EnergaCAMERIMAGE announce Documentary Shorts Competition & Contemporary World Cinema Line-ups

Oct 24, 2022

The aim of the Documentary Shorts Competition is to recognise the art of documentary filmmaking as creative interpretation of reality. Putting emphasis on the visual and aesthetic aspects of the selected nonfiction entries, the jury awards the best cinematographers in the competition.

The prestige of Documentary Shorts Competition was recognised by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences which has chosen EnergaCAMERIMAGE Festival as the ACADEMY AWARD® qualifying festival in the Documentary Short Subject category. This means that the Golden Frog award winners in Documentary Shorts Competition at EnergaCAMERIMAGE will qualify for consideration in the Documentary Short Subject category of the Annual Academy Awards without the standard theatrical run, provided that the given film complies with other Academy rules.

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DOCUMENTARY SHORTS COMPETITION 2022 LINE-UP

BOJA

Boja is living the last years of her life, working hard on the family farm located among the war-scarred ruins of Močioci, a ghost village in the mountains above the city of Sarajevo (Bosnia and Herzegovina). Her brother’s patriarchal reign additionally weights on the inescapable routine of Boja’s life. To escape, Boja searches for solace in the pastoral visions of nature, as she roams through the memories of days gone by.

Director: Anna Fernandez De Paco
Cinematographer: Anna Fernandez De Paco
Produced by: Anna Fernandez De Paco, Emina Ganič, Abbas Nokhasteh
Country and year: Bosnia & Herzegovina, Spain, UK, 2022

CHEMKIDS

© Philipp Schaeffer

Chemnitz used to be an East German industrial metropolis and for the young people the path to adulthood was usually well defined – they obtained their training and sometimes remained in the same company for decades. These certainties no longer exist. Nowadays, the young generation in their early twenties has big dreams and all the possibilities, at least in theory – but they also have parents who experienced the exact opposite back in their twenties. So it’s very easy for both generations to feel misunderstood. Chemnitz is no longer the industrial metropolis it once was, but this is also nothing new… Chemnitz is something in-between and if it realized this fact, the young generation could be its future.

Director: Julius Gintaras Blum
Cinematographer: Philipp Schaeffer
Produced by: Leon Harms
Country and year: Germany, 2022

CHURCHILL, POLAR BEAR TOWN

Every year in northern Canada, polar bears migrate to Hudson Bay to hunt seals. From October to November, while waiting for the pack ice to form, they take up residence on the outskirts of the town of Churchill – with a population of 800. Hunted since the old days and now safari stars, the bears have become a tourist attraction and therefore a considerable source of income for Churchill. The small town is a unique illustration of the complex links between our modern world and the so-called ‘wild’ or natural one.

Director: Annabelle Amoros
Cinematographers: Annabelle Amoros, Negin Khazaee
Produced by: Paraiso Production
Country and year: France, 2021

HEART VALLEY

Heart Valley follows a day in the life of Wilf Davies, a shepherd from the small village of Cellan in Wales. Kind and inquisitive, the film looks at the world through Wilf’s eyes, asking questions about the things that we should truly value.

Director: Christian Cargill
Cinematographer: Christian Cargill
Produced by: Pulse Films
Country and year: Wales, UK, 2022

HOLY COWBOYS

A Hindu teen and his friends tread the bizarre world of a ‘cow protection’ vigilante group to end cow slaughter, exploring what it means to be a saviour of the holy cow in modern day India. The film takes a hybrid approach to shed light on the growing Hindu nationalist influence on youth and their brand of retributive justice in the name of the cow. All while the stray cattle forage the garbage dumps, on the streets of the same country that considers it sacred.

Director: Varun Chopra
Cinematographer: Martin Taube
Produced by: The Corner Shop
Country and year: India, 2021

IN RUINS

Two women sustain a world where care is in ruins. Gladys, from her everlasting confinement in the house where she works as a live-in servant. Ima, in her everlasting waiting on the seashore for the next ship breaking its nets. Both have unrecognised jobs in which duties invade them until there’s no room for their own lives. It doesn’t matter what time their phones ring. Gladys can never answer, Ima is obliged to answer at all times. They both have to leave their families behind. Spaces that are work, work that is about houses and houses that are not always homes. The memories of their experiences are intertwined in a sensory story that leads us to a question: whose hands are the ones to change the situation?

