American Dreamz
USA / 2006 / 107 MIN / ENGLISH

Cast: Hugh Grant, Dennis Quaid, Mandy Moore, Willem Dafoe, Jennifer Coolidge, Sam Golzari, Marcia Gay Harden, Chris Klein
Cinematography: Robert Elswit
Editing: Myron I. Kerstein
Music: Rick Garcia, Joe Lervold, Stephen Trask
Producers: Rodney M. Liber, Andrew Miano, Paul Weitz
Written and Directed by: Paul Weitz

SYNOPSIS
Imagine a country where the president never reads the newspaper, where the government goes to war for all the wrong reasons, and more people vote for a pop idol than their next president. Now imagine a wildly popular television singing contest whose host is constantly on the lookout for higher and higher ratings, a finale face-off between a blond Midwestern gal and a showtunes-loving Iraqi, and a newly ‘awakened’ but vacuous president pushed by his Machiavellian chief of staff to appear on the show to promote his image as a man of the masses.

THE FILMMAKER
Born in 1966 in New York City, Paul Weitz had film in his blood. His grandfather, Paul Kohner, was an agent for clients such as Ingmar Bergman, John Huston and Billy Wilder. Paul studied film at Wesleyan University and made his Hollywood debut by helping write the script for the animated hit “Antz.” His first film as director was the wildly successful coming-of-age 1999 comedy “American Pie.” He has also co-directed (with his brother Chris Weitz) Nick Hornby’s “About A Boy” and wrote and directed the critically acclaimed “In Good Company.”

Badkonake Sefid (The White Balloon)
IRAN / 1995 / 85 MIN / PERSIAN

Cast: Aida Mohammadkhani, Mohsen Kafili, Fereshteh Sadr Orfani,
Anna Borkowska, Mohammad Shahani
Cinematography: Farzad Jadat
Editing: Jafar Panahi
Screenplay: Abbas Kiarostami
Producer: Kurosh Mazkouri
Directed by: Jafar Panahi

SYNOPSIS
Razieh wants a fat goldfish for the Iranian New Year’s celebration instead of the skinny ones in her family’s pond at home. The fat fish looks like it’s dancing when it swims. After many attempts, she and her brother convince their mother to give them her last bit of money. Between their home and the fish store, Razieh loses the money. She eventually finds it, but it is temptingly just out of her reach. Part of Tribute to Jafar Panahi.

THE FILMMAKER
Born in 1960 in Mianeh, Iran, Jafar Panahi is considered to be one of the foremost auteurs of new wave Irani cinema. After studying film direction at the College of Cinema and Television in Tehran, he made several films for Irani television before assisting Abbas Kiarostami on “Through the Olive Trees.” “The White Balloon”, his debut feature, won the Camera d’Or at Cannes. Since then his films have won several prizes at Locarno, Cannes, Berlin and Venice, among other festivals. Two of his films, “The Circle” (2000) and “Crimson Gold” (2003) have been banned in Iran.

Barnyard
USA / 2006 / 90 MIN / ENGLISH

Voices of: Kevin James, Courteney Cox, Sam Elliott, Danny Glover, Wanda Sykes, Andie MacDowell
Editing: Paul D. Calder
Music: John Debney
Producers: Paul Marshal, Steve Oedekerk
Written and Directed by: Steve Oedekerk

SYNOPSIS
Most farm animals, such as cows and chickens, make sounds like moo and cluck cluck. But on this farm, that’s just for the benefit of the people around them. When the farmer isn’t around, they walk on two legs, watch TV and basically, act like humans. Otis is a young, carefree cow with four best friends: Pip the mouse, Peck the rooster, Freddy the ferret, and Pig, who’s a pig. They love to mess around and play pranks, especially on humans. Otis’ dad, Ben, is more serious-minded. He wants the animals to keep their human-like qualities a secret. He takes it upon himself to make sure the farm is running smoothly and most importantly, that no marauding coyotes cross the borders of the farm and harm any of his friends. But when Otis has to take over for his dad, his fun-loving nature makes it difficult for him to assume a leadership role. The farm, which always ran smoothly when his dad was in charge, begins to fall apart. Will the “udderly” irresponsible cow pull it together and find the courage to be a leader?

