Awarded
Feature Films
The
most recent award winners from big film festivals all over the world
are again to be found among the 27 films from 20 countries at this year's
Women's Worlds. “Storm” by Hans-Christian Schmid received
three prizes at the Berlinale 2009 and the Bernhard Wicki-prize at the
Munich Film Festival 2009. In the movie Hannah, a prosecutor for the
International UN-Court for former Yugoslavia in The Hague, is forced
to understand that it takes an enormous amount of courage for her witness
to testify against the war criminals. “Mar Nero” treats the
adventurous relationship between a brusque old Italian widow and her
sensitive domestic worker who has to earn money for her family in Romania
by working in Italy. The film won the Silver Leopard at the film festival
in Locarno. “Laskar Pelangi” from Indonesia shows a young
teacher who tries to maintain a school of creative education for mine
workers’ children at all costs. It was the audience’s favorite
at this year's Berlinale and was awarded at the film festival in Hong
Kong.
“Mammoth” by
Swedish star director Lukas Moodysson was nominated for the Golden Bear
2009. It tells the story of a Filipino single mother and a well-off New
Yorker couple who struggle with the difficulties in the parallel worlds
of globalization. Moodysson sensitively observed and portrayed the gap
between rich and poor. Parallel worlds can be found in Germany as well:
in “Schutzlos” a young cleaning lady from Honduras has to
take her children into a shadow world of illegality because they are
not safe in their country. Lead actress Carolina Vera will be able to
give the Tuebinger audience a deeper account of this true story. “Pandora’s
Box” tells the tale of three siblings in Istanbul who have to cope
with their headstrong mother who has the Alzheimer’s disease. The
film won two prizes in San Sebastian in 2008: best direction and best
lead actress.
“La
Nana”, awarded several times at the Sundance Film Festival 2009,
is about a maid in Chile who ingeniously scares her rivals away – until
she meets Lucy who is not intimidated by her actions. “Rusalka” tells
the fairy-tale of “The Little Mermaid” in modern Moscow in
a unique way and gained five awards, a.o. in Berlin and Sundance. Pang
Ho-Cheung portrays a very different world and set of problems in the
film “Exodus”: Is police officer Tsim really pursuing a world
conspiracy of women who plan to exterminate men? The satirical black
comedy was awarded in San Sebastian with the Jury’s prize. But
the most “delicious” comedy is “Tandoori Love”,
the opening movie for Women’s Worlds 2009. It is set in the Swiss
countryside, where Sonja’s life with fiancé Markus is well
ordered until Rajah, chef for a Bollywood film crew, shows up. He romances
Sonja with the art of Indian cooking and dancing, and her life with innkeeper
Markus is torn apart.
Thrilling Documentaries
The documentary-repertoire demonstrates a selection
of TERRE DES FEMMES subjects: the problems of stalking and domestic violence
in “Nach
Trennung Mord”, the fight against genital mutilation in “Hibos
Lied”, women in male-dominated jobs in “Some Real Heat” or “Weiberleut”. “Mein
Herz sieht die Welt Schwarz - eine Liebe in Kabul” about a young
couple in Kabul who tries to be together against all conventions, by the
mistress
of documentary filmmaking, Helga Reidemeister, was a big audience
success at the Berlinale
Irene Jung, Film Festival Director
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