LIFFe is an interesting, unique festival with a strong program of high-quality Balkan films. Its Perspectives program is judged by both the main jury and the FIPRESCI jury. Ljubljana has a very important geographical position in the middle of Western Europe and the Balkans, and therefore Perspectives includes both European and Balkan movies.
This year there were ten films, including the German 24 Weeks, a portrait of a modern woman facing a tough decision about the life or death of her unborn child. The Brazilian movie Aquarius is about the psychological war for an apartment waged between a real estate company and a lonesome widow, brilliantly portrayed by the diva of Brazilian cinema, Sonia Braga. Quit Staring at My Plate is a Croatian drama which spotlights a young girl taking charge as the head of her family, while A Good Wife is about a middle-aged housewife in post-war Serbia forced to face several unpleasant truths. These films all feature a strong woman as protagonist.
The FIPRESCI Prize went to the animation feature The Red Turtle by Academy Award- winner Michael Dudok de Wit; the film is notable as the Japanese Studio Ghibli’s first-ever international co-production. The Red Turtle is the story of a man shipwrecked on a tropical island inhabited by turtles, crabs and birds. At first he tries to make his way back to the world he left behind, building a raft from long bamboo poles and setting out to sea, only to be obstructed by a massive red turtle nearly as big as himself, which demolishes the vessel every time he reaches a certain distance from the shore. It was a very interesting film about humans and nature. People get through to nature, and at the same time, nature gets through to humans.
Ljubljana is a very romantic old European city, full of happy faces. You can explore almost all of it on foot, which is an inviting prospect during festival time. After 27 years, LIFFe has entranced audiences, and people come to see movies throughout the week: the cinemas are always crowded with film lovers.
Kinodvor, one of the cinemas, has a very special audience. It was built in 1923 to provide the city with a luxurious cinema. During its early years as the Kino Sloga, the core program consisted of silent films by top European and American film directors such as Lang, Chaplin and Renoir. At the start of the 1990s it was renamed Kinodvor; then, after many difficulties, it re-opened in October 2008 and took a new direction. It has a mission to promote film culture, starting with the film education of young audiences, and meeting the needs of the more demanding cinephiles. The Kinodvor has a very deep significance for LIFFe – this old and magnificent movie theatre makes you feel that the festival continues all year long.LIFFe is an interesting, unique festival with a strong program of high-quality Balkan films. Its Perspectives program is judged by both the main jury and the FIPRESCI jury. Ljubljana has a very important geographical position in the middle of Western Europe and the Balkans, and therefore Perspectives includes both European and Balkan movies. This year there were ten films, including the German 24 Weeks, a portrait of a modern woman facing a tough decision about the life or death of her unborn child. The Brazilian movie Aquarius is about the psychological war for an apartment waged between a real estate company and a lonesome widow, brilliantly portrayed by the diva of Brazilian cinema, Sonia Braga. Quit Staring at My Plate is a Croatian drama which spotlights a young girl taking charge as the head of her family, while A Good Wife is about a middle-aged housewife in post-war Serbia forced to face several unpleasant truths. These films all feature a strong woman as protagonist. The FIPRESCI Prize went to the animation feature The Red Turtle by Academy Award- winner Michael Dudok de Wit; the film is notable as the Japanese Studio Ghibli’s first-ever international co-production. The Red Turtle is the story of a man shipwrecked on a tropical island inhabited by turtles, crabs and birds. At first he tries to make his way back to the world he left behind, building a raft from long bamboo poles and setting out to sea, only to be obstructed by a massive red turtle nearly as big as himself, which demolishes the vessel every time he reaches a certain distance from the shore. It was a very interesting film about humans and nature. People get through to nature, and at the same time, nature gets through to humans. Ljubljana is a very romantic old European city, full of happy faces. You can explore almost all of it on foot, which is an inviting prospect during festival time. After 27 years, LIFFe has entranced audiences, and people come to see movies throughout the week: the cinemas are always crowded with film lovers. Kinodvor, one of the cinemas, has a very special audience. It was built in 1923 to provide the city with a luxurious cinema. During its early years as the Kino Sloga, the core program consisted of silent films by top European and American film directors such as Lang, Chaplin and Renoir. At the start of the 1990s it was renamed Kinodvor; then, after many difficulties, it re-opened in October 2008 and took a new direction. It has a mission to promote film culture, starting with the film education of young audiences, and meeting the needs of the more demanding cinephiles. The Kinodvor has a very deep significance for LIFFe – this old and magnificent movie theatre makes you feel that the festival continues all year long.
Edited by Lesley Chow
© FIPRESCI 2016