THE FILMMAKER
Steve Oedekerk is a movie director, producer, writer, actor, and stand-up comedian. Born and resident in Los Angeles, he collaborated with friend Jim Carrey on “Ace Ventura: Pet Detective”, and directed and wrote its sequel, “Ace Ventura: When Nature Calls.” Among other movies written by him are the 1996 remake of “The Nutty Professor”, “Patch Adams” and “Bruce Almighty.” In 1990, he founded the entertainment company O Entertainment. He created the thumbmation technology of animation where thumbs are used to make the heads of the characters (eyes and mouths are superimposed onto them). His films that use this technique include “Thumb Wars”, “Bat Thumb”, “The GodThumb”, “Frankenthumb”, “The Blair Thumb” and “Thumbtanic.” 

Baisers Volés (Stolen Kisses)
FRANCE / 1968 / 90 MIN / FRENCH

Cast: Jean-Pierre Léaud, Claude Jade, Delphine Seyrig
Cinematography: Denys Clerval
Editing: Agnès Guillemot
Music: Léo Chauliac, Antoine Duhamel
Screenplay: François Truffaut, Claude de Givray, Bernard Revon
Producers: François Truffaut, Marcel Berbert
Directed by: François Truffaut

SYNOPSIS
Jean-Pierre Léaud returns in the delightful “Baisers Volés” the third installment in the Antoine Doinel series. It is now 1968, and the mischievous and perpetually love-struck Doinel has been dishonorably discharged from the army and released onto the streets of Paris, where he stumbles into the unlikely profession of private detective and embarks on a series of misadventures. Whimsical, nostalgic, and irrepressibly romantic, the film is Truffaut’s timeless ode to the passion and impetuosity of youth. Part of Truffaut Retrospective.

THE FILMMAKER
François Truffaut was one of the founders of the French “New Wave” and remains an icon of the French film industry. In a film career lasting just over a quarter of a century, he worked as a screenwriter, director, producer and actor in over 25 features. Truffaut came to filmmaking only after an early career as one of the most outspoken film critics in France, writing for Andre Bazin’s Les Cahiers du Cinéma. As a result of the severity of his critiques, Truffaut was refused a press pass to the 1958 Cannes film festival. Along with his Cahiers colleagues, including Jean-Luc Godard and Éric Rohmer, Truffaut was enamoured with Hollywood filmmakers such as Alfred Hitchcock, Nicholas Ray and Howard Hawks. In a 1954 article, Truffaut expounded the ‘politique des auteurs’, or ‘auteur theory of cinema’, which championed the idea that movies should reflect the personal vision and preoccupations of the director.

Voices of: Owen Wilson, Paul Newman, Bonnie Hunt, Cheech Marin, Tony Shalhoub, Michael Keaton, Richard Petty
Editing: Ken Schretzmann
Music: Randy Newman
Screenplay: John Lasseter, Joe Ranft, Jorgen Klubien, Dan Fogelman, Kiel Murray, Phil Lorin
Producer: Darla K. Anderson
Directed by: John Lasseter and Joe Ranft

SYNOPSIS
Lightning McQueen is a hot-shot rookie racing car. Speeding on his way to a big race, he crashes into Radiator Springs, destroying lots of the inhabitants’ belongings. In order to make up for what he did, the cocky roadster is sentenced to community service. Though he will do anything to get away from the work, McQueen must learn to respect and bond with the Radiator Springs inhabitants in order to get out of the town and back on the racetracks.

