35th Galway Film Fleadh which is happening from 11th to 16th July 2023 attracts a lot of film industry veterans including top producers, directors, cinematographers, and voice artists to name a few.
It has a very special category where it premieres top movies shortlisted in World Cinema Category. This time after tough competition It has shortlisted 10 such films to be premiered at the 35th Galway Film Fleadh in Ireland.
Here is the List of the top 10 films competing in the World Cinema Category, Where They will be Premiered, The Venue, and the Premier timings.
A House in Jerusalem
Muayad Alayan’s moving drama follows a young Rebecca as she is forced to move with her father from the UK to Jerusalem, in the hopes that a new beginning can help her heal from her mother’s sudden death. Soon after settling into an old house in a neighborhood known as the Valley of the Ghosts, a series of mysterious events begin to unfold, and Rebecca is blamed.
Diving deep into the mystery of the house and the mystical city of Jerusalem, Rebecca sets out on an enigmatic journey to discover what hides in the shadows of the house. Crafted by the talented duo Muayad and Rami Alayan, A House in Jerusalem is an eerily suspenseful and touching story told through the eyes of a young girl, exploring the strength of memory and the power of love.
Director: Muayad Alayan
Screenwriter: Muayad Alayan
Producer(s): Muayad Alayan, Rachel Robey, Alastair Clark, Rami Alayan
Cast: Johnny Harris, Miley Locke, Sheherazade Makhoul
Screening: Sat 15/07 – Pálás Screen 3 – 14:00 Runtime: 104 mins
Daughter of Rage(La Hija De Todas Las Rabias)
11-year-old Maria’s home is the biggest garbage dump in Nicaragua, where she lives with her mom. When circumstances change and Maria feels that she has been left alone with no one to take care of her, she is forced to find her own way. In association with Chroma International Film Festival and Young Irish Makers
Director: Laura Baumeister
Screenwriter: Laura Baumeister
Producer(s): Rossana Baumeister, Bruna Haddad, Martha Orozco
Cast: Ara Alejandra Medal, Virginia Sevilla, Carlos Gutierrez, Noe Hernandez, Diana Sedano
Screening: Thur 13/07 – Pálás Screen 3 – 12:00 Runtime: 91 mins
Here
Winner of Best Film (Encounters) at Berlinale, Bas Devos returns to the Fleadh with a captivating romantic drama that asks us to stop, reflect and enjoy living in the moment. Stefan, a Romanian construction worker living in Brussels, is on the verge of moving back home. He cooks up a big pot of soup to hand out as a goodbye gift to friends and family. As he is getting ready to go, he meets a Belgian-Chinese woman who is preparing for a doctorate in Mosses. Her attention for the near-invisible stops him in his tracks.
Director: Bas Devos
Screenwriter: Bas Devos
Producer: Marc Goyens
Cast: Stefan Gota, Liyo Gong, Cedric Luvuezo, Teodor Corban, Saadia Bentaïeb, Alina Constantin, Shuhuang Wang
Screening: Wed 12/07 – Pálás Screen 3 – 20:00 Runtime: 80 mins
Mutt
Director Vuk Lungulov-Klotz’s debut film, Mutt, is a poignant LGBTQIA+ story about Feña, a young trans guy bustling through life in New York City, who is faced with an increasingly challenging day. In the span of 24 hours, Feña must navigate the challenges of reconnecting with his foreign father, straight ex-boyfriend, and 13-year-old half-sister while also facing the daily struggles that come with living in a society that struggles to understand his identity.
The film premiered at Sundance Film Festival, where Lío Mehiel won the 2023 Special Jury Award for Acting. (This film contains mature content)
Director: Vuk Lungulov-klotz
Screenwriter: Vuk Lungulov-klotz
Producer: Alexander Stegmaier, Stephen Scott Scarpulla, Jennifer Kuczaj, Joel Michaely Cast: Lío Mehiel, Cole Doman, Mimi Ryder, Alejandro Goic
Screening: Thur 13/07 – Pálás Screen 2 – 19:00 Runtime: 87 mins
On The Adamant(Sur L’Adamant)
The Adamant is a unique daycare center: it is a floating structure. Located on the Seine in the heart of Paris, it welcomes adults suffering from mental disorders, offering them care that grounds them in time and space, and helps them to recover, or keep up their spirits. The team running it is one that tries to resist the deterioration and dehumanization of psychiatry as best it can. The film invites us to onboard to meet the patients and caregivers who invent its life day to day.
