LAGFF 2022 Winners

16th Los Angeles Greek Film Festival 
Red Carpet Closing Night - Orpheus Award Winners

The red carpet Closing Night of the 16th Los Angeles Greek Film Festival (LAGFF) on Sunday, May 15 at the Silver Screen Theatre, Pacific Design Center was a great success. The screening of Araceli Lemos’ award-winning “HOLY EMY”, Orpheus Awards & Reception at the state-of-the-art Silver Screen Theatre at the Pacific Design Center included VIPS, celebrities, dignitaries, along with many filmmakers from Greece. Guests enjoyed music by popular DJ Yiannis Markoulakis, Greek cuisine from Pietris Bakery and signature cocktails by Kástra Elión Vodka.

Festival Director Aris Katopodis opened the ceremony with a warm welcome to the (sold out audience). “What an exceptional Festival week we have had - We are back and we are better than ever,” exclaimed Katopodis”. The Awards Ceremony was co-hosted by Lia Bozonelis and Alex Kalognomos. 

LAGFF 2022 consisted of 64 films, including 25 female filmmakers and showcasing 8 world premieres, 5 international premieres, 7 North American premieres, 9 West Coast premieres, 13 U.S. premieres, 10 Los Angeles premieres and 14 animated films. The virtual portion of the Festival continues through May 22^th, including on-line access internationally to 50% of the films.

Orpheus Award Winners:

 

Best Feature Fiction Film 

Holy Emy by Araceli Lemos

Best Director Feature Fiction Film

Araceli Lemos for Holy Emy

 

Best Performance in a Feature Fiction Film

Angeliki Papoulia for her role in Patchwork

Honorable Mention: Nikos Zegkinoglou for his role in 18

Honorable Mention: Aris Servetalis for his role in Pack of Sheep (This one was a supporting role, but the committee thought it was worth mentioning)

Audience Award: Smyrna, My Beloved

 

Best Documentary Film

The Students of Umberto Primo by Alessandra Maioletti

Special Jury Award: How to Train an Antihero by Yannis Bletas

Special Jury Award: Memento by Nikos Ziogas

Audience Award, Outer Space Kids by George Gounezos

 

Best Short Film

To Vancouver by Artemis Anastasiadou

Honorable Mention: Brutalia, Days of Labour by Manolis Mavris

Honorable Mention: Memoir of a Veering Storm: by Sofia Georgovassili

Audience Award: Nexting by Karina Logotheti

 

Best Animation

From The Balcony by Aris Kaplanidis, Elias Roumeliotis

Honorable Mention: Afterimage by Antonis Doussias

 

IPDF Award Winner

Glory B - Director: Konstantinos Antonopoulos, Producer: Fani Skartouli

Honorable Mention: Shibboleth - Writer/ Director: Alexandra Matheou

Group photo of the winners - Photo credit: Urbanite Media/Steve Sasaki

LAGFF 2022

16th Annual Los Angeles Greek Film Festival
May 9-15 - Regal L.A. Live! May 12-29 - Virtual

Artistic & Festival Director, Aristotle Katopodis has announced the 16th Annual Los Angeles Greek Film Festival (LAGFF) will be held on May 9-15, 2022, featuring in-person screenings and events. A virtual film program of screenings and exciting webinars follows from May 12-29. “We’re thrilled to physically welcome back filmgoers and filmmakers, Lets’ Meet Again” states Katopodis. “We received over 250 film submissions this year, many reflecting exceptional creativity and diversity. While the pandemic effect was evident in the number of films produced, the perseverance of the filmmakers is astounding.”