THE FILMMAKERs
Born in 1957 in Hollywood, California, John Lasseter studied at the California Institute of the Arts in Valencia. While studying he produced two animated films, both of which won Student Academy Awards. He was part of the computer division of George Lucas’ Lucasfilm Ltd, which was later sold and became the powerhouse animation studio Pixar. He is currently a vice president at Pixar. His feature directorial debut at Pixar, “Toy Story”, went on to become a massive hit and also earned him an Academy Award for special achievement.
Born in 1960, Joe Ranft studied animation at the Californa Institute of the Arts and began working as a story artist at Walt Disney Studios in 1980. Among his writing credits were “Beauty and the Beast”, “The Lion King”, “Toy Story” and “A Bug’s Life.” He also executive produced Tim Burton’s “The Corpse Bride.” Joe was tragically killed in a car crash in 2005.

Cast: Clive Owen, Julianne Moore, Michael Caine, Chiwetel Ejiofor, Charlie Hunnam, Claire-Hope Ashitey
Cinematography: Emmanuel Lubezki
Editing: Alfonso Cuarón, Alex Rodríguez
Music: John Tavener
Screenplay: P.D. James, Alfonso Cuarón, Timothy J. Sexton, David Arata, Hawk Ostby Mark Fergus
Producers: Marc Abraham, Eric Newman, Hilary Shor, Iain Smith, Tony Smith
Directed by: Alfonso Cuarón

SYNOPSIS
In 2027, as humankind faces the likelihood of its own extinction through an infertility defect in the population, a disillusioned government agent agrees to help transport and protect a miraculously pregnant woman to a sanctuary at sea where her child’s birth may help scientists save the future of mankind. Set in and around a dystopian London fractious with violence and warring nationalistic sects, the film is based on P.D. James’ novel.

THE FILMMAKER
Born in 1961 in Mexico City, Alfonso Cuarón became enamoured of cinema at a very early age. After finishing school, he studied philosophy in the morning while attending the CUEC (Centro Universitario de Estudios Cinematográficos) in the afternoon. He worked on a number of films as an assistant before writing and directing “Sólo con tu pareja” (Love in the Time of Hysteria, 1991) which won many awards at Toronto and led to his moving to Los Angeles. His real breakthrough came in 2001 with “Y tu mamá también” (And Your Mother Too) which was nominated for an Oscar and won 33 other awards. Since then, he has also directed “Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban” (2004).

Cast: Ulrich Muhe, Martina Gedeck, Sebastian Koch, Ulrich Tukur, Thomas Thieme
Cinematography: Hagen Bogdanski
Editing: Patricia Rommel
Music : Stephane Moucha, Gabriel Yared
Producers: Quirin Berg, Max Wiedemann
Written and Directed by: Florian Henckel von Donnersmarck

SYNOPSIS
In the early 1980s, the successful dramatist Georg Dreyman and his longtime companion Christa-Maria Sieland, a popular actress, are big intellectual stars in the East German socialist state, although they secretly don’t always think loyal to the party line. One day, the Minister of Culture becomes interested in Christa, so the secret service agent Wiesler is instructed to observe and sound out the couple. But their life fascinates him more and more... In a society poisoned by secrecy, fear and abuse of power, the investigator is forced to confront himself and the work he does.

THE FILMMAKER
Born in 1973 in Cologne, Germnay, Florian Henckel von Donnersmarck lived in New York, Berlin, Frankfurt and Brussels as a child. He graduated from Oxford University with a degree in philosophy and worked as a trainee to Sir Richard Attenborough in 1997. He subsequently studied at the Hochschule fur Fernsehen und Film in Munich. “The Lives of Others” was his graduation film. It has won the Audience Award at Locarno as well as 14 German awards.

Cast: Nargess Mamizadeh, Maryiam Palvin Almani, Mojgan Faramarzi, Elham Saboktakin, Monir Arab
Cinematography: Bahram Badakshani
Editing: Jafar Panahi
Screenplay: Kambuzia Partovi
Produced and Directed by: Jafar Panahi

SYNOPSIS
In a hospital waiting room, a woman learns her daughter has just given birth. The ultrasound test had prepared the family for a boy. The baby, it turns out, is a girl. The joy the mother anticipated turns to terror for she knows her son-in-law’s family will abandon her daughter. The old woman flees as the in-laws arrive. Banned in Iran and the winner of the Golden Lion at Venice, the film weaves together this story along with those of several other women, including two prison parolees on the run, a woman looking to get an illegal abortion, and another about to abandon her daughter and falsely accused of prostitution. As the narrative shifts dynamically from woman to woman, their stories culminate with tremendous potency, transforming a shared sense of despair and injustice into one of kinship, and even hope.

