Awards & Foreign Screening Series 2014

FINDING VIVIAN MAIER takes us from New York to France to Chicago and across the globe following the mysterious life of Vivian Maier – a career nanny who, upon her death in 2009, left behind over 100,000 photos and negatives. John Maloof, a then 26-year-old amateur historian, discovered this treasure trove at an auction and made it his mission to put Vivian Maier in the history books. In FINDING VIVIAN MAIER, Maloof and filmmaker Charlie Siskel trace this gifted artist\’s double life by tracking down the children (now adults) who Maier nannied, the parents who employed her, and dozens of others who thought they knew her. The film unravels the story of a profound and complex woman who The New York Times called \”one of America\’s more insightful street photographers,\” becoming not only a celebration of one of the greatest unsung artists of our time, but also a mind boggling investigation to discover who Vivian Maier really was

Pierre Dulaine, an internationally renowned ballroom dancer, fulfills a life-long dream when he takes his program, Dancing Classrooms, back to his city of birth, Jaffa. Over a ten-week period, Pierre teaches 10-year- old Palestinian-Israeli and Jewish- Israeli children to dance and compete together. Dancing in Jaffa explores the complex stories of three different children, who are forced to confront issues of identity, segregation and racial prejudice as they dance with their enemy. The classroom becomes a microcosm of the Middle East\’s struggle to work together harmoniously while still caught in the politics of the region and race. With the guidance of Pierre, the children learn to dance together and trust one another. Dancing In Jaffa offers an up-close-and-personal perspective of how the future might unfold if the art of movement and dance could triumph over the politics of history and geography.

Timbuktu is silent, the doors closed, the streets empty. No more music, no tea, no cigarettes, no bright colors, no laughs. The women have become shadows. The religious fundamentalists are spreading terror in the region. In the dunes, away from the chaos, Kidane enjoys a quiet life with his wife Satima, his daughter Toya and Issan, his little shepherd. But his peace is short-lived. After accidentally killing Amadou, a fisherman who stroke down his favorite cow, Kidane must face the law of the new foreign rulers determined to defeat an open and tolerant Islam. Against the humiliations and acts of brutality performed by these complex men, Timbuktu tells the story of the silent struggle of the people, the fight for life of little Issan, and the uncertain future of the children.

Starring Eddie Redmayne (“Les Misérables”) and Felicity Jones (“The Amazing Spider-Man 2”), this is the extraordinary story of one of the world’s greatest living minds, the renowned astrophysicist Stephen Hawking, who falls deeply in love with fellow Cambridge student Jane Wilde. Once a healthy, active young man, Hawking received an earth-shattering diagnosis at 21 years of age. With Jane fighting tirelessly by his side, Stephen embarks on his most ambitious scientific work, studying the very thing he now has precious little of – time. Together, they defy impossible odds, breaking new ground in medicine and science, and achieving more than they could ever have dreamed. The film is based on the memoir \”Travelling to Infinity: My Life with Stephen,\” by Jane Hawking, and is directed by Academy Award winner James Marsh (“Man on Wire”).

War in Abkhazia 1992: local Abkhazians are fighting to break free from Georgia. An Estonian village between the mountains has become empty, almost everyone has returned to their homeland, only 2 men have stayed: Ivo and Margus. But Margus will leave as soon as he has harvested his crops of tangerines. In a bloody conflict in their miniature village wounded men are left behind, and Ivo is forced to take them in. But they are from opposite sides of the war. This is touching anti-war story about Estonians who find themselves in the middle of someone else\’s war. How do they handle it? How do the enemies act under third-party roof?

In 2011, music legend Glen Campbell set out on an unprecedented tour across America. They thought it would last 5 weeks instead it went for 151 sold out shows over a year and a half across America. What made this tour different was that Glen had recently been diagnosed with Alzheimer’s disease. He was told to hang up his guitar and prepare for the inevitable. Instead, Glen and his wife went public with his diagnosis and announced that he and his family would set out on a \”Goodbye Tour.” The film documents this journey as he and his family attempt to navigate the wildly unpredictable nature of Glen’s progressing disease using love, laughter and music as their medicine of choice. Special appearances include Bruce Springsteen, The Edge, Paul McCartney, Blake Shelton, Sheryl Crow, Keith Urban, Brad Paisley, Taylor Swift, Steve Martin, Chad Smith and Bill Clinton among many others.