 

Venues & Key Dates

• May 9 - Opening Night Film & Reception, hosted by UCLA’s Stavros Niarchos Foundation Center for the Study of Hellenic Culture, James Bridges Theater at UCLA

• May 10 to 15 – Theatrical Screenings, LA Live Regal Cinemas, DTLA

• May 11 - Hollywood Scene & Be Seen Bash, presented by Power Muse + LAGFF

• May 14 - Filmmaker’s Breakfast, Olympia Dukakis Tribute presented by Apollo Dukakis

• May 15 - Closing Night, Orpheus Awards & Festivities, Silver Screen Theater at Pacific Design Center, West Hollywood

The LAGFF Gold Pass ($175) - https://lagff2022.eventive.org/passes/buy

The LAGFF Gold Pass gives you access to all theatrical screenings (May 9-15); all virtual screenings, webinars and workshops (May 12-29); Opening Night; Preferred Seating for Closing Night; Hollywood Scene & Be Seen Bash; Filmmaker’s Breakfast; Olympia Dukakis Tribute event presented by Apollo Dukakis; Presentations from the International Project Discovery Forum, exclusive audit, May 15.

 

OPENING NIGHT FILM - SMYRNA, MY BELOVED (Σμύρνη μου Αγαπημένη)

Filio Baltatzi, an elderly Greek-American woman, goes to the island of Lesvos to help the refugees. She has a secret: almost a century earlier, her family lived on the island when they themselves were refugees, fleeing Smyrna after the destruction of the city. Filio’s grandmother’s diary tells the story of the family’s turbulent history, shaped by tragic international developments. Filio is accompanied to Lesvos by her reluctant granddaughter, and different generations of women in the same family come together in space and time, through the threads of history, as past and present become one.

CLOSING NIGHT FILM - HOLY EMY (Αγία Έμυ)

After their mother returns to the Philippines, sisters Emy and Teresa live in the tight-knit Filipino Catholic community in the port city of Athens. But when Teresa gets pregnant, Emy is increasingly drawn to mysterious forces that live within her.

2021, Locarno International Film Festival, Switzerland – Best First Feature – Special Mention

FESTIVAL HIGHLIGHTS:

THE POMEGRANATES OF NAGORNO-KARABAKH (Τα Ρόδια του Ναγκόρνο Καραμπάχ)

Thomas Sideris travels to the disputed region of Nagorno-Karabakh, a hotbed of fierce confrontation between Armenia and Azerbaijan and extensive military operations for at least thirty years, and records the mass exodus of Armenians from their ancestral homeland. Sideris focuses on people, as they leave their homes, jobs, and fields, following a long refugee path without knowing where or when it will end.

THE STUDENTS OF UMBERTO PRIMO (Οι μαθητές του Ουμπέρτο Πρίμο)

Under Nazi occupation. 96% of the Jewish population of Thessaloniki, Greece was sent to Auschwitz. The Students of Umberto Primo brings to life the adventures, hopes, and dreams of nine Jewish students, based on the archive found by an Italian professor and on testimony from two of the protagonists.

FEATURE FILMS:

18

In a working-class neighborhood of Athens, amid the economic crisis, the resurgence of fascism, and Covid-19, a group of 18-year-old students persecute immigrants, queers, and anyone else who is different. A classmate of theirs refuses to hide his dislike for their actions and soon becomes their target.

MUSA

The love story of Simos and Musa: A descent into darkness led by Simos. Musa wants to leave. In his attempt to stop him, Simos opens and closes the door that separates dream from reality. Will he lose Musa? Himself? Or himself in Musa?

MONDAY

Mickey and Chloe, two Americans in their mid-thirties who live in Athens, meet one whirlwind weekend in the heat of summer. Chloe’s time in Greece is drawing to a close, so she decides to explore whether one weekend’s passion can withstand the reality of the inevitable Monday.

MOON, 66 QUESTIONS (Σελήνη, 66 ερωτήσεις)

After years of absence, twenty-something Artemis returns to Athens to care for her frail father, whom she has never really known. She discovers a well-kept secret from her stoic father’s past, and for the first time, she is able to understand and truly love him.

PATCHWORK

Chara’s family is everything to her, yet she sometimes ponders a life without them. Unable to talk to anybody about her internal turmoil, she carries the burden of guilt and confusion by herself. When she strikes up a hesitant friendship with the shy yet defiant daughter of her new boss, she is forced to confront her existential angst and face a painful past she’s been trying to forget.

SAISON MORTE

A twisted story of deception and betrayal, Saison Morte is a thriller set on an island nearly deserted for the winter. Two mysterious, violent murders have taken place in a secluded hotel, and the only person who can explain what happened is a wounded man named Christos. But the police can’t confirm Christo’s far-fetched story, nobody is who they appear to be, and Christo’s situation grows ever more dire.

