Le Royaume de Kensuké – Neil BOYLE – Kirk HENDRY – 11:15 (United Kingdom)
For the kids
Théâtre La Comète
Eleven-year-old Michael, sailing around the world with his parents, is shipwrecked on a desert island with his dog, Stella, after a storm. A mysterious stranger gives them food and water. It is Kensuké, a former Japanese soldier living alone on the island with his friends, the orangutans. He opens the doors of his kingdom to Michael. When monkey traffickers try to invade the island, they join forces to save this paradise….
14-year-old Zeina and her family are the last to have stayed in their besieged hometown of Damascus in Syria. When a missile rips a giant hole in their home, an unimaginable world of possibility opens up for Zeina. As the violence outside escalates, the family is pressured to evacuate, but Mutaz, her father, is adamant that they stay, refusing to flee to the uncertain life of a refugee. Zeina and her mother must make the choice whether to stay or leave.
Coup de grâce – Volker SCHLÖNDORFF – 17:45 (France)
War as seen by...
Cinéma La Comète
The fate of three people caught up in the turmoil of the fighting between White Russians and Bolsheviks in the Balkans at the end of the First World War.
In a world hit by a wave of mutations that are gradually transforming some humans into animals, François does everything he can to save his wife, who is affected by this mysterious condition. As some of the creatures disappear into a nearby forest, he embarks with Emile, their 16-year-old son, on a quest that will change their lives forever.
The Smeds and the Smoos – Samantha CUTLER – Daniel SNADDON – 10:00 (United Kingdom)
For the kids
Cinéma La Comète
PREMIERE
This 37-minute programme includes the shot films: Sous les nuages, Somni, La Fiesta, and The Smeds and The Smoos.
On a faraway planet, Janet and Bill meet in the Wurpular Wood and fall in love. But their families, The Smeds and The Smoos, cannot accept the match due to generations of division.
The China Syndrome – James BRIDGES – 11:40 (United States)
Natural habitat, Paradoxes and crises #2
Lycée Bayen
Kimberly Wells, a television news reporter, Richard Adams, her cameraman, are witness to an accident in a power plant. While Jack Godell tries to contain the potential disaster, the situation is secretly filmed by Richard Adams, which then leads to a conflict of corporate forces and a climax that is nearly unbearable.
A Polish vehicle traverses the roads of Ukraine. On board, people are evacuated following the Russian invasion. This van becomes a fragile and transitory refuge, a zone of confidences and confessions of exiles who have only one objective, to escape the war.
The Smeds and the Smoos – Samantha CUTLER – Daniel SNADDON – 11:15 (United Kingdom)
For the kids
Cinéma La Comète
PREMIERE
This 37-minute programme includes the shot films: Sous les nuages, Somni, La Fiesta, and The Smeds and The Smoos.
On a faraway planet, Janet and Bill meet in the Wurpular Wood and fall in love. But their families, The Smeds and The Smoos, cannot accept the match due to generations of division.
Les Sentinelles de l'oubli – Jérôme PRIEUR – 15:30 (France)
Shared recollections #11
Cinéma La Comète
With director Jérôme Prieur in person.
The memorials of WWI have become so familiar that we no longer see them. They are an invisible museum that has come to merge with the landscapes of France. Then, one fine day, a sculpture catches our eye. Another story emerges, perhaps the biggest artistic project since the cathedrals. These statues take us into a world parallel to our own, where the ghosts of the Great War live on.
After the catastrophe in 1986, a 30-km restricted zone was erected around the Chernobyl nuclear power plant, and 116,000 persons were evacuated from this area. Pripyat is a portrait of the people who still live and work there, or who have moved back. Four protagonists tell their stories and provide a look at everyday life in "their" zone, a life with the invisible and incomprehensible danger of radioactivity.