Narrated by Alfre Woodard with Swahili Translation by Lupita Nyong’o… The Hadza, East Africa’s last remaining true hunter-gatherers and perhaps the original “indigenous people,” have lived sustainably on their land near the Rift Valley birthplace of humanity for over 50,000 years. They have occupied one place probably longer than any other group on the planet, and their foraging lifestyle characterizes most of human history. Due to modern-day encroachments, the Hadza’s land and way of life are currently under attack — and a vital tie to our evolutionary roots may be lost forever. In addition to the remarkable Hadza themselves, the film features Jane Goodall, the late Wangari Maathai and a host of internationally renowned experts in anthropology, evolutionary biology, genetics, linguistics and nutrition who outline how important the Hadza are in understanding our origins. Like other indigenous peoples around the globe, the Hadza now face grave land and human rights challenges to their way of life. The film is a call to action to establish a protective land corridor for the survival of the Hadza as a community.

During a cold winter night, a cyclist is hit by a SUV and then abandoned to agonize in the frozen snow. The mysterious episode, on which the police will investigate, connects the events of the members of two families: the petty-bourgeois family of Ossola and the one rich and venerated of Bernaschi. Through a sophisticated narration divided into four chapters, freely adapted by American noir novel, the film explores human and inhuman ambitions, generational conflicts and social splendor and misery of North Italy province, ending with a mocking flavor epilogue that does not seem to fulfill anybody.

Twenty years after the release of Nas\’s landmark debut album \’Illmatic,\’ NAS: TIME IS ILLMATIC captures the enduring spirit of the young generation that found a voice in his insightful poetry. Returning to his childhood home in Queensbridge, Nas shares stories of his upbringing, his influences — from the music of his jazz musician father Olu Dara to the burgeoning hip-hop scene in New York City that was heavily influenced by an era of racial and socio-political inequality–and the obstacles he faced before his major label signing at age 19. Featuring interviews with his \’Illmatic\’ producers (Large Professor, Pete Rock, Q-Tip, L.E.S., and DJ Premier) and musical peers (including Pharrell Williams and Alicia Keys), NAS: TIME IS ILLMATIC is a thrilling account of Nas\’s evolution from a young street poet to a visionary MC.

After his tribe is slaughtered through an act of treachery, Hongi – a Maori chieftain\’s teenage son – must avenge his father\’s murder in order to bring peace and honor to the souls of his loved ones. Vastly outnumbered by the band of villains, Hongi\’s only hope is to pass through the feared and forbidden Dead Lands and forge an uneasy alliance with the mysterious \’Warrior\’ a ruthless fighter who has ruled the area for years.

During the winter of 1952, British authorities entered the home of mathematician, cryptanalyst and war hero Alan Turing (Benedict Cumberbatch) to investigate a reported burglary. They instead ended up arresting Turing himself on charges of ‘gross indecency’, an accusation that would lead to his devastating convication for the criminal offense of homosexuality – little did officials know, they were actually incriminating a pioneer of modern-day computing. Famously leading a motley group of scholars, linguists, chess champions and intelligence officers, he was credited with cracking the so-called unbreakable codes of Germany’s World War II Enigma machine.

In Israel there is neither civil marriage nor civil divorce. Only rabbis can legitimate a marriage or its dissolution. But this dissolution is only possible with full consent from the husband, who in the end has more power that the judges. Viviane Amsalem has been applying for divorce for three years. But her husband Elisha will not agree. His cold intransigence, Viviane\’s determination to fight for her freedom, and the ambiguous role of the judges shape a procedure in which tragedy vies with absurdity, and everything is brought out for judgment, apart from the initial request.

From acclaimed director Pawel Pawlikowski (Last Resort, My Summer of Love) comes IDA, a moving and intimate drama about a young novitiate nun in 1960s Poland who, on the verge of taking her vows, discovers a dark family secret dating from the terrible years of the Nazi occupation. 18-year old Anna (stunning newcomer Agata Trzebuchowska), a sheltered orphan raised in a convent, is preparing to become a nun when the Mother Superior insists she first visit her sole living relative. Naïve, innocent Anna soon finds herself in the presence of her aunt Wanda (Agata Kulesza), a worldly and cynical Communist Party insider, who shocks her with the declaration that her real name is Ida and her Jewish parents were murdered during the Nazi occupation. This revelation triggers a heart-wrenching journey into the countryside, to the family house and into the secrets of the repressed past, evoking the haunting legacy of the Holocaust and the realities of postwar Communism. In this beautifully directed film, Pawlikowski returns to his native Poland for the first time in his career to confront some of the more contentious issues in the history of his birthplace. Powerfully written and eloquently shot, IDA is a masterly evocation of a time, a dilemma, and a defining historical moment; IDA is also personal, intimate, and human. The weight of history is everywhere, but the scale falls within the scope of a young woman learning about the secrets of her own past. This intersection of the personal with momentous historic events makes for what is surely one of the most powerful and affecting films of the year.

