IFFR announces full lineup Tiger Awards Competitions

40th International Film Festival Rotterdam
January 26 – February 6, 2011

PRESS RELEASE 9 January 2011

Fourteen films have been selected for IFFR's Tiger Awards Competition 2011. The complete lineup, comprising first or second feature films concurring for three equal top prizes of each 15,000 euro, includes three world premieres. Three competing films have been supported by Rotterdam’s Hubert Bals Fund.
The Rotterdam Tiger Awards Competition for Short Films 2011 comprises twenty-eight films, ranging in length from six to fifty-two minutes. Five short films will see their world premieres in Rotterdam.

The Jury of the sixteenth Tiger Awards Competition comprises Lucrecia Martel, filmmaker, scriptwriter and film producer (Argentina); Sandra den Hamer, director of the EYE Film Institute Netherlands and former IFFR director; filmmaker Andrei Ujica (Romania); Wisit Sasanatieng, filmmaker (Thailand) and Lee Ranaldo, vocalist, guitarist, composer and co-founder of noise rock band Sonic Youth (USA). The winners will be announced during the Tiger Awards Ceremony on Friday, February 4.

This edition, the Tiger Awards Competition is supported by the Prins Bernhard Cultuurfonds.

For the Rotterdam Tiger Awards Competition for Short Films’ Jury the IFFR welcomes Fiona Tan, an artist known for her audiovisual installations, films and photographic works (The Netherlands), Anocha Suwichakornpong, filmmaker and Tiger Award winner for Mundane History and Thom Andersen, filmmaker, film critic and lecturer (USA). The Jury will hand out the three equal Tiger Awards for Short Film (3,000 Euros) to the winning filmmakers during the VPRO Late Night Talk Show on Monday evening January 31.

The Rotterdam Tiger Awards Competition for Short Films includes Pastourelle (the new 16mm film by Focus-filmmaker Nathaniel Dorsky, USA), Maska by the Quay Brothers and works by upcoming talents like Jan Villa by Natasha Mendonca (India), Bread for Bird by Aleksandra Streyanaya (Russia) and Players by Pilvi Takala (Finland).

The Rotterdam Tiger Awards Competition for Short Films is supported by the City Marketing Office Rotterdam.

Tiger Awards Competition for first and second feature films 2011

Chitra sutram / The Image Threads, Vipin Vijay, India, 2010, 104’, Hubert Bals Fund, European premiere

A tale about a computer teacher, a black magician and a cyber creature who are predestined for online and offline encounters. The story oscillates between Indian mythology, surrealist personal symbolism and the cyber world. First feature film of Vipin Vijay.

Vete más lejos, Alicia / Alicia, Go Yonder, Elisa Miller, Mexico, 2010, 67’, International premiere
A moving and visual portrayal of the excitement, alienation, and loneliness nineteen-year old Alicia experiences when she leaves her parental home in Mexico for Buenos Aires with the ambition to become an acrobat. First feature film of Elisa Miller.

Pasuggun / Bleak Night, Yoon Sung-Hyun, South Korea, 2010, 116’, International premiere
Yoon’s New Current Award winning film focuses on the subdued aggression and explosive relationships among friends in Korea’s often repressive school system. First feature film of Yoon Sung-Hyun.

Finisterrae, Sergio Caballero, Spain, 2010, 80’, International premiere
Portraying two lost ghosts who take the Way of Saint James to the end of the world (Finisterra), this hypnotizing road movie is a treat for eyes and ears. It draws inspiration from Philippe Garrel’s The Inner Scar. First feature film of Sergio Caballero.

Wasted Youth, Argyris Papadimitropoulos & Jan Vogel, Greece, 2011, 98’, World premiere & Opening Film
During a hot summer in Athens, the lives of two protagonists unexpectedly cross paths: a passionate teenage skater and a policeman in his midlife crisis. Second feature film of
Argyris Papadimitropoulos and first feature film of Jan Vogel.

Gromozeka, Vladimir Kott, Russia, 2011, 104’, World premiere
Funny, serious and touching at the same time, the film offers a view of contemporary Russia following three parallel stories of old school friends. Now a police officer, taxi driver and surgeon in their forties, they cross paths without realizing it. Second feature film of Vladimir Kott.

Fasl-e baran-haye moosemi / Rainy Seasons, Majid Barzegar, Iran, 2010, 86’, European premiere
This intimate Iranian film tells the story of an urban teenage boy trapped between his parents’ divorce and his own troubles. It reveals a seldom shown side of Iranian society - middle class urban youths that have the same problems as everywhere around the world. First feature film of Majid Barzegar.

Headshots, Lawrence Tooley, Germany, Austria, 2010, 92’, International premiere

Marianne, a photographer, struggles with identity, love, and the general madness of being a "young creative" in modern day Berlin. Told as a web of interlocking anecdotes that gradually compose a whole, Headshots deals with real and imagined problems facing a generation. First feature film of Lawrence Tooley.