Director: Nicolas Philibert
Screenwriter: Nicolas Philibert
Producer(s): Milena Poylo, Gilles Sacuto, Céline Loiseau
Cast: n/a
Screening: Thur 13/07 – Town Hall Theatre -19:00
Runtime: 109 mins
One Bullet
From Oscar and BAFTA-winning Director Carol Dysinger, this story of intimate female friendship, forged amidst America’s longest war, is told by a filmmaker who spent 15 years in and out of Afghanistan.
The battlefield lies behind the curtains of an Afghan home. Bibi Hajji struggles to survive the loss of her youngest child, and the impact of a brother’s death on her remaining sons. A haunting image of that boy surviving a bullet wound prompted director Carol Dysinger to investigate, what happened to him, who fired the shot? One Bullet evolves from procedural to an excavation of the human experience, of loss and redemption. It asks: how might we make peace across vast social, cultural and religious divisions? One cup of tea at a time.
Director: Carol Dysinger
Screenwriter: Carol Dysinger
Producer(s): Carol Dysinger, Su Kim, Ashim Bhalla, Jesper Jack
Cast: n/a
Screening: Thur 13/07 – Pálás Screen 3 – 18:15 Runtime: 92 mins
Read More: 35th Galway Film Fleadh 11-16 July 2023: Complete Program Guide for Irish Cinema
Past Lives
A debut film from director Celine Song, Past Lives is a love story that follows Nora and Hae Sung, two deeply connected childhood friends, who are separated after Nora’s family emigrates from South Korea. Two decades later, they are reunited in New York for one fateful week as they confront notions of destiny, love, and the choices that make a life, in this heartrending modern romance.
This film premiered at Sundance Film Festival in 2023, and has received stunning 5* reviews, described by The Hollywood Reporter as “one of the year’s best films”.
Post-show discussion with Director Celine Song.
Director: Celine Song
Screenwriter: Celine Song
Producer(s): David Hinojosa, Christine Vachon, Pamela Koffler
Cast: Greta Lee, Teo Yoo, John Magaro, Moon Seung-Ah
Screening: Wed 12/07 – Pálás Screen 1 – 18:15 Runtime: 106 mins
Sister & Sister(Las Hijas)
Summer vacation. Two sisters, Marina (17) and Luna (14), travel from Costa Rica to Panama to look for their absent father. While dealing with frictions that arise between them, they find space to explore their desires, new friendships, lovers, and skateboarding, on a journey toward emancipation where they discover the joy of the simple act of hanging out. Following its successful premiere at SXSW, Sister & Sister is a sun-soaked coming-of-age film, directed by debut filmmaker Kattia G. Zúñiga, which offers an intimate and colorful portrayal of sisterhood and teenage life in the urban tropics.
Director: Kattia G. Zúñiga
Screenwriter: Kattia G. Zúñiga
Producer: Alejo Crisóstomo
Cast: Ariana Chaves Gavilán, Cala Rossel Campos, Gabriela Man, Fernando Bonilla
Screening: Thur 13/07 – Pálás Screen 2 – 13:00 Runtime: 80 mins
Slow
Winner of the Directing Award at Sundance 2023, Slow follows contemporary dancer Elena and sign language interpreter Dovydas who quickly form a deep romantic bond. As they navigate their relationship, they must confront the challenges that arise from Dovydas’ disclosure of his asexuality. Through dance, the film explores the complexities of conveying emotional expectations while also presenting raw and complicated character portraits with tenderness and delicacy.
Director: Marija Kavtaradze
Screenwriter: Marija Kavtaradze
Producer(s): Marija Razgute, Luisa Romeo, Anna-Maria Kantarius
Cast: Greta Grineviciute, Kestutis Cicenas
Screening: Thur 13/07 – Pálás Screen 2 – 21:00 Runtime: 108 mins
The Forest Maker(Der Waldmacher)
In this multi-award-winning documentary, Volker Schlöndorff follows Tony Rinaudo to different African countries to witness the effect FMNR has had on fighting desertification and repeatedly encounters issues – migration, climate change, gender justice. To complement his view, he invited African filmmakers to collaborate with him and share their experiences of rural life and local challenges.
The Forest Maker shows ordinary people doing extraordinary things and carries a strong message of community, self-empowerment, and, above all, hope.
Director: Volker Schlöndorff
Screenwriter: Volker Schlöndorff
Producer(s): Thomas Kufus, Volker Schlöndorff Cast: n/a
Screening: Sun 16/07 – Pálás Screen 1 – 13:30 Runtime: 87 mins
Link to the Official Website: https://www.galwayfilmfleadh.com/