THE FILMMAKER
Born in 1960 in Mianeh, Iran, Jafar Panahi is considered to be one of the foremost auteurs of new wave Irani cinema. After studying film direction at the College of Cinema and Television in Tehran, he made several films for Irani television before assisting Abbas Kiarostami on “Through the Olive Trees.” “The White Balloon”, his debut feature, won the Camera d’Or at Cannes. Since then his films have won several prizes at Locarno, Cannes, Berlin and Venice, among other festivals. Two of his films, “The Circle” (2000) and “Crimson Gold” (2003) have been banned in Iran.

Cast: Jean-Pierre Léaud, Claude Jade, Hiroko Berghauer
Cinematography: Nestor Almendros
Editing: Agnès Guillemot
Music: Antoine Duhamel
Screenplay: François Truffaut, Claude de Givray, Bernard Revon
Producers: François Truffaut, Marcel Berbert
Directed by: François Truffaut

SYNOPSIS
A sequel to “Baisers Volés”, the film follows the couple, Antoine Doinel and Christine, now married. Expecting his first child and still struggling to find steady employment, Doinel involves himself in a relationship with a beautiful Japanese woman that threatens to destroy his marriage. Lightly comic, with a touch of the burlesque, “Domicile Conjugal” is a bittersweet look at the travails of young married life and the fine line between adolescence and adulthood. Part of Truffaut Retrospective.

THE FILMMAKER
François Truffaut was one of the founders of the French “New Wave” and remains an icon of the French film industry. In a film career lasting just over a quarter of a century, he worked as a screenwriter, director, producer and actor in over 25 features. Truffaut came to filmmaking only after an early career as one of the most outspoken film critics in France, writing for Andre Bazin’s Les Cahiers du Cinéma. As a result of the severity of his critiques, Truffaut was refused a press pass to the 1958 Cannes film festival. Along with his Cahiers colleagues, including Jean-Luc Godard and Éric Rohmer, Truffaut was enamoured with Hollywood filmmakers such as Alfred Hitchcock, Nicholas Ray and Howard Hawks. In a 1954 article, Truffaut expounded the ‘politique des auteurs’, or ‘auteur theory of cinema’, which championed the idea that movies should reflect the personal vision and preoccupations of the director.

Cast: Adeel Hussain, Annie, Mani, Rashid Farooqui, Saleem Mairaj, Adarsh Ayaz, Muhammad Ahmed
Cinematography: Asad Malik, Naeem Qureshi
Editing: Akhtar Zia
Music: Mujib Syed
Screenplay: Muhammad Ehteshamuddin
Producer: Arjumand Rahim
Directed by: Imran Patel

SYNOPSIS
Khalid, a twenty-something boy, is obsessed with the idea of migrating to the US. Born in an underprivileged home, he knows his options for economic growth are stunted and America, to his naive mind, represents all the values associated with success and a real chance at life. After several unsuccessful attempts at attaining an American visa, he finds himself at a crossroads. Circumstances present a cruel choice. But an unexpected twist is in store.

THE FILMMAKER
Imran Patel graduated from Karachi University with a degree in communication design, majoring in film and photography. His short film “Khamoshi” was screened to critical acclaim at the 5th KaraFilm Festival. He currently works as a producer / director for Aag TV.

