul Gesture – (Israel)
- Nathan Rissman’s I am Because We Are – (USA)
- Ruben Ostlund’s Involuntary – (Switzerland)
- Anna Melikyan’s Mermaid – (Russia)
- Jonathan Levine’s The Wackness – (USA)
- Marion Laine’s A Simple Heart – (France)
- Thomas Clay’s Soi Cowboy – (UK)
- Benjamin Gilmour’s Son of a Lion - (Australia/Pakistan)
- Pierre Morel’s Taken – (France)
- Richard Ledes’s The Caller – (USA)
- Amy Redford’s The Guitar – (USA)
- TheodoreThomas’s Walt & El Grupo – (USA)
- Aditya Assarat’s Wonderful Town – (Thailand)

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FOCUS UK

- Anand Tucker’s And When Did You Last See Your Father?
- Julian Cole’s With Gilbert & George
- Isaac Julien’s Derek
- Martin McDonagh’s In Bruges
- James Marsh’s Man on Wire
- Steve McQueen’s Hunger
- Donal MacIntyre’s A Very British Gangster
- Vicente Amorim’s Good
- Nick Broomfield’s Battle for Haditha
- Terence Davies’s Of Time and the City
- Saul Dibb’s The Duchess
- Sarah Gavron’s Brick Lane
- Mark Herman’s The Boy in the Striped Pyjamas
- Anthony Fabian’s Skin


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MIDNIGHT MOVIES
The cult section of the festival, the best place for the bizarre and transgressive, experimental, and downright wacky.

- Shin Terra’s Black House (Geomeun jib)- (South Korea).
Based on Kishi Yusuke’s romance.
- Madonna’s Filth and Wisdom - (UK)
- Chris Waitt’s A Complete History of My Sexual Failures - (UK)
- Jennifer Lynch’s Surveillance - (USA / Germany). Cannes Festival 2008
- Kim Jee-Woon’s The Good, The Bad, The Weird - (South Korea) Cannes Film Festival
2008
- Christopher Bell’s Bigger, Stronger, Faster* - (USA)
- David Gordon Green’s Pineapple Express - (USA)
- Jens Hoffmann’s 9to5 - Days in Porn (9to5 - Days in Porn) – (Germany)
-Helena Ignez’s Canção de Baal - (Brazil)

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GAY WORLD
A selection of the most recently produced GLT movies from around the globe and screened in the main film festivals.

- James Bolton’s Dream Boy – (USA)
- Francisco Franco-Alba’s Quemar las Naves – (Mexico)
- Olaf de Fleur Johannesson’s The Amazing Truth About Queen Raquela - (Iceland).
Winner Teddy award 2008 Berlim Festival.
- Gregg Araki’s The Living End: Remixed and Remastered (The Living End: Remixed and
Remastered) - (USA)
- Tanaz Eshaghian’s Tanaz Eshaghian (Be Like Others) - (Canada)
- Francisco Franco-Alba’s Quemar las naves (Burn the Bridges) - (Mexico)
- James Bolton’s Dream Boy (Dream Boy) - (USA)
- Kiff Kosoof’s Woman's Heart - (Italy)
- Gustav Hofer and Luca Ragazzi’s Improvvisamente, l'inverno scorso (Suddenly, Last
Winter) - (Italy)
- Antonio Hens’s Clandestinos (Clandestinos) - (Spain)
- Daniel Karslake’s For The Bible Tells Me So (For the Bible Tells me So) - (USA)
- Josephine Decker and Brittany Blockman’s Bi the Way (Bi the Way) - (USA)
- Fernanda Tornaghi, Ricardo Bruno’s Rainhas (Queen of Brazil) - (Brazil)
- Etienne Dhaene’s Le Nouveau Monde (The New World) - (France)
- Tina Mascara and Guido Santi’s Chris & Don. A Love Story (Chris & Don. A Love Story) –
(USA)

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GENERATION
A selection specifically put together to reach children, adolescents and teachers. The section offers workshops; promotes the Vídeo Fórum, a programme that presents audiovisual works entirely made by kids and teenagers; and, of course, spool films from all over the world.
Some titles:

- José Corbacho e Juan Cruz’s Covardes (Cobardes) – (Spain)
- Aamir Khan’s Somos Todos Diferentes (Taare Zameen Par) – (India)
- Kjell-Ake Andersson’s Borboletas (Pirret, Butterflies) – (Sweden)
- Ole Bornedal’s A Substituta (Vikaren) – (Denmark)
- Lynn Roth’s O Pequeno Traidor (Haboged Hakatan, The Little Traitor) – (Israel)
- Gholam-Reza Ramezani’s O Prêmio (Sabz-e-Koochak, Standing Alone) – (Iran)
- Makoto Shinkai’s 5 centímetros por segundo (5 centimeters per second) – (Japan)


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DOX e FRONTIERS –
Internationals documentaries, a genre that has established itself as one of the strongest aspects of the new millennium.

