Francophone fare in all its forms at Namur’s FIFF

by Aurore Engelen

22/09/2011 - The 26th Namur International Francophone Film Festival (FIFF), which will run from September 30-October 7, yesterday unveiled its programme. As every year, the biggest Walloon festival is offering a rich and varied line-up of over 160 films, an impressive bevy of guests, and numerous public and professional meetings. Open to the Francophone world in its diversity, from Ouagadougou to Montreal, Hanoi and Port-au-Prince, the FIFF puts a strong emphasis on European Francophone production: Belgian films of course, as well as French, Swiss, Luxembourg and Romanian.

It’s a tricky alchemy bringing together such diverse films, directors and cultures! The festival centres around two feature film competitions (international and debut works), and three competitions for short formats (international, domestic and videoclip shorts), and offers a fine cinematic stroll with the “Regards du Présent” section.

This 26th edition will be an opportunity to discover no fewer than 24 films in avant-premiere, including a few favourites from the latest Cannes crop: local helmer Bouli Lanners’ The Giants [trailer, film focus], Radu Mihaileanu’s The Source [trailer], Maïwenn’s Poliss [trailer, film focus], Pierre Schoeller’s The Minister [trailer, film focus], and Delphine and Muriel Cousin’s 17 Girls [trailer] and Eva Ionesco’s My Little Princess [trailer], both unveiled in Critics’ Week.

FIFF is also a place to discover unusual works, such as Anca Damian’s Romanian animated documentary Crulic – The Path To Beyond [trailer, film focus] and Reza Serkanian’s Ephemeral Weddings, a story of love and sensuality set in present-day Iran.

The Festival also gives pride of place to Belgian cinema, whether it be through the numerous meetings aimed at professionals, a Focus on Flemish cinema, or a retrospective of the Belgian Francophone films released over the past year. Finally, two Belgian films will screen in official competition (Lanners’ The Giants and Pierre-Yves Vandeweerd’s Lost Land), and the “Regards du Présent” section will be a chance for audiences to discover exclusive previews of Miel Van Hoogenbemt’s My Only Son, and Chantal Akerman’s Almayer’s Folly, which was recently unveiled at Venice.

(Translated from French)