This documentary follows Roman Polanski in the city where he grew up as a child, alongside his lifelong friend, the photographer Ryszard Horowitz, a Holocaust survivor whom we met in the Jewish ghetto of Kraków during the Second World War. Together, they wander around the streets and confront their memories…
We All Loved Each Other So Much – Ettore SCOLA – 20:35 (Italy)
Commedia all’italiana goes to war: an irresistible antidote
Lycée Bayen
In 1945, three friends who took part in the Italian resistance celebrate the fall of fascism and the end of the war. The monarchy is replaced by a republic and all three continue their lives separately, free of all fascist propaganda…
Les Sentinelles de l'oubli – Jérôme PRIEUR – 21:30 (France)
Shared recollections #11
Salles intercommunale Suippes
With director Jérôme Prieur in person.
The memorials of WWI have become so familiar that we no longer see them. They are an invisible museum that has come to merge with the landscapes of France. Then, one fine day, a sculpture catches our eye. Another story emerges, perhaps the biggest artistic project since the cathedrals. These statues take us into a world parallel to our own, where the ghosts of the Great War live on.
Wracked by guilt after covering up a murder, Mona, a northern Sudanese retired singer in a tense marriage tries to make amends by taking in the deceased’s southern Sudanese widow, Julia, and her son, Daniel, into her home. Unable to confess her transgressions to Julia, Mona decides to leave the past behind and adjust to a new status quo, unaware that the country’s turmoil may find its way into her home and put her face to face with her sins.
USSR, 1938. At the height of the Great Terror, Stalin purges his own ranks. Aware that it is his turn to be condemned, Captain Volkonogov escapes. As he flees, he is struck by a vision: to save his soul, he must confront the families of his victims and receive their forgiveness.
From Lincoln to the Present Day: a history of the United States in film
Cinéma La Comète
1863. The American Civil War is devastating the United States. Young Robert Gould Shaw is promoted to colonel of the first all-black regiment of volunteers, who signed up to fight a war they thought was theirs. They were wrong. Given menial tasks, despised by their officers, they revolt with Shaw as their leader. Volunteers in the assault of the impenetrable Fort Wagner, these heroes will pay a high price to retrieve their dignity.
Commedia all’italiana goes to war: an irresistible antidote
Lycée Bayen
It is 1943 and Rome is being bombed. Cesira, a young widow, flees the capital with her 13-year-old daughter, Rosetta. She returns to her native village of Santa Eufemia in the mountainous region of Ciociaria. She entrusts her grocery store to Giovanni, her coal-mining neighbour. The journey is dangerous, under a hail of bullets. Life is hard for the refugees. Michele, a young idealist, falls in love with Cesira and turns the head of Rosetta.
Serbia, 1996. During the student demonstrations against the Milosević's regime, 15-year-old Stefan has to go through the hardest revolution of all. He has to confront his beloved mother, spokesperson and accomplice of the corrupted government that his friends are rising against.
The Buriti Flower – João SALAVIZA – Renée NADER MESSORA – 16:10 (Portugal)
Feature Films International Competition
Théâtre La Comète
PREMIERE
Through her child’s eyes, Patpro will go through three periods of the history of her indigenous people, in the heart of the Brazilian forest. Tirelessly persecuted, but guided by their ancestral rites, their love of nature and their fight to preserve their freedom, the Krahô never stop inventing new forms of resistance.
Grand Central – Rebecca ZLOTOWSKI – 16:45 (France)
Natural habitat, Paradoxes and crises #2
Lycée Bayen
After a succession of odd jobs, he’s taken on at a nuclear power plant. There, amongst the reactors and their high doses of radioactivity, he finally finds what he’s been looking for: money, a team, a family. But the team also includes Karole, Toni’s wife, with whom he falls in love. Forbidden love and radiation slowly contaminate Gary. Each day is menacing.
Commedia all’italiana goes to war: an irresistible antidote
Cinéma La Comète
1940 in Libya. Lupi, a young sub lieutenant specialised in psychiatry, works in the medical service of the Italian army. There he meets Oscar Pilli, a medical officer with odd behaviour who is particularly disliked by his colleagues. Soon Lupi will find out why Oscar Pilli is being kept in the medical service…
The Vanishing Soldier – Dani ROSENBERG – 18:45 (Israel)
Feature Films International Competition
Théâtre La Comète
With director Dani Rosenberg in person.