Frontiers:?
- Pietra Brettkelly’s The Art Star and The Sudanese Twins - (New Zealand)
- Hady Zaccak’s Laji'oun Mada el Hayat (Refugees for Life) - (United Arabs Emirates)
- Nicky Gogan and Paul Rowley’s Seaview - (Ireland)
- Kasim Abid’s Life After The Fall - (UK)
- Buthina Canaan Khoury’s Mazare Mariya (Maria's Grotto) - (Palestine)
- Annegriet Wietsma’s Sozdar, zij die haar belofte nakomt (Sozdar, She Who Lives her
Promise) - (Holland)
- Ruanne Abou-Rahme’s Double Exposure - (UK/ Palestine)
- Joshua Z. Weinstein’s Flying on One Engine - (USA)
- Jonas Ginter, Levin Peter and Ira Wilke’s Prestes Maia - Freiheit in Beton (Prestes Maia –
Freedom in Concrete) - (Germany)
- François Bergeron’s Ishumars, les Rockers Oubliés du Désert (Ishumars: The Forgotten
Rockers of the Desert) - (France)
- Samir Abdallah’s Après la Guerre, c'est toujours la guerre… (After the War) – (Lebanon)
- Emad Ali’s A Candle for the Shabandar Cafe - (Iraq)
- Hassanain al Hani’s A Stranger in his own Country - (Iraq)
- Bahram Al Zuhairi’s Leaving - (Iraq)
- Ahmed Jabbar’s Dr Nabil - (Iraq)
- Ahmed Kamal’s Documentary Film Course March 2006 - (Iraq)
- Emilio Gallo’s Esse Homem vai Morrer - um Faroeste Caboclo (This Man will Die)-
(Brazil)

Dox:
- Renaud Barret and Florent de la Tullaye’s Victoire Terminus (Victoire Terminus) - (France)
- Julian Shaw’s Darling! The Pieter-Dirk Uys Story - (Australia)
- Tia Lessin and Carl Deal’s Trouble The Water - (USA)

- Nino Kirtadze’s Durakovo: Village des fous (Durakovo: Village of Fools) - (France)
- Peter Galison and Robb Moss’s Secrecy - (USA)
- Daniel Leconte’s C'est dur d'être aimé par des Cons (It's Hard Being Loved By Jerks) -
(France)
- Daniel Junge’s They Killed Sister Dorothy - (USA)
- Debra Pascali-Bonaro’s Orgasmic Birth - (USA)
- Alex Gibney’s Gonzo: The Life and Work of Dr. Hunter S. Thompson - (USA)
- Antoine Cattin, Pavel Kostomarov’s La Mère (The Mother) – (Switzerland)
- Dawn Logsdon and Lolis Eric Elie’s (Faubourg Tremé: The Untold Story of Black New
Orleans – (USA)
- Osvalde Lewat-Hallade’s Une Affaire de Negres (Black Business) - (France)
- Aitor Arregi and Jose Mari Goenaga’s Lucio - (Spain)


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TRIBUTE TO THE CENTENARY OF JAPANESE IMIGRATION TO BRAZIL
some titles:?

- Takashi Miike’s Sukiyaki Western Django - (Japan)
- Shinji Aoyama’s Sad Vacation (Saddo Bakeshon) - (Japan)
- Masahiro Kobayashi’s The Rebirth (Ai no Yokan) - (Japan)
- Kiyoshi Kurosawa’s Tokyo Sonata (Tokyo Sonata) - (Japan)
- Hayao Miyazaki’s Ponyo on the Cliff by the Sea (Gake no ue no Poniyo) - (Japan)
- Takeshi Kitano’s Achilles and the Tortoise Akires to Kame - (Japan)

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MIDNIGHT SPECIAL SECTION – MUSIC ICONS:

- Bernard Shakey’s CSNY: Deja Vu (Neil Young) – (USA)
- Miguel Kohan’s Café de los Maestros (Café de los Maestros) – (Argentina/USA)
- Steven Sebring’s Patti Smith: Dream of Life – (USA)
- Robbie Cavolina and Ian McCrudden’s Anita O'Day: The Life of a Jazz Singer – (USA)
- Stephanie Black’s Africa Unite - On the day Bob Marley would reach 60 years old, his
family decides to do a huge celebration – (Jamaica/USA)
- Joe Cardona and Mario de Varona’s Celia The Queen – (USA)
- Scott Hicks’s Glass: A Portrait of Philip in Twelve Parts – (Australia)
- Julien Temple’s Joe Strummer: The Future Is Unwritten – (UK/Ireland)
- Matt Wolf’s Wild Combination: A Portrait of Arthur Russell – (USA)