Cast: Anupam Kher, Mahima Chaudhry, Suhasini Mulay, Amit Sial
Cinematography: Nirmal Jani
Editing: Hilary Peabody
Music: Wayne Sharp
Screenplay: Tanuja Chandra, Glenn Russow
Producers: Scott Pardo, Glenn Russow
Directed by: Tanuja Chandra

SYNOPSIS
This poignant tale of love, set against the forces of hate and intolerance, centres on the romance between an aspiring Muslim photographer and a young Sikh widow in New York City in the weeks before and after 11th September, 2001. Bike messenger Ali Siddiqui meets the beautiful but married Saloni, a charismatic shop owner who encourages Ali's photography and becomes his muse. Despite Ali's secret and largely unrequited crush on Saloni, he develops a close friendship with her and her husband Harry. But when Harry dies in the attacks on the World Trade Center, his father, Colonel Vir Singh Oberoi, directs his longstanding animosity toward Muslims at Ali, whose only crime is falling in love with the grief-stricken Saloni. Unable to accept his son's death, the colonel threatens to bring a violent end to Ali and Saloni's budding romance. Bringing a South Asian's perspective to the events surrounding 9/11, the film highlights the many faces of intolerance and discrimination, as the colonel's anger towards Muslims is reflected in the indiscriminate hostility others feel toward South Asians. Winner of the Audience award at the South Asian International Film Festival, New York.

THE FILMMAKER
Tanuja Chandra has written and directed six critically acclaimed feature films, including “Film Star”, “Dushman” and “Sur: The Melody of Life.” After obtaining her MA in film from Temple University in Philadelphia, Tanuja went on to direct and edit human-interest stories for Plus Channel in Mumbai, India. In 1996 she put her skills to work in feature films, co-writing two features, “Tamanna” and “Zakhm”, both directed by her mentor and celebrated Indian filmmaker Mahesh Bhatt. “Hope and a Little Sugar”, shot primarily in New York City, marks Tanuja’s English language, global market debut. 

Cast: James Wilby, Melissa Leo, Shabana Azmi, Zia Mohyeddin
Cinematography: Nicholas D. Knowland
Editing: Chris Barnes
Music: Richard Harvey
Written, Produced and Directed by: Jamil Dehalvi

SYNOPSIS
Alistair, the British representative of the World Wildlife Organisation, is based in Karachi with his Jewish-American wife Hannah. Superficially they have an idyllic expatriate lifestyle, but there is an undercurrent of tension beneath the smooth surface of their marriage. Hannah is unable to conceive a child, and despite endless tests and exploratory surgery, doctors are unable to explain why. Gradually the desire to have a baby begins to consume Hannah. She persuades a reluctant Alistair to go with her to the shrine of Gulab Shah – a shrine run by eunuchs who have a reputation for curing infertility. After a bizarre ceremony during which she converts to Islam, Hannah conceives. But as their greatest wish comes true, Alistair and Hannah’s cosy lifestyle begins to disintegrate. Part of Spotlight on Jamil Dehalvi.

THE FILMMAKER
Jamil Dehalvi is an independent filmmaker of Pakistani origin based in London. His father was a diplomat, so the family travelled extensively before he was sent to study in England. After reading law at Oxford, he was called to the bar at Lincoln’s Inn, then changed course, preferring instead to enter the world of cinema. Jamil studied film at Columbia University in New York and went on to produce and direct several international award-winning feature films.

Cast: Kevin Collins, Raza Faffrey, Jennifer Calvert, Constantine Gregory, Zia Mohyeddin
Cinematography: Tony Miller, Nic Knowland
Editing: Angelica Landry
Sound: Godfrey Kirby
Music: Deborah Mollison
Written, Produced and Directed by: Jamil Dehlavi

SYNOPSIS
“Infinite Justice” is the story of two men caught in the most dramatic conflict of our times, the war on terror. Arnold Silverman is a Jewish American investigative journalist who is tracking the financial network of Al-Qa’ida. He has a personal cause. His sister worked on the 99th floor of the World Trade Centre and her body was never found. We follow in parallel the politicisation of Kamal, a first generation British Pakistani studying at London University. Kamal is reunited with an old school friend who has turned fundamentalist and follows him to Bosnia to support the Muslim cause. His trip opens his eyes to some of the crueller truths of international politics. In his attempt to infiltrate the terrorist network, Arnold travels to Pakistan where he encounters Kamal who has now joined a fundamentalist group. Having similar backgrounds, both men sympathise with each other and Kamal agrees to take Arnold to interview a spokesman for Al-Qa’ida. However, when Arnold’s true motives are suspected, he is held hostage against the release of prisoners in Guantanamo Bay.