PREMIERE
Shlomi, an eighteen-year-old Israeli soldier, flees the Gaza battlefield and heads to his girlfriend in Tel Aviv only to discover that the IDF elite is convinced he was kidnapped in the fog of war. This is a tragi-comic journey, taking place over a period of 24 hours in the hot and humid streets of Tel Aviv, shifting from terror to hope, from romance to nightmare.
Summer Of Soul (...Or When The Revolution Could Not Be Televised) – Ahmir "Questlove" THOMPSON – 20:05 (United States)
From Lincoln to the Present Day: a history of the United States in filmRock'n' War/Art'n'War #7
Cinéma La Comète
Over the course of six weeks in the summer of 1969, just one hundred miles south of Woodstock, The Harlem Cultural Festival was filmed in Marcus Garvey Park — an epic event that celebrated Black history, culture, and fashion. The footage was never seen and largely forgotten—until now. Summer of Soul shines a light on the importance of history to our spiritual well-being and stands as a testament to the healing power of music during times of unrest.
Mississippi Burning – Alan PARKER – 22:30 (United States)
From Lincoln to the Present Day: a history of the United States in film
Lycée Bayen
1964. Three civil rights activists mysteriously disappear in Mississippi. Ward and Anderson, two F.B.I. agents with different but complementary approaches, are sent to investigate. Their inquiries soon begin to ruffle feathers and violent incidents break out against a backdrop of racism in a town where the Ku Klux Klan kindles hatred and violence…
The Siege of Sarajevo lasted from April 1992 to February 1996. Young men were called up to protect their city, a few of them chose to take along their cameras to face the violence they witnessed throughout those grueling 1,425 days. Now, 30 years later, they show us their films and share their wartime filming experiences and thoughts on cinema as a means of survival and resistance.
Four Daughters – Kaouther BEN HANIA – 22:30 (France)
Points of view 2023
Cinéma La Comète
With the director Kaouther Ben Hania and the producer Nadim Cheikhoura in person.
Between light and darkness stands Olfa, a Tunisian woman and the mother of four daughters. One day, her two older daughters disappear. To fill in their absence, the filmmaker Kaouther Ben Hania invites professional actresses and invents a unique cinema experience that will lift the veil on Olfa and her daughters’ life stories. An intimate journey of hope, rebellion, violence, transmission and sisterhood that will question the very foundations of our societies.
Chicken for Linda! – Chiara MALTA – Sébastien LAUDENBACH – 10:15 (France)
For the kids
Centre culturel Mourmelon
PREMIERE
Paulette realizes she has unfairly punished her daughter Linda. To make up for it, she promises to cook her chicken with peppers, even though she cannot cook at all. But where to find a chicken on a strike day, when all the shops are closed?
Chicken for Linda! – Chiara MALTA – Sébastien LAUDENBACH – 10:55 (France)
For the kids
Cinéma La Comète
PREMIERE
Paulette realizes she has unfairly punished her daughter Linda. To make up for it, she promises to cook her chicken with peppers, even though she cannot cook at all. But where to find a chicken on a strike day, when all the shops are closed?
Commedia all’italiana goes to war: an irresistible antidote
Lycée Bayen
Former resistance fighter Silvio Magnozzi struggles to hold on to his fervent left-wing political beliefs. Working as a politically committed journalist, he finds it increasingly hard to provide for his family. His wife, Elena, who reproaches him for his idealism and for not taking advantage of the Italian economic miracle, leaves him. Silvio then attempts to win her back by accepting to compromise himself with a rich industrialist.
The Siege of Sarajevo lasted from April 1992 to February 1996. Young men were called up to protect their city, a few of them chose to take along their cameras to face the violence they witnessed throughout those grueling 1,425 days. Now, 30 years later, they show us their films and share their wartime filming experiences and thoughts on cinema as a means of survival and resistance.
The Vanishing Soldier – Dani ROSENBERG – 15:30 (Israel)
Feature Films International Competition
Théâtre La Comète
With director Dani Rosenberg in person.
PREMIERE
Shlomi, an eighteen-year-old Israeli soldier, flees the Gaza battlefield and heads to his girlfriend in Tel Aviv only to discover that the IDF elite is convinced he was kidnapped in the fog of war. This is a tragi-comic journey, taking place over a period of 24 hours in the hot and humid streets of Tel Aviv, shifting from terror to hope, from romance to nightmare.