When Norwegian scientist Marie attends a seminar in Paris on the actual weight of a kilo, it is her own measurement of disappointment, grief and, not least, love, that ends up on the scale.

Andrew Neiman is an ambitious young jazz drummer, single-minded in his pursuit to rise to the top of his elite east coast music conservatory. Plagued by the failed writing career of his father, Andrew hungers day and night to become one of the greats. Terence Fletcher, an instructor equally known for his teaching talents as for his terrifying methods, leads the top jazz ensemble in the school. Fletcher discovers Andrew and transfers the aspiring drummer into his band, forever changing the young man’s life. Andrew’s passion to achieve perfection quickly spirals into obsession, as his ruthless teacher continues to push him to the brink of both his ability –and his sanity.

THE LIBERATOR journeys through the impassioned struggle of revolutionary leader Simón Bolivar\’s (Edgar Ramírez) fight for independence in Latin America from Spain and his vision of a united South American nation. In this groundbreaking endeavor, Bolivar unites different races, social classes, and nations to defeat the Spanish Empire and create an equal Latin America. Based off a script by Timothy Sexton (\”Children of Men\”), this epic tale is directed by Alberto Arvelo , starring Edgar Ramírez (\”Carlos\”, \”Zero Dark Thirty\”), Erich Wildpret, Maria Valverde (\”The Anarchist\’s Wife\”), Alex Furth, Danny Huston (\”Children of Men\”), Imanol Arias and Juana Acosta.

Kurmanjan Datka Queen of the Mountains is a historical epic from Kyrgyzstan, set in the 19th century, which tells the true story of Kurmanjan Datka, a strong willed woman who becomes the ruler of her country and saves the nation from total destruction when the Russians invade.

Starring Academy Award-winners Kevin Costner and Octavia Spencer, BLACK OR WHITE is the story of a grandfather (Costner) who is suddenly left to care for his beloved bi-racial granddaughter. When the little girl’s paternal grandmother (Spencer) seeks custody, a legal battle ensues that forces the families to confront their true feelings on race, forgiveness and understanding. Based on a real-life situation, the movie is a look at two seemingly different worlds, in which nothing is as simple as black or white. Also starring Anthony Mackie, Jennifer Ehle, Gillian Jacobs, Bill Burr, André Holland, Mpho Koaho and introducing Jillian Estell.

The canvas of the film stretches from a small village on the mountains called Chitkul, which borders China to the industrial land of big dreams, Delhi city. It’s about a young mother, Kamala and her 3-year-old daughter from a tribal community who embarks on a journey leaving their native land in search of her missing husband. Along this journey she encounters an army deserter who realizing the perils of the journey ahead for them, decides to accompany them to their destination. This film talks about a sense of futility; anger against the system and also explores the dynamics of a man woman relationship. It’s a linear narrative travel story with a more alarming backdrop of the socio political conditions of India today.

With the dissolution of her marriage and the death of her mother, Cheryl Strayed has lost all hope. After years of reckless, destructive behavior, she makes a rash decision. With absolutely no experience, driven only by sheer determination, Cheryl hikes more than a thousand miles of the Pacific Crest Trail, alone. Wild powerfully captures the terrors and pleasures of one young woman forging ahead against all odds on a journey that maddens, strengthens, and ultimately heals her.

From Oscar® nominated and Emmy award-winning filmmakers, RED ARMY is a feature documentary about the Soviet Union and the most successful dynasty in sports history: the Red Army hockey team. Told from the perspective of its captain Slava Fetisov, the story portrays his transformation from national hero to political enemy. From the USSR to Russia, the film examines how sport mirrors social and cultural movements and parallels the rise and fall of the Red Army team with the Soviet Union. RED ARMY is an inspiring story about the Cold War played out on the ice rink, and a man who stood up to a powerful system and paved the way for change for generations of Russians.

Simon Axler (Al Pacino) is a famed stage actor who becomes depressed and then suicidal when he suddenly and inexplicably loses his gift. In an attempt to get his mojo back, he has an affair with a lesbian woman half his age. Before long, the relationship causes chaos as people from the romantic duo’s pasts resurface.

