From Paradjanov to Josef Mengele – Controversial Stories at Cinepolitica

During the 90th year since the birth of one of the most talented filmmakers of the world, Sergei Paradjanov, Cinepolitica International Film Festival brings the biopic Paradjanov, Ukraine’s submission to the Academy Award for Best Foreign Language Film, for the first time in Bucharest. Renowned actor and director Serge Avedikian, co-director Olena Fetisova and producer Volodimir Kozyr will be present at the screening in the Cinepolitica Competition. The third edition of the festival takes place between April 8th and 13th, at Cinema Studio, Elvira Popescu and Union.
 

Screened in over ten major festivals, including Karlovy Vary and Toronto, Paradjanov is “an unconventional biopic for an unconventional artist”, as described by The Hollywood Reporter. Serge Avedikian plays the part of the eccentric artist of Armenian origin, who was admired by both Federico Fellini and Andrei Tarkovski. The director led a riotous life, being arrested for three times, taken to labor camps and imprisoned, and ending up on the black list of Soviet cinema after facing charges of homosexuality and bribery. A spectacular film, Paradjanov highlights some of the key moments in the life of the Georgian-born filmmaker, including the making of the most important films of his career: Shadows of Forgotten Ancestors (1968) and The Color of Pomegranates (1968). (trailer)
 

Les Interdits / Friends from France, also takes a look back at the former USSR, during 1979. Directed by Philippe Kotlarski and Anne Weil, this is an intriguing film about the “refuseniks”, the Jews who were harrassed by the Russian Secret Service for trying to emigrate outside of the Soviet territory. Two French cousins, Carole (Stéphanie Sokolinski) and Jérôme (Jérémie Lippmann), estrange themselves from the group they had been visiting Odessa with, in order to discover an entirely new, absurd and brutal world. (trailer)
 

Another controversial topic is addressed by The German Doctor / Wakolda, an Argentinian drama by Lucía Puenzo, about the famous Nazi doctor Josef Mengele, the man who conducted atrocious experiments on the Jews in the concentration camp in Auschwitz. Argentina’s submission to the Academy Awards in 2014 follows Mengele (Alex Brendemühl) during the 60s, as he was going under cover in Patagonia and his appetite for experiments was starting to re-emerge. As part of the cast you will also recognize Natalia Oreiro. The German Doctor had its world premiere in the Cannes Film Festival section Un Certain Regard. (trailer)
 

Another film in competition, screened for the first time in Romania, is the Nigerian film Half of a Yellow Sun, directed by Biyi Bandele. Starring Chiwetel Ejiofor, the actor recently nominated for the Academy Award for Best Actor for his role in 12 Years of Slave, and the actress Thandie Newton (Crash), the film is a moving love story about young Nigerians caught in the midst of the civil war. Half of a Yellow Sun received enthusiastic reviews at its world premiere in Toronto, being the most revered African film of 2013. (trailer)

Besides these four films, Cinepolitica 2014 Competition also lines up The Square, nominated for the Academy Awards for Best Documentary Film, Neighbouring Sounds, by Kleber Mendonça Filho, Brazil’s submission for the Academy Awards, the documentary Fire in the Blood, directed by Dylan Mohan Gray and narrated by William Hurt, and Occupation: the 27th Picture, directed by Pavo Marinković.

Organized by the Association for Culture and Image, Cinepolitica International Film Festival is endorsed by the National University of Theatre and Film "I.L. Caragiale" (UNATC) and the National University of Arts (UNArte). The event is organized with the support of the National Cinema Centre (CNC).

Partners: Bucharest General Municipality, Romanian Cultural Institute, National School of Political Science and Public Administration (SNSPA), Faculty of History of the Bucharest University, British Council, Embassy of the Federal Republic of Germany, French Institute Bucharest, Wallonie-Bruxelles Delegation, Austrian Cultural Forum, Polish Institute, Balassi Institute - Hungarian Institute in Bucharest, Embassy of the Republic of Armenia, Cervantes Institute, Italian Institute for Culture "Vito Grasso", Romanian Filmmakers' Union, National Film Archive - Romanian Cinematheque.

Media partners: Radio Guerrilla, Observator Cultural, Ziarul Ring, Șapte Seri, Ziare.com, Hotnews.ro, CinemaRx.ro, Cinemagia.ro, Port.ro, Studentie.ro, Liternet.ro, Ziarul Metropolis, Getlokal.ro, Orasulm.eu, Filmreporter.ro, Casa Jurnalistului, Cooperativa Urbana, Societatesicultura.ro, Koolhunt.ro, Cinefan.ro, BlogdeCinema.ro, Facultatea de Istorie.