26/07/2012 - Raúl Ruiz’s last project, directed by his wife, will vie for the Golden Lion, while the new film by the 103 year-old filmmaker will be presented out of competition

Valeria Sarmiento’s Lines of Wellington [+see also:
film review
trailer
interview: Valeria Sarmiento
film profile] and Manoel de Oliveira’s O Gebo e a Sombra [+see also:
film review
trailer
film profile] have been selected for the 69th Venice Film Festival (August 29-September 9).

Films vying for the Golden Lion include Lines of Wellington, a Portuguese-French production from Paulo Branco set in the 19th century during the French invasion of Portugal. Ruiz’ wife, Sarmiento, completed filming the project on the death of her husband last summer (see more). The cast is made up of French stars Catherine Deneuve, Michel Piccoli, Mathieu Amalric; US star John Malkovich; Spanish actress Marisa Paredes; Potuguese stars Nuno Lopes, Carlotto Cota, Albano Jerónimo, Soraia Chaves and Maria João Bastos, along with 5,000 actors.

Meanwhile, de Oliveira’s O Gebo e a Sombra will screen out of competition. Produced by Luís Urbano for O Som e a Fúria in co-production with France, O Gebo e a Sombra is an adaptation of a play by Portuguese writer Raúl Brandão. The cast features veteran stars who despite their experience are making their first appearance in the unusual film universe of the 103 year-old: Michael Lonsdale, Claudia Cardinale and Jeanne Moreau, along with the usual Portuguese collaborators Luís Miguel Cintra, Ricardo Trêpa and Leonor Silveira.

(Translated from French)