Viennale unveils programme

by Bénédicte Prot

28/09/2006 - The most important international event in Austria is quickly approaching. Yesterday evening, the Viennale (October 13-25, 2006), which each year attracts about 85,000 visitors (primarily young people), announced its programme, which is becoming known for its annual, quality selection of new films from the world over and several Austrian exclusives.

In keeping with tradition, the Viennese festival – while promoting classics through retrospectives (the Demy/Varda cycle includes no less than 41 films) and homages (with this year’s spotlight on UK director Peter Whitehead) – is emphasising politically correct and conventional films. It is therefore not by chance that the Viennale is devoting a special section to Elfriede Jelinek and paying tribute to films by Danièle Huillet and Jean-Marie Straub.

It is an event open to all voices and genres, a festival where documentaries, shorts and experimental films are also welcome.

European features to be presented at the festival include: Colossal Youth [trailer] by Portugal’s Pedro Costa, Aki Kaurismaki’s Lights in the Dusk [trailer], The Passenger [trailer] by France’s Eric Caravaca, and two other films that enchanted Lido audiences in early September, Private Property [trailer] by Joachim Lafosse and The Queen [trailer, film focus] by Stephen Frears.

The documentary section – where Austria currently shines – features films by home-grown directors Peter Schreiner (Bellavista), Andrina Mracnikar (Der Kärntner spricht Deutsch) and Ruth Beckermann (Zorro's Bar Mitzva), who each depict three Austrian regions with very different traditions.

The festival – which is also trying to hold more sidebar events (such as concerts and round tables) – will close with an awards ceremony for the FIPRESCI award, the Vienna Prize awarded by the city and a prize from a reader’s jury of Austrian daily Der Standard.

The programme is now available at the Viennale website.

(Translated from French)