Chicken for Linda! – Chiara MALTA – Sébastien LAUDENBACH – 15:15 (France)
For the kids
Centre culturel Mourmelon
PREMIERE
Paulette realizes she has unfairly punished her daughter Linda. To make up for it, she promises to cook her chicken with peppers, even though she cannot cook at all. But where to find a chicken on a strike day, when all the shops are closed?
Alsace in the late summer of 1918. Luise, a young farmer, lives alone on an isolated farm near the French border. One morning, in her house, she discovers Hélène, a French woman pursued by Hermann, a German soldier. Being injured, Hermann is forced to stay on the farm for a while, even though this makes him a deserter. Luise decides to give them both shelter. While the two women get closer to each other, Hermann feels increasingly excluded and tries to stand in their way.
Ghettos Of The Shoah – Barbara NECEK – 15:40 (France)
Shared recollections #11
Lycée Bayen
With the producer Fabrice Frank in person.
More than 1,000 ghettos were established between 1939 and 1941. It is widely believed they were created by the Nazi leadership as a temporary measure, pending the “Final Solution”. But this new historical perspective on the chronology of the Shoah allows us to consider the ghettos in a new light with access to never released personal archives, film, letters and photographs.
Every day, the world over, large amounts of radioactive waste are placed in interim storages. In Finland the world's first permanent repository is being hewn out of solid rock, a huge system of underground tunnels that must last hundred thousand years. How is it possible to warn our descendants of the deadly waste we left behind? Which languages and signs will they understand? Experts strive to find solutions to this crucial problem.
With director David Oelhoffen, Louis Descols uniform expert on the set,and Eve-Lize Blanc Deleuze, head ofMission Cinéma et Industries Créatives (MCIC), in person.
PREMIERE
9 March 1945. The Japanese army launches a sudden and violent attack against the French garrisons in Indochina. Hunted by the Japanese enemy, a column of legionnaires already weakened by alcohol and tropical disease, set off into the heart of the jungle in an attempt to reach the allied bases over 300 km away…
Syrian refugee Ahmed hopes to find love with Mehdia, an Ethiopian cleaner. But in Beirut that seems impossible… Will these refugee lovers find a way to be free as Ahmed, a survivor of the war in Syria, seems afflicted by a mysterious illness that turns his body little by little into metal?
In the Heat of the Night – Norman JEWISON – 20:00 (United States)
From Lincoln to the Present Day: a history of the United States in film
Lycée Bayen
Virgil Tibbs is a black police officer in the North of the United States. When visiting a small town in the South where most people are extremely racist, he finds himself involved in a murder investigation.
Screening followed by the masterclass with Volker Schlöndorff, WoS 2023 guest of honour.
August 1944. The Allies enter Paris. Before dawn, Dietrich von Choltitz, German military governor of Paris, prepares to execute Adolph Hitler's orders to blow up the French capital. Bridges and monuments are all rigged to explode. Swedish Consul General Raoul Nordling steals into German headquarters through a secret underground tunnel and there starts a tension-filled game of cat and mouse as Nordling tries to persuade Choltitz to abandon his plan.
1980. Southern Iran. The people of Abadan have been fighting an Iraqi siege. Amongst them is the 14-year-old Omid, who chose to stay in the city with his grandfather, waiting for his elder brother to return from the frontline. But how can you resist in a war without taking up arms? Then Omid finds an abandoned ship in Abadan’s harbor. Is this the answer to saving the people he loves?
The Smeds and the Smoos – Samantha CUTLER – Daniel SNADDON – 09:40 (United Kingdom)
For the kids
Auditorium Mairie Mourmelon
PREMIERE
This 37-minute programme includes the shot films: Sous les nuages, Somni, La Fiesta, and The Smeds and The Smoos.
On a faraway planet, Janet and Bill meet in the Wurpular Wood and fall in love. But their families, The Smeds and The Smoos, cannot accept the match due to generations of division.