PACK OF SHEEP (Αγέλη Προβάτων)

Thanasis can’t pay off his debt to Stelios. When he finds out that Apostolis is in the same position, he asks Apostolis to join him to make a better deal with Stelios. As Thanasis tries to put more players into the game, two young gangsters arrive in town to push over the debtors.

SEEfest 2022

17th Annual South East European Film Festival in LA

April 27- May 2, 2022 - Fine Arts, Lumiere at Music Hall, and Virtual

 

Croatian film MURINA - Camera d'Or winner at Cannes 2021 - opens SEEfest 2022 on April 27 at Fine Arts Theatre in Beverly Hills. Tensions rise between restless teenager Julija and her oppressive father Ante when an old family friend arrives at their Croatian island home. As Ante attempts to broker a life-changing deal, their tranquil yet isolated existence leaves Julija wanting more from this influential visitor, who provides a taste of liberation over a weekend laid bare to desire and violence. Executive produced by Martin Scorsese, the film features outstanding camerawork by Hélène Louvart (The Lost Daughter, Happy as Lazzaro). Directed by: Antoneta Alamat Kusijanovic

The 2022 edition of the festival will take place at the Lumiere Music Hall Theatre in Beverly Hills showcasing feature films, documentaries, and shorts from South East Europe. This year the festival will include Ukraine in the program with two outstanding films, the 2022 Sundance directing award winner KLONDIKE directed by Maryna Er Gorbach, and the US premiere of BLINDFOLD directed by Taras Dron. Both films focus on ordinary people trying to live their lives under the constant threat of new conflict and war traumas that just won’t go away. 

For more information please visit SEEfest2022.

  

Other features films in the Festival:

AS FAR AS I CAN WALK from Serbia

A re-imagining of a traditional medieval love epic in which contemporary African migrants take the place of Serbian iconic literary heroes. Urgent and timeless at the same time, the adaptation raises questions about identity, tradition, race and love. The film was awarded the Crystal Globe, top prize of the Karlovy Vary Festival in 2021.

BLUE MOON from Romania

The film follows a girl’s psychological journey as she struggles to achieve higher education and escape the suffocating work at the mountain resort. The undercurrent of emotional violence within her extended dysfunctional family turns Irina from victim into abuser as she stumbles to find her path in an environment rife with mistrust and conflict.  An ambiguous sexual experience gives her the strength to stand up to the violent males in her family. As Irina’s coming of age story unfolds, the larger backdrop paints a stark picture of a family divided between those who went to find the riches abroad and their offspring left behind to tend to the family business in the countryside. Winner of the San Sebastian Festival 2021.

PERPETUITY from Hungary

In this dystopian tale, in the near future instead of shooting stars, planes are shooting from the sky, and instead of feelings, bullets delirium-cursed hit the heart. All that is left is to try and find the right way to connect to others in a futureless world. Directed with aplomb by the filmmaker known for his unique vision and fearless storytelling, Perpetuity blends sci-fi and horror in a potent cinematic mix.    

SUGHRA'S SON from Azerbaijan

The women do the work in a remote village while the men are fighting in WWII. A small group of deserters is hiding in the mountains and when Musa joins them, his little brother Bahtiyar acts as the liaison between the men and the village. When Barat, the lewd head of the kolkhoz, is killed by the deserter Ahad, the KGB arrive to look for the deserters and life for Sughra and Bahtiyar takes yet another dramatic turn.

