The FilmFestival Cottbus presents its complete programme, which this year includes 210 films from 45 (co)producing countries. With the Georgian film GORI | PIG by Giga Liklikadze, the FFC presents another world premiere in the Feature Film Competition. Patrons of the 29th edition of the FilmFestival Cottbus are Olaf Scholz, Vice Chancellor and Federal Minister of Finance, and traditionally Dietmar Woidke, Minister President of Brandenburg.
"The end of the so-called Iron Curtain was the beginning of the FilmFestival Cottbus, which since 1991 has developed into one of the world's leading festivals of East European cinema. Since then, the films of the 29 editions have also reflected the enormous transformation in the East European states. They take us into the reality of life on site. And let us feel through their characters what change means for each and every individual“, says Olaf Scholz, Vice Chancellor and Federal Minister of Finance, patron of the 29th FilmFestival Cottbus.
FEATURE FILM COMPETITION
In particular the 29th FFC's Feature Film Competition shows this reality of life and change – in the most unusual places, with a lot of emotion and a multitude of genres.
The coming-of-age story TOPAL ŞÜKRAN'IN MACERALARI | THE ADVENTURES OF SUKRAN THE LAME (2019) by Onur Ünlü is brightly coloured, in silent film format, cheeky and subversive. The first Turkish competition entry in the history of the FFC challenges: After an accident Sukran has to master her young life with a stiff leg. But she doesn't let this get her down, dreams of love, physical closeness and security. But something goes wrong again and again and sometimes ends deadly.
MIN URDUBER KYUN KHAHAN DA KIIRBET | THE SUN ABOVE ME NEVER SETS (Lyubov Borisova, RU 2019) brings us to a tragicomic scenery on a Yakutian island in the Laptev Sea. Sent there by his father for fox farm keeping, the young YouTuber Altan meets the old hermit Baibal, who believes he will have to die soon.
Antonio Lukich's bizarre comedy MOYI DUMKY TYKHI | MY THOUGHTS ARE SILENT (UA 2019) accompanies Vadim, who collects animal voices for a video game and who in search of the song of a rare bird is accompanied by his devoted mother.
In the dystopian psycho-drama JESTEM REN | I AM REN (PL 2019) Piotr Ryczko balances between horror and science fiction. Protagonist Renata is mother and wife – or a REN, a Regenerative Emotive Neuro-Being? The service agency detects a malfunction, a shut down is imminent. Hope is still there, but isn't family therapy already the final visit to the technician?
With her film SHPIA E AGËS | AGA’S HOUSE (KO/HR/FR/AL 2019), Lendita Zeqiraj makes visible the fates of women and children: After the Kosovo War, five women live in a wasteland cut off from male influence. Tragedy and trauma are revealed only gradually. Nine-year-old Aga - the only man in the house - is looking for a father figure.
The second world premiere in the Feature Film Competition (besides PUN MJESEC | FULL MOON, Nermin Hamzagić, BA 2019) is the feature film debut GORI | PIG by Giga Liklikadze (2019) from Georgia. The director shows this land of longing of many travellers away from the tourist streams, where the young Bachana roams aimlessly and falls into the hands of two petty criminals. They want to extort 100 euros from his family for his release, but can only offer them a pig.
With unexpected stories, pictures and main characters, all of the FFC's competition and other programme entries trigger unforeseen thoughts and feelings. "This compassion, this listening to each other, in light of the increasing populism that causes a social division, I consider to be particularly important. In Germany, across the borders of Eastern Europe and throughout Europe. The films of this 29th festival year will make their contribution to this," emphasises patron Olaf Scholz.
INTERNATIONAL JURY
The four prizes in the Feature Film Competition (main prize for the best film, special prize for the best director, prize for an outstanding actress and an outstanding actor) will be awarded by the International Jury:
Sergey Dvortsevoy - Russian director, 2018 at FFC with AYKA winner of the main prize for best film
Luli Bitri - Albanian actress (ALIVE!, AMNESTY, HOLY BOOM)
Péter Muszatics - Hungarian film historian and curator
Marija Perović - Montenegrin director, professor, chairman of the board of the Herceg Novi Film Festival - Montenegro Film Festival; the 29th FFC shows Perović‘s film GRUDI | BREASTS as International Premiere in the section SPOTLIGHT: MONTENEGRO
Peter Badel - cinematographer and until 2019 professor of camera studies at the Film University Babelsberg KONRAD WOLF
CLOSING FILM
Following the award ceremony on Saturday, 9 November 2019, the FFC will present the Polish submission for the "Best Foreign Language Film" 2020: BOŻE CIAŁO | CORPUS CHRISTI by Jan Komasa (PL 2019). A young man who is difficult to educate dresses in a priestly garment, reconciles a divided village with his unorthodox view of Christian mission and sets – not without sacrifices – a sign of hope.