Original title: Hondarrak
Directors: Marta Gómez, Paula Iglesias
Cinematographer: Lara Vilanova Sentís
Produced by: Al Borde Films
Country and year: Spain, 2022

JAIME

Jaime, a 33 years old man, has been in a mental institution for almost half of his life. Through a series of conversations, Jaime shares his world view, his fears, his feats and a secret.

Director: Francisco Javier Rodriguez
Cinematographer: Francisco Javier Rodriguez
Produced by: Francisco Javier Rodriguez
Country and year: Belgium, 2022

LABORATORY NO. 2

The documentary Laboratory No. 2 is the story of an old man who has been working in the autopsy department of Sulaymaniyah University of Medical Sciences for 14 years. During these years, he works on a corpse. Finally, he retires and decides that…

Original title: تاقیگەی ژمارە 2
Polish title: Laboratorium nr 2
Directors: Edris Abdi, Awara Omer
Cinematographer: Awara Omer
Produced by: Edris Abdi, Awara Omer
Country and year: Kurdistan, 2021

LONG LINE OF LADIES

Long Line of Ladies intimately observes the months-long process of one girl and her tight-knit Karuk community as they come together to prepare for her Ihuk, the coming-of-age ceremony for girls which went dormant for over 120 years due to the violence and destruction brought on by the Gold Rush. In the weeks leading up to her Ihuk, Ahty learns traditional dances and songs and mentally and physically prepares to spend four days blindfolded and fasting. Meanwhile, the women and men around her work tirelessly to pass down knowledge, prepare regalia, tools and food, and above all, to promote the continued revitalization of their traditions.

Directors: Shaandiin Tome, Rayka Zehtabchi
Cinematographer: Sam A. Davis
Produced by: Junk Drawer
Country and year: USA, 2022

MOODY

Mudi, a natural-born dancer, and his old mother live completely alone on a tiny tropical island in Indonesia. The movie is a dreamlike story of their love-hate relationship, loneliness in “paradise” and connection with the spirit world.

Directors: Karolina Karwan, Tomasz Ratter
Cinematographers: Karolina Karwan, Tomasz Ratter
Produced by: Studio Munka SFP
Country and year: Poland, 2022

A MOUTHFUL OF PETROL

Wayne started banger racing in his 20’s. Now it’s time for his 12-year-old son, JayDee, to carry the torch. As his first race draws closer, so does the pressure: to make his dad proud, keep himself from getting injured, and to win the race.

Polish title: Łyk benzyny
Director: Jess Kohl
Cinematographer: Adric Watson
Produced by: Jess Kohl
Country and year: UK, 2022

POLAR NIGHT LIGHT

Polar Night Light is a short documentary about love for the sled dogs. Antti, a musher from Northern Finland, won’t give up his way of life despite being advised to do so. In the dogsled world there is no going back after hopping on the sled. The film follows him during the polar night while his freedom to do what he wants is being compromised.

Original title: Kaamoksen valossa
Director: Niko Väistö
Cinematographer: Aku Koskinen
Produced by: ELO Film School of Aalto University
Country and year: Finland, 2022

PTITSA

Set during a pandemic, the story unfolds in the family home of two women – a mother and her adult daughter. In one part of the house is the mother’s music school, which she runs online. She is a piano teacher, a strong and organised woman who only has contact with her students and therefore has an endless sea of children around her. In the other part of the house is the daughter’s painting studio. The two worlds rarely come into contact with one another, representing a metaphor for human loneliness. Ultimately, however, the protagonists are brought together by the tragic story shared over the phone and involving the death of Katya, the daughter of their friend Inna.