LA Asian Pacific Film Festival 2022

38th Annual Asian Pacific Film Festival
May 5 - 13, 2022

The Best of Asian Pacific American Films and Filmmakers from Around the World Come to Los Angeles at the 38th Los Angeles Asian Pacific Film Festival Celebrating New Artists, Legends, Leaders, Creators, Indigenous Voices, and World Premieres

Fest Highlights Include:

The LAAPFF Legacy Award to Mira Nair
The HBO Max APA Visionaries Short Film Competition
The 20th Anniversary of ARMED WITH A CAMERA
SXSW Double Award Winner BAD AXE
Sundance Winner LEONOR WILL NEVER DIE
Alika Tengan’s EVERY DAY IN KAIMUKĪ 
Eugene Yi and Julie Ha’s FREE CHOL SOO LEE
West Coast Premiere of OMOIYARI: A SONG FILM BY KISHI BASHI

World Premieres of ALL I WANT IS EVERYTHING; ISTIKHAARA, NEW YORK; and 80 YEARS LATER

North American Premieres of THE ASSAULT, ARISAKA and THE GIRL FROM THE OTHER SIDE

The Los Angeles Premieres of CROSSING; DAWNING; DEALING WITH DAD; DELIKADO; MAIKA; STAY THE NIGHT and WATERMAN

The Los Angeles Asian Pacific Film Festival (LAAPFF), presented annually by Visual Communications (VC), Southern California’s leading showcase for new Asian Pacific American and Asian international cinema, announced today the program for the 38th edition of the festival. The festival returns May 5th to 13th in Los Angeles and will feature an exciting lineup of in-person programming, along with virtual programming for our audiences at home in Southern California and beyond.

As Visual Communications premiere annual event, LAAPFF continues to build connections between peoples and generations through the amplification of Asian and Pacific Islander film, video, and media. The festival celebrates Asian Pacific American filmmakers and Asian international artists with profound, important and entertaining films and content from the new voices of cinema while honoring the legends and leaders who keep this cultural movement going forward. Important themes of representation, authorship, responsibility and ethics are at the forefront of content creation. This year’s line up provides incredible examples of those ideas and themes from Asian Pacific artists who are committed to excellence in cinema in America and around the world.

To kick off  this year's fest, LAAPFF will present an Opening Day lineup of films representative of VC communities and values - setting the stage for community-forward film festival. The lineup will include the LA Premiere of EVERY DAY IN KAIMUKĪ, directed by Alika Tengan, a new and important indigenous filmmaker from Hawaii. Anchoring the evening, LAAPFF will celebrate and introduce the world premiere works from the ARMED WITH THE CAMERA Fellowship. The fellowship  now in its 20th year, has shepherded the early works notable alums including: Christopher Makoto Yogi (Director, I WAS A SIMPLE MAN),  Kristina Wong (2022 Lucille Lortel Awards Nominee for Outstanding Solo Show), Roxy Shih (Director, LIST OF A LIFETIME) and more.This year’s cohort, who gathered during an unprecedented of era social distancing, produced 9 world premieres that tenderly touch upon community movement, family legacy, and ancestral connection.

The 38th Festival edition will also present the LAAPFF Legacy Award to Mira Nair; The HBO Max APA Visionaries Short Film Competition; the SXSW Double Award Winner BAD AXE; Sundance Winner LEONOR WILL NEVER DIE; Eugene Yi and Julie Ha’s timely Sundance hit FREE CHOL SOO LEE; the West Coast Premiere of OMOIYARI: A SONG FILM BY KISHI BASHI (the renowned musician’s directorial debut fresh from SXSW); the North American Premieres of THE ASSAULT, ARISAKA and the animated feature THE GIRL FROM THE OTHER SIDE; the Los Angeles Premieres of MAIKA, WATERMAN, DEALING WITH DAD, DELIKADO, CROSSING and STAY THE NIGHT; and the World Premieres of: ISTIKHAARA, NEW YORK; DAWNING; DIGITAL HISTORIES and 80 YEARS LATER.

“In our 38th edition, the Los Angeles Asian Pacific Film Festival continues to transform itself to reflect our ever-evolving artists and experiences,” says Executive Director Francis Cullado. “In a time when our community is dealing straight up with anti-Asian Hate crimes, living through an uncertain pandemic, and adjusting to the ongoing global issues affecting all of us, our festival is instilling a sense of pride, respect and community through art and film. These stories connect us to one another and fill our lives with a sense of purpose. This year, we share a renewed collectiveness to inspire creativity and support collaboration, and the opportunity to gather and celebrate our histories and our lives from all corners of the world.”

Tickets go on sale Friday, April 15th at 5PM PST to the general public. Complete details available at LAAPFF2022.

