Era New Horizons: 10 days of film festivities
Over 100 new titles in Poland, 350 features and shorts and 600 screenings in total is what the seventh edition of the Era New Horizons International Festival promises its public. Opening today with Cristian Mungiu’s Palme d’Or winner 4 Months, 3 Weeks and 2 Days [+see also:
film review
trailer
interview: Cristian Mungiu
interview: Oleg Mutu
film profile], the Wrocław-based festival runs until July 29.
New this year at the festival is the fact that the films are leaving theatres to come to the public: throughout the event, evening screenings on the city’s main square will be open not only to festival-goers but to locals and tourists as well.
The main part of the festival, however, is still the official competition (Konkurs Nowe Horyzonty), whose Grand Prize for Best Film is awarded by the audience.
"In the main competition there are difficult, radical films that often divide the public and deal with subjects absent from commercial cinema," festival director Roman Gutek told Cineuropa. "Such a programme is bound to generate discussion, so our public talks about cinema, the films stir up strong emotions, they can move us, but without necessarily providing answers to the questions they ask”.
For the second time the section of new Polish cinema will take place parallel to the official competition.
As every year, organisers will pay tribute to a cinema little known in Poland. Previous editions have focused on Indian and Argentinean films, while this year’s programme features Australian cinema, programmed by David Stratton.
"With these presentations we want to introduce the public to new horizons. Australian cinema is an exotic one that has had good periods like the 70s. The programme’s selection reflects that but at the same time it avoids obvious films," said Gutek.
To those visitors not interested in seeing films in the competition programmes, the festival also guarantees emotionally powerful titles in its parallel sections: panorama of contemporary cinema – masters and discoveries, documentaries/essays, shorts, dance cinema, films for young audiences.
As usual, the festival will feature retrospectives on well-known directors, such as Hal Hartley (who will attend the festival), Federico Fellini and directors of the Lódz Film School on the occasion of its 50th anniversary.
(Translated from French)
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