December: The Future is Female (Directors) II
December: The Future is Female (Directors) II, FLMTQ Releases 217-221
During the month of December Filmatique presents The Future is Female (Directors) II, a collection of exemplary features from a new canon of female directorial voices.
Sacha Polak's debut feature Hemel explores the vicissitudes of intimacy, vulnerability, and abandon in its unflinching depiction of female desire—Anne Émond similary dissects the psychological and spiritual state of a lost generation, in her first film Nuit #1, an absorbing portrayal of a one-night stand. After directing Home, Ursula Meier's second feature Sister ventures into the underground economy of Switzerland's lush ski resorts, as two siblings living on the brink of poverty hustle purloined wares as a means of survival. Naomi Kawase's gentle portrait of Japanese foodie culture Sweet Bean nurtures a slow-blossoming friendship between three outsiders congregating around a dorayaki stand; Agnieszka Holland's long-form Burning Bush traces the cascading effects of January 16th, 1969, when a student protested the Soviet occupation by lighting himself aflame in Prague's Wenceslas Square.
Filmatique's The Future is Female (Directors) II series seeks to address the underrepresentation of women in the contemporary film industry by highlighting bold, original works from five female auteurs. Featuring works by first-time filmmakers and celebrated directors alike, this series navigates themes of sexuality, drift, precarity, class, politics and friendship refracted through the distinct visions of directors working in the vanguard of cinema.
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Hemel, Sacha Polak (2012)
Hemel, Sacha Polak / Netherlands-Spain, 2012
Hemel is a promiscuous young woman living in the Netherlands. Her life appears to governed almost exclusively by the pursuit of one night stands—she dresses up and goes out, alone, to bars, hitting on men and taking them home. She is emphatically disinterested in after-play: the thrill of the pursuit, of carnal pleasure, is what seeks. In life Hemel seems close only to her father, a similarly restless, independent soul who runs an art auction house. An increasingly serious relationship with one of his employees, however, ignites in Hemel distinct sentiments of abandonment and betrayal.
A gripping study of desire, intimacy, and sexuality told from a distinctly female perspective, Hemel challenges familiar stereotypes of the modern woman. Sacha Polak's feature debut premiered at IFFR - International Film Festival Rotterdam, Göteborg, New Directors/New Films, and the Berlin Film Festival, where it won the FIPRESCI Prize.
Sister, Ursula Meier (2012)
Sister, Ursula Meier / France-Switzerland, 2012
At the very edge of adolescence, Simon lives with his sister Louise in a Swiss valley beneath a large mountain range. His sister doesn't seem capable of holding down a job, or a boyfriend, so Simon is left to fend for himself. Each day he makes the commute to a luxury ski resort at altitude, pilfering top ski gear from unsuspecting tourists, which he then sells to dealers down below. While Simon's efforts manage to put food on the table, soon enough one of the resort's seasonal workers has caught onto his scheme, threatening to disrupt the equilibrium between survival and petty crime that underpins Simon's precarious existence.
Filmed in a vérité-style and featuring galvanizing performances by Kacey Mottet Klein and Léa Seydoux, Sister lays bare the contrasts between the opulent world of Switzerland's well-to-do and that society's margins, who live in perpetual scarcity. Ursula Meier's second feature premiered at the Berlin Film Festival, where it won a Silver Bear; Hawaii, where it won Best Actor; Seville, where it won Best Cinematography; and Ljubljana, where it won the FIPRESCI Prize.
Burning Bush, Agnieszka Holland (2013)
Burning Bush, Agnieszka Holland / Czech Republic, 2013
On January 16th, 1969, twenty-year-old Jan Palach, a student of history and political economy, set himself on fire in Prague's Wenceslas Square. This act of self-immolation, intended as a protest against the 1968 invasion of Czechoslovakia by Soviet armed forces, captured the attention of a nation in mourning. Young female lawyer Dagmar Buresová takes on the legal battle Palach's family wages against the occupying totalitarian regime, defending the sacrifice of one young man for his nation's freedom.
Conceived in a three-part episodic structure, Burning Bush is a sweeping depiction of a pivotal moment in Czech history. Having directed episodes of The Killing, The Wire, and House of Cards, Agnieszka Holland's original mini-series premiered at Rotterdam, New York Film Festival, and Hong Kong, where it won the SIGNIS Award. Burning Bush won 11 Czech Lions, including Best Film and Best Director, and is a New York Times Critics' Pick.
Sweet Bean, Naomi Kawase (2015)
Sweet Bean, Naomi Kawase / Japan-France-Germany, 2015
Sentaro runs a small bakery on the corner of a tree-lined street, his face lined with the contours of past sorrows. He dispassionately prepares dorayaki, traditional sweet pancakes filled with an, a red bean paste. Most of his clients are local schoolgirls, who come to gossip at his counter between classes. Responding to a part-time work ad in the window, Tokue is a seventy-six year old woman happy to assist Sentaro for a discounted wage. Eschewing the industrial red bean paste he buys in bulk, Tokue instructs Sentaro in the slow art of preparing an by hand.
Steeped in rich sensorial detail, and attuned to both the passing rhythms of nature and the simple pleasures of life, Sweet Bean is a heart-warming tale of food and friendship in contemporary Japan. Celebrated filmmaker Naomi Kawase's ninth narrative feature premiered at the Cannes Film Festival, Rotterdam; São Paulo, where it won the Audience Award; and Valladolid, where it won Best Director. Sweet Bean is a New York Times Critics' Pick.
Nuit #1, Anne Émond (2011)