Director: Alina Maksimenko
Cinematographer: Alina Maksimenko
Produced by: Wajda Studio
Country and year: Poland, Ukraine, 2022

SKYWARD

Skyward follows two young birdwatchers – Mya and Arjun – as they navigate their passion for nature, wildlife and conservation against the backdrop of school, their peers and the challenges of coming of age. The film follows them from their solitary concern to being able to share their art with the world; as Mya gains notoriety and Arjun steps into his future. With sparse dialogue, rich sound design and immersive music, the film places the audience in the position of birdwatcher and asks us to observe with meditation and patience. A creative documentary exploring our relationship with nature and wildlife.

Director: Jessica Bishopp
Cinematographer: Anna MacDonald
Produced by: She Makes Productions
Country and year: UK, 2022

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CONTEMPORARY WORLD CINEMA AT ENERGACAMERIMAGE 2022

AMSTERDAM

Amsterdam is an original crime epic about three close friends who find themselves at the center of one of the most shocking secret plots in American history. A fascinating and richly intricate tale that brilliantly weaves historical fact with fiction for a timely, cinematic experience, the film stars Academy Award® winner Christian Bale, two-time Oscar® nominee Margot Robbie, John David Washington, Alessandro Nivola, Andrea Riseborough, Anya Taylor-Joy, Chris Rock, Matthias Schoenaerts, Michael Shannon, Mike Myers, Taylor Swift, Timothy Olyphant, Zoe Saldaña, with Oscar® winner Rami Malek and two-time Academy Award® winner Robert De Niro.

Director: David O. Russell
Cinematographer: Emmanuel ‘Chivo’ Lubezki
Produced by: 20th Century Studios, Canterbury Classic, Forest Hill Entertainment, New Regency Productions, Regency Enterprises
Polish distributor: The Walt Disney Company Polska
Country and year: USA, 2022

ARGENTINA, 1985

Argentina, 1985 is inspired by the true story of public prosecutors Julio Strassera and Luis Moreno Ocampo, who dared to investigate and prosecute Argentina’s bloodiest military dictatorship in 1985. Undeterred by the military’s still considerable influence within their fragile new democracy, Strassera and Moreno Ocampo assembled a young legal team of unlikely heroes for their David-vs-Goliath battle. Under constant threat to themselves and their families, they raced against time to bring justice to the victims of the military junta.

Director: Santiago Mitre
Cinematographer: Javier Juliá
Produced by: Amazon Studios, Infinity Hill, Kenya Films, La Unión de los Ríos
Polish distributor: Amazon Studios
Country and year: Argentina, USA, UK, 2022

ARMAGEDDON TIME

Courtesy of Anne Joyce / Focus Features

From acclaimed filmmaker James Gray, Armageddon Time is a deeply personal coming-of-age story about the strength of family and the generational pursuit of the American Dream. The film features an all-star cast including Anthony Hopkins, Anne Hathaway and Jeremy Strong.

Director: James Gray
Cinematographer: Darius Khondji
Produced by: Focus Features, Keep Your Head, MadRiver Pictures, RT Features
Polish distributor: UIP Polska
Country and year: USA, Brazylia, 2022

BEFORE, NOW & THEN

The titular character is an elegant, attractive woman who gives the impression that she has forgotten the traumatic circumstances leading to the death of her father and son. Leading a glamorous but empty life of a wealthy husband’s wife, Nana is, however, increasingly haunted by memories from the dark 1960s. Although the protagonist cannot count on understanding her surroundings and is thus immersed in melancholy, an unexpected meeting brings her a chance to get out of the marasm.

Original title: Nana
Director: Kamila Andini
Cinematographer: Batara Goempar
Produced by: Bolt Pictures, Moonlighting Films South Africa
Polish distributor: New Horizons Association
Kraj i rok: Indonesia, 2022

DALÍLAND

photo by Sylwia Olszewska

Dalíland is both a coming-of-age story and a searing, funny and sympathetic portrait of crisis in the late life of one of the greatest artists of the 20th century. The year is 1974, the location is New York, where the 70-year-old surrealist Salvador Dali lives a few months each year at the St Regis Hotel along with his wife and muse, the fierce and volatile Gala Dali. James Linton is a young gallery assistant to whom Dali takes a shine and who he brings into his private world to assist him as he prepares for his new show. It is through the eyes of James that we adventure into Dalíland.