THE FILMMAKER
Jamil Dehlavi is an independent filmmaker of Pakistani origin based in London. His father was a diplomat, so the family travelled extensively before he was sent to study in England. After reading law at Oxford, he was called to the bar at Lincoln’s Inn, then changed course, preferring instead to enter the world of cinema. Jamil studied film at Columbia University in New York and went on to produce and direct several international award-winning feature films.

Cast: Jeanne Moreau, Oskar Werner, Henri Serre
Cinematography: Raoul Coutard
Editing: Claudine Bouché
Music: Boris Bassiak, Georges Delerue
Screenplay: François Truffaut, Henri-Pierre Roché, Jean Gruault
Producer: Marcel Berbert, François Truffaut
Directed by: François Truffaut

SYNOPSIS
Jules is a shy writer from Austria who makes friends with the more extroverted Jim. They share an interest in the world of the arts and the Bohemian life. After encounters with several women, they meet the free-spirited, capricious Catherine, and both men are affected by her presence and her attitude towards life. After the separation that occurs during the war, Jules and Catherine marry and have a daughter. They invite Jim to visit, and later stay, with them. Their love triangle leads, ultimately, to tragedy. Jules and Jim is a deeply profound film about the devastating consequences of indecision on three people... and a nation. Part of Truffaut Retrospective.

THE FILMMAKER
François Truffaut was one of the founders of the French “New Wave” and remains an icon of the French film industry. In a film career lasting just over a quarter of a century, he worked as a screenwriter, director, producer and actor in over 25 features. Truffaut came to filmmaking only after an early career as one of the most outspoken film critics in France, writing for Andre Bazin’s Les Cahiers du Cinéma. As a result of the severity of his critiques, Truffaut was refused a press pass to the 1958 Cannes film festival. Along with his Cahiers colleagues, including Jean-Luc Godard and Éric Rohmer, Truffaut was enamoured with Hollywood filmmakers such as Alfred Hitchcock, Nicholas Ray and Howard Hawks. In a 1954 article, Truffaut expounded the ‘politique des auteurs’, or ‘auteur theory of cinema’, which championed the idea that movies should reflect the personal vision and preoccupations of the director.

Cast: Chitrangda Singh, Shiney Ahuja, Smriti Mishra, Boman Irani, Saurabh Shukla
Cinematography: Prakash Kutti
Editing: Ranjeet Bahadur
Music: Shantanu Moitra, Sneha Khanwlkar
Producer: Sudhir Mishra
Written and Directed by: Ruchi Narain

SYNOPSIS
Bhavna and Tarun were in love. They, and everyone else, thought they would get married some day. But then Tarun left Bhavna for her best friend, Maya, who was the daughter of an industrialist. It seemed that Tarun’s ambition had got the better of him. Whatever the reason, they got married and Bhavna was left all alone. The film starts one year later. Bhavna has not yet recovered from the betrayal of her two closest friends when, one night, Tarun turns up at her house. He ends up staying there the whole night. The next morning when Bhavna goes to work, news arrives that Maya has been found dead. Murdered. Now she unwittingly becomes Tarun’s alibi - but is she being used? The film takes a realistic look at Mumbai’s upper-middle class youth who live in a city where billboards, brands, traffic, congestion, overcrowding, affluence and poverty all co-exist. Not necessarily happily ever after.