O céu sobre os ombros / The Sky Above, Sérgio Borges, Brazil, 2010, 72’, International premiere
Blurring borders between documentary and fiction, this film portrays a few moments from the lives of three men from Belo Horizonte: a transsexual prostitute and academic, a Hare Krishna soccer fan and a would-be writer. Winner of five awards at the Festival of Brazilian Cinema. First feature film of Sérgio Borges.

Fuyu no kimono / Love Addiction, Uchida Nobuteru, Japan, 2010, 92’, International premiere
In Love Addicton, superior improvisation and total commitment overcome all limitations of low budget film-making. The filmmaker points his camera at four characters, co-workers who have complicated relationships during and after working hours. Second feature film of Uchida Nobuteru.

Igillena maluwo / Flying Fish, Sanjeewa Pushpakumara, Sri Lanka, 2011, Hubert Bals Fund, 125’, World premiere
This daring, exciting story from northern Sri Lanka convincingly captures the madness in a land where the psychology of war is omnipresent. Three parallel stories deal with the attempts of ordinary village people to lead a normal life in abnormal circumstances. First feature film of Sanjeewa Pushpakumara.

Tee-rak / Eternity, Sivaroj Kongsakul, Thailand, 2010, Hubert Bals Fund, 105’, European premiere
After his death, a man returns to the landscape of his childhood and relives the relationship that was meant to last forever. Eternity is a romantic and spiritual film as well as a meditation about the death of a loved one. First feature film of Sivaroj Kongsakul.

Todos tus muertos / All Your Dead Ones, Carlos Moreno, Colombia, 2010, 90’, International premiere
One Sunday morning, a Colombian farmer finds a pile of dead bodies in his corn field. On Election Day, the local politicians however have other things on their mind than dealing with the crime. Second feature film of Carlos Moreno.

Musan il-gy / The Journals of Musan, Park Jung-Bum, South Korea, 2010, 127’, European premiere
Already an award winning film, The Journals of Musan portrays the plights and emotions of a North Korean defector who is trying to adapt to South Korea’s capitalist society. First feature film of Park Jung-Bum, who plays the lead himself.


Rotterdam Tiger Awards Competition for Short Films 2011

1989 (Den gang jeg var fem år gammel) / 1989 (When I Was Five Years Old), Thor Ochsner, Denmark, 2010, 11’
Slow Action, Ben Rivers, United Kingdom, 2011, 45’, World premiere
Players, Pilvi Takala, Finland, Netherlands, 2010, 8’
Pastourelle, Nathaniel Dorsky, USA, 2010, 16’, European premiere
I lupi / The Wolves, Alberto De Michele, Italy, 2011, 17’, World premiere
A Short Film about War, Jon Thomson, Alison Craighead, United Kingdom, 2010, 10’
End Transmission, James T. Hong, Chen Yin-Ju, Taiwan, Netherlands, Germany, 2010, 17’, International premiere
Lesser Apes, Emily Vey Duke & Cooper Battersby, Canada, 19’, World premiere
Stardust, Nicolas Provost, Belgium, 2010, 20’
These Hammers Don't Hurt Us, Michael Robinson, USA, 2010, 13’, European premiere
Maska, Brothers Quay, Poland, 2010, 24’
Khleb dlya pticy / Bread for Bird, Aleksandra Strelyanaya, Russia, 2010, 26’
Beyond-ism, Sun Xun, China, 2010, 8, International premiere
Maria Theresia und ihre 16 Kinder / Maria Theresia and her 16 Children, Roland Rauschmeier & Ulu Braun, Austria, Germany, 2010, 30’, International premiere
Versions, Oliver Laric, Germany, North Korea, 2010, 9’
Tse / Out, Roee Rosen, Israel, 2010, 34’
Jan Villa, Natasha Mendonca, USA, India, 2010, 20’
A History of Mutual Respect, Gabriel Abrantes, Daniel Schmidt, Portugal, 2010, 23’
Home Movie, John Price, Canada, 2010, 27’
Mercúrio / Mercury, Sandro Aguilar, Portugal, 2010, 18’
After Empire, Herman Asselberghs, Belgium, 2011, 52’, World premiere
Lubaben, Eva Pervolovici, France, Romania, 2011, 30’, World premiere
Otolith III, The Otolith Group, United Kingdom, 2010, 49’
The Story of Elfranko Wessels, Erik Moskowitz & Amanda Trager, USA, Canada, 2011, 16’, World premiere
Mirages, Emanuel Licha, Canada, France, 2010, 19’
It, Heat, Hit, Laure Prouvost, United Kingdom, 2010, 6’
Immortal Woman, Jakrawal Nilthamrong, Thailand, 2010, 9, European premiere
La dame au chien / The Lady with the Dog, Damien Manivel, France, 2010, 16’

(End of press release)

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