Director: Mary Harron
Cinematographer: Marcel Zyskind
Produced by: Neon Productions, Popcorn Group, Pressman Film, Room 9 Entertainment, Serein Productions, Zephyr Films
Country and year: USA, 2022

DEVOTION

Devotion, an aerial war epic based on the bestselling book of the same title, tells the inspirational true story of two elite US Navy fighter pilots who helped turn the tide in the most brutal battle in the Korean War: Jesse Brown, the first Black aviator in US Navy’s history, and his fellow fighter pilot and friend, Tom Hudner. Their heroic sacrifices and enduring friendship would ultimately make them the most celebrated wingmen of the US Navy.

Director: J.D. Dillard
Cinematographer: Erik Messerschmidt
Produced by: Black Label Media, Sony Pictures Entertainment, Stage 6 Films, STX Entertainment
Polish distributor: Monolith Films
Country and year: USA, 2022

OFFICIAL COMPETITION

Photo by Manolo Pavon

When a billionaire entrepreneur impulsively decides to create an iconic movie, he demands the best. Renowned filmmaker Lola Cuevas is recruited to mastermind this ambitious endeavour. Completing the all-star team are two actors with massive talent but even bigger egos: Hollywood heartthrob Félix Rivero and radical theatre actor Iván Torres. Both are legends, but not exactly best friends. Through a series of increasingly eccentric trials set by Lola, Félix and Iván must confront not only each other, but also their own legacies. Who will be left when the cameras finally start rolling?

Original title: Competencia oficial
Polish title: Boscy
Directors: Mariano Cohn, Gastón Duprat
Cinematographer: Arnau Valls Colomer
Produced by: The MediaPro Studio
Country and year: Spain, Argentina, 2021

PARIS MEMORIES

One Saturday evening in autumn, Mia is caught in a terrorist attack on a Parisian bistro. Three months later, still unable to pick her life back up and remembering only fragments of that night, Mia decides to investigate her memories to find a way back to happiness.

Original title: Revoir Paris
Director: Alice Winocour
Cinematographer: Stéphane Fontaine
Produced by: Darius Films, Dharamsala
Country and year: France, 2022

RAYMOND & RAY

Raymond & Ray follows half-brothers Raymond and Ray who have lived in the shadow of a terrible father. Somehow they still each have a sense of humor, and his funeral is a chance for them to reinvent themselves. There’s anger, there’s pain, there’s folly, there might be love, and there’s definitely gravedigging.

Director: Rodrigo Garcia
Cinematographer: Igor Jadue-Lillo
Produced by: Apple Studios, Mockingbird Pictures
Country and year: USA, 2022

SOL’S JOURNEY

Sol is a divorced woman. One night, when she is on her way to claim her ex-husband’s payments of child-support, her seven-year-old son, Christian, is kidnapped. This traumatic event fills her with anger and despair. On her odyssey to find clues of Christian, she’ll become a victim of the system and the society’s lack of humanity, her voice being on the verge of extinction. Only the hope of finding Christian keeps her afloat. This film presents a human and personified vision of an unbearable loss and struggle.

Original title: El Camino de Sol
Director: Claudia Sainte-Luce
Cinematographer: Carlos Correa
Produced by: FIDECINE, Humanos defectuosos, Jaqueca Films
Country and year: Mexico, 2021

THE WHALE

Charlie has been living on the margins of the world for years. He is trapped in a small apartment by his morbid obesity. He is rejected, not without reason, by his loved ones, and is heading alone into life’s abyss. But all it takes is one impulse, one encounter, to light a flame of hope within him that not all is yet lost. Charlie tries to re-establish long-lost contact with his teenage daughter. He knows this will be an incredibly difficult meeting. He realizes that he risks losing his last illusion. However, he is ready to take this risk with the belief that there is still a chance for redemption for him as well.

Polish title: Wieloryb
Director: Darren Aronofsky
Cinematographer: Matthew Libatique
Produced by: A24, Protozoa Pictures
Country and year: USA, 2022

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We announce the line-up of the Contemporary World Cinema section of the 30th edition of EnergaCAMERIMAGE Film Festival.