THE FILMMAKER
Ruchi Narain entered Mumbai’s close-knit film industry 10 years ago. She has worked with multiple award-winning director Sudhir Mishra on a number of projects. She was assistant director on “Iss Raat Ki Subah Nahin”, associate director, second unit director and screenplay writer on “Hazaaron Khwahishein Aisi” (5th KaraFilm Festival), and associate director and co-writer on “Calcutta Mail” starring Anil Kapoor, Rani Mukherjee and Manisha Koirala. She has also written the English film “Snip”, directed by Sunhil Sippy and worked in television. “Kal”, her directorial debut, won the Indian Critics’ Choice Award at the Osian Cinefan Film Festival in 2005.

Cast: Anupam Kher, Boman Irani, Parvin Dabbas, Ranvir Sheorey, Tara Sharma, Navin Nischol
Cinematography: Amitava Singh
Editing: Sejal Painter
Music: Bapi-Tutul, Dhruv Dhalla
Screenplay: Jaideep Sahni
Producers: Savita Raj Hiremath, Ronnie Screwvala
Directed by: Dibakar Banerjee

SYNOPSIS
On the verge of retirement, K.K. Khosla, yearning to move above his middle-class lifestyle, purchases a piece of land in southern Delhi. As he draws up plans for his family’s new abode, his younger son Cherry decides to move to America. Struggling to keep his household from breaking up, Khosla tries in vain to mend a strained relationship with Cherry. In the meantime, a ruthless tycoon, Khurana, forcefully occupies his plot of land. Shocked by fate’s cruelty and the impotency of the legal system, Khosla gives up all hope of spending his retirement in luxury.

THE FILMMAKER
Dibakar Banerjee studied at the National Institute of Design in Ahmedabad, India, and directed advertising films before getting into “Khosla Ka Ghosla”, his debut feature film. His hometown Delhi and its unique flavour, the characters he has grown up with, and the incidents of his and his writer Jaideep Sahni’s lives went into the making of the film.

Cast: José Garcia, Karin Viard, Geordy Monfils, Christa Theret, Ulrich Tukur, Olivier Gourmet
Cinematography: Patrick Blossier
Editing: Yannick Kergoat
Screenplay: Donald E. Westlake, Costa Gavras, Jean-Claude Grumberg
Producers: Genevieve Lemal, Alexandre Lippens
Directed by: Costa Gavras

SYNOPSIS
Bruno Davert is a top executive at the paper factory where he works. After being fired along with a number of his colleagues, he is willing to accept almost any job with the same senior status, but such jobs are very scarce. Desperately frustrated with not being able to land fitting employment in his field of expertise for two years, the 41-year-old family man finally decides that his only remaining course of action in order to secure a job is to eliminate the competition. Based on the novel by Donald E. Westlake, this film is a satire about modern corporate downsizing which destroys a man’s pride, and then everything else.

THE FILMMAKER
Konstantinos Gavras, better known as Costa Gavras, was born in 1933 in Greece and lives in France. He is best known for his rare talent to merge controversial political issues with the entertainment value of commercial cinema. Among his celebrated films, “Z” won the Oscar for Best Foreign Language Film in 1969, while “Missing” won the Oscar for Best Screenplay Adaptation in 1982. Law and justice, oppression, violence, and torture are common subjects in his work, especially relevant to his earlier films.

Cast: Catherine Deneuve, Gérard Depardieu
Cinematography: Nestor Almendros
Editing: Martine Barraqué
Music: Georges Delerue
Screenplay: François Truffaut, Suzanne Schiffman
Produced and Directed by: François Truffaut

SYNOPSIS
Set during the German occupation of Paris during the Second World War, the film tells the story of a Jewish theatre director and his gentile wife who struggles to keep him concealed from the Nazis in their cellar while she performs his former job. In 1981, Le Dernier Métro won the French Césars for Best Film, Best Actor, Best Actress, Best Cinematography, Best Director, Best Editing, Best Music, Best Production Design, Best Sound and Best Writing. It also received Best foreign film nominations in the US Academy Awards and the Golden Globes. Part of Truffaut Retrospective.