BlacKkKlansman – Spike LEE – 11:55 (United States)
From Lincoln to the Present Day: a history of the United States in film
Lycée Bayen
The early 1970s, a time of great social upheaval as the struggle for civil rights rages on. Ron Stallworth becomes the first African-American detective in the Colorado Springs Police Department, but his arrival is greeted with open hostility by the department’s rank and file. Undaunted, Stallworth resolves to make a name for himself and a difference in his community. He bravely sets out a dangerous mission: infiltrate and expose the Ku Klux Klan.
With the director David Oelhoffen in person and Louis Descols, uniform expert on the set.
PREMIERE
9 March 1945. The Japanese army launches a sudden and violent attack against the French garrisons in Indochina. Hunted by the Japanese enemy, a column of legionnaires already weakened by alcohol and tropical disease, set off into the heart of the jungle in an attempt to reach the allied bases over 300 km away…
The Smeds and the Smoos – Samantha CUTLER – Daniel SNADDON – 10:50 (United Kingdom)
For the kids
Auditorium Mairie Mourmelon
PREMIERE
This 37-minute programme includes the shot films: Sous les nuages, Somni, La Fiesta, and The Smeds and The Smoos.
On a faraway planet, Janet and Bill meet in the Wurpular Wood and fall in love. But their families, The Smeds and The Smoos, cannot accept the match due to generations of division.
From Where They Stood – Christophe COGNET – 15:40 (France)
Points of view 2023Shared recollections #11
Lycée Bayen
With director Christophe Cognet in person.
A handful of prisoners in WWII camps risked their lives to take clandestine photographs and document the hell the Nazis were hiding from the world. In the vestiges of the camps, director Christophe Cognet retraces the footsteps of these courageous men and women in a quest to unearth the circumstances and the stories behind their photographs, composing as such an archeology of images as acts of defiance.
Lincoln – Steven SPIELBERG – 16:45 (United States)
From Lincoln to the Present Day: a history of the United States in film
Médiathèque Pompidou
The final turbulent months of the mandate of the 16th President of the United States. In a nation torn apart by civil war and shaken by the winds of change, Abraham Lincoln endeavors to resolve the conflict, unite the country and abolish slavery. This man of exceptional determination and moral courage will have to make choices that will change the destiny of generations to come.
Wracked by guilt after covering up a murder, Mona, a northern Sudanese retired singer in a tense marriage tries to make amends by taking in the deceased’s southern Sudanese widow, Julia, and her son, Daniel, into her home. Unable to confess her transgressions to Julia, Mona decides to leave the past behind and adjust to a new status quo, unaware that the country’s turmoil may find its way into her home and put her face to face with her sins.
Circle of Deceit – Volker SCHLÖNDORFF – 19:30 (Germany)
War as seen by...
Cinéma La Comète
In Beirut torn apart by civil war, a German reporter sent to cover the events meets up with a former mistress, living in Lebanon with her husband. In this tormented city, he discovers the many faces of a conflict that will have consequences for him far beyond his work as a journalist.
With director David Oelhoffen, the uniform expert on the set Louis Descols, and with the General Gravêthe in person.
PREMIERE
9 March 1945. The Japanese army launches a sudden and violent attack against the French garrisons in Indochina. Hunted by the Japanese enemy, a column of legionnaires already weakened by alcohol and tropical disease, set off into the heart of the jungle in an attempt to reach the allied bases over 300 km away…
Isra’a lives with her husband Ahmed and their three children in Aden, in Southern Yemen. Their day to day lives are regulated by the civil war. Ahmed, who worked for the television, had to leave his job and become a driver. When Isra’a discovers she is pregnant again, the couple faces another crisis. They both know they can’t afford a fourth child. Together they decide to have an abortion.
This unique cinematic experience dives deep into an artist’s work and reveals his life path, inspiration, and creative process. It explores his fascination with myth and history. Past and present are interwoven to diffuse the line between film and painting, allowing the audience to be completely immersed in the remarkable world of one of the greatest contemporary artists, Anselm Kiefer. Wim Wenders shot this unique portrait over the course of two years in stunning 3D.
After a Hong Kong nuclear plant and the Mercantile Trade Exchange in Chicago are hacked by unknown perpetrators, a federal agent proposes that the FBI work with China to find the cyber-criminals. The leader of the Chinese team insists that convicted hacker Nick Hathaway be released from prison to help with the investigation. As Nick and his comrades chase their quarry, it becomes evident that the hackers have a sinister motive for their actions.