 

THE 38TH LAAPFF FESTIVAL HIGHLIGHTS

 

Opening Day Lineup

The festival will kick off May 5th at the Director’s Guild of America Theater with a robust Day One line-up that includes:
●      The World Premieres of 20th edition of Armed With A Camera showcase, a fellowship for Emerging Media Artists to develop the next generation of Asian American, Native Hawaiian, and Pacific Islander artists to connect our communities through the power of our stories. Past Armed With A Camera fellows include: Christopher Makoto Yogi (Director, I WAS A SIMPLE MAN) AWC 2013 - MAKOTO: OR, HONESTY; Evan Jackson Leong (Director, SNAKEHEAD) AWC 2003 - SUCKERBALL 73; and Kristina Wong (2022 Lucille Lortel Awards Nominee for Outstanding Solo Show) AWC 2003 - BEAT THE BUS.
●     The Los Angeles Premiere of Alika Tengan debut feature EVERY DAY IN KAIMUKI following its World Premiere at this year's Sundance Film Festival. 
●      Anam Abbas THIS STAINED DAWN, a powerful look Karachi’s feminists who organise a woman’s march, coming up against Pakistan’s state, media and radical religious right;
●      And a special showcase featuring the Visual Communications archive, anchored by the early works of Robert A. Nakamura.

Centerpiece Weekend

The festival continues at the DGA Theater with the Centerpiece Weekend featuring:
●      The North American Premiere of Adilkhan Yerzhanov’s THE ASSAULT, fresh from its World Premiere at IFF Rotterdam and the first film from Kazakhstan to screen at the festival.  
●      New feature filmmaker David Siev’s SXSW Audience Award and Special Jury prize winner BAD AXE, a moving look at his in a rural Michigan, as they now fight to keep their restaurant alive in the face of a global pandemic, racial reckoning, and generational scars from the Cambodian Killing Fields.
●      Festival alum Tom Huang’s family dramedy DEALING WITH DAD starring Ally Maki, Hayden Szeto, And Peter S. Kim.
●      First time filmmakers Eugene Yi and Julie Ha’s Sundance sensation FREE CHOL SOO LEE focusing on the story of a Korean American death row inmate convicted of a 1973 Chinatown gangland murder in San Francisco, and the activists who led a pan-Asian American movement to free him .
●      Award winning director Ham Tran’s Vietnamese sci-fi kids adventure MAIKA. When a meteor falls to earth, 8-year-old Hung meets an alien girl from the planet Maika, searching for her lost friend.
●      Fresh new feature filmmaker Martika Ramirez Escobar’s Sundance Special Jury Winner LEONOR WILL NEVER DIE.
●      Emerging filmmaker Renuka Jeyapalan’s debut feature STAY THE NIGHT will screen following its World Premiere at SXSW.

 

Additional Festival Highlights

●      The LA Premiere of WATERMAN, Isaac Halasima’s look at Native Hawaiian and surfing icon Duke Kahanamoku, narrated by Jason Momoa.
●      MSNBC Anchor Richard Lui’s latest film HIDDEN WOUNDS which profiles three families at the intersection of mental health and caregiving.
●      The West Coast premiere of DELIKADO, an environmental thriller on how corrupt corporate and political interests are swallowing small Indigenous communities in the Philippines, and across the globe. 
●      Young Min Kim's narrative feature debut DAWNING, a chilling psychological thriller.
●      Special Presentation of FRAN ROCKSTAR!, a retrospective of short films celebrating one of VC’s beloved veterans of the Digital Histories program, Frances Ito, Ito who will celebrate her 90th birthday this year, will also celebrate the world premiere of her 12th film at this year’s fest.
●      The LA Premiere Don Josephus Raphael Eblahan’s THE HEADHUNTER’S DAUGHTER, winner of the Sundance Short Film Grand Jury Prize.
●      The latest film from acclaimed Philippine director Mikhail Red’s – the revenge thriller ARISAKA - which follows a policewoman who has to retrace the route of the Bataan Death March to escape her captors.
●      The LA premiere of BUSAN, 1999,  a drama from Thomas Percy Kim that follows a Korean-American woman return to her mother's rustic home. 

●      Deann Borshay Liem’s CROSSING, which looks at a group of international women peacemakers sets out on a risky journey across the demilitarized zone between North and South Korea.
●      Acclaimed musician Kishi Bashi explores the legacy of Japanese American internment through his music in his directorial debut OMOIYARI: A SONG FILM BY KISHI BASHI, co-directed with Justin Taylor Smith which premiered at SXSW.
●      Legacy Award presented to Mira Nair, which will include a Special Anniversary screening of SALAAM BOMBAY!, her acclaimed breakthrough feature film.
●      The North American premiere of the animated feature THE GIRL FROM THE OTHER SIDE, adapted from a manga series by the same name and directed by Yutaru Kubo and Satomi Maiya.

The LAAPFF Legacy Award to Mira Nair

This year, the festival will uplift Mira Nair as a pioneer whose storytelling has received industry and critical acclaim, and raised visibility for South Asian narratives.  LAAPFF is delighted to present this year’s LAAPFF Legacy Award to director Mira Nair for the way her nuanced narratives reflect an authentic family voice and prompt critical reflection. LAAPFF audiences can watch a Special Presentation of Nair’s award-winning feature SALAAM BOMBAY! on the big screen. Additionally, virtual audiences at home can watch an artist conversation with Nair.


World Premieres at LAAPFF

LAAPFF is also honored to host the World Premieres of the following films:
●      Yasir Masood’s narrative feature debut ISTIKHAARA, NEW YORK which follows Reza, an artist and Brooklyn transplant, Babbu, a recent immigrant and revolutionary from Delhi, and Rahul, an aspiring Imam and crony capitalist, finding themselves in an America where they are ever the more important but feeling even more looked over.
●      The stylish action thriller ALL I WANT IS EVERYTHING, from director Alexandra Cuerdo.
●      80 YEARS LATER, from Celine Parreñas Shimizu, which captures how families continually grapple with the legacy of Executive Order 9066 which imprisoned Japanese Americans in World War II.

FUSION 2022

 OUTFEST FUSION 2022 - April 8-17

OUTFEST FUSION QTBIPOC FILM FESTIVAL ANNOUNCES LINEUP FOR 2022

HYBRID FESTIVAL RUNS APRIL 8- 17 AND INCLUDES
7 FEATURES, 52 SHORTS, 3 EPISODICS, PANELS, WORKSHOPS AND MORE

 

Outfest, the Los Angeles-based nonprofit organization dedicated to creating visibility for diverse LGBTQIA+ stories and empowering tomorrow’s artists and storytellers, today announced its lineup for the 2022 Outfest Fusion QTBIPOC (Queer, Trans, Black, Indigenous and People of Color) Film Festival, presented by IMDbPro and Hyundai. This year’s festival will feature 7 feature films, 52 short films, 3 episodics, a One-Minute Movie Contest sponsored by Hyundai, as well as workshops and panels. The 10-day festival will be held in-person from April 8th to April 13th and online from April 13th to April 17th, and will be open to filmmakers and the general public to attend. Visit OutfestFusion.com to purchase tickets.

This year marks for the 40th anniversary for Outfest and the 19th year of Outfest Fusion, which showcases the work of queer and trans filmmakers of color, providing the audiences and storytellers alike with the critical visibility that is needed to build careers, opportunities, and empathy for our stories.  Outfest Fusion celebrates the rich heritage of the individuals that make up the Los Angeles community, while also empowering and investing in their success with educational workshops, masterclasses, networking events, and the renowned One-Minute Movie Contest.  

Founded in 2004 amongst a circle of community organizers and Outfest Board Members, the Outfest Fusion QTBIPOC Film Festival is a response to the public and industry need for more inclusive spaces where storytellers and filmmakers of color can receive the opportunities and the visibility they struggle to find for themselves and their work. To date, Outfest Fusion has showcased over 10,000 works to nearly 250,000 audience members and impacted over 2,500 storytellers and up and coming industry members with its Outfest Fusion workshops, contests, and events. 

The Festival includes the One-Minute Movie Contest sponsored by Hyundai, a democratic way to discover new voices and bring them into the Outfest Fusion family. Aspiring and established filmmakers use their cell phones or cameras to shoot one-minute short films on a predetermined topic - “Past Lives, Future Dreams.”  The films will be screened at Outfest Fusion Fête. The winners will receive cash prizes and will go on to play the Outfest Los Angeles LGBTQ Film Festival in July. For complete listings and to purchase tickets, log on to OutfestFusion.com. Outfest Fusion 2022 is presented by IMDbPro and Hyundai; premiere sponsors include AARP, Ammo Creative, Comcast NBCUniversal, Gilead, and The Fight Magazine; and media sponsors are Clear Channel Outdoor, Edge Media, Metro Weekly, PMG, Pride Media, Queerty, Rainbow Media, and Variety. 

 

FEATURE FILMS

BLACK AS U R directed by Micheal Rice

• In the wake of Black Lives Matter, filmmaker Michael Rice addresses the trans/homophobia within the Black community by magnifying the stories of Black LGBTQ+ people and their contributions to the Black liberation movement.

FINLANDIA directed by Horacio Alcala

• Belonging to a community of muxes — untethered by the gender binary — Delirio, Amaranta, Mariano traverse their past, present, and future.

 

KEEP THE CAMERAS ROLLING: THE PEDRO ZAMORA WAY directed by William T. Horner, Stacey Woelfel

• He was clever, articulate, and good-looking. At only 22, Pedro Zamora, a gay Cuban immigrant, had the American public at the palm of his hands as he stepped into the limelight on MTV’s REAL WORLD. After contracting AIDS as a teenager, he dedicated his life to destigmatizing the narrative around the illness – and being the sympathetic beauty on national television helped do that. While KEEP THE CAMERAS ROLLING is an exhibition of Zamora’s most joyous moments, like his televised wedding, it also explores the role of the media in shaping a generation’s understanding of social issues. An amalgam of home videos, archival footage, and interviews with the Zamora family, REAL WORLD cast members, and various activists, the film examines the legacy of a young man who helped change the face of AIDS in America. 

MUSTACHE MONDAYS (ARTBOUND) directed by Marianne Amelinckx

• "It was the best party in L.A. hands down."

See how a roving LGBTQ night club event in Los Angeles called “Mustache Mondays” became a creative incubator for today’s leading edge contemporary artists. This film examines the history of these spaces and how they shaped the Queer cultural fabric unique to Southern California. 

TRANSVERSALS directed by Émerson Maranhão

• Émerson Maranhão's documentary brings together the stories of five transgender people living in the state of Ceará in Brazil, recounting stories of being fearless alongside their absolute commitment to thrive.

WHITE FROG directed by Quentin Lee

• Nick is a highschool freshman on the Autism spectrum who idolizes his older brother Chaz, a popular straight-A student whose future seems set. When Chaz is suddenly killed in a tragic accident, Nick attempts to reconstruct the life his brother left behind, uncovering secrets that threaten to rip their family apart. Quentin Lee directs a tremendous ensemble cast of veteran and rising stars including B.D. Wong, Joan Chen, Harry Shum Jr., Henry David Hwang, Tyler Posey, Amy Hill, and Booboo Stewart in a gripping mystery of loss and redemption at the intersections of queerness, neurodiversity, and Asian-American identity.

 

WILDHOOD directed by Bretten Hannam

• Two brothers embark on a journey to find their birth mother after their abusive white father had lied for years about her whereabouts; along the way, they reconnect with their indigenous heritage and make a new friend.

For more information please visit OUTFEST FUSION 2022

César Winners 2022

 46th César Winners

The 46th César Awards took place on February 25th at L'Olympia Bruno Coquatrix in Paris. The show was hosted by Antoine de Caunes. Cate Blanchett received the Honorary César Award. Here are the complete winners:

BEST FILM

Lost Illusions (Illusions perdues) - directed by Xavier Giannoli

BEST DIRECTOR

Leos Carax - Annette

BEST ACTOR

Benoit Magimel - Peaceful (De son vivant)