THE FILMMAKER
François Truffaut was one of the founders of the French “New Wave” and remains an icon of the French film industry. In a film career lasting just over a quarter of a century, he worked as a screenwriter, director, producer and actor in over 25 features. Truffaut came to filmmaking only after an early career as one of the most outspoken film critics in France, writing for Andre Bazin’s Les Cahiers du Cinéma. As a result of the severity of his critiques, Truffaut was refused a press pass to the 1958 Cannes film festival. Along with his Cahiers colleagues, including Jean-Luc Godard and Éric Rohmer, Truffaut was enamoured with Hollywood filmmakers such as Alfred Hitchcock, Nicholas Ray and Howard Hawks. In a 1954 article, Truffaut expounded the ‘politique des auteurs’, or ‘auteur theory of cinema’, which championed the idea that movies should reflect the personal vision and preoccupations of the director.

Cast: Fanny Ardant, Gérard Depardieu, Henri Garcin
Cinematography: William Lubtchansky
Editing: Martine Barraqué
Music: Georges Delerue
Screenplay: François Truffaut, Suzanne Schiffman, Jean Aurel
Produced and Directed by: François Truffaut

SYNOPSIS
A sombre, subtly disturbing film about the beauty and destructive toll of passion. Bernard Coudray is an unassuming, married, navigation trainer whose life undergoes upheaval when a former lover unwittingly rents a neighbouring house with her husband. Still affected by the scars of their unreconciled past, they resume their relationship. The tragedy of the film lies in their inability to recover from their self-destructive affair and move on with their lives. Part of Truffaut Retrospective.

THE FILMMAKER
François Truffaut was one of the founders of the French “New Wave” and remains an icon of the French film industry. In a film career lasting just over a quarter of a century, he worked as a screenwriter, director, producer and actor in over 25 features. Truffaut came to filmmaking only after an early career as one of the most outspoken film critics in France, writing for Andre Bazin’s Les Cahiers du Cinéma. As a result of the severity of his critiques, Truffaut was refused a press pass to the 1958 Cannes film festival. Along with his Cahiers colleagues, including Jean-Luc Godard and Éric Rohmer, Truffaut was enamoured with Hollywood filmmakers such as Alfred Hitchcock, Nicholas Ray and Howard Hawks. In a 1954 article, Truffaut expounded the ‘politique des auteurs’, or ‘auteur theory of cinema’, which championed the idea that movies should reflect the personal vision and preoccupations of the director.

Cast: Jean Desailly, Françoise Dorléac, Nelly Benedetti
Cinematography: Raoul Coutard
Editing: Claudine Bouché
Music: Georges Delerue
Screenplay: François Truffaut, Jean-Louis Richard
Producers: François Truffaut, António da Cunha Telles
Directed by: François Truffaut

SYNOPSIS
Pierre Lachenay is a well-known publisher and lecturer, married to Franca and father of 10-year-old Sabine. He meets an air hostess, Nicole, while traveling to Lisbon for a lecture. They start a love affair which Pierre hides from his unbalanced wife, in an attempt to spare his daughter from a separation. However, Pierre gets too involved with Nicole, misunderstanding her feelings and expectations, and decides to live with her after leaving Franca, leading the couple to a tragic end. Part of Truffaut Retrospective.

THE FILMMAKER
François Truffaut was one of the founders of the French “New Wave” and remains an icon of the French film industry. In a film career lasting just over a quarter of a century, he worked as a screenwriter, director, producer and actor in over 25 features. Truffaut came to filmmaking only after an early career as one of the most outspoken film critics in France, writing for Andre Bazin’s Les Cahiers du Cinéma. As a result of the severity of his critiques, Truffaut was refused a press pass to the 1958 Cannes film festival. Along with his Cahiers colleagues, including Jean-Luc Godard and Éric Rohmer, Truffaut was enamoured with Hollywood filmmakers such as Alfred Hitchcock, Nicholas Ray and Howard Hawks. In a 1954 article, Truffaut expounded the ‘politique des auteurs’, or ‘auteur theory of cinema’, which championed the idea that movies should reflect the personal vision and preoccupations of the director.