Everybody Go Home! – Luigi COMENCINI – 12:25 (Italy)
Commedia all’italiana goes to war: an irresistible antidote
Médiathèque Pompidou
September 8, 1943. Mussolini is deposed and Italy signs the armistice with the Allies. Sublieutenant Innocenzi and two of his men attempt to return home. The journey will be long and eventful, comical and heartrending…
Isra’a lives with her husband Ahmed and their three children in Aden, in Southern Yemen. Their day to day lives are regulated by the civil war. Ahmed, who worked for the television, had to leave his job and become a driver. When Isra’a discovers she is pregnant again, the couple faces another crisis. They both know they can’t afford a fourth child. Together they decide to have an abortion.
Luis, an 18-year-old boy with Indigenous roots, enters the Heroic Military College in hopes of ensuring a better future. There, he encounters a rigid and institutionally violent system designed to turn him into a perfect soldier.
Half-raccoon half-badger, the Tanukis happily shared their habitat with country folk. Interspersed with tribal skirmishes, their carefree lives made them unaware of an increasingly close human presence… Until people decided to take over their land and turn the mountain into a town.
Serbia, 1996. During the student demonstrations against the Milosević's regime, 15-year-old Stefan has to go through the hardest revolution of all. He has to confront his beloved mother, spokesperson and accomplice of the corrupted government that his friends are rising against.
I Am Not Your Negro – Raoul PECK – 19:45 (United States)
From Lincoln to the Present Day: a history of the United States in film
Lycée Bayen
Based on the words and writing of African American writer James Baldwin, Raoul Peck brings us a film that looks back over the social and political struggles of African Americans in recent decades. A personal reflection on American society, echoing the situation in France today.
A Polish vehicle traverses the roads of Ukraine. On board, people are evacuated following the Russian invasion. This van becomes a fragile and transitory refuge, a zone of confidences and confessions of exiles who have only one objective, to escape the war.
They Shot the Piano Player – Fernando TRUEBA – Javier MARISCAL – 20:40 (Spain)
Points of view 2023Rock'n' War/Art'n'War #7
Cinéma La Comète
PREMIERE
A New York music journalist sets out to find the truth behind the tragic disappearance of young Brazilian piano virtuoso Tenorio Jr. Celebrating the world-renowned Latin music movement Bossa Nova, They Shot The Piano Player captures a fleeting period of creative freedom at a turning point in Latin American history in the 1960s and 1970s, just before the continent was engulfed by totalitarian regimes.
The Tin Drum – Volker SCHLÖNDORFF – 12:50 (Germany)
War as seen by...
Cinéma La Comète
Born in Dantzig in 1924, Oskar, a child astonishingly mature beyond his years, listens to the comments of those around him with lucid skepticism. At the age of three, he brutally stops growing by deliberating falling down the stairs. With his little drum that never leaves his side, Oskar sets the tempo to the twists and turns of his life and of history, from the rise of Nazism to World War II.
The Buriti Flower – João SALAVIZA – Renée NADER MESSORA – 12:40 (Portugal)
Feature Films International Competition
Théâtre La Comète
PREMIERE
Through her child’s eyes, Patpro will go through three periods of the history of her indigenous people, in the heart of the Brazilian forest. Tirelessly persecuted, but guided by their ancestral rites, their love of nature and their fight to preserve their freedom, the Krahô never stop inventing new forms of resistance.
The Survival of Kindness – Rolf DE HEER – 15:40 (Australia)
Points of view 2023
Cinéma La Comète
With the presence of the director Rolf De Heer.
PREMIERE
In a cage on a trailer in the middle of the desert, BlackWoman is abandoned. But BlackWoman seems not ready to pass...she escapes, and walks through pestilence and persecution, from desert to canyon to mountain to city, on a quest that leads to a city, recapture and tragedy.
Luis, an 18-year-old boy with Indigenous roots, enters the Heroic Military College in hopes of ensuring a better future. There, he encounters a rigid and institutionally violent system designed to turn him into a perfect soldier.