Based on a popular novel of the same name by Ioanna Karystiani, \”Little England\” refers to the island of Andros, rich in maritime tradition. Taking place during the 1930s and 40s in wartime Greece, two sisters are united and divided by a terrible secret, spending their lives in love with the same man. A story of passion, family and loss and a tribute to the seafaring men who leave their homes behind.

Olympic Gold Medal-winning wrestler Mark Schultz (Channing Tatum) is struggling in obscurity and poverty in Wisconsin when he is invited by wealthy heir John du Pont (Steve Carell) to move on to his lavish estate to form a team and to train for the 1988 Seoul Olympics. Schultz seizes the opportunity, eager to step out of the shadow of his revered older brother Dave (Mark Ruffalo), a prominent wrestling coach and Gold Medal winner himself. With his vast financial resources and state-of-the-art training facility at Foxcatcher Farm, du Pont appoints himself head coach of the team, eager to win the respect of his peers and the approval of his condemning mother (Vanessa Redgrave). The dynamic between Schultz and du Pont deepens as Mark embraces his benefactor as a father figure. But du Pont\’s mercurial personality and psychological gameplay begins to weigh heavily on Mark\’s shaky self-esteem, undermining his abilities on the mat. When du Pont\’s favoritism shifts to brother Dave — who possesses the authority and confidence both he and Mark lack — the trio is propelled towards a tragedy no one could have foreseen.

During the Nicaraguan war, the Central American armed conflicts and the fight of the revolutionary forces against the CONTRA, the eleven-year-old Claudia and her younger sister Antonia are the daughters of two Sandinista activists who are forced to flee Nicaragua for Costa Rica in the 80s. Claudia played the game of being a revolutionary, but in the middle of war, politics turn not to be such a funny game anymore.

Birdman or The Unexpected Virtue Of Ignorance is a black comedy that tells the story of an actor (Michael Keaton) – famous for portraying an iconic superhero – as he struggles to mount a Broadway play. In the days leading up to opening night, he battles his ego and attempts to recover his family, his career, and himself.

SELMA is the story of a movement. The film chronicles the tumultuous three-month period in 1965, when Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. led a dangerous campaign to secure equal voting rights in the face of violent opposition. The epic march from Selma to Montgomery culminated in President Johnson (Tom Wilkinson) signing the Voting Rights Act of 1965, one of the most significant victories for the civil rights movement. Director Ava DuVernay‘s SELMA tells the story of how the revered leader and visionary Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. (David Oyelowo) and his brothers and sisters in the movement prompted change that forever altered history.

A behind-the-scenes look inside the historic case to overturn California\’s ban on same-sex marriage. The high-profile trial first makes headlines with the unlikely pairing of Ted Olson and David Boies, political foes who last faced off as opposing attorneys in Bush v. Gore. The film also follows the plaintiffs, two gay couples who find their families at the center of the same-sex marriage controversy. Five years in the making, this is the story of how they took the first federal marriage equality lawsuit to the U.S. Supreme Court.

From the whimsical mind of director Tim Burton, BIG EYES tells the outrageous true story of one of the most epic art frauds in history. In the late 1950s and early 1960s, painter Walter Keane (Christoph Waltz) had reached success beyond belief, revolutionizing the commercialization of popular art with his enigmatic paintings of waifs with big eyes. The bizarre and shocking truth would eventually be discovered though: Walter’s works were actually not created by him at all, but by his wife Margaret (Amy Adams). The Keanes, it seemed, had been living a colossal lie that had fooled the entire world. A tale too incredible to be fiction, BIG EYES centers on Margaret’s awakening as an artist, the phenomenal success of her paintings, and her tumultuous relationship with her husband, who was catapulted to international fame while taking credit for her work.

Filmed over 12 years with the same cast, Richard Linklater\’s Boyhood is a groundbreaking story of growing up as seen through the eyes of a child named Mason (a breakthrough performance by Ellar Coltrane), who literally grows up on screen before our eyes. Starring Ethan Hawke and Patricia Arquette as Mason\’s parents and newcomer Lorelei Linklater as his sister Samantha, Boyhood charts the rocky terrain of childhood like no other film has before. Snapshots of adolescence from road trips and family dinners to birthdays and graduations and all the moments in between become transcendent, set to a soundtrack spanning the years from Coldplay\’s Yellow to Arcade Fire\’s Deep Blue. Boyhood is both a nostalgic time capsule of the recent past and an ode to growing up and parenting.