BEST ACTRESS

Valérie Lemercier - Aline

BEST SUPPORTING ACTOR

Vincent Lacoste - Lost Illusions

BEST SUPPORTING ACTRESS

Aissatou Dialla Sagna - La Fracture

BEST DEBUT FEATURE

Les Magnétiques - directed by Vincent Maël Cardona

BEST MALE NEWCOMER

Benjamin Voisin - Lost Illusions

BEST FEMALE NEWCOMER

Anamaria Vartolomei - Happening (L'Événement)

BEST ANIMATED FEATURE

The Summit of the Gods (Le Sommet des dieux) - directed by Patrick Imbert

BEST ANIMATED SHORT

Folie Douce, Folie Dure - directed by Marine Laclotte

BEST ORIGINAL SCORE

Ron Mael, Russell Mael - Annette

BEST ADAPTED SCREENPLAY

Xavier Giannoli, Jacques Fieschi – Lost Illusions

BEST ORIGINAL SCREENPLAY

Arthur Harari, Vincent Poymiro – Onoda, 10,000 nuits dans la jungle

BEST CINEMATOGRAPHY

Christophe Beaucarne - Lost Illusions

BEST EDITING

Nelly Quettier - Annette

BEST FOREIGN FILM

The Father - directed by Florian Zeller

BEST DOCUMENTARY FEATURE

The Velvet Queen (La Panthère des Neiges) - directed by Marie Amiguet and Vincent Munier

BEST DOCUMENTARY SHORT

Maalbeek - directed Ismaël Joffroy Chandoutis

BEST SET DESIGN

Riton Dupire-Clémént - Lost Illusions

BEST COSTUME DESIGN

Pierre-Jean Laroque - Lost Illusions

BEST SHORT FILM

Les Mauvais Garçons - directed by Elie Girard

BEST VISUAL EFFECTS

Guillaume Pondard - Annette

BEST SOUND

Erwan Verzahnet, Katie Boutin, Maxence Duster, Paul Heymans, Thomas Gauder —  Annette

TOP 25 - BEST OF 2021

 

My favorite 25 BEST FILMS of 2021 (in alphabetical order):

107 MOTHERS

Peter Kerekes (Slovakia)

BERGMAN ISLAND

Mia Hansen-Løve (France)

THE DISCIPLE

Chaitanya Tamhane (India)

DRIVE MY CAR

ドライブ・マイ・カー

Ryusuke Hamaguchi (Japan)

FLEE

Jonas Poher Rasmussen (Denmark)

THE FRENCH DISPATCH

Wes Anderson (US)

GREAT FREEDOM

Große Freiheit

Sebastian Meise (Austria)

THE HAND OF GOD

È stata la mano di Dio

Paolo Sorrentino (Italy)

A HERO

قهرمان

Asghar Farhadi (Iran)

HIT THE ROAD

جاده خاکی

Panah Panahi (Iran)

THE HOLE

Il Buco

Michelangelo Frammartino (Italy)

LICORICE PIZZA

Paul Thomas Anderson (US)

LOVE AFFAIR(S)

Les Choses qu'on dit, les choses qu'on fait

Emmanuel Mouret (France)

THE MAN WHO SOLD HIS SKIN

الرجل الذي باع ظهره

Kaouther Ben Hania (Tunisia)

NEVER GONNA SNOW AGAIN

Małgorzata Szumowska & Michał Englert (Poland)

PARALLEL MOTHERS

Madres Paralelas

Pedro Almodóvar (Spain)

PRIVATE DESERT

Deserto Particular

Aly Muritiba (Brazil)

QUO VADIS, AIDA?

Jasmila Žbanić (Bosnia & Herzegovina)

RED ROCKET

Sean Baker (US)

THE SPARKS BROTHERS

Edgar Wright (US)

A TALE OF LOVE AND DESIRE

Une histoire d'amour et de désir

Leyla Bouzid (France/Tunisia)

TITANE

Julia Ducournau (France)

THE TSUGUA DIARIES

Diários de Otsoga

Miguel Gomes & Maureen Fazendeiro (Portugal)

THE VELVET UNDERGROUND

Todd Haynes (US)

WHEEL OF FORTUNE AND FANTASY

偶然と想像

Ryusuke Hamaguchi (Japan)