|
|
 |
35 Years of the Huesca International Film Festival
This year, The Huesca International Film Festival turns 35. During Franco’s oppressive regime in Spain, there was a complete absence of civil liberties. It is therefore hard to believe that a group of young people –film enthusiasts concerned about the lack of freedom in their society– would find their way through the maze of restrictions to challenge censorship and create a film festival that presented works of the imagination, novel perceptions, unique styles, literature; films that condemned repression elsewhere and a wide range of documentaries and short films. And the system allowed it. Could Huesca’s small population –a mere 35,000– be the reason behind it?
During the past 35 years, we have been witness to the decline of dictatorship and the rise of democracy in Spain; we’ve also seen the fall of the Berlin wall, the transformation of the former Soviet Union, the evolution of democracy in Latin America, the rise of a strange form of Capitalism in China, and so on. Once censorship and oppression were lifted, we witnessed the birth of great filmmaking, new narratives, new feelings and new forms of love, and, finally, we were present when the Morelia International Film Festival began. A feast of short films, documentaries, and first works by young directors, this festival offers the best of the resurgent Mexican film industry. And, as if that weren’t enough, we interact with great filmmakers from all over the world, who wander the streets of Morelia and take in the spectacular beauty of this World Heritage site, where there is a tangible sense of history around every corner. The conferences, exhibits, get-togethers, and exceptional mestizo cuisine of Michoacán make for a unique festival atmosphere.
I often remind my friend Daniela Michel of how fortunate she is for being able to organize a festival that has generous sponsorship, a proficient team, and finally, an enthusiastic audience. All these elements will help this festival become one of the best in the world.
Finally, I’d like to thank Alejandro Ramírez, President of the Morelia International Film Festival’s organizing committee, for this tribute to the Huesca International Film Fest in its 35th year, and for the opportunity to present a small selection of awardwinning Spanish short films, which premiered at Huesca during the incipient 21st century.
There is strength in numbers. I hope our two festivals, one of them young and the other nearly mature, will prove how team effort and cultural – or cinematic- partnerships allow society to be all the more free and wise.
JOSÉ MARÍA ESCRICHE OTAL
Director of the Huesca International Film Festival
Movies:
Bailongas
Clases particulares
Física II
Nasija
El prestidigitador
La primera vez
Rosario
Topeka
Bamboleho
Jacques Demy, The Enchanter
1960-1970:His prodigiuos decade.
It is often the case that evidently near-sighted critics and programmers tend to minimize the scope and breadth of Jacques Demy’s work—the result of a pitiful ignorance, inexcusable considering that during the 60’s, French cinema was going through a period of rapid renovation and laying the grounds for a new cinema. The movement was known as the French New Wave, the Nouvelle Vague, and Jacques Demy played an integral part in its beginnings, contributing with a series of innovative short films, and later, with his first feature film, Lola (1960). The latter was promoted by Jean Luc Godard and stood out, among other things, for the beauty of its black and white cinematography, its peculiar use of music (Michel Legrand makes an appearance in the filmmaker’s universe) and the light and carefree treatment of the thinly disguised theme of prostitution, represented in its protagonist—a magnificent Anouk Aimée.
Even from this first film, one can appreciate Demy’s trademark romantic spirit —a quality with echoes in the work of François Truffaut. The characteristic disillusionment and pessimism that infuses the best romantic pieces would mark the director’s second feature, Bay of Angels— a detailed account of the deteriorating love of a couple, featuring Jeanne Moreau in the role of a woman consumed by her obsession for gambling.
However, Demy’s definitive break would come in 1964, with the receipt of the Palme D’or at Cannes for The Umbrellas of Cherbourg, perhaps his absolute masterpiece. The film not only established his distinctive style, but set him apart form the stylistic canon of the New Wave, allowing him to indulge in the cult of the genre he adored: the musical.
Many would later reject his choice and accuse him of decadence —but we should keep in mind that many of the figures to emerge from the movement would also look to the classic genres of American cinema for inspiration (Truffaut and Claude Chabrol, for instance, both worked within the thriller genre —the latter continues to do so to this day). Godard himself would pay tribute to the American musical in A Woman is a Woman (Une femme est une femme, 1961)— just three years before Demy accomplished the dream of his professional life.
But the apparent candor and gaiety of Demy’s musicals conceals more somber themes. The bitter ending of The Umbrellas of Cherbourg, for example, confirms the lack of devotion and faith of its protagonist. In The Young Girls of Rochefort (1966) the beauty of the mise en scène underscores the ephemeral and illusory nature of love affairs—not to mention that ingenious song which recounts the most recent crimes committed by the serial killer that roams the city. And finally, with the classic children’s film Donkey Skin (1970), Demy adapts the story by Charles Perrault without minimizing its obvious and scandalous reference to incest. Demy was, in sum, an absolute romantic who could not relinquish the themes so dear to him; the spectre of death, the deception of love, and the corruption of the soul. Innocence, Demy used to say, hides many dark things “and in my films mycharacters are always tempted by that which they don’t understand, and they end up devoured by passion.”
On a separate front, re-experiencing Demy’s work allows us to discover his constant and intelligent references to painting, literature, philosophy, opera and fairytales. He manages to combine powerfulsocial critique with cutting edge film technique.Oh! And one must note that his universeis always populated by alluring and exuberant women who are constantly fending for themselves— emancipated from a professional and sexual point of view (something which is perhaps not so striking in this day and age, but which was revolutionary in its time).
The films presented at the Morelia International Film Festival— obtained thanks to the invaluable support of the French Embassy in Mexico— let us rediscover the work of a great filmmaker in brand new 35 mm prints, focusing on his most prolific, successful and noteworthy period: the 60s.
The program also includes Jacquot de Nantes (1991) a film unknown in Mexico, directed by Demy’s widow, Agnés Varda, which reconstructs Demy’s childhood from his memories.
JOAQUÍN RODRÍGUEZ
Movies:
La Baie des Anges
Les Demoiselles de Rochefortt
Les parapluies de Cherbourg
Lola
Peau d’âne
Children’s Program
As every year, the Morelia International Film Festival presents a special program dedicated principally to short films directed by children and teenagers. Two organizations in particular stand out for providing young filmmakers with the necessary tools and instruction: La Matatena, based in Mexico City, and Juguemos a grabar (Let’s Make Movies) based in Morelia.
Program:
La Matatena, A.C.
1. Canijo blues canino (2 min.)
Dir.: Dominique Jonard
2. Císcalo císcalo diablo panzón (5:30 min.)
Dir.: Amanda Wallace, Antonio Cerdán
3. El examen (3:30 min.)
Dir.: Colectivo La Matatena
4. Percepciones (5 min.)
Dir.: Indira Cato
5. Perrito Bomba (10 min.)
Dir.: Andrés Meléndez
6. Polo Norte (3 min.)
Dir.: Colectivo La Matatena
7. La transformación (2 min.)
Dir.: Colectivo La Matatena
Let’s Film!
(Juguemos a grabar - part two)
Young Filmmakers from Michoacán This is the second part of the course Let’s Film! (Juguemos a grabar). It was organized in collaboration with the Association of Filmmakers and Video Technicians of Michoacán and the Ministry of Culture of the State of Michoacán. Its two main objectives were, firstly, to provide young filmmakers with an opportunity to shoot two 20 minute films, and, secondly, to promote digital filming. Twenty children from Michoacán, aged 9-15, will write the scripts, as well as produce, shoot, and post-produce these short films, which will deal with topics such as gender equity and physical challenges.
Over the course of four months the children attended courses on make-up design, film production, film direction, music, drama, sketching, scrip writing, editing, and camera operation, always under the supervision of professional filmmakers from Michoacán.
Both Fábrica de esferas and Ver con el corazón are the result of the visual journey that these young filmmakers from Michoacán have taken us through.
Program:
1. Fábrica de esferas (20 min.)
2. Ver en el corazón (20 min.)
